Final Fantasy XIV - General News and Discussion Thread

Members see less ads - sign up now for free and join the community!

  • This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Learn more.

buddhafied

Sphere Hunter
Sep 30, 2013
241
126
Vancouver, BC
#1
I've been wanting to start a thread for this second MMO entry to the FF series, but there were always one or two threads that filled in the job so I was hesitated to open a new thread seeing only a few of us were playing the game. But now, there are a couple more people have started the game as well, like @Crystal Power, I thought it'll be nice we have a separate thread for the game. Hopefully the community will continue to grow.

I've been a faithful legacy player since the disastrous launch of the former FFXIV 1.0, needless to say, it's a bit of an emotional ride for me to see this game crashed then came back to life under the direction of Yoshi-P.

(I'll update the list of people playing on the top of this thread, in case people want to meet in the game)
  • Sorata Ifrit - Balmung
Who else's playing? Let's talk about A Realm Reborn!

Edit Apr 14, 2015: I've added "Discussion" to the thread title as obviously there isn't always news about the game, but we will continue talking about it.
 
Last edited:

buddhafied

Sphere Hunter
Sep 30, 2013
241
126
Vancouver, BC
#2
(Double posting to keep the first post clean)

So, I'm excited about the upcoming Heavensward (3.0) expansion pack. I was a Dark Knight back in FFXI, so knowing it will come back to the series is very exciting. I've also been dying to get back into tanking, so it will be an awesome way to start practicing (I've been playing as a healer mostly since 2.0). But before get to Heavensward, seems like there's much happening. After the somewhat emotional storyline patch of 2.5, 2.5.5 Before the Fall part 2 (and everything that happened in part 1) seems to be pointing at a good dramatic ending of the 2.0 story line.

A great wyrm’s roar echoes through the skies of Coerthas, calling all dragonkind to war. The Gates of Judgement, Ishgard’s outermost defenses, now come under attack. With the city’s very survival in the balance, can the Scions of the Seventh Dawn rally the Eorzean Alliance — or is the Holy See doomed to fall?

The Steps of Faith — the sole means of approaching the city of Ishgard. As well as providing passage across the Sea of Clouds, this great stone bridge also serves to anchor the series of arcane wards known as Daniffen’s Collar.

Long has the Holy See relied upon these barriers to shield the city from Dravanian assault, but it did not foresee the brazen attack that would take place at the Gates of Judgement. The outermost layer of protection has been dispelled, allowing the mighty dragon Vishap to land upon the far end of the Steps of Faith. Leading an army of lesser kin, the massive creature is intent on destroying the exposed foundations of the remaining wards. Take up position alongside the Temple Knights, and defend the structure from the ravaging forces of the Horde!

Not only Ishgard and Coerthas is gonna take the center stage, Ul'dah state situation is having a great plot development as well. I can't wait to see how this story unfold. Now if only I have time to finishing gearing up before the level cap raises finally in 3.0!
 

Azuardo

Keyblade Master
Moderator
Sep 26, 2013
755
279
#4
I only get around to this game whenever there is a free weekend (or in the last period, it was over a week, which was fantastic). In my last session I finally finished up the 2.0 scenario, but I gather I have an absolute tonne more to get through in terms of story with the later updates.

How does the entirety of patches 2.1 to 2.5 compare to the 2.0 story in content? It could take me months before I ever get ready to do Heavensward.

Love the game when I get to play it, anyway. I've always made a concious effort to avoid MMOs for fear of getting sucked into them, and after ARR, I know I would have been. The fact it's a subscription model means I've managed to stay away, but I would certainly consider it if I find more time and money.
 

