Tag Archives: ffxiv beta phase 4

Lightning Returns and #FFXIV Cross Over Madness Begins Tomorrow 11/14/2013!

Posted on by

In recent days, the city-states are atwitter with talk of a rogue adventurer roaming the land. Clad in peculiar garb and wielding a blade alien to this realm, she has been sighted dispatching foes with lethal efficiency, only to vanish before her identity can be ascertained. Who is this fearsome warrior, and to what end has she journeyed to Eorzea? Ever wont to seek out the truth, the Harbor Herald has dispatched a reporter to probe the mystery behind this otherworldly personage.

Event Date and Times

From Thursday, November 14, 2013 at 12:00 a.m. to Monday, December 9, 2013 at 6:59 a.m. (PST)

This event is comprised of multiple quests that will be released at the following times:

Chapter 1: From Thursday, November 14, 2013 at 12:00 a.m. (PST)
Chapter 2: From Saturday, November 16, 2013 at 12:00 a.m. (PST)
Chapter 3: From Monday, November 18, 2013 at 12:00 a.m. (PST)
Chapter 4: From Wednesday, November 20, 2013 at 12:00 a.m. (PST)

* Previous chapters will remain available as new chapters are unlocked.

lightningstrikes2

Adventurers Struck by Disbelief

Taverns across Eorzea are abuzz with talk of a mysterious warrioress slaying creatures then vanishing as quickly as she appears. With rumors spread so far and fast, I thought this was perhaps the foretelling of another great adventurer, an heir to the warriors of light. Brief dialogues with those who have glimpsed upon her, however, have regrettably left me with more questions than answers.

When asked to describe her appearance, my informants swore that her garments were unlike anything ever to be woven or forged in the realm. More concerning, however, was her weapon—a strange blade that also serves as a firearm. Far be it from this humble scribe to question one who would protect Eorzea’s people, but only the Garlean Empire has been known to wield weaponry of such bizarre form and function. Coupled with battle prowess said to leave even the most accomplished of adventurers in awe, one cannot help but wonder where her allegiance lies.

Under the assumption we are dealing with an adventurer whose exploits have remained unnoticed, I took it upon myself to consult with the Adventurer’s Guild. Surely, I surmised, a heroine of such high caliber would have registered with the guild before running headlong into dangers unknown. And yet, no matter which branch of the Adventurer’s Guild I visited, the answer was the same. No one in their records matches the description of this nameless crusader.
With so much left unanswered, there is perhaps no better place to unravel this mystery than on the battlefields where she is said to appear. Stay alert on your travels, dear reader, that you may find the answer to the burning question on everyone’s lips.

Petyr Winsome

#FFXIV Beta Test Extended for Worlds Hosted on the NA and EU Datacenter

Posted on by

As everyone is well aware, the stress test has certainly stressed everyone at SE as well as their players this weekend! I hope the issue has been determine and resolved in time for launch next weekend! To address the issues, beta test Phase 4 for NA and EU regions has been extended until 8am PST tomorrow morning (Monday 08/19/2013).

Thank you very much for your participation in the FINAL FANTASY XIV: A Realm Reborn Beta Test.

We are currently experiencing technical difficulties with Worlds hosted on the North American and European datacenter which is preventing certain characters from logging into the game.

An emergency maintenance, taking place between Aug. 18, 2013 9:30 p.m. to Aug. 19, 2013 12:30 a.m. (PDT), is currently underway to address characters experiencing this issue.

Phase 4 of the Beta Test was originally scheduled to conclude on Aug. 19, 2013 at 2:00 a.m. (PDT). However, given the fact that affected characters are numbering in the tens of thousands and the time it will take to address the situation including the time required for the emergency maintenance, we will be extending the Beta Test until Aug. 19, 2013 8:00 a.m. (PDT) for Worlds hosted on the North American and European datacenter.

We hope for your continued participation in the FINAL FANTASY XIV: A Realm Reborn Beta Test.

* The Beta Test will end as scheduled on Aug. 19, 2013 2:00 a.m. (PDT) for Worlds hosted on the Japanese datacenter.

We deeply apologize for the inconvenience caused by this prolonged issue and thank you for your patience.

#FFXIV A Realm Reborn – Letter from the Producer, XLIX

Posted on by

yoshiPHello again to all of you eagerly awaiting FINAL FANTASY XIV: A Realm Reborn. Yoshi-P here, bringing you the forty-ninth Letter from the Producer!

As much as I enjoy reading the forums, I’ve been kept away by endless days of internal tests, fixes, and adjustments. Checking an entire MMORPG is hard work, even for a hardcore gamer like me. :p Nevertheless, as of August 10, 2013 6:00 a.m. (PDT)/1:00 p.m. (GMT), balancing for the official release of FINAL FANTASY XIV: A Realm Reborn is finally finished.

Whether you’re new to FFXIV, or you stuck with us all the way to the end of Version 1.0, I believe we’ve created a game that everyone can enjoy. The rich story, cut scenes, and intense battles have all been designed to blend together seamlessly. There’s so much to do in the world of Eorzea, and no matter how fast or slow you plan to go, we want you to have fun while exploring everything the game has to offer.

10643_0
 10643_1
 10643_3
(Hmmm…I wonder how many people will be able to clear the Binding Coil of Bahamut before the 2.1 Patch? Well, even if it proves to be an insurmountable challenge to most, as the game is updated with new battles, the older ones will be toned down a bit, so there’s no need to worry.)

The fourth and final phase of beta testing will soon be underway as well. Early logins will begin on the 16th, with the official start slated for the 17th. Although we’ve lowered the level cap for this phase, for all intents and purposes, you could say what you’ll be playing is a trial version of the game. The test period will be short, but all save data will carry over to release, so have a good time and make every moment count!

It’s time for me to head back to work, but I’ll see you next time at Gamescon in Cologne, the launch day event here in Shibuya, Japan, and PAX Prime in Seattle! 🙂

~Naoki Yoshida

#FFXIV A Realm Reborn – UI and HUD Scaling Guide

Posted on by

So… I am writing this up because it can be a little bit confusing…. but here is how to change your HUD/UI scale. You’ll have to do this for each element. There is no known way right now to universally make your UI smaller, so let’s all write feedback about this to SE! Let’s also mention that instead of just a keybind, they need to allow us a config setting with a bar for universal UI sizes

Note also that they’re adding more sizes later, so now we only have 3 choices, smaller, normal, bigger.

Thanks Len for pointing me to CNTRL+HOME >.> more ya know! Tutorial under the cut.

Where is the keybind for this?

System menu > Keybind > System > Change Window Size. You can set it whatever is more comfortable!

ffxiv_p4_uiscaling

How to scale the UI Windows such as Journal, Hunting Log, Inventory, and any other game ‘Windows’?

Open any UI element you’d like to scale, example – Inventory/Bags, then just hit the above keybind  (default is cntrl+home) and it’ll scale it.

Normal

Normal

Smaller

Smaller

Larger

Larger

How to scale the HUD elements such as hotbars, crosshotbars, target bars, party list, etc?

Go to system menu > HUD Layout > Click on any element you wish to resize > use the keybind about (default is cntrl+home) > save

Normal

Normal

Larger

Larger

Smaller

Smaller

Below are screenshots comparing my UI before and after scaling… note this was a time consuming process since I had to go through every window to resize XD

Before scaling

Portions of my UI before scaling

After Scaling

UI After scaling, yay I can fit more stuff /happy!

Scaled HUD Layout

Scaled HUD Layout Screen

 

And here is my UI “Hide unassigned slots” disabled. To toggle this, go to system menu > Character Configuration > Hotbars > toggle

Hide Unused slots

Hide Unused slots

 

Unhide UI

Toggling “hide unassigned slot”

#FFXIV A Realm Reborn – Beta Phase 4 / Open Beta Updates

Posted on by

GOOD MORNING!! Ready for some server congestion? They’ve placed login restrictions to smoothen out the process, similar to Phase 3 so I do not foresee any issues.

The official forum has been slammed!! Team FFXIV at SE is keeping players updated via twitter at the moment. Going to try and keep up with their chatter and post them here for posterity’s sake XD

We’d like to once again remind everyone that streaming or uploading any video of #FFXIV Beta Phase 4 is prohibited. Please be careful, as we must take action against such violations that may include account suspension or termination.

12:15PM PST-

Character creation and log in restrictions for all worlds have been lifted. Based on ongoing conditions, there is a possibility these restrictions are imposed again. We appreciate your understanding.

11:20AM PST –

  • For those asking when brand-new users can join in the #FFXIV Beta Phase 4: the registration site is scheduled to launch on Aug. 17th!
  • Currently character creation has been temporarily halted on Cactuar, Balmung, Hyperion, Moogle, Behemoth, Odin, Excalibur, Ragnarok, Ultros, Sargatanas, Diabolos, Shiva, Gilgamesh, and Leviathan.

11:00AM PST –
Currently character creation has been temporarily halted on Chocobo, Shiva, Gilgamesh, Leviathan, Hyperion, Moogle, Cerberus, Behemoth, and Odin.

Beta forums are back up and running!

YoshiP snuck in a letter from the producer GO GO BAHAMUT rawrr!

9:15AM PST –

  • For those asking to record Beta footage: it’s fine to record footage during the Beta, but do not share/upload it until the go ahead is given
  • Twitter updates will resume shortly. Apologies for the slight delay.

7AM PST –

Beta: Character creation is temporarily restricted on: Ridill / Durandal / Gungnir / Aegis / Masamune / Chocobo / Shiva/Excalibur / Gilgamesh / Ragnarok / Moogle

Beta: Malboro has been restored and they are available for login

Beta: Malboro World is experiencing technical difficulties. The issue is currently being addressed

We have stopped Character creation for new Characters temporarily for the Worlds listed below.

Chocobo
Mandragora
Bahamut
Tonberry
Masamune
Carbuncle

Beta: If the character(including characters from 1.0) is already created on the world listed below, they are accessible. #FFXIV

2:00AM PST –

We’d like to once again remind everyone that streaming or uploading any video of #FFXIV Beta Phase 4 is prohibited.

1:20AM PST –

Producer/Director Yoshida here. Due to excessive congestion, the Beta forum is currently unavailable. As an alternative, we’ll be using Twitter to make an important announcement regarding the Beta Test.

Beta Test phase 4 will begin today at 2:00 a.m. (PDT) / 9:00 a.m. (GMT) but based on the download status of the patch files… we’re expecting well over 100,000 people are standing by, ready to log in once the test begins. To prevent the server from crashing, we’ll be restricting the login for the first few hours of the test just like in Beta phase 3.

Therefore you may experience login difficulties during the first few hours of the test, but the restriction will be lifted gradually. We ask for your cooperation and understanding. Also, we will continue to announce the latest status on the Beta forum and Twitter. Please follow the official Twitter account to catch the latest details on the Beta Test.

12:43am PST-

An issue where version update cannot be completed on North American PlayStation®3 version has been resolved. For those of you who were affected, you may now conduct the version update. We apologize for any inconvenience this may caused.

12:50am PST –

We can now confirm that the fix has been made for all NA PS3 users! Patch away! Thanks so much for all of your patience!

12:40am PST –

Due to the current forum congestion we’ve been unable to post an update on the NA PS3 issue. However, I’ll post here to get info out. NA PS3 promotion code holders that have yet to redeem their code: The issue has been fixed and you can now redeem and patch as normal. NA PS3 promotion code holders that have redeemed their code and are unable to patch: we’re currently making final preps on a fix. As soon as the fix is finalized, we’ll announce it on the forums or here. We sincerely apologize for the problems this issue has caused.

Oficial Website Updates include the addition of two new info sections!

FFXIV: A Realm Reborn Beta Phase 3 Player Feedback Status List

Posted on by

Greetings everyone,

Please read a message from Producer/Director Yoshida about the feedback gathered from Beta Test phase 3!

Originally Posted by Naoki_Yoshida
FFXIV: ARR Producer and Director Yoshida here.
Thank you so much for the huge amount of feedback worldwide from Beta Test phase 3!

We’ve carefully scrutinized each bit of feedback to prepare for Beta Test phase 4 and the official release version, and have released this list for to update you on priorities, indicating whether aspects are working as intended, and whether we have plans to address feedback or not. Please be sure to check everything in Beta Test phase 4, Early Access, and the versions to follow. (In addition to what is listed here, we’ve also made a lot of other minor edits and adjustments.)We’re just about nearing the grand finale of the Beta Test.

Thank you all so much for all of the feedback on the road to the official release version during the Alpha Test and Beta Test phases 1-3. We’ve received a lot of really great suggestions both playful and very serious, things that the development team couldn’t have seen on our own, and we will continue to address them not only in the official release version, but after launch as well.Official service of FINAL FANTASY XIV: A Realm Reborn will begin soon and the Beta Tester Forums will be closed, but we plan to continue to use all your feedback for the future of ARR as well after launch, so please continue to give the same great feedback!

The Lodestone Beta Test Phase 3 Feedback – Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn

Posted on by

The Lodestone

Feedback Status Comment
Please add a “Like” button. Early Access/Launch We are planning to implement a social networking feature to share with external sites, like, and tweet. The like button for the Lodestone journal articles are being planned separately post-launch.
Stop using pop-ups for logging into the PC version site since it is connected to phishing. Early Access/Launch For launch, we will be transitioning everything to the main screen when logging in.
The character equipment and appearance displayed on my character page does not match, please reflect this properly. Early Access/Launch In order to reduce the time lag, we are beefing up our servers for launch. However, even with server enhancements, the time lag won’t completely disappear, and you won’t be able to immediately change out pictures. We appreciate your understanding.
Fix the silouette displayed for the profile image and avatar equipment. Early Access/Launch We will be making adjustments to the image display for launch.
Add a field where we can write a free company profile. Early Access/Launch We are planning to make it so the profile you write for free companies in-game is displayed on The Lodestone.
Add a “Race” field for the character search. Early Access/Launch We will be adding a “race” field for launch.
Make it possible to send players in-game and offline messages from Lodestone. After Launch We are looking into linking this to Mog Letters.
Display a counter of how many people have viewed your journal. After Launch While it will be after launch, we are looking into implementing a feature that displays the number of views. Once the implementation period has been finalized we will let you know.
The image of my character’s face is too small when I post a comment. Please make it bigger. After Launch As there are some face types that are hard to see the expression differences, instead of that image, we are looking to change it out with a different image for launch.
Make it possible to filter the latest blog posts displayed on the top page by language. After Launch We are looking into whether we can make adjustments as part of a community wall feature expansion.
When deleting a comment, the message “The message has been deleted by the user.” is displayed in its place. Please make it possible to select to whether to display these notices or not, or make it so you can edit it. After Launch We are looking into addressing this so that this message does not appear when a comment has been deleted. However, there is a possibility that the context of the discussion could be lost in a journal entry and Free Company forums, so we are proceeding to look into this with the plan of leaving the display. We appreciate your understanding.
Add a notification that shows when a mog letter has arrived. After launch We are looking into linking this to Mog Letters.
I don’t need my login information displayed on my wall, so please don’t put it up. After launch We plan on implementing a filtering feature for walls. We are currently looking into making it possible to freely select what items you would like displayed.
Add a place where only I can see who and when I followed someone as well as what entries I’ve commented on. After launch First we are looking into having this displayed on your wall. After this, we are looking to add a filter feature to My Wall and then making it possible to show only your own activity.
Please make the background a brighter color. Continuing to Discuss As this involves the overal design of the Lodestone and the concept behind it, we would like to look into this carefully when we make another update to it.
Similar to the 1.0 Lodestone journal feature, make it more like a blog where you can decorate the text and write on the images. Continuing to Discuss First we plan to implement a feature allowing players to write blog entries from within the game. Once implemented, we will begin looking into the addition of text decorations and the use of images.
Increase the number of images you can add to a single journal entry. Continuing to Discuss We would like to carefully look into whether we can increase the number of uploadable images.
Implement a page that makes it easy to see members’ classes, jobs, and levels. Continuing to Discuss We will continue to look into this!
Instead of the character image having what you last equipped when you logged out, make it possible to freely choose what equipment is displayed. Continuing to Discuss We are continuing to look into this.

Duty Finder Beta Test Phase 3 Feedback – Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn

Posted on by

Duty Finder

Feedback Status Comment
Please allow players matched with the Duty Finder to retry the Ifrit battle without disbanding. Beta Phase 4 In Beta phase 4 it will be possible to re-try primal fights.
Make it so players doing content for the first time are matched together. Beta Phase 4 In Beta phase 4, players taking on content for the first time or those that have not cleared content yet will be announced to the party and will grant the party reward bonuses for clearing the content with them present.
Please allow players matched with the Duty Finder to retry a dungeon without disbanding. After Launch We are currently looking into a system where you can take on other content once matched with a party via Duty Finder.
There are often times the matching confirmation window will suddenly pop up while waiting for the Duty Finder and you accidentally select cancel. Please adjust this. After Launch We are looking into adding a configuration setting in an update after launch so that when you are invited to a party from a sub-command they are only displayed in the notification widget in the bottom-right of the screen.
In order to make it easier to form parties, make it so it’s known what class is the most needed. After Launch We plan on looking into the implementation of a UI that allows you to know the participation requests for each content.
Besides the Duty Finder, please add a party recruitment feature for the same server. After Launch At launch we are focusing a lot on speedy matching through the Duty Finder. In the event multiple party recruitment systems exist, matching speed would begin to fall. Once everyone gets used to the Duty Finder, we will look into implementing a different party recruitment feature in an update after launch.
Please add a kick feature to the Duty Finder. After Launch We are looking into implementing a feature where party members can vote to kick members in an update after launch.
Make it so the party list name order is fixed in order of roles when matched with the Duty Finder: yourself / tank / healer /DPS. After Launch We are looking into implementing a feature after launch that automatically lines up the roles that were matched, but it will take a bit of time. We appreciate your understanding.
There are players that leave the group after causing problems or MPKing, so please make it so these players cannot press the leave button when they have hate. After Launch After launch, we are planning to make adjustments so that players cannot leave content after getting hate. Also, in Beta 4 we are making it so a time penalty is given to players who leave mid-way through content, so it won’t be possible to repeat this behavior.
When using the Duty Finder as a party of 2 DPS, the matching window often shows DPS 1/2, so please make it reflect this properly so I can tell if we are being matched or not. Continuing to Adjust We will investigate the conditions and continue to make adjustments so that the display is shown as quickly as possible.
Make it possible for marauders to switch between tank and DPS roles. Continuing to Discuss For the future we are looking into multi-roles for a class or job. Currently, the implemented system is prioritizing role clarity and matching speed, but we plan on expanding this in the future.
Add a period of time where you can meet and talk before beginning content. Working as Intended There already is a period of safe time before battles in all content, so please use that time to speak with your party.
Make it possible to freely select roles when a leader initiates the Duty Finder after making a party. Working as Intended When forming a party outside of the Duty Finder, you can challenge content with the role combinations of your choice.
Please allow players to select a specific server rather than all servers when queueing the duty finder. Working as Intended The Duty Finder matches players from worlds in the same data center. When matched, an instance is created within that data center. In the event that you were to connect to an instance in a distant data center, there would be additional latency. To ensure everyone can play comfortably, we’ve created the system so matching takes place within the same data center.
Make it so the same class/job are not matched for the DPS role when being matched. Working as Intended For the DPS role, the current system matches melee DPS and ranged DPS, but as an algorithm is used to prioritize matching speed, if it takes time to find matches it will pair up the same DPS classes and jobs. We appreciate your understanding.
Simply changing areas all of a sudden in dungeons is kind of boring, so please add some cool teleport animation. Working as Intended Implementing animations and cutscenes would affect the time in which players gather, and there is a risk for connection problems during that time, so this is working as intended. We appreciate your understanding.
Please add other combinations of roles instead of 1 tank, 2 DPS, and 1 healer. Working as Intended Currently no plans to address this. For other combinations, please form a party and then use the Duty Finder.

Free Companies Beta Test Phase 3 Feedback – Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn

Posted on by

Free Companies

Feedback Status Comment
Add a field where you can add comments to individual members. After Launch We’ve finished listing out all the items to be implemented, so please wait until the update after launch.
Make it possible to invite people to your Free Company even if they are offline. Continuing to Discuss We’ve finished listing out all the items to be implemented, so please wait until the update after launch.
Make it possible to set log in/log out notifications on an individual basis. Continuing to Discuss We are proceeding to look into making it so you can set this via the log filter. Also, we’ll be looking into whether it will be possible to set this notification as a Free Company setting.
Ease up on the character limitations for the rank names you can set. Working as Intended We don’t have any plans to increase the number of characters available for rank names. We appreciate your understanding.
Add a recruitment board for Free Companies, LS, and parties. Working as Intended We are looking into a Free Company search system and also expanding the company profiles, and are proceeding to make adjustments so you can recruit members through this. In Beta Phase 4, you can set profile introduction text for players that do not belong to companies. However, we have no plans to address linkshells and parties. We appreciate your understanding.

Other Game Systems Beta Test Phase 3 Feedback – Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn

Posted on by

Other Game Systems

Feedback Status Comment
The exit of the Ul’dah aetheryte plaza can be frustrating to find. Please adjust this. Beta Phase 4 In Beta Phase 4, we’ve made it so you are facing the plaza entrance when you teleport to Ul’dah.
When logging out in an inn, add a cutscene where you go to sleep in your bed. Beta Phase 4 We’ve addressed this in Beta Phase 4!
Make it possible to set the game language and cutscene voice languages separately. Beta Phase 4 In Beta 4 a portion of cutscenes will have voice overs. To accompany this, we’ve added a setting where you can freely select the cutscene audio language. Please be sure to check it out! As subtitles reflect the language options selected before launching the game, it will be possible to make it so the audio is in Japanese and the subtitles are in English.
The boat fee is way too expensive. Please adjust this. Beta Phase 4 As we would like you all to test out the quest continuity during the Beta Test, we purposefully set the boat cost to a high price and imposed limitations on riding. In Beta Phase 4, the price will be changed to that for the retail version.
The behavior of the /wait macro when adding in small numbers is off. Please adjust this. Beta Phase 4 In Beta Phase 4 we’ve fixed the issue where inputting small numbers resulted is macros not functioning properly.
There are too many cutscenes at the beginning of the game that cannot be skipped. Please adjust this. After Launch The items that you receive in the opening cutscene will differ depending on the options you select, so we’ve made it so you cannot skip the cutscene at the moment. However, we are looking into making adjustments after the next update.
Implement an option that doesn’t even show the cutscene when riding on the boat and airship. Also create routes that you can fight or fish while riding. Continuing to Discuss We would like to carefully look into the pros and cons of implementing a skip setting for the cutscenes for the airship and ferry.We will look into the open water routes separately.
Even if you can’t swim, make it so you can at least enter the water a bit. Continuing to Discuss The development team has had ideas for using the geography such as diving into water to proceed etc., and they are looking into this proactively.
Add an auto-sort feature for the Armoury Chest. Continuing to Discuss While we do not have plans to have an auto-sort feature, we are looking into ways to improve the system. We are also looking into whether we can implement a manual sort feature.
Allow us to send mog letters to people who are not on our friend list. Working as Intended We’ve limited this feature to friends only in order to prevent harassment, spam, and other problematic behavior.
Make it possible to add people you meet from other worlds via the Duty Finder to your friend list. Also, make it possible to add offline players to your friend list. Working as Intended We currently have no plans to address this. We are looking into a feature where you can interact with other worlds, but we have not finalized any implementation period.
Add an aetheryte to Vesper Bay. No Plans to Address Due to how the main scenario story progresses, we’ve purposefully avoided placing one here and have no plans to address this. We appreciate your understanding.
At least make it so speech bubbles pop up when talking to characters in close proximity to your character. No Plans to Address We’ve received a lot of requests for this and have been looking into it; however, we’ve determined it would be difficult to use this for chat as there are latency display issues. Even if NPC speech bubbles don’t show sometimes, there are not any quotes that would stop you from playing, and using this system for chatting would require constant system memory; thus making it difficult. Considering future feature expansions, it’s difficult for us to allocate this memory, and we will not be addressing this currently. We appreciate your understanding.
Make it so you appear as offline to people who you’ve added to your black list. No Plans to Address As checking each of the blacklists to determine if the player is displayed would cause potential lag, we do not have any plans to address this at the moment. We appreciate your understanding.
Add voice chat support for PS3. No Plans to Address If we were to officially support voice chat, there is a possibility that gamers that are new to online games would feel forced to use it, so we’ve adopted the policy of not officially supporting this. Of course, third-party voice chat programs are not prohibited, so please discuss using them within your group of friends, linkshell, etc..