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Final Fantasy 14: Endwalker tells the final chapter of the Hydaelyn versus Zodiark story, and did so with critical acclaim from published reviews. Of course, there was much content involving familiar characters such as the main crew of the Scions of the Seventh Dawn. Players got intimate moments with fan-favorite characters such as Y'shtola, G'raha, and Estinien. However, what some did not expect was falling in love with new characters. At least, they are sort of new. This article contains spoilers for Final Fantasy 14: Endwalker.
The characters that fans fell in love with are Venat, Hermes, Emet-Selch, Meteion, and Hythlodaeus during the unsundered world part of the Endwalker story. While the player sort of already knew these characters from what becomes of them in the future, this part of Endwalker's story offered a completely new look at these characters and who they were. Many fans have deemed the unsundered world part of the story to be the best Endwalker offered, with the new characters stealing the show from the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, at least in terms of stealing the hearts of the fans.
The Sympathetic Villains
Most of the new characters were villains who were both new and familiar. Among the new were Meteion and Hermes and among the familiar was Emet-Selch. Despite how these characters have devastated the lives of others, players sympathized with these villains in Endwalker by spending a lot of time with them before they committed atrocities. Meteion was an innocent child before she was corrupted, Hermes had severe and understandable issues with the society he lived in, and Emet-Selch was a man who had friends and cared for others.
Future Emet-Selch stole the show in Shadowbringers, so Square Enix made a smart move to find a way to bring him back in Endwalker without raising him from the dead. He was not completely different in the past either, still having a semblance of the same cynical personality. However, when told about what he becomes in the future, Emet-Selch has a mild breakdown and needs time alone. This reaction was huge for fans, as it showed how a villain can see themselves before they turn out in such a way and it drives home how their paths were thrown upon them and truly did crush their spirits.
Hermes and Meteion were more unfamiliar to the players and stole the show anyway by sharing the unique ways they saw the world. Hermes grappled with a question that haunts everyone at night, the question of life's meaning along with death's horrifying presence. The man is a walking existential crisis, and everyone has had such thoughts at some point. Meteion, on the other hand, is a sponge that feels empathy for all she connects to, for better or worse.
The Story Of Venat
Venat is the core personality of Hydaelyn and her story was finally told in Endwalker. Players could finally understand the complex and often mysterious entity of Hydaelyn and, for the first time, see her as a person rather than a distant beacon or otherworldly patron. In the quest, "Thou Must Live, Die, and Know," fans were in awe of Venat's monologue and the cutscene of the sundering. Many have been calling it the best cutscene in the expansion, if not even the MMO itself.
The woman turned out to be the previous Azem and one of great passion, having an incredible love for the world and its living beings. But she also turned out to be quite strong, with the power to sunder her world and every soul on it. Seeing her as a person and then meeting her as she is Hydaelyn stands as an emotional moment, as the woman has clung to life for thousands of years just so the Warrior of Light could one day surpass her and save their world from Meteion.
Hythlodaeus
Last but not least, Hythlodaeus served a much more lighthearted role than Venat, Hermes, Meteion, and Emet-Selch. With Emet-Selch, he was a familiar character but one that felt utterly new due to the circumstances. Fans finally got to see what his face looked like and he got a voice other than what the ancient ones sound like to an outsider. The strength of his character is his charm, open-mindedness, and talkative nature, which is useful when talking with someone like Emet-Selch.
The cutscene with the illusion of Hythlodaeus in Amaurot talking to the Warrior of Light was one of the favorite cutscenes of the Shadowbringers expansion by fans. Square Enix expanding on this character was a smart choice, and he was just as likable as his Amaurot illusion, if not more so. Revealing his class to be a bard in the unsundered world dungeon also felt perfect.
The Perfect Tragedy
People tend to want what they can't have, and that was part of what made the new characters so popular in Endwalker. While players got to spend time with these characters and act like friends, they know from the beginning that it's not going to last very long. The characters come from a doomed world and are fated to perish in some way or another. The player is just a visitor from the future, and they cannot change the past.
Many fans who have beaten Endwalker have noted their hearts aching for at least one of these characters. Of course, they love the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, but the time in the unsundered world with these ill-fated characters really stole the show in terms of Endwalker's content. Square Enix may have similar sentiments, as the final art for the expansion shows both the Scions of the Seventh Dawn and Venat, Hermes, Meteion, Emet-Selch, and Hythlodaeus characters walking past each other. Fans have known the Scions from the beginning, but the story of the ancients in Endwalker was powerful enough to share the spotlight as the curtains fell.
Final Fantasy 14 is available now for PC, PS4, and PS5.