Is this game worth the sub?

sagewisdom · March 2015

To start off, let me say that I have NEVER played an MMORPG before, but the genre has recently interested in me. I, however, am a big Final Fantasy fan. I've played all of the main numbers except XI since, you know, it's an MMO too.

I heard about the way Yoshi-P was really able to turn this game around in some reviews, but I want to know if it has that Final Fantasy feel I enjoy so much. I've seen Chocobos and heard about the installment (the main thing that caught my attention) of the Golden Saucer.

But, I've also heard about World of Warcraft's really bad community (even saw this video where they attacked during some sort of funeral thing or something...?) and wonder if this game is like that. Will being new be held against me? Is there a lot of grinding (I enjoy killing things, okay?)? What about the story? Is it classic FF? I heard there were jobs, are you stuck as one FFI or can you change like FFV?

Can you player kill (I hope not, I don't want to be attacked by other players when trying to level). Speaking of leveling, I saw some of the combat and it seemed a bit slow. That doesn't bother me too much (I played IX just fine and the ATB took FOREVER), but are the attacks more worth it. In other words, are the attacks more "Hell, yeah, got you!" and "Crap! I messed up", or are they more *attack*, wait, *attack* "God, this game is so slow! Why, it's not like anything hurts me anyway!" I really prefer the former since it means there's more stradegy to it.

Also, I saw this thing that looked like Ifrit, was it Ifrit? Are summons in the game (I really hope Ramuh's at least in even if it's only as a boss...)? If you can summon, how does that work? Is it a summoner job or can anyone summon? Are they all bosses (like Ifritt, if it was him, appeared to be) or do you get some sort of, let's say, magicite?

I'm guessing it's not open world, but is it expansive like FFXII or corridors like FFXIII (Pre-Gran Pulse)? Can you use airships? Are there even airships?

I've seen some of the game's gear, and I don't like some of it? Do I just got to deal or can I at least change colors (not a deal breaker, just curious)?

And, like I said, I heard about the installation of the Gold Saucer in a "patch" and they've had like five of them? Do I have to pay for them or are they free? And there's supposed to be an expansion? Do I have to pay for that? Does a lot of content come in these patches and expansion - I've seen a bit of the notes but I'm not sure how much is really considered content and how much is really just vanity (is the gear they release in them even good looking?).

Does the cash shop hold all of the really good stuff or is it just bonus, uimportant content that won't make a difference if I get it or not (I'm likely to buy them if they are but I rather know now if I'm being ripped off than finding out later)?

I've also heard the terms DPS, Tank, and Healer but I'm not quite sure I fully understand them. DPS is your army, Tanks are your body guard, and Healers are your doctors, right? But what about status buffs like protect and status attacks like poison? What do they go in?

Are the bosses hard?

Please and thank you for answering (I figured it would be easier for a newbie like me to ask than see a bunch of jargon I won't understand when looking it up).

Yaevindusk · March 2015

Originally posted by sagewisdom
To start off, let me say that I have NEVER played an MMORPG before, but the genre has recently interested in me. I, however, am a big Final Fantasy fan. I've played all of the main numbers except XI since, you know, it's an MMO too.

Title response:

It depends on how you personally value money and if content and or hours played = money value.

For me, both of these are a big "YES" when it comes to Final Fantasy XIV. In fact, their patches are some of the most content rich patches on the market, and are consistently let out roughly every three months without relent (as opposed to very low quality / content rich from other games such as WoW, whereby they're known to have 12-15 months of not content half way through an expansion).

Each patch so far has had at least three new dungeons, Primal Boss fights, raid tiers, hundreds of new quests including main storyline continuations, side quests, side quest with their own storylines (that are continued... such as the Hildebrand side story and Mail moogles, as well as stories for the new dungeons), updates to existing systems, BRAND NEW systems such as the marriage system, chocobo training (and stables), personal housing, chocobo colors, Tripple Triad (card game), Gold Saucer (with all it's mini games therein), challenges, Beast tribes questlines / reputation, persistent emotes (able to change the standing positions of your characters, which is a huge plus for immersion), new emotes, New and updated PvP systems, New Battlegrounds, new dances for all characters, Desynthesis, new crafting systems... etc. Etc. In addition to entirely new RACES and CLASSES that are implemented in mere patches. Though this is just touching on a few of the new stuff they add into patchs -- and even their minor patches, such as 2.51 introduce things as large as Gold Saucer.

To say that 99% of MMOs would gate all of these behind an expansion would be an understatement, whilst FFXIV gives people value for their monthly fee and never considers leaving the player dry on content. Even when FFXIV 1.0 was doomed to be vapor ware with only a few thousand players max, they had patches that were larger than anything WoW ever produced. Amazing stories and updated systems, new systems and classes, etc. That's with the game going to be shut down within months, and while they were working on A Realm Reborn (none of the stuff they worked on with 1.0 made it to 2.0, they just wanted to give the customer what they paid for).

