The original Final Fantasy XIV , released in September , was a commercial and critical failure. In response, then-Square Enix President Yoichi Wada announced that a new team, led by Yoshida, would take over and attempt to fix the issues with it. This team was responsible for generating content for the original version as well as developing a brand new game which would address all of the previous release's criticisms. This new game, initially dubbed "Version 2.

The original version shut down in November and was followed by an alpha test for Version 2. The game released to largely positive reception; critics praised the game for its solid mechanics and progression, and they commended Yoshida for turning the project around.

After a poor fiscal year , Square Enix executives attributed the company's return to profitability in part to the game's strong sales and subscriber base, reaching a total of over 24 million registered players by October , also becoming the most profitable Final Fantasy game to date.

Final Fantasy XIV is an MMORPG and features a persistent world in which players can interact with each other and the environment. Players create and customize their characters for use in the game, including name, race, gender, facial features, and starting class. Unlike in the original release, players may only choose to be a Disciple of War or Magic as a starting class—Disciples of the Hand and Land are initially unavailable. While servers are not explicitly delineated by language, data centers have been placed in the supported regions i.

The user interface and game controls are unified across the PC and home console versions. Players have the option of using any combination of a keyboard, mouse, and game controller to play; the former two are achieved on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 via wireless or USB keyboard and mouse. By default, the system is navigated through drag and drop windows on PC.

Navigation on the PlayStation version of Final Fantasy XIV is accomplished with a XrossMediaBar -like interface due to PlayStation users' familiarity with the set-up. The head-up display for both versions includes a message log, party status menu, mini-map, and action bar. The player may customize the location of all of these elements. The action bar and battle command input method differs slightly between the PC and home console versions.

The PC version supports both point and click and keyboard selection of commands or macros from the action bar. Macro commands are customizable sequences of actions that allow players to execute desired abilities at a specific time.

The home console versions instead map the action bar and macros to the "Cross Hotbar"—sets of four icons arranged in a cross shape. These are the grouped and accessed through a combination of the shoulder buttons and the directional pad or the face buttons. Using each shoulder button to cycle through the cross sets, players have quick access to commands. This interface is also available to PC players who use controllers. Players are able to improve their characters by gaining experience points EXP —when a set number of experience points are accumulated, the player's character will "level up" and gain improved statistics which further enhance performance in battle.

Four primary sources of experience points in Final Fantasy XIV include completing quests, exploring instanced dungeons , participating in Full Active Time Events FATE , and slaying monsters which exist in the game world.

Completing main scenario quests progresses the overarching plot of the game. Guildleves are a type of repeatable quest which may be undertaken using leve allowances. These allowances are limited but regenerate over time. Instanced dungeons are confined locations with specific objectives that must be achieved within a time limit.

These dungeons often require multiple players to form a party before entry is granted. Some dungeons are for lower-leveled players to gain EXP quickly while others are for experienced players to collect rare items, equipment, and currency.

This bonus is available once per day for each of the Duty Roulette categories. These location-specific events include battles with notorious monsters, defending a location from invading forces, culling hostile local wildlife, and assaulting enemy fortresses, among other types. Upon reaching the maximum level, character progression shifts to improving "item level" by acquiring new and better equipment. This equipment can be gained through a variety of sources including endgame dungeons, crafting, raids , primal battles, and elite mark hunts.

In addition to these player versus environment PvE challenges, three forms of player versus player PvP combat exist in Final Fantasy XIV. The first type, the Wolves' Den, is an arena featuring structured four-versus-four battles; a player may register with up to three teammates to challenge another four-person team.

Teams are delineated by players' allegiance to one of three Grand Companies and the team which reaches the target number of points first wins the match.

Multiple modes are available, each with differing locations and rulesets. Within the fiction, Frontlines is presented as an organized set of military exercises between the three nations with the ulterior goal of jockeying for dominance of regions rich in magical artifacts. Players fight enemies using a combination of physical attacks, weapon skills, and magical attacks; these battles form the basis of party play in Final Fantasy XIV.

Most battle content in the game requires parties of a specific size, including four players for dungeons and eight players for boss battles. The "Duty Finder" is an automated matching feature that sorts players into parties for selected content across different servers. Members of a party fill traditional MMORPG roles like tank , healer, and damage dealer.

Free Companies are player-run guilds , organized bands of adventurers under the auspices of one of the three Grand Companies of Eorzea. Free Company members may gain access to a shared company chest, a private chat channel, and Company Actions which are hour buffs to certain aspects of gameplay, such as increased EXP gain or reduced gear damage.

In addition to decorating the house, players may use the grounds to grow unique items through the gardening system, train their chocobo companion, embark on airship expeditions, and purchase a private room for personal use.

Linkshells are another form of in-game networking; whereas players may only belong in one Free Company, they may join multiple linkshells which act as private chat channels for interested sub-groups. Under the Armoury System, a character's equipped weapon determines the character class and players may change their class at will by changing weapons. The Job System builds upon the Armoury System for Disciples of War and Magic.

