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Free Trial Period Extended... Again!

In response to player feedback, last month Square Enix gave all Final Fantasy XIV subscribers a free month, extending the 30 day free trial period to 60 days.

This week, Square Enix announced they would be giving their subscribers yet another free month, extending the free trial period to 90 days!

What prompted this extraordinary act?  Square Enix is in agreement that they did not give their customers the quality finished product they expected.  And they won't make us pay a dime in subscription fees until they deliver.  SE feels that they disappointed the players, and now they're bending over backwards to make it right.  A classy move, to be sure.

Detailed List Of Upcoming Changes

Square Enix released a comprehensive list of planned updates that promise to drastically improve Final Fantasy XIV.

The first update is tentatively scheduled for November 25th.  The second will take place in mid-December, with the third coming in a version update in early 2011.

State of the Game - November 2010

Final Fantasy XIV has been live now for approximately a month and a half.  And it teeters on a precipice.

While the game spent nearly five years in development, the actual testing period was on a strict six month schedule.  Beta test feedback was collected forum-style, which allowed for the community as a whole to bounce ideas off each other and to see the overwhelming volume of feedback itself.  In the final stages of testing, when the game should have been in the spit and polish phase, beta testers nervously watched as the development team was still making major core changes right up until the end.

It was obvious that the game wasn't ready for release.  But despite pleas from concerned fans to wait, Square Enix forged ahead and released Final Fantasy XIV in late September 2010.

To say that reviews have been unkind would be putting it lightly.  If SE wasn't listening to feedback before, they're certainly listening now.

Achievements Have Come To FFXIV

Did you know that FFXIV is tracking your achievements?

For those who enjoy achievement systems (something you'll find in such games as World of Warcraft and Warhammer), FFXIV now has something like this as well!  You can find it on the Lodestone.