How Final Fantasy XIV Became the MMORPG of the Decade

Understanding the Fall and Rise of Final Fantasy XIV

When we talk about video games, we usually talk about their successes and what made them so good. But for a game like Final Fantasy XIV (FFXIV), its mistakes and failures are what made the game what it is today. It’s undoubtedly one of the few games out there that many game developers can learn from, especially those who want to make their games a success.

In this article, we will be exploring what made the first version of the game fail and what Square Enix eventually did to make it a success. If you’re a game developer, this will help you learn from another company’s mistakes and help you become a developer overall.

Final Fantasy XIV 1.00 (The Failure)

FF XIV only had a couple of thousand players when it launched the first time back in 2010. Unfortunately, those players dwindled to a few hundred after a couple of months into the game’s release.

The game was plagued with bugs, grind quests, and slow combat. People didn’t like the game because it was terrible and unfinished. Furthermore, the conflicting decisions from upper management made it hard for developers to make it consistent.

Many game review sites bombed the game with low scores. Players who bought the game also gave it low to mediocre scores. This led to a downward spiral to the game, and many people thought it would never recover.

Radical Changes

The game developer, Square Enix, eventually decided that the game needed to be changed and fast. As a result, the game’s director was eventually swapped with a much better one, Naoki Yoshida.

Yoshida decided that the overall game needed to be overhauled and implemented patches to make the game playable as an MMORPG. These are changes that fans have been asking for a long time. These changes happened in months, and by the end of the game’s cycle, it had the features it needed to be playable.

But Yoshida knew that the problem with the game ran much more profound and that it needed to be overhauled entirely if the company wanted it to be a success. That’s why A Realm Reborn was made, which started the Golden Age for this MMORPG.

A Realm Reborn

FF XIV version 1.00 was utterly scrapped, and its servers were eventually closed in November 2012. However, this wasn’t the end. Yoshida and his team continued to make the game better and planned to release it in August of the following year. It was a nightmare for his team, but they eventually created the MMORPG masterpiece we know of today.

This year, the game has more than 34 million players worldwide and has positive scores among reviewers, making it the best MMORPG out there. But what makes it so good when compared to others in its genre?

Graphical Fidelity

FFXIV has been known to have the best graphical fidelity when compared to other MMORPGs in the market. It looks good, plays well, and does not require a high-end gaming rig to work.

The best part about this is that you can experience it all without spending too much. But if you build a customized gaming computer, you’ll undoubtedly see a considerable increase in graphical performance. FFXIV has been known to have some of the best particle effects and overall graphic fidelity compared to other MMORPGs out there, making your decision to upgrade a worthwhile one.

No Grinding

Ultimately, what makes FFXIV such a good MMORPG is that there is minimal grinding. Naoki Yoshida’s principle of no grinding in FFXIV gives players more options to enjoy the game. It also respects each player’s time to play the game, making a good overall gaming experience.

A Final Fantasy Story

Lastly, the idea that its story can be experienced without needing to socialize with other players in the game makes it a good single-player experience. The storyline is among the best in the MMORPG genre, making it a must-buy even for players who don’t play MMORPGs.

Its experience is undoubtedly one of a kind, with very well-made cutscenes that will leave you asking for more. The characters are also well-developed, especially once you start exploring the other expansions in the game.

There is a lot of things you can learn from FFXIV, but the essential learning you can have as a game developer is to never give up. Square Enix spent millions of dollars on this one game. At some point, the company was even on the verge of being bankrupt because of all the investments it has made into this game.

Now, FFXIV is raking millions of dollars in revenue, and it’s expected to perform even better as the new expansion is released this November. The gamble has certainly paid off for Square Enix. Now it has one of the best video games out there under its production.