Famitsu reports that Square-Enix has licensed Unreal Engine 3 from Epic. This was the same engine used to make Gears of War and is going to be used for Mistwalker’s Lost Odyssey. Taku Murata, General Manager, Research and Development Division, Square Enix, Co., Ltd explains why, “The complexity of next-generation game systems featuring HD graphics and multi-core parallel processing poses a number of technological challenges to our game development. However, we can expedite our game development process significantly while allowing extra time and resources to be spent on game design and mechanics by establishing an effective technology platform. The technology platform for game development is becoming more important than ever. I’m excited to be partnering with Epic Games in such an important area.”
“We’re extremely excited to be working with Square Enix,” said Jay Wilbur, Vice President, Epic Games, Inc. “Square Enix is one of the biggest and most influential companies in the world-wide game business, and having them work with Unreal Engine 3 is a major honor for us and something we’re very proud to be announcing.”
It is unclear what games Square-Enix plans to use the Unreal Engine with, but its probably not Final Fantasy XIII. Square-Enix has said they have an original engine called the “White Engine” that is being developed for the game.
