Final Fantasy 14's Latest Patch Has Me Hopeful For The Mmo's Story...

This is Terminally Online: PC Gamer's very own MMO column. Every week, I'll be sharing my thoughts on the genre, interviewing fellow MMO-heads like me, taking a deep-dive into mechanics we've all taken for granted, and, occasionally, bringing in guest writers to talk about their MMO of choice.

I didn't like Dawntrail's story very much. Okay, that's not entirely true—I liked some of Final Fantasy 14's latest expansion. I liked certain scenes, I liked certain ideas, I liked certain overarching themes; I especially liked the scenery. But the actual moment-to-moment storytelling was so clumsily executed that I was left genuinely baffled.

It's a real shame, too, because the changeover from long-time writing lead Natsuko Ishikawa should've been a great opportunity to get some fresh blood into the mix. Ishikawa's been helming the story since Shadowbringers, and she's done a sterling job. I was open to a change, though, since I'd never expect a writer to stay in the same position on the same project forever.

But Dawntrail lacked a lot of what made Ishikawa's writing great—a sense of weight and philosophical sensitivity, an appreciation for character, an instinctive knowledge of the importance of small, meaningful moments tucked between the margins.

Despite supervising the story, aside from that one G'raha Tia gondola scene? I felt like I was playing a different game, held by storytellers who had bitten off more than they could chew and, consequently, were unable to focus on anything important.

You can read my full thoughts elsewhere, but—suffice it to say, Dawntrail left a sad, frustrated bitterness in my mouth. The more I thought about it, the madder I got. I cannot say my remaining thoughts are fond: I was not confident in this new writing team, and Creative Studio 3 had a lot to make up for.

Patch 7.1 didn't exactly give me much hope, to begin with. Koana learning about the true nature of his parents' "abandonment" via a conveniently placed exposition merchant. No, literally. At the very least, it set up some interesting story beats. Story beats that, I'm pleased to say, patch 7.2 and 7.3 delivered on with solid consistency.

At the time, I wrote that I wasn't yelling "we're so back!" I'm still not yelling it, but I am quietly whispering it, surprisingly full of hope, under my breath, doing a cool anime pose with a clenched fist or something. Because patch 7.4 has completely charmed me.

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Source: PC Gamer