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A wonderful game to play!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: June 11, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Yes, the game is $50. Yes, I pay $14 a month. Yes, I pay $30 for DSL. Yes, it is worth it. I have never played a FF game in my life. I just happened to play one day under my brother's character and I was hooked.

Leveling the first 10 levels solo is a learning experience to get you familiarized with the game. It's fine. I currently have all of my jobs leveled somewhat and have a few advanced jobs leveled as well.

I had no trouble making friends. There is always someone available to talk to. I didn't have a Linkshell until level 13 or so but after that I made more friends.

Yes, it helps to have high level friends. I've found a few. And once I reached a higher level, I've made some low level friends. There are some meanies on there who don't like to help.

Sometimes I wonder how the high level people have so much time to play when I'm trying to work and finish my degree.

It is time consuming, and definitely more fun if you have more time. I'd give it 10 stars if that was an option. Good Luck!! ^^ And don't say "Thanks for the offer, but I'll have to pass." My fellow FFXI-ers will know what that means.

Great mmorpg-from a person with a real life...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 7 / 9
Date: May 05, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I started playing this game AFTER world of warcraft, people say its better, but not really in my opinion. in ffxi, you have a lot more choices than a lot of other mmorpgs, you can choose a basic set of 5 jobs at your start, and then one you are level 30, you can choose advanced jobs, as well as a subjob, which gives you lots of possibilities. The thing i like about this game more than others, is the fact that you get what you pay for, they have constant events(usually one atleast a month) and then they have updates for the game atleast once a month, with new areas or systems in each patch, plus their servers are always on, no problems, or very rarely, ive had one since i started playing but i think it was my computer. If you are a person who is busy, you can still play this game. people will actually understand if you have to leave. there are also many guilds who are all very nice, hey will help you with missions things liek that. im busy, i have stuff to do everyday and most of the day, but i still find this game fun and i dont feel rushed or like i am leveling too slow.(i dotn have to stay up for hours either) a lot of people say this does nto have pvp, but it actually does, it incorporates teamwork with pvp. i dotn know this is just my opinion of the game, you can decide for yourself.

Be advised...

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 7 / 9
Date: July 12, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I know it was mentioned before... but I feel it neccesary to state again:

ONCE YOU CANCEL YOUR ACCOUNT AND THREE MONTHS PASS YOU CAN NO LONGER USE THIS GAME.

Which means... ANY USED GAME IS WORTHLESS INCLUDING THOSE BOUGHT FOR THE PS2.

I'm sorry. I love square but I have never seen anything like that in any MMORPG before. It is a terrible business practice and horrible customer service. I expect more from them.

FF Does it Once Again

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: April 20, 2004
Author: Amazon User

If you enjoy playing a very open RPG then this one is for you.

You have unlimited options on how to take your character. You can make tons of friends and be famous in any city. When you tire of leveling you can do quests, when your tired of quests, you can do missions, tired of missions, you can do expeditions. You will always have something to do.

Enjoy, it's worth the 13 bucks you spend a month for the subscription.

Into you imagination and though your reality.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: February 17, 2004
Author: Amazon User

It has been roughly a month since I bought this game and let me tell all of you people who think paying a monthy fee to play a game is wrong, that trying out this game will change your mind, of that, you have my word. The size of Vana'diel (the world the game takes place in) is so huge and beautiful that it cannot be described in any text review.

From the moment you finish the install, the included Play Online cliet explodes onto your screen and is pulling you though its wonderfuly slick, musical, interface. Free online clients cannot touch the quality of this system. You also get a SPAM FREE email account out of the deal, an added perk.

Running the game on a low end system will leave you wanting, of this I can assue you. When I intially logged on I was running an Athlon 1600XP with 382(Mb)RAM and an old GeforceMX video card. I bought myself a GeforceFX5900 and now I get a visual treat unlike any i've seen on the PC that runs like silk even at the highest level of detail. Those of you with more powerful processors and more RAM than I have will, of couse, need much less of a GPU(graphics card) to achive the same effect.

With the average consumer PC being twice what my current system is those of you interested in buying this game should have no problems and get to see it the way I do; immersive, expansive and breathtaking is the experiance in the world of Final Fantasy XI. To not play this game is to miss out on one of Square-Enix's greatest accomplishments since the 16bit era.

::CONS::
The music, world pass feature and somewhat sharp learning curve are the only things keeping this masterpiece from perfection. It's hard to feel like a savior of your kingdom when you are being mauled by rabbits and worms in the first 3-4 hours you play. Luckily the other people online are going though the same thing and talk you though it. Higher level characters often offer up free advice, currency, and occasionally items to newbies(new players).

