Having signed a licensing deal with Epic Games for Unreal Engine 3 last year, it seems that Square-Enix has revealed the first details about the fruits of the agreement, an original next-generation RPG called The Last Remnant.

In a report from US-based Game Informer, it's emerged that The Last Remnant is being designed with an emphasis on North American gamers, with the title set to revolve around two main characters. One is being targeted to suit Japanese gamers (an 18-year old swordsman called Rush Sykes) and the other directed towards the west (a dark character known as The Conqueror), though players will follow the story through Rush.

Key to Square-Enix's strategy is a simultaneous release of the game in both Japan and North America, with localisation being carried out during production - though don't expect us Europeans to get any special treatment, we'll probably still end up waiting for several months after it arrives across the pond at the very least.

The 'remnants' of the title are powerful artefacts that take a multitude of forms, such as the mountain-sized sword Valeria Heart, which provides characters with courage, though they can also be machines and animals. Described as priceless, they can't always be used in the heat of battle, which is where the more conventional fighting forms and magic come into play. Despite being a turn-based combat system, The Last Remnant will apparently use "cinematic angles" to add a certain flow to the action together with "changing circumstances" that players will have to react to after making their move.

Game Informer's report also describes the four different races in the world, the human-like Mitra, the fish-like Yama, the lizard-lie Qsiti, and the cat-like Sovnni.