When the 22nd anniversary of Final Fantasy XI was on the agenda in May 2024, those responsible at Square Enix wanted to find out through a survey what would have to happen for players to return to the MMORPG-oldie.
What kind of survey is this? Although Final Fantasy XI belongs to the important MMORPGs that paved the way for World of Warcraft, not much happens on the servers of the online role-playing game anymore. Until May 2023, Square Enix provided the genre-oldie with content updates. After that, the content support was officially discontinued.
Nevertheless, the developers used the 22nd anniversary last year to gather feedback from the community through a survey. The goal was to derive measures for the future operation of the game from the players’ answers. 13,878 interested parties are said to have contributed their responses worldwide.
Final Fantasy XIV is expanding with a mobile spinoff – here is the job trailer:
More solo content and cheaper, please!
What does the survey reveal? On playonline.com, there is the complete evaluation of all questions about Final Fantasy XI. Below, you will find the most important insights from the players’ answers:
- While nearly half of the survey participants still play FFXI, the majority of the remaining players turned their backs on the MMORPG in 2015 or later. The era “The Voracious Resurgence” starting in 2020 caused the greatest loss of players.
- In Japan, 47 percent of current players and survey participants report playing an average of three or more hours per day. Outside of Japan, this figure is 66 percent.
- Many players express in their responses that they prefer to play FFXI solo. This aligns with the developers’ repeated indications of a desire for more solo content.
- Outside of Japan, 57.4 percent of respondents indicate they would consider returning if the monthly costs were reduced. In Japan, it is only 25.7 percent. Here, the answer “Change in my lifestyle” received the most mentions (41.1 percent)—meaning: they currently have too little time for the MMORPG.
- Unsurprisingly, FFXI is not a game that appeals to a young audience. Most Japanese survey participants were between 40 and 50 years old. The participants from the rest of the world were largely between 30 and 40 years old.
Interestingly, the developers add that many players have not only wished for a reduction in the subscription fee for FFXI but also for FFXIV. There was repeatedly a mention of a saving offer when a player subscribes to both FF-MMORPGs. Would that be something for you?
This wish is certainly not surprising. Although FFXI does not receive major content updates, there is still the monthly fee of $11.95 per month, plus $1 per month per character and $2 per month for the Mog-Wardrobe. When adding the FFXIV subscription, one quickly reaches $30 that is sent to Japan every 30 days. If you want to experience Final Fantasy as an MMORPG in a different way, check this out: I already play Final Fantasy XIV on mobile and it has brought back my joy in Eorzea
