I always knew I'd like this game at least a little. I LOVE Final Fantasy and pretty thoroughly enjoy MMORPGs. It only makes sense that I'd fall in love with this game considering it's a Final Fantasy game with all the usual shared terminology and elements that the single player games have, and it's all packed within a very smoothly run and well-kempt MMORPG! So why did it take me so long(3 different times on 3 different accounts over the past 5-6 years) to become so smitten with this game?
I'll likely never know. It could be because now I've learned more about the game itself from watching my favorite streamers play, or it could be that I was just not in the right headspace to enjoy a game at the time of my last two tries. But the third time really is the charm. I am now in love with Final Fantasy XIV, and I'm not even halfway through A Realm Reborn yet. I hear this game and its story just get better with each expansion. If that's the case, I think I'm going to have to start forking over money for Crysta!
Now I'm mainly only playing solo, and to enjoy the story. I get performance anxiety when I have to play with others in MMOs, and get my feelings dampened a little easily when I look at the chat log and read that another player has suggested that I look heavily into some guides so I don't bring down any future parties. But with the new Duty Support system, I can now do missions that require a party, but with a party of NPCs! That takes so much anxiety away. But I am also proud to say that I've learned my role well enough to bravely take up FATEs when I see one nearby, even if others are already there completing one as well. Though I never stick around to talk. I'm the silent tank who diverts attention, helps defeat the enemy, and runs away. Most people seem to be okay with this tactic, and some even do the same while I'm in a FATE, which is nice to see!
I've never been one to partake in full-on RP in MMOs. I still don't. No disrespect to anybody who does, I see and respect the commitment to your role and characters! I just like to play the game and imagine the cool lines my character would say in my head rather than act them out in the chat log. The reason I bring this up, however, is that this game has a world that's so vast and deep and caters to the RP side of the community so well, that I now participate privately in very very light role-playing. I do this by retiring to an inn as my exclusive method of exiting the game, but with a catch; I have a preset outfit that's just basically a worn out pair of pajama bottoms, that I always switch to before going to sleep. It's just so nice to see me as a Final Fantasy avatar waking up out of bed before my long day of adventuring at the start of every session! You can also tell when I'm not currently playing by checking my profile and seeing that my character is just wearing some old raggedy pants. It's definitely funny because I would never do that with any other MMO, even today. Final Fantasy XIV just tickles that part of my brain I guess!
Needless to say, I'm very much enjoying this game and everything it has to offer. I'm looking forward to seeing how much better everybody says it gets upon entering the Heavensward expansion! I may not use this blog feature often. I just wanted to express how much I love this game and this felt like a proper place to do so! I hope to discover more to love about this game. Thanks for reading!
~Austin/Neo
