Final Fantasy XIV
News, coverage and analysis tracking Final Fantasy XIV across the outlets.- Younger Generations Are Struggling to 'Connect' With the Final Fantasy Series Because It Takes So Long for New Games to Come Out, Yoshi-P SaysNaoki Yoshida, director of Final Fantasy 14, stated that the long development times for new Final Fantasy games make it difficult for younger generations to connect with the franchise. He believes this extended wait impacts player engagement with the series.
Google's Gemini will make its way into Dragon Quest X to power a "Chatty Slimey" AI companion, Square Enix has announcedSquare Enix is partnering with Google to integrate Gemini AI into the Japan-exclusive MMORPG Dragon Quest X, creating an AI companion called "Chatty Slimey." This companion will generate conversations and react to in-game events to help new players feel less lonely. Details on how the AI will be managed and its specific functionalities are still forthcoming.
Final Fantasy's Wait Times: Sinking Its Own Magic?... | TAGThis article rounds up several gaming news items, including new Pokémon accessories for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation's upcoming AI-powered frame generation technology, concerns about long release intervals for the Final Fantasy series, and New Blood's commitment to supporting GOG. It also touches on quick hits like Mario Kart Tour's age rating change and updates for fighting games.
Women and LGBTQ+ Gamers Get the Worst of Online Toxicity. The Data Proves It.Data indicates that women, LGBTQ+ individuals, Black gamers, and Jewish gamers experience disproportionately high rates of identity-based harassment in online gaming environments. While AI moderation tools are improving, they struggle to address coordinated, multi-platform harassment campaigns, leading to players avoiding games and the industry losing diverse talent. Games like Final Fantasy XIV and Deep Rock Galactic are highlighted for fostering more inclusive communities through design and active community management.
Younger fans are finding it hard to connect with Final Fantasy because of long "release intervals", says FF14 directorNaoki Yoshida, director of Final Fantasy 14, expressed concern that long release intervals between new mainline titles may be hindering younger players from connecting with the Final Fantasy series. He noted that the extended development cycles make it difficult for newcomers to experience the franchise compared to older fans. Square Enix attempts to bridge these gaps with remasters, remakes, and spin-offs, but recent entries like Final Fantasy 15 and 16 have also caused division among the fanbase.
The new Crimson Desert patch adds private storage at base camp and nerfs a few bosses—also, Pearl Abyss knows the…Pearl Abyss has released a new patch for Crimson Desert, addressing player feedback with quality-of-life improvements such as more fast travel points, improved UI responsiveness, and increased food effectiveness. The update also includes game balancing changes, nerfing specific enemies and bosses while improving stamina consumption for blocking and parrying. The developer is actively listening to player feedback to refine the game post-launch.
GE-Proton 10-34 brings fixes for God of War Ragnarök, Assassin's Creed, Final Fantasy XIVGE-Proton 10-34 has been released, introducing fixes for several games including God of War Ragnarök, Assassin's Creed 1, and Final Fantasy XIV on Linux and SteamOS. This community-run compatibility layer update also includes new features for Wayland monitor detection and general Wine improvements.
Frasier Pinball, Horses In Among Us, And More Of The Best Gaming April Fools' Day Jokes EverThis article rounds up some of the most memorable April Fools' Day pranks from the gaming industry over the years. It highlights jokes from publications like GameSpot and IGN, as well as from developers such as Innersloth, Blizzard, and Sega, covering a range of humorous and sometimes prophetic fake announcements.- MMO Week in Review: EverQuest celebrates 27 years and a lawsuit settlement in its favorEverQuest celebrated its 27th anniversary with a lawsuit settlement that favors Daybreak Game Company, keeping emulators offline. This week also saw layoffs at Amazon for Lost Ark developers, Facebook scaling back VR metaverse ambitions, and discussions around various MMORPG updates and industry trends.
- One Shots: Danger just out of focusThis week's community screenshots feature players from Final Fantasy XIV, World of Warcraft, Marvel Heroes, Skate, and City of Heroes. The images highlight in-game events, character designs, and humorous situations encountered by players in their MMO adventures.