It allows access to powerful skills, magic, weapons, and armor exclusive to the job corresponding to that class. These jobs, many based on classic Final Fantasy character jobs , are more suited to party-based combat. The virtual economy of Final Fantasy XIV is largely player-driven. The exchange of items is facilitated by retainers—non-playable characters who assist in selling items on the Market Board, gather items through ventures, and provide additional item storage.

Players of any class may contribute to the supply of the economy: Disciples of the Land acquire raw materials from gathering points throughout the game world; Disciples of the Hand craft the materials into useful items and equipment; and Disciples of War and Magic are able to procure rare materials through completion of dungeons and Treasure Maps. Players are also able to contribute by extracting "materia" from well-used equipment, which can then be used to improve the statistics of other equipment.

The mechanics of crafting and gathering have changed between the original release and A Realm Reborn. Most of these changes are geared toward reducing the randomness and guesswork involved in these processes.

Crafting abilities have been rebalanced to allow successful high-quality synthesis without requiring multiple mastered Disciplines of the Hand. For Disciples of the Land, players are allowed to select which item they would like to attempt to collect at a gathering point, whereas before, the results of gathering attempts were randomized. The Gathering Log also displays the names and locations of items that can be gathered in the world.

Final Fantasy XIV takes place in the fictional world of Hydaelyn, a planet filled with multiple environments and climates covering three large continents. The region in which the game is set is called Eorzea.

Eorzea is connected to a larger continent to the northeast which has largely been conquered by the militaristic Garlean Empire. Other political entities include the beastmen tribes who are perennially in conflict with the established nations; Sharlayan, a scholarly city to the northwest known for its policies of non-interference; and Ala Mhigo, a city-state which was occupied during the first Garlean invasion twenty years prior to the events of the game. This conflict also resulted in the desolation of Mor Dhona, a once-vibrant region in the center of the continent that is now a barren wasteland.

Eorzea's history revolves around a series of Umbral and Astral Eras. Umbral Eras are followed by periods of enlightenment and cultural growth called Astral Eras. The Third Astral Era was particularly noted for presiding over the Allagan Empire, an ancient civilization whose technology far exceeds the level of the modern age.

Each Umbral and Astral Era pair corresponds to one of the six basic elements—wind, lightning, fire, earth, ice, and water. The Sixth Umbral Era was believed to be the last and the civilized races hoped the Sixth Astral Era would last forever. However, five years prior to the start of the game, the Garlean Empire catalyzed a series of events that would lead to the Seventh Umbral Era.

Through their research into the Meteor Project, the Garleans discovered a way to call down the lesser moon Dalamud and use it as a weapon. The plan—spearheaded by the Imperial Legatus Nael van Darnus—was to crash Dalamud into Eorzea, annihilating the beastmen tribes and their primal deities and conquering the smoldering remains. A band of adventurers defeated van Darnus but could not stop Dalamud's continued descent. During a major battle between the Grand Companies and the leaderless Garlean invasion force at the Carteneau Flats in Mor Dhona, Dalamud revealed itself to be an ancient Allagan-made prison for the primal dragon Bahamut, who promptly escaped to initiate the Seventh Umbral Calamity.

The player's character takes on the role of an adventurer in Eorzea under the Seventh Umbral Era who joins one of the three Grand Companies. The Order of the Twin Adder, Gridania's Grand Company, is led by Elder Seedseer Kan-E-Senna, an even-headed child of the forest who is blessed with the power of prophecy.

Ul'dah's Immortal Flames are led by Flame General Raubahn Aldynn, a Highlander from Ala Mhigo and bodyguard of reigning sultana Nanamo Ul Namo. Raubahn climbed out of poverty through his martial skill while fighting in the Coliseum.

The Maelstrom of Limsa Lominsa is led by Admiral Merlwyb Bloefhiswyn, a cunning former pirate who instituted a harsh conscription service to bring the pirate fleets under her command. Finally, Cid Garlond is the head of the Garlond Ironworks, a technology company which builds airships and weapons for the Alliance. Eorzea is threatened by invasion from the forces of the Garlean Empire to the north, first by Legatus Gaius van Baelsar of the XIVth Legion and his lieutenants, Livia sas Junius, Rhitahtyn sas Arvina, and Nero tol Scaeva.

The Beastmen tribes also jeopardize the unstable peace in Eorzea with their summoning of primals, aetherial deities who deplete the land of its lifeblood. The game opens with a vision of the player's character wielding a weapon of light based upon their starting class to strike down a masked man in black robes. The vision is a dream the player has while on a carriage ride to their chosen starting city—Gridania, Ul'dah, or Limsa Lominsa.

Players returning from the original release appear in a forest in a pillar of light—Louisoix's final spell to save their lives from the devastation at Carteneau. Through undertaking various odd jobs, the player character ingratiates themself with the local Adventurers' Guild and earns comparisons with the fabled Warriors of Light, brave adventurers who participated in the Battle of Carteneau whose identities have been mysteriously erased from the memories of all who knew them.