One thing I hate about this game is the gating. Virtually everything has a sort of attunement in the form of a quest or having to slay monsters or bosses. 90% of the features are gated in this way, and thus many people do not even know they exist. This is also due to the fact that most of them aren't obvious, as there is nothing that indicates they exist. No tutorials or the like.

Honestly, I get hundreds of hours of gameplay with each patch, which is much more than the $60 games I get with it only having five hours of gameplay.

I heard about the way Yoshi-P was really able to turn this game around in some reviews, but I want to know if it has that Final Fantasy feel I enjoy so much. I've seen Chocobos and heard about the installment (the main thing that caught my attention) of the Golden Saucer.

Yes, it is very much so a Final Fantasy game with A LOT of reading and story. However, the start of the game is exceedingly slow and boring. There are also too many generic quests at start and very little story to back it up. Though as it progresses thing flow more smoothly. One thing that I could say about the game is that the patched content for the main story is pretty fantastic as a whole, minus a few hiccups along the way as they tried out new things (such as requiring a fate to proceed... *shudder*... though they didn't really do that to great effect again).

The game has villains. You see the villains relatively often. Even cutscenes that show them in their quarters doing their thing, despite you being no where near them.

Chocobos are a main part of the game. You get to own one at level 20. Then you teach him/her how to fight at level 30 and they accompany you as a battle companion provided that you have enough greens to feed them. You also level them up, equip them with bardings, put them in stables, train them, race them in Gold Saucers, etc.

The battle system sports a sort of sped up ATB system typical of Final Fantasy, along with group Limit Breaks that can be performed. Though the actions are quick and the animations slick once you are able to make an input.

But, I've also heard about World of Warcraft's really bad community (even saw this video where they attacked during some sort of funeral thing or something...?) and wonder if this game is like that. Will being new be held against me? Is there a lot of grinding (I enjoy killing things, okay?)? What about the story? Is it classic FF? I heard there were jobs, are you stuck as one FFI or can you change like FFV?

You won't have to worry about a bad community here (for the most part). It's true that at the start of the game there were a lot of spammers and people with bad manners, but that could be said of any new MMO, really. This is mainly because most of those "WoW" players go to new games to check them out before going back to whatever game they were playing if they aren't interested. As a whole, today, the community is fantastic. I constantly see people helping each other, asking for helping, getting help, etc. I personally belong to a Linkshell that is dedicated to helping new players.

When it comes to using the Duty Finder (random pug), the experience is mostly the same. The game informs people that someone is new to the dungeon and that a bonus will be given to every as a result. People say "hello!", and you move about the area. I have not seen a single person get mad or upset or angry in the past month or two (I took a long break). The only time where you might've seen some friction in the past was with the first 8 man dungeons, as people liked to speed run those and there was also a lot of story. So people got upset at others for watching cutscenes. This has long since be fixed (mainly) and people are strong enough to not even care if someone watches cutscenes as a whole (though it may be a problem if both tanks or both healers do it). This is doubly so if people notice someone is new in the group, as the game indicates.

Luckily once you're past those first two eight mans, the game learns from its mistake and it's nothing but good manners even in Looking for Raid. People saying hello, being really excited when new players are in the group due to them getting double the tomes for the run (tomes are used to upgrade alternate classes and the like for most), etc. Don't be surprised if you see someone saying "Yay! Thank you, new people! " quite often. I see it in more than 50% of the raids I pug.

Can you player kill (I hope not, I don't want to be attacked by other players when trying to level). Speaking of leveling, I saw some of the combat and it seemed a bit slow. That doesn't bother me too much (I played IX just fine and the ATB took FOREVER), but are the attacks more worth it. In other words, are the attacks more "Hell, yeah, got you!" and "Crap! I messed up", or are they more *attack*, wait, *attack* "God, this game is so slow! Why, it's not like anything hurts me anyway!" I really prefer the former since it means there's more stradegy to it.

You cannot kill other players in this game without opting into such (unlocked at level 30, and you're sent to an instanced area specifically made for PvP).

With regards to combat, it's essentially a sped up ATB system like in other Final Fantasy games. At the start, it will feel like you're just pushing buttons just because they're strong -- every class has combos that increase the potency of the next combo'd action. For instance, X thrust + X thrust will both have a potency of 100. Though if you do X thrust, plus Y thrust, the first X thrust will be 100, and the Y thrust will be 200 due to it being a combo. Y thrust by itself will also only be 100.

