Final Fantasy XI - Step Up the Level Ladder - s-l-o-w-l-y

There are many things an MMORPG, which stands for Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game, can do to you, both good and bad. Almost ALL of them have a monthly fee, usually around 8-12 bucks a month, with a free start-up month. Some of them are actually fun, which means we pay to play longer for. And most of them will have something that just drives you to the point of hating the game or the whole genre in general. Eleven games later (including X-2), Square brings out their first MMORPG, Final Fantasy XI. Released for both PC and PS2, FFXI allows both PC and PS@ users to play on the same servers, a first for MMORPG’s. FFXI may share some of the same cons that all MMORPG’s have, but after playing Everquest, City of Heroes, Ragnarok Online, and Lineage 2; Final Fantasy XI has a lot more going for it than them, and it’s fun.

Final Fantasy XI comes bundled with the Hard-disk drive (HDD), which is required, of course, to even play Final Fantasy XI. Installing the HDD is as easy as sliding it into the expansion bay on the back of the PS2 (VERY carefully), connecting the network adapter to complete the installation. If you don’t have a Network Adapter already, get one, because you need it for the HDD to work.

After getting everything set-up, just follow the on-screen instructions on installing and registering FFXI, which could take about 45 minutes or so to finally finish. When installing new hardware and software, any error could come up, and thankfully Square has a good technical support line, and they’ll help get you up and running if you come into a little road block.

Once you have finally got everything set-up, it’s time to play the game. Final Fantasy XI is an online ONLY game, so there is no playing offline, no matter what (here’s an idea, go play Final Fantasy Tactics Advance). The character creation isn’t as customizable as say... City of Heroes, so it won’t take you long to meet your clone in your adventures soon after you start your adventure. There are 5 different races to choose from (Elvaan, Hume, Mithra, Tarutaru, Galka), each with 8 or 9 different faces, and an option of small, medium, or large according to their race. While any race can be any job, such is the greatness of the job system, there are certain jobs that a race will be much better suited for. If you wanted to be a type of mage, then the Tarutaru would be the best race, due to their naturally high MP (mana points, you can’t cast magic without mana points). A Galka on the other hand, big and mighty, have the lowest MP of the races, and so wouldn’t be the best choice for a mage job. But, the great thing about an MMORPG is that you can be whatever race you want, and do whatever job you want to do, because weaknesses can be evened out with equipment post 50 (which however, giving big statistic bonuses, can cost a pretty gill).

Once you select your character and name, you can select from either Bastok, Sandoria, or Windurst and depending on your race, you’ll start with a city exclusive ring. For example, if you choose an Elvaan character and start in Sandoria, you’ll start with the Sandorian ring, which has Defense +2, Str+1, and Mnd+1. Starting out, FFXI begins like any other MMORPG at level 1, with only a weapon or a spell (depending on the job you choose). From level 1, to level 18-20 is pretty much the levels where you’ll be getting use to the game. The first 10 levels you’ll solo in the areas right outside of your starting city, getting use to the battle system, getting around, etc. In this time, you’ll also learn how to Check the difficulty of the mob you’re about to attack. Learn to do this before attacking anything, as you’ll be doing this throughout the whole game. This is the time where you’ll also learn at level 10-11, you’ll most likely want to make your way to the Valkurm Dunes, where you will begin the other 90% of your leveling, in parties. You see, unless you are a Beastmaster (advanced job un-lockable only by achieving level 30 with a starting job), it’s almost impossible to solo anything and gain experience in a timely fashion. As you get higher in level, Mobs (slang for each enemy) get even higher, which means you’ve got to be about 40 levels over them to do anything worthwhile damage wise. In other words, the Decent Challenges and Easy Prey’s that you were fighting when you first started the game in the game’s later areas, will be almost as hard as a Tough or Very Tough enemy, and even if you’re like 20 levels higher than them, they will royally kick your... rear.

Final Fantasy XI has the job system like in Final Fantasy Tactics, which you can switch between at your digression. There are only 6 available jobs at the start (Warrior, Red Mage, Black Mage, White Mage, Monk, Thief), and once you reach level 30, you can unlock advanced jobs (such as Paladin, Ranger, Dragoon, Ninja, Bard, Dark Knight, Samurai, and Beastmaster). The good thing about this system is that you don’t have to be stuck with one job. If you’re bored, you can switch jobs and level that up for awhile. This could also be a bad thing, as those people who are indecisive such as myself, will drive themselves nuts trying to decide which job they want to level up high, which begins to be impossible when you’re switching to a different job every day (it also begins to take up space in your inventory and mog house with all of the equipment you need for each different job that you choose to level).

