A new interview with Square Enix by Dengeki reveals a bit of new information on Final Fantasy XIII, including just what separates the PlayStation 3 version from the Xbox 360 version.
The PlayStation 3 version of Final Fantasy XIII will be rendered on a dual-layer blu-ray disc due to the game’s massive size. This is the only other PS3 game to accommodate a dual-layer disc since Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots. The Xbox 360 version on the other hand spans multiple discs (no word on how many), but in result offers compressed audio and video, while the PlayStation 3 media is uncompressed.
A “Secrets” menu in the game features unlockables; for example, unlocking a certain trophy (it wasn’t stated which) will also unlock a theme for the PS3’s XMB dashboard. There is no word on whether the same goes for Xbox 360, probably because this is a Japanese interview and only the PS3 version is releasing there.
As for some other tidbits, there is no loading before or after battles, character portraits displayed on status screens move, and Dengeki says this is one of the most intense, exciting battle systems in Final Fantasy history.
Get excited. Final Fantasy XIII releases exclusively on PlayStation 3 in Japan on December 17th. The game will release in North America and Europe on March 9, 2010 for both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.