Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII PC Will Release "Around December"

Square Enix has announced Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII will be available on PC "around December." According to a Twitter update from producer Yoshinori Kitase, the port is in the late stages of development and nearing completion.

Kitase did not, however, provide an exact release date, saying only that more details will be divulged once they're finalised.

The Final Fantasy XIII series of games was initially released on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, but Square Enix began to make them available on the PC in October. Although Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy XIII-2 were released in succession, the third and final game in the trilogy did not follow as quickly.

Square Enix has not yet confirmed how much Lightning Returns will cost on PC, but the first two games in the series were available on Steam for around $15.

Looking forward, Square Enix has said it will announce the release date for Final Fantasy XV, the next entry in the mainline series, in March. Hajime Tabata, director of the game, has stressed the importance of attracting new players to the series, saying the franchise "will shrink and shrink as the years go on" without them.

"Certainly, in recent years, getting new fans is something we haven't done very well; we really haven't achieved that [growth]," he said. "You look at all the elements of Final Fantasy that make up its identity over the generations, and obviously many of those are very useful, meaningful things.

"But there are some that have been used many times which may be turning off new people. We've really got to go through and ask, 'Are they necessary?' and be proactive about cutting out the ones that stop people coming into the franchise."