Final Fantasy 11

Okay, let’s get this out in the open: I am a virgin when it comes to online games. When I first played this game I had no idea what to expect. That said, remember that these opinions are from someone who has never even seen Everquest, nor Dark Age of Camelot, nor Anarchy Online, etc. With that out of the way, here’s the review:

Okay, I had heard rumors about the long setup time of this game, but what I found was near-ridiculous. First you need to install the client that runs the game (PlayOnline). That took some time. Then you needed to install FF Online itself. That took an hour or so, I’m not sure. Then when I ran it, I needed to update the game. No problem, there, I’ll just start downloading and OVER TWO HOURS LATER(!!!) it finished. Now I don’t know about any other games, but that’s a long time. But never mind that, I was ready to play.

Your character in Vana’diel has 4 major characteristics: gender, race, homeland, and profession. You’ll get to select one of the four different races as well as one of the three homelands mentioned above. The profession is what really determines what your character will be like in the game. You start out with a moderate choice of professions ranging from your basic Warrior to the more elaborate Red Mage. Your profession will determine your fighting style, the types of guilds you might join (more on that later), and the position you will fill in a party (white mage heals, warrior attacks, etc).

The profession you choose, however, is only temporary. At any point in the game you can switch the job you have, no penalties at all. Tired of being a level 10 thief? Become a black mage! Of course, you’ll start at level zero, but when you return to your thief you’ll be back at level 10. I liked this fact, but I never used it. I don’t know, it was weird for me to go from a black mage to a fighter. I’m a huge fan of role playing – getting into the game. And so when people I knew saw me, I wanted them to think “Hey, there’s Belemare the black mage.”, not “Hey, there’s Belemare, that guy’s character. I wonder what he changed to.” Call me crazy.

However, the party system, when used, is very well implemented. The exp is evenly divided depending on who the highest level character is (hint: Do not party up with higher level characters!), and the items are divided in a sort of random-distribution fashion. What I did like about the party option was the strategy involved. Often it wasn’t just “Go forth and smite”. There would be “Warrior, you tank while Monk provides backup. I’ll nuke (cast spells, for the un-MMORPG savvy) from the back, White Mage you heal. Red Mage, nuke then help White.” Yes, I really liked being the leader of a party. The strategy involved added quite a new level, like the ability to chain special moves and spells together to create very, very damaging attacks.

You will die. Oh yes you will. At first, dying isn’t so bad at lower levels. You lose no exp and suffer no penalties. After passing the first couple levels, however, prepare to suffer. Everytime you die you lose approximately 1/3 of the experience required to reach the next level. This does mean you can lose levels, which is definitely the most depressing thing that can ever happen to you, especially if you just reached that level. It’s annoying, but a way of life. Just try not to die.

What bugged me in the game was the severe bias towards fighters. I like magic, so I was a black mage. However, I had an incredibly hard time doing anything as one. My mana ran out much too quickly, my attacks were pathetic as well as slow, and I couldn’t equip some of the most basic stuff (like gloves, for example). And as I, the black mage, struggled with even the simplest of enemies, I watched warriors hack their way through throngs. After I decided to become a warrior myself to check it out, I found the game was much, much, much easier. Without mana points (MP) to worry about, I was able to kill things at leisure, as opposed to resting between every battle to recover MP.

One incentive to leveling up (as opposed to getting powerful) is the chance to ride chocobos at level 20. The other is to be able to take on a subjob, which is basically a second job for you character. This I loved. Want to be a fighter that can heal? Or how about a black mage that can summon spirits to his call? You can do it with a subjob. It really let players expand, as opposed to just being your standard professions throughout the game.

But despite its flaws, Final Fantasy Online is definitely a game that any RPGer should play. It’s generally fun, gives you a chance to fight with others, and gives you the whole thing with the Final Fantasy atmosphere in it, to boot. Worth a shot for anyone.

Final Grade: 85%