Final Fantasy is one of those video game franchises that has a long history behind it, and if you aren't a part of it, you may never have even heard of it.  It has been a long time since the series has had an offering, but Final Fantasy 15 is finally coming with its release date of September 30, 2016.  This is what is known about Final Fantasy 15's release date, as well as news about its gameplay and the recent offering of Final Fantasy IX on Steam. 

For years, Final Fantasy fans were given a release date that never happened, and now an official one was given at the Final Fantasy event that took place at the end of last month.  With this announcement came several new Final Fantasy related items that will be able to bring those unfamiliar with the franchise on board. 

One of them is a mini-series known as Brotherhood: Final Fantasy 15, available free of charge to stream online.  It will reveal a lot of the backstory of the protagonist Noctis and his three companions that will join him on the journey in Final Fantasy 15.  This is a five-part anime mini-series with the first already available, and then arriving once a month starting in June, according to Ars Technica.  In addition to the mini-series, there is also a feature-length CG movie known as Kingsglaive, Final Fantasy 15 which will be released just before the official launch of Final Fantasy 15. 

As far as what Final Fantasy 15 will be like, there has been reports that one of Japan's greatest games will have a western influence.  A recent interview with Final Fantasy 15's director Hajime Tabata on PushSquare said that there is an impact of Western role-playing games, and that one of the games my development team played a lot last year was The Witcher 3. 

If that is the case, then Final Fantasy 15 will follow The Witcher's formula of a huge open world, as well as tons of quests.  It is clear that Final Fantasy 15's world is one that has been developed over decades, and it is full of beautiful landmarks that the players can see for themselves. 

In other Final Fantasy news, fans of Final Fantasy IX will be pleased to know that one of the greatest Japanese role-playing games has arrived on the PC thanks to Steam.   According to Venture Beat, the game normally costs $20, but is now on sale for $16.79, and this version has new features like auto-saving and turning off at random encounters. 

No doubt something like this will satiate true Final Fantasy fans until Final Fantasy 15 comes out at the end of September.