Customer Reviews

Final Fantasy XI Online

5 star:		(84)
4 star:		(33)
3 star:		(23)
2 star:		(22)
1 star:		(39)

 

 

This will give you an idea of how the game plays. Even though I explain it from the view of someone that has played an MMORPG before this game is easy to learn. If you are new to online games this is a great start.

FFXI in Japan has really gained a lot of popularity. It's been out over a year now. There are 20+ servers with over 2k players on each server during prime time. Just as much or more than EQ had for its time.

When you start the game you choose from 6 different classes. Warrior, Monk, Thief, Red Mage, White Mage, Black Mage. Really all this choice determines is the few newbie items you start with though.

You are actully level 1 of each class. You can change classes at any time in your home town. Each class levels seperately from the other classes. So you could be a level 7 warrior and decide you would like to try a mage and start at level 1 with that mage. You lose nothing for switching.

At level 18 you get to have a subclass. If you don't have a subclass you will suck. As you gain level your stats go up. You get your subclass level at 1/2 your main class level. Unless you have not leveled that class up to that level. You get all the abilities that class gets and access to all spells. You don't get the super ability of that class. Super Abilities can be used once every 2hr. This is stuff like 30 sec invincibility. 30 sec 100% evade. 30 sec infinate mana. 45 sec 100% crit hits. 30 sec no spell cast time. You also get a % of the stats your subclass has. Between 30-50%.

So You can me a white mage/warrior. Warrior/monk. Thief/black mage. Whatever you like. You can change this at any time. So if you decide your subclass has stuff you like more you can switch that to your main class.

At level 30 you can do quests to unlock 9 more classes. Bard, Ranger, Dark Knight, Palidan, Beastmaster, Ninja, Samurai, Summoner and Dragoon.

Leveling is similar to EQ.

Even con solo gives 100 exp. 2 man group each person gets 70. 3 man group each person gets 50exp. So it's definately best to group.

At level 40+ it you can get about 1 level a day. At level 50 you can doa quest to unlock the cap to make it 60. Currently the cap is 70.

Death = 10% exp loss. 2.5% if you get a res. It's DAoC style death. You lay there and can watch the action. You have 1 hour to get a res. When you go back to your homepoint (stones in towns/guards in land you control bind you) you return with all items on you. No coin loss. No bad effects.

There are quests similar to EQ quests. bring me 4 bat wings bla bla. These are great for making cash early on. You can sell 4 bat wings for 40 gold or turn them in for 150 basicaly.

There are missions that raise your rank (some items are only available to higher ranks)
This is the story behind the game. This is unlike any other mmorpg. There is no real story line you follow in current games. PoP story is kind of a start. PoP story isn't something that you started at level 1 though. The FFXI expansion lets you continue the storyline. It's not just some random new land that was discovered.

There is no PVP. There is a land control system. Each week it is reset (the monsters take it back over) By killing stuff in the zone and turing crystals in from the mobs you gain "Conquest points" These help determine who owns the land and you can spend conquest points on some nice items. PvP may be Added sometime in early 2004.

There are raid type mobs that take 9-18 people to kill. Some of these bosses sound nasty. 1+hr fights. Stuff that triple attacks and takes main tanks to 50%-10% life in one round. Kills any caster in one round etc. These are fought with "Alliances" Most I've seen are 18 people. You see everyones lifebar on yourscreen at once.

There aren't really guilds. You get an item called a linkshell. It lets you talk to anyone with the same linkshell. you can own multiple linkshells. The one you talk in is determined by the shell you are wearing.

Your charecter can be in EQ like "bazaar mode" all the time. There are also auction houses in town that let you enter an item and min price at which you will sell. Players then enter an amount. If it is higher than your min they get the item. These transactions are recorded for the public to see. So you can get an idea for the going rate of the item.

