I’m probably going to do a “big” writeup on Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail when I’ve actually beaten the main story, but I thought I’d post some musings this evening.
For the unfamiliar, Dawntrail is the fifth expansion to Final Fantasy XIV after Heavensward, Stormblood, Shadowbringers and Endwalker. It was in an interesting position before it started, because Endwalker, as the name suggests, brought the story of Final Fantasy XIV, as it had existed right from the abandoned version 1.0, to a very definitive conclusion.
Without getting too much into specifics for the sake of spoilers, I’ll say that they handled it in probably the best way they could have done: treat the new storyline as basically a complete fresh start. You cross the ocean to be far away from the landmass and surrounding islands the base game and previous five expansions (mostly) took place on, and come to learn about a territory we, as players, have previously not really heard much about.
One of the interesting things about Dawntrail is the timing of its release. I don’t know how much of it was deliberate, but given that the first half of the game is very much about overcoming prejudice and standing together for the good of everyone, it feels… timely, given the various things that are happening around the world right now. It feels like it’s going “this is how things could be if people would just stop being dicks to each other”, and it’s honestly nice.
Again, without spoiling things, this is just half of Dawntrail, however. I would forgive anyone for thinking that the first half of Dawntrail is a bit “slow” in comparison to previous Final Fantasy XIV expansions, but that’s entirely deliberate. Since the overall story is basically something of a “reboot” — or perhaps it’s more accurate to call it a “sequel” — it makes sense that there needs to be plenty of work done to establish the new setting and its important characters. Sure, plenty of old favourites crop up, because it wouldn’t be Final Fantasy XIV without them, but you spend a lot of your time with the new cast.
Stick with that relatively “peaceful” first half, though, and things get Very Real beyond that halfway point. If you were concerned that Dawntrail wouldn’t conclude with some sort of earth-shattering cataclysm for the Warrior of Light to avert in cooperation with her trusty companions, then rest assured that cataclysmic happenings are very much in evidence, and they hit all the harder for how long you spent getting to know everyone in the first half.
Again, this feels timely. After the game goes “this is how things could be”, it then goes “and this is also how things could be”, working on the assumption that something goes horribly wrong somewhere. The message of mutual cooperation and overcoming prejudice is still very much in evidence, but it takes on something of a new meaning in the context of the game’s second half.
That’s all I’ll say for the moment, because I’m a relatively short way into that second half, and I feel I stopped this evening just before what is going to be a fairly critical moment. (It is late and the cat is bugging me to go to bed.) It’s definitely living up to the standards of its illustrious predecessors, though, and I’m glad about that. I’ve spent so much time in Final Fantasy XIV now, it’s like a long-running TV show; I want to keep following these characters, learning about the world they inhabit and see them overcome all sorts of challenges. And there are clearly plenty more challenges ahead.
Want to read my thoughts on various video games, visual novels and other popular culture things? Stop by MoeGamer.net, my site for all things fun where I am generally a lot more cheerful. And if you fancy watching some vids on classic games, drop by my YouTube channel.
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