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Final Fantasy XIV celebrates a year since its relaunch
As of today, Final Fantasy XIV has made it a full year since its successful relaunch. Producer Naoki Yoshida took the time to celebrate with a special letter from the producer, looking back at the past year of operation, both the pitfalls and the highlights. He also thanks the fans and especially the Legacy players for having stood by the game from a rocky inception to the present, and looks forward to upcoming patches, the pending Fan Fest, and the as-yet-unrevealed expansion. Today also marks the start of a seasonal event to celebrate the anniversary, featuring new minipets, a new emote, and new items for players to enjoy. The event will run until September 8th, giving everyone time to complete the sequence if they so choose. So here's to a year of the resurrected game, and let's hope for many more to come.
The Mog Log: Final Fantasy XIV's latest Live Letter
As of this writing, the Letter from the Producer LIVE took place yesterday, and that means we have a whole bunch of Final Fantasy XIV news to discuss! It's a happy time for people like me, because it's at least a couple weeks of very chewable information to discuss. And at just the right time, too, we were in the middle of a serious drought there. Not that all of the information is good, mind you. Every time I think about Atma my hands instinctively ball into fists. Still, there's stuff to chat about, there's good stuff in with the bad, and perhaps most importantly there's enough to fuel some speculation and some off-the-cuff reaction before we dive into the meat of E3 and we learn even more about the future of the game. So let's get right into it, starting with the bit of news that I already foreshadowed in the intro.
New Final Fantasy XIV producer's letter talks China and 2.25
Final Fantasy XIV is doing pretty well for itself at the moment, and it's still expanding. The latest letter from producer Naoki Yoshida discusses preparations for the game's launch in China, with the cooperation of Shanda Games. Service is expected to launch this summer; the game has just recently launched on the PlayStation 4, expanding its range of available platforms. Yoshida also discusses patch 2.25, which will be live tomorrow. Originally, the patch was slated to include an expansion to the current Zodiac weapon quests; however, Yoshida states in the letter that this system is being pushed back until patch 2.28 goes live in May. The team is hoping to incorporate feedback on the existing quest line and allow players more time to upgrade and receive their Animus weaponry. 2.25 will contain improvements to the Wolves' Den PvP system as well as a new system involving materia, so while further weapon upgrades are on hold, there's still going to be plenty of new things to do.
Final Fantasy XIV PS4 launch coming April 14th, details on patch 2.2 revealed
Yesterday, Final Fantasy XIV players had a field day with the 12th installment of the Letter to the Producer Live stream, during which they launched a bevy of questions at the game's producer and director, Naoki Yoshida, and received a slew of answers in return. For starters, the game will launch on the PS4 on April 14th and include a collector's edition. The beta will begin on February 22nd as previously reported. Patch 2.2, aka Through the Maelstrom, which Yoshida revealed will go live sometime in March, will bring with it an array of new content such as the Ruins of Amdapor dungeon, an expansion to the Binding Coil of Bahamut instance, and last but certainly not least, a new Primal to fight: the aquatic Leviathan. While the most die-hard of fans likely saw the livestream when it was... well, live, those who missed out need not despair because the entirety of the question-and-answer session has been transcribed in its own thread on the game's official forums.
Final Fantasy XIV livestream details upcoming changes and the Crystal Tower
Final Fantasy XIV recently hosted its tenth Letter from the Producer livestream, in which producer Naoki Yoshida (or as the fans call him, Yoshi-P) tackles a number of questions regarding the game's upcoming changes and new content. The livestream itself is available for viewing in all of its two-and-a-half hour glory, but if you're just interested in the juicy questions and answers (or if you don't happen to speak Japanese), they're all transcribed in the official post. The questions run the gamut from planned changes for some classes such as Dragoon and Bard to details on the upcoming aesthetician, which will allow players to change their character's hairstyle for 2,000 gil. The majority of the questions, however, are on the topic of the upcoming 24-player Crystal Tower dungeon. Yoshida provides details on the dungeon's planned difficulty (it will have an average item level requirement of 55), how loot will be distributed (each boss will drop one loot chest for each party participating), the quality of gear players will receive (item level 80, slightly weaker than gear from Binding Coil of Bahamut), and much more. For the full Q&A transcript, head on over to the game's official forums, or click past the cut to watch the livestream in its entirety.
Dark Age of Camelot producer's letter looks toward the future
Dark Age of Camelot's Valentine's Day event is still in full swing, but the devs over at Mythic Entertainment have plenty more in store for players. Stuart Zissu, DAoC's producer, stopped by the official site to give players a heads-up as to what they can expect in upcoming updates. For starters, the next phase of the ongoing live event will be coming sometime "in the next few months," and players are warned that the Pict encampments they've already encountered are only the tip of the proverbial iceberg. On top of that, the devs will be adding a number of new titles throughout the year that center on the long-running title's 10th anniversary. Zissu adds that "there will also be new titles for the next phase of the live event" as well as a special trophy commemorating Dark Age of Camelot's 10 years of RvRvR action. For more information, including details on DAoC's first video contest, just click on through the link below and give the post a look.
Final Fantasy XIV producer's letter looks back on 2011 and forward to 2012
In Final Fantasy XIV's latest producer's letter, producer Naoki Yoshida stopped by the forums to reflect a bit on 2011 and give fans a look at what's coming up in 2012. Yoshida notes that September 2011 marked the one-year anniversary of Final Fantasy XIV as well as the one-year anniversary of Yoshida's installation as producer and director of the title. He goes on to state that "2012 will see [the game] making even larger strides and will prove to be an even bigger test for FFXIV." Next year's first new patch, 1.20b, is already in development, and Yoshida says the team is working diligently on 1.21 features such as the job system, job quests, and two new dungeons. As his final announcement, Yoshida reveals that QA testing for the battle system for the 2.0 client will begin shortly after the new year. For the full details, click on over to the full producer's letter on the FFXIV official forums.