First of all, I've played this game since its release, and still do. I am above level 60 out of 75 levels. Most of the people who are writing negative reviews dont seem to have spent anywhere near enough time playing this game to properly review it.
Firstly, exp is not hard to get at all in this game. I see alot of people complaining that it is, I have no idea why. The first 10 levels of this game are the hardest you'll face, because most people solo, and its hard to party. You'll gain about 20-72 exp per kill, and need about 2000 exp to level. The good thing is, a death below level 10 will not set you back far, and its fast to recover your health and keep fighting.
Whoever said you can only gain 600-900exp a hour in a party, best case scenario, is WRONG. What the heck? That is ridiculous. I have had parties where I have gained 6000 exp in an hour, and this is above level 50, where it takes 10,000 to level. I remember gaining 2-3 levels in one sitting, above 50. Exp is very easy to get, in fact you'll find yourself interested in doing other things besides exp'ing, because its easy to just go back gain levels some other time. On a bad day, it might be hard to get into a party, but the game is so well-designed, you can just put your seek flag up, and do other things while you wait for a party, like craft items, or kill monsters for loot, or quests or missions.
Their is a very deep storyline in this game, that whoever said this game has no story obviously did not know about. You have to talk to the NPC's and townspeople! The story is hidden, you have to work to bring it out. The game pits 3 nations against each other for control of each area in the world. when you create a character, you choose which of the 3 nations to join (can be changed later if you want).
All in all, I've read alot of negative posts on here, and I think that these people just played one or two times, couldnt get past level 5, and gave up. I'll admit it takes a bit of work, but once you solo your way to level 10, the game will open up, and you'll have LOTS to do. I find myself constantly busy on the game, doing many other things besides leveling.
Just stick it out until you reach level 10, and the real game begins, because its easy to get a party, and everyone helps each other. By the way, maybe the negative posters did not know how to play the game well, and thats why they couldnt get parties or do well. It takes some common sense to play, but its not like you have to be a genius to know how to listen to someone's advice. You might find yourself not making friends if you act inapproitate.
And to the person who said you need to have HTML skills to make macro's or shortcuts... WHAT are you talking about? This game is very simple and easy to play, from the first day on, it has a great interface, easy to use, just set your keys to whatever feels comfortable.

First, that reviewer from Iowa who was complaining about the graphics is dead wrong. That person must have a slow PC or poor graphics card. The graphics are awesome on my Althlon XP 2400+, Radeon 9600 PRO. I turned up the game resolution so now the menus are smaller and don't take up so much space on the screen. You CAN use a gamepad as long as you program it using the configuration tool. I use my gamepad for most of the playing and when I want to chat, I just go to my keyboard and start yapping away. I also use the keyboard to target Party members in battle since it's easier (I'm a White Mage so most of the time I am curing or protecting in battle).

Also, I think the fact that walking from place to place takes a long time and that the game is a bit slower paced is a good thing. It makes it feel more epic. Let's face it, role playing games are not supposed to be fast paced anyways. I'd rather have a game that will last a year or more than one where I can "beat it" in a month.

Also, there's so many activities and quests to do in this game. I'm currently trying to increase my skill in clothmaking so I make gloves, hats, and clothes to sell. It can be frustrating at times to have to go out and collect the items you need, but in the end it adds another layer to the game, not just going out and fighting monsters for "world peace".

Plus, finding people to party with isn't all that difficult, as long as you can bring something to the group. Fighter-type people should strive to excel in fighting skills and get the best armor and weapons. Mages should go and buy all the magic they can. Finally, when in battle, people must "play their role". Fighters are supposed to fight in the front lines and engage the enemy directly. Black Mages are supposed to stand back and cast attack spells using the correct element. White Mages are supposed to restore hit points, cure poison and paralysis, and always make sure Protect and/or Shell is cast on every single Party member at all times. Mages also need to learn when to cast or when to conserve MPs. This being said, finding a party is easy.

In any case, I think this is one of the most involved games I've ever played. It's also one of the best, graphically and musically. The world of Vana'Diel is also one of the largest in size I've ever played (it takes like 10 minutes or so to cross the town running full speed). If you have a decent PC and you like RPGs and online games, get this one!

