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Final Fantasy XIV – MMORPG
Genre: MMORPG | Developer: Square Enix | Platform: PC, PS4, PS5, Mac | Release Date: August 27, 2013| Model: Pay2Play
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.
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 bunch of new content to the live servers in July 2024. In addition, there are regular content updates that not only continue the main scenario but also bring content for different player types.
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.
MeinMMO Conclusion: The best MMORPG for those who love story and enjoy varied content
MyMMO editor Sophia rewarded herself with Final Fantasy XIV 1.0 in 2011 for her study spot, but at that time she could never play because her old IBM laptop couldn’t handle the game’s requirements. It wasn’t until she got her hands on a proper test disc for the Heavensward expansion in 2016 that she could really take off in the game.
Since then, she has continuously subscribed. Accordingly, she is up-to-date with her level 100 character and has engaged with almost all playable content. Currently, she is looking forward to the next content updates. In addition, she always keeps an eye on the developments at publisher Square Enix.
Why is it worth playing Final Fantasy XIV in 2026? Final Fantasy XIV is like the Jack of All Trades among MMORPGs: Are you into raiding? There are options – in various difficulty levels for all tastes. Do you only play games with great story and deep lore? No problem, you will get plenty of that. Do you want to interact with other players as much or as little as possible? Final Fantasy XIV is optimized for both.
The development team of the game continuously improves the MMORPG since the relaunch in 2013: obsolete content is revised and released with new functionality. Through in-game mechanics like Dailys, older dungeons and raids are always well frequented. You can therefore play almost all content since A Realm Reborn
.
Regular updates every 4 months bring consistently fresh content.
In addition to the excellent main story, the theme park MMO shines with its impeccable glamour system, it offers neighborhood housing, guild content, an in-game casino, a comprehensive crafting and gathering system, and so much more… There is so much optional content that it is impossible to list everything.
Accordingly, there is so much to do that boredom rarely, if ever, arises. (Almost) every player will find something here that they enjoy. Moreover, the game is now available on most major platforms: PC, Steam, Mac, PS4, PS5, and since 2024 also Xbox Series X|S.
What are the problems of Final Fantasy XIV? The development team has been working on it steadily for a while, but starting anew or returning to Final Fantasy XIV is not easy. The main story starts slowly and only gets really good with the launch of the Heavensward expansion. Since the so-called MSQ must be completed before 90% of all content, players almost grind through levels 1 to 50.
If you just want to raid, you can skip to the start of the current expansion, but you still have to level up through this to the maximum level – through about 40 hours of content.
Typical for MMOs is the general complexity: While all content is explained with popping tutorial texts, due to the sheer volume, this can briefly cause some overwhelm for MMORPG newcomers.
Those who have been around for a while might be frustrated by the game’s reliable yet somewhat boring lifecycle: Each expansion always has the same basic content.
While these vary in content and have consistently improved and developed since the release, many players wish the formula would occasionally be broken up a bit. Whether this will happen with the next expansion, we will find out at one of the upcoming fan festivals: The head of Final Fantasy XIV gives a hint about the start time of the upcoming expansion