Crystal Power

Keyblade Master
Nov 29, 2013
712
243
United States
#5
I am still enjoying the free trail that I have mentioned in my previous thread, and as I said I also plan on getting the full game. Right now my main priority is getting Final Fantasy XI for PS2 before the year end and the servers are shut down. I have 90 days to keep the character I made in the trail though, plus I intend to make more. :)
 

buddhafied

Sphere Hunter
Sep 30, 2013
241
126
Vancouver, BC
#6
How does the entirety of patches 2.1 to 2.5 compare to the 2.0 story in content? It could take me months before I ever get ready to do Heavensward..
The patch from 2.1 to 2.5 has some great moments and slowly introduced a lot of aftermath of the story after 2.0. They did a great job slowly transition the story and the focus to other threats. Other primals were the focus from 2.1-2.4, which kept the community excited for a while with all the new fights, and a completely new threat in 2.5. Every patch released new dungeons, new side quests and more things to do. And finally, last patch (re)introduced Gold Saucer. You heard it right, the famous Gold Saucer from FFVII made it to the game, along with all the little games such as Chocobo racing, basketball dunk, etc. Also introduced was FFVIII's fan favourite Triple Triad, which you can play with some NPC and amongst players. 2.1-2.5 also reintroduced a character called Hildibrand Manderville, whom is a comedic character. His role in the game seems to be introducing a lot of FF classic comedic type characters into the game. I won't spoil it here, but let's say I have been looking forward to his patch every time for nostalgic factor.

Love the game when I get to play it, anyway. I've always made a concious effort to avoid MMOs for fear of getting sucked into them, and after ARR, I know I would have been. The fact it's a subscription model means I've managed to stay away, but I would certainly consider it if I find more time and money
I know what you mean. That said, maybe because I'm a bit older now, I don't get sucked in quite as much, although I can easily spend a weekend on doing things in the game, but the game pace its release well enough that I were able to take long breaks in between (like 1-2 months off) and come back to it without feeling I need to play catch up for too much. But my attempt in MMO this time is quite relax. At the end, we all hit level caps, so why rush through everything.
 

Azuardo

Keyblade Master
Moderator
Sep 26, 2013
755
279
#7
Ah yes, I was lucky enough to play the Gold Saucer and hammer the shit out of Triple Triad and chocobo racing during the last free period. Wonderful stuff. Love Triple Triad, but the random factor behind obtaining new and better cards is a frustration.
 

buddhafied

Sphere Hunter
Sep 30, 2013
241
126
Vancouver, BC
#8
So, I haven't gone thru all the new content of patch 2.55 but the general consensus is "OMG!" Anyone ran through the main scenario yet?

Also, what are you guys' thought on the pre-order. Being a sucker for in-game items, I know I will folk out the cash for the collector edition. But anyone is or considering getting the physical collector? The dragon statue does look kind of nice but the steep $129 USD is quite a bit... I need some convincing :D

XIVHW_CEBeautyShot_All_x795_825_KR.jpg
 
Likes: LeonBlade

LeonBlade

Administrator
Administrator
Moderator
Site Staff
Oct 25, 2013
2,026
1,864
32
Blossvale, New York
#9
So, I haven't gone thru all the new content of patch 2.55 but the general consensus is "OMG!" Anyone ran through the main scenario yet?
I was BLOWN AWAY more than I ever have before for a Final Fantasy game or ANY game for that matter, I'm not going to say anything for spoiler reasons, but I was freaking out when watching the final cutscenes so much it was crazy.

Also, what are you guys' thought on the pre-order. Being a sucker for in-game items, I know I will folk out the cash for the collector edition. But anyone is or considering getting the physical collector? The dragon statue does look kind of nice but the steep $129 USD is quite a bit... I need some convincing :D
I don't have a disposable income like I did a while back, so I wont be picking it up, but I'd love to.
 

buddhafied

Sphere Hunter
Sep 30, 2013
241
126
Vancouver, BC
#10
I was BLOWN AWAY more than I ever have before for a Final Fantasy game or ANY game for that matter, I'm not going to say anything for spoiler reasons, but I was freaking out when watching the final cutscenes so much it was crazy.
OMG!!! You're freaking me out now! By everyone's reaction to this whole event, it felt like the closing of 1.23 all over again. I'm HYPED! Alright, that's it, I think that's what I'll be doing tonight! Thanks for twisting my arm on this :p

I don't have a disposable income like I did a while back, so I wont be picking it up, but I'd love to.
I know, right? I hate being a responsible adult!
 

