Final Fantasy XIV is coming to mobile devices, and that may or may not just be a dream come true for any fellow Eorzean adventurers out there. Aptly named Final Fantasy XIV Mobile, the game is not being developed by the original game’s Creative Studio III, led by revered producer and director Naoki Yoshida (known to FF XIV fans as Yoshi-P). Instead, this mobile adaption of what is easily the world’s most popular MMO will developed by Tencent-owned Lightspeed Studios.
Here’s the good news, though. For fans of the original Final Fantasy XIV who trust Yoshida’s guidance, Yoshida and development team members will be supervising the development of this version. So while they aren’t actively developing the game, they’re involved. And that bodes well for the quality of the game seeing as the original is so good.
At the moment there is no confirmed release date, but Lightspeed has said access will begin with a series of tests in China. This will be followed by a global launch “soon after,” the team says.
Final Fantasy XIV Mobile has the core pieces that make the main game a hit
Lightspeed isn’t giving out all the details yet but it has laid out some of the content players can expect for this mobile adaption. In a blog post on the game’s official site, Lightspeed explains that players will be able to embark on a new adventure across Eorzea from their mobile device. This will not simply be a way to access the main game on mobile. It’s going to be a completely separate game with its own features and content.
The story will be based on the original 2.0 version of the game. It may not be a straight 1:1 narrative though. All that’s been said so far is that adventurers will “confront the primals to deliver Eorzea from certain destruction.” Players will be able to engage with several familiar activities including Chocobo racing, Triple Triad, and other mini-games via the Gold Saucer, and of course, participate in dungeons and other similar content. Players can also explore the vast region of Eorzea and it even looks like you’ll be able to do so via flying mounts.
Although these may not be available right away. In the original game, there’s a little bit of progression that has to be completed before flying mounts are accessible. In a separate interview with Yoshida, he says that Final Fantasy XIV Mobile will start with 2.0, but future pieces of content going along with the stories from later versions of the main game will be released at a rapid pace.
So it sounds like there will be expansions coming to the mobile game later on as well. The pacing of these releases isn’t yet known, however. Yoshida simply states that they may wait for feedback on the launch version before deciding on future release cadence.
There will be 9 jobs and 11 different crafting classes at launch
In Final Fantasy XIV, one of the main ways players can seek out replayability is through the game’s several jobs and crafting classes. Final Fantasy XIV Mobile will launch with 9 different jobs. These are the game’s main battle classes, called Disciple of War and Disciple of Magic. There will also be 11 different crafting and gathering classes. These are called Disciple of the Hand and Disciple of the Land in the main game.
This will allow players to experience new ways to play so the boredom doesn’t set in as easily. Not all of the crafting and gathering classes are explicitly mentioned. However, it has been confirmed that Miner, Alchemist, and Fisher will be playable at launch.
As for the 9 different jobs, the game’s trailer and screenshots show off all of them. This includes Black Mage, Warrior, White Mage, Bard, Summoner, Monk, Paladin, and Dragoon. Scholar also looks to be the last job, as shown in the reveal trailer thumbnail. Changing between jobs will be doable with a single tap as well. Plus, gameplay will be formatted to fit mobile devices with touchscreen controls. So it sounds like the UI is going to be easily accessible. You can pre-register for the game at the main website, and view the announcement trailer below.
In other Final Fantasy XIV news, Square Enix released it onto Xbox Series X|S this year. Expanding its availability and reach to more players beyond the PC and PlayStation versions of the game.
