Square Enix has revealed the first trailer for Final Fantasy 7 Remake: Part 2, and it is officially called Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth.

Revealed during Square Enix's 25th Anniversary event for the original Final Fantasy 7, the second part in the company's planned multi-part series will release next winter in 2023.

Rebirth appears to divert dramatically from the plot of Final Fantasy 7 where it was left off in Remake, in keeping with the ways in which Remake already indicated the sequence of events might not be the same as fans of the original remember. In the trailer, we got to see a lot of Crisis Core's Zack Fair, for instance, who is supposed to have died at the end of the original Crisis Core but was set up for an appearance during Remake. Since we also got an announcement of a Crisis Core remake called Crisis Core Final Fantasy 7 Reunion today, it's likely we see all of these stories dovetail into something new and unexpected.

Final Fantasy 7 Remake was released in 2020 and delivers on the promise of bringing the classic RPG into the modern era. IGN reviewed Final Fantasy 7 Remake and gave it an 8 out of 10, calling it an exciting take on the classic while standing on its own as a great RPG. The game eventually got a PS5 upgrade, Intergrade, and a great DLC chapter, Intermission bridges the gap with the upcoming Part 2. The Intergrade addition was announced today for Steam on June 17 as well, and is compatible with Steam Deck.

Final Fantasy 7 has become a sub-series all of its own in recent years, with Ever Crisis (a remake in a very different form), Final Soldier (a mobile battle royale), and even more spin-offs promised. Square Enix is also working on Final Fantasy 16, as well as providing ongoing updates for Final Fantasy 14.

Casey is a freelance writer for IGN. You can usually find him talking about JRPGs on Twitter at @caseydavidmt.

Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 is really real, with Zack in all his glory. Announced at today's Final Fantasy 7 25th Anniversary stream, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion is planned for release on Xbox Series X and S, PS5, PS4, Switch, and PC sometime this winter.

Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion is a prequel to the original Final Fantasy 7, released for PSP in the west in 2008. The game gained unexpected new relevance when Final Fantasy 7 Remake seemed to include a shot-for-shot remake of Crisis Core's ending, but drastically changed its outcome, seemingly setting up prequel protagonist Zack Fair for an appearance in the main games.

We caught another glimpse of Zack later during the show, too, as part of the trailer for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, indicating that he'll continue to have a greater role in the remake series as well as it seems to be shifting a number of the original game's main story beats. With Final Fantasy 7 Remake now situated as a trilogy, Crisis Core Reunion seems to be positioned as a prequel to the new story the series is trying to tell.

In our original review, we awarded it an 8.5/10, saying "Crisis Core is a great PSP game -- no question. It honors Final Fantasy VII's legacy."

Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.

Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 is really real, with Zack in all his glory.

Announced at today's Final Fantasy 7 25th Anniversary stream, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion is planned for release on Xbox Series X and S, PS5, PS4, Switch, and PC sometime this winter.

Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion is a prequel to the original Final Fantasy 7, released for PSP in the west in 2008. The game gained unexpected new relevance when Final Fantasy 7 Remake seemed to include a shot-for-shot remake of Crisis Core's ending, but drastically changed its outcome, seemingly setting up prequel protagonist Zack Fair for an appearance in the main games.

We caught another glimpse of Zack later during the show, too, as part of the trailer for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, indicating that he'll continue to have a greater role in the remake series as well as it seems to be shifting a number of the original game's main story beats. With Final Fantasy 7 Remake now situated as a trilogy, Crisis Core Reunion seems to be positioned as a prequel to the new story the series is trying to tell.

In our original review, we awarded it an 8.5/10, saying "Crisis Core is a great PSP game -- no question. It honors Final Fantasy VII's legacy."

Rebekah Valentine is a news reporter for IGN. You can find her on Twitter @duckvalentine.

Capcom has officially announced Dragon's Dogma 2, a sequel to the studio's 2012 action RPG.

Hideaki Itsuno, the director of the original Dragon's Dogma, announced the sequel at the end of the 10 Years of Dragon's Dogma livestream today. Besides learning that it the new game is being developed on the RE Engine, we received no further information about the game besides a logo on a shirt worn by Itsuno.

Dragon's Dogma was directed by Capcom's Hideaki Itsuno, best known for his work on Devil May Cry. Dragon's Dogma's focus on real-time combat in a dark medieval fantasy world intrigued fans, but it was the deep action system, AI-controlled allies, and deep RPG roots that earned it a lot of fans. Even when the series failed financially.

While fans' hope for a proper sequel was dim, Capcom's high-profile data leak, which indicated Dragon's Dogma 2 in the works, led to a new optimism.

There was also hope after Netflix chose to bring a Dragon's Dogma anime to its subscribers in 2020. In our Dragon's Dogma anime review, we said, "the action and visuals are fantastic, but the meandering plot doesn’t match the scope and grandeur of the show."

Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Capcom has officially announced Dragon's Dogma 2, a sequel to the studio's 2012 action RPG.

