Final Fantasy XIV Information

1 - Game is being developed by the primary team behind FFXI
2 - FFXIV will be coming to the PS3 & PC. They are currently considering other hardware (including Microsoft hardware!)
3 - Completely new world called "Eorzea"
4 - The reason they made the races similar to the FFXI races is so FFXI players could choose a similar type of race in the new game.
5 - The development for FFXIV started 4-5 years ago.
6 - They are looking to bring in some casual players, similar to World of Warcraft.
7 - They intend to have content for solo players as well as large-scale battles. They want a wide-variety from the start.
8 - Worldwide simultaneous launch on PS3 and Windows PC. English, Japanese, German, and French versions released at launch.
9 - Worldwide servers that are cross-platform and cross-region.
10 - BETA test is confirmed but no further information was provided.
11 - Will expand the job system to make it fairly different from the one in FFXI.
12 - Want to make it so the player can choose to play solo, in a party, 40 minutes, all-day... there will be content for ALL of those play styles and systems for all of those play styles.
13 - There will not be any XI character transfers to XIV. However, the character design is familiar and XI players will be able to create a similar character.
14 - Playonline will not be used, but your friends list will be able to transfer over.

Ign conducted a private interview with Square Enix to get some more answers about FFXIV:

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/991/991483p1.html

You can watch the video interview http://ps3.ign.com/dor/objects/823994/square-enix-ps3-mmorpg-untitled/videos/ff14_vdi_060309.html

E3 2009: Final Fantasy XIV - What We Know
We sat down with the FF14 team to talk about the next big MMO of 2010 and came away with several all-new details.
by Jeremy Dunham

June 4, 2009 - Square Enix surprised everyone on Tuesday when it announced at Sony's E3 press conference that not only would Final Fantasy XIII hit stores next year, but so too will Final Fantasy XIV Online -- a follow-up MMO from the same team that brought us Final Fantasy XI in 2002. But the information flow didn't stop there. On Wednesday, Square Enix also held a press conference of its own to provide some additional context to the previous day's news. But honestly, we still weren't satisfied with how much FF14 info was out there, so we managed to grab an interview with the Final Fantasy XIV team yesterday afternoon to see if they could answer some additional questions.

And now, with multiple days of info and some probing, we present the following: everything we know about the game thus far. Some of it you've already heard, some of it you haven't, but either way, it's the most info you'll find on the game yet. Enjoy

what platforms is Final Fantasy XIV coming to?
Currently the game is confirmed for PlayStation 3 and Windows PC. An Xbox 360 version isn't official, but Square Enix is considering the possibility that it could.

What do we know about the setting and the story?
It takes place on an all-new Final Fantasy world known as "Eorzea." Though it does share some monsters and races from Final Fantasy XI, they're not direct representations and have been altered in multiple ways that make them unique to Eorzea. The similarities in races will allow experienced FFXI players to create a new FFXIV character that looks somewhat comparable.

Does it have a direct connection to Final Fantasy XI?
In some ways, yes it does. Not only does it share the same development team as the FF11, but the game will also allow players to create a character that is similar to their current Final Fantasy XI. Square Enix has also revealed to IGN that it is currently finding a solution that will let you transfer your character's names from FFXI to FFXIV.

On a related note, at the press conference, it was said that FFXI has another year of content planned. Does that mean that after that year is up that FFXI is done with?
No. To be specific, Square Enix has one year of content currently planned but has told us here at IGN that it isn't a mandated end for the series. If fans continue to support the game, then so will Square Enix.

What is the combat system like?
The development team won't say, but it did confirm to us that... Additionally, the heavy team-play aspect of FF11 has been deemphasized, and now exploration and battle is said to be more balanced between solo and team play.

How does the leveling system work?
Square Enix is cagey about how characters advance, but it has confirmed with IGN that growth is not based on experience and that it will work on a different system entirely.

What about jobs?
Jobs will return in Final Fantasy XIV, but they will be much different than the job system present in FFXI.

How important are the weapons?
Weapons are very important and have a heavy influence on your character and how they succeed in the game world. Square Enix says to look closely at the official FFXIV logo for hints and hidden meanings about how the game will work.

What hidden meanings?
Square Enix told us that when it approached Amano to do the logo art for FFXIV, that weapons were very important and to think of the concept of a "wheel." Specifically, a wheel of adventurers that has their weapon in front of them and an exposed backside -- which leaves each adventurer to rely heavily on their comrades and their friends. Let the speculation begin.

Anything else about the weapons?
The team let slip to us that choosing weapons for specific tasks one day versus another could affect how your character develops.

