First, I should qualify that statement with the fact that not only did I participate in the phase four beta weekend, but I also put in some time during the early access period before today’s official launch, so it’s not like I just started yesterday! Of course, that probably makes me sound even crazier, especially since when I mentioned Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn on the other day’s podcast, it had only just piqued my interest. Well, all I can say is that a lot has happened since then!
This isn’t my first time playing an online game – long-time readers will recall that I had a brief stint with Phantasy Star Online 2 last year, but Final Fantasy XIV is much more of a traditional MMO in that you’re with hundreds, if not thousands, of players at the same time. I won’t delve far into the gameplay and systems because frankly, I don’t really know much beyond what I’ve played so far (approximately 10 hours), but I’ve heard it’s similar structurally to World of Warcraft.
The first thing that drew me to FFXIV was its amazing art direction. In fact, I love the art so much that I immediately went and downloaded the PS3 theme as soon as I knew it was available. I hate to be superficial, but when a game’s art captures my heart, that can often be enough to make me want to give it a go. Since FFXIV had a free open beta weekend before the full launch, that’s exactly what I did!
Especially fun for the open beta weekend was the fact that people could choose to try the game out on both the PC and PS3, as normally players have to purchase both versions separately. I gave both a go, and while the PS3 version was competent (and ultimately the one I went with for logistical reasons), I can see why most MMO gaming is done on the PC. Unfortunately my PC isn’t much of a powerhouse, so I couldn’t get any real high quality screenshots, but even on a low-quality system the game looks very nice, which can again be chalked up to the great art direction. All of the pictures in this post, by the way, were taking on said PC during the open beta weekend.
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| Can’t have a Final Fantasy game without Moogles! |
Of course, one of the most fun aspects of an MMO is creating your own character. As soon as I heard about the different races available in FFXIV, I knew I wanted to be a male Miqo’te. As you can see, the Miqo’te are blessed with some very neat cat-like characteristics, making them a popular choice for the catgirl-loving crowd in particular. My suave catboy is named Chive Thistlewood, continuing my trend of naming my characters after food. Here’s my full character card courtesy of Firestream.net:
For a starting class, I chose pugilist, which means Chive specializes in hand-to-hand combat. For a quick comparison, think Yuffie from Final Fantasy VII. From a gameplay perspective, I’m much more interested in getting in close and hacking away at enemies than I am at hanging back and dealing ranged damage or shooting fireballs, so it seemed like a good place to start. The great thing about Final Fantasy XIV, though, is that you can change your class at a drop of a hat by equipping a different weapon, so if I ever get tired of being a pugilist, a new class is just a click away! There are also a variety of non-combat classes such as fishing or mining, but I’ve decided that appearance is everything, so I’m working on leveling up my weaver class so I can outfit Chive in the best threads in town!
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| Race ya! |
Suffice it to say, after playing just a few hours over the open beta weekend, I was hooked. I immediately went out and preordered the PS3 version in order to get an early access code (which meant I could start playing a few days before the official launch). Unfortunately, by the time I had committed myself to purchasing the game, the North American version of the amazing collector’s edition was all sold out, so I settled for the regular version… and then proceeded to scour the internet for stores selling the collector’s edition like the hopelessly obsessed woman I’ve become. Lo and behold, I managed to nab a European PAL copy, and should be coming in the mail in a few days! I’ll definitely do a post sharing that when it arrives.
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| What’s a Final Fantasy game without Chocobos? |
Unfortunately, the game’s early access and official launch yesterday have been marred with issues that plague all MMO releases: login errors and overcrowded servers. I personally haven’t had many issues logging in until today, but I’ve been amazed to hear that some folks weren’t able to sign in at all during the early access, or that people literally can’t create characters on the servers they want because they’re full. Since none of this as been a major issue for me, it hasn’t significantly impacted my impressions of the game, but it’s worth noting for those reading this who are thinking of jumping on board.
If you asked me a month ago, I would’ve never thought Final Fantasy XIV would be my cup of tea. Now, I practically eat, drink, and sleep FFXIV! Okay, that might be a bit of a stretch, but it’s safe to say that this is the first Final Fantasy that has grabbed me in a number of years. I hope Chive and I have many more months, and maybe even years, of adventuring ahead of us!
Oooooh, this post very much appeals to me, as I’ve been curious about FF XIV ever since I discovered the Japanese PS3 version’s wonderful box art 🙂
BTW, could you compare your experiences with the PS3 and PC versions, Anne? If they’ve been at all different, I mean.
Anyway, this definitely is a game I’ll pick up once I *finally* get a PS3…
Yay someone else got it!! I ended up having to pick up the ps3 one because like yourself I heart me some collectors!!!
I have yet to install or anything yet because of all the issues I have been reading about =(.
I take it you are enjoying it so far? Any glitches that annoy you Anne?
Btw if you dont mind me asking which server you on?