I never really thought much about Final Fantasy XI. I knew it was some online console game in Japan and wasn't particularly anticipating it. But a few friends were playing it so I jumped on the bandwagon and ordered it.

What a shock. I almost missed what is without question the best Massive Multiplayer game released for years.

The graphics are top notch and don't require a supercomputer to reach a playable level. The world is very original and large. The quests are involving and including "cut scene" videos that make you feel like the world is alive and involving. The first weekend after release was a major in-game halloween event.

But it's the gameplay that makes this a winner. The gameplay is just plain fun. The game has a very slow level curve and can be very harsh losing experience or even a level if you die. But it doesn't seem like a problem because fighting is such a pure pleasure! There are enough special attacks to keep everyone interested and attacks can combine with those of other members of the group to produce additional effects. Challenges are very well measured, offering a reasonable reward for work. Each class has a large number of things to do and is useful to a group -- you can also take a subclass at level 18 and can swap between classes at your house in the city.

Tradeskills are workable and in the game, requiring both purchased and quested materials. There's a great system for auctioning items. It has tools for finding a group.

Oh, and the game is bug free. Not relatively bug free. Not mostly bug free. It's bug free. Really. The only crashes I've heard of relate to some installation problems and issues with video card drivers. The game itself is flawless. Systems work. It doesn't crash.

That's the wonderful, now for the weird. This game is a Japanese market console game designed for the Playstation2 and it shows. Square Enix, the publisher, did a great job porting the game to the PC, but it is a copy of the client slightly adapted to the PC. It is not a separate game from the PS2 version and the controls and assumptions of the game come from a console market. Most players find the controls very confusing at first, but for me after a few days of play they became second mature. Along with controls, there's a small single text window -- again because that's what can be displayed on a PS2/television. You are making compromises. SE also did not introduce any new servers for the North American market and as a US player, I'm aware that I'm definitely a stranger in a strange land. It may also make finding a group difficult. You are also limited to a single character with your basic subscription; additional characters are $1/month for each. And you can only play on one server, which is randomly assigned which may mean creating and deleting until you find the one your friends are on (or they can buy an in game item called a "world pass" for you). None of these is in my opinion a major problem, but they do irritate a lot of players. If a player can't accept that this is the way it is, they won't be happy with FFXI. Pity for them. This is a winner.

Before I begin, as most customers want is proof,
http://www.gamespy.com/goty2003/pc/index17.shtml
http://www.gametab.com/pc/final.fantasy.xi.online/1973/

I hope that's enough proof for you, I'm not here to force
you to buy a game and I'm not here because of people's opinions,
I'm here to tell you facts of the game, from my personal
experience as a hardcore RPG Master, who've played countless
RPGs from the best to the worse and rate them where it always
come down that their battle engines always too easy and their
mini games bore me.

Simulated World
-----------------------------------------------------
I will tell you this, FFXI has beautiful simulated animated
graphics, from the skies above, down to the deep sea, from
Birds to Bats, to running monkeys, the land is well natured,
down to pretty flowers to glowing bugs. It has a unique
weather system, which changes maybe at randomly or maybe
by the company, also it has a day and night system.
It also has special decorations on special events in towns
plus more (ie Christmas day? chirstmas trees? flying santa?)

Many more things to do than just fighting!
-----------------------------------------------------
From fishing, gold mining, harvesting, logging trees to
cooking~! yes you can gamble and auction~! there's many more.
all minerals and each mineral can help you make something,
for example harvesting crops ,can help you make clothes, or
even food to cook, logging trees can help you make a flute
if you're a bard or even armoury.If that's enough for your
attention, you also get homes, that's right decorate your very
own house, make tables if you want, it's totally up to you.

Mix and Match Jobs if you wish and unlock other jobs
-----------------------------------------------------
you also can get a main job and sub job, so you can have fun
mix and matching, want to be White Mage? and still be a Black
Mage? Ladies want to be like Yuna in FFX? you can look almost
like her, except for clothing, also you can be a Summoner just
like your favourate character, how about the Gents? you always
wanted be like the villans(ie Sephiroth)? you can be a Dark
Knight and use dark spells and exploding damage on your enemies
with your weapon.

