Hullo. I'm Fotix, Lalafell archer to be. But, for this thread, I'm going to speak as Joe.
I'm 31yrs old and have been a gamer since I was able to have a controller in my hand, starting with an NES (Nintendo Entertainment System) and moving my way up the consoles. Pertaining to MMORPGS, I started with Ultima Online in the late '90s and have played nearly all of the MMO's worth playing out there (and some not worth playing).
I have always felt that I've had my finger on the pulse of the gaming industry, and being knee-deep in it at all times of my life, I can sometimes look at the big picture quite easily. So, with all that preposition out of the way...
Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn...
I'll start as speaking as a gamer in general. Final Fantasy was always a unique creature in my mindset growing up with the industry. It always had a unique presentation and epic scale of adventure. I didn't play every single FF title that there was, however I was exposed to them all in some fashion. This includes Nintendo Power reviews and guides and the modern websites, online features, videos, and of course playing said games. Final Fantasy as a genre within itself was unique and alluring. So much style and usually there was substance in there to boot. The commercials, the ads, the trailers would just ooze a feeling of majesty, "epicness," and raw emotion. This franchise became the prime example for the art of gaming. It was ahead of its time in many ways at many different eras. For the general gaming industry, Final Fantasy, as a franchise, has always been that diamond in the rough.
As an MMORPG gamer, the Final Fantasy mmorpgs have an intangible quality to them. They have an "X-factor" that makes it more than it actually is. Where some mmorpgs excell in aquiring "cool gear," open PvP, a humorous feel, or interesting mechanics, it's Final Fantasy, especially in its latest incarnation, that seems to take that core, original model for what an mmorpg is expected to be and just polishes it down to the diamond that we are just now seeing. Yes, the original incarnation of XIV had it's issues, but, with needed love and care, it is now re-emerging as what it should be.
This is the time where there are developers going way out on a limb in an effort to re-invent the mmorpg genre. You have Everquest Next, for example, which is proclaiming that "the king" is returning to the throne to redefine what an mmorpg should be. And maybe rightfully so, as Everquest was the one that set the bar and example. However, to me, Ultima Online always felt like what set the bar. In my mind, Everquest established leveling and endless questing (thus the name). And Ultima Online established something unique to me that I've been searching for ever since: I did not log-in to UO to level up. I did not log-in to UO to get better gear. I logged into UO to see who I would meet that day and what adventures I would find myself in. To me, that is the core of what mmorpgs are all about. If that is not the foundation, then you're effectively cutting the "RPG" out of mmorpg. And in some cases that make me utterly depressed, the "MM" is cut out as well. There are so many mmorpgs out there that feel like a single player game that happens to have other people playing the same single player game nearby. I'm sorry, but that's a perversion.
Final Fantasy XIV, in my mind, is the epitome of what I want in an mmorpg experience. You have an art-style that draws you relentlessly into the world and never lets go. You have a combat system that is fluid and entertaining. You have a community that is just brimming with enthusiasm. And you have a world that has a story behind it at every turn. Even when you log out and go about your "real life," your mind still lives in XIV. That is a sign, my friends. That is that magical "x-factor" hitting your senses, your psyche, and your very being. Don't be ashamed of it. Don't be afraid of it. We, as gamers, simply choose to live many different lives and have amazing experiences that enrich our existence and push the boundaries of what it means to be human. Gaming, to me, is about having experiences and adventures that would be otherwise impossible. To game is to live more.
Let us go forward into Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn as gamers, as adventurers, and most importantly as friends. **add obligatory Final Fantasy 'level-up' music here**
I'm 31yrs old and have been a gamer since I was able to have a controller in my hand, starting with an NES (Nintendo Entertainment System) and moving my way up the consoles. Pertaining to MMORPGS, I started with Ultima Online in the late '90s and have played nearly all of the MMO's worth playing out there (and some not worth playing).
I have always felt that I've had my finger on the pulse of the gaming industry, and being knee-deep in it at all times of my life, I can sometimes look at the big picture quite easily. So, with all that preposition out of the way...
Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn...
I'll start as speaking as a gamer in general. Final Fantasy was always a unique creature in my mindset growing up with the industry. It always had a unique presentation and epic scale of adventure. I didn't play every single FF title that there was, however I was exposed to them all in some fashion. This includes Nintendo Power reviews and guides and the modern websites, online features, videos, and of course playing said games. Final Fantasy as a genre within itself was unique and alluring. So much style and usually there was substance in there to boot. The commercials, the ads, the trailers would just ooze a feeling of majesty, "epicness," and raw emotion. This franchise became the prime example for the art of gaming. It was ahead of its time in many ways at many different eras. For the general gaming industry, Final Fantasy, as a franchise, has always been that diamond in the rough.
As an MMORPG gamer, the Final Fantasy mmorpgs have an intangible quality to them. They have an "X-factor" that makes it more than it actually is. Where some mmorpgs excell in aquiring "cool gear," open PvP, a humorous feel, or interesting mechanics, it's Final Fantasy, especially in its latest incarnation, that seems to take that core, original model for what an mmorpg is expected to be and just polishes it down to the diamond that we are just now seeing. Yes, the original incarnation of XIV had it's issues, but, with needed love and care, it is now re-emerging as what it should be.
This is the time where there are developers going way out on a limb in an effort to re-invent the mmorpg genre. You have Everquest Next, for example, which is proclaiming that "the king" is returning to the throne to redefine what an mmorpg should be. And maybe rightfully so, as Everquest was the one that set the bar and example. However, to me, Ultima Online always felt like what set the bar. In my mind, Everquest established leveling and endless questing (thus the name). And Ultima Online established something unique to me that I've been searching for ever since: I did not log-in to UO to level up. I did not log-in to UO to get better gear. I logged into UO to see who I would meet that day and what adventures I would find myself in. To me, that is the core of what mmorpgs are all about. If that is not the foundation, then you're effectively cutting the "RPG" out of mmorpg. And in some cases that make me utterly depressed, the "MM" is cut out as well. There are so many mmorpgs out there that feel like a single player game that happens to have other people playing the same single player game nearby. I'm sorry, but that's a perversion.
Final Fantasy XIV, in my mind, is the epitome of what I want in an mmorpg experience. You have an art-style that draws you relentlessly into the world and never lets go. You have a combat system that is fluid and entertaining. You have a community that is just brimming with enthusiasm. And you have a world that has a story behind it at every turn. Even when you log out and go about your "real life," your mind still lives in XIV. That is a sign, my friends. That is that magical "x-factor" hitting your senses, your psyche, and your very being. Don't be ashamed of it. Don't be afraid of it. We, as gamers, simply choose to live many different lives and have amazing experiences that enrich our existence and push the boundaries of what it means to be human. Gaming, to me, is about having experiences and adventures that would be otherwise impossible. To game is to live more.
Let us go forward into Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn as gamers, as adventurers, and most importantly as friends. **add obligatory Final Fantasy 'level-up' music here**
Fotix Topitopi
Lalafell Archer
Gilgamesh
FC: Echo Knights
Lalafell Archer
Gilgamesh
FC: Echo Knights