LeonBlade

Administrator
Administrator
Moderator
Site Staff
Oct 25, 2013
2,026
1,864
32
Blossvale, New York
#11
OMG!!! You're freaking me out now! By everyone's reaction to this whole event, it felt like the closing of 1.23 all over again. I'm HYPED! Alright, that's it, I think that's what I'll be doing tonight! Thanks for twisting my arm on this :p
I mean, nothing can live up to the destruction of the planet, but the impact it has on you as a player is definitely up there I'd say comparing the two. You will not expect what happens by any means. There was a lot of speculation from a lot of people about what they thought would happen, and while those may or may not be what happens, there's MORE that no one even saw coming to any degree. It took turns that I didn't think they would be comfortable taking, nor did I think they had the balls to. I think you will enjoy it a lot, it's definitely got me EVEN MORE excited about the expansion, and I went to the fan festival and saw the teaser trailer live for the first time.

To get even more hyped not just for the idea of a new expansion, the content in it like flying, new jobs etc, but now the story which is the main reason why I played this game to begin with (it's a Final Fantasy game)! I hope you enjoy the story as much as I did!

I know, right? I hate being a responsible adult!
Who said anything about being responsible. :p
Perhaps in the future if they still will sell them...
 
Likes: Storm

buddhafied

Sphere Hunter
Sep 30, 2013
241
126
Vancouver, BC
#12
I mean, nothing can live up to the destruction of the planet, but the impact it has on you as a player is definitely up there I'd say comparing the two. You will not expect what happens by any means. There was a lot of speculation from a lot of people about what they thought would happen, and while those may or may not be what happens, there's MORE that no one even saw coming to any degree. It took turns that I didn't think they would be comfortable taking, nor did I think they had the balls to. I think you will enjoy it a lot, it's definitely got me EVEN MORE excited about the expansion, and I went to the fan festival and saw the teaser trailer live for the first time.
So, I finally finished the 2.55 storyline two nights ago, and I am still traumatized by it. You were absolutely right, @LeonBlade, as much as I can predict what could have happened, so many things happened in those 30 minutes or so cut-scenes my little brain could not even comprehend what happened. The destruction of the planet and Dalamund was the "egg" of Bahamut was a shock and definitely was emotional in 1.23. I went to the 25th Anniversary Final Fantasy concert with Distant Worlds in Chicago and watched Susan Calloway performed to that song with the ending trailer of 1.23 on the background, just a few weeks after the server was brought down. But as emotional as it was, this 2.55 ending trailer was more so. By now, we are invested in the storyline, we care about our allies in the game and not to mention, as many had brought up playing the game, we felt like part of that world, our character and our contribution matters.
an episode of Game of Thrones than Final Fantasy.

To get even more hyped not just for the idea of a new expansion, the content in it like flying, new jobs etc, but now the story which is the main reason why I played this game to begin with (it's a Final Fantasy game)! I hope you enjoy the story as much as I did!
I am completely hyped. If you followed through to 2.55, I think it's very difficult not to want to continue knowing what happened to these people. Gosh... if 1.23 ending left a lot of unanswered question, the 2.55 ending just piled SO MUCH possibility. I honestly can't wait. Although I really appreciate now I have 2 months to work on stuff in the game I haven't had chances to. I must be the most lazy legacy player in the game.
 
Likes: LeonBlade

buddhafied

Sphere Hunter
Sep 30, 2013
241
126
Vancouver, BC
#14
Nice to hear you finally beat it! Make sure you check out the full Heavensward trailer now if you haven't already!
I did, and I think I was almost as emotional as that generic warrior turned dragoon when he was having his flashback...

I WAS BETRAYED!!!

By the way... did you stay for the full end trailer of 2.55 after the credit...?

I ALWAYS knew something is wrong with him... Always stay behind, never with the group, knowing way too much about things. But I let my guard down with the storyline of Moenbryda as it was a touching one. THEN THE SHIT HITS THE FAN!
 
Likes: LeonBlade

LeonBlade

Administrator
Administrator
Moderator
Site Staff
Oct 25, 2013
2,026
1,864
32
Blossvale, New York
#15
I did, and I think I was almost as emotional as that generic warrior turned dragoon when he was having his flashback...

I WAS BETRAYED!!!

By the way... did you stay for the full end trailer of 2.55 after the credit...?

