Elmer over at ZAM has just translated an article from Dengeki Games. A few highlights (with interspersed comments) are below:

Ｑ：How much of the game will players be able to experience in the beta?
Ａ：We started at about 10% of the final product with the playable Alpha version and are ultimately trying to perfect the underlying game system. The bulk of the game won’t be made public until the retail version is out.

This is nice to hear. It’s a balance for SE for sure, but nice to know that for both those who are able to beta test, and those that are not, that there will be a lot left unseen.

Ｑ：What can you tell us about the transition from the Beta to the final version or about world transfers in general?
Ａ：Once service starts, we want to make it so you can move along with the friends you make during the Beta to the same world. As for world transfers, that may be a possibility in the future, with some limitations probably.

Square Enix really messed up server selection the first time around with XI. You simply have to be able to play (from the very start) with existing friends. Frankly, this is even more critical this time around where players will almost certainly be moving en masse from XI. I expect this to be addressed from the very beginning, and not to limited to only those who beta test, as this suggests.

Ｑ：Does the main story concern the Eorzeans and Garleans battling over the continent of Aldenard?
Ａ：At first, the story will open in Eorzea, that is, the continent of Aldenard and its surrounding islands. However, the Garlean Empire is based on another, larger continent.

SE has stated that the released area for XIV will be approximately the same as that of Vana’diel when XI was released. The “expansion by area” concept has worked well for SE and other developers, and I’d expect the same expansion style here. They’ve set up the lore already to easily allow for it, and I would be surprised if they don’t already know where the first few expansions will be directed.

Ｑ：Give us the highlights on character creation.
Ａ：We’ve focused on really allowing the player the freedom to make any kind of character they would like, and designed them to be a much more natural fit with the game world. Depending on your class, even your starting equipment will be different.

I like it when they say things as if they are new – i.e. “even your starting equipment will be different”. If was different in XI too – and was meaningful for all of 10 minutes. Anyway I think the “freedom” comment here is more important. One of the distinguishing features of XI was the ability to create one character and test everything – jobs, hobbies, nations, etc. I expect this to carry over to XIV – and here’s hoping that references to “freedom to make any kind of character” means more than hairstyle or color.

Ｑ：How is the magic system?
Ａ：Magic is classified by levels and by the school the spell is from. For example, spells that serve the same function (e.g. heal HP) might have a different level of potency, an area of effect, longer casting time or higher MP cost depending on the school of magic the spell is from.

**Translator’s note: The answer used very general terminology, but it appears to reference how a healing spell can be classified as Cure I, Cure II, Cure III under White Magic, or at the same time, Pollen under Blue Magic. So there are different levels and different schools that refer to the same function.

We have so little information about the Disciples of Magic, but I think Elmer is on to something here – and it’s been widely discussed. XI introduced blue magic, which allowed the player to select certain spells, and not only did those selections give you access to the selected spells, but it determined your other abilities as well. Also, recall that Scholar was out there, and depending on what strategem you selected, your spell costs, durations, timings, etc. varied. I think these are a good baseline of what we will see in XIV, where your class and spell selection will provide the variety in the mage classes.

Ｑ：Can classes other than Disciples of Magic use magic? Also, can Disciples of Magic use swords or other weapons?
Ａ：Classes are somewhat pre-defined, but that isn’t to say there won’t be the possibility as you continue to level and grow your character.

I hope they don’t go overboard with this. I didn’t really like it when in FF1 my Warrior can all of a sudden learn white magic. It needs to be worked into the class if they want a hybrid class. We haven’t seen a hybrid class defined as part of the Disciples of War, but perhaps we will get one out of the Disciples of Magic when that information is released. I’d certainly expect that the second part of the question is true – that a mage can use a weapon of some sort – be it dagger, staff, club, hammer, etc.

Ｑ：Will monsters behave similarly to FFXI, with Active and Passive types, different ways to sense players, linking, and all that?
Ａ：Of course, there will be many monsters romping around in field zones. The behavior elements from FFXI will be used again, but there will also be other unique elements the can determine a monster’s behavior, like herd mentality or environmental factors.

Again this was something that XI excelled at. Monsters could be passive or aggressive – and could be spooked by all sorts of variables (sound, sight, magic, skills, etc.). With the advances in monster AI, I expect only improvements in this area. SE has already hinted strongly at the herd mentality, and the relationship between the environment and the monsters could also be a nice addition (unless they are referring to elementals – and then it’s not news).

Ｑ：Are there monsters that will fight each other?
Ａ：In the beginning, we came up with something like a food chain system, and it may end up in the game in some form or another.

