"It would almost be easier to name the parts of FFXIV that haven't been redone from the ground up for A Realm Reborn (ARR). The graphics engine, battle system, server structure, map system, and user interface are all new for starters, meaning that in a very real way, ARR is an entirely new game. Combat is much faster than before, as evidenced by multiple side-by-side videos shown to me at my recent preview."
~ Nick Tan, GameRevolution
Today, during a pane at PAX East, Square Enix announced the release date of the next expansion Dawntrail, on top of the editions and more.
The MMORPG will arrive on Xbox consoles on 21st March following its open beta, with Square Enix releasing further details on the launch in a new Lodestone blog post.
Not only is Game Pass required to play the game in full, but FFXIV Coins will be required to make purchases - a new currency not used on PC or PlayStation.
What's even the point if they're doing everything possible to convince people NOT to play?
Bad idea. Kind of at the point its almost like a repeat of FFXI on the 360 with it requiring Gold to play.
Greed greed nothing but greed. Anyone who willingly plays 14 on Xbox is a bona fide sucker.
Kotaku writes: "That’s thanks to a series of announcements from Square Enix about exclusive features and play requirements, the latest being a new currency called FFXIV Coins."
I really hope this marks a turnaround for Square.
I hope it really is a Realm Reborn. I know a lot of people were huge fans of FFXI and this was just a disappointment in every way when it launched.
I'll openly admit that I'm a big FF fanboy. I played XIV from beginning to end. I forced myself to play it for the first month or two, but I fell in love with the community. People were always helpful and were nice enough; this of course changed towards the end. I made some online friends and played casually and when ARR was announced, I only continued to play in hopes of not being left behind when the slew of new content was released.
Based on all of the videos, previews, etc, ARR is a totally new game. Is that bad? Hell no. It looks absolutely amazing to me. I'm glad they are streamlining the experience and reaching out to a new and the old fanbase alike.
While I don't agree with some of the changes - open world primal fights instead of instanced and the riddance of open world dungeons - the pros far outweigh the cons so I find it difficult to complain about anything.
Will ARR be one of the greatest MMOs out there? Idk, but I sure hope so. I just worry with all the bad press that XIV got, people assume that ARR is an expansion or an update. When in reality, it's an entirely new game built completely from the ground up. New engine, new world, new battle system, new core mechanics, and a ton of new content. The one thing ARR definitely has going for it is the content being imported from the original XIV....so it will have a ton of end game content. Tons.
I wonder if they'll ever make back all the money they lost on this fiasco.