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, also known as ''Final Fantasy XI: Online'', is a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing Game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix ) as a part of the '' Final Fantasy '' video game series. It debuted in Japan on the Sony PlayStation 2 Video Game Console on May 16 , 2002 and was released for Microsoft Windows -based Personal Computer s on November 5 of the same year. It was then localized and released for the North American market on October 28 , 2003 . An Xbox 360 version was released worldwide in April 2006 as the system's first MMORPG.1 A recent Firmware update to the PlayStation 3 allows a user to install the PlayStation 2 version of the game to the newer console's hard drive. The story is set in Vana'diel , where various tasks can be performed to improve a character's powers or to complete quests. Five races are available to guide through the storylines of the 3 nations, the 4 expansion packs, and 2 sets of Dynamis realms. There are also numerous sub-plots, stories that players can experience while playing the hundreds of quests available in the game. In January 2004, Square Enix announced that a total of over 500,000 users using more than 1 million characters were playing the game. As of 2006 there are currently between 200,000 and 300,000 active players logging in per day (see Reception ) and the game is the dominant MMORPG in the Japanese market.2 Three expansions for the game have been released since 2002, with a fourth planned for winter of 2007,3 capitalizing on the game's success. Square Enix, as well as other sources, have reported that the number of users continues to grow at a steady pace. GAMEPLAY See Also: Gameplay of Final Fantasy XI ''Final Fantasy XI'' is unlike Previous Titles In The Series in many ways. The player is able to choose traits, including race, gender, face, hair color, body size, job, and nationality. Unlike previous Final Fantasy games, all battles occur in real time, and enemies are no longer randomly encountered.4 There are 32 worlds (a cluster of servers) available for play, and one world used by Square-Enix. Server names use names of summons from previous ''Final Fantasy'' titles such as Ifrit and Diabolos . PC, PS2, and Xbox 360 players from across all geographic locations play together on the same servers. Interface Players have the option of using any combination of a keyboard, mouse, and Controller to play ''Final Fantasy XI''.The Heads-up Display in "Final Fantasy XI" consists of a log window, menus, and several game information elements. The log window at the bottom of the screen displays system messages, battle messages, and text input by other players. Players may choose to filter what appears in the log window. "Menus" allow the player to access different commands, status windows, and configuration options. As well as the main menu, which contains the majority of the options for the game, the "action command menu" appears just above the log window and gives the player several options to interact with the game world. Several menu options are available through the use of keyboard shortcuts as well.5 Basic gameplay Gameplay in ''Final Fantasy XI'' consists of two major components: Quests , which do not advance the main storyline but fill out the game's fantasy world, and missions, through which the main storyline of the game is told.6 Quests may be undertaken for various rewards. Missions are undertaken to advance in rank, to access new areas and gain new privileges and to advance the various plotlines in the game. Each nation has its own set of missions, which a player must complete to advance in rank; a player may only complete missions for his home country. Battles in ''Final Fantasy XI'' take place in the same world in which players move around, unlike previous ''Final Fantasy'' games in which a battle would take place in a new screen. Monsters within the game operate under a system of "claim" and "enmity". A monster is "claimed" the moment a player performs any action upon it, whether attacking it, using most job abilities on it or casting a spell. Once it is claimed, it can only be attacked by players in the party or alliance of the player that claimed it. A monster will focus its attention on whoever has built up the most enmity. Players have a number of means at their disposal, from spells to abilities to items, to both build up enmity and shed it. Although there was originally no system allowing players to compete in battle with each other, it was eventually added to the game. The Player vs. Player (PvP) system is known as ''Conflict''. Players may only compete directly against one another under very specific circumstances. Conflict happens only in "matches" that players enter by their own consent; players cannot attack one another outside of these circumstances. There are two types of Conflict