Hideaki Itsuno, the director of the original Dragon's Dogma, announced the sequel at the end of the 10 Years of Dragon's Dogma livestream today. Besides learning that it the new game is being developed on the RE Engine, we received no further information about the game besides a logo on a shirt worn by Itsuno.

Dragon's Dogma was directed by Capcom's Hideaki Itsuno, best known for his work on Devil May Cry. Dragon's Dogma's focus on real-time combat in a dark medieval fantasy world intrigued fans, but it was the deep action system, AI-controlled allies, and deep RPG roots that earned it a lot of fans. Even when the series failed financially.

While fans' hope for a proper sequel was dim, Capcom's high-profile data leak, which indicated Dragon's Dogma 2 in the works, led to a new optimism.

There was also hope after Netflix chose to bring a Dragon's Dogma anime to its subscribers in 2020. In our Dragon's Dogma anime review, we said, "the action and visuals are fantastic, but the meandering plot doesn’t match the scope and grandeur of the show."

Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Independent Developers @Xbox is hosting yet another demo event as a part of Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest promotion. Starting on June 21st and running through June 27th, players will be able to get their hands on 30 demos of upcoming unreleased games for Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One, according to an Xbox Wire release.

Though the full lineup will be announced closer to the June 21st launch, some games showcased on the Xbox Wire were Batora: Lost Haven, Broken Pieces, Severed Steel and Tinykin.

The Wire release encouraged players to leave feedback for game developers on what they like and don't to improve the gaming experience ahead of these titles' eventual release date.

"The developers would love to hear what you think. Hit them up on social media or through their websites. If you like the game – tell them! If you have constructive criticism, they would love to hear that too," the Wire said.

This is the third installment of Xbox's Summer Game Demo Fest, an event tied to Xbox's Independent Developers program, which aims to enable "qualified game developers of all sizes to unleash their creativity by self-publishing digital games on Xbox and Windows with Xbox Live, or adding Xbox Live to iOS or Android games, giving studios the tools and support needed to maximize their success," according to their site.

Xbox also stressed that these demos are not like their usual demos, which are often representative of the final product. Instead, these are very early access versions of these games, which they say will allow players to leave feedback early on and follow along with their development but stress are like "show floor demos" that will continue to evolve.

The Wire also said that these demos would only be up on the Xbox Dashboard for a week, and though some might be re-published to the Demo channel later, many will disappear at the end of the week. So check them out while you can.

Diego Ramos Bechara is a freelance writer at IGN.

Independent Developers @Xbox is hosting yet another demo event as a part of Geoff Keighley’s Summer Game Fest promotion. Starting on June 21st and running through June 27th, players will be able to get their hands on 30 demos of upcoming unreleased games for Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One, according to an Xbox Wire release.

Though the full lineup will be announced closer to the June 21st launch, some games showcased on the Xbox Wire were Batora: Lost Haven, Broken Pieces, Severed Steel and Tinykin.

The Wire release encouraged players to leave feedback for game developers on what they like and don't to improve the gaming experience ahead of these titles' eventual release date.

"The developers would love to hear what you think. Hit them up on social media or through their websites. If you like the game – tell them! If you have constructive criticism, they would love to hear that too," the Wire said.

This is the third installment of Xbox's Summer Game Demo Fest, an event tied to Xbox's Independent Developers program, which aims to enable "qualified game developers of all sizes to unleash their creativity by self-publishing digital games on Xbox and Windows with Xbox Live, or adding Xbox Live to iOS or Android games, giving studios the tools and support needed to maximize their success," according to their site.

Xbox also stressed that these demos are not like their usual demos, which are often representative of the final product. Instead, these are very early access versions of these games, which they say will allow players to leave feedback early on and follow along with their development but stress are like "show floor demos" that will continue to evolve.

The Wire also said that these demos would only be up on the Xbox Dashboard for a week, and though some might be re-published to the Demo channel later, many will disappear at the end of the week. So check them out while you can.

Diego Ramos Bechara is a freelance writer at IGN.

Comic artist Tim Sale, who was responsible for the article of iconic stories including The Long Halloween, died of undisclosed causes today on Thursday. He was 66.

The news was broken via a tweet posted on his official Twitter account.

"It’s with a heavy sadness that I must announce that Tim Sale passed away today. He passed with the love of his life beside him, and loves all of you very much. Please share photos and stories under this post, as we hope to share them with the community," the tweet reads.

It’s with a heavy sadness that I must announce that Tim Sale passed away today. He passed with the love of his life beside him, and loves all of you very much. Please share photos and stories under this post, as we hope to share them with the community.

— Remembering Tim Sale (@ArtBySale) June 16, 2022

During his life, Sale had worked alongside comic book writer Jeph Loeb to illustrate the pannels of acclaimed Batman comics like Batman: The Long Halloween, Batman Noir: Dark Victory, Catwoman: When In Rome, among others. These Batman comics are considered one of the best of the Caped Crusader, equally revered for their dark, character-driven stories and equally compelling art.