A pattern emerges amid these quests involving a series of attacks by masked men, as well as a member of the Scions of the Seventh Dawn who claims to know the origin of the player's visions. The adventurer meets the leader of this secret society, Minfilia, who reveals that the visions are a manifestation of the Echo and mark the player as a chosen representative of Hydaelyn, the Mothercrystal. As a newly inducted member of the Scions, the player follows Thancred to Thanalan to investigate abductions and crystal theft along its trade routes.

The culprits are members of the Amalj'aa beast tribe who capture the adventurer to be sacrificed to their primal god, Ifrit. The attempt fails as the Echo protects the player from Ifrit's brainwashing.

The adventurer counters by defeating Ifrit and is hailed as a hero, with emissaries from all three Grand Companies jockeying for the privilege of recruiting said hero. While attending rallies at each of the three cities to honor the memory of those fallen at Carteneau, the player meets Loiusoix's twin grandchildren Alphinaud and Alisaie whose disagreement over the purpose of such nationalist displays results in the latter parting ways with her brother. The adventurer's next mission is to forge relations with the Sylphs of the Black Shroud, a peaceful beast tribe whose radical sect once summoned Ramuh to defend the forest from Garlean incursion.

While searching for the Sylph elder, the player encounters Lahabrea—an immortal Ascian bent on destroying the Mothercrystal. The Scions, Thancred in particular, resolve to investigate this new foe. The Kobold tribe in La Noscea, angered at the Lominsans' encroachment upon their ancestral territories, gathers crystals to summon their primal, Titan. In response, the player is dispatched to interview former members of the Company of Heroes, a band of mercenaries who previously defeated Titan and Leviathan in the Sixth Astral Era, for advice on how to combat the primal.

After a series of lessons disguised as menial tasks, the company's leader reveals how to access Titan's domain: by reversing the current through the beastmen's own teleportation crystals. The adventurer defeats Titan while also learning that Lahabrea is working alongside Legatus Gaius van Baelsar of the XIV Imperial Legion. At Scions' headquarters at the Waking Sands, the adventurer discovers that the Garleans have broken in, abducted Minfilia, and slaughtered the others. While performing funerary rites for fallen comrades, the headstrong Alphinaud returns with news of a new primal Garuda being summoned by the Ixal tribe.

He hatches a plan to confront Garuda in her own domain, but requires the aid of the amnesiac airship engineer Cid Garlond, currently toiling as a cemetery hand. With Alphinaud and Cid, the player travels to snowy Coerthas in search of Cid's lost airship, the Enterprise.

By uncovering a heretic plot, the once-untrusting Ishgardians agree to allow the adventurer to raid the Stone Vigil, a fortress overrun by dragons where the Enterprise was last seen.

Cid manages to repair the Enterprise and, with the aid of the adventurer's Echo, regains his memories as a Garlean engineer, Eorzean defector, and genius inventor. The Enterprise cuts through Garuda's vortex and the adventurer bests the Ixali primal, who torments Kobold and Amalj'aa prisoners of war into summoning their respective primals.

However, Gaius and Lahabrea intercede with the Allagan war-machine Ultima Weapon, which devours the three primals to increase its power. Urged on by Lahabrea, Gaius intends to use the Ultima Weapon to eradicate the primals and compel Eorzea's submission. Unknown to Gaius, Lahabrea intends to betray him and use the Ultima Weapon to start another calamity.

Returning to the Waking Sands, the heroes discover a few Scions who escaped the attack, as well as the location of Minfilia and their other abducted comrades. Their rescue mission succeeds, but they also learn that Lahabrea had possessed Thancred during his investigation. Minfilia and Alphinaud barge into a meeting between the three Grand Company leaders who were considering surrender and convince them to fight the XIV Legion.

Using the combined forces of all three nations as well as other allied groups, the Eorzean Alliance executes Operation Archon—a massive counteroffensive that aims to assault all of Gaius' bases simultaneously. The player leads a strike team into Gaius' stronghold, the Praetorium, where Gaius pilots the Ultima Weapon and battles them.

Using Hydaelyn's blessing of light, the adventurer destroys the Ultima Weapon and leaves Gaius for dead in the explosion. Lahabrea defeats the adventurer himself, revealing the calamities are part of a process to resurrect the Ascians' God, Zodiark. Hydaelyn revives them and they purge Lahabrea from Thancred's body with a blade of light.

With the threat of Garlean invasion lifted, the Grand Company leaders declare the beginning of the Seventh Astral Era. The player's character is hailed as a hero of the same caliber as the Warriors of Light. A post-credits scene reveals that Lahabrea survived the purging, and he and several other Ascians prepare for the return of Bahamut. Facing increasing scrutiny and pressure to align with one of the three allied city-states, the Scions relocate their headquarters to Revenant's Toll, a hub for adventurers in the neutral territory of Mor Dhona.

No sooner are they settled when word arrives that a renegade moogle faction has summoned their primal Good King Moggle Mog XII, enabled by the Ascians. After besting the giant moogle, the Warrior of Light encounters the Ascian Emissary, Elidibus, who tests the player's might before disappearing.

Shortly thereafter, refugees arrive from Doma, a nation subjugated by the Garlean Empire, and seek asylum in Ul'dah, where their request is refused. Alphinaud recommends they work as tradesmen in the construction of Revenant's Toll. In gratitude, the Doman leader, Yugiri, accompanies the party to reconnoiter the Sahagin spawning grounds where their primal Leviathan is summoned.

