User Rating: 8.6 | Final Fantasy XI PC
With the advent of MMORPG's like Everquest a few years back, it's no wonder that Square Enix has jumped onboard the cash-wagon. Square Enix has, I think, crafted a game that will satisfy both FF fans, as well as hard-core MMORPG fans, which is no small feat. It should noted that, from the time you open the FFXI box, there is about a 2 hour install process...it's excructiating but worth it I think. When you do finally get to start the game, you'll go through a well made character creation process. Character models will animate for you so you can see how they will look in action. You'll choose from one of four races and select a few custom aesthetics like hair color and face, nothing too deep actually. SWG has a much deeper character creation process but FFXI does it right in this regard, FF fans aren't used to character creation so this will ease them into it. In short it works. You'll also get to select your job: Warrior, Theif, Black mage, White mage, Red mage, or monk. They all are balanced pretty equally(except for red-mages. I find there is not a high demand for red mages in parties). There are a few other 'extra' jobs that can be accessed later in the game via a special quest to unlock each one, like the Dark Knight, which has the powers of both a warrior and a black mage. Content: There truly is a ton of things to do in the world of Vanadiel, you just have to get past the first 15 levels or so to really get into all the cool stuff. The first Quests you undertake will mostly be fetch quests, and even the first missions(which are different than quests and relate to the main plot line of FFXI). You'll actually see other high-level players talking about slaying dragons, or traveling to distant lands. This can be a little discouraging as you slog through the first boring quests, but once you start to learn your surroundings and get familiarized with forming parties, FFXI is an absolute blast to play. The game gives you a variety of ways to form a party, from just walking right up to a PC and asking, to using the search function of the main menu, to utilizing your friends list, it's all really intuitive, once you learn it all that is. I spent about one hour reading the 131 page manual that comes with FFXI, and it still took me a while to really get associated with the keyboard controls. Learing the compact keyboard controls is superior, in my opinion, to the controller being as you can only type from the keyboard, although this is a PS2 game and it flows nicely on the PS2 controller. Square Enix is constantly maintaing the game worlds and adding events(like the holloween event) and the game comes with the 'Rise of Zilart' expansion pack that has been released in Japan for some time, and is consequently useless until you reach higher levels and can actually go to the new environments and utilize the new jobs. With that said, it is still comforting to now that there is a little bit extra waiting for you once your character gets stronger. Graphics: The graphics in FFXI are very well done. They won't revolutionize gaming, like say, Half Life 2 may, but they are pleasant to look at and they boast some pretty good models. The environments are also well done and varied. Trees blow in the wind, waves break on the beach, and the sun goes up and comes down all nicely. The frame rate is actually very solid on a decent machine. I have a Geforce 4 Ti4200 and a 2Ghz. Athlon with 512 mb of ddr ram, and it looks great. It should be noted that I am very picky with frame rates too, and believe me this game runs smooth. Load times between zones are extremely short and barely noticeable and the menus are all slick and pleasant looking. Combat is very cool and dynamic looking, more than can be said of other MMORPG's. The spell effects and special techniques are all very flashy and of the quality we have come to expect from Square Enix. Sometimes the environments looks a little blocky though, and the framerate does take a hit when theres a lot of activity on the screen or, oddly enough, when there is a sand storm in the area. Sound: The music is very good in FFXI, and by very good I mean it always fits the scene. It doesn't really ever jump out at you, like some of the tracks on previous FF titles, but it is a nice minimalist approach to the soundrack idea. It adds to the mood without you really knowing it, but at times you'll get sick of the same tune that is played in the region you are in, but the good news is each region has a different tune. Combat sounds are all what you would expect and theres always a satisfying 'whack!' sound when you make a hit and monsters have good sound effects also. Closing Comment: If you're willing to devote the time to FFXI it will reward you greatly. The community of FFXI is huge and all the PC's, with a few exceptions, are really helpful and seem to all really be enjoying the game. The Japanese server issue is not an issue, unless you are bored and want something to whine about. The game runs smooth and all the Japanese PC's are really nice and speak ok english, and even if they don't there is an in game translator system that works ok. To me, this is the hottest MMORPG out there, with the exception of Star Wars Galaxies, but that game is majorly lacking in content. This is, by far, the MMORPG with the best sense of style and flair, it being an adaption of a franchise which has been around since the mid 80's, Square Enix has a pretty good idea of what they want things to look and sound like. Also this is the first long-running-game-franchise-gone-MMORPG so Square Enix sort of already had a couple things going for them. 1.A built in fan base and 2. A very defined sense of style, which to me is what really makes a great game. If you're a fan of either Final Fantasy or MMORPG's you would do very well to get into FFXI 
