The 35th Letter from the Producer has been released and can be found in full detail here: http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/threads/53080
To sum up, the alpha test will begin shortly (Phase 1 being Japanese only, Phase 2 going international). The alpha will largely be restricted to server stress testing and most content will be unavailable.
The final "save maintenance" for characters will be November 1st. That means that all character data (levels, achievements, etc) will be saved on that day. Anything achieved after that will not transfer with your character. The 1.0 servers themselves are scheduled to go down for good November 11th. That means between Nov 2-10, the only thing we'll be able to do is RP! (And I'm planning a little "final" event that will hopefully be embraced by enough of you and help you create the ultimate cliffhanger for any character who attends).
To sum up, the alpha test will begin shortly (Phase 1 being Japanese only, Phase 2 going international). The alpha will largely be restricted to server stress testing and most content will be unavailable.
The final "save maintenance" for characters will be November 1st. That means that all character data (levels, achievements, etc) will be saved on that day. Anything achieved after that will not transfer with your character. The 1.0 servers themselves are scheduled to go down for good November 11th. That means between Nov 2-10, the only thing we'll be able to do is RP! (And I'm planning a little "final" event that will hopefully be embraced by enough of you and help you create the ultimate cliffhanger for any character who attends).
