Final Fantasy XIV, Subscription, and Nobuo Uematsu

For a game that has barely surfaced, Final Fantasy XIV is generating quite a hype, and for good reason too. Similar to Final Fantasy X, the new game will feature its own religion. The depth of Yevon and its link to the central storyline is one of the more outstanding features of Final Fantasy X — perhaps we will see a similar degree of success in this next game. The style of the world will be a combination of medieval and sci-fi, so nothing special there then. Could it be the same battle between the old and the new, the church and progress? If the religion has no bearing on the plot then Square Enix may avoid igniting a potentially volatile topic.

Character growth will be linked to whichever weapon the character is wielding. There will be no experience and no levels; growth is apparently comparable to the job system of Final Fantasy V and, of course, Final Fantasy XI. Character customisation is always a plus, but not including character levels may be unwelcome to some in the die-hard RPG crowd.

The bad news for some of us is that our old adversary '30-day subscription' will be making a comeback. Against the growing trend of free-to-play, pay-to-upgrade multiplayer online games, Square Enix is stalwartly insisting on the same scheme as they used in Final Fantasy XI. A subscription system may not come as a surprise to many, but those of us who dislike this method may be somewhat put off.

On a much more positive note, Nobuo Uematsu will be composing the entire score for the first time since Final Fantasy IX. Rather than shoehorning his aging great pieces into the new games, he will now be composing a host of new tracks, many of the them likely to become favourites.

Final Fantasy XIV is due for a simultaneous global release in 2010 on PC and PS3, with an Xbox 360 release still pending.

Source: The Escapist (Experience), The Escapist (Subscription), Destructoid