Yoshi-P: Younger players “haven’t really had the chance to connect” with Final Fantasy series as “release intervals for new titles have gotten longer”Final Fantasy 14 director Naoki Yoshida believes younger players struggle to connect with the Final Fantasy series due to increasingly long release intervals between new titles. He suggests that the series' traditional gameplay may also be a barrier for a generation accustomed to action-based combat and online play.
If you ask Yoshi-P, kids don't care about Final Fantasy anymore because they're taking too long to come outNaoki Yoshida, producer of Final Fantasy 14, acknowledges that younger generations may not be as engaged with the Final Fantasy series due to long release intervals between titles. He hopes Dissidia Duellum can help foster community and brand awareness, contrasting the series' pace with the more frequent releases of games like Genshin Impact. The article also notes the significant gaps between recent main Final Fantasy entries.
World of Warcraft: Midnight's class balancing is steering the MMO headfirst into a mistake that's been…This article analyzes the class balancing in World of Warcraft's upcoming Midnight expansion, suggesting that the current approach of focusing on two-minute burst windows is a mistake. The author contrasts this with Final Fantasy 14's meta, highlighting how this design choice negatively impacts gameplay outside of coordinated boss fights, particularly for solo content and alt characters. Blizzard's reactive nature is noted as a potential factor in addressing these issues.- WRUP: Plersky edition | Massively OverpoweredThe Massively OP community and staff share their weekend gaming plans, with mentions of Palia, Lord of the Rings Online, Guild Wars 2, Project Gorgon, Monster Hunter Wilds, Skate, Final Fantasy XIV, and World of Warcraft. The article also includes a bonus question about favorite re-read books.
Final Fantasy 14 boss man Yoshi-P says younger players "haven't really had the chance to connect" with the JRPG series as "the release intervals for new titles have gotten longer"Final Fantasy 14 director Naoki Yoshida believes the increasing release intervals between new titles are hindering younger players' connection to the JRPG series. He hopes that upcoming games will provide a new entry point for younger generations to discover and engage with the Final Fantasy universe.
Crimson Desert launches to 239,000 players on Steam but 'Mixed' reviews, and it's mostly because of how…Crimson Desert has launched to 239,000 players on Steam, but has received 'Mixed' reviews. The game is noted for its numerous systems and complex control scheme, though the combat is described as deep and satisfying. The article also mentions the author's personal gaming history with titles like World of Warcraft and Final Fantasy 14.- Nullpoint Protocol Release Date AnnouncementEverbloom Games has announced that Nullpoint Protocol, a 1-4 player co-op roguelite, will launch on PC via Steam on April 6th. The game aims to replicate MMO raid encounters with challenging boss fights and roguelite progression, featuring dynamic difficulty scaling for solo and co-op play.
Do yourself a favour in Crimson Desert and play the game with a controllerThis article argues that Crimson Desert is best played with a controller despite its PC origins, due to clunky and awkward keyboard controls. While controller play has its own issues with button mapping, it offers a more accessible experience for actions like healing and sprinting compared to the keyboard's demanding inputs and potential for sticky key activation.- Vague Patch Notes: In MMORPGs, one person’s rush is another person’s idleThis analysis discusses the differing player behaviors within MMORPGs like World of Warcraft and Final Fantasy XIV, particularly concerning expansion pacing. It highlights how players often judge each other's playstyles, whether rushing to the level cap or taking a more leisurely approach, and argues that there is no single 'correct' way to experience these games.
World of Warcraft hit with FOMO complaints once again as Blizzard slams the doors shut on delve Hall of Fame after just…Players of World of Warcraft are expressing frustration over the "delve Hall of Fame" achievement, which was closed to new participants less than a day after Season 1 launched, leading to widespread Fear of Missing Out (FOMO). Many players cited work schedules as preventing them from participating in the limited-time event, drawing comparisons to Final Fantasy XIV's approach to timed content. Blizzard had adjusted the cap for the achievement multiple times before settling on 4,000 participants.