The adventurer slays the revived Leviathan using two boats' worth of corrupted crystals, courtesy of Lominsan warship The Whorleater. Alphinaud inquires about the cause of riots among Ala Mhigan refugees in Ul'dah and uncovers the agents of Teledji Adeledji, an influential member of Ul'dah's ruling Syndicate.

Raubahn speculates that Adeledji is jockeying for control of artifacts discovered at the Carteneau ruins, including remnants of the Allagan superweapon known as Omega. In the Black Shroud, the Sylphs summon Ramuh who judges the Warrior of Light as a worthy savior of the realm, departing amicably. Meanwhile, Alphinaud incorporates the Crystal Braves as neutral police force for Eorzea. Their first task is to investigate the "Ivy", a Garlean spy who has infiltrated the Immortal Flames' leadership.

On another front, Ser Aymeric of the Temple Knights of Ishgard reaches out to the Scions and Braves in an unprecedented move to ask for their aid in monitoring the Keeper of the Lake—the wreckage of a Garlean airship intertwined with the corpse of Midgardsormr, the dragon king who repelled the Garlean advance fifteen years previous.

In exchange, the Temple Knights agree to safeguard supply shipments to Revenant's Toll which had been harried by the followers of Lady Iceheart, an Ishgardian turncoat. Varis zos Galvus is crowned Garlean emperor and begins consolidating power, lending new urgency to the search for Ivy.

The Braves discover that Ivy is Raubahn's trusted advisor Eline Roaille, who is captured at the gates of a Garlean Castrum. A new Scion, Moenbryda, arrives from Sharlayan and provides critical advice for locating Iceheart. Using her body as a vessel, Iceheart summons Shiva into herself and challenges the Warrior of Light.

Though the adventurer's band defeats Shiva, Iceheart escapes, bidding the meddler to consult with Midgardsormr.

Based on the player's encounters with Lahabrea and Shiva, Moenbryda hypothesizes that a blade of pure aether can permanently destroy an Ascian while its essence is trapped within white auracite. Lucia of the Temple Knights requests that the Warrior of Light investigate suspicious activity at the Keeper of the Lake where the adventurer discovers that Midgardsormr lives on, slowly regenerating from his apparent death.

He divulges that Nidhogg, one of his seven children, has rallied the Dravanian horde to renew their attack on Ishgard. Sensing the hero's connection to Hydaelyn, Midgardsormr invokes an ancient pact with the Mothercrystal and seals away her blessing as a test of the player's worth. The Ascian Nabriales takes advantage of the opportunity to infiltrate the Scions' headquarters in pursuit of Louisoix's staff.

Moenbryda sacrifices herself to create the blade of aether necessary to completely destroy the Ascian. As the Scions mourn their fallen comrade, Aymeric parleys for aid in Ishgard's defense against Nidhogg's forces. Minfilia and Alphinaud reluctantly pledge the Scions' support while the rest of the Alliance decline due to both domestic troubles and remembering Ishgard's reticence during the three Garlean invasions.

The adventurer leads a band of volunteers at the Steps of Faith, Ishgard's main bridge. They manage to repel the attack and a victory celebration is held at Ul'dah with the hopes of pressuring Ishgard into the Alliance. At the banquet, Sultana Nanamo privately discloses to the Warrior of Light that she plans to dissolve the monarchy to erode the power of the Syndicate, the source of much of Ul'dah's corruption. However, Nanamo succumbs to poisoned wine and collapses; Adeledji immediately accuses the adventurer of being responsible and has them arrested.

When he denounces Raubahn for his negligence, the enraged Raubahn kills him. Lolorito, another scheming Syndicate member, takes this as proof of Raubahn's guilt and has him arrested. The Crystal Braves are revealed to be in the pay of Lolorito and pursue the Scions, most of whom stay behind to cover their escape. Only a humbled Alphinaud and the Warrior of Light manage to escape with the help of Raubahn's son Pipin Tarupin. Cid takes them to Coerthas where the Ishgardians grant them asylum from their Syndicate pursuers.

The original release of Final Fantasy XIV began development under the codename Rapture between late and early , and was officially announced in Monthly fees for the game were suspended until further notice and the previously planned PlayStation 3 version was canceled.

In attempting to improve Final Fantasy XIV , Yoshida quickly discovered a number of key tasks. First and foremost, he had to restore trust in the player base while bringing the game up to a playable quality.

Thus, planning for a brand new game built from scratch started in January and development began in earnest by April, with work on a new game engine and server structure. On the anniversary of the game's release, Wada claimed that the initial launch of Final Fantasy XIV had "greatly damaged" the Final Fantasy brand.

At Electronic Entertainment Expo , Square Enix debuted "Agni's Philosophy", a tech demo for their new Luminous Studio game engine. Though members of the Final Fantasy XIV development team worked on Luminous, Yoshida admitted that both Luminous and Crystal Tools were optimized for offline games and could not handle an online environment with hundreds of on-screen character models.

