Before giving serious thought to the implications of this pricing plan, I was originally baffled as well as annoyed that such restrictions were being imposed. Now that I had time to think about it, I came up with pros and cons that dissuaded me from seeing Square-Enix as wanting to milk me dry of my money:

Pros:
Many people looking forward to Final Fantasy XIV is without a doubt familiar with Final Fantasy XI’s pricing scheme: $12.95 for your first character and $1.00 for every character created after the first for a total of sixteen total characters per account. Because of Final Fantasy XI’s ability to change jobs and level different jobs on one character without having to make a new one, often people naturally gave one character their primary focus and would create mules if inventory space impeded their progression in the game, to hold onto extra wares, or to have additional space selling items on the auction house. There were, without a doubt, some who did level a second or third character but more often than not people typically leveled one character and stuck with that throughout their time in Vana’diel. This often made that frequently played character the player’s sole identity that people could relate and conferred to, because it was the “face” of the player that people saw often.

This is an appealing factor to some MMO gamers who may be frustrated by other games who allow for easily creatable characters that one does not need to mold themselves into permanently. This problem often arises when attempting to contact a friend who may have switched characters in order to play the favored role-of-the-day or those who wish to grief others and then switch to avoid backlash for their actions. For Square-Enix to urge this type of game play by offering lower rates for the first character and extra fees for the additional characters, it adds an incentive for people to spend time with that character and build ones identity with it to become further immersed in the world of Hydaelyn and the regional land of Eorzea. And for the intrepid gamer, the $3 fee could mean nothing at all to be able to have the extra character molded into a different race or experience the player may decide to partake in. The fees could also dissuade people from certain actions since it comes with a price tag to be able to do more than what is initially provided at cost.

Cons:
When the game was initially announced, my boyfriend and I talked fervently about creating not just one character but two. Then my boyfriend said he wanted to make three for the fun of it, and had even told me exactly what races and genders he had planned to create. With such gorgeous character models, it is sometimes hard to pick and choose what to play; especially when you can see the visual appeal of playing one race or another and don’t want to choose between different preferred races. Though retainers take the place of “bazaar mules” that are able to sell your wares for you while you are offline, the flexibility of playing as another character is sometimes desirable. This desirability can stem from players who may wish to play “solo” in an MMO game and without the social distractions that could arise from a more known character. However, at the price of an additional $3 for each character it is likely to stem those with a budget to create more than two characters or burgeoning entrepreneurs who may desire more retainers vs. purchasing another character slot to fit their whims.

As of this posting date, there is currently no known information if the limits of how many items sold at any given time will carry from Final Fantasy XI into XIV.

Though I still feel a little put off by the current pricing scheme for XIV, I still plan to keep to my plan of two characters: a Miqote or Hyur (primary) and a Lalafell (secondary). Though I had hopes that a discounted rate (for players who plan to have subscriptions to both XI and XIV) would be available at the time of posting this, I am hoping that an announcement will be made to address this issue for those interested in playing both without hurting the pocketbook (too) much!

Myself, I can best compare building a linkshell as something akin to building a home. There’s three important aspects that make a linkshell successful in my opinion; a solid foundation of leadership, the structure on which your linkshell is based on, and the people that reside within your linkshell.

Building a Foundation:

A home can’t be build without a solid foundation in place. Without it, it would simply crumble and collapse. That foundation begins with leadership, weather it’s a single person running the entire show, or a team handling specific tasks throughout the shell. However you decide to establish it, your leadership much like a house foundation needs to be solid as a rock. Personally, I’ve never been fond of a single, all mighty leader controlling everything. I’ve been in that position before, and frankly it’s a huge amount of unwanted stress. Believe me, stress is something you don’t want on your foundation. With several people working together to manage the shell, you make your foundation that much stronger.

Raising The House:

OK, so now you got that solid foundation in place. Congratulations, now what? Now it’s time to start building that dream home that you’ll be living in. The house I consider the structure of your group; how it works, what events you do, what rules are expected to be abide by, and so forth. Build something too small, and people aren’t going to feel comfortable about being there. Likewise, building something up that’s too big from the start, and you leave the chance for folks to run about unchecked (and puts all the strain on your leadership foundation). In my opinion, best to start off with something reasonably comfortable, then add-on as needed to suit the linkshells needs. Maybe you just want to start with some place that people can hang out and have fun. Then as the needs of the linkshell grow, you can grow your house with it. Trust me it works!