I ALWAYS knew something is wrong with him... Always stay behind, never with the group, knowing way too much about things. But I let my guard down with the storyline of Moenbryda as it was a touching one. THEN THE SHIT HITS THE FAN!
I think there's more to it than we see, it's clearly there to make us confused, we'll have to see what happens. I don't think he is evil, there's gotta be something else going on.[/quote]
 
Likes: buddhafied

buddhafied

Sphere Hunter
Sep 30, 2013
241
126
Vancouver, BC
#16
I think there's more to it than we see, it's clearly there to make us confused, we'll have to see what happens. I don't think he is evil, there's gotta be something else going on.
After I typed that, I realized I actually had a blank out moment when I was watching that scene. I actually don't remember anything in that conversation. I was in so much shocked that I was just saying "oh my gawd" the entire time... I need to watch again and see what's happening.

Okay, last one on me today, don't want to flood this madness. I saw this on Reddit and though this makes a lot of sense:

Reddit Commenter: Brycerras

Actually I kind of think Nanamo survived the assassination, at the mercy of Lolorito. Nanamo is for one a fairly weak leader in Uldah, basically because of the monetarists. But she does hold an important role. By birth right, she rules, and the monetarists must begrudgingly acknowledge this. To contend with her royal power, the monetarists had set aside their differences with each other and band together to be powerful enough to oppose the Sultana. Evidence of this is in the fact the syndicate/monetarists exist. Individually they are not capable or powerful enough to take control, otherwise they would've done so already.

So eliminating Nanamo is actually bad, because now there's an open playing field for total control. And to get to the top is going to be extremely costly. If we assume that Lolorito at his best is actually working in Uldahs interest (his argument about the Domans while kind of jerkfaced, is actually a fair argument), or even at his worst working for himself, having Nanamo eliminated hurts him, by thrusting himself into a civil war with the other monetarists. It would be better and wiser to have the other monetarists ousted through subterfuge and legal means while the Sultana exists, than when its a free-for-all grab at power.

I also believe there fairly strong evidence that Nanamo lives simply because the hand maiden was in the employ of Lolorito, not Taledji. Taledji assumed that the handmaiden was carrying out his work for his master plan, when in fact shes been working for Lolorito. And the best way for Lolorito to totally screw Taledji is to interfere with his assassination scheme by keeping Nanamo alive, while giving Taledji the assumption that she is dead, luring him into a false sense of victory than pulling the rug from underneath his feet by revealing Nanamo's survival. If Lolorito wanted Nanamo dead too, he could have easily just let the plan continue, and not even have to deal with the hand maiden, and then reveal Taledji for the assassination at a later time to discredit him to the people of Uldah.

Lastly, just from story telling mechanics, Nanamo getting poisoned was way to heavy handed. How the shots were set up were just to blunt and forced, something I feel that is actually uncharacteristic of how the story has been playing out thus far in the game. Also consider poison is a perfect means of creating a 'fake' death. Unlike getting your throat slit which is kind of permanent, getting poisoned isn't a say all be all in story telling. Also it doesn't make sense, with the explanations given, that people hear the rumors and don't believe them and that is sufficient enough. If it really is in Lolorito or the other monetarist's best interest that the Sultana is dead, they would not make any effort in covering it up. Lolorito may cover it up to keep the peace while he plots his next move for power, but the other monetarists may and probably would act in contrast to him.

Just my thinking, but based on what we kind of have seen, it really isn't in any individual monetarists interest to kill Nanamo, without a back up plan in place to take absolute control. Rather its a lot easier to keep her alive and incapacitated, or acting as a puppet leader. Hell, perhaps maybe that Nanamo herself understood that at current position, she was nothing more than a figure head, and the only way to break the cycle was to abdicate the thrown and start a republic.
 

LeonBlade

Administrator
Administrator
Moderator
Site Staff
Oct 25, 2013
2,026
1,864
32
Blossvale, New York
#17
After I typed that, I realized I actually had a blank out moment when I was watching that scene. I actually don't remember anything in that conversation. I was in so much shocked that I was just saying "oh my gawd" the entire time... I need to watch again and see what's happening.