In a project postmortem Game Developers Conference , Yoshida reflected on the herculean task of maintaining and updating an MMORPG while simultaneously developing a new one over the course of just two years and eight months.

These evolved from the team's prior experience on Final Fantasy XI , the previous MMORPG in the Final Fantasy series. As the series has been renowned for its state-of-the-art graphics, the original development team gained an unhealthy obsession with maximizing graphical quality at the expense of server performance, which was unsustainable for an online game with tens of thousands of high definition assets.

In designing Final Fantasy XI , the team spent a year playing EverQuest , the most successful MMORPG of the early s. Yoshida admonished that the team should "go play World of Warcraft for a year [for inspiration]" instead. A prevailing design philosophy for A Realm Reborn was to simultaneously appeal to hardcore MMORPG players while reaching out to new players and Final Fantasy fans who had never experienced the genre before.

The continuing operations of the original release provided a valuable testing ground for new features that would be carried into the relaunch. The alpha test for A Realm Reborn began shortly after the original release's finale and ended in late December During this period, Wada admitted that the development of A Realm Reborn was a cause of delay for many Square Enix titles at the time. Players throughout this period noted continued server issues. A Steam version of the client was released on February 14, Coinciding with the launch of the first expansion pack, the macOS client was released on June 23, The development team schedules the release of a major update approximately every three months.

Each of these free content patches includes a continuation of the main scenario as well as new raids, features, trials, and dungeons. Minor patches that come in between major updates focus on quality of life changes, and are sometimes used to introduce completely new side content. In addition to regular free updates, the game features full expansion packs that add new zones, races, jobs, and premiere a new content cycle.

Patch 5. Masayoshi Soken contributed to the majority of the game's version of traditional Final Fantasy music, as well as themes original to the game. The enormous track list includes remixed versions of songs such as the Final Fantasy theme, originally composed by long time Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu, as well as remixes of day and night themes original to Final Fantasy XIV. For the reboot A Realm Reborn, Soken was tasked with composing and compiling numerous original and remixed songs, in addition to his duties as sound director.

The team was given less than a year on sound production, though according to Soken, it felt like "enough work for two full games in that time". Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn Original Soundtrack is a collection of music from the game including both the launch and tracks from Patch 2. She felt that it was an excellent merging of the traditional Final Fantasy musical style with a modern orchestral score.

In addition to album feedback, critics of the game praised the score in their reviews. Kotaku 's Mike Fahey stated that the music was "wonderful, complex and satisfying". that pays appropriate homage to the long-running RPG series". In contrast to the original version, Final Fantasy XIV has earned a generally positive reception and robust sales numbers. Prior to release, both the game's press and fans were surprised by its quality and level of polish.

IGN 's Charles Onyett cited many specific improvements over aspects of the initial game and recognized that "it seems like Square's doing the right things to fix the many mistakes made with Final Fantasy XIV' s original design". The editorial staff observed "the considerable changes made to the engine, HUD and combat system, transforming it into a far cry from the game that disappointed so many".

The overwhelming sentiment expressed by multiple reviewers was that the remade game executed admirably on traditional MMORPG features and succeeded at addressing the failures of the original version. For Kevin VanOrd of GameSpot , this steadfast implementation of genre fundamentals was his greatest criticism—that "it does not leap over the shoulders of the games that have come before".

com singled out the crafting minigame as "one of the most interesting and compelling" aspects of the game. The console versions of the game were noted for their robust feature set which put them on the same level as the PC release. Phil Kollar of Polygon lauded its implementation of controller play, calling it " Final Fantasy XIV' s single biggest gift to the [MMORPG] genre". Overall, critics were satisfied with A Realm Reborn' s incremental improvements.

Adam Harshberger of GamesRadar compared it to a "buffet dinner [with] everyone's favorite meal", forgiving the lack of innovation. Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn rated well among many "Game of the Year" lists in the enthusiast press. It was named Best MMO of the year by Game Informer , ZAM, and Joystiq ' s Massively. Stormblood won the award for "Best MMO" at Game Informer ' s Best of Awards, [] while it came in second place for the same category in their Reader's Choice Best of awards.

Shadowbringers was nominated for "Best Game Expansion" and "PlayStation Game of the Year" at the Golden Joystick Awards ; [] for "Role-Playing Game of the Year" at the 23rd Annual D.

Awards ; [] and for "Evolving Game" at the 16th British Academy Games Awards , [] and won the award for "Excellence in Multiplayer" at the SXSW Gaming Awards , [] as well as the award for "Best Online Game" at the Famitsu Game Awards Endwalker was nominated for "Online Game of the Year" and won for "Role-Playing Game of the Year" at the 25th Annual D. Awards ; and also won "Excellence in Narrative", "Excellence in Original Score" and "Video Game of the Year" at the SXSW Gaming Awards.

By the end of the first week of release, the PlayStation 3 version of the game placed second in Japan's sales charts, with , physical copies sold. In Japan, Shadowbringers sold approximately 22, physical copies for the PS4 during its launch week in July From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. This article is about the relaunched game, also known as A Realm Reborn.