Once you get to higher levels -- specifically max and depending on classes -- messing up will hurt. A lot. Mainly because combos are so powerful and there could be 5+ rotations as opposed to pressing one, one, two. In addition to being a half dozen attacks off of the global cooldown that you have to use immediately after AND inbetween combos, while also paying attention to enemy attacks so that you don't screw yourself or your teammates over performing something that may get you hit by an AoE. Each class has their own unique little function. Ninjas, in particular, must use hand symbols before casting a ninjitsu (or mudra), and if you ruin one hand gesture, the entire spell fails and you are locked out from using Ninjitsu for 20 seconds. That's 20 seconds of you not having a much needed buff or persistent AoE attack, which is devastating to your DPS.

Those who have played the game at a high level understand there is a lot of tactics and strategy and punishment to the system. Due to such, the 2.5 ATB (or global, as a common term), is too fast for a lot of people. Especially when you HAVE to figure out what combo chain or rotation will fit the situation next, what buffs you need to keep up, what the enemy's doing, what your members are doing, etc. All the while knowing that if you pick the wrong one, you mess yourself up for at least 7.5 seconds as you have to follow through to maximize DPS (or get a chain of 100 potency attacks as opposed to a 360 combo) or lock yourself out of an action for 2.5 seconds when a stun is needed IMMEDIATELY. You misclicked or judged the wrong rotation or combo? Congratulations, you wiped the group (less severe in old content or content not meant for hardcore groups).

It's really 10x complex than most other game's combat system, in a lot of ways. Though that's dependent on the class, as some are really easy (such as Bard).

Also, I saw this thing that looked like Ifrit, was it Ifrit? Are summons in the game (I really hope Ramuh's at least in even if it's only as a boss...)? If you can summon, how does that work? Is it a summoner job or can anyone summon? Are they all bosses (like Ifritt, if it was him, appeared to be) or do you get some sort of, let's say, magicite?

Summons are indeed in the game. They are called Primals, or Beast-gods, and they are the deities of the Beastmen (kind've how the Shadowlord was the king of the beastmen in FFXI).

Ifrit, Titan, Garuda, Fenrir, Leviathan, Good King Moggle Mog XII, Odin, Bahamut, Midgardsomr, Gilgamesh, Diabolos (a dungeon boss), Atomos, Shiva, Ramuh, Hydra, Chimera, Alexander (Expansion), Ultima (boss; won't go into detail as it's storyline), etc.

You cannot summon these Primals in their full form. Summoners can only summon what are called Egis. Even then, only Ifrit, Garuda and Titan have Egis. They're basically chibi versions of the summons, is the best way to describe them.

Primal fights are a part of the main storyline. They all have unique music, much like every dungeon, area and dungeon boss.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTWIbz9ooDo -- Some of the Primals.

And, like I said, I heard about the installation of the Gold Saucer in a "patch" and they've had like five of them? Do I have to pay for them or are they free? And there's supposed to be an expansion? Do I have to pay for that? Does a lot of content come in these patches and expansion - I've seen a bit of the notes but I'm not sure how much is really considered content and how much is really just vanity (is the gear they release in them even good looking?).

Patches are free (paid for by your subscription). The expansion is paid for, and is considered to be a game in of itself. Content is amazing. I can stress that enough. Here is the latest trailer for 2.5 patch... Note that that patch is so big that they had to break it into two parts. This video is only of the first part of the patch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pj3hGDaDZqI 2.5 -- Before the Fall Part 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbiFK4tcz9w 2.4 -- Dreams of Ice

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYBu4dpZJBo 2.3 -- Defenders of Eorzea

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zueQqbWhZeo 2.2 -- Through the Maelstrom

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_aliYN8hNk 2.1 -- A Realm Awoken

The Expansion is called Heavansward, and will both continue the story as well as take us to a new Nation -- The nation of Ishgard.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68CNzwinqlg Heavensward Announcement Trailer

They are saying that it will be as big as A Realm Reborn is. It will also come with three new Classes: The Dark Knight, Machinist, Astrologist. As well as a new Race, the Au Ra.

It will be based around the Dragonsong War -- which has lasted around 1,000 years in lore.

Does the cash shop hold all of the really good stuff or is it just bonus, uimportant content that won't make a difference if I get it or not (I'm likely to buy them if they are but I rather know now if I'm being ripped off than finding out later)?

To date, nothing of significance is really in the cash shop. The only thing it has is appearance change (if you buy this once, you get to change the appearance of EVERY character on your account. So you could get 40 vials to use with one purchase) as well as very minor stuff that was available in the game for a limited time (such as an earring aesthetic with no stats being given for free for a holiday event, then being sold for $1 on the cash shop if you didn't play during it since it was a limited time event). They also sell a few special dyes as well as a single mount that just looks kind've okay.

In addition, they sell various Marriage packages. There's the standard Free version, and some premium stuff. It's used for the Marriage system if and when you get your character married. The marriage system itself is amazing.

Also, the Producer Director has pledged that sales from the store will be put back into the game; they will add more neighborhoods for housing with the revenues from it.

