Final Fantasy XIV is Proof No Game is a Lost Cause

Final Fantasy XIV survived one of the worst launches in MMORPG history to become the best modern iteration of the genre - no game is a lost cause.

[MeteorPanda]

their expansion stories rival actual series entries. the latest one and how it ties with the first as well as how they've improved their storytelling in a more engaging way..

unbelivable how good it is. I've played wow for 10 odd years, often played with sound off and youtube going in the background - not this game, the soundtrack doesnt seem to have any bad songs in the list.

do give it a try if you're looking for a new game. There are mentors and friendly guilds everywhere.

[rdgneoz3]

La Hee?

[PhantomS42]

La Hee is indeed the greatest song.

[rdgneoz3]

You listen to the new "landslide" song? Such a good one.

[Cmv38]

Anthem and 76 are lost causes until they go free to play and provide incentives for those who bought the trash

[LordJamar]

No they arnt

[CrimsonWing69]

Dang it, ok I’m seriously wanting to give this a try but I am a hella noob at MMO RPGs, plus the subscription fee is kind of off putting to me. I hear so much great things about this game though.

[capjacksparrow]

I was the same when I started, but this was one of my favorite gaming experiences. Try to find a cool group or guild and tell them that you're new to the whole thing and ask for some pointers. FFXIV is the way to go, such an amazing experience. You'll be glad to pay the sub fee, trust me.

[zelent]

For the amount of content you get, the subscription fee is negligible.

In addition, FF14 is one of the most noob-friendly MMO's out there. The leveling and story is structured in a way that you will slowly learn everything bit-by-bit.

[MeteorPanda]

when you play an mmo you usually don't buy a lot of oher games - l save money sticking to an mmo and a moba lol.
When l finally want to play a single player game - hey look it's on discount!
Sure l buy the ones l really want but overall 15 a month saves me 200 or more

Also this game offers many incentives for new or returning players, Mentors are other players that are there to teach you stuff and guide. This is a story driven game so you can play it with just by yourself or join a fc (guild) and the people there will help you out if you ask.

[Lovable]

This is actually true. I haven't purchased a game since FF 14 ARR beta since I don't crave on playing any other.

[Kados]

Technically it is not the same game though. They completely abandoned the original game & assets which were made by a third party, then started over from scratch in-house. Same name, different game.

[TheOtherMoon]

A broken clock will tell the right time twice-a-day. The author of the article is treating the exception to the rule as the “new rule.” FF XIV has made some incredible changes, what helps is years and years of great games and a solid fan base. Games like Anthem are new, Fallout 76 pushed nothing new for the series. FF XIV is an example of what happens when a strong developer has a strong fan base.

[WickedLester]

Still not paying a monthly subscription to play one game!

[F0XHOUND]

Strange view to have imo. Say you only want to play for the story, ignoring all of the other awesome content it has at endgame. The story alone is well worth the monthly sub + initial purchase price to get to shadowbringers. You can then simply resub when new main story quests are added, or return during free play time periods. If youre a fan of FF or good stories in general, its worth it man :)

[WickedLester]

Not to me it isnt. I already pay for enough subscriptions. Ill be damned if im going to pay another for a single game. I dont care how good it is.

[MeteorPanda]

how many things are you subscribed to?

for me it's like
Netflix/amazon/whatever one at a time, never multiple
adobe
ff14

not a huge hit to my budget but before l was racking in 5 or 7 subs a month. cut down on all that shit.

MMo's are strange in that good ones offer a lot of time sinking fun in different directions. You don't have to be raiding end game to enjoy this.

[WickedLester]

Internet
PS Plus
Netflix
Hulu
Youtube TV
Spotify

[Lovable]

FYI, you also don't need PS Plus to play this game.

[MeteorPanda]

you dont need 3 video watching subscriptions. you really don't. not at once

[WickedLester]

YouTube TV is temporary. I only carry it during college and NFL football season. Netflix for movies. Hulu for TV shows.

[iQuasar]

I wish I could give the article a pass. However, five years of playing this game up-to and through the raiding scene just betrays the content. The surface presentation is like an instagram personality seen only through their posted pictures. When you truly get inside and interact with the community do you see it just as toxic as any other game's. It truly is sad how SE does very little to police the playerbase on its platform. It makes for an ugly experience after playing through the initial storyline (MSQ) content. The game really does put on two faces. The PR side and the day-to-day reality side.

[pietro1212]

Story wise A Realm Reborn is the best narrative in a Final Fantasy since 6, 9 and Tactics

[Evilryusam]

Pietro i hope your joking, Arr drags it feet in the mud multiple times on the way to HW. I'm not even going to mention the lvl 50 msqs...

[metalgod88]

I'm sorry, but this isn't true. Below is a short list of games that should have never been released. Some games...are in fact a lost cause.

Aliens: Colonial Marines
Duke Nukem Forever
BMX XXX
Haze
Ride to Hell: Retribution
Shaq Fu
Sonic the Headgehog (2006)
Superman 64

It's true that terrible games need to exist so we can raise the good ones up on a pedestal, but at the same time...those games probably would have saved studios if they had developed something else in their place.

To the point of the article, some games can have a great comeback. the development team needs to have the funding and drive to make the game turn into what they envisioned it would be. However, some games are so fundamentally flawed and broken both logistically and technologically, they should have just set the idea aside and came up with something better. But..easier said than done when you have a 1 year deadline (assuming) and the publisher is constantly nagging for updates.