Final Fantasy XI And Playonline Reach Milestones With Additional Players In North America

FINAL FANTASY XI AND PLAYONLINE
REACH MILESTONES WITH ADDITIONAL PLAYERS IN NORTH AMERICA

Final Fantasy XI Surpasses One
Million Active Characters And PlayOnline Registered Users Surpass 500,000 in
North America and Japan Combined

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (January 7,
2004) – Square Enix U.S.A., Inc. (“Square Enix U.S.A.”), the publisher of Square
Enix™ interactive products in North America, announced today milestones that
were reached due to the successful holiday sales of FINAL FANTASY® XI. The FINAL
FANTASY XI now has over one million active characters and PlayOnline™ service
has surpassed 500,000 registered users in North America and Japan combined, with
the total online community population (number of active characters) of FINAL
FANTASY XI at nearly one million characters.

Released on October 28, 2003 in
North America, FINAL FANTASY XI for Windows®, the first online title in the
world-renowned series has quickly become one of most popular massively
multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG) to date. The title has garnered
several “Best of 2003” nominations and awards among enthusiast sites and other
outlets. FINAL FANTASY XI for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system is
scheduled for release in March 2004. The first cross-platform, cross-continent
MMORPG, FINAL FANTASY XI allows gamers to connect to the same exact world
regardless of whether they are playing on a personal computer (PC) or
PlayStation 2 and whether they are playing in North America or Japan. In Japan,
FINAL FANTASY XI for the PlayStation 2 and for Windows were released in May and
November 2002, respectively. Launched in May 2002 in Japan and October 2003 in
North America, the PlayOnline service provides a wide range of online services
including games, entertainment and communication. PlayOnline serves as a portal
to the world of FINAL FANTASY XI and as a gateway to several other applications.

About FINAL FANTASY XI

In FINAL FANTASY XI, players will
undertake multiple adventures through vast environments in the world of “Vana’diel,”
a persistent world that has more than 100 areas to explore, including mountains,
forests, ice plains, deserts, oceans, rivers, castles, and dungeons. The brand
new gaming universe contains the award-winning visual content, innovative
gameplay and deep storyline seen throughout the FINAL FANTASY series. FINAL
FANTASY XI allows players to create their alter ego that will exist in the world
of Vana’diel, choosing from a variety of races, facial features, hairstyles and
colors. They will be able to play at their own pace and form parties by
utilizing the various communication tools that have been incorporated into FINAL
FANTASY XI, including easy-to-use chat and messaging systems. The inclusion of
“Rise of the Zilart” expansion pack expands the storyline and opens up a variety
of higher-level skills and abilities.

FINAL FANTASY XI for Windows is
available for a suggested retail price of $49.99 (USD). Subscribers will receive
their first 30 days of access without charge. Aside from Internet service
provider access charges, the free trial period will begin on the date players
create their first Content ID or character. Any additional Content IDs purchased
are also available without charge until the end of the free trial period. After
30 days, players can continue to play FINAL FANTASY XI by paying a monthly fee
of $12.95 (USD) for one FINAL FANTASY XI character, and can create up to 15
additional characters for an additional charge of $1.00 (USD) per character, per
month. Tetra Master®, the online version of the wildly popular and addictive
mini-game from FINAL FANTASY IX, also included in the package is available for
$1.00 (USD) per month. Payment for monthly access charges must be made by credit
card only (restrictions apply).

For more information on PlayOnline,
FINAL FANTASY XI, and Tetra Master, please visit the official Web site at
http://www.playonline.com .

FINAL FANTASY XI for Windows System
Requirements The minimum system requirements for FINAL FANTASY XI for Windows
are as follows: Windows 98/98 SE/Me/2000/XP, Intel® Pentium® III 800Mhz or
higher, 128MB RAM, 6GB of hard drive space, DirectX® 8.1 compatible sound card,
CD-ROM drive, keyboard, 56K or faster Internet connection, and either an ATI®
Radeon™ 9000 series or NVIDIA® GeForce™ series video card with 32MB of RAM.

FINAL FANTASY XI for the PlayStation
2 Published by Sony Computer Entertainment America, FINAL FANTASY XI for the
PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system will be pre-installed on the
internal Hard Disk Drive (40GB)(for PlayStation®2). Available in March 2004 for
a suggested retail price of $99 (USD), the internal Hard Disk Drive attaches to
the Network Adaptor (Ethernet/modem) (for PlayStation®2), which connects to both
broadband or dial-up networks, and rests in the expansion bay of the PlayStation
2 console.

The Entertainment Software Rating
Board (ESRB) has rated FINAL FANTASY XI “T” for Teen. For more information about
the ESRB, visit http://www.esrb.org .

About Square Enix Co. Ltd. and
Square Enix U.S.A., Inc. Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, Square Enix Co., Ltd.
(Square Enix) develops, publishes and distributes entertainment contents
including interactive entertainment software and publications in Japan, North
America, Europe and Asia. Square Enix brings two of Japan’s best-selling
franchises – FINAL FANTASY®, which has sold over 47 million units worldwide and
DRAGON QUEST (DRAGON WARRIOR® in North America) which has sold over 31 million
units worldwide – under one roof. Square Enix is one of the most influential
providers of digital entertainment content in the world and continues to push
the boundaries of creativity and innovation.

Square Enix U.S.A. Inc., located in
Los Angeles, Calif., handles operations in North America including localization,
marketing and publishing of Square Enix titles. More information on Square Enix
U.S.A. can be found on the Internet at http://www.square-enix-usa.com. ###

2001-2004 SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD.
All Rights Reserved. Title Design by Yoshitaka Amano. FINAL FANTASY, TETRA
MASTER and VANA’DIEL are registered trademarks of Square Enix Co., Ltd. SQUARE
ENIX, PLAYONLINE, RISE OF THE ZILART and the PLAYONLINE logo are trademarks of
Square Enix Co., Ltd. PlayStation and the “PS” Family logo are registered
trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Windows and DirectX are
registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other
countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.