matches. In ''Ballista'', the objective is to score points by throwing a rock, or "Petra," into a castle-like construction called a "Rook."7 In ''Brenner'', a newer PvP type, players must steal the opposing team's flame and place them in "Flammen-Brenner" on their side. By maintaining these flames, points are awarded. The team with the most points by the end of the round is announced the winner. Crafting and Hobbies In addition to completing quests and missions, players can participate in several side activities or minigames. Harvesting, excavating, logging and mining, allow the player to retrieve items from the world. Harvesting produces items from plants, excavating produces bone items, logging produces varying kinds of wood and mining produces metal ores and stones that can be refined into gems. Fishing in ''Final Fantasy XI'' is a sort of Minigame where a player must measure their strength against the strength of fish that bite at their line. Gardening in ''Final Fantasy XI'' is when a player raises plants in their residence (also referred to as a mog house). Clamming is a Minigame where players collect as many fish or sea creatures as possible without going over a limit predetermined by the size bucket they're carrying. Chocobo digging is when a player commands a bird called a Chocobo to dig up items from random spots on the ground. ''Final Fantasy XI'' has a fairly complex item synthesis system, in which players use elemental crystals obtained by fighting the various monsters to turn specific combinations of items into other items.8 Different recipes, using different classes of ingredients and different craft skills, will produce different types of items. Game Economy ''Final Fantasy XI'' has an almost entirely player-based economy with a heavy reliance on "Auction Houses" in each of the major cities of Vana'diel. The only monsters in the game that drop any in-game currency known as Gil when defeated are the Beastmen, humanoids which fight against player characters. However, Beastmen drop very small amounts of gil, meaning that unlike other games in the ''Final Fantasy'' series, it is impossible to make much money merely by slaughtering monsters. Various items used in crafting, as well as sometimes extremely rare items, may drop off the monsters that are defeated. Although the game economy is mostly in the hands of the players, there are certain economic controls in place. Money may go to a Non-player Character (NPC), as when players purchase items from NPC merchants or rent certain forms of transportation. A fee is charged to place items up for auction at the Auction House and in certain cities. Players making purchases from player-run "bazaars" within these cities are taxed a percentage of the item's set price. Since transportation, auction house and tax fees do not go to players, these Gilsinks effectively remove money from the economy.9 SETTING See Also: Vana'diel See Also: List of Final Fantasy XI characters The world of ''Final Fantasy XI'' is known as " Vana'diel ". It consists of two main landmasses and two smaller islands flanking them, surrounded by small islands. It features diverse climates, ranging from the northern glaciers to the southern deserts.10 The four main cities in Vana'diel are Bastok, San d'Oria, Windurst, and Jeuno. The expansion ''Treasures of Aht Urhgan'' added the large Aht Urhgan Whitegate/Al Zahbi city area. The rest of Vana'diel is made up of a number of outdoor, dungeon, and minor town areas split into various regions. While most areas are accessible by walking, various modes of transportation, ranging from the classic ''Final Fantasy'' Chocobo and Airships to special spells, facilitate movement across the game world. The five playable races in ''Final Fantasy XI'' are Elvaan, strong melee fighters, reasonable healers but weak in black magic; Hume, a race resembling humans, with no notable strengths or weaknesses; Galka, a gender-neutral but physically masculine race, strong and tough, but weak with magic; Mithra, agile and dexterous, but physically weak, cat-like humanoids of which only the females of the race are playable characters and Tarutaru, tiny humanoids with incredible power over black magic, but physically weak. In addition to the player races, there are two primary non-playable races known as the Zilart, an ancient race which is the focus of the first two game expansions, and the Kuluu, a race of beings similar to the Zilart and thought to be inferior to it. There is also a huge supporting cast of NPCs who give quests and missions and appear in the game's storylines. The game features several typical ''Final Fantasy'' Monsters as well as Beastmen, which includes races such as the Goblin, Orc, Yagudo, and Quadav. Some of these creatures follow the Shadow Lord, one source of the game's conflict.11 There are eight major plotlines in ''Final Fantasy XI'', including the storylines of the 3 nations (San d'Oria, Bastok, and Windurst), the 3 expansion packs (Rise of the Zilart, Chains of Promathia and Treasures of Aht Urghan) and 2 sets of Dynamis realms. The Dynamis storylines are unique in that the storyline progresses through clearing special Dynamis zones, not through completing missions as with the other storylines in the game. There are also numerous sub-plots, stories that players can experience while playing the hundreds of quests available in the game. DEVELOPMENT After the conclusion of creating the English version of '' Chrono Cross '', development began on the basic system of ''Final Fantasy XI'' Different creatures had to have their names standardized, as they are called by different names in the Japanese and American versions. The game cost 2–3 billion Yen (~$17–25 million) to create along with the PlayOnline Network Service and was assumed to become profitable over a five year timespan.14 It was originally announced that there would be simultaneous release on both the PlayStation 2 and PCs as well as concurrent Japanese and American release.15 The game was developed and ran on the NVIDIA GeForce 4 Ti GPU , which the President of Square described as the most powerful graphics processor available at the time.16 Following an August 2001 Beta test in Japan, a public Japanese Beta test was done in December 2001.17 The game was the first developed under Square's new philosophy to develop for "all platforms and media".18 Release ''Final Fantasy XI'' was listed as one of IGN 's most anticipated games of 2004.19 There were objections raised to naming the game the eleventh in the series, since it was not a structured story; it was suggested that the game instead be named "''Final Fantasy Online''."20 To commemorate the three-year anniversary of the game's release, Square Enix hosted a Fan Festival in Santa Monica where fans could try out the third expansion ''Treasures of Aht Uhrgan''.21 A few options are currently available for prospective players of ''Final Fantasy XI'' to sample the game. The first of these offered by Square-Enix was a free 30 day trial for the game included with the purchase of an Alienware PC or a Logitech computer accessory. The trial offered codes for downloading the core game and registration with PlayOnline and Final Fantasy XI. This promotion is no longer proactively offered, though the codes provided for these trials are still valid. The second method to obtain a free trial involved the "Buddy Pass," a code included in the "Vana'diel Collection" and "Vana'diel Collection 2007" Windows releases of the game, which allows a friend to download the core game and play free for 30 days. The newest option available to prospective players is the ''Final Fantasy XI Starter Pack'', released by Square Enix on 20 July 2007 with a MSRP of $3.99, including registration codes for PlayOnline, ''Final Fantasy XI'', and Tetra Master and an installation disc for the core game and its three current expansions. The disc would allow the player to test the game for 30 days, after which content IDs could be purchased from Square-Enix for the normal prices. Additionally, content IDs for the three expansion packs are now available for purchase from Square-Enix. All releases of ''Final Fantasy XI'' include the first 30 days of play for free. Expansions See Also: Expansions of Final Fantasy XI When news was first circulated about an expansion to ''Final Fantasy XI'', it was thought that the game's title would be ''Final Fantasy XI: Vision of Girade'' (Which wasn't too far from the truth; it was released in Japan as ''Final Fantasy XI: Visions of Zilart'') and was unclear whether it would be a free upgrade or not.22 On October 28 , 2003 , ''Final Fantasy XI'' was released in North America on the personal computer along with the first expansion '' Rise Of The Zilart '', with a PlayStation 2 release on March 23 , 2004 .23 It was also made available on the Xbox 360 , the first collaboration of Square Enix and Microsoft .24 The Xbox Live version was also beta tested to see how their online playing system supported ''Final Fantasy XI''.25 The Xbox version was the first game on the Xbox 360 to require the use of their hard drive addition.26 The second expansion to the game, '' Chains Of Promathia '', was released in Japan on September 16 , 2004 , and a bundled version of the game complete with the two expansion packs was released in Europe on the same date. Five days later, on September 21 , 2004 , the expansion was released in North America. In addition, the US version of the full game plus the two expansions was released as a single DVD-ROM called "The Vana'diel Collection" on August 16 , 2005 . A third expansion, '' Treasures Of Aht Urhgan '', was released worldwide on April 18 , 2006 . The game was also released on Xbox 360 on the same day bundled with all three of the expansions released to date, and on the PC as "The Vana'diel