I've also heard the terms DPS, Tank, and Healer but I'm not quite sure I fully understand them. DPS is your army, Tanks are your body guard, and Healers are your doctors, right? But what about status buffs like protect and status attacks like poison? What do they go in?

Tanks protect your group by taking the aggro and or threat from monsters. They make sure everything is hitting them and not the DPS or the healers. DPS kill things, making sure to target what the tank is targeting so as not to take threat from them. Healers are self explanatory, as I'm sure you've figured. Things such as Protect are given to Conjurers (who turn into White Mages at level 30). You are able to cross class abilities as well. Say if you're a Scholar (another healer), you can use protect, which is a conjurer spell, if you unlocked the protect ability. Same with Paladin. If you leveled white mage, you can use Protect and Cure and Stoneskin. There are restrictions to some cross class abilities. In addition, advanced job skills cannot be used by others.

Though there are other classes in the game that do not follow these paths. They are the crafters and gatherers. These are not things that are secondary. They are actual classes with their own storyline, equipment, actions, etc. They are called Disciples of the Hand and the Land.

Are the bosses hard?

The hardest fights can be. Though most pug groups will be able to clean things out. Extreme Primal fights still wipe most people. Binding Coil of Bahamut is something not a lot of people finish.

Please and thank you for answering (I figured it would be easier for a newbie like me to ask than see a bunch of jargon I won't understand when looking it up).

Thing about the economy. It's pretty good. This is mainly because they have two versions of every craftable item. There are HQ items -- which veterans buy out. Then there are normal items, which are usually priced very low. This makes it so people don't just try to sell to the veteran like in most games, and keeps starting items fairly down there in price. Which is actually a pretty good system. Everything is balanced for the normal version.

endcycle · March 2015

The game definitely has a Final Fantasy feel. The background music played in zones/boss fights/dungeons/riding a mount are very Final Fantasy-esque. The bestiary and skill animations are also Fantasy-esque. The newly released Manderville Gold Saucer brings that FF7 Saucer feel.

The community is not bad, even at 50 as long as you watch some boss mechanic videos before attempting (to not waste other peoples time at max level). The story is basically you are the remnant hero of light who has power to fight primals and defend Eorzea. You collect elemental shards from fighting primals kinda similar to the early Final Fantasy games.

You cannot player kill outside. You can only player kill if you queue up for specific battlegrounds.

Summons are in the game, they are called primals. You fight them as a group. Some of them are: Ifrit, Shiva, Leviathan, Ramuh, etc.. New expansion will have Alexander.

You cannot personally summon these primals to fight for you.

Zones are pretty big and expansive, but have invisibile walls. Airships are coming in the expansion this May.

You can change color on your gear, you can also change the appearance of your gear if you don't like it and prefer another armors look that you have in your inventory.

The Patches are free and they are usually big content Patches every 3 months, with small monthly additions (still content). Typically the patches every 3 months bring in a couple new dungeons and raids as well as some new feature to the game (i.e gold saucer, housing, farming).

Cash shop has appearance items and some holiday event items you might have missed out on. You can also buy a mount that looks sweet, but has no advantage over ingame mounts. Just vanity stuff.

DPS - Your damage dealing classes, they attack enemies from behind or the flank and focus on doing as much damage as possible.

Tanks - They want the monsters to focus on themselves, protecting vulnerable party memebers from these monsters. They usually have a lot of defense and health able to take the brunt of the enemies attacks.

Healers - Heal, keep tank, themselves, and dps alive. They have the power to cure ailments and restore health. They can also do damage on the side if they want to.

Some times the bosses are hard, depends on the difficulty you choose.

Xerenix · March 2015

Originally posted by sagewisdom
To start off, let me say that I have NEVER played an MMORPG before, but the genre has recently interested in me. I, however, am a big Final Fantasy fan. I've played all of the main numbers except XI since, you know, it's an MMO too.

I heard about the way Yoshi-P was really able to turn this game around in some reviews, but I want to know if it has that Final Fantasy feel I enjoy so much. I've seen Chocobos and heard about the installment (the main thing that caught my attention) of the Golden Saucer.

But, I've also heard about World of Warcraft's really bad community (even saw this video where they attacked during some sort of funeral thing or something...?) and wonder if this game is like that. Will being new be held against me?

Community is fine atleast on my server and no, being new won't be held against you and there are lots of helpful players

Is there a lot of grinding (I enjoy killing things, okay?)? What about the story? Is it classic FF? I heard there were jobs, are you stuck as one FFI or can you change like FFV?

