Another Final Fantasy Game Is Out on Xbox

21.03.2024 - 23:17 / gamerant.com / Square Enix / Dominik Bo / Out On / Game Is

Final Fantasy 14 Online is now available on the current-generation Xbox consoles. Although their backward compatibility allows access to a wide variety of FF titles, Final Fantasy 14 is only the third series entry made specifically for the Xbox Series X and Series S, and the first since Crisis Core: FF7 Reunion was released in late 2022.

The Final Fantasy 14 Xbox port was originally confirmed in July 2023, as part of the game's annual Fan Festival. That announcement arrived just a month shy of the MMORPG's tenth anniversary, not accounting for the unsuccessful 1.0 version of the game that was launched in 2010 and shut down two years later.

Following a month-long Final Fantasy 14 Xbox beta period, the MMORPG is now finally available on Microsoft's latest consoles. Square Enix has launched three versions of the game, consistent with its PlayStation and PC release strategy. The most affordable of the bunch is the $19.99 Starter Edition. This version comes with the base game, Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn, and its first two expansions in the form of Heavensward and Stormblood, released in 2015 and 2017, respectively.

The $59.99 Complete Edition also offers access to the 2019 expansion Shadowbringers and its 2021 follow-up, Endwalker. Finally, the $139.99 Complete Collector's Edition comes with a variety of in-game bonuses, such as mounts and glamours for those who enjoy the game's transmogrification system used for adopting the appearances of specific gear while retaining the stats of one's preferred armor pieces. Aside from buying one edition of the game, Final Fantasy 14 Xbox players will also need to pay for two subscriptions; one for the game itself, which starts at $12.99 per month, and one for any version of Xbox Game Pass. Its cheapest Core tier comes with a $9.99 monthly fee.

Buying any edition of FF14 Online by April 19 will unlock access to two early bird bonuses, Palom Minion and Menphina's Earring (which gives a 30% EXP boost up to level 80).

The dual-subscription requirement has already garnered some criticism from Xbox users, especially given how their PlayStation-owning colleagues do not have to pay for any PS Plus tier in order to play Final Fantasy 14. All editions of the game do at least come with a 30-day free play period. Square Enix is also offering a generous trial that includes the base game and its first expansion, thus being capped at level 60, with no time limits for completing that content.

Even so, the need to spend over $20 on two monthly subscriptions just to keep playing the game might end up discouraging some people from giving the Xbox version of Final Fantasy 14 a chance. But given Microsoft's clearly growing interest in bringing high-quality JRPGs to its gaming ecosystem,