Collection 2007" in November. A direct sequel of ''Final Fantasy XI'' was thought to be in development for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Windows Vista .27 Square Enix quickly denied this report, though they confirmed that Another MMO Is In Development , albeit not related to the ''Final Fantasy'' series.28 Square Enix also announced their intention to let players communicate by text messaging with people playing the game online.29 A new expansion of ''Final Fantasy XI'', entitled '' Wings Of The Goddess '', was announced on May 12 , 2007 at the Square Enix Party event in Japan.30 No release date has been announced, but the single released trailer says the new expansion will be out "Winter 2007." Updates On June 14 , 2002 , the game server was down for four hours for maintenance to the database servers, bug fixes on the text interface and a new patch for the game client.31 This is thought to be the first patch ever released for a console game.32 On July 8 , 2002 , Square also shut down the item auction system due to some players exploiting the system.33 In early 2006, Square Enix discovered that a group of players had found a way to generate the game currency and exchange it for real currency, which in turn drove up prices for all items across the game. In response, 700 accounts were permanently banned and 300 billion Gil was removed from circulation. This effort is an attempt to stop the interaction between real and Virtual Economy in the online game.34 Square Enix has stated that the trade of items for real currency is officially a violation of the Terms Of Service for ''Final Fantasy XI''.35 In July 2006, Square Enix banned or suspended over 8,000 other accounts for similar manipulation and commerce.36 Since the update, Square Enix has been regularly banning players' accounts found in violation of the terms, some of them using third-party tools, effectively removing billions of gil from the in-game economy. The summer 2006 update has allowed for the long requested ability for players to raise and breed chocobos.37 As of March 2007 , the PC version of Final Fantasy XI is compatible with Windows Vista . After working with Microsoft to resolve Final Fantasy XI's incompatibility issues with Windows Vista, Square Enix released a downloadable version of the PlayOnline client which is compatible with the Operating System , fixing the main incompatibility issue. While smaller bugs are still known to exist, such as the client not launching correctly through Windows Media Center , the new client allows Final Fantasy XI to run correctly on Windows Vista.38 As of December 2006 , the PlayStation 2 versions of PlayOnline and Final Fantasy XI install and run on PlayStation 3. A download from the PlayStation Store and ten gigabytes of available disk space (for the PS2 drive image) are required to enable support for the software on PlayStation 3. As of March 28 , 2007 , players can now experience the first installment of the Chocobo Racing system. Players are allowed to enter their home-grown chocobos into races against NPCs. You can win Chocobucks used to buy prizes, such as items to assist in breeding. AUDIO See Also: Music of Final Fantasy XI Unlike ''Final Fantasy X'', ''Final Fantasy XI'' does not have any voice actors for cutscenes, only for battle cries and related sounds. The only voice acting is the opening CGI to the game, none of the non-player characters speak during gameplay. Instead text descriptions are used to indicate what they are communicating to the players. The opening CGI also features choral music with lyrics in Esperanto . According to its composer, Nobuo Uematsu , the choice of language was meant to symbolize the developers' hope that their online game could contribute to cross-cultural communication and cooperation. The music of ''Final Fantasy XI'' was Scored by Nobuo Uematsu , Naoshi Mizuta , and Kumi Tanioka . The expansion packs were scored by Mizuta alone after Tanioka left to pursue other projects and Uematsu left Square Enix. A holiday score titled ''Jeuno -Starlight Celebration-'' could be heard in the city of Jeuno during mid to late December. It was first introduced on December 2004 and has been played each December since then. The music can also be heard while in the area known as Dynamis - Tavnazia. A vocal, ''Distant Worlds'', performed by Izumi Masuda, composed by Uematsu and arranged by Mizuta, was later released in a July 2005 patch and was released on the Japan ITunes Music Store of 13 September 2005 . Nobuo Uematsu noted the increased difficulty of scoring a game for which there was no linear plotline, a major change from the previous ten ''Final Fantasy'' games. It was also the first game in the series for which he composed while he was no longer a Square employee.39 The 2004–2005 concert series, Dear Friends -Music From Final Fantasy- , featured "Ronfaure" from ''Final Fantasy XI''. Some