Nvm I just saw your server on your card >< lol.
i’d say go ahead and install it, but you may want to wait another day or two to jump in until the servers calm down. Right now many people can’t even get into the servers they want!
I haven’t encountered any glitches in the actual game, so that’s good! Oh, the only thing that’s bothered me has been the fact that the screenshot function in the PS3 version is a bit finicky – for a while it didn’t work at all (would give the error “screenshot failed”), but yesterday it worked fine.
Feel free to join me on Cactuar if you want to play together!
Oh, I’m sure you can imagine how much I wanted to get the Japanese version of the game, Bryan! Unfortunately Square Enix is really strict about the region of your SE account being the same region as the game, so I had to go with the NA version. Even though I’m importing the EU version of the collector’s edition, I’m just going to sell the game code since it’ll be unusable for me.
As for the differences between the PS3 and PC, I’d say the PC version looked a tad more detailed, and it was a lot easier to cycle through menus and select targets in battle because you can just use your mouse to point at everything. On the PS3, you have to press select to highlight different windows and go through them until you get to the one you want, which can take a little getting used to. Also, PS3 keyboard input is really annoying, but luckily you can hook up a regular USB keyboard to type normally. Targeting enemies during combat can also be a little difficult, as you cycle through them using the left and right directional buttons. On the plus side, combat is actually a lot more fun with a controller, at least with my current class. Of course, being able to enjoy the game on the couch is also a lot of fun! All in all, on a technical level I do slightly prefer the PC version, but am happy with the PS3 version and think it’s a very competent port.
I’ve gotta say, I wouldn’t peg you for an MMO player! But then again, I would’ve never thought I’d be playing one, haha. I hope to play lots of games with you when you finally get a PS3!
I really liked your impressions – and this is a title that is kind of tugging at me a bit. I love most Final Fantasy games, and I have been known to sink some serious time into MMOs (World of Warcraft… man that was some time lost) – but I’ve been mostly staying away from them – especially subscription model. This one might pull me back in at some point though.
“I hate to be superficial, but when a game’s art captures my heart, that can often be enough to make me want to give it a go.”
I wouldn’t sweat being “superficial”; a game’s art style is something that’s extremely important, whether you’re the type to fawn over DEM GRAFFECS or not. There have been times where I’ll stop whatever I’m doing online and do a search for official art from, say, The World Ends with You or the Battle Network series; my 4th most visited site is an archive of video game art. And the less said about the enduring awesomeness of sprites, the better.
But enough of that tangent. My brother’s really been getting into FF14 as well; I would have figured that’s just because he’s an ex-WoW player, but from what I can gather those that play the game are really enjoying it. That would probably help to explain why Square-Enix’s servers are melting under the strain…that, or an inability to predict exactly how big the game would be at launch. Some people just can’t wait to meet Moogles, I guess.
Well, whatever. It probably isn’t something that HAS to be said, but I’ll go ahead and say it anyway: you’ve got some pretty good taste. Only those with exquisite standards and preferences know that true beauty is best obtained by the majesty of fisticuffs. At least if Gray Fox is to be believed.
“Good! Now we can fight as warriors! Hand to hand! It is the basis of all combat! Only a fool trusts his life to a weapon!”
My lady friend played the open beta and I took a gander at the PS3 version. Needless to say I was impressed, it manages to capture the spirit of Final Fantasy amazingly well, but the thing that impressed me the most was the character races and animations.
The ‘little kid’ race of this game is so adorable, The ‘big guy’ race manages to command authority without sacrificing aesthetics. I love the fact that there are ‘two flavors’ of the races as well. Adds to the diversity of the game and establishes identity.
If/when I do pick it up, it’ll be on PC. It’s nice to see square doing something right for a change.
Glad you liked my post, Chalgyr! I admit it’s hard to get on board with paying a monthly fee, but I’ve been having a good enough time that I’d like to give it a go for a few months at least. If I find after a couple months I’ve had my fill, I’d still say it was time and money well spent, I think! The problem will be if it totally takes over my life…
I totally agree with you! There’s no shame in loving games for their art 😀
And my, I’m flattered that you’d say I have good taste! I’m glad someone thinks so! 😉
Hi there, Eric! I agree, all of the different races in the game are very awesome. I think if I hadn’t picked a Miqo’te, I would’ve probably made a Lalafell (the “little kids” of Eorzea). They’re adorable! Since you can make one character per server for free, I might even go and make a Lalafell alt so I can play with friends on other servers. Ah, I can see my “real” social life slipping away! 😉
And I agree with you about that “Square doing something right” bit! I have been very disappointed by a lot of their decisions this generation, so it’s great to be excited by something from them again.
The servers are awful right now! I have two saved character models ready to play lol. Yays! I will add you once I can get onto Cactuar. I finally got a Lalafell on the only server open this morning. How are you liking the pugilist?
LOL – the taking over of whole life – that’s a serious concern of mine. I far too often find it easy to get roped into the MMO world.