RandomNPC – Video Game RPG Reviews, Editorials, and Features

More and more information about Final Fantasy XIV has been hitting the internets lately, making a 2010 launch seem more plausible by the day. Much of it comes from producer Hiromichi Tanaka, who recently gave interviews at Gamescom. Among the details, the following stood out:

– Voice acting has been confirmed; “mostly every character/npc” will feature at least some voiceover.

– The level/skill cap present at launch will be rolled back over time.

– PVP will be handled similar to Final Fantasy XI, with a strong focus on PVE and select areas/situations where players can fight each other.

– Square Enix’s Playonline service will not be used to access the game.

– Guildleves will function as instanced content, and there will be raid-type situations as well.

– Character creation will let the player change their eyes, hair color, ear shape and facial structure, among other things.

– Enemy levels are fixed, depending on where they are spawned.

– Fishing has been confirmed, and the possibility of other mini-games has been raised, but not confirmed.

– Eorzea will be slightly smaller at launch than pre-expansion Vana’Diel from Final Fantasy XI. However, Final Fantasy XIV aims to be seamless, with no zones or transition points.

– Weapon durability has been confirmed; weapons will wear out over time and require repair.

– Whether to include XP loss on death is being debated. If it appears, it will be considerably less than it was in Final Fantasy XI.

– As skills are tied to equipment, players will be able to switch classes by switching gear. Players will be unable to change equipment in battle, however.

– Although not available in the alpha version shown at Gamescom, later builds of the game will have a tracking feature to display mission targets on your map.

– Final Fantasy XIV will require players to select a command prior to each attack, and each hand will have independent gauges and commands depending on what it’s equipped with. Shields, for instance, allow defensive commands and blocking, while staves allow for magic use. Multiple commands can be queued up, and combat is not automatic, as it was in Final Fantasy XI.

– The heads-up display can be modified by the player; info boxes can be moved around the screen and repositioned depending on the player’s preference. Three camera angles are expected in the final version.

– Aetherytes will function as a means of teleportation, primarily getting players to and from mission sites; they will be a part of the Guildleve system.

– The demo shown at Gamescom was a cut-down version of Square Enix’s internal build, which is about 40-50% complete, according to Tanaka.

– Although Final Fantasy XIV does not feature jobs, per se, it does have class skills which are raised by using relevant gear. Four additional skillsets have been announced: axeman, archer, martial artist, and tailor. Also, a few recurring creature types will appear in the game: the ahriman, cactuar, and malboro have been confirmed.

Sources: FFXIVCore, Zam, Siliconera