When IGN first reviewed it, we said it "shows how far DC's current continuity books have fallen. This is tight, engrossing and intelligent writing that never betrays the characters. Perhaps if the sequel, Dark Victory did not follow, the ending might feel too unfinished. The fact that the story and the mystery continues through a second year (and stands up quite) is a testament to Loeb and Sale's ultimate vision."

But Sale wasn't just known for his work on Batman. His art permeated the stories of both DC and Marvel comics, like Marvel's Color series, including Daredevil: Yellow, Hulk: Grey, and Captain America: White, which Loeb also wrote.

The official DC Comics Twitter account also posted a remembrance tweet, honoring his work and contributions: "Tim Sale was an incredible artist, whose take on iconic characters had real human depth, and his groundbreaking page designs changed the way an entire generation thinks about comic book storytelling. Our condolences go to Tim’s family and friends. He will be deeply missed."

Tim Sale was an incredible artist, whose take on iconic characters had real human depth, and his groundbreaking page designs changed the way an entire generation thinks about comic book storytelling. Our condolences go to Tim’s family and friends. He will be deeply missed. pic.twitter.com/VgXxu7O0V4

— DC (@DCComics) June 16, 2022

Sale's Twitter account will start posting community messages honoring his life and work tomorrow.

Blogroll Image Credit: DC Comics

Diego Ramos Bechara is a freelance writer at IGN.

Comic artist Tim Sale, who was responsible for the article of iconic stories including The Long Halloween, died of undisclosed causes today on Thursday. He was 66.

The news was broken via a tweet posted on his official Twitter account.

"It’s with a heavy sadness that I must announce that Tim Sale passed away today. He passed with the love of his life beside him, and loves all of you very much. Please share photos and stories under this post, as we hope to share them with the community," the tweet reads.

It’s with a heavy sadness that I must announce that Tim Sale passed away today. He passed with the love of his life beside him, and loves all of you very much. Please share photos and stories under this post, as we hope to share them with the community.

— Remembering Tim Sale (@ArtBySale) June 16, 2022

During his life, Sale had worked alongside comic book writer Jeph Loeb to illustrate the pannels of acclaimed Batman comics like Batman: The Long Halloween, Batman Noir: Dark Victory, Catwoman: When In Rome, among others. These Batman comics are considered one of the best of the Caped Crusader, equally revered for their dark, character-driven stories and equally compelling art.

When IGN first reviewed it, we said it "shows how far DC's current continuity books have fallen. This is tight, engrossing and intelligent writing that never betrays the characters. Perhaps if the sequel, Dark Victory did not follow, the ending might feel too unfinished. The fact that the story and the mystery continues through a second year (and stands up quite) is a testament to Loeb and Sale's ultimate vision."

But Sale wasn't just known for his work on Batman. His art permeated the stories of both DC and Marvel comics, like Marvel's Color series, including Daredevil: Yellow, Hulk: Grey, and Captain America: White, which Loeb also wrote.

The official DC Comics Twitter account also posted a remembrance tweet, honoring his work and contributions: "Tim Sale was an incredible artist, whose take on iconic characters had real human depth, and his groundbreaking page designs changed the way an entire generation thinks about comic book storytelling. Our condolences go to Tim’s family and friends. He will be deeply missed."

Tim Sale was an incredible artist, whose take on iconic characters had real human depth, and his groundbreaking page designs changed the way an entire generation thinks about comic book storytelling. Our condolences go to Tim’s family and friends. He will be deeply missed. pic.twitter.com/VgXxu7O0V4

— DC (@DCComics) June 16, 2022

Sale's Twitter account will start posting community messages honoring his life and work tomorrow.

Blogroll Image Credit: DC Comics

Diego Ramos Bechara is a freelance writer at IGN.

Fans of Returnal might get to see the spirit of the game live on in Housemarque's next game. According to Video Game Chronicle, cut concepts of the game could find a home in the studio's next IP.

Today VCG published a portion of an upcoming interview with Returnal narrative designer Eevi Korhonen. In the interview Korhonen spoke about how ambitious the bullet hell, roguelike shooter was and commented on the studio's next steps.

“We dreamt super big, but we still had to leave so much on the cutting room floor. All of these ideas and narrative systems. I’m super excited to pick up those pieces and see how those fit our new IP story."

“We didn’t quite have the handle on how big [Returnal] was going to be, building for a new platform on a new engine with a new team, all of those things require some learning. Now we have that team that has gone through the fire and learned how to build a game like Returnal. So now we get to start off stronger," Korhonen told VGC.

Korhonen also said "it remains to be seen" if we'll get to see more of the game's hero, Selene. We've known since March that Housemarque's next game won't be a sequel to the award winning PS5 game. So, at the very least, Selene and all the creatures of Atropos are on hiatus for now.

If you haven't dove into Returnal since its release, now is a great time to jump back in. In March, co-op capabilties as well as a new survival mode were added, though you can't play the survival mode with a friend.

In our review, we loved Returnal's gameplay, weapons, and challange, calling it "an incredible roguelike, and one of Housemarque’s best games to date."

Casey is a freelance writer for IGN. You can usually find him talking about JRPGs on Twitter at @caseydavidmt.