Imagine a world with 10-foot-tall elves, catfolk running through the streets, gigantic yellow ostrich-like birds capable of slaying colossal monsters—then add a clash between light and darkness, sprinkle in divine beings and near-death experiences.
Now that it’s written out, it suddenly doesn’t sound so inviting to experience in real life. Fortunately, you can experience all this and much more in an MMORPG developed by Square Enix that has been racking up praise (and awards) lately.
Be whoever you want
In Final Fantasy XIV (also known as Final Fantasy 14 or FFXIV), you get to create your own character and craft your own gameplay experience. Who do you want your character to be?
Will it be one of the catfolk mentioned above, known as Miqo’te, or do you prefer playing ordinary humans as Hyur? Tall elves also exist in the form of Elezen—but if you want to go to the other end of the spectrum, you can choose the knee-high Lalafell.
Two of the three expansion packs released so far have also added new races: the draconic Au Ra, with pointed tails and scales along their backs; or maybe you’d like to play a human–rabbit hybrid? Then choose Viera; or pick Hrothgar if you think it sounds awesome to play as a huge, muscular lion/tiger/puma that walks upright on two legs.
Then comes the choice of which job to play—and here there are even more ways to further develop your character. So far you can choose between 20 different jobs, each capable of defeating enemies in its own way.
A living, breathing world – dynamic weather
In the top-right corner of your screen you’ll find a compass that helps you find your way in Eorzea, as the world is called. One of the other things the compass can do is tell you what kind of weather you’ll meet on your journey.
The compass will notify you, for example, if you run into a thunderstorm, strong gusts, a snowstorm, a heatwave, and other weather phenomena (some of which don’t even exist in our own climate).
The different regions and domains in Final Fantasy XIV Online, after the game’s first major update: ‘A Realm Reborn’, are very unlike one another. Still, they can all be affected by various weather effects, so you won’t know whether you’re logging into a rain shower or lovely sunshine, no matter where you are in the world.
Many diverse areas to explore
If you’re looking for adventure, look no further. Even the three starting zones feature three very different climates, stories, and visual elements that in no way overlap.
Thanalan is a desert: a giant dune sea with a ‘jewel’ in the middle, the capital Ul’dah, where people come to sell and trade goods and make a coin on almost anything.
The Black Shroud is a forest full of mysterious beings and is blessed by the magical Elementals, whom the forest’s inhabitants worship and work with to promote the woods’ growth and ensure nature doesn’t fall out of balance. The region’s capital is Gridania, a small clearing in the dense forest where ancient rituals are performed in celebration of nature.
In La Noscea you’ll find a vacation paradise and a seafaring capital. In Limsa Lominsa, pirates and sailors belong, and there’s always something going on in the shadows. Outside the capital lie long stretches of white sand and blue water that sailors and pirates enjoy when they’re not drinking themselves senseless in Limsa.
Is the free version enough?
For someone new who hasn’t tried the game before, the answer is yes. If you’ve played the free version before, the answer is still yes, as long as you’re under level 60.
Square Enix has added the entire Heavensward expansion to the free trial, so you can freely experience the base game and the first expansion while you consider whether you want to buy the full game. That means many, MANY hours of free gameplay and fun without paying a single cent.
Ease of use
Not only does the game help you learn its systems and universe—through story missions and dedicated tutorial menus—but other players are also incredibly helpful.
In fact, Final Fantasy XIV has a mentor system where skilled veterans who have played for a long time and cleared particularly difficult content can sign up to help new players via a chat system, where newcomers can ask questions and request help with especially tough duties.
Other games you might consider
If you like the idea of playing with others but don’t necessarily need it to be ‘Massive’ (MMORPG = Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game), you can try downloading another fantastic game: Genshin Impact, which you can read more about here.
If, on the other hand, you find older games charming, you can also download the free online multiplayer game called Dragonica. We’ve explained it here.
If you really like the idea of creating your own character, you can try The Sims 4, which has a free demo that lets you create your own character using the game’s powerful tools. Try The Sims 4 for free here.
Conclusion
Final Fantasy XIV is a game that runs deep in story, content, and social community. At the moment, the game is at its highest player levels, so download the free trial to experience this fantastic universe with as many other people as possible—it makes the MMORPG experience even better!
* Final Fantasy XIV Endwalker launched on December 7, 2021 and added a wide range of new experiences to the game. Among other things, a new race variant and two new jobs (the healer Sage and the damage dealer Reaper) were released. This is the conclusion to the original story, told over nearly ten years. Help bring this chapter of Final Fantasy to a close, and prepare for years of content afterward.
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