For the defunct original release, see Final Fantasy XIV video game. Hiroshi Minagawa Akihiko Yoshida Takeo Suzuki. Masayoshi Soken Nobuo Uematsu. Windows PlayStation 3 [a] PlayStation 4 OS X PlayStation 5. Windows , PlayStation 3 August 27, PlayStation 4 April 14, OS X June 23, PlayStation 5 May 25, Final Fantasy XIV ' s PC beta version interface, navigated by a point and click widget system.

Final Fantasy XIV ' s home console interface, navigated by a cross-bar system. See also: Final Fantasy XIV video game § Synopsis. Further information: Final Fantasy XIV video game § Development. The difference in battle interfaces between the final patch version of the original game top and A Realm Reborn.

Main article: Music of Final Fantasy XIV. Final Fantasy XIV: Reborn Eorzea , the game as a whole is now simply called Final Fantasy XIV.

Square Enix. Archived from the original on November 13, Retrieved January 6, Archived from the original on October 26, Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn Windows. Auto-translation Dictionary Active Help : The world of Eorzea is home to adventurers of various cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

In order to facilitate communication in this diverse environment the game includes a feature known as the auto-translation dictionary. Archived from the original on January 27, Archived from the original on January 15, Archived from the original on April 2, Archived from the original on February 9, FINAL FANTASY XIV, The Lodestone.

Archived from the original on January 24, Retrieved April 4, Archived from the original on January 3, Retrieved January 3, The Lodestone. Archived from the original on January 11, Archived from the original on March 4, Archived from the original on December 20, Archived from the original on February 28, Archived from the original on January 21, Archived from the original on December 30, Archived from the original on January 4, Archived from the original on January 29, Archived from the original on January 16, Narrator : Hydaelyn: a vibrant planet blessed by the light of the Crystal.

Amid azure seas, encompassing the westernmost of the Three Great Continents, there lies a realm embraced by gods and forged by heroes.

Her name Archived from the original on January 2, August 27, Outside of Eorzea, there is the Far East, a continent that is home to Doma, a city-state much like Ala Mhigo which was conquered long before the envents of the game. Narrator : The annals of Eorzean history chart the rise of a succession of civilizations, each one enjoying ages of prosperity — the Astral Eras.

To date, all have proved ephemeral. Narrator : In the year of the Sixth and most recent Astral Era, the northern empire of Garlemald amassed a great army at the heart of Eorzea, seeking dominion over all. Narrator : Yet even as the battle raged, the lesser moon, Dalamud, was plucked from the heavens through imperial machination.

From its core emerged the Elder Primal Bahamut, who unleashed his fury on the realm. The devastation brought Eorzea to its knees, and the era to its end. Archived from the original on December 9, Archived from the original on December 29, Archived from the original on August 23, Archived from the original on January 8, Archived from the original on March 26, Gamer Escape. Archived from the original on November 4, Retrieved December 27, Archived from the original on July 31, Archived from the original on May 15, September 30, Archived from the original on June 7, Archived from the original on November 6, Archived from the original on January 17, January 20, Retrieved May 22, Archived from the original on March 13, Sign In.

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For newcomers to FINAL FANTASY XIV Online, the Starter Edition includes two award-winning titles — FINAL FANTASY XIV: A Realm Reborn, and the first expansion, FINAL FANTASY XIV: Heavensward.

Join over 25 million adventurers worldwide on an adventure that will take you to the heavens and beyond! User registration and service subscription are required to play the game.

Moreover, this day free play period is not applicable to platforms on which a license has already been registered.

Final Fantasy XIV [b] is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game MMORPG developed and published by Square Enix. Directed and produced by Naoki Yoshida , it was released worldwide for Windows and PlayStation 3 in August , as a replacement for the failed version of the game , with support for PlayStation 4 , PlayStation 5 , and macOS releasing later.

Final Fantasy XIV takes place in the fictional land of Eorzea, five years after the events of the original release. At the conclusion of the original game, the primal dragon Bahamut escapes from its lunar prison to initiate the Seventh Umbral Calamity, an apocalyptic event which destroys much of Eorzea. Through the gods' blessing, the player character escapes the devastation by time traveling five years into the future.

As Eorzea recovers and rebuilds, the player must deal with the impending threat of invasion by the Garlean Empire from the north. The original Final Fantasy XIV , released in September , was a commercial and critical failure. In response, then-Square Enix President Yoichi Wada announced that a new team, led by Yoshida, would take over and attempt to fix the issues with it. This team was responsible for generating content for the original version as well as developing a brand new game which would address all of the previous release's criticisms.

This new game, initially dubbed "Version 2. The original version shut down in November and was followed by an alpha test for Version 2. The game released to largely positive reception; critics praised the game for its solid mechanics and progression, and they commended Yoshida for turning the project around. After a poor fiscal year , Square Enix executives attributed the company's return to profitability in part to the game's strong sales and subscriber base, reaching a total of over 24 million registered players by October , also becoming the most profitable Final Fantasy game to date.

