For the first entry in this apparent ‘series’ click here.
Whether it was at the launch of FINAL FANTASY XIV or a little further down the line, it’s no question that it’s been far too long between the posts. I was hoping to document the trials and tribulations of my little Lalafellin adventurer for as long as I could – but outside of my past writing gig, there wasn’t much motivation.
Now, however, after ‘celebrating’ the second anniversary of the game’s launch, it occurred to me that I’d amassed a folder filled to the brim of in-game ‘selfies’ and landscape shots reminding me of the good ol’ (and the good new) times in Square Enix’s fantastic revival story.
This is actually meant more to document my favorite screenshots both for others to see and to act as a time capsule sort of thing in case I ever lose the folder sitting on my desktop. It’s not something I’d like to spend the day uploading to a cloud drive when 60% of the shots are duplicates, chatlogs or just ‘trial and error’ photoshoots.
These first 4 were likely taken around the time of patch 2.5 -the final content update (or half of) before the ‘Heavensward’ expansion hit store shelves a few months after.
These are a little more scattered. Ranging from 2.4 (the ice cold shot of Shiva’s rear in the background) all the way to one of the final leveling areas of the game’s first expansion – Heavensward.
Nothing here should really count as spoiler territory. It’s either obscure landscapes or non-narrative situations. Either that or they’ve been available for over a year. I can’t wait forever!
I just wish I’d noticed sooner that a lot of the screenshots still have my FPS counter stamped on them. Seems I was on quite the photo binge that day…
All the battle shots for this one! First off would be the ‘Cloud of Darkness’ – the final boss of the appropriately named World of Darkness 24-player raid introduced in patch 2.5. For those unaware, the ‘Crystal Tower’ raids came out every other patch (starting in 2.1).
Totaling 3 instances of massive fights paying homage to the epic end portion of Final Fantasy III. With FFIII being the first game of the series I ever played, it was incredibly nostalgic for me to hear, see and experience the FFXIV team’s version of such a classic piece of storytelling.
I don’t want to ruin too much for those who have yet to play FFXIV, so you’re going into the other 3 screenshots with no context!
There’s no real timeline for the first three shots here. The most I can say is that #1 was most certainly one of my favorite areas of the game – Amdapoor Keep – well… the entrance, anyway. The dungeon was used to stage a few key moments in the game; they expanded on its lore a little more in the later content updates, too.
Either way, old, nature-reclaimed ruins have always left me in awe. Real or not, there’s always been something fascinating to me about their potential history and the somewhat eerie, yet tranquil, vibes they give off. The soft, ambient music playing in the background throughout the forest here only exacerbates that wonderful ‘frisson’ feeling.
The final screenshot here was a very spontaneous shot of the ‘Moonfire Faire’ celebration. Though the main event takes place in technically across the coast, I could still see the fireworks from my little house in the Lavender Beds during the sunset…
Not a whole lot to say here without spoiling some of the expansion’s best locations and stories; though the second should look somewhat familiar! It’s probably a shot I find myself taking time and time again whenever I get the chance to visit the place.
There’s a lot of photo opportunities there (as seen above, actually), but half the time you risk letting your team die while you close off the HUD, duck into first-person mode and run around your beaten comrades effectively yelling “CHEESE!” as they fall to the ground.
Cruel… but also worth the verbal abuse.
Ho! Check out Howl’s freaking Moving Castle down there. What a beaut…
That would be the first boss of the expansion’s introductory raid. It’s practically a story-mode situation, so it’s not exactly heavy spoiler territory. While the name (and looks) of the instance should be immediatly clear to avid Final Fantasy fans, there’s nothing inside that’s borrowed.
“It’s all original, baby!”
And that’s a wrap, I’d say! 2 years of devotion to any MMO would undoubtedly yield more than just 12-16 screenshots. And it has! But slamming them all into one post? Impossible. Sure, one might say a picture tells a thousand words – but that only really applies when you can grasp the general idea. For real life that’s super easy; in a game, though? Only if you’ve played it.
There’s a lot more to show, but each would likely come with a thousand words itself. Stories for another time – like when it isn’t pushing 30 degrees in this room…
If anyone wants to hit me up in-game. You’ll find Lunaak Firespring often running around on the Cerberus (EU) server!
Josh Judges | Gaming / Tech / Pop Culture / Garbage 