There is grinding as in most MMO's but there are also quests that help you level up. Story is FF style and pretty interesting. You pick a "Class" fhat you start with until level 10 then you can pick up all other classes and switch between them. Jobs get available to you after you level up different classes such as the "Paladin" job that you can get if you level up Gladiator to level 30 and Conjurer to level 15. One character can use all classes/jobs

Can you player kill (I hope not, I don't want to be attacked by other players when trying to level). Speaking of leveling, I saw some of the combat and it seemed a bit slow. That doesn't bother me too much (I played IX just fine and the ATB took FOREVER), but are the attacks more worth it. In other words, are the attacks more "Hell, yeah, got you!" and "Crap! I messed up", or are they more *attack*, wait, *attack* "God, this game is so slow! Why, it's not like anything hurts me anyway!" I really prefer the former since it means there's more stradegy to it.

No player kill unless you want to fight against other players in Arena or Battlefronts. Mix of Attack, Wait and Attack and running behind enemies/running away from attacks.

Also, I saw this thing that looked like Ifrit, was it Ifrit? Are summons in the game (I really hope Ramuh's at least in even if it's only as a boss...)? If you can summon, how does that work? Is it a summoner job or can anyone summon? Are they all bosses (like Ifritt, if it was him, appeared to be) or do you get some sort of, let's say, magicite?

It was Ifrit you saw and yes Ramuh is in it aswell with Shiva and other classic summons however they are only there as bosses called "Primals" which are kind of like gods. There is a summoner job but it only uses like small ghost type of Primals.

I'm guessing it's not open world, but is it expansive like FFXII or corridors like FFXIII (Pre-Gran Pulse)? Can you use airships? Are there even airships?

It is kind of Open world however in Instance Areas that it takes about 5-20 minutes to run through. There are Airships that you travel quickly to the main cities but you don't controll them. That will change with the new expansion tho since you can fly through the sky using chocobos and i think Airships aswell.

I've seen some of the game's gear, and I don't like some of it? Do I just got to deal or can I at least change colors (not a deal breaker, just curious)?

There are lots of gear ingame and you can change it however you like and change color on every piece of gear. There are also things called Prisms that takes a appearance from one gear and then you put it on your current gear that has better stats so you can keep using that appearance.

And, like I said, I heard about the installation of the Gold Saucer in a "patch" and they've had like five of them? Do I have to pay for them or are they free? And there's supposed to be an expansion? Do I have to pay for that? Does a lot of content come in these patches and expansion - I've seen a bit of the notes but I'm not sure how much is really considered content and how much is really just vanity (is the gear they release in them even good looking?).

Patches are part of the subscription so they are free and yes each large patch contain lots of Content such as Dungeons and Raids. There is a expansion comming and you have to pay to use it.

Does the cash shop hold all of the really good stuff or is it just bonus, uimportant content that won't make a difference if I get it or not (I'm likely to buy them if they are but I rather know now if I'm being ripped off than finding out later)?

It is only old unimportant content in the Cash shop except a Horse mount which doesn't matter much since it's only appearance and doesn't give you any benefits. Rest of cash shop is only appearance clothings from old Events, appearance pets and a potion to change how your character looks but you get some anyway if you subscribe long enough.

I've also heard the terms DPS, Tank, and Healer but I'm not quite sure I fully understand them. DPS is your army, Tanks are your body guard, and Healers are your doctors, right? But what about status buffs like protect and status attacks like poison? What do they go in?

DPS is Damage dealers and does the most dmg/debuffs such as poison. Tanks are the ones going to the front taking the damage from the enemies and stop them from attacking the rest of the team with their defence. Healers use their healing skills to keep the players alive and have buffs like Protect.

Are the bosses hard?

They are not super easy but hard to say what you consider hard or easy.

Please and thank you for answering (I figured it would be easier for a newbie like me to ask than see a bunch of jargon I won't understand when looking it up).

In my opinion, yes this game is worth the sub if you like FF.

sagewisdom · March 2015

Thanks for the answers, just a couple more questions (I kind of noticed I had a lot of questions and didn't want to over do it...)

Anyway, can someone explain what aggro means? I keep seeing it but I don't really know what it means. Is it like when you use, let's say, provoke in FFXIII to get the monsters to focus on Snow? Is he being a tank when he uses Sentinel while Lightning is DPS when Commando? Am I using that right?

Also, is there a free trial for me to try out for the PS3? And, can I only play with other PS3 players or can I play with PS4 and PC players (I'm pretty sure it's not on the Xbox or Mac...)? Finally, I'm getting a PS4 soon. Do I have to rebuy the whole game if I do? Will that force me to make a new character and start over?

Sorry for all the questions, I'm really just interested but I don't want to go in knowing nothing.

Yaevindusk · March 2015

Originally posted by sagewisdom
Thanks for the answers, just a couple more questions (I kind of noticed I had a lot of questions and didn't want to over do it...)

Anyway, can someone explain what aggro means? I keep seeing it but I don't really know what it means. Is it like when you use, let's say, provoke in FFXIII to get the monsters to focus on Snow? Is he being a tank when he uses Sentinel while Lightning is DPS when Commando? Am I using that right?

