Microsoft Poo Poos FF XIII Conspiracy Theories

Microsoft has come out and... well, not quite denied that any money changed hands for Final Fantasy XIII to appear on the Xbox 360, but certainly cast aspersions on the idea.

Speaking in an interview, Xbox Marketing Director Albert Pennello said of scuttlebutt that Microsoft has paid for FFXIII, “I think the most obvious reason that they made the announcement is just looking at the success of our console...Square has done games for us in the past, and I think there’s a point where Square just has to look at the Xbox 360, the install base and attach rates that we’re seeing and actually has to make a decision on their own that it’s the right thing to do for them.

“I think it’s easy to assume that something’s going on behind the scenes, I think the more obvious answer is we’re doing really well and the game creators want their games to be where the most people and the most consoles [are], and right now that’s the Xbox 360.”

Well, Albert, that might seem like the most obvious answer to you, but it doesn't necessarily make it true, does it? That said, Pennello's comments do fit with those of Square. Shortly after the announcement that FFXIII will be heading to the Xbox 360, Square Enix producer, Shinji Hashimoto said of the decision, "We considered the hardware situation. Because of that, we considered the spread of the hardware, so that's why we decided that."

^{Source: MondoRare}