Okay, last one on me today, don't want to flood this madness. I saw this on Reddit and though this makes a lot of sense:
I actually completely disagree with that for a few reasons, lol.
The Sultana had complete control of Ul'dah, the Syndicate was simply an rich group of people who bargained with the Sultana to influence how things should be conducted within the city. Essentially they were the ones pulling the strings, if they wanted anything done, they would tell the Sultana to do it, and they somehow couldn't get their way, they would simply use their extreme wealth. They are the "true center of power" as described on the Wiki page.

Basically, the way to look at this is... while the Sultana was the true leader of Ul'dah, the Syndicate could turn anyone's hand with the promise of coin. We've seen their works in actions with being able to control two entire armies against the Scions and the Warrior of Light. Give people enough money and they'll do whatever you ask them to.

THAT is why they can get away with killing the Sultana, they don't actually NEED her for anything. The reason they needed to get rid of her was because she was about ready to rightfully hand over her power to the people and allow them to control while abolishing the Syndicate. The only way she could do this was by stepping down and basically saying "it's out of my hands now and in the hands of the people, you no longer can influence my decisions, you'll have to win over the decisions of the people". Getting rid of her was the ONLY way of preventing this from happening, as they could cover up her death and just allow things to operate under the control of whoever took position.

With Teleji supposedly now out of the way, Lolorito is now in control of the Brass Blades as well as the Crystal Braves through his wealth alone. Controlling the traffic of goods as well as armies, he essentially now has 100% control over Ul'dah itself.

As for the comments of "no way they did this it's too heavy handed", it was pretty much set up for a while now that something was going to happen, everyone said that Nanamo was going to die, "before the fall" even gives it away with the image of the Goblet. This is not at all surprising. What surprised me was Raubahn's actions and the events that unfolded after this.

Anyways, I would go into more detail, but I think I got my point across.
 

buddhafied

Sphere Hunter
Sep 30, 2013
241
126
Vancouver, BC
#18
Time magazine did a interview with, our hero, Yoshi-P! (PS, love the fact that Game of Throne was mentioned... for the obvious reason).

Original article with photos here: http://time.com/3817373/final-fantasy-14-naoki-yoshida/

Meet the Guy Who Saved Final Fantasy XIV from Total Disaster
Final Fantasy XIV might not be around today if not for Naoki Yoshida.

The original Final Fantasy XIV MMORPG (massively multiplayer online roleplaying game) that launched in September 2010 received widespread criticism for poor quality, threatening to become a black spot in the history of the beloved Final Fantasy game franchise. Yoshida was given the unenviable task of fixing one of the greatest failures in Square Enix’s history. He was made both producer and director of Final Fantasy XIV in December 2010 with a mandate to revamp the title.

An avid MMO gamer himself, Yoshida undertook to simultaneously create content for the original Final Fantasy XIV while developing a brand new MMORPG from the ground up to succeed it. The result was Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, launched in August 2013, a streamlined MMO that has been praised for its solid gameplay and numerous quality of life features.

More than a year and a half since later, A Realm Reborn now boasts more than 4 million accounts worldwide and is gearing up for the release of its first expansion, Heavensward on June 23. TIME caught up with Final Fantasy XIV producer and director Naoki Yoshida to talk about Final Fantasy XIV, its upcoming Heavensward expansion and the numerous challenges posed in designing a MMORPG.

What are some key lessons that you have learned from creating Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn that you have incorporated into Heavensward?

To recover from the failure of the original version of Final Fantasy XIV, we had to come up with a long-term plan for Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. So we worked frantically on designing detailed game mechanics and content within a very tight schedule. Throughout the different updates we were making for A Realm Reborn, we were gradually able to incorporate elements stemming from player feedback as well as improvisations that weren’t necessarily in our original designs. We are applying this experience to Heavensward, and are open to receiving even more feedback than before to challenge ourselves even more—while keeping a “long-term plan” in mind. Other than player feedback, we have gathered very valuable information, including the ever-diversifying tastes of our players, as well as log-in patterns based on lifestyle choices. We are considering all these factors to deliver an even more exciting experience.

What feature(s) in Heavensward are you the most excited for?

