Mail Call: Final Fantasy XIV at the TGS 2009

Pretty pretty Elvaans! I mean, "Elzens." *cough cough*

Follow the link to the TGS 2009 Trailer (JP):

http://jp.finalfantasyxiv.com/

FFXIV: Extra Screenies, Monsters and Moar

http://game.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/news/20090821_310015.html

Some images of note:

The Tailor (that you transform into a la JEM, but equipping a Sewing Kit.)


And my fave, the Sabotender (though, this one isn't as cute as the old ones):

FFXIV: Famitsu Interview With Hiromichi Tanaka

After reading all those Famitsu articles drooling over the leaked gameplay footage, I'm really really looking forward to getting my hands on FFXIV. I plan on dropping everything--and I mean everything--to play it, and yes, I'll even sacrifice my little Elvaan WHM for the cause.

Ahhh, here's to rumours of the OB taking place in September being true!

Saus: ZAM

As Hiromichi Tanaka, producer of Final Fantasy XIV, hacked his way through a demonstration of a "Puk Extermination" Guildleve quest, Famitsu flanked him with some questions about their presentation and what it says about the state of the upcoming MMO.

Read on to see the full story and discuss it in the ZAM forums.

In the gameplay videos, we saw some people fighting dodos and others fighting puks. It turns out that the full scope of the quest requires one to defeat dodos until puks appear. Tanaka states that this is just one of the many ways they will incorporate puzzle-solving elements into Guildleve quests. Also, while there may be an expansive area to explore, later builds of the game will display your targets on the map, so finding those puks that need exterminating will be much easier. As an alpha version, the demo at Gamescom did not include this feature yet.

When the interviewer remarked on how beautiful the graphics were, Tanaka took the opportunity to give some hints about how powerful they will become. It turns out the background scenery was heavily compressed for the demo, and will be greatly improved to the point where individual trees will be rendered far into the distance.

At this point, Tanaka begins attacking some dodos and moves on to discuss the battle system. In Final Fantasy XI, the player would select the attack command and enter an Auto-Attack mode. To spice up the flow of battle, Final Fantasy XIV will require players to select commands each time they attack, and the combination of commands they choose will determine the technique they use. This will put all new emphasis on strategy and keep players engaged in battle.

Action Commands, as Tanaka calls them, are lined up along the bottom of the screen as icons. Those who are grumbling about a passing resemblance to World of Warcraft will be happy to know the layout is tentative and certainly subject to change. The current setup has players selecting an ability from the from the bottom which then appears as a command in your gauge. There are two gauges - one for the left hand and one for the right hand. For example, the character that Tanaka was controlling had a shield in his left hand, so the left-handed gauge had shield commands registered to it.

To activate an ability, the player needs to store up their "Action Gauge." The strength and accuracy of a technique can be further increased by storing up the "Power Gauge." The "TP Gauge" also makes a return, which when full will alter the effects of your technique in a variety of ways. The TP gauge will increase when the player attacks or is attacked by an enemy. During this explanation, Tanaka unleashes Red Lotus Blade with a grin, much to the delight of the interviewer, who immediately recognizes the sword technique.

Magic will be used the same way - through Action Commands - but will only be available if you are equipped with a weapon that allows their use. Swords give sword-based abilities and staves will give magic-based abilities. Also, there are skills that cannot be used until you have acquired enough skill in a particular weapon. In total, you can line up 10 commands in the bar of icons along the bottom. However, in future versions Tanaka states they intend to include a macro system, so players can customize and combine their favorite abilities to their liking.

Another bit of customization, to which players are responding positively, is the ability to drag-and-drop the various info boxes around the screen. There are default positions for each piece of the UI, such as Action Commands, player status, chat box and party status. These will all be movable, and the chat log will be fully adjustable as well. The camera position will have options as well, although the main position will be an over-the-should third person perspective. Tanaka expects there to be three different camera angle to choose from in the final version.

When asked why they decided to go with this battle system, Tanaka explained that first and foremost they wanted to get players more active in battle, which the auto-attack system discouraged. Final Fantasy XI focused on each job having a clear role, with players designing parties around combining those roles. However, in Final Fantasy XIV, they wanted to develop a system where players could easily enjoy the game alone, with a friend, with three people or more. The system is built around the concept of meeting each player's own playstyle.

Tucked in next to the Action Commands, the interviewer noticed a smiley face, which Tanaka revealed was a set of emoticons. In Final Fantasy XI, players were limited to creating emotes through text, but Final Fantasy XIV will provide a set of graphical smileys for users to express themselves. In addition, there are the motions that we all saw displayed in the video at Gamescom. According to Tanaka, these were created through the use of motion-capture technology. However, capturing facial expressions proved too difficult, so the developers ended up designing those manually. Unfortunately, players cannot use full-body emotes during battle at this stage.

