The list of video games in 2024 is already looking pretty packed, even in just the first few months. You’ve got remakes, ports, long-awaited new games, and more. The year is frontloaded with Persona 3 remake, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, and Dragon’s Dogma 2, with plenty of smaller releases peppered in between, including Unicorn Overlord (it’s a thing) and Eiyuden Chronicle. While most of the games are for PS5 and Switch, some are multiplatform, and there’s plenty of Xbox exclusives slated for launch sometime later in the year.
The slate of upcoming RPGs of 2024 is packed with high-profile video game releases in just the first few months alone. Final Fantasy, Like A Dragon, and a new Persona game all launch within four weeks of each other, and then we get into some more niche games. SaGa, something new from Vanillaware, Paper Mario, Eiyuden Chronicle – good as 2023 and 2022 were for RPGs, somehow it seems like 2024 might be even better. That goes double if we get some of the long-delayed RPGs in the works, such as Bloodlines 2 and Black Myth: Wukong.
All these and more are some of the best RPGs of 2024 to keep an eye on.
One player earned all of Final Fantasy XIV’s achievements 10 years after the MMO game launched, and it’s a pretty impressive feat. For one thing, unlocking some of FF XIV’s achievements takes hundreds of hours of completing tasks several times before you reach a certain point.
For another, there’s 2,751 achievements in total (thanks, GamesRadar).
The player completed their last achievement on the Garuda server in Japan in August 2023, though the news didn’t make it out until someone posted it on Reddit. It’ll be a fleeting victory, though. Square Enix adds new achievements with every major update, including FF XIV 6.5, which launched in early October 2023, and probably a whole lot more when the new Dawntrail expansion launches in summer 2024.
These range from simple things, such as completing a seasonal event, to complex endeavors that require time and a great deal of patience. One achievement rewards you for clearing certain difficult dungeons on your own. Another requires you to slay 5,000 S-rank marks in FF XIV’s hunts, and still another makes you get every Relic weapon – one for each class. These unlock in phases as you repeat quests and tasks multiple times.
The most complicated one, however, is the Levequest achievement. Levequests reward players with experience and were, in the game’s beginning, a decent way to level up before Square Enix made that process easier. Each settlement has its own set of Levequests, and you could complete three every day. It takes seven years to do them all.
As for what’s left to do, one Redditer actually pointed out the player still has two more mounts to get through Extreme Trials – yet another challenging activity – that aren’t tied to achievements. The grind continues.
Square Enix announced the Final Fantasy XIV 6.5 release date during the MMO game’s Tokyo Game Show live letter, and that date is pretty close. FFXIV 6.5 launches on Oct. 3, 2023, and brings with it new story quests, trials, raids, and the duty system’s further expansion.
Once patch 6.5 launches, the duty system will cover all main scenario dungeons from A Realm Reborn through Endwalker, meaning you can play through the game’s entire story without having to team up with other players. Extra dungeons and raids still require multiplayer parties, though, including the new Lunar Subterrane dungeon that launches with patch 6.5.
Patch 6.5 comes with two new trials, the Abyssal Fracture trial against Final Fantasy 4 boss Zeromus, which comes with normal and extreme difficulty options; and an Unreal Trial against Thordan in the Singularity Reactor. There’s a new Myths of the Realm Alliance Raid and, at the other end of the spectrum, more ranks, materials, and structures for your Island Sanctuary.
Producer Naoki Yoshida also outlined later additions coming in 6.51 and 6.55, neither of which has an anticipated release date yet. FF XIV 6.51 ushers in a new variant dungeon and a new criterion dungeon, alongside a new arena for the PvP Crystalline Conflict mode. Tataru’s Endeavor, more Hildebrand Adventures, a new main scenario quest, more weapon enhancement quests, and a set of Tribal Alliance quests for Endwalker.
Yoshida said the team will share more information about Final Fantasy XIV Dawntrail during the game’s Fan Festivals in London (October 2023) and Tokyo (January 2024). However, he didn’t mention anything further about FF XIV on Xbox or when testing may begin.
