Final Fantasy XIII for Xbox 360

Hold the front page! The hottest piece of breaking news coming out of this week's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), the games industry's biggest trade show, is the next Final Fantasy title will not be exclusive to the PlayStation 3 as expected. The hotly-awaited title will now launch simultaneously on both the PS3 and the Xbox 360 in Europe and America, but not Japan, were it remains a PS3-exclusive. Perhaps this isn't surprising considering Microsoft's lack of success over there.

It's the first time a full game in the 85 million-selling Final Fantasy saga (as opposed to a spin-off title) has been released on more than one machine at launch, and the first time since 1997's Final Fantasy VII that its initial release hasn't been a PlayStation-exclusive.

According to Square boss Yoichi Wada, “We believe that releasing a 360 version will allow us to provide a game to even more fans in North America and Europe. And we’re working hard on its development. Last of all, I‘d like to thank [Microsoft's] Don Mattrick for giving me the opportunity.”

Take a look at the E3 trailer, courtesy of YouTube...