Final Fantasy XIV is an MMORPG and features a persistent world in which players can interact with each other and the environment. Players create and customize their characters for use in the game, including name, race, gender, facial features, and starting class. Unlike in the original release, players may only choose to be a Disciple of War or Magic as a starting class—Disciples of the Hand and Land are initially unavailable. While servers are not explicitly delineated by language, data centers have been placed in the supported regions i.

The user interface and game controls are unified across the PC and home console versions. Players have the option of using any combination of a keyboard, mouse, and game controller to play; the former two are achieved on PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 via wireless or USB keyboard and mouse. By default, the system is navigated through drag and drop windows on PC. Navigation on the PlayStation version of Final Fantasy XIV is accomplished with a XrossMediaBar -like interface due to PlayStation users' familiarity with the set-up.

The head-up display for both versions includes a message log, party status menu, mini-map, and action bar. The player may customize the location of all of these elements. The action bar and battle command input method differs slightly between the PC and home console versions. The PC version supports both point and click and keyboard selection of commands or macros from the action bar.

Macro commands are customizable sequences of actions that allow players to execute desired abilities at a specific time. The home console versions instead map the action bar and macros to the "Cross Hotbar"—sets of four icons arranged in a cross shape. These are the grouped and accessed through a combination of the shoulder buttons and the directional pad or the face buttons.

Using each shoulder button to cycle through the cross sets, players have quick access to commands. This interface is also available to PC players who use controllers. Players are able to improve their characters by gaining experience points EXP —when a set number of experience points are accumulated, the player's character will "level up" and gain improved statistics which further enhance performance in battle. Four primary sources of experience points in Final Fantasy XIV include completing quests, exploring instanced dungeons , participating in Full Active Time Events FATE , and slaying monsters which exist in the game world.

Completing main scenario quests progresses the overarching plot of the game. Guildleves are a type of repeatable quest which may be undertaken using leve allowances. These allowances are limited but regenerate over time. Instanced dungeons are confined locations with specific objectives that must be achieved within a time limit. These dungeons often require multiple players to form a party before entry is granted.

Some dungeons are for lower-leveled players to gain EXP quickly while others are for experienced players to collect rare items, equipment, and currency. This bonus is available once per day for each of the Duty Roulette categories. These location-specific events include battles with notorious monsters, defending a location from invading forces, culling hostile local wildlife, and assaulting enemy fortresses, among other types.

Upon reaching the maximum level, character progression shifts to improving "item level" by acquiring new and better equipment. This equipment can be gained through a variety of sources including endgame dungeons, crafting, raids , primal battles, and elite mark hunts. In addition to these player versus environment PvE challenges, three forms of player versus player PvP combat exist in Final Fantasy XIV.

The first type, the Wolves' Den, is an arena featuring structured four-versus-four battles; a player may register with up to three teammates to challenge another four-person team. Teams are delineated by players' allegiance to one of three Grand Companies and the team which reaches the target number of points first wins the match.

Multiple modes are available, each with differing locations and rulesets. Within the fiction, Frontlines is presented as an organized set of military exercises between the three nations with the ulterior goal of jockeying for dominance of regions rich in magical artifacts.

Players fight enemies using a combination of physical attacks, weapon skills, and magical attacks; these battles form the basis of party play in Final Fantasy XIV. Most battle content in the game requires parties of a specific size, including four players for dungeons and eight players for boss battles. The "Duty Finder" is an automated matching feature that sorts players into parties for selected content across different servers. Members of a party fill traditional MMORPG roles like tank , healer, and damage dealer.

Free Companies are player-run guilds , organized bands of adventurers under the auspices of one of the three Grand Companies of Eorzea.

Free Company members may gain access to a shared company chest, a private chat channel, and Company Actions which are hour buffs to certain aspects of gameplay, such as increased EXP gain or reduced gear damage.

In addition to decorating the house, players may use the grounds to grow unique items through the gardening system, train their chocobo companion, embark on airship expeditions, and purchase a private room for personal use. Linkshells are another form of in-game networking; whereas players may only belong in one Free Company, they may join multiple linkshells which act as private chat channels for interested sub-groups.

Under the Armoury System, a character's equipped weapon determines the character class and players may change their class at will by changing weapons. The Job System builds upon the Armoury System for Disciples of War and Magic.

It allows access to powerful skills, magic, weapons, and armor exclusive to the job corresponding to that class. These jobs, many based on classic Final Fantasy character jobs , are more suited to party-based combat. The virtual economy of Final Fantasy XIV is largely player-driven. The exchange of items is facilitated by retainers—non-playable characters who assist in selling items on the Market Board, gather items through ventures, and provide additional item storage.

Players of any class may contribute to the supply of the economy: Disciples of the Land acquire raw materials from gathering points throughout the game world; Disciples of the Hand craft the materials into useful items and equipment; and Disciples of War and Magic are able to procure rare materials through completion of dungeons and Treasure Maps. Players are also able to contribute by extracting "materia" from well-used equipment, which can then be used to improve the statistics of other equipment.

The mechanics of crafting and gathering have changed between the original release and A Realm Reborn. Most of these changes are geared toward reducing the randomness and guesswork involved in these processes. Crafting abilities have been rebalanced to allow successful high-quality synthesis without requiring multiple mastered Disciplines of the Hand.