Getting past the leaning curve is easy enough as is getting though the fair at best music in the game. A few hours of you favorite MP3s be they game,classical, rock or rap can be played on whatever player you use and placed on a shuffle loop when you tire of the games score. Square-Enix was nice enough to include an in game BGM(background music) control which works nicely to turn down or off the sythesized bagpipes and lutes that abound in the musical riffs of the game.

As memtioned before the World Pass(WP) system is a "key code" that allows you to play with your friends on the same server. You must buy a WP in the game for roughly 1,200 Gil then up to 6 of your friends can join the world you are in, for a few weeks, with new characters. Getting that ammount of gill is not easy at level one, but can be done before your level gets too high though a combonation of begging and questing. Advice, play the game till you can buy a WP, ask someone in the game where to buy one, then get your friends hooked on the game, buy a WP, and make them pay you back later on in the game. :)

:::CONCLUSION:::
The number of positives will make you forget there are any negatives at all. If you cannot get over them, try using the solution(s) I have provided for you in this review. Such a great game is hard to find, so grab your friends, get them hooked and look for a certain friendly White Mage on the Bismarck server when you get your first World Pass, see you in Vana'diel!

9.1 out of 10 is my final gauge

Worst... interface... ever!

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 11 / 19
Date: November 02, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I've been playing this game for about a week now and I have never seen a worse interface for a MMPORG. The windows are all static and are very "modal" and obviously directly converted from the console version. A completely unhelpful manual is included in the game, but finding the information you want or need is next to impossible. The only saving grace is that there are a large number of web sites which have information on how to do the things that the included manual left out. Three examples spring to mind that demonstrate the poor interface and the worse manual:
Crafting. There's no information in the manual about how to craft. This is supposed to be an integral part of the game, but there's nearly no information on it in the manual. The actual process of crafting is very unintuitive. You have to find crystals of various types dropped from mobs. You use the crystal and a window pops up. You click or press enter on a space and then select the ingredient to put in that spot. Repeat until the recipe is complete and then tell it to make the item. Oh, and don't forget to write down the recipe, they aren't stored anywhere in game.
The second thing that comes to mind is the login process. You don't actually start anything called "Final Fantasy" or anything like it. You start the Play Online client. Then, you log into that. A couple of screens in, if you chose the correct options in the previous two screens, you can choose the game you want to play. FFIX loads up (no Window Mode and Alt Tabbing out crashes the game) and while some incredibly annoying music plays, you can choose the character you want to play and then what name is associated with the character and then, and only then you can start playing the game. Square Enix has taken a process which takes about 3-5 steps in other games and refined it into a process taking about 10-15 steps.
The third example is the friends list. You have to either be in a group with someone or be able to search for them (no dice if they aren't online), then once you successfully search for them, you send them a message asking them to be your friend. Then, make sure you tell your friend that you sent them a message since there's almost no way to find out otherwise.
Many of the characters are moronic. You have a thing called a "Moogle" in the free apartment you are given with your character. I swear, if this thing calls me "kupo" one more time I am going to scream! The Tarutaru NPCs all have annoying speech defects that really make you want to slap them. Oh and the free apartment *can* be decorated, but that's sort of a moot point since nobody else can visit it. In Star Wars Galaxies, you can go into other people's houses and see how they've decorated. Doesn't seem to be a way to do that here.
Characters are undifferentiated. A level 10 Mithra Monk is the same as every other level 10 Mithra Monk in the game. The only variation is appearance (Face, Hair and Size) and equipment. Further differentiation is available as you can take sub-jobs that will modify your character and grant you extra benefits and limitations.

Now, the game does have its good points. It's extremely stable. I haven't had a single crash since I started playing it, and that's really saying something. The graphics are pretty decent. I have a fairly high end system and with all the options turned up as high as possible, I can definitely say that the graphics don't suck. The upside to the unchallenging graphics is that the game is virtually lag free, which is a refreshing change.

As a final note, I feel that this game is mostly counting on the Final Fantasy name to generate sales. It will likely bring a number of people into the MMPORG world who wouldn't have tried it otherwise. I just wish they had done something more creditable for the name.