Race (go here -> http://www.playonline.com/ff11us/citizen/)
------------------------------------------------------------
This Game has it all right down to Races, for example Elvaan,
they look very simular to the Elves, I'm sure many people wanted
to play the pointy eared race here's your chance to enjoy your
fantasy along with your friends~!

Partying is a must when fighting at higher LvLs
-----------------------------------------------------
please note as an MMORPG and you should know by now, all RPGs
made from Square Enix~! you MUST party up~! it's a must and
it's a fact, Partying brings more fun A~! and B, you should
know it's chaotic to fight alone~!

Do we need to fight?

-----------------------------------------------------
speaking of which you don't even have to fight at all~!
you can enjoy the game as a towns person, you can happily be
the greatest cheff or whatever you wish to be and sell your
creative things to people.

Battle Engine (simple/complex?)
-----------------------------------------------------
The Battle engine is from simple to complex, and I cannot
go into all of the details right here because FFXI is a very
huge game with countless features, I've only gave you some of
few, but the beauty of this game is, it can really train a
novice rpg player to a big hard core rpg master when you
accomplish your way up~! so if you're looking to be the best
RPG Master or you're just looking for fun, FFXI is the way to
go~!

Die Hard Role Playing Gamers
-----------------------------------------------------
if you're a complex rpg master, and you're looking for the
best of the best, yes, Race does have effect to the jobs
you pick for them, the battle engine does have chain combos in
attacks and magic plus many many more features I cannot explain
here, lets just say it sure surpasses FFX battle engine, and if
you're going to make a party as you will already know as a Pro.
RPG gamer that the group positions in combat makes a difference.
Tankers(Paladin, Warrior etc) to the front, Casters to the back,
and depending on what skills/magic you use will make the enemy
either agressive(ie atk you as a caster for healing a member
maybe? all depends) or fearful (ignore you and continue to
focus on the tanker or whoever it wishes to attack) so if
that's the complexity you want, please read up, The game is for
everyone who loves RPGs and for those who like to enjoy their
fantasy online with friends and ofcourse you meet new friends too~!

Transportations
-----------------------------------------------------
they are transportations many types right down to your
favourate Chocobo~! or go on an airship or ship of the sea,
or a portal to location npc, white mages and black mages can do
it also.

Billing info (cheap/expensive?)
-----------------------------------------------------
Like I said this is only piece of the game, you'll have to play
it to know more and see more, this is just a generic idea to
show you the amount of fun you will have, and it's well worth
the price, some MMOGs(Massive Multiplayer Online Games) you
have to pay 25 to 40USD a month, just to get a good game to
play online, and FFXI is well worth the price. SO please ignore
those people who say this game is expensive because that's
quite silly, they should thank the company for not putting the
price expense as high as how the game is rated like some online
games. Anyways below shows you the billing info.
I was shocked when I saw the billing info, I was like
"Thank God" was really excited too, because I was praying
that it wouldn't be expensive after reading the features and
the jaw dropping graphics, so yes it's at a great price.

- FREE Subscription for 30 Days
- FINAL FANTASY XI: $12.95/month
- Additional Character: $1.00/month per character
- Tetra Master: $1.00/month

-----------------------------------------------------
If you like all the facts of the game,
what are you waiting for?~! grab a copy while
the prices are hot, who knows what Amazon will do
if it's out of stock, hah hah ^_^ just kidding,
better be safe than sorry I'd say..
I'm sure having fun and I'm sure you will too~!
don't forget to tell a friend! ^_^
Please visit FFXI home site when you finish
the game.

Let me start off by saying that this is not a bad game at all. It is fun and fairly easy to get into provided you have played mmorpg's in the past. The graphics are pretty good also. However, there are some major drawbacks that made me quit this game in 3 weeks.