Inviting Friends & Family:

So, you’ve finally put the finishing touches on your grand design, and everything is build and shinny new. Now it’s time to let folks in and enjoy the wonderful home that you’ve created. Does this mean that people are going to like your home? Not necessarily. Hell there will be times people want to be the big bad wolf and try to blow your house down. This is where having both that solid foundation & a good structure will keep your house in order. If someone doesn’t fit in or cause trouble, show them the door. Remember, your linkshell, just like your home is only as good as the people within it.

Congratulations! You’ve started down the path to a wonderful world of running a linkshell. Just remember that through it all, weather your just a social group doing stuff for fun, or one of the elite shells at the top of the food chain. Home is truly where the heart belongs. =)

However, contrary to the rumors being spread, seems that the powers that be over at Square-Enix are still confident in the 2010 release time frame, especially CEO Yoichi Wada via both a Japanese fan site, and his own Twitter page. Guess we’ll just have to wait and see how it all turns out.

Personally though, I’ve always thought of the 2010 release to be an ambitious target date. And frankly, if the game does get delayed back to 2011 so they can hammer it out perfectly, then that’s fine with me. I’d rather have a game that’s had the care taken to make it the best it can be rather than try to rush it prematurely onto the market.

Before you continue reading, the JP FFXIV website also got a new background music, you can play it while you read along this post!

(Download here)

First off, some news straight from Famitsu thanks to our friends over at Zam. The new details include a development team interview discussing everything from battles and tactics, to the use of elements and how they’ll effect a character. Finally they end with a closer look at each of the new jobs and some of the new abilities they’ll bring to the field, including the newly unveiled Conjurer and Thaumaturge!

Battle wise according to the development team, the first big difference between XIV and XI is pacing. Rather than fighting a single prolonged battle and then resting, characters can expect to be facing off against multiple foes in a short period. Since apperently MP doesn’t heal up through regular rest (this is handled through Aetheryte), conserving your resources will play an important part in battle. Personally, it’ll be interesting to see how exactly this will work in-game.

Also, the development team discussed positioning in the field of battle. As you may suspect from the image above, your melee jobs of course will be manning the front lines of battle, while ranged attackers and mages keep safely out of range. They also hint that their positions relative to the enemy will play  an important part of combat (perhaps setting up opportunities such as sneak attacks and flanking perhaps?)

Next up in the interview, the dev team talks about elemental affinity and how it will affect characters. As you know, in FFXI, elements not only represent the ability to resist magic and abilities of a certain element, but are also closely tied with attributes (strength representing fire, ice for intelligence, and so on…) Final Fantasy XIV will continue this tradition, but will also take it to the next degree as a characters affinity for a specific element will directly impact how they grow and develop. Perhaps even a player organization of fire dwellers? *laugh* Who knows, it could very well happen.

Lastly in the interview, the dev team gives us our first up-close look at the professions and how they’ll play in the realm of Erozia. One thing of particular interest for all professions is that TP will play an important role. Whether a sword-swinger or a spell-slinger, every action will generate this valuable resource for players to work with.

Gladiator – A master of arms, Gladiators serve as both the bastion of defense for a party, as well as a solid source of offensive power. Able to equip a wide variety of weapons and armor, this job will certainly be a popular roll early on.

Lancers – Masters of the polearm, these valiant heroes strike from a short distance and maintain a large sphere of influence around the battlefield. Their extended reach will allow them tactical options unavailable to close-range melee combatants while keeping them safely out of harms way.

Pugilist – The classic hand-to-hand combatant, Pugilists stand toe to toe with their foes and pound them into submission with savage ferocity. Although generally straightforward in battle, Pugilists will have a number of unique stances (think classic martial arts styles and such) which they’ll use to punish their foes. Down right fierce if you ask me. =)

Archer – The tried and true huntsman of Erozia, these ranged attackers stay outside the fray at a distance and pepper their foes with lethal arrows. Distance and positioning will be key for these rangers to make the most out of their varied abilities.

Marauder – When subtle blows & magical mayhem won’t do, the Marauder uses a more straight forward approach… brute force! These heavy hitting melee combatants may be slower than others, but their signature battle axes deal awesome blows to their wicked foes. Against multiple foes, the Marauder can also sacrifice some of their brute strength for faster strikes.