Lets be honest

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 16 / 34
Date: December 01, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Ok lets be honest. I like many others who have reviewed this game have what I would like to call extensive experience with MMORPG'S (I've played Everquest,DAOC,Rubies of Eventide,and quite a few others in my time),and thus I think I can make a good judgment of the quality of this game. This game is the same old stuff yet again,we have casters who can not solo,we have the old leveling treadmill that makes it nearly impossible to gain a level (and oh this is my favorite thing---am I the only one that is tired of paying for these games only to not have them be any fun till I reach X level? I mean I'm tired of fighting bunny rabbits and rats,I'm tired of playing a mage that can only cast 1 or 2 spells before his tanked out and is then useless),we have the same character types (you know what I mean,the black mage is the wizard from Everquest,the white mage is the priest,the warrior is the warrior,need I go on here?),and we even have the same types of races. It's all wrapped up in a new looking package for us USA players,but the fact is that a fruit cake,no matter how you wrap it up,is still a fruit cake. But even that would not normally get a 2 star rating from me,no better than a 3 yes,but not a 2---you see this game "adds" some wonderful little delights to the mix of the old. First off let me state one thing that I've found positive from this game and that is the nice graphic look too it,but to be honest that's the only thing I can like about this game. There is first the wonderful registration procedures you have to go through and they have been quite thoroughly covered by other reviews here,but to re-hash that part slightly I will use some of the words of another on here---they have taken what is normally at most a 3 step process with others games and doubled it. The interface of the game can be described using the words "convoluted" and "unnecessarily difficult" not only in the game itself as well,but the secondary client called Playonline too (which seems to be some form of e-mail service within the game itself---why this is need I really don't know). Everyone is assigned random servers,this means that playing with your friends is going to be near impossible (one needs quite a bit of luck),and with the quickest means of getting everyone together within the same server is the near impossible to gain World Pass (it costs you Gil,money,in the game and in fact costs quite a bit in the upwards of 2000+. This means that no beginning character and few advanced one's afford one and with economy of the servers already wrecked (more on this in a minute) all a characters Gil tends to go toward getting better equipment instead). Oh yes did I mention the wrecked economy of the servers,well there is a good reason for that,you see this game has been out in Japan for some time now,and because they did not open near servers over here in the USA those players play on those same servers---which means that not only do you have to deal with people who don't understand you or you them in all likely hood you have to deal with players who are FAR more advanced than you. And then there are the spawn and drop rates of this game,newbie zones are full of newbie's but nothing to fight,and when you do fight them they rarely if ever drop anything---making it yet again nearly impossible to get Gil. Oh and this review would be lax without mention of the utterly useless manual that oddly enough is quite large too but seems to have so little to say,there is ALOT missing from it,not the least of which would be rules on crafting or even some hints and guide-lines. To all those who give this game a 5 star review,I'd like to ask you just one question,if you took away the Final Fantasy name and archetypes (the name of the black mage,red mage,chocobos,etc.) would you still like this game? Would you still rate it as high as you have? I know what your thinking---"Gosh this review sounds like all the others" and you know something it does and if you really think about it---it's quite sad really. I mean have game designers not learned anything by now? This game could have been so much more,and I really do hope that some of the other game designers on MMORPG's of the future do read these reviews and learn a few things. I also hope that some Final Fantasy fans read this review as well and try to listen to the words I've said---give it a try you do get 30 days for free after all,but let me tell once my free period is up well lets just say I won't be going back to it.

Worth the money

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 8
Date: January 11, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Granted you have to pay monthly to play the game, this is the exact reason it took me so long to buy it finally my friends talked me into getting the game and I am glad I did this is a very adicting game you will spend hours playing this game trying to gain more levels for your character. defiantly worth the money and the monthly fees. killer graphics and so much to do every day I find more things to do and places to go. the world of Vana'diel is huge with so many places to visit and people to meet.

above all this is probably the best game I have ever played trust me you will not be disappointed with this game

final fatcity

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 6 / 8
Date: March 07, 2004
Author: Amazon User

At first Final Fantasy XI online was fun, for about 2 weeks. Then you realized that all it was about was leveling up, and up, and up. Okay, you fought different monsters, used different weapons, fight with different groups but just to do the same thing the same way. More then half the time you spend online you spend waiting for a party, because after you reach a certain level, you depend on everyone all the time just to survive. You also need a super computer to run this game WITH lag and if you want it without lag, prepare to spend about $600 in computer parts.
After our 30 day free trial was up, we canceled. They took the money out of our account two weeks later anyway and wouldn't refund it. So you decide...I think its bad, boring, and a ripoff.

OH MY GOD!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 13
Date: October 18, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I was part of the beta testing and all I can say is WOW. The graphics rock! Characters are easy to see, spells look magnificent, great people, wonderful competition. Leveling is a pain BUT with a good team you can rake it in. Chatting is better than ever! Everything is drop down menu pretty much, WAY BETTER THAN EQ!!!!!!! Heck, you have a spell that can TRANSFER DEAD BODIES AROUND....LoL! Character movement will not make you nauseous...I have heard stories where people were getting motion sickness because of EQ's character movements. You have autotarget and don't have to keep chasing monsters. If you don't believe me, Google for screenshots.

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