Also, is there a free trial for me to try out for the PS3? And, can I only play with other PS3 players or can I play with PS4 and PC players (I'm pretty sure it's not on the Xbox or Mac...)? Finally, I'm getting a PS4 soon. Do I have to rebuy the whole game if I do? Will that force me to make a new character and start over?

Sorry for all the questions, I'm really just interested but I don't want to go in knowing nothing.

Aggro is basically getting the aggrovation or ire of the monster. In essence, it is like using provoke and getting their attention so that they only focus on attacking you.

I will send you a free trial key. There is a campaign to turn a PS3 key into a free PS4 key, though I think that's ending soon. It may be prudent just to wait until you get your PS4 and then buy the game. You will be able to play on the same servers as PC and PS3 players.

Edit:

Sent the key in your message box; I'd use it or one from someone else to make sure you get some special items. The free trial you get normally does not include these special items.

Naturally I'd prefer you use my own, as I also get something from it. :P

Xerenix · March 2015

Originally posted by sagewisdom
Thanks for the answers, just a couple more questions (I kind of noticed I had a lot of questions and didn't want to over do it...)

Anyway, can someone explain what aggro means? I keep seeing it but I don't really know what it means. Is it like when you use, let's say, provoke in FFXIII to get the monsters to focus on Snow? Is he being a tank when he uses Sentinel while Lightning is DPS when Commando? Am I using that right?

Also, is there a free trial for me to try out for the PS3? And, can I only play with other PS3 players or can I play with PS4 and PC players (I'm pretty sure it's not on the Xbox or Mac...)? Finally, I'm getting a PS4 soon. Do I have to rebuy the whole game if I do? Will that force me to make a new character and start over?

Sorry for all the questions, I'm really just interested but I don't want to go in knowing nothing.

You got aggro right. It's to have the enemies focused on you and keeping them focused is the Tanks job.

As for trial.

http://www.dualshockers.com/2014/12/24/final-fantasy-xiv-ps4ps3-free-trial-now-available-to-everyone-invites-you-all-with-festive-trailer/

All players play on the same servers no matter what console they use. There is currently a free upgrade from PS3 version to PS4 version available but it ends at March 31 and after that you need to buy a new copy from PS4. You use the same account for all versions so no, you don't need to make a new character if you register the other versions serial key on your account.

Be warned tho that if you upgrade to PS4 version from PS3, you won't be able to play it on PS3 anymore unless you buy another key for it.

So if you want to play it on PC, you need to buy PC version, if on PS3 then you need to get PS3 version and so on.

sagewisdom · March 2015

Thank you for the help everyone. I think I'll try out the game now on my PS3, but I'll wait to buy it (if I like it) for my PS4 since I'm not getting that until May (My birthday. ^_^)

Yaevindusk · March 2015

Originally posted by sagewisdom
Thank you for the help everyone. I think I'll try out the game now on my PS3, but I'll wait to buy it (if I like it) for my PS4 since I'm not getting that until May (My birthday. ^_^)

You're welcome!

Happy early birthday.

Feel free to post again if you have any more questions. You may also private message me for such.

skeaser · March 2015

Originally posted by sagewisdom
Thank you for the help everyone. I think I'll try out the game now on my PS3, but I'll wait to buy it (if I like it) for my PS4 since I'm not getting that until May (My birthday. ^_^)

Good call, the PS3 version is okay but the PS4 version looks so much better.

Yaevindusk · March 2015

Originally posted by skeaser
Originally posted by sagewisdom
Thank you for the help everyone. I think I'll try out the game now on my PS3, but I'll wait to buy it (if I like it) for my PS4 since I'm not getting that until May (My birthday. ^_^)

Good call, the PS3 version is okay but the PS4 version looks so much better.

Yeah, the game is gorgeous on both the PS4 and PC versions. Some people are guessing that they'll stop supporting the PS3 versions with the expansion after Heavensward to remove hardware limitations.

Foomerang · March 2015

IMHO it is the most sub worthy sub game I have ever subbed to

Hyanmen · March 2015

Originally posted by Torval
I don't play games with mandatory subs. I don't like doing it that way. But if I were to play an subscription only game this would be it. It's Final Fantasy, it looks beautiful, and there are some interesting activities in the game. The only thing I don't like about the game design is how important they made raiding in the game. If you're interested give it a go.

With only one raid every six months with most of the content not involving it in any way... I don't know why you would think this. The raids are as important as you as an individual make them out to be. I personally haven't progressed past turn 5 of the bahamut's coil and I've still been able to experience 90% of what the game has to offer.

Albatroes · March 2015

As your first mmorpg, it would be wise to try the 14 day trial or whatever it is to see how you like it and if its your kind of style. As for if its worth investing if you like it now? IMO not yet, I think the expansion comes with the base game or maybe that's the "limited edition" but you do get the BA griffon mount with the limited edition at least plus a new race and 3 other classes to choose from at start. So I'd wait 3 months if you can and try trials/f2p games or something along those lines to learn how mmorpgs work overall since in reality most of the ones out now run the same way.