Conjurer – A disciple of magic & master of the elements, the Conjurer can bring forth a cornucopia of powerful magics to the fray. From offensive magic, to defensive and healing spells, the Conjurer can both sooth the aches of a party, and place plenty more pains upon their foes.

Thaumaturge – While the Conjurer is more an all-around mage, the Thaumaturge excels in blowing stuff to smithereens. They specialize in area-effect magics both destructive and dangerous, quickly turning the tide of any battle in their favor. The development team has noted though that they will be paying particular attention to this job and are asking players for their input during the beta phase (something I’d be more than glad to give in the near future).

Lastly, we also got a quick glimpse at the newest crafting and gathering professions, two that go hand in hand with one another, the Blacksmith and the Miner. The Miner of course digs up ore and other precious metals from the land, while the Blacksmith turns those ores into weapons and armor of all shapes and sizes. While they will have only limited abilities in terms of combat, they’ll have certain traits valuable to all professions (maybe Blacksmith is the new treasure hunter? *LOL*).

“The basic model hasn’t changed,” he said. “It’s a monthly flat rate service with additional charges for items that users want to buy.”

“For FFXI we didn’t initially set up the item transaction model that well – although the demand for it was high. We thought that it would be a benefit for users, but that we wouldn’t be able to charge.”

“We soon learnt that there are a lot of people who want that kind of model, so we would like to introduce more pay-as-you-use items into the game. But there were too few items in FFXI – however we don’t want to take it to the other extreme entirely for FFXIV.”

While we at this point don’t know if or how such a system will be implemented. I sincerely hope that SE will reconsider this course of action. Especially in light of SE wishing FFXIV to become a legitimate competitor to the major MMO’s out today, including World of Warcraft.

FFXIV Beta Account Draw Info

Hopefully this is some real news for everyone.

According to FF-Reunion (JP), FFXIII (Final Fantasy 13) will include a sheet which contains information of FFXIV Beta Accounts.

The picture on the right seems to be the sheet that came in the FFXIII box, but can’t be absolutely sure.

It seems like it will be random (Draw-Based). We’ll find out soon enough when we have our Lalafella go out and buy a box and scan the real thing

Thank you Chiasuka of Quetz for the tip!

Update:

Japanese initial release packages of FINAL FANTASY XIII include a Special Offer Campaign Code for FINAL FANTASY XIV. This code can be used in FINAL FANTSY XIV to obtain an In Game Secret Item.

Currently, there are no details regarding how this code will be used and what type of item the code will provide. Additionally, possible inclusion of this code in North American or European initial release versions of FINAL FANTASY XIII has not been determined at this time.

Source: Official Final Fantasy XIV Website.

"Campaign Code" for FFXIV?!

Otak happen to stumble upon this Japanese website regarding the release of “Campaign” Code. Campaign seems like single-player version, so one might see it as a single-player based demo, but it can also be interpreted as a code you entered to get some cool gadgets (Eg. Pumpkin Head, Moogle Hats), just like those in FFXI.

What do you think of “Campaign Code”?

Source: JP Blog Livedoor

I am mostly in annoyance over their reasoning over NOT having a global official community forum because of “language barriers”, but going as far as making a claim that they do not want to give up on cross-regional servers because doing so would be a step backwards.

Do not get me wrong here; I like global servers. I have met some decent EU players and I still fondly remember the kindness the JP showed me and my boyfriend when we first started playing FFXI. But I feel that if you are going to choose to do this as a company and create a diverse environment for different regional players, then you should have no reason against creating a single and/or official forum for people to be able to voice their opinions, concerns, or questions.

During a conversation with a fellow FFXIV blog member, the thought came that S-E just wants to control their customers. If this is the case, I think that S-E has failed to understand that their customers are not blithering idiots. People already see the double standards, how illogical S-E’s stance is on the matter and how unbalanced it is given that not even the JP has a proper outlet to express themselves to the dev team.

I think that if they were to create a community, they could easily create different forums on the community to pander to the different languages. Translators could provide communication between the community and dev team, or at least hire people who have more experience/understanding with the game to be a go between. What is more important is that there is a platform that truly allows the customer/player to be able to freely communicate their thoughts and ideas to the dev team, and for us to get simultaneous feedback that feels as though they are sincerely hearing our concerns and addressing them. The dependency on Premier Sites is only putting a barrier between player and company and does not help those who feel discourage to contribute in communities were reputation matters by how many posts you have made vs. the quality of the information and concerns you bring up.

