Final Fantasy XIV

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Final Fantasy XIV
Final Fantasy XIV title logo, designed by Yoshitaka Amano
Developer(s)	Square Enix Production Team 3
Publisher(s)	Square Enix
Designer(s)	Hiromichi Tanaka (producer) Nobuaki Komoto (director)
Artist(s)	Akihiko Yoshida
Composer(s)	Nobuo Uematsu[1]
Series	Final Fantasy
Engine	Crystal Tools
Platform(s)	PlayStation 3[1][2] Microsoft Windows[1]
Release date(s)	TBA 2010[3]
Genre(s)	Massively multiplayer online role-playing game
Mode(s)	Multiplayer cross-platform
Media	Blu-ray Disc, DVD
Input methods	Gamepad, Keyboard and Mouse

Final Fantasy XIV (ファイナルファンタジーXIV, Fainaru Fantajī Fōtīn^?), also known as Final Fantasy XIV Online, is the fourteenth entry in the Final Fantasy series, due for release in 2010 for PlayStation 3 ^[1][2] and Windows^[4]. The game is developed and published by Square Enix and will be released simultaneously in all regions.^[3] Like Final Fantasy XI, Final Fantasy XIV is a massively multiplayer online game. The game takes place in a land called Hydaelyn, mainly in a region named Eorzea, which will have an aesthetic blend of sci-fi and classic fantasy elements.^[3][5] The game will be released in English, Japanese, French and German.^[6]

Contents 1 Gameplay 2 Plot 2.1 City States 2.2 Characters 2.3 Classes 3 Development 4 References 5 External links

[edit] Gameplay

The battle and job systems will be different from the one previously used in Final Fantasy XI, which utilized experience points. Character races and monsters will resemble those found in Final Fantasy XI to allow players to create avatars similar to ones created in Final Fantasy XI.^[3] Group play has been de-emphasized, and now solo and group play have been balanced.^[3] Weapon use will alter "character development".^[3]

The North American official website^[7] was updated October 7, 2009 and explains about the Job System, also known as The Armoury System. By wielding different weapons and even crafting tools, players will be able to take on the role of their choosing such as Gladiator or Thaumaturge. In general, the different roles are divided into four disciplines: Disciples of War (masters of combat arms), Disciples of Magic (self-explanatory), Disciples of the Land (gatherers of material resources and students of the natural order), and Disciples of the Hand (crafters who invest their creative ingenuity in synthesis and industry). The crafting system will be a part of the Armory System; when a player decides to wield a Blacksmith hammer, their appearance will change and they will become a blacksmith. The same goes for harvesting tools; a player will be able to equip them and their appearance will change. They will then take on the role of a resource gatherer.

Square Enix is looking for a way to allow users to transfer their game names to the new MMO.^[3] The developers say that, in addition to Final Fantasy XI, games that have also influenced Final Fantasy XIV include World of Warcraft, Age of Conan and Warhammer Online, but most of all by player feedback.^[3] Chocobos will also return, but in a different role from Final Fantasy XI.^[3]

In a DVD included with the September 2009 edition of Famitsu magazine, Nobuaki Komoto announced that while Final Fantasy XIV will include XI's job system, it will return to focus on weapons and skills, and will not have experience points or a leveling system. This will be the second time since Final Fantasy II that the series will have seen this change. The setting will also be changed from that of XI; while still set in a "high fantasy" world, the setting will be more modern than that of its predecessor and will include higher technology. The game will also include races "familiar" to players of Final Fantasy XI, but with new names and "other changes".^[8] The game, currently in an alpha build, features an in-game compass and overhead map.^[9]

[edit] Plot

Distant Past: Long ago, the various races of the Hydaelyn world began exploring, and stumbled across a vast new land called Eorzea, where they settled and began new lives. The benevolent gods that ruled over Eorzea and the surrounding areas, known as The Twelve, were impressed by the tribes, and decided to watch over the mortals and their villages. In time, the villages became independent City-States. Though, this was not paradise; for where men trod, strife follows. Due to betrayals on all sides, the City-States began fighting one another. However, this would one day change.