For Disciples of the Land, players are allowed to select which item they would like to attempt to collect at a gathering point, whereas before, the results of gathering attempts were randomized. The Gathering Log also displays the names and locations of items that can be gathered in the world. Final Fantasy XIV takes place in the fictional world of Hydaelyn, a planet filled with multiple environments and climates covering three large continents. The region in which the game is set is called Eorzea.

Eorzea is connected to a larger continent to the northeast which has largely been conquered by the militaristic Garlean Empire. Other political entities include the beastmen tribes who are perennially in conflict with the established nations; Sharlayan, a scholarly city to the northwest known for its policies of non-interference; and Ala Mhigo, a city-state which was occupied during the first Garlean invasion twenty years prior to the events of the game. This conflict also resulted in the desolation of Mor Dhona, a once-vibrant region in the center of the continent that is now a barren wasteland.

Eorzea's history revolves around a series of Umbral and Astral Eras. Umbral Eras are followed by periods of enlightenment and cultural growth called Astral Eras. The Third Astral Era was particularly noted for presiding over the Allagan Empire, an ancient civilization whose technology far exceeds the level of the modern age.

Each Umbral and Astral Era pair corresponds to one of the six basic elements—wind, lightning, fire, earth, ice, and water.

The Sixth Umbral Era was believed to be the last and the civilized races hoped the Sixth Astral Era would last forever.

However, five years prior to the start of the game, the Garlean Empire catalyzed a series of events that would lead to the Seventh Umbral Era. Through their research into the Meteor Project, the Garleans discovered a way to call down the lesser moon Dalamud and use it as a weapon.

The plan—spearheaded by the Imperial Legatus Nael van Darnus—was to crash Dalamud into Eorzea, annihilating the beastmen tribes and their primal deities and conquering the smoldering remains. A band of adventurers defeated van Darnus but could not stop Dalamud's continued descent.

During a major battle between the Grand Companies and the leaderless Garlean invasion force at the Carteneau Flats in Mor Dhona, Dalamud revealed itself to be an ancient Allagan-made prison for the primal dragon Bahamut, who promptly escaped to initiate the Seventh Umbral Calamity. The player's character takes on the role of an adventurer in Eorzea under the Seventh Umbral Era who joins one of the three Grand Companies. The Order of the Twin Adder, Gridania's Grand Company, is led by Elder Seedseer Kan-E-Senna, an even-headed child of the forest who is blessed with the power of prophecy.

Ul'dah's Immortal Flames are led by Flame General Raubahn Aldynn, a Highlander from Ala Mhigo and bodyguard of reigning sultana Nanamo Ul Namo. Raubahn climbed out of poverty through his martial skill while fighting in the Coliseum. The Maelstrom of Limsa Lominsa is led by Admiral Merlwyb Bloefhiswyn, a cunning former pirate who instituted a harsh conscription service to bring the pirate fleets under her command.

Finally, Cid Garlond is the head of the Garlond Ironworks, a technology company which builds airships and weapons for the Alliance. Eorzea is threatened by invasion from the forces of the Garlean Empire to the north, first by Legatus Gaius van Baelsar of the XIVth Legion and his lieutenants, Livia sas Junius, Rhitahtyn sas Arvina, and Nero tol Scaeva.

The Beastmen tribes also jeopardize the unstable peace in Eorzea with their summoning of primals, aetherial deities who deplete the land of its lifeblood. The game opens with a vision of the player's character wielding a weapon of light based upon their starting class to strike down a masked man in black robes. The vision is a dream the player has while on a carriage ride to their chosen starting city—Gridania, Ul'dah, or Limsa Lominsa.

Players returning from the original release appear in a forest in a pillar of light—Louisoix's final spell to save their lives from the devastation at Carteneau. Through undertaking various odd jobs, the player character ingratiates themself with the local Adventurers' Guild and earns comparisons with the fabled Warriors of Light, brave adventurers who participated in the Battle of Carteneau whose identities have been mysteriously erased from the memories of all who knew them.

A pattern emerges amid these quests involving a series of attacks by masked men, as well as a member of the Scions of the Seventh Dawn who claims to know the origin of the player's visions.

The adventurer meets the leader of this secret society, Minfilia, who reveals that the visions are a manifestation of the Echo and mark the player as a chosen representative of Hydaelyn, the Mothercrystal.

As a newly inducted member of the Scions, the player follows Thancred to Thanalan to investigate abductions and crystal theft along its trade routes. The culprits are members of the Amalj'aa beast tribe who capture the adventurer to be sacrificed to their primal god, Ifrit.

After a poor fiscal year , Square Enix executives attributed the company's return to profitability in part to the game's strong sales and subscriber base, reaching a total of over 24 million registered players by October , also becoming the most profitable Final Fantasy game to date. Retrieved June 8, The alpha test for A Realm Reborn began shortly after the original release's finale and ended in late December Lahabrea defeats the adventurer himself, revealing the calamities are part of a process to resurrect the Ascians' God, Zodiark. Each Umbral and Astral Era pair corresponds to one of the six basic elements—wind, lightning, fire, earth, ice, and water.

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