Being that this is Square's first game in the mmorpg world, it isn't exactly user friendly. The controls simply don't make sense and I never found a way to configure them to my liking. Commands like Ctrl + A to attack and having to macro spells to use them in a timely fashion is frustrating early on.

Also be warned that this is for hardcore players with 4 hours of time to play per day ideally. This is the main reason I quit. This is very hard to get into only being able to play every other day for 2 hours a day. Once you hit level 10 you are forced to group and it took me about an hour just to find a group as a black mage. There is an enormous leveling grind. At level 9 it took me 2 hours to hit 10 solo.

Another huge drawback is the monthly fee. It's not so much having to pay the monthly fee that i have a problem with. It is the fact that you are charged 1 dollar extra for access to tetra master, and another dollar for every extra character you create. This in my mind, is money hogging. The only reason that this game takes so much time to me is that Square wants to keep you around for many monthly fees. The fact that it takes forever to level in this game, forever to get groups, having to level up your sub job seperate from your main job tells me that all Square sees with this game is $$ and all they hear is cha-ching.

After reading a couple of reviews over this game I've come to the conclusion that several players, particularly the jaded "MMORPG experienced" ones, have either grown tired of the genre or have lost sight of what an MMORPG should be.

These days, the average player wants to be spoonfed information and power quickly and to have complete control of the virtual situation. That way there's more direction and less exploration involved; if your path is already mapped out, there's no trial and error, just methodically follow the path with the knowledge that everything will turn out right.

I can tell you right now that if you think you're going to be able to pick up ANY MMORPG and have a good idea of how to play simply from reading the manual than you are a certifiable idiot. Sorry! Hate to be harsh, but that's the way it is. The manual is there to give you just enough to get you started; a brief lowdown on the controls and some of the mechanics like combat and very brief job descriptions. If you want more, then you can pay for a dummy guide (a.k.a. Strat Guide) or do the smart thing and look it up online or ASK PEOPLE WHO ARE ALSO PLAYING THE GAME. The only thing I needed the manual for was to figure out the controls, after that, I asked my fellow online players for help; all of whom were happy to aid me (Japanese and NA players) or go around talking to NPCs and PAYING ATTENTION. One of the appeals of this game is that you are immersing yourself into a vast world; there would be absolutely no appeal (at least for me) if I knew exactly how everything worked.

We have to play with advanced Japanese players. Many people like to spin this as a bad thing, either because they resent having to play with people better off than themselves or are childishly jealous. Many of the high lvl Japanese players are often more than happy to lend a hand to lower lvls. Most of the people who complain about higher lvl Japanese players only do so because they asked them for gil or equipment; in other words, they asked the Japanese players to ruin the game for them. It's true that you'll need to rely on your fellow players in this game to lvl up and advance very heavily, but don't expect them to let you take advantage of them.

The economy is stiff, but it's not broken. It's true that getting good gear is a task in of itself. Most of the time, you learn a lot about how to make money and where the best place to buy/sell things are. Supply/Demand rules definetely apply and there are often individual markets depending on what activity or job you're partaking in. You can succeed in it; many reviewers have skewed it as a "Japanese-Elite" that are dominating the economy. From my perspective, that's a lot of hollow crap.

The graphics are great, but my favorite part of the game is how straightforward combat is. You don't have to repair equipment, you don't have a lot of choices even about what equipment to use, so you don't waste time worrying about your equipment, saving you time to actually USE it (novel concept here!!). In may other MMORPG's that I've played like Ultima for example, this was the case, and it detracted from the action. If you get a party together that's solid, you can go out and hunt for hours uninterrupted. That's appealing to me at least.

The streamlined play of the game may seem unrefreshing to many, but I think it allows gamers to focus on the task of improving their character and questing. Honestly, I don't play video games to perform menial tasks, I play them to do amazing things. Aside from the hours of lvling required to power up, this game lets you do that.

The job system is pretty standard; it allows you to change gears anytime and try on any different role you want, whenever you want, with no penalty other than your time. If you want to stop being a lvl 65 samurai and become a lvl 1 white mage, then go for it. You can always go back to being lvl 65 samurai whenever you want. It's almost like consolidating almost a dozen characters into one, which is kinda cool. And race differences don't really hinder your job choices so much as they can potentially help them; you can play any job effectively with any class.

