In the new ultimate raid of Final Fantasy XIV, players have to watch as one of the most popular characters in the MMORPG dies over and over again. Fans refer to it as “emotional area damage.”
This is what happens in the raid: With patch 6.11 released on April 26, FFXIV kicked off the race for the first kill of the new raid Dragon War (Fatal). This is the new hardest PvE content ever, where the strongest raiding teams will struggle.
The raid takes the events of the Heavensward expansion, which revolves around the war between the dragons and the nation of Ishgard. In the first part of the battle, players face off against the knights of King Thordan on the roof of the grand cathedral of Ishgard.
In the original story of Heavensward, this battle was a pivotal event. Haurchefant Greystone, one of the most beloved characters in FFXIV, was killed by one of the knights in a cutscene. He sacrificed himself to save the player character’s life.
Raiders now have to see this death at every pull of the first phase of the raid. Haurchefant appears to protect the group, only to be pierced by a magical spear and die, just like in the story.
It doesn’t matter whether the raiders successfully complete this phase or wipe. Haurchefant is doomed to die a thousand deaths.
These are the reactions: Haurchefant’s death caused many tears in the community during the story of Heavensward. Accordingly, many players were horrified that they would have to watch their beloved character die over and over again in the raid without being able to do anything about it.
Especially on Twitter, there were many reactions to this “mechanic”:
- “Damn, the new ultimate [raid] causes emotional area damage” – @rhinoceroseosei
- “Why do they have to hurt us?” – @Nyctoray
- “How can you?” – @KageSatsuki
- “The wound is still fresh and will never heal […]” – @ObesimpNow02
Some users found this feature of the new raid funny because it targets the community’s feelings. The developers know exactly how popular Haurchefant is and have specifically relied on his repeated death causing the appropriate reactions.
“A smile better suits a hero.”
How popular the character is: Haurchefant was voted third in the big Famitsu survey of the most popular FFXIV characters (via siliconera). In the large Nico survey of the most popular Final Fantasy characters of all time, he ranked 13th, above popular characters like Squall Leonhart (FFVIII) and Terra Branford (FFVI) (via siliconera).
At official fan festivals of FFXIV, players built small shrines for the character, leaving flowers, fan art, personal messages, and all sorts of things. His signature quote “A smile better suits a hero” has been repeated by fans countless times.
The reasons for his popularity are not least his positive nature, deep friendship, and support towards the player character. After the end of A Realm Reborn, he offers players refuge and protection from pursuers.
In the end, he heroically sacrifices himself to save the player character and asks not to be sad. This left a strong impression on many FFXIV players, which still evokes emotional reactions years after the release of Heavensward.
Apart from the raid, players are also facing challenges in the newly revamped PvP, where issues arise.
Those who say “Good game” too often in the PvP of Final Fantasy XIV will be banned
