desertcart.com: Final Fantasy Ultimania Archive Volume 3: 9781506708010: Square Enix: Books Review: This book was originally published in 2012 in Japan - This book primarily features artwork and concept art along with translations. Like other people have said, this book is quite lacking in regards to its XIV content, but I would like people to know that this Ultimania Archive book series was already published in Japan in 2012 for the franchise’s 25th anniversary. Yes, they could’ve included more for the base game, but it is understandable for its lack of coverage for the expansions. Since the HD remasters of X|X-2 and XII had not been released at that time, new artwork for said games are not included as well, other than the box art and release date. I am a huge XIII fan and this book is great in providing a more inside look into the thought and art direction that went into this game. It doesn't include every artwork that has been published elsewhere or shared publicly, but it does have art that I haven’t seen before and that were not even included in the Ultimania books (such as Ultimania Omega, Scenario Ultimania, and Battle Ultimania that other FF titles—including spin-offs—receive) that were released in Japan. I noticed that there was even a piece of art included that I only had the chance of seeing from attending the 30th Anniversary Art Exhibition at Gallery Nucleus! There are relationship charts for the characters of each game with the exception of XIV. There are also pages going into short descriptions of NPCs and side characters. At the very end there are some comments from some of the people who worked on the games, such as art director Isamu Kamikokuryo and composer Naoshi Mizuta. One thing I absolutely love about this book is seeing all of the pencil sketches and concepts side by side with the finalized CG art. Even storyboards are included! X receives an entire section of storyboards while XII and XIII each get one scene, I believe. All in all, if you are a fan of FF this is definitely a book you should consider getting, but if you’re primarily into XIV, then maybe not. And hey, since this book series and the FF novels have been getting English translations, maybe the aforementioned Ultimania books may receive them too! Fingers crossed. Review: A lovely book, read it in one sitting. - I'm going to be honest and say that I only read through this once. It's a coffee table book, one meant to catch eyes and to happily skim through while awaiting something else. Or it could sit happily on a shelf. As long as you keep that in mind, the pretty art and the interesting trivia is an absolute 10/10. For Final Fantasy fans, at least one of the Ultimania's is a must-have. Pick the one with your favorite game in it!
| Best Sellers Rank | #839,062 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #230 in Video Game Art (Books) #1,194 in Dark Horse Comics & Graphic Novels #1,709 in Pop Culture Art |
| Book 3 of 3 | Final Fantasy Ultimania Archive |
| Customer Reviews | 4.9 4.9 out of 5 stars (1,720) |
| Dimensions | 8.75 x 1.25 x 12.31 inches |
| Edition | Illustrated |
| ISBN-10 | 1506708013 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1506708010 |
| Item Weight | 4.6 pounds |
| Language | English |
| Print length | 336 pages |
| Publication date | June 11, 2019 |
| Publisher | Dark Horse Books |
| Reading age | 12 years and up |
X**H
This book was originally published in 2012 in Japan
This book primarily features artwork and concept art along with translations. Like other people have said, this book is quite lacking in regards to its XIV content, but I would like people to know that this Ultimania Archive book series was already published in Japan in 2012 for the franchise’s 25th anniversary. Yes, they could’ve included more for the base game, but it is understandable for its lack of coverage for the expansions. Since the HD remasters of X|X-2 and XII had not been released at that time, new artwork for said games are not included as well, other than the box art and release date. I am a huge XIII fan and this book is great in providing a more inside look into the thought and art direction that went into this game. It doesn't include every artwork that has been published elsewhere or shared publicly, but it does have art that I haven’t seen before and that were not even included in the Ultimania books (such as Ultimania Omega, Scenario Ultimania, and Battle Ultimania that other FF titles—including spin-offs—receive) that were released in Japan. I noticed that there was even a piece of art included that I only had the chance of seeing from attending the 30th Anniversary Art Exhibition at Gallery Nucleus! There are relationship charts for the characters of each game with the exception of XIV. There are also pages going into short descriptions of NPCs and side characters. At the very end there are some comments from some of the people who worked on the games, such as art director Isamu Kamikokuryo and composer Naoshi Mizuta. One thing I absolutely love about this book is seeing all of the pencil sketches and concepts side by side with the finalized CG art. Even storyboards are included! X receives an entire section of storyboards while XII and XIII each get one scene, I believe. All in all, if you are a fan of FF this is definitely a book you should consider getting, but if you’re primarily into XIV, then maybe not. And hey, since this book series and the FF novels have been getting English translations, maybe the aforementioned Ultimania books may receive them too! Fingers crossed.
