Although the upcoming WoW expansion, Shadowlands, may be stealing a lot of the MMO spotlight in late 2020, Final Fantasy 14 is still having a fantastic year, as well. The latest major patch rolls out today and to help celebrate, the game is also expanding its free-to-play trial option in a serious way.
Up until now, the Final Fantasy 14 free trial allowed players to level up to 35 and explore the content of the original A Realm Reborn storyline and jobs. That all changes this week with the new expanded free trial launching and giving non-subscribers the chance to move beyond A Realm Reborn and into the Heavensward era of the critically-acclaimed Square Enix MMO.
The expanded free trial makes some major changes by extending the free level cap all the way to 60 for all of the jobs that were released as a part of A Realm Reborn or Heavensward. The Heavensward expansion added three new jobs when it launched which gives expanded free trial users the opportunity to explore 13 of the game's possible jobs. The new level cap and jobs isn't the only reason to celebrate though. The Heavensward portion of the extended free trial also brings the Au Ra race and clans into the game.
The Expanded Free Trial includes hundreds of hours of award-winning gameplay and story experiences equivalent to two full FINAL FANTASY titles, allows players to enjoy unlimited playtime up through level 60 and also includes access to FINAL FANTASY XIV Online: Heavensward.
All of that combined with the epic narrative that the Heavensward content brings to the game should offer players who are still sleeping on this MMO plenty of reason to give it a try. There's a bit of a learning curve for players who are coming off of 15 or so years of World of Warcraft, but once players adjust to the Final Fantasy lingo and job system, there's really a lot of fantastic content to explore even without purchasing the full game. That said, the latest expansion was perhaps the best yet, so players who find themselves enjoying the free trial may want to consider upgrading to the paid version and exploring the newest jobs, stories, and epic quests.
Players interested in the game who haven't tried it yet should dive into the title headfirst, pick a job that appeals to their play style, and start working through the main story quests to get a feel for things. It won't be long before they are acquiring their first chocobo and running around the world like an old pro. Be sure to check back for news, updates, and lots of strategy guides as you work through the MMO and begin to get a better feel for the world of Final Fantasy 14.
Final Fantasy 14 is available now on PC, PS3, and PS4.
Source: Final Fantasy/PlayStation