Wow , the release date is really sooner than i thought it would be, they must be very far along witht he development of it. The characters look undefined at the moment, that is except for
Ashe's breasts(being completely serious), her face is flat, and the skirt is obvious of the latest movement of FF to make the characters....eh... asthetically pleasing.... in a way to be more so to teenage boys perhaps. She really looks like tshe could through on rollerblades lose some polygons and fit right into Vice City. =/ The 'evil' guy looks like ganondorf.

The shields are probaly no more than simple upgradeable shield that are now defined through a visual change in the character. i sense, very heavy emphasis on flight, Panzer Dragoon stuyle, and the ability to change the character clothing outside of their jobclasss clothing.