Final Fantasy XIV is coming to Xbox at least, 10 years after the MMO game first launched on PC, and it’s coming with an expanded free trial
Final Fantasy XIV is coming to Xbox at last, 10 years after the MMO game first launched on PC and PlayStation. Xbox head Phil Spencer and Final Fantasy XIV producer Naoki Yoshida made the announcement during the 2023 Fanfest and said Final Fantasy XIV on Xbox will launch sometime in spring 2024.
Open beta testing for the Xbox version will begin during patch 6.5x later in 2023.
Final Fantasy XIV will be available on Xbox Series X|S as a digital-only release, and Yoshida said you can go right from the beta into the full release without any interruption. All content and upgrades announced during the 7.0 Dawntrail update will be available in the Xbox version.
You can also get started and play a substantial amount of Final Fantasy XIV for free. Yoshida announced that the FFXIV free trial is expanding to include the end of Heavensward and the entirety of Stormblood, the MMO’s second and third expansions, and you can get pretty much everything the game has to offer outside a few social aspects in the free trial.
Square Enix president Takashi Kiryu said the Xbox version is only possible thanks to Spencer’s extensive support and said Xbox and Square Enix will work to bring their games to Xbox in the future, whenever possible.
Spencer and Kiryu didn’t say what Square Enix games might come to Xbox in the future, though if you’re hoping for Final Fantasy 16 at some point, you’ll probably be waiting for a while. Non-PS5 versions of the game are still a ways out.
Nearly two years after Endwalker released, Square Enix announced the Final Fantasy XIV 7.0 expansion: Dawntrail
Nearly two years after Endwalker released, Square Enix announced the Final Fantasy XIV 7.0 expansion: Dawntrail. Naoki Yoshida, the MMO game’s director, made the announcement during the annual FF XIV Fanfest celebration alongside a new trailer and said the expansion will launch sometime in summer 2024.
Dawntrail is a pretty big deal for the long-running Final Fantasy XIV. Endwalker wrapped up the story that Square Enix started in 2013’s A Realm Reborn, so this new expansion is exploring uncharted territory – literally. Dawntrail will take the Warrior of Light to the New World, a location west of Eorzea that has, until now, just been mentioned in passing and is officially called Tural. At least, one part of it is.
They won’t go alone, either. The Dawntrail trailer showed several of the Scions of the Seventh Dawn along for the ride, including Y’shtola, G’raha Tia, and Thancred, along with Meteor Survivor sporting a very Pirates of the Caribbean look.
Yoshida described Dawntrail as “the perfect summer vacation,” one where the WoL and companions take part in determining Tural’s new leader. Tural is home to a new hub city with what Yoshida called a diverse population of people living in harmony with nature.
Dawntrail also introduces two new classes, a ranged DPS and a magic DPS. What they are remains to be seen, but as is tradition, Yoshida pointed to what he was wearing as a clue: a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles shirt.
The level cap will increase to 100, every job is getting new skills, and there’s a new dungeon and more “lifestyle” content alongside new gear, recipes, and enemies.
Yoshida briefly previewed the long-awaited new model and gear overhauls and said they’ll apply in 7.0, then go back and add them to 2.0 characters and work through older expansions from there. The lighting in particular is a significant update that finally washes away the game’s characteristically muddy, blurry appearance.
Expect more news on Final Fantasy XIV 7.0 Dawntrail in the coming months.
Final Fantasy’s Cid is a series hallmark, and with Final Fantasy 16 putting Cid at the forefront, we rank every Final Fantasy Cid role
Final Fantasy’s Cid is a series hallmark, not just present in the best Final Fantasy games, but present in literally every game in the series. Whether it’s a mobile spinoff or a full-fledged RPG, you won’t find a Final Fantasy without Cid – even if he’s just a passing mention or a loner living in a windmill. Like the series itself, Cid has evolved countless times over the decades, playing hero and villain alike and always envisioning a world that could be just a little bit better, even if the means it takes to get there are a bit illegal and probably count as war crimes.