They had an ecosystem in XI also, but the implementation was lacking. I think it would add a lot to see monsters interact out in the wild – but admittedly it’s another thing to balance. You don’t want players heading out to a zone only to find that the xp mobs are all dead because another monster happened through. I think the interaction can be done in a very limited way, so that you can see the lion attack the sheep every once in a while, but not to the point of it becoming a regular occurrence.

* * *

Those are my thoughts. Chime in with your own!

Thanks to some of our forum members we have some new images for you! For a short period of time this afternoon, three brand new screen shots were found on the European Final Fantasy XIV website, soon after the images were taken down. I think it would be a safe assumption to say there will be a website update coming soon. There are several things we can see in the screen shots, along with many things we can speculate on. In fact, many users in the forums have already been doing so!

Lets jump in and look at the new images and what they can tell us! Make sure to also join in on the discussion yourself!

Our first glance shows what some are believing to by the fire based avatar Ifrit. Though we haven’t heard of the existence of a playable summoner class in Eorzea, it doesn’t mean that there can’t be enemy summoners. Whether traditional avatars such as Ifrit and Shiva could be used though is still anyone’s guess. Afterall, there are those gods that look over Eorzea that I’m sure would be more than happy to fill the avatar role in Final Fantasy XIV if they were asked.

Of course this leads into the question “Is Mr. Fire Demon Thing a summon?” How can we tell? If you look at the beastman in the right corner of the image, you’ll notice two things. Firstly, he is looking in the direction of the creature, and secondly, he is holding a staff in his hands. This stance could possibly be used for summoning. If not, it could be a hint at beastmen races controlling larger creatures. In Final Fantasy XI, a Beastmaster enemy could call up a large dragon to fight for him in comabat, this image might be showing us something similar to that idea.

Next up we have two image that contain what appears to be a new beastmen race. In Final Fantasy XI, the beastmen stood apart from the regular monsters that adventurers would encounter in their travels because they were of higher intelligence. It makes sense to see that returning to Final Fantasy XIV, who would want to play a game where you save a land from Aldgoats? We need a fierce, challenging foe! And who better than this cross between Ifrit, a Mamool Ja, and a bottle of steroids!

This new beast race bares a nice resemblance to it’s Final Fantasy XI counterpart, complete with that piece of armor where their tail attaches to the rest of the body. Makes me wanna just hop on and ride them around… but I digress. We can also see that the new creature is wielding some hand to hand weapons, implying that he may be a Pugilist and that other members of his race (such as the one with the staff in the first picture) may be the same classes that players will have access too.

We’ve heard before that Yagudo and Orcs may find their way into Eorzea. Will all the beastmen races be similar to their Final Fantasy XI counterparts?

Our next image gives us a glance at what appears to be a three person party in the beasts lair. We can see a Lancer attacking from behind on the left, and what appears to be a Thaumaturge curing a Roegadyn Pugilist while he fights another one of the beasts.

Lets start with the Lancer in this screen shot, it’s the same Lancer that we’ve seen before in the images released. Note that it is positioned behind the monster while executing what looks to be a special attack, perhaps a weapon skill. Why attack it from behind? Does this Lancer have an ability that increases damage while attacking from behind a monster? Or did the Thaumaturge get its attention after she cast a spell to aid her Roegadyn teammate? Also note its distance from the creature while attacking, this is something we’ve been told will be important during combat.

Next up we have the Thaumaturge in front of this new foe. She appears to be glancing over at the Roegadyn who appears to have some type of spell being cast upon him. I believe this to be a cure spell, but its possible that it could be a number of things. Also note that the mage in this image may not be wielding a full sized staff as we have seen before. It’s hard to gauge its size to do it going behind the mage. It could be possible that this weapon is a type of club instead of a staff.

Finally we come to the last of the three images which appears to be a Gladiator taking on the beastmen solo.

The Gladiator appears to be using some type of ability on the creature, however we are unable to tell what this is. It could be some type of provoke, or it could be a special attack, or another weapon skill like the Lancer in our last image. Also note that it’s possible that this Gladiator may not be using a shield. It’s difficult to tell due to the left arm being hidden behind the body, but this could be an example of an offensive customization of the class compared to the defensive shield wielder.

Behind our new friend we can see what looks to be some type of portal. Some are saying this could be one of the portals that appear upon the completion of a Guildleve. This would imply that the leve has been completed and that defeating the beastmen in the area was not a part of it. However, we have seen that upon completion of a leve, that the portal appears at your location. This portal seems as though it is being guarded by the beastman. Is it possible that there will be some leves that contain a specific spot to exit?

Lastly, in the last two screen shots, note the wooden floor and the scattered boxes. Could this be the remains of a shipwrecked crew? In the last image, if you look closely in the upper left, you’ll see windows. Could this area be housed within the rocky cliffs of Limsa Lominsa? It wouldn’t be a large stretch considering the images of game play released so far have been of areas close to the city state.

