Final Fantasy For the Ages
Boy was I ever disappointed when I bought my collector's addition of FFXIV and a new computer in 2010 to find out that the game was full of error's and almost unplayable due to this. I had to download software to stop screen tearing even though I had one of the best graphics cards in the world. That game had great concepts, but were not executed right. I did manage to get a level 50 Conjurer/Wht and I still have fond memories especially because of the great community in FFOnline games, but I was severely disappointed like most. Since than I have played games like Wow, Rift, GW2 and Aion, so I have a lot of experience playing MMO's. My favorite being Rift :D.
Flash Forward to FFXIV ARR 2.0:
I started with the Beta and I was immediately blown away by the simplicity of the HUD interface system and how easy everything flowed compared to 1.0. I have since been playing and I am absolutely thrilled when playing. (In 1.0, I once got stuck for like an hour in a tutorial with emotes due to the dialogue not explaining the emote right, lol, this sort of thing did not happen in 2.0)
The musical score is outstanding and truly creates a new worldly feel not found in any other MMO. My biggest knock on MMO's before this game was the lack of effort in musical scores, but this game sets the new bar.
The graphics are cutting edge top quality and I can now play on max graphics and I have never had my game crash or lag, which is amazing and makes me want to hug my computer. Not only are the graphics outstanding, but the art work is beautiful and is just that, pure art.
Chocobos, airships, Leveling, crafting, custom armor, dyes, switching classes, epic jobs such as the classic Dragoon, Summoner, Paladin etc... are all in this game, which makes for amazing customization.
Dungeons are impressive, build tension, have intuitive conditions on the battle field in a lot of instances. The end game content is hardcore and will leave you building new relationships with people in order to beat some Primals, which is a really rewarding amazing experience.
I have said this before and I will say this again. Yes FF always has amazing music and graphics, but the two main things that will keep me coming back are the people and the history in FF displayed through this game. Who plays a FF and isn't anticipating to see a Chocobo or the likes of Cid etc...? This game has it all and more, I love it! The last thing I want to say is thank you to you all the people who stuck around from 1.0 and to those who are the trying the game out. FFOnline games have the best community for people helping each other out and just having a blast. This is truly a quality sound addition to genre. Enjoy!
I will see you on the Leviathan server,
Cheers,
Lauspius Luglave
I give this game a 10/10