The 10 Best MMOs and MMORPGs in 2026

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Final Fantasy XIV – MMORPG

GenreMMORPG | Developer: Square Enix | Platform: PC, PS4, PS5, Mac | Release Date: August 27, 2013| Model: Pay2Play

Pro
  • Lots of content for every player type
  • Regular content patches with new dungeons and raids
  • Interesting story with beautiful cutscenes
  • In-depth crafting system, strong housing
  • Great implementation of the Final Fantasy IP, many Easter eggs for fans
  • Nice and helpful community
Contra
  • Very slow start, it only gets really good with Heavensward
  • Partially strong instancing, JRPG style isn’t for every player
  • Combat system is monotonous at the start
  • The current expansion Dawntrail does not impress as much as previous expansions

What to Expect in Final Fantasy XIV

What is Final Fantasy XIV? Final Fantasy XIV has become one of the most popular MMORPGs in recent years. Due to the major overhaul of the game, a lot has changed since 2013, and with regular content updates and expansions like Endwalker or more recently Dawntrail, many contents are now waiting for players.

The MMORPG is reminiscent of classic Japanese RPGs, which is due to the strong focus on the story. It is therefore sometimes referred to as a story game with multiplayer elements.

In the endgame, you can expect many tricky raids and tasks. However, you need to get along with the combat system, which especially at the beginning seems slow and sluggish.

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Final Fantasy XIV: Rocking trailer for “Into the Mist” sets the stage for patch 7.4

What content does Final Fantasy XIV offer? Final Fantasy XIV offers everything an MMORPG heart desires:

  • A huge game world
  • Lots of focus on the story
  • A profound crafting system
  • Challenges in the form of dungeons and raids with different difficulty levels

With Endwalker, the MMORPG was expanded in December 2021 with two new jobs, Reaper and Sage, and much story. The Dawntrail expansion then brought a whole new batch of content to the live servers in July 2024. In addition, there are regular content updates that, alongside the continuation of the main scenario, also include content for different player types.

In early June, the game delighted players with a taco and a shovel, and there was also a tough raid.

How much does Final Fantasy XIV cost? You can play the MMORPG for free up to level 70 since August 2020. After that, you need the Complete Edition, which costs about 40 euros.

Additionally, FFXIV relies on a subscription model. You need to pay about 13 euros monthly to be able to play the MMORPG.

Our conclusion on Final Fantasy XIV in 2026: For many years now, Final Fantasy XIV has been considered THE second major subscription MMORPG alongside World of Warcraft. In doing so, Square Enix has been able to continuously improve the quality from expansion to expansion, until it finally experienced its first major setback with Dawntrail.

Nevertheless, Final Fantasy XIV continues to be one of the best theme park MMORPGs on the market. One reason for this is the variety of fun content that awaits you in Eorzea. Only PvP fans might be a bit disappointed here. A second reason is that Final Fantasy XIV avoids many of the peculiarities associated with most online role-playing games from Asia.

And with Evercold, the next expansion is already on the horizon, as the team led by Naoki Yoshida aims to return to former glory. In his plans, Yoshi-P has revealed to us during the Grindfest 2026: After harsh criticism of Dawntrail: FFXIV head Yoshi-P promises a risky “Evolution” for the MMORPG

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