That’s all for my ideas with these new images! Make sure to head over to our forums and let us know what you see in the screen shots that were released prematurely.

Now that we have all digested the new information released by Square Enix on Wednesday, it is about time we took a look at exactly what information was released – both explicitly and implicitly.  While some implications are obviously, some might be better labeled as speculation.  Remember, while SE loves lore, they are very strict on what information they release and what they don’t.  So we can assume (right?) that the information they chose to release was intended to serve a purpose.  Either way, let’s jump right in.

Beastiary Page

Beastiary

Now let’s start with where SE started – the Beastiary.  Square has unveiled 10 families – some new and some old – but has provided some in-depth information about certain of these families.  The mob families identified are: Ahriman, Aldgoats, Antelopes, Cactuar, Mammet, Morbol, Ogres, Opo-Opo, Puks and Raptors.  For whatever reason, SE did not list some other mobs we’ve seen – such as the Dodo.

The Beastiary overview is pretty straightforward.  We learn that we will fight beasts in order to farm crafting ingredients.  SE implicitly separates the concept of fighting the Eorzean wildlife from fighting battles (“taking up a blade against the realm’s wildlife can be no less dangerous than standing in a shield wall on the frontlines of battle, or defending a fortress against a bloody siege”).  While this is again not surprising, it suggests that the larger scale fights between sentient humanoid mobs (i.e. beastmen) will of course play a part in FFXIV.

From within the Beastiary we get official lore on three of the families Aldgoats, Antelopes and Raptors.  What do we learn?

Aldgoat

We learn from both the Aldgoat and Antelope information that there are male and female varieties of these mobs.  While FFXI had rams and sheep – so this is not entirely new – it is intriguing that SE chose to highlight this distinction in two of the three summaries we were given.

Antelope

We learn from Aldgoats that they can be “domesticated and raised as livestock.”  This just background information or are we getting hints about another Disciple of the Land – the Farmer? Rancher? Breeder?  (See below speculation on Disciples).

Raptor

We glean a bit more from the Antelope and Raptors about the way mobs will travel in groups and link.  Male antelope are “ne’er alone” and will travel with a herd of females – and “the entire herd will attack should any of their members come to harm or danger.”  Similarly, raptors travel and hunt in pair, with one acting as a decoy.  This is consistent with what SE has previously said about being forced at times to engage groups of mobs (or at least having to be more precise with pulls and engagement) and with an significantly increased mob AI which will have to be learned and accounted for by the playerbase.

Most notably from all three descriptions we learn that – surprise – mobs will drop crafting items.  Sure we all knew this would be the case – but now it is confirmed with 2 drops from each family.  We see the standard fare – skins, furs, horns, meat and claws.  We are expressly told of uses of raptor fangs (did they mean claws?) in alchemy, but we can pretty much be assured that meats will be used by Culinarians and hides and skins by Tanners.

Disciplines

Next on SE’s update were the Disciplines.  As with the beastiary, we are provided with a ton of new information.  Obviously the most significant news is that Square Enix has confirmed five Disciples of War and five Disciples of the Hand.  Disciples of War are – Archer, Lancer, Gladiator, Marauder, Pugilist and the Disciples of the Hand are – Alchemist, Blacksmith, Culinarian, Tanner, Weaver.

So the first bit of speculation is that we’ll get five Disciples of Magic and five Disciples of the Land.  There have been reports of Shaman, Druids and Illusionists for additional Magic disciplines, but only Thurmaturge is listed.  Botanist is revealed as a Disciple of the Land (formerly speculated to be called “Horticulturist”) and previously SE has confirmed a Fisherman class (although the name has yet to be confirmed).

Lancer

As before, we get some in-depth information about two of the Disciples of War (Archer and Lancer) and all five Disciples of the Hand.  What can we glean from this new information?

Archer

We learn that Archers are skilled with not only bows (including short-bows) and arrows, but with rocks from range.  There is language about battle tactics of “sharpshooting and high-angle fire” – likely references to weapon skills or battle stances from which players must choose when setting their abilities.  Lancers are also ranged attackers, using various kinds of lances and polearms (“myriad other polearms designed for slashing or bludgeoning”), but also using throwing javelins from longer range.

While no information was provided for Gladiators, Marauders or Pugalists, the focus on the attack range for Archers and Lancers, as compared to the presumptive semi-close range needed for a Gladiator (sword) and Marauder (Axe) and extremely close range needed for the Pugalist (hand-to-hand), suggests again that battle strategy will be more pronounced in FFXIV than in FFXI.

On the Disciples of the Hand side we gain a lot of valuable (and new) insight.  Like the Disciples of War and their weapons of choice, each Disciples of the Hand has an associated with a particular tool.