At this point, Tanaka finishes up his quest and warps back to the starting point of the Guildleve and moves towards the Aetheryte. Although prevalent in the demo, transportation via Aetheryte will not be so common in the actual game. The majority of their use will be involved with the Guildleve system, as players need to travel to the site of the quest and back again. However, like the user interface, a lot can change before the final game is complete. Tanaka says the game is likely only 40-50% complete at this stage, and the demo cut out basically any elements that were not essential to displaying the Guildleve system. The main focus of the presentation at Gamescom was to show players how Guildleve worked, and how it delivered quests that were enjoyable and light on time. However, this is not to say things will be all fun and games. While the quests shown to players took only 15 minutes of their time, there will many more quests with varying levels of difficulty and time requirements. In addition, there will be hordes of other monsters roaming the countryside that will be sure to make completing your intended task a little trickier.

Tanaka admits that showing off an incomplete game can draw criticism from disappointed players, but he hopes that others may show praise for how far Final Fantasy XIV has come. Currently, the most advanced portion of the game is the graphics, so there are many areas that many completely change before the release date. The idea is that Square Enix will showcase new portions of the game as they continue development, allowing players to experience individual content before a complete beta is put together. While in Germany this meant a playable demo at Gamescom, there may be a playable version that users sign up to try out in Japan, more like, as Tanaka put it, a giant focus group. Players will be added gradually, and once the game is polished enough, and there is a solid base of users, they will initiate an open beta.

Whatever the shape it will take, Tanaka uses his closing words to assure fans everywhere that everyone will get a chance to play a demo of the game, saying, "The fruits of our labor are finally coming to bear, and the development team is working hard to get the game ready. We're planning to let everyone get a shot at a playable version like we have done here in Germany, so please look forward to it."

Source: Famitsu

FFXIV: Updates from GameCom & Leaked Gameplay Footage!

Read it all here:

http://www.ffxivcore.com/index.php?/topic/424-ffxiv-at-gamescom-updated-all-the-time/

I'm totally jealous. Looks like they had a playable and polished version there.

And the vids? Sooo sekasi!!

Some leaked game play footage!

FFXIV: Official Website Updated

I already know what I'll be playing come 2010.

The official website is gorgeous as always and the info attached is super schmexy. If you are a fan of the FF series, then get ye to the nearest PC and go visit:

http://na.finalfantasyxiv.com/

Get to the choppah! Do it now!

There were rumours circulating back in June that Beta was scheduled for September 2009; one can only hope they're true. Guess we'll find out in a month!

FFXIV: Translated Famitsu Scans

Someone posted this image on the forums asking for a translation, so I went ahead and did it!

For the first image, the headline is: "Customize"

And the body pretty much reads as follows:

"When creating your character, we are told that in addition to selecting race, a player may also customize their characters' looks as well. It seems there will be quite a variety of things to choose from, such as face type, skin colour and hair style. It is still undetermined right now just how broad or detailed the customization will be, but we're sure that regardless, the process will be cause of quite a concern to the player...in a good way of course."

The image:

Come to me sexy face Elvaan.

I ended up doing a few more impromptu translations from what I could read (some of the scans weren't so good).

As for the rest of the translation:

The crafting pic is indeed titled, "Crafter" and as the first blurb I translated, the rest of the article is also speculative, so definitely don't take any of this stuff as canon and nerd rage blame me when official information comes out XD

Anyhoo, so the first piece explains that Crafters are craftsmen who manipulate manufacturing tools. "By equipping a manufacturing tool such as a blacksmithing hammer, a player can change into a crafter. We predict that there will be specialists in various fields, such as weaponsmiths, armorers and chefs." Finally, it says that representative classes under this category are: "Blacksmith" and "Cook".

Skipping the Talltaru pic and going to the "Sorcerer." The text is blurry in some parts but what I can make out for certain is that the representative classes are: "Shaman" and "Illusionist." The body reads, "A player can change 'job' to a Sorcerer when they equip a weapon that harbours magical powers. Other than the staff pictured in this shot, we're not certain what other weapons are available but, most likely, this job's function will be that of a support role, attacking or healing with magic."

