Returning Home

I am finally returning to Eorzea. It's been a very long time. I got sidetracked with other games and eventually school and work took over everything! Then I decided something--I only have 16 days left of my 180 day subscription. I'm going to make the best of it!

Now don't think that I'll never play after that, because it's certainly not true. I will definitely re-subscribe after the next 16 days. I just want to finish the 16 days with a bang!

This is the first time I've played patch 2.2 (despicable, I know) and I'm loving it. It's also the first time playing on the PS4 since the first beta. I transferred my character data and now can play the game in fabulous 1080p!

This is just an update post basically to let you all know that I'm back and will continue blogging news about FFXIV. Hopefully I will be blogging more often now that finals are over.

Thoughts on the Final Fantasy XIV PS4 Beta

Some of my thoughts on the PS4 beta of Final Fantasy XIV:

I loved it!

Though I must warn you, this is coming from someone who really enjoys console gaming. Yes, I play A Realm Reborn on PS3 (let the PC master-race comments begin). I do have a PC. I just got finished upgrading to a new graphics card. It even came with a free code for FFXIV! Which is pretty cool, but I digress. I'm thoroughly looking forward to upgrading my FFXIV account to PS4!

The PS4 adds some new functionalities to the game that were before impossible with the PS3. The touch pad adds in a mouse function that is helpful for multitasking. But of course you could (and still can) choose to play with a mouse and keyboard, but some prefer a controller.

Okay, you all knew it was coming. Remote playing from my Vita was the coolest part of playing the FFXIV beta. I personally think this is the most exciting piece of information to report on about beta. Of course this was announced last year even before the beta was. It was interesting. It was cool. It was all around fun! I'm looking forward to messing around a little more with this function once the next phase comes around.

That's me remote playing from my PS Vita

To begin this journey (again), I decided to take a different route than what I'm used to. My normal character is a male Miqo'te Black Mage. For the beta, since the character would be wiped after phase one, I decided  to go with a female Elezen Arcanist. I'm still kicking myself in the but for not taking a screenshot of the final character creation. I of course did my best to make her as sexy as possible! And I'll have to admit, she was very pretty. But no one cares about that. Moving on.

Limsa Lominsa

Since it's the home of the Arcanist guild, I started in the beautiful marine city of Limsa Lominsa. This shot above was the one I took shortly after finding out my internet connection was being terrible, thus resulting in my Twitch stream coming to a halt. I was less than pleased because I had hoped to stream my whole adventure. Oh well.

It didn't take long to learn the ropes of the PS4 controls because duh. The controls are the exact same as they are on the PS3. Besides the touch pad, of course.

This picture below is my character nearly reaching level 10 (and I'm wearing the infamous cloak that I hate to death). If you'll notice, the icons on you HUD are much smaller than they are on PS3. Of course you can change them anyway, but these are the PS4 default settings. At least they were for beta phase one. There is also a bar that shows your current inventory availability (lower right hand corner) which I think could be very useful.

Collecting crates and stuff.

Not really relevant to anything, I took quite a few pictures of random things in Eorzea. You could say it was in hopes to provide you all with some insight of how everything looks on the PS4, but in reality I was just doing it for fun. They range from characters to random scenery. Have a look.

Le me derping in first-person mode.

I decided to get up close and personal with some fellow Arcanists.

Some random Lalafell in La Noscea.

This Lalafell just looked so adorable sitting with her Carbuncle.

I invaded the house of a Miqo'te tempest...

By the end of it all I still had to marvel in Eorzea's beauty. We all get caught up in so many different things that we forget to appreciate the beauty around us (can be applied to both real life and in game). I took this picture of the shining sky just as the sun was setting in Limsa Lominsa.

Beautiful shot of the sunset in Limsa Lominsa.

Watching the stars before the end of beta

All in all, the beta was really enjoyable and I can't wait for phase two. I believe it begins some time in April, before the actual PS4 release. Phase two will allow you to play as your current characters and will not be wiped by the end of the phase.

Thank you for reading this far! You just got a real life (non-physical) achievement for helping out a guy's personal gaming blog. No seriously, I do appreciate anyone and everyone who makes the time to read my content. Next blog post will be about Leviathan!

Final Fantasy XIV Patch 2.2 and PS4 Details

The PlayStation 4 version, as planned, will see its beta start on February 22nd, the day the console releases in Japan. It is a worldwide beta. The retail version is set for April 14th, and there will be a collector's edition up for grabs, with a Fat Chocobo mount and a Wind-up Moogle minion included. Fans can pre-order starting Monday. Good news if you don't plan on picking this version up - if you currently own a Collector's Edition of A Realm Reborn, you will still get these two items for free.

