Finally, after what seems like an eternity of waiting, the release of the next installment in the Final Fantasy series is just around the corner. I look forward to these momentous occasions for years, stand in line outside a Gamestop at midnight like a total nerd, and often use the release as an excuse to take a few days off work. Yeah, I'm a fangirl. But it makes me happy. So what?

Square is great about offering lots of high quality collectibles for their games, but I admit I've been more or less disappointed by their jewelry selections. At least, until now. We had the honor of getting an up close and personal look at the solid silver replica pieces from their new Final Fantasy XIII line, and I have to admit I have an all-new opinion of what they can do. But will you? Hit the jump to find out.

Well, I don't want to give any secrets away, but let's face it -- if you've seen the trailers, you already know that Serah and Snow are kind of a thing in this game. Both characters both wear pendants that celebrate their engagement, and that is these are: exact replicas of those pieces.

What you're looking at here is a nice, heavy piece of jewelry. The ring is meant to balance on the top of the ball, but as you can see, we've played with it for the sake of a prettier picture. The body is solid .925 silver, while the stones are Cubic Zirconia. You could have had real diamonds in there and really blinged it up, but I'm sure the CZs help to bring the price down a bit.

As you can see, the pendant has a lengthy chain and is meant to be worn long. It actually measures in at 19.6 inches, which I really liked. Perhaps it's a bit too pointy and girly for you, though? If so, perhaps you might like Snow's pendant a bit better.

If you're the type obsessed with getting the details right when it comes to cosplay (ahem, me), this piece would make an ideal companion to your Snow costume, not to mention its damned cool all on its own. You can really check out the detail here. I'm loving the attitude the cat has -- we probably won't find out what it symbolizes in the game itself, but you never know, I suppose.

This is also a long piece, sporting a 20.8 inch chain and several Cubic Zirconias in black, blue and clear. It's definitely got the slightly more manly feel to it, and its a bit heavier than Serah's pendant is.

So what's the damage? Well, Serah's pendant retails for $249.99 on the Square Enix Merchandise store, while Snow's goes for $229.99. Definitely not intended for those of us clutching for dear life to their purse strings, but still these pieces will surely appeal the hardcore Final Fantasy collector as well as that detail obsessed cosplayer I mentioned earlier. Should you have the extra green, we definitely recommend these as worthwhile purchases!