Part of the reason for the switch to flying is the size of zones in Heavensward. But for now, we want players to enjoy the world of Heavensward first." We're considering making those adjustments. "That being said, we don't intend to forbid players from flying in those areas forever. "On top of that, the level design isn't meant for flying over, so you wouldn't have much to enjoy anyway," he says. But because of the design issues, graphics don't actually appear correctly when they're in the sky in these zones. Yoshida notes that the developers already have the tools to use flying mounts in older areas. If we wanted to have players be able to fly over the Realm Reborn areas, we would have to make adjustments to the map." With Heavensward, our primary focus was being able to fly around. " A Realm Reborn was not intended for flight, and that's how we built the maps for that area. "This relates to the game design itself," Yoshida explains. At first these flying mounts will only be usable in the new areas introduced in Heavensward. In addition to flying mounts such as dragons or black chocobos, players can acquire and even build single-rider airships. "If you want to raise all your jobs to the maximum level of 60, it's going to take quite a long time to get there." He laughs, knowing that plenty of the game's dedicated players are likely up to the challenge.Īnother major addition to Heavensward is the ability to fly. "In that aspect, it may be faster for them to level," he says. However, Yoshida notes that the new jobs won't have base classes requiring leveling up first. If players choose to switch to one of the new jobs, they'll need to raise it from level one. It will be a totally different experience." The dark knight uses the power of darkness, sort of like magic, for his abilities. "It will feature its own specific mechanics that make it unique. "The third job within the tank role, the dark knight, is similar to neither of these," says Yoshida. Meanwhile, the warrior tank can do more area of effect abilities and has a higher damage output. He describes the paladin as a "very one-on-one" tank whose specialty is taking all aggression from a single powerful target. He uses Final Fantasy 14's tank classes as an example. "We want to make sure that each job has a different, unique gameplay experience, even if they're fulfilling a similar role," Yoshida says. The Final Fantasy 14 team faced a challenge not only in building and implementing these new classes, but also making sure that each plays differently from its counterparts. It's a launch pad for where we can start our evolution."Īccording to Yoshida, the biggest and most requested part of that evolution is the introduction of three new classes: the damage-dealing machinist, the healing and buffing astrologian, and the tanky dark knight. "The launch of Heavensward is building that foundation. "We definitely want to bring a different kind of excitement from what was offered with A Realm Reborn," he says. The average creator standing on the verge of showing off all this new stuff might be nervous. A representative from Square Enix has just shared some of those reveals with us. It's the Monday morning of Game Developers Conference, a little less than a week from a big string of Heavensward announcements at the Penny Arcade Expo. "We want to introduce something that's never been done before," Yoshida says. What more is left for him to do?Īs the release of Final Fantasy 14's first expansion pack, Heavensward, approaches, Yoshida has an answer: more, better and more unique. It has consistently surpassed all reasonable expectations. The game hit a milestone of four million registered players worldwide. Yoshida brought Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn to PlayStation 4, creating one of the most successful console ports of a massively multiplayer game ever. Even as Yoshida has explained the process multiple times, it's still one of the most unbelievable underdog stories in the modern game industry. Against all odds, he succeeded in creating something wonderful. His solution was as outrageous and it was impossible: While keeping the original version of Final Fantasy 14 running, he built a new MMO to replace it from the ground up. This is like being placed in charge of a runaway train after it had already gone off the tracks.
In 2010, he found himself placed in charge of one of Square Enix's greatest failures - the original version of Final Fantasy 14. Final Fantasy 14: A Realm Reborn director Naoki Yoshida has, for all intents and purposes, already conquered the world.
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