As many of us have been asking lately, the letter answered another burning question: Where is A Realm Reborn's soundtrack?! The answer to that is also April, and it has 119 tracks (six hours) of musical goodness - not to mention a Wind-up Bahamut minion as an ingame item. It is set for release in March.

As for the patch, it will be titled Through the Maelstrom. One of the big features of the patch will be new turns for the Binding Coil of Bahamut. Currently, players can play through turns 1-5 of what is considered the most difficult content in the game. 2.2 will add four new turns, 6-9. Not surprisingly, there will be new Allagan tomestones which will likely drop in the additional turns - that is, another type of currency that drops only in endgame and you can trade in for high-level gear. Does this mean new equipment will become available? Most likely.

In the patch, the weekly lockout on turns 1-5 of the Binding Coil will be removed, and they will be added to Duty Finder (currently you must manually form your own party of 8). Players will receive 'the power of the Echo' - that is, a stat boost - if you fail any of those turns, and it lasts until you defeat that turn.

The new Primal battle is, of course, Leviathan. He will have Hard and Extreme Mode fights, but Square didn't share what his item drops would be, or what level. He will be the hardest Primal to date, but because hard mode is tied to the main story, he says that it will not be extremely difficult. Looks like there's a related Chocobo barding, too.

One of the new dungeons is Amdapor Township, not far from Camp Tranquil (South Shroud). While the rewards haven't been finalized (although it sounds like it will drop the new Allagan tombstones), story-wise we will learn more about why Amdapor was destroyed.

Finally, the patch will bring the long-awaited vanity system, although it will be called 'Glamours.' A vanity system simply means that you can wear a certain piece of equipment for its stats, but you can put in a more aesthetically pleasing item in a vanity slot so that other players will see that on your character instead. This will come in handy considering that fact that my character looks like a stylishly confused Miqo'te.

Patch 2.2 is scheduled for sometime in March.

Eorzea on PlayStation 4

You may be on PC, or PS3 (like myself), or you may be stoked off your bottoms to play it on PlayStation 4 (also me)! That's right! It's just around the corner and this week more details on the PS4 release will be unveiled.

The details will be presented on January 25, as part of the Letter from the Producer Live event from Osaka, Japan.

The event takes place at 4.00 a.m. U.S. PST, and looks like we will get a preview of the upcoming patch 2.2. This introduces the primal Leviathan and Ruins of Amdapor, the latter of which is a follow-up to the Amdapor Keep.

In addition, Hiroshi Takai, the game’s Assistant Director, and Director and Producer Naoki Yoshida will be answering questions from fans. Most importantly, Square Enix will be offering an update on the PS4 version, with more gameplay footage likely to be shown off.

If you’re likely to be up at the time of the broadcast, then you can watch it on YouTube, NicoNico and/or Twitch.

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn arrives on Sony’s next-generation home console this spring.

A Realm Awoken

It's about time for Patch 2.1! Though we do have a couple weeks to go. This is going to be the first major patch to the game and it's going to be adding a bunch of neat stuff! Check out the video above!

Some of the main installments will be The Crystal Tower, PvP, and Housing, there there will be much more!

The Crystal Tower

The Crystal Tower will is a new dungeon that will be added to the game. The Crystal Tower was originally a dungeon in Final Fantasy III. In FFXIV you will need three full parties (24 total) to complete this high-level dungeon! This dungeon will be very challenging. You will come across the same bosses as in Final Fantasy III but they will be very strong so you will need to be prepared.

King Behemoth

Bone Dragon

Thanatos

Acheron

Here are a few screenshots of the Crystal Tower!

PvP (Player vs. Player)

The Wolves' Den is a PvP Arena where you can battle it up with your friends to see who is the best warrior! The arena will be located in Limsa Lominsa and will allow 4x4 battles (with 8x8 to come in the future).

Housing

The housing system will allow you to have homes that you can share with people in you free company. Much of the estate can be customized and should be quite enjoyable!

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy all the new features to be added in Patch 2.1!

FFXIV: Lightning Strikes Event Guide

I realize this is pretty late and that we have less than a week until the event ends and that most of you have already completed the event quests anyway; I promised my brother that I would make this guide for him. Either way, I hope you guys can find some use of it! If you miss out on the event, it will return next year in February for the launch of Lightning Returns.

Chapter I: For The Winsome

Required Level: 12 or above
Quest Prerequisites: None

First you want to talk to Petyr Winsome. You can find him on the Lower Decks of Limsa Lominsa.

This is where you will find Petyr.

The first FATE takes you to Middle La Noscea. Teleport to Summerford Farms to save yourself the trouble. It will be in the northern section of the zone (where all the people are).

This is the location of the first FATE option.

