Final Fantasy, Square Enix said, would provide the innovation; Dragon Quest would provide the tradition. This separation of roles hasn't really held though; if anything, Final Fantasy went back to its roots after the daringly experimental Final Fantasy XII?, while Dragon Quest has been increasingly looking forward. And if the reaction to the recent reveal is anything to go by, the direction Square Enix has taken with their flagship franchise is more controversial than ever.

Here are the two main points of contention:

This was the main thrust of Square Enix's presentation, but no one really knows what kind of Online RPG it'll be. Will it be something akin to Dragon Quest IX?, but with a much bigger community? Is Square Enix dropping the single-player altogether?

The community has fastened onto the statement that there will be a "few hours" of offline gameplay, but the "full experience" will require an internet connection. Naturally, there's been much consternation over whether Square Enix is indeed abandoning Dragon Quest's rich tradition of storytelling. Somehow though, I don't think that's the whole story here.