PixlBit

Of all the new Square-Enix Final Fantasy games announced recently at E3 2013: FFXV, Lightning Returns, I’ll even mention Kingdom Hearts 3 in there for good measure, and X and X-2 remakes, the only game that is actually closest to release is already playable. Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn is in its second week of beta testing, dubbed Phase 3, and is shortly on its way to Phase 4 in a couple of weeks time which will be an open beta and characters and *progress will be transferrable over to the official servers at launch in late August. Current Phase 3 testers, including me, will have all of their progress and characters erased, so most testers are experimenting with all the features and providing feedback to developers on their official forums. For those that are interested in extra information, the Phase 3 beta consists of three 48-hour weekends that allow testers to create characters and explore some customization features and explore the first few starting areas (quests, storylines, etc.) of the game that most new players will visit at launch. The purpose of the tests is really to test server load stress and some in game bugs and what not. The beta also allows players to test the game out on Playstation 3 and its gamepad setup. The interesting thing about this is that you can login to your account from either your PC or PS3, providing you own a copy of the game for each system.



Many of the testers have already taken to the web to create online fan communities, forums, personal blogs and setup information pages and instructions for the game, not to mention the number of youtube videos that have popped up online with detailed information about every nuance of the games controls and battle systems etc. As expected a lot of these mentioned sites have also brought with it the usual hardcore versus casual voices getting into the equivalent of bar room brawls over who to blame for ruining the general MMO experience. It feels like a genuine launch for an MMO alright.



During my second week I managed to download and login with my PS3, and I have to say that after playing with PC last week, I much prefer the gamepad and PS3 setup with keyboard plugged in for chatting. Part of the reason I feel the gamepad works so well is the fact that this game has been streamlined and more intuitive and easy to play as a single player. I hardly ever needed to party with anyone to complete a quest. If I had a little trouble, all I needed to do was grind a bit and then I was ready. So I can imagine that console players who are going to try an MMO for the first time will be more than capable of using their PS3 to do so. There are some graphical limitations compared to PC, as to be expected, but the game play more than makes up for quality in terms of quantity of content on the screen. This issue about the game being too console friendly and accessible to new players has consistently been the point of debate since the start of the beta, and will most likely be debated during and after launch.



I should explain that I have had experience playing FF XI, FF XIV version 1.0, and other MMOs and the usual consensus in these communities is that MMOs have become too simplified for the sake of adding more new players as opposed to making them more challenging, in short, veteran MMO players want to keep new players out and keep MMOs niche. Square-Enix and their money woes will probably keep them satisfying the wants of the many as opposed to the vocal minority. I was listening to a podcast regarding developer questions being asked at E3 from “journalists” who were really just fan site bloggers asking hard hitting questions about accessories and  personal housing that is rumored to be featured in the game instead of asking about balancing battle systems and customizing interfaces or allowing the creation of add-ons by the community.



When Final Fantasy XIV 1.0 officially ended, Square-Enix created a gorgeous video depicting a meteor crashing down and destroying Eorzea, the place the game takes place in. I joked on a fan forum that Square-Enix represented the meteor and the people being destroyed were all the old players. In a sense, wiping everyone out and starting over with new players- A Realm Reborn. In a way, that is exactly what Square-Enix has done with the new game, XIV version 2.0



After spending the last two weekends with the game, I feel like Square-Enix has won me over as a new fan. I am very impressed with the direction of the game design and the attention to detail that developers have placed into the creation of a beautiful new world. Soon, the beta will be open to more players so they too can explore this awesome place on their own.



I was just recently reading about an old game that was meant to be released for the PSP system, called Final Fantasy Agito, which was later changed to Type-0 and only released in Japan. Several hackers have gotten together to create language translations so that more people can enjoy the game in places where the game wasn’t released-- everywhere outside Japan! The translation team is close to finishing the translation and a lot of people are wondering how long it will take Square-Enix to shut them down. In the case of A Realm Reborn, Square-Enix rebuilt a disastrous game from the ground up and spent a lot of time on development to make fans happy. While there is no mention of the infamous Agito game being released in the West any time soon, in the case of A Realm Reborn, Square-Enix should be praised for listening to feedback and giving fans what they want.