The battle system is simple enough, just attack the mob, and watch. Fighting is on auto-attack, so you’ll attack after a certain amount of time. Depending on your weapon, lets use the Butterfly Axe (a great axe) for example, the delay for it is 508. So that means that there will be a 5 seconds and some odd tenth of a second delay between your attacks (although it seems to take about 10 seconds sometimes, maybe even longer). Every weapon has a delay (except for the Tropical Punches of course), and generally the heavier hitting weapons such as the Great Axes, Scythes, and Great Swords have long delays (usually around 4 seconds or so), while weapons such as 1-handed axes, daggers, and swords have a lower delay (though less attack power). There’s an option to turn auto-attack off, but I haven’t even really messed with turning it off or anything. There’s more than just standing there and whacking away with your weapon though, each person in the party has a vital role to killing the mob as quick as possible. The White Mage’s need to keep members healed, the Tanks need to keep the hate so that the mob doesn’t go after any one else in the party, and the attackers need to use Weapon Skills to set up Skill Chains, which require timing, and actually some skill to complete right (better skill chains equals more damage done to the mob).

Now, when I mentioned that once you hit level 10 that the only way to level up or do anything is to rely on a party, I wasn’t kidding. Partying is a necessary component, as most missions you do require at least a party of 6 to finish, if not a full alliance of 18 to complete. Once you get to higher levels, things like Genkai (or Limit Break, quests you have to do at 50, 55, 60, 65, and 70 to be able to level any higher) and Artifact Gear usually require no less than 8 people. There is so much to do in FFXI, all of which takes time, and once you’re hooked on this game, an hour will go by that seemed like it was only a minute. Things such as crafting, Gardening, doing quests, and missions are other things that you can do so that you’re not always on a level grind. If you want to go from 20-40 in a week, more power to you, but constant leveling can get boring, and so thankfully there is other stuff to do (plus, if you don’t have up to date equipment if you’re a melee, it’s going to be hard to find parties to level faster anyways). Crafting is pretty fun, with things like Woodworking, Leathersmith, and Goldsmithing, you can make things to sell, and later as your skill level rises, you’ll start making tons of profit from what you make. Starting out though, you’re spending much more gill than you’re making profit off of, so you’re not going to become rich right off the bat (if ever). You start out with 10 gil, plus an adventure’s coupon that gives you 50 gil, so you’ve got 60 gil right there. When items are usually no lower than 200-300g, and the highest priced items are about 30mil, you’re going to be broke a lot. Which is why most people even begin to start a craft.

If this review has seemed negative so far, I apologize, so here’s why FFXI deserves 4 stars: It’s one of the most entertaining games that I’ve ever played. Ever since it released on the PS2, I have purchased maybe 2 games since then, and once I beat them, I was right back playing FFXI. The world in Final Fantasy XI is huge, and the scope is so wide, that each new place you visit will have you all giddy on the inside like a little school girl/boy. The graphics are rich and detailed, very vibrant in some places, and while the PS2 version doesn’t have as high of a resolution that it’s PC counter-part does, they still retain their fiber. Square has been able to tap into the power of the PS2 with some very beautiful places (though they created some of the ugliest places as well, just look at Garlaige Citadel for example). While there isn’t an extremely customizable character creation, , Square still did a good job with the way each race looks, and the distinctive features of each skin, whether it be short hair, long hair, black hair, or white hair.

The music in FFXI is almost as good as the graphics, with the background music setting the euphonious mood relating to the environment you’re in. Some places however, are absolutely void of any sound whatsoever, such as the Valkurm Dunes, which is about as boring as all get out. Depending on whether you’re in a party or not, there’s a battle theme, which will keep you from going crazy when you’re in places like Valkurm Dunes and Garlaige Citadel, and even West/East Altepa Desert. There are no voiceovers for the NPC’s, though for the type of game this is, voice-overs would be over-doing it. Don’t you think? While I’d be glad to add any Final Fantasy Soundtrack to my collection, FFXI just wouldn’t be on my “to care” list.

Some may have been a bit skeptical of Square’s success with Final Fantasy XI, but Square saw profit, they made the game fun, and so they’ve succeeded. The replay value on FFXI is endless, and even after hitting the level 75 level cap, you can try to attain the best equipment you can find for your level. You’re either going to love or hate Final Fantasy XI, and with $12.95 a month (which seems a little expensive as is), if you’re not very stable in your income, you might want to pass up on FFXI. I have had this game since the PS2 launch back in March, and it has been a blast ever since. If you’ve had FFXI for a while, then you might also want to check out the new expansion back, Final Fantasy XI: Chains of Promathia.

happy gaming