We also learn a few more interesting, and not so interesting things:

• The Alchemist deals in both “curative concoctions” and “potent potables” – perhaps not so surprising.
• Smithing seems to encompass both the creation of new items or ingredients (“smelting an ingot”) to repairing armor (and presumably weapons) out in the field (“hammering the dents from an adventurer’s breastplate”) – perhaps already known.
• Culinarians “help adventurers maintain their strength on the battlefield.”  Not much information here, coupled with the interview report that food plays a different role in XIV than in XI, we can speculate that the word “maintaining” and “strength” were intentionally chosen.  Perhaps food is more for restoring health in between battles than increasing stats during battles.
• Tanners deal with pelts (fur) and skins as “armourer and clothier”.  So Tanners appear to be – again not surprisingly – crafting (and repairing) leather armor.   Notably however, tanners also are known to “dabble in hunting and trapping” – suggesting a possible additional Disciple of the Land class.
• Weavers are the crafters of cloth.  Not much of note here, there is a lot of talk about fashion and trends.  Could it be that there will be more to one’s clothes than simple battle utility?

So while not a whole lot here, we get a glimpse at two possible Disciple of the Land classes (the rancher/breeder and the hunter/trapper).  Presumably there will need to be someone able to gather fiber for the weaver (i.e. harvester – unless it the announced Botanist) and ores for the blacksmith (i.e. miner).  Notably, there is no suggestion of a woodworking class yet.

Lifestyle

Culinarian wielding a knife

The final updated section is called “Lifestyle” and focuses on the story of Aeleyora the Culinarian.  This is a worthwhile read for the story itself, but let’s focus on what’s revealed and speculate a little about its meaning – there are five parts to the story – broadly speaking – ingredients, location, kitchenware, improvement and sale.  The story focuses on cooking, but I think we can safely assume that the other Disciple of the Hand classes will work in a similar fashion.

Aeleyora goes to a market to purchase raw materials to cook.  That’s a good start.  We have another reference to harvesting of materials, a reference to a “stand” and to a sale.  Well while we’d expect gathering places and NPC vendors, the suggestion of a sale is curious (although prices vary in FFXI as well).  But even more curious is the next line which indicates that she bargained for an even lower price or an inferior cut of meat.  Might all this be simple story?  Sure.  But if you accept the premise that Square Enix reveals information for a reason – we are left to wonder why they would add this otherwise totally unnecessary piece of information unless it was at least somewhat meaningful.  Can we bargain with NPCs?  Will there be quality grades on goods – including not just a +1 type of product, but a -1 counterpart?  The ability to haggle and bargain with NPCs suggests an elaborate and sophisticated market mechanism whereby the prices for raw goods (and hence finished products) can vary greatly.  This is a find balancing point for SE – who knows full well that even small variations in prices can lead to unintended consequences and allow for RMT activity.

Culinarian with a skillet

The location tab reveals that cooking in a city guild will require the payment of a surcharge, but will improve the chances of cooking higher quality, or quantity, goods.  The story reveals that in addition to cooking in the guild, cooking can be done anywhere in the field.

The kitchenware tab reveals something interesting – there will be multiple skillets that a culinarian can use and which is used will affect the outcome.  This is inline with the statements made by SE that these crafting classes will play a more prominent role than similar crafts in FFXI.  There could be the same number of Bows to obtain by the Archer as their are skillets for the Culinarian.  Also of note is that despite the skillet being the “tool of the trade,” it also talks about her use of a knives (again plural), suggesting again that the system will be decidedly more complex than anything we’ve seen.

There is some standard information revealed about skilling up, insofar as a recipe that produced 3 kabobs will produce 12 after you’ve mastered the recipe.  We are told that, like XI, a crystal will be needed to cook.  There is some suggestion that such increased skill is on a per-recipe basis, as the text talks about making “these kabobs countless times”.  There is also a reference to “her recipe compendium”.  It could be that recipes are more difficult to come by this time around – and the knowledge of a particular recipe is one factor that can set apart one culinarian from another.

The final page speaks of the economy, but provides little useful information.  Aeleyora sells the kabobs back to the same Lancer from whom she bought the aldgoat meat (nb. so they tell us we can make Aldgoat kabobs).  The economy is obviously something that takes time to develop, but SE knows that a fully functional and realistic economy is a necessity.  What is perhaps most interesting is what was not mentioned in this whole story – an auction house.  She bought from NPC vendors and sold directly to players.  SE has stated that there will be some sort of auction house, but has thus far provided no details.

*                    *                    *

That’s it.   Hope we fleshed out some of the shinny new digs provided by Square Enix.  Did we miss anything?  Did we simply report the obvious?  Was there something you had missed when you looked at the official site?  Drop us a line and let us know!