With Final Fantasy 16 putting Cid at the forefront, we decided to rank every Final Fantasy Cid appearance.
Square Enix hosted the latest live letter for its popular MMO and announecd the FFXIV 6.4 release date, among other things
Square Enix announced the Final Fantasy XIV 6.4 release date during the latest live letter presentation for the popular MMO. Final Fantasy XIV 6.4 launches May 23, 2023, on all platforms, adding new main scenario quests, dungeons, and quite a bit more.
The new main scenario quests present “the next chapter in the story of the Warrior of Light” as usual, though it doesn’t look like there’s any hint of the next expansion just yet. Given that producer Naoki Yoshida and his team have also been working on Final Fantasy 16 as well, that’s not entirely unsurprising. Patch 6.4 will, however, add Anabaseios, the final installment in the Pandaemonium raid series.
The new dungeon is part of the Aetherfront, and duty support comes to most Stormblood MSQ dungeons once the patch launches. You can also challenge a new trial boss in The Voidcast Dais. That boss is Golbez from Final Fantasy 4, as you might expect from the promotional poster and the music played during the Live Letter.
The Island Sanctuary gets its usual swathe of updates, with more items, crops, and animals, and a new fishing route is opening up in Kugane. Tataru’s Grand Endeavor continues as well.
Patch 6.45 will add new Manderville weapons, new gear for the Blue Mage with an increased Blue Mage level cap, new dungeons, and more Hildebrand adventures.
The Saami Council sent Square Enix a letter demanding the removal of a FFXIV glamour set, saying it violates the group’s rights
The Saami Council, representing the Sami people of Sweden and northern Scandinavia, sent Square Enix a letter demanding they remove the FFXIVglamour set Northern Attire, saying the publisher violated the indigenous people’s rights. The Northern Attire glamour set features a full outfit – clothing for head, torso, arms, legs, and feet – with a deep blue center and distinctive red pattern on the borders and first showed up for sale in January 2023.
Fanbyteobtained a copy of the letter the council sent Square Enix, where council president Áslat Holmberg said that, even aside from the cultural issues of letting people attire themselves in traditional Sami garb without consent, Square Enix is violating intellectual property rights as well.
“Our cultural property rights are not theoretical,” Holmberg said. “They are protected and protectable under intellectual property laws, which are generally harmonized throughout the world. Square Enix, as a media company, is highly aware of intellectual property laws and has no excuse for this blatant violation of Sámi cultural property.”
🚫 The Saami Council demand @SquareEnix to immediately remove the Final Fantasy XIV costume set “Far Northern Attire”! These elements are Sámi property and Square Enix has infringed on our rights
The Saami Council’s Twitter page posted a GIF outlining the problem and accusing Square Enix of “dismissing” their concerns in January. Square Enix has issued no public statement about the Council’s concerns, and that alleged dismissal prompted the new demand. Square Enix has also not issued a statement about this latest development, and as of the 6.3 update, the attire set remains available for purchase.
FFXIV’s 6.3 patch notes are here, detailing changes such as easier quest markers and the start date of the MMO’s next housing lottery
The early FFXIV 6.3 patch notes are here, and while they might be early, they certainly aren’t lacking information about what to expect in the MMO game’s next update. Among the lengthy set of notes Square Enix posted are mentions of the new diving spots available in Limsa Lominsa, assuming you’ve reached the right level, some much-needed improvements to questing, and a reminder about the upcoming housing lottery.
On the questing front, quests whose locations aren’t in a city or in the open will have a quest marker indicating what path to follow to reach it. This improvement only applies to Endwalker and other quests up through 6.3, but Square Enix said the changes will gradually be rolled out for older quests in future updates.
Wards 25 through 30 will be made available across all residential districts, and the 6.3 housing lottery will start on Jan. 15, 2023, at 7 a.m. Pacific Time. A range of new furnishings will also be available, and you can finally preview portraits and other paintings at a shop before purchasing them.