Give it a try if you like MMORPG's. You may like it or you may not, just please remember to think for yourself. This review is more to encourage you rather than compell you to play. If you have the funds and are willing, give it a shot. We're a fairly warm gaming community and it's extremely newbie friendly.

Final Fantasy XI Online is finally out, and millions of Final Fantasy fans are enjoying the fun world of chocobos and airships in an online MMORPG.

The graphics and sounds are lush, and the cut scenes and quests make you really feel like this is an adventure game in addition to a MMORPG. There are all the familiar elements - from chocobos, airships, and familiar faces - plus enough new things to keep it interesting.

Like all other MMORPGs, this is about creating a character, developing him or her by gaining levels and experience, killing monsters, going on quests, and developing group friendships.

It has to be said that every MMORPG appeals to a different type of gamer. FFXI will appeal to gamers who are patient and who are in it for the long haul with their friends. Levelling up is slow. The learning curve is difficult, and it can take you a LONG time before you do things that are considered "fun" like riding chocobos or airships. You'll have to put in long hours before you can get your character a sub-job or an advanced class. And you'll need friends to help you achieve those goals.

Also on the annoying side, you can't choose what world you start on. Only after you put in time and effort can you "buy" the ability for a friend to start on the same world as you did. So while we bought 2 copies of the game at the same time so we could play together, the game prevented us from doing so.

So really the game is about one person going on first, and creating a character to get those "World Passes". Then he starts inviting on friends and slowly the entire group of friends can join a server. Then together they can start the long quest to develop their characters. This might be fine for people who don't work and have hours and hours to do nothing but sit in front of a computer screen, but for most of us, this is a detriment. If you have 2 hours to play in a given evening and want to go questing, that's fun. But if the quest involves finding an item and the game only has that item spawn once every 3 hours, now you've wasted 2 hours trekking around an empty desert and have achieved nothing. That is NOT fun.

Hopefully the FFXI designers will get a better balance of the game so that those with 8+ hours a day to blow on game-playing will enjoy the slow pace, but so that those who want something enjoyable to play that doesn't invade their entire life can have fun as well. A game doens't have to be easy to be enjoyable - it just has to give results when you put in the effort.

My mistake was not bying this game, it was very fun. In fact I had fun playing it for a long while. But after a while I got bored and decided to temporarily stop paying $15 a month for my one character. Apparently Square Enix didn't like that idea and after three months of not playing, permanently cancelled my account. Forever. Now this I'm sure is not the only case of this happening because when I called up the company and asked for their help they told me that was their normal policy. They told me to go and buy ANOTHER copy of the game if I wanted to play it so much. I feel that I have been ripped off. I've payed for the game at full price but now that means nothing.

WARNING: IF YOU WOULD SO CHOOSE TO STOP PLAYING FOR THREE OR MORE CONSECUTIVE MONTHS, SQUARE ENIX WILL CANCEL YOUR ACCOUNT PERMANENTLY.

Square Enix's unique policy cost me a lot of money and enjoyment. Do not buy this game unless you intend on paying monthly until you decide to permanently stop playing. This policy is not even stated on the box, but is briefly mentioned in a manual you get once opened and by this time, it is too late.

I will keep this short and to the point FF11 is an amazing game---BUT---within the box you purchase is a registration code to register you online to play the game(unique to each game box)if you but this item from a person who says they tried and did not like or could not use due to ANY reason(slow cpu etc...) then they have ALREADY registered this registration code and therefore the game will be 100% USELESS to you. Playonline.com's policy is very clear, they will NOT help you with this problem as (right on top and bottom of box) it says, and i quote "not valid for purchase if opened. Not for resale by a prior owner." this is on the box because if they have used at ALL, then u will NOT be able to play, and you WILL have to buy another copy of the game. So please beware and make sure, if you buy used, it claims UNOPENED in the item description.