Why Final Fantasy 14's Current 'Slump' Is Both a Blessing and a Curse

2020 was a magical time for Final Fantasy 14. The COVID-19 lockdown sent droves of prospective players to the critically-acclaimed MMORPG, which had recently launched the incredible Shadowbringers expansion. What’s more, World of Warcraft – one of its chief rivals – was in the midst of a series of controversies and lawsuits. This created the perfect storm that sent the popularity of Final Fantasy 14 to the moon and back – literally, in the case of Endwalker.

However, it has been five years and two expansions since then. While Final Fantasy 14 is still incredibly popular, it has lost some of the luster it once had. World of Warcraft has since landed back on its feet with popular innovations and a faster release cadence, while Final Fantasy 14 has struggled recently due to several factors, including a slower patch cycle, predictable gameplay loops, and a divisive narrative and setting. Many would say Final Fantasy 14 is in a “slump” right now – but that actually might not be a bad thing, especially for new players.

Final Fantasy 14 is At an All-Time Low

But That’s Actually a Good Thing for New FF14 Players

Final Fantasy 14 is huge. Its five expansions – Heavensward, Stormblood, Shadowbringers, Endwalker, and Dawntrail – each have an expansive story that plays out across six zones, plus several patches of post-launch questing. That’s not including the core content of A Realm Reborn, which is larger than any single Final Fantasy 14 expansion, or any of the raids, side quests, or other optional content found in the game. The MMO is like seven JRPGs wrapped in one, with hundreds of hours of gameplay available in the free trial alone.

This ocean of content can be daunting to dive into at first. Final Fantasy series creator Hironobu Sakaguchi himself took 35 days to blaze from A Realm Reborn through Shadowbringers to catch up before Endwalker, and three more years of story have been released since then. The average gamer wouldn’t be able to keep a breakneck pace like that, and could take months to finish the main scenario on its own – months during which they would feel like they were missing out on any new content that were to release.

In this way, Final Fantasy 14’s “slump” is actually a blessing in disguise. If a new player were to start today, they would probably have about four months before the next major update. During that time, the game won’t have any big shakeups or significant new content. Even if they weren’t fully caught up by then, missing a single Final Fantasy 14 patch or two wouldn’t be the end of the world, as they still likely have about a year before the next expansion drops – more than 10 times as long as Sakaguchi ahead of Endwalker.

Of course, that is cold comfort for fans who are all caught up. While there is always something new to work towards, many Final Fantasy 14 players have been displeased with the offerings that are available right now. Unfortunately, long-lived live service games like Final Fantasy 14 often go through periodic slumps – and one look at World of Warcraft’s own expansions is proof of that.

Comparing the Life Cycles of Final Fantasy 14 and World of Warcraft

If we compare the life cycles of the two titanic MMORPGs, Final Fantasy 14 released Dawntrail approximately 11 years after A Realm Reborn dropped. That would put it right in the middle of WoW’s Warlords of Draenor era – a notorious low point in the game’s history. While Legion was quite popular, Battle for Azeroth and Shadowlands were likewise extremely polarizing. There’s no guarantee FF14 will stay on its back foot for that long, but it certainly proves it is as prone to waxing and waning as WoW.

Regardless, Final Fantasy 14 is still a spectacular MMO with tons of content to enjoy. Taking advantage of this lull in excitement now will allow fans to be at the front of the line when Final Fantasy 14 swings back around once again.

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Final Fantasy 14

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MMORPG

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Released

August 27, 2013

ESRB

T for Teen - Language, Mild Blood, Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol, Violence

Developer(s)

Square Enix

Publisher(s)

Square Enix

Engine

Originally the Crystal Tools engine, but currently it's a custom engine using parts of the Luminous Engine.

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MMORPG

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