May 16^th, 2005 (10:22pm) - Microsoft revealed during its pre-E3 press conference that it has secured Final Fantasy XI as the very first Square Enix game to ever appear of a Microsoft console. Other Square Enix games are expected to follow.

"We’re honored that Square Enix will make games like Final Fantasy XI for the millions of Xbox fans who have anticipated this historical moment for quite some time," said Robbie Bach, senior vice president and chief Xbox officer in the Home and Entertainment Division at Microsoft. "Together, we will chart a new course for the future of video game entertainment."

Final Fantasy XI is not the traditional kind Final Fantasy RPG that fans have come to know and love for nearly two decades. FFXI is actually an MMORPG title has already seen a release for the PlayStation 2 and for the PC, with a number of expansion packs already available as well. This makes FFXI the very first MMORPG to be available over Microsoft’s Xbox Live online game service. Visual upgrades are expected the 360 version of the game.

"Xbox has become a major force in video-game innovation, and we couldn’t be more captivated by the Xbox 360 canvas," said Yoichi Wada, president of Square Enix. "As the world’s first cross-platform online game with more than 500,000 users, ’FINAL FANTASY XI’ will take advantage of the incredible power of the Xbox 360 platform, immersing gamers in spellbinding stories that come to life in high definition and through collaborative online gameplay."