For players that didn’t stick around, but did purchase the original game, they’ll be getting the free upgrade and the two-week period to play for free, but there won’t be any extra in-game items, other than the ones that came with the original game. They’ll also be getting an in-game Chocobo. They’ll be getting a reduced price on the subscription for A Realm Reborn for the lifetime that they played. Those legacy players will be getting a lot of stuff. We call those our legacy players, the ones who played through all of the updates. We have players that purchased the game and didn’t like it and then quit, and then we had the players who kept playing the game. Yoshida: We have two different types of players. GamesBeat: Are there any sorts of in-game items that might be exclusive to founders?
We’ll give them the two weeks to see that. That’s what we want players to try, so we can show them that it’s a completely different game now.
The second thing is that we’ll have a two-week “welcome back” campaign, where you’ll be able to play for free for two weeks. Yoshida: The first big thing about that is, if you purchased the original game, you’ll be able to have a free upgrade to A Realm Reborn. GamesBeat: What sort of reciprocity will there be for players who paid for the original version? Note: Yoshida spoke through a translator who somewhat paraphrased the lengthier answers.
Maybe this could be the direction Square Enix is taking with Final Fantasy XI, allowing fans who didn’t take the plunge 20 years ago to finally experience the story of the eleventh entry in its entirety.Īfter all, those who want an online experience can always enjoy the more modern Final Fantasy XIV anyway, so an offline XI seems to be a great compromise for those who have only played single-player Final Fantasy games and have never played XI at all.Įither way, we’ll be keeping an eye out through the official Final Fantasy XI 20th anniversary website.Join gaming leaders live this October 25-26 in San Francisco to examine the next big opportunities within the gaming industry.
This version would allow players to experience the game’s story in a new way and without the multiplayer components. So where could Square Enix go from here? Well, we think that they could take a page from their other seminal JRPG franchise, Dragon Quest.ĭuring the 35th anniversary of Dragon Quest livestream, it was announced that Dragon Quest X, the only online entry of the series, would receive an ‘offline’ version. The thing is, a proper mobile remake of Final Fantasy XI was in the works by Korean developer Nexon, but it was cancelled in late 2020. It’s hard not to think about what all this could lead to: will there be more expansions, like last year’s The Voracious Resurgence addition, or even a proper modern remake? There’s even a detailed timeline of Final Fantasy XI’s history, chronicling the game’s launch, expansions, and behind-the-scenes commentary by Square Enix.
Whether it is new artwork from series artist Yoshitaka Amano, or special interviews with the original development team, it seems like fans can expect a lot more as we draw closer to the game’s 20th anniversary. Its official 20th anniversary website, We Are Vana’diel, is regularly being updated with all-new content. Yet, even today, it seems that the era of Final Fantasy XI isn’t over just yet. What is weird is that although Final Fantasy XI is still being played, a full-blown sequel, Final Fantasy XIV, has already been released. World of Warcraft, for example, is still being updated and played to this day. It is common for great MMORPGs to survive long after their release.