The second FATE is located in Western La Noscea, east of Aleport. There, you're waiting for the dodo Gertrude to spawn. If you're unsure of your location, look for the big group of people.

This is the location of the second FATE option.

The point of these FATEs is get Otherwordly Parcels. This really depends on Lightning. If she doesn't appear then you will not get any Parcels. It may take some time to clear this chapter if you're unlucky. Once you get one Parcel, you can turn it in to Petyr to finish the chapter. Extra Parcels are used for acquiring the weapons from the NPC next to Petyr.

Chapter II: Seeking The Scoop

Required Level: 26 or above
Quest Prerequisites: Complete "For the Winsome"

Seeking The Scoop takes you to Uldah's Steps of Nald. The NPC reporter, Dural Thural, that starts the chapter can be found at the north exit out-of-town.

This is where you will find Thural Dural.

Thural will tell you that he is looking for more information on Lightning and that ever since Petyr Winsome's report, she has been the hottest topic in Ul'dah. He informs you that there have been sightings of her in Thanalan and that he needs you to confirm the sightings. Dural then gives you two options on where to go. Either Eastern Thanalan by Highbridge or Southern Thanalan near little Ala Mihgo. Both locations have a FATE that is calle Lightning Strike - Armored Beast. These FATEs have not been FATEs prior to this event.

This is where you will find the Eastern Thanalan FATE.

This is where you will find the Southern Thanalan FATE.

The monster in both FATEs is a Behemoth from Final Fantasy XIII. Once finished with either of the FATEs, return to Dural and complete the quest.

Chapter III: A Knight's Passage

Required Level: 38 or above
Quest Prerequisites: Complete "Seeking the Scoop"

The NPC that you are looking for this time is Kipih Jakkya, located in the Old Gridania amphitheater. Kipih talks about how the other two nations have had their articles about the happenings of Lightning, and how Gridania's The Raven needs its own.

This is where Kipih can be found.

The last place Lightning has been seen was Coerthas Central Highlands. This is where Kipih will send you. The FATEs are called Lightning Strikes - Dead On Arrival. Yet another FATE that was not there before this event.

These are the two locations that you can find the FATEs.

The monster that is fought in this FATE is another familiar one. It's The Clockwork Dreadnaught, also from Final Fantasy XIII. This is a pretty easy fight.

The Clockwork Dreadnought.

After completing the FATE, return to Kipih you will receive a cutscene that may (or may not) hint towards the story of the new FFXIII game.

Chapter IV: Wonder and Lightning

Required Level: 45 or above
Quest Prerequisites: Complete "The Knight's Passage"

The fourth and final chapter to this FFXIV and Lightning Returns mash-up! Once again, you will return to Kipih in Old Gridania. Kipih is in the same locations as before.

Location of Kipih.

During the dialogue you get an explanation of why a Miqo'te outfit will be in Lightning Returns. Kipih also informs you that demons are attacking Lightning. She says that Lightning was last seen in Mor Dhona.

The location of the FATE.

The FATE is in two parts. After completing the first wave of monsters, called Anubys, wait for a short delay before the next FATE begins, which is the fight with Chaos.

Aspect of Chaos.

Upon completing the FATEs, return to Old Gridania to speak with Kipih. Then you will receive a final cutscene with Lightning.

I hope you enjoyed the guide, those of you who viewed it! Remember, you only have until December 9 to complete the event, but it will return in February!

A Moment of Remeberance

Before I start delving into this blog I want to to pay my respects to a place that warmed my heart. A place I called home. Vana'diel. Now I realize that this may seem cheesy but Final Fantasy XI holds a special place in my heart. It was my very first MMORPG, granted I still haven't played very many, but you get the point!

I'm sort of speaking as if it has died--as if Square Enix has pulled the plug. This is not the case. The reason I'm writing this is because most of us have moved on. We have entered a new world of fancy graphics and HD televisions. As much as some may want to go back and play FFXI again, or start playing it for the first time, it's hard to return to such a nostalgic homefront that can't really satisfy our needs. Not enough people play the game anymore to make it worth the $11.95 a month. 

At this point you may be arguing that "it will never die" and that "plenty of people still play and make it enjoyable!" I get it. I understand. Heck, I'm still probably going to go back and the game because I love it so much! But that isn't the point I'm trying to get across. The purpose of this entry is to point out that Vana'diel has long lived it's glory days and is now a dying breed.

With A Realm Reborn here and still going hard, we still have an MMO Final Fantasy to cope with. Though the game play is much different and it's much shinier than FFXI, in the back of our minds we can still remember the glory days. We still have a sense of the classic feel. And hopefully we won't forget what games used to be about. Now go enjoy Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn!