Warning: This article contains spoilers for the 10th anniversary The Rising Seasonal Quests.As prominent in online gaming circlesFinal Fantasy 14is these days, it may be hard for fans to picture a time when things were different. However, back in 2010, theFF14that players knew was incredibly different, as well as a commercial failure. After the original MMORPG suffered immense trouble during development, it released for PC to great sales upon launch, but rather negative reviews from critics. As the game was close to being shut down,Square Enix put Naoki Yoshida in chargeas producer and director, who eventually introduced the immersive real-time plot of how Bahamut destroyed Eorzea, with Louisoix sacrificing himself to save the adventurers by sending them to the future.
This was the storyline that served as the in-universe explanation for the closure of the originalFinal Fantasy 14, and the beginning ofFinal Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn, an entirely new MMORPG made to improve on what failed with its predecessor under Naoki’s direction. As it released in 2013,FF14celebrates its 10th anniversarythis year, and it’s doing so with a special The Rising questline, starting with “Siblings Rising.”
RELATED:The Newest Final Fantasy 14 Mount Hides A Clever Reference To FF16
How the 10th Anniversary Seasonal Quests Show What Final Fantasy 14 is All About
The series of Seasonal Quests to celebrateFF14’sincredible milestone seem unassuming at first. Thequests start in Ul’dahjust outside the Ruby Road Exchange, as a Miqo’te named Kipih Jakkya is looking down on her luck in town. She turns to the player, as an adventurer, and asks them for help in finding her 16-year-old brother who had just begun his life as an adventurer himself. This ends up leading fans on a trail to chase after Kipih’s sibling Nhagi’a in a simple, easy-to-complete pair of quests that can be completed by players as low as level 15, making it very accessible.
However, during Nhagi’a’s side of the questline, things start to take a more personal turn for the Warrior of Light and the person playing them. As Nhagi’a’s left searching for why he wanted to become an adventurer, rather than looking for his sister’s approval, the young traveler turns to the player themselves, and they’re asked what it means to be an adventurer and why they started their journey in the first place. The way the game outright asks the Warrior of Light is very obviously a way to ask what made fansstart playingFinal Fantasy 14down to the specific answers listed.
With prominent characters such as Kipih, Nhagi’a, and even Momodi herself go over what it takes to be an adventurer and why it’s so important, players are given the feeling that they’re truly going on an adventure by playingFF14. However, as Nhagi’a realizes he wants to become an adventurer to help people in need rather than impress his sister, the Warrior of Light is serenaded by a minstrel who had assisted the questline off to the side. This song awakens theWarrior of Light’s Echo, and gives them a vision of being on an airship with a very important person. Naoki Yoshida himself appears before the player in-game, and talks to them aboutFinal Fantasy 14in a very personal message.
Yoshida’s message goes over the struggles he and his team face while developing the game, but it ends with a positive message that the support of the manyFinal Fantasy 14players keep them going. He speaks about how he likes hearing about the many stories each fan has created withFF14, even during the highs and lows of its storyline. The Rising questline encourages fans to remember why they’ve stuck with the game as long as they have, be it for a recently begun Free Trial or for much longer. It also celebrates the hard work of the development team, and Yoshida says that as long as fans keep playing, then making the game will always be rewarding.
Final Fantasy 14is available now for PC, PS4, and PS5, with an Xbox Series X/S version launching in Spring 2024.
MORE:Final Fantasy 14’s FanFest Event Was a Huge Win for Xbox