Recent Past: Within the last 10-15 years, new enemies arose. Beast tribes around the continent, frought with ambition for power, summoned beings known as Primals into the world. These fearsome creatures began wreaking havoc on the free people of Eorzea. Meanwhile, to the northeast, the powerful Garlean Empire began an invasion into the land, in a bid to conquer the continent. With superior technology, they smote all that stood in their way, and eventually laid waste to the City-State of Ala Mhigo.

However, in the midst of all this chaos and battle, a mysterious power appears in the world. Known simply as "The Echo," when this power touches a soul, that soul gains the ability to resonate with others. Those touched by The Echo are able to relive the past events of other people, as if they were their own. Though they cannot change the future, they can gain a profound understanding of another person's past. But The Echo... is it a gift from the gods, to inspire righteousness? Or is it the deception of some sinister sorcery? To what end has it been given?

The search for answers falls to you.^[10]

[edit] City States

• Ul'dah
• Limsa Lominsa
• Gridania
• Ishgard

[edit] Characters

So far there are five confirmed playable races in Final Fantasy XIV, all similar to the races from Final Fantasy XI. The goal of the developers was to create an atmosphere of aesthetic familiarity to players of FFXI.^[3]

Hyur (ヒューラン, Hyuuran^?): A race that is more or less human. They are divided into the Highlanders and the Midlanders.

Elezen (エレゼン, Erezen^?): An elf-like race and the original inhabitants of Eorzea.

Lalafell (ララフェル, Raraferu^?): Tiny humanoids of high agility and intelligence from the southern regions.

Roegadyn (ルガディン, Rugadin^?): A large race who are a seafaring folk from the northern regions.

Miqo'te (ミコッテ, Mikotte^?): Cat-like humanoids divided by two groups: the Seekers of the Sun and the Keepers of the Moon.

[edit] Classes

The Classes will be divided up in to 4 "Disciplines". The Crafting Professions such as Gardeners and Blacksmiths have been included as classes, and the character will change into that job if it has the specific item equipped. (If it's equipped with a hammer, it will become a blacksmith, etc.) Below is a list of the so far announced classes ^[11]

Disciples of War

Archer

Marauder

Pugilist

Gladiator

Lancer

Disciples of Magic

Thaumaturge

Disciples of the Land

Botanist

Disciples of the Hand

Alchemist

Culinarian

Tanner

Blacksmith

Weaver

[edit] Development

Final Fantasy XIV, previously codenamed Rapture (ラプチャー^?),^[12] was first mentioned in August 2005, when Square Enix announced they had begun working on a new MMORPG, but neither confirmed nor denied that it was a sequel to Final Fantasy XI, or that it was Final Fantasy-related.^[13] Hiromichi Tanaka, producer of the MMORPG Final Fantasy XI, stated in April 2006 that developers are working to make Rapture a worldwide release.^[14] He announced in February 2007 that the game was being developed for the Xbox 360 and for personal computers, and that it might be brought to the PlayStation 3 at some stage as well.^[15] Square Enix announced at GDC 2008 that the new MMO was being targeted at the aforementioned systems and hinted that Mac and Linux clients are not out of question.^[3][16]

On June 2, 2009, at the Sony E3 Conference, Final Fantasy XIV was officially announced for the PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Windows through a trailer mixing pre-rendered CGI and actual in-game sequences running from the Crystal Tools engine.^[3][17] The game will be produced by the same team working on Final Fantasy XI including Hiromichi Tanaka, and will be directed by Nobuaki Komoto.^[17] Akihiko Yoshida is the art director, and Nobuo Uematsu is composing the music.^[1] The game will have cross-platform servers between PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Windows, making all servers accessible from any country. The game will be beta tested for longer than the 4 months that Final Fantasy XI was.^[3] The PlayOnline system will not be used for the game, but an easy solution is in the works for those wishing to easily switch between FFXIV and FFXI. Though not being targeted initially, the developers have not ruled out the possibility of the game appearing at a later stage on the Xbox 360.^[3] Tanaka has remarked that Microsoft's policies regarding Xbox Live and cross-platform play have been one of the reasons behind the title not being available on the platform at launch, though negotiations continue for a possible future release.^[3][18]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official website

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