YashaX · March 2015

The main issue you will likely have is that this is an mmo. That may sound strange, but mmos are just so different from normal rpgs. However, if you love FF and you want to try an mmo then this is surely the best game since it meets both requirements.

Just to expand on that first idea of mmos vs single player rpgs: the games are built fundamentally differently because an mmo is all about a persistent online world with thousands of players all "living" in it. That generally means that gameplay that would be awful in a normal game is almost necessary in an mmo (for example mobs respawning and just mindlessly waiting around to be killed).

MMOs generally take longer to reach "maximum level" and have no "end". The length of mmos does not necessarily mean more content, just more filler and "grind". One reason for this is that the longer people stick around the more money the company gets (unlike a single player rpg).

Also many mmo players basically live a large part of their lives in the game, that is where they socialize, make friends, hang out, do stuff etc. This is another reason why the gameplay tends to take a back seat to "grind" in many cases (for example doing the same dungeon over and over and over again to get a chance at an epic "drop" (a good piece of gear)), its just not something that would normally be done in a single player mmo.

For many people that are happy paying a sub, it is because they see it as a kind of cheap club membership (cheaper than most gyms for example) and they are happy to see the game keep getting maintained and updated, and the "riff-raff" (non-members) kept out.

Personally I am hoping the next single player FF is fun, the last one I liked was X.

Hyanmen · March 2015

Originally posted by Torval
Originally posted by Hyanmen
Originally posted by Torval
I don't play games with mandatory subs. I don't like doing it that way. But if I were to play an subscription only game this would be it. It's Final Fantasy, it looks beautiful, and there are some interesting activities in the game. The only thing I don't like about the game design is how important they made raiding in the game. If you're interested give it a go.

With only one raid every six months with most of the content not involving it in any way... I don't know why you would think this. The raids are as important as you as an individual make them out to be. I personally haven't progressed past turn 5 of the bahamut's coil and I've still been able to experience 90% of what the game has to offer.

It's not surprising that you don't know why. The place of raids in character progression isn't subjective. I can play through most raid-centric mmos with crap second rate gear. That doesn't mean the progression doesn't feel lacking. At some point progressing through a game with gimp gear isn't that fun.

I'm not saying don't play it or don't raid. It's just my preference.

Yes, it isn't surprising precisely because character progression is completely subjective. In my interpretation, to you character progression means raising your item level. More specifically it is probably about raising ilevel even when it is largely pointless from a content perspective unless you do raid content. So in the end what you are trying to say is that SE made raiding "too important" in regards to raising one's item level (the only way you seem to be able to identify with character progression) even when the content outside raiding hardly warrants this kind of character progression in the first place. TL;DR: to you character progression is almost only about raising your item level as an end, rather than as a means. Now, if I am wrong about this then that is already a proof that character progression is an entirely subjective matter.

When approached the character progression like this we may notice (well, maybe not you Torval but maybe others at least) that character progression does not have to be a means to do something else but an end in itself. So, to provide examples, clearing a new dungeon or other content for the first time in itself may constitute a character progression for somebody. Collecting all Triple Triad cards or minions or raising a rank 20 chocobo companion in itself is character progression, even if they lead to nothing "more". Clearing the main story quests and side quests to simply obtain more knowledge about the world SE has created can be character progression too. Creating the perfect vanity equipment set for your character is progression for many players. Even something as abstract as collecting achievement points is character progression to someone out there.

If you choose to put such importance to item level even when the game hardly ever makes a big deal out of it that is your right to do. It's completely subjective though, and not a flaw of the game itself. Yes, you can clear content faster than before with better ilevel, but what exactly does that matter unless you are looking forward to not having to play the game?

Foomerang · March 2015

Originally posted by Torval
Originally posted by Hyanmen
Originally posted by Torval I don't play games with mandatory subs. I don't like doing it that way. But if I were to play an subscription only game this would be it. It's Final Fantasy, it looks beautiful, and there are some interesting activities in the game. The only thing I don't like about the game design is how important they made raiding in the game. If you're interested give it a go.
With only one raid every six months with most of the content not involving it in any way... I don't know why you would think this. The raids are as important as you as an individual make them out to be. I personally haven't progressed past turn 5 of the bahamut's coil and I've still been able to experience 90% of what the game has to offer.
It's not surprising that you don't know why. The place of raids in character progression isn't subjective. I can play through most raid-centric mmos with crap second rate gear. That doesn't mean the progression doesn't feel lacking. At some point progressing through a game with gimp gear isn't that fun.
I'm not saying don't play it or don't raid. It's just my preference.