The Rugadyn has some missing text, but mostly its an explanation about the various races a player can pick from at character creation. Here are the parts I can definitely make out, "The Rugadyn are a large-framed and muscular sea-faring folk mainly from the North Sea region.......Those that you might encounter in the Sea City of Rimusa Rominsa are probably members of the Ze-vorufu Tribe (a variation of Sea Wolf most likely) in the midst of a port call, but you will find other Rugadyn around Eorzea in roles such as mercenaries, bodyguards or perhaps even pirates. In the Uldaha region, you may also come across their mountain-dwelling counterparts, the Roengarude Tribe."

I also pieced a few more things together and noticed that there is mention of a broader job categories which include Fighter, Sorcerer, Crafter and Gatherer. These then break down into more specific "classes" such as Swordsman, Shaman and Blacksmith.

The WHM carrying the big axe is entitled "Gatherer" and is explained as "a specialist who manipulates gathering tools."??"As represented by the pictured Axe, a player can switch to Gatherer by equipping a gathering tool. This category will most likely feature classes which specialize in the collection of various materials. Could the Gatherer be that existence responsible for sustaining the populace of Eorzea?" The representative classes are: "Gardener" and "Fisher."

Next up you have the Hyuran (allow for some flubbing since some of the text was blurry.) "The most populous of the Eorzean races, the Hyuran are a race that have come from the nearby continents and islands to Eorzea over three mass migratioins. The technology and ideas that they brought with them from the outside world was a driving force that thrust the Eorzean Civilization forward. Though their strength lies in the many varied languages and cultural systems they possess, because of that variation, their unity as a race is low. They cherish their freedom. Hyuran are broken into two major groups; those that live in the lower elevations are called the Midlanders and those who reside in the higher elevations are the Highlanders."

Finally, you have the Fighter scan aptly named, "Fighter." The representative classes are: "Swordsman" and "Archer." "Those that wield weapons and seek the path of warring." (Some artistic license due to the blurry text.) "The player can change into this job when they equip a weapon. Their class changes depending on what weapon they choose to equip. Classes that specialize in physical damage are believed to fill up this category."

Oh noes! More work then I've done in a long time!

FFXIV: Information Released!

I'm so there if this no leveling, no boredom thing is real. Actually, what the fuck am I talking about? I'm so there any fucking way!

Final Fantasy XIV ‘Famitsu Wave’ Interview Pours Information

by Sal on Aug 1, 2009 11:36 am

The September 2009 edition of Famitsu Wave has released in Japan sporting a DVD containing an eight-minute segment on Final Fantasy XIV. A lot of new information has come out of the DVD and we've got it for you.

Eorza is the name of a region that's the main setting of the game and as a full world, Vana'diel (from Final Fantasy XI) is naturally a little bigger. The actual world the game takes place in is called Haiderin. The style of Haiderin will be different from Vana'diel, aiming for a "high-fantasy" style setting. They want the setting to be more modern in comparison to Final Fantasy XI's more middle-age setting. There will be advanced technology in the world, as you've clearly seen from the skyships in the trailer.

The races in Final Fantasy XIV will bring on a familiar look. However, the races of Final Fantasy XI are being reimagined. The Galka-looking character you've seen in the trailer, will not be called a Galka, but something else. Other changes will be in order as well.

Final Fantasy XIV revolves around character growth. There will be no experience points or leveling system this time around, and a new system will come in to play. Square Enix wants to deliver an experience where new players have the freedom to try out any quest and many different things, growing naturally from their experiences. A deep story will be in tact in Final Fantasy XIV, including cut-scenes, but they're going beyond that by also delivering a wider variety of stories and quests. They want players to enjoy the process of character growth.

Jobs were the lasting appeal of Final Fantasy XI. They want to utilize that concept, but stack more on top of it. The focus will be on weapons, determining how you play, grow, and fight. They'll be expanding upon the basic job system. He says this also explains the Final Fantasy XIV logo, which features weapons sticking out of the name.

The main idea for Final Fantasy XIV is to provide freedom of growth through the variety of quests offered. However, players can meet up with friends and set off on adventure or they can play solo. Players won't be left with nothing to do, bored.

Square Enix is considering large scale battles, however, regular battles will be against single enemies. During quests you can gather parties and fight against multiple foes.

The game's music is going to be composed entirely by Uematsu.

"This will be a Final Fantasy that brings the setting to a whole new world that you can experience with the new friends you will meet." Nobuaki Komoto, director of Final Fantasy XIV said. "I welcome you to join us in the world of Final Fantasy XIV and hope you enjoy your time there."

"You can trust that we plan to create a world of new possibilities that redefine the MMO. I hope you're looking forward to everything we have in store."

According to Square Enix, there's a secret message hidden in the trailer. Finally, you can watch the actual interview below.

Can you spot the hidden message?