It is clear, however, that both sides of the table are interested in opening up paths of discussion. The dev team has already expressed wanting to get as much feedback from the beta testers to know what works and what doesn’t before things are set into stone. This itself is monumental, but is frustrating in and of itself given that the only road block between both sides wanting to exchange dialogue is Sage Sundi and his team. However, given that the game is not even in its beta stages, there is hope (albeit a rather slim one) that maybe Sage Sundi will have a change of heart and create an official community since he had expressed wanting to search for new ways of communication previously unavailable in FFXI.

Please note that this entry is expressly the thoughts and opinion of the author (Calaera) and not the FFXIVBlog team.

Final Fantasy XI

Before we can even look at other MMORPGs, let us first take a look at FFXIV’s predecessor: Final Fantasy XI. It is said that the beta took place approximately four months NA side. At this time, they were doing a PC and PS2 test despite the fact that the PS2 release would not take place until March 23, 2004 in North America. The short beta could probably be attributed to the fact that the game had already been in Japan since May 16, 2002 on the PS2 and November 7, 2002 for the PC. That is almost a year difference for the PC alone, and some issues would have already been pointed out on Japanese servers beforehand. The system specs of the time are also obviously dated and did not require as much horsepower as they do now. 30 FPS at the time was the norm, and the fact that the minimum requirement was a Pentium III also gives one to pause to think of when such a thing existed! Recommended requirements would most likely garner a chuckle nowadays with a Pentium 4 with 256 MB Memory, NVIDIA® GeForce FX™ series or GeForce 6 series, and Direct X 8.1 sound card!

Though I have no knowledge of how long the beta took for the JP PC release, I managed to find that the closed testing started in August of 2001 and ended with a public test in December of that same year for the PS2. If that were the case, that is approximately the same length of time as the NA test if they did no further testing in 2002.

MMOs After Final Fantasy XI

So what about after Final Fantasy XI? What about popular MMOs like WoW? Well, WoW’s closed beta time started on March 18 2004 and ended on October that same year. Open beta for WoW started at around November 4, 2004 with the game launching on the 23rd of that month. So in total the beta lasted 9 months total; 5 months longer than the beta for FFXI in 2003. The five extra months were probably especially crucial given that the system requirements are higher than FFXIs and it was not tested in another market beforehand. Another sample MMO I had taken was Warhammer Online. Although it currently admits to lower subscriber numbers than the 7-year-old Veteran that is FFXI, their beta period was for almost 16 months! Warhammer’s closed beta started on May 30, 2007 and lasted up until September 7, 2008 with a brief open beta period before the game’s release date.

Then there is Lord of the Rings Online. Released before Warhammer but after WoW in the year of 2007, it had a quaint closed beta testing period of six – seven months with about one month worth of open beta testing available. Aion Online, a game I am currently beta testing, had an even shorter closed beta test period but also followed suit with Final Fantasy XI and had already been released in other countries before making its debut on North American shores.

So what about Final Fantasy XIV?

Going by what Square-Enix has announced, they plan on having a longer beta testing period for XIV than they did for XI and that the game will be released in 2010. I will stress the fact that they said just 2010 because there are several quarters in which they could actually make their release, and that there is a chance they could very well release it at the very end of 2010 while still doing plenty of beta testing in that same year. Even if they were not, the one main reason I have doubts of a Sept. beta test is because of the date that TGS falls upon: September 24 to September 27. Seeing as this is the Japanese equivalent to E3, I have a feeling that they would want to leave something for their home turf unless they decide to announce something completely different since they have announced to make an appearance at GAMEScom next week on Aug 19 – 23.

More than likely, I am hedging on October at the least and January of 2010 at the latest so that nothing would be taken away from their presence at TGS and would still allow for testing for at least several months even if they were to release their game in the middle of 2010. Unless, of course, they want to have a beta test as long as Warhammer’s was, and I am actually hoping for something closer to a year or more to ensure that FFXIV is more polished than FFXI was when it was released. This is particularly ideal since WoW still seems to be dominating the MMO scene and FFXI’s main appeal at the moment is that it is different than many of the WoW replicas released to date.

Despite my reservations, I am still keeping my fingers (and toes) crossed for a mid Sept. start on beta testing. S-E does, after all, have many different games they could still talk about at either convention and one can imagine that their fans are going mad with hunger for the limited information we have been given thus far. Let’s just hope that GamesCom will harbor new and hopeful news on the sought after date for the beta!