Tor I know where you are coming from. I think it was closest to that style at launch. But it's been five patches since which feels like two legit expansions worth of lateral content. Crafted combat gear has been on part with raid gear consistently for the past year and a half and devs have no intention of changing that.
The atmosphere in game is more akin to a sandbox vibe. So much to do, so many ways to progress your character. The raid or die crowd is miniscule at best. And I play on one of the most populated servers.
So from the outside looking in, I can see why you'd think that. But the reality is far far different

SoulSurfer · March 2015

Just re subbed , so much stuff to do!

mayanking · March 2015

if you have friends to do the hard raids and such then its worth a sub.. but if you play alone then i personally don't think it's worth it considering you can burn most content in a few weeks and all the new content in a few days.

danwest58 · March 2015

Originally posted by Foomerang

Originally posted by Torval

Originally posted by Hyanmen

Originally posted by Torval I don't play games with mandatory subs. I don't like doing it that way. But if I were to play an subscription only game this would be it. It's Final Fantasy, it looks beautiful, and there are some interesting activities in the game. The only thing I don't like about the game design is how important they made raiding in the game. If you're interested give it a go.

With only one raid every six months with most of the content not involving it in any way... I don't know why you would think this. The raids are as important as you as an individual make them out to be. I personally haven't progressed past turn 5 of the bahamut's coil and I've still been able to experience 90% of what the game has to offer.

It's not surprising that you don't know why. The place of raids in character progression isn't subjective. I can play through most raid-centric mmos with crap second rate gear. That doesn't mean the progression doesn't feel lacking. At some point progressing through a game with gimp gear isn't that fun.

I'm not saying don't play it or don't raid. It's just my preference.

Tor I know where you are coming from. I think it was closest to that style at launch. But it's been five patches since which feels like two legit expansions worth of lateral content. Crafted combat gear has been on part with raid gear consistently for the past year and a half and devs have no intention of changing that.
The atmosphere in game is more akin to a sandbox vibe. So much to do, so many ways to progress your character. The raid or die crowd is miniscule at best. And I play on one of the most populated servers.
So from the outside looking in, I can see why you'd think that. But the reality is far far different

Not sure where the raid or die mentality comes in. I know a ton of casual players that can care less about raiding and spend more time doing the instances that are non raid focused, work on a lot of treasure hunting as well as their houses in game.

Foomerang · March 2015

Originally posted by danwest58
Originally posted by Foomerang Originally posted by Torval Originally posted by Hyanmen Originally posted by Torval I don't play games with mandatory subs. I don't like doing it that way. But if I were to play an subscription only game this would be it. It's Final Fantasy, it looks beautiful, and there are some interesting activities in the game. The only thing I don't like about the game design is how important they made raiding in the game. If you're interested give it a go.

With only one raid every six months with most of the content not involving it in any way... I don't know why you would think this. The raids are as important as you as an individual make them out to be. I personally haven't progressed past turn 5 of the bahamut's coil and I've still been able to experience 90% of what the game has to offer.

It's not surprising that you don't know why. The place of raids in character progression isn't subjective. I can play through most raid-centric mmos with crap second rate gear. That doesn't mean the progression doesn't feel lacking. At some point progressing through a game with gimp gear isn't that fun. I'm not saying don't play it or don't raid. It's just my preference.

Tor I know where you are coming from. I think it was closest to that style at launch. But it's been five patches since which feels like two legit expansions worth of lateral content. Crafted combat gear has been on part with raid gear consistently for the past year and a half and devs have no intention of changing that. The atmosphere in game is more akin to a sandbox vibe. So much to do, so many ways to progress your character. The raid or die crowd is miniscule at best. And I play on one of the most populated servers. So from the outside looking in, I can see why you'd think that. But the reality is far far different

Not sure where the raid or die mentality comes in. I know a ton of casual players that can care less about raiding and spend more time doing the instances that are non raid focused, work on a lot of treasure hunting as well as their houses in game.

Not sure who or what you're replying to. I said the raid or die crowd is miniscule at best. That means insignificant.

stevebombsquad · March 2015

Originally posted by mayanking
if you have friends to do the hard raids and such then its worth a sub.. but if you play alone then i personally don't think it's worth it considering you can burn most content in a few weeks and all the new content in a few days.

Says someone who obviously doesn't play the game.....

cheyane · March 2015

There is no need to do the turns at all you can get good gear other ways. There is so much to do in this game. Don't listen to the nonsense spewed by people who do not play this game or have an agenda to prevent you from considering paying and playing this game. This game is completely worth a sub.

You will be having fun doing dungeons ,raids the one that will get you items to turn your armour into better ones and your weapon can be improved other ways. Then there is fishing,housing,triple triad,chocobo racing, changing the color of your chocobo (my favourite past time),crafting , Hildibrand quests,beast tribe mounts..... and on and on. Go try it and decide for yourself.

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