FFXI: Opinion about the game

Final fantasy is one of Squaresoft’s biggest money makers and may as well be the sole bread and butter of the company. In the past decade playstation console has been Squaresoft’s niche. The news that they were releasing a MMORPG even before an offline game was startling news to many final fantasy fans. To be honest my initial thoughts upon hearing this weren’t very positive. The final fantasy franchise has always been a laid back offline game with massive content and exploration. FFXI revealed very little information on release which didn’t help the anticipation. Despite being released on ps2 in certain regions its main platform was the PC. It was interesting to see how Squaresoft would adapt to two completely different genres with a single game. However the end result proved quite positive. The story line is sketchy at best this was never their forte anyway. However the quality and the animations of FFXI are quite impressive. It is quite satisfying to see your hits actually having visible contact animations.  FFXI sacrifices diversity to allow the player more flexibility all roles referred to as “Jobs” are independent of race, very few MMORPGs allow this level of flexibility. The game also has only three initial starter regions and two races. Curiously enough FFXI allows you only to have one single character. Every other character can only be made for a fee of 1$. The only reasoning that comes to mind is that Squaresoft wants to have an accurate count of its players.

The character jobs are quite entertaining and diverse even though they follow a very basic concept. The jobs consist of thieves, warriors and mages.  However, due to the flexibility of the game a single character can follow all jobs or mix and match. This concept makes the game quite interesting as the combinations are numerous and this also adds a level of unpredictability. The online community may not be large but everyone seems to be enjoying the game. The servers also appear quite stable and lag free which is a godsend as many MMOs are plagued with instability issues and crashes.  FFXI also has another distinctive trait which allows you to synchronize your attacks with other players in the group dealing more damage. Even though this mechanic is not an essential trait it gives an incentive for people to focus on coordination. The world in FFXI is big but doesn’t match up to the other MMOs out there on the market. However its visual effects and sound tend be a step above the rest of the games out there. Unfortunately FFXI is devoid of a player versus player aspect which is a huge drawback. Player versus player features are a mandatory need in any online game and it’s curious why Squaresoft did not implement it.

Overall the FFXI is quite enjoyable but Squaresoft has not been known for very entertaining story lines or diverse gameplay. Their forte generally resides in turn based mechanics. However FFXI is an excellent single attempt at two genres. FFXI offers simple and enjoyable gameplay and its friendly online community is another plus.