of the game's music has been released on ITunes for download.40 A ten-track album of music inspired by ''Final Fantasy XI'' entitled ''Final Fantasy XI - Music from the Other Side of Vana'diel'' was released by '' The Star Onions '' on August 24 , 2005 .41 A compilation CD box was released on March 28 , 2007 , titled ''Final Fantasy XI Original Soundtrack PREMIUM BOX'', and includes the four OSTs for ''Final Fantasy XI'' and its three expansion sets, unreleased tracks from the game, along with the previously unreleased ''Final Fantasy XI Piano Collections''.42 PROMOTION AND MERCHANDISE ''Final Fantasy XI'' PlayOnline Visa and MasterCard credit cards were available in Japan . Features included no annual fees as long as cardholders remain PlayOnline subscribers and various rewards.43 There have also been posters with limited edition phone cards and keychains released, also exclusively in Japan.44 Several T-shirts have been made available for order in North America.45 Several Plushies have also been made available to order of different races from the series. A Vana'diel clock was also marketed, as well as CDs of the game music. The game has also spawned several written works. Starting in 2003, a series of novels titled ''Final Fantasy XI: 星の誓い'' was written by Miyabi Hasegawa and was released in Japanese,46 German,47 and French.48 In 2004, a Japanese-exclusive Manhwa titled ''Final Fantasy XI ~The Out of Orders~'' was created by artist Kim Byung Jin and story writer Kim Sungjae. Additionally, ''Adventure Log'', a Webcomic by Scott Ramsoomair , was commissioned by Square Enix starting in 2007.49 RECEPTION By December of 2002, Square president Yoichi Wada announced that there were over 200,000 subscribers to ''Final Fantasy XI'', allowing the company to break even and start making a profit.50 In January 2004, Square Enix announced that over 500,000 users utilizing over 1 million characters were playing the game. Having also been released on the PlayStation 2 as well as the personal computer, it became the first cross platform MMORPG ever created.51 Right before its release on the Playstation 2, a third of the players were thought to be English speaking.52 There are also currently between 200,000 and 300,000 active players daily.53 For the April-September 2004 financial period, Square Enix saw online gaming, particularly ''Final Fantasy XI'', sales increase by 101 percent and operating profit increase by 230.9 percent.54 As of summer 2006, revenues have continued to hold steady from subscription services.55 Since its Xbox 360 release it has become by August 14 , 2006 , the 6th most played game at Xbox Live.56 It was rated an 8.4 at GameStats.com.57 It was thought to be a well done but unoriginal game, and in fact with only Japanese servers running North American players were forced to play with already much more experienced Japanese players; all the quests had literally already been beaten.58 GameSpot criticized it for having an unconventional control system, a lengthy installation, and having no player versus player aspects.59 Other problems have included EXP grind which involves constant battles to access different parts of the game, and overcrowded camp sites.60 With regard to the Xbox 360 release, there has been criticism that the game would only work if accompanied by a hard drive.61 However, this is understandable due to the fact that the game does not stream, but must be installed prior to use. Through further development, many issues, concerns and complaints about the game have been addressed. New servers were added, allowing American players to start on fresh servers without far more experienced players.62 Although, much content had already been completed and could be easily researched, new quests have been continually added with each update.63 With new expansions and updates, the size of the game has greatly increased, however, the Vana'diel Collection DVD has greatly reduced install time. In April of 2004, Ballista, the first form of player versus player was released,64 followed by Brenner, a second form of player versus player, in February of 2006.65 Developers have also reduced the amount of experience needed to fully level a character end game, as well as included new ways to gain experience such as easily obtainable items which grant increased experience for defeating enemies.6667 ''Final Fantasy XI'' was awarded the grand prize from the Japan's Consumer Entertainment Software Association (CESA) for 2002–2003 along with '' Taiko No Tatsujin ''.68 It was also named IGN's Game of the Month for March 2004, citing the game's huge customization and its successful cross-platform and cross-language game world.69 A ''Final Fantasy XI'' themed lobby is present in the online game '' Minna No Golf Online ''.70 It also won GameSpy's 2003 PC MMORPG Game of the Year Award.71 REFERENCES
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