As producer and director, I look forward to seeing all of our players enter the land of Ishgard. I get the same kind of feeling when we release a patch update, but it’s truly a wonderful and happy moment to see excited players run around in a field or area that we’ve created. As a player of the game, I’m looking forward to new actions that will be added to my main job, the black mage, and the raised level cap! I’m also looking forward playing as a dark knight and flying around using the new flying mounts. There are just so many things to do! (laughs)

Were there any real life locations that inspired the architecture and landscape in Heavensward?

There isn’t a specific thing or location we can reference, but we focused on “Gothic high fantasy” as the central theme for the artwork and in-game modelling. We also made sure to visually accentuate the dark and light areas with pronounced contrast to come up with a novel look. As for the storyline we moved towards dark fantasy which is reflected in each scene. That is another new challenge we've put forth for ourselves. All in all, this is a very unique realm created through the interpretations and imaginations of a core development team that is located in Japan. I hope everyone has the opportunity to get their hands on this new Final Fantasy.

Heavensward will launch on PC, Mac, PS3 and PS4. What were the main challenges you faced when creating a game for so many different platforms and did it affect or limit design decisions in any way?

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn was designed to be on many platforms so that many different people can play. On top of that, we focused on ensuring that the gameplay experience was uniform across these platforms. This can be seen implemented through many different facets, including support for both keyboard and mouse and controllers. At the moment, I don’t think of this as a limitation, so it didn’t really affect or limit design decisions. Of course, hardware will evolve over time, so I believe we will eventually have to modify our target specs and evolve the gameplay experience based on the evolution of the hardware.

On another note, working with this many platforms simultaneously with language support, simultaneous updates, and simultaneous master submissions was an extremely challenging undertaking for all of us.

Not only do I want to thank each of our First Party and corporate partners for their undivided support, but I also want to thank and praise all of the efforts of my development and operation/management teams—as well as the managers—who have worked tirelessly. Last but not least, I want to extend the biggest thank you to the players and fans out there who motivate us to keep moving forward!

The three new classes introduced in Heavensward, the Dark Knight, Astrologian and Machinist maintain the concept of the MMO holy trinity of a tank, healer and dps. Are there any plans in the future to branch out from this paradigm to include hybrid classes, such as the dps/healer Dancer class from Final Fantasy XI, or other non-traditional roles?

Of course, I won’t say that it would never happen in the future, but in party situations, hybrid roles can become either be too overpowering or very difficult to use, and it can lead to imbalance. Final Fantasy XIV’s core concept is to have the freedom to play each role through the Armoury System, so we may explore new directions through a skill tree, in which the player’s job will be determined by what actions have been obtained. Needless to say these won’t be immediate changes, but we will continue to work on creating jobs that are in line with Final Fantasy in a system that is very much likeFinal Fantasy. The red mage is one of my favorites, after all…

Patch 2.55 introduced a significant plot twist to the final storyline of Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. How far in advance was the final storyline for Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn planned out and how much of the future storyline has already been written?

First and foremost, thank you very much for enjoying the storyline!

The final storyline of A Realm Reborn was finalized before the release of Patch 2.1 (December 2013). We needed a solid plot from the start so that we could create a story that wouldn’t fall apart. We introduced characters in each patch update every 3.5 months, and created the dialogue to establish these characters and/or build tension and excitement in the story.

Also, Final Fantasy XIV supports Japanese, English, French, German, Chinese (and Korean, in just a short while), with voice overs in many of the cut scenes. In order to accomplish this we need to record in the various languages well ahead of time, which naturally requires that the script be finalized much earlier than that. For Patch 2.55 (“Before the Fall, Part 2”) we recorded the voice overs in between the release of Patch 2.3 and 2.4. (This is about a 6 month lead time). I take my hat off to our script writers, localization team, and sound team.

In terms of future storylines, we’ve already determined a general outline of the next expansion pack (Version 4.0) after Heavensward. Of course, the details may potentially change, and depending on our players’ reactions, there is always a possibility for adjustments, too.

What’s your favorite fantasy story and why is it your favorite?

Considering recent works, I’m into Game of Thrones, but what holds a special place in my heart are The Legend of King Arthur and The Lord of the Rings. (I think anyone around my generation will think so too!) Then there’s Star Wars, Dragon Quest I through III, andFinal Fantasy I, which impacted me in terms of storytelling and world creation. As for “why” – all of these titles have a strong foundation in their settings and a sense of reality in a fictional world. Not only are they very entertaining, but they leave room for the imagination of the people who enjoy these titles to run wild.