B**Z
A lovely book, read it in one sitting.
I'm going to be honest and say that I only read through this once. It's a coffee table book, one meant to catch eyes and to happily skim through while awaiting something else. Or it could sit happily on a shelf. As long as you keep that in mind, the pretty art and the interesting trivia is an absolute 10/10. For Final Fantasy fans, at least one of the Ultimania's is a must-have. Pick the one with your favorite game in it!
R**T
Extremely Satisfying & Excellent Product
Has a fantastic collection of concept art, design and final fantasy related work. A book every final fantasy fan can enjoy and who is interested in the progress that goes into the creations and concepts. As an added bonus it can be used as art work reference for ones own art or simply be used as a collectors product. Eagerly and highly recommendable to anyone interested in this book.
A**R
Better than Expected
Everything about this book is nice. It came in much larger than I thought it would. The image quality is superb and the paper it's printed on isn't some cheap low # paper weight. The details that go into the book are incredible. Definitely recommend for any FF fan! Side Notes: I bought on a lightning deal for $20. Keeping my eyes on the other Volumes and will definitely look to purchase someday if they come in at roughly the same price.
R**R
A perfect compliment to volumes 1&2
If you have even a mild interest in Final Fantasy, you'll want to pick this up, especially if you've already bought Volumes 1&2 (and if you didn't, you should). My only gripe about this volume is that it stops short of including FFXV. Otherwise, perfection. Amazing art, great information, and 100% quality binding and printing. Love it.
S**E
Good gift for that ff fan in your life
Bought this book for my friend who's a big fan of the series, and she has been absolutely loving it. She has gone through it and found things that's not completely explained in the games, and found art that she didn't even notice before from all the times she played. The book also came in good condition, couldn't find any dents or anything when it first arrived.
B**R
FF Vol 3
This was a gift and my son loves the materiel
D**N
great!
Great, Thank you!
F**E
It literally includes an image and lore for every single background character you see in ffx and all of the preliminary art and ideas for the games..
L**I
Si eres fan de FF debes de tenerlo. Contenido muy bien organizado, imágenes muy bien escogidas, muy completo. Me gusto tanto que compre también el ff ultimania 1 y 2. Llego en excelentes condiciones, bien protegido con su celofán y esquinas perfectas.
N**Y
Un po' più "striminzito" a differenza del predecessore che dedica un 100 di pagine per ogni FF. Ci sono più pagine dedicate al 10 e al 13 capitolo, il 14 ha solo una dozzina di pagine. Abbastanza buono il numero di pagine dedicate all 11 e al 12. Da avere per tutti gli appassionati! Io l ho voluto soprattutto per FF 12, e non posso ritenermi insoddisfatta. Anche se non mi piace l importanza che si da al 13, ma purtroppo la Square ci si illude ancora che quello sia stato un buon FF. Comprato da VK a un buon prezzo ( 50/60 euro più o meno) e arrivato in una dozzina di giorni.
P**0
Gutes buch
I**R
A poco que te guste la saga Final Fantasy, éste es tu libro: contiene infinidad de detalles, curiosidades, análisis, arte gráfico, etc.. para deleitarte en todos los sentidos. Presentación de lujo con tapas duras, páginas a todo color de una calidad excelente y a un precio bastante asequible. El único "pero" es que está en inglés, y se necesita un nivel medio para poder entenderlo correctamente. Si tienes la oportunidad, hazte con los 3 volúmenes porque a estas alturas y siendo de 2018 no creo que tarde en agotarse
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