How much of the first trailer is in-game versus pre-rendered?
The debut trailer is actually a mixture of real-time in-game footage and pre-rendered wizardry. The combat scene in particular was created using the in-game engine.

What languages will the game available in?
The same as Final Fantasy XI: Japanese, English, French and German. FFXIV will also be released simultaneously in all regions that use those languages.

Will the PlayOnline service be used for FFXIV?
No. Square Enix told us that the reason it is ditching the PlayOnline system is because it was originally meant as an all-in-one solution to house multiple content types. But as PlayOnline has offered less content over the years, the need for the next online Final Fantasy to us PO is moot. Whatever new service (if any) is used, PC and PlayStation 3 users will still be able to play with each other on the same servers, and Square Enix also confirmed with IGN that you can sign in with a universal ID on either system to pick up where you left off if you own both.

Who's Working on the Game?
It is produced by Hiromichi Tanaka (Final Fantasy I, II, III, and IX) and directed by Nobuaki Komoto (Final Fantasy IX, XI), with art direction by Akihiko Yoshida (Vagrant Story, Final Fantasy XII) and a musical score from Nobuo Uematsu (Most Final Fantasies ever). Yoshitaka Amano has designed the logo and is pulling additional art duties as well.

Uematsu only did a few tracks in FFXI, how much is he doing for XIV?
Square Enix revealed to IGN that Uematsu will be doing all the music for Final Fantasy XIV and that it will be composed in a range of different styles and genres.

What modern day MMOs have influenced the design and direction of FFXIV?
In addition to the team's original work on Final Fantasy XI, World of Warcraft, Age of Conan and Warhammer Online have been three recent games that have had some pull, but the FFXI community's feedback has been the most important factor in its design.

Are Chocobos back?
Yes, they will return. But Square Enix has told IGN that it is looking at using them in a completely different way than they were used in Final Fantasy XI (where they were used as riding steeds).

When is it coming out and when is the beta?
The game will come out in 2010, and after Final Fantasy XIII which is scheduled for spring of the same year. Beta plans are still being finalized, but that the plan is to have a longer beta period than that of FFXI (which had a beta of about 3-4 months).

Information provided from Zam:

http://www.zam.com/story.html?story=18309

Things that we learned from this interview:

1 - Eorzea is but a region within the full world of Final Fantasy XIV, which will be named ハイデリン (ha-i-de-ri-n). This land will be blessed with high technology, but not to the point of more sci-fi themed worlds found in Final Fantasy XIII or Final Fantasy X.

2 - All the races from Final Fantasy XI appear to be present and accounted for. Tanaka comments that this was done in order to add an air of familiarity to the game, so the Final Fantasy XI community would be comfortable transferring over and trying it out

3 - The developers attribute the long-lasting success of Final Fantasy XI to the Job System, and plan to learn from it and greatly expand off the concept.

4 - Instead of leveling up with experience points, weapons will play a key role in how a character grows and develops.

5 - beginners can expect simpler fights as they get the hang of things, while hardcore players looking to test their mettle can find serious battles that require much more cunning. It will not be realtime, action style encounters, but rather a number of more cerebral aspects.

6 - When designing the party system, he (Tanaka) made sure it would facilitate more strategic setups, where everyone can play their respective role.

7 - Just like the races, they will be looking to develop a new incarnation of Chocobos unique to this title. Unfortunately, it is causing them a bit of worry regarding how exactly to do this.

8 - In regards to the PC version, the game will utilize the most current version of Direct X that is out when beta testing begins. This goes for Operating System as well. Similarly, they do not specify Vista or Windows 7 as an operating system, saying again that it will depend on what is out at the time. For those of you looking to prep a new PC, Tanaka claims they are really looking to get on the cutting edge of technology with this installment. Like Final Fantasy XI, the game specs will be extremely high for the time, but in about 5 years, an average machine can run it on max settings with little to no issues. Tanaka also expressed interest in making a benchmark program available.

9 - Uematsu's music work is in full 5.1 channel surround sound.

10 - Final Fantasy XIV will have a number of Worlds/Servers, and they are aiming for a capacity of 5,000-6,000 simultaneous connections

11 - Interest appears to be there for an Xbox360 port, but Tanaka laments that they just have not been able to reach a full compromise with Microsoft yet. Talks will continue, but there is no more comment on whatever progress may have taken place.

12 - Besides the visual similarities between the characters you create, there will be no solid connection between Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy XIV. There will also be no character transfers, but they are investigating a way in which you can carry your preferred name over from XI.