I’ve read that Dark Age of Camelot is one of your favorite games. What other games, either past or present, have been the most influential to you as a producer and director?

As an avid online gamer, I can’t go without mentioning Diablo andUltima Online. Diablo taught me about the joys of playing online with other players, and how to add value to an item so that players would obsess over it. I don’t even want to think about how many hundreds of hours I’ve put into that game (laughs). As for Ultima Online, the thousands of people sharing one world, the thrill of player killers, and role-play that is very free, were all very impactful to me. There are many other games that fuel my passion, but I would list these two as must-haves. I can still talk through the night about all of the episodes I had in-game.

With a game as wide-reaching as Final Fantasy XIV, how do you design for both hardcore and casual MMO players?

In recent years, the MMORPG genre has become more geared towards hardcore players. In order to attract experienced MMORPG players, games tend to be more action-oriented, or visually flashy. As a result, I feel that casual gamers find it difficult to continue playing MMO games. Having said this, from a business standpoint, it is more effective to cater to core MMORPG gamers, so titles are faced with a very difficult decision.

With Final Fantasy XIV, we deliberately targeted those who have yet to play an MMORPG, and made certain that the first part of the game wouldn’t require players to recruit a party of other players. Also, the speed at which players need to react is intentionally slower at the start of the game. For hardcore MMORPG players, this may seem boring (and admittedly this is an actual piece of feedback we receive), but if we don’t attract new MMORPG players, then we can’t expect this genre to expand. Based on this concept, we took a story-driven approach, where the battle content becomes progressively harder while the story motivates the player to continue. At the same time, we introduced non-combat-focused elements such as player housing, the Gold Saucer and its attractions, and the Triple Triad mini-game for players to enjoy. We also added other content that mitigates the more casual player’s fear of not being able to catch up to high-level players, such as easing the difficulty of obtaining gear over time. For high-end content, the stages are very difficult at first, but through subsequent updates, their difficulty level is toned down so that casual players will be able to clear the older content. These little touches can be seen all throughout Final Fantasy XIV.

Are there any plans in the future to incorporate additional mini-games from other Final Fantasy titles such as Chocobo Hot and Cold from Final Fantasy IX or Blitzball from Final Fantasy X given the popularity of introducingFinal Fantasy VIII‘s Triple Triad to Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn?

For readers who are unaware, the Manderville Gold Saucer is an amusement center located in the world of Eorzea which houses content like the Triple Triad card game, chocobo racing, and other mini-games. We are already creating a new attraction for Patch 3.1, and looking to introduce more attractions in the future that hearken back to popular mini-games found within the Final Fantasyfranchise. In addition to this, we are looking to create many Final Fantasy XIV-original attractions so I don’t intend to imply that we will only have one or the other.

By the way, it seems there’s a big demand from our players for “snowboarding” in the Gold Saucer (laugh). Outside of video games, I love snowboarding, so it would be great if I can make that a reality. I may have players start with crafting their own snowboards first, though.

Last question — can we ever expect to see a Yoshida Triple Triad card?

Ha ha ha, thank you for the suggestion! In all seriousness, though, I believe we shouldn’t take a real-life character or person and put them in a game. There is a special character, known as the “Wandering Minstrel,” that exists in the game, but he is an exception because the scenario creation team really wanted to have a character represent the development team so that we could thank the legacy players who remained committed through the original (Version 1.0) Final Fantasy XIV. Eorzea is “another reality” created in the digital world. Wouldn’t it be awkward if I showed up in that fantasy world? (laughs) But it is an honor as both a game developer and as an individual to hear many players ask “What about a Yoshida card? Or a minion?” and I am very happy to hear it. Your continued support for Final Fantasy XIV is greatly appreciated!
 
Last edited:
Likes: LeonBlade
#20
How does an expansion work by the way? Say someone buys the expansion on its own. Would it be incompatible if they didn't own the original game? Does the new area get accessed through a side quest or would you have to be up to date with 2.55's main scenario?

Asking because I want to get someone into the game, but I'm worried about Heavensward's high barrier to entry.