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E3 2010: Our exclusive interview with Final Fantasy XIV executive producer Hiromichi Tanaka
In the world of Final Fantasy XIV, Hiromichi Tanaka is kind of a big deal. In fact, he's kind of a big deal in the franchise's history as a whole, having worked on the design for several games and having been the lead developer on Final Fantasy XI. It seems fitting that one of the designers from the original game 23 years ago is now hard at work crafting the newest installment of the series -- one that promises to be many things to many players while retaining the core features that have captivated fans for years. Square-Enix have made a big push for their newest game at this year's E3, and we were lucky enough to have a few minutes of Mr. Tanaka's time to ask him about the game as a whole. There's a lot more still to be learned about the game, but from what we've seen in both the interview and our hands-on experience, it already has quite a bit to offer.
The ninth Vana'diel census tells you everything you need to know and more
Very few games release population numbers for their game, let alone full workups on class combinations, the amount of endgame weaponry in the population, the percentage of the population that is a specific type of craftsman, and the average weekly income of the population. But this is the Vana'diel census, and it's ready to tell you all of the intricate details of Final Fantasy XI.The census is a yearly workup of the data that the FFXI servers collect, combined with a survey taken by all players during the anniversary ceremonies. The census is always more than just a simple retelling of a few numbers -- going into detail with things like colors of linkshells that never appear in the game, popular subjobs and job pairings, and GM call peak times.The full census, all 11 pages of the document, are available for browsing at Final Fantasy XI's homepage, PlayOnline.
The Digital Continuum: Vacationing in Vana'diel part 2
Since my static group is only around level 10 -- and it only took me around five hours to hit that mark thanks to Fields of Valor tasks and a smoothed leveling curve -- I decided to switch from Warrior to Monk for a little while. br> Never underestimate the power of having one character who can switch between all available classes, at least after earning the advanced ones at your discretion.
Notable Final Fantasy XI column returns as part of 1up's "The Grind"
Game journalist James Mielke resumes his on-again, off-again relationship with Final Fantasy XI in the fledgling 1up blog "The Grind". Mielke's extended hiatus from his "My Life in Vana'diel" column was a blend of time constraints and some degree of burn-out as well. But it seems he missed the game, particularly after the years already spent playing it, hence his column has returned... again. On the subject of returning to the game, Mielke writes, "People ask me to this day whether FFXI is still worth investing time into it, and to that I say: Now's a better time than ever to join the game." He writes that Square Enix has implemented a number of features that reduces the grind and, hopefully for some, brings more fun back to the game. Mielke specifically points out the beauty of the level-sync feature, allowing people to party with higher level characters, and the Fields of Valor quests that have fired up his interest in FFXI once again. If you've been away from the game for a while, have a look at James Mielke's "Reboot" and see what you're missing.
Anti-Aliased: When you can't hack it legitimately, cheat instead
It's no secret that I keep my eye on the Final Fantasy XI community. With two friends running an upstanding linkshell on the Bahamut server, I like to know what goes on in the game.The current word on the street is the "big banhammer freakout." The vocal players are talking about what linkshells were hit by losing players caught up in the cheating scandal. But what's interesting are the words being thrown around -- things like "unprecedented" and "uncalled for."A quick jaunt across the street to the loving and cuddly galaxy of New Eden shows that something suspiciously similar happened to corporation starbases in EVE Online, also ending with tears, banned accounts, and the exact same arguments being thrown around the community. "I didn't know it was an exploit," "It's not my fault," "They made me do it," and my personal favorite, "You should have fixed it."So this week's Anti-Aliased isn't dedicated to some developer mishap or some bad piece of game design, it's dedicated to how daft some people are when it comes to cheating.
Final Fantasy XI devs threaten players with forced server moves
Server populations in massively multiplayer online games can be a delicate balancing act. Popular servers are very much the hubs of these games, where players can easily forge bonds with one another in a lively social environment. But log into a desolate server and you'll wonder what the point of playing an MMO is when there's no one else around. Many developers try to balance server populations by offering free server transfers, and sometimes bonuses of one type or another as a reward for making the jump. This has been an issue for developer Square Enix with Final Fantasy XI and the overcrowded Odin server. However, their efforts to disperse the crowds have been unsuccessful, leading them to take a more drastic measure: forced emigration. FFXI-centric website Petfoodalpha suggests that Square Enix's deportation solution (or alternately, world splitting) creates more problems than it solves. Fusionx writes, "Surely there has to be a better way to deal with this than randomly distributing people from the server to others. Friendships would be broken, linkshells would be destroyed. More importantly though for Square Enix: They would lose subscribers." When a developer identifies a high server population as being a problem, and when players don't take advantage of free server transfers or other incentives, do the devs really have any other choice but to take away choice?
Final Fantasy XI update to eliminate 18+ hour boss takedowns
The players of Final Fantasy XI have voiced their anguished concerns over a certain Notorious Monster (NM), and Square Enix seems to have listened. We recently reported on the extreme levels of commitment needed to take down the NM Pandemonium Warden in Final Fantasy XI. A linkshell (guild) ironically called Beyond the Limitation attempted to take the boss on over a solid 18 hour period, and still weren't able to succeed. Consensus from FFXI's players who've been vocal on the matter is that Pandemonium Warden isn't just beyond this particular linkshell's limits, they're beyond anyone's limits. In response, Square Enix stated, "Discussion has spread significantly throughout forums, and it has become apparent that this is indeed an issue of major unrest in the community." The company implied that the methods players have employed may have been sub-optimal, as Square Enix didn't anticipate that NM encounters would be as protracted as they've proven to be. To remedy this, they will alter the difficulty of defeating Pandemonium Warden, Absolute Virtue, and Jailer of Love. "The aim of these changes is to create battles where a decisive outcome may be reached within a shorter period of time," they said. The changes will go into effect with the next version update, which is scheduled for early September. [Via 1up]
