After a faulty initial run in 2010,Final Fantasy 14was literally rebuilt from the ground up with the release ofA Realm Reborn. Since then, the critically-acclaimed MMORPG has seen great success, with every new expansion pack attracting more players than the last. Now approaching its 10-year anniversary,Final Fantasy 14is still incredibly popular.
However, as fans ofWorld of Warcraftare aware, no king rules forever. An MMORPG cannot exist indefinitely, andFinal Fantasy 14is no exception. Eventually,Final Fantasy 14is going to have to face the music and contend with its own mortality; the question is how long it will live until it sees the end.
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Final Fantasy 14 May Not Want to Overstay Its Welcome
The Shadowbringers expansion sawFinal Fantasy 14soar to new heights, which only grew higher with Endwalker. The game became so popular thatFinal Fantasy 14even had to halt salesto combat overpopulation while it expanded its server capacity. A year after Endwalker, and that peak of player population has begun to dip, with cracks beginning to appear inFinal Fantasy 14.
As one of the oldest examples on the market, it is impossible not to think ofWorld of Warcraftwhen considering an MMO’s longevity. It turned 10 in 2014 – the same yearWoWreleased Warlords of Draenor, one of the worst expansions in its history. Though the subsequent Legion expansion was great, Battle for Azeroth and Shadowlands were less successful, with the latter pushing droves of players to check outFinal Fantasy 14instead.WoW’slater life has marred by more failure than it has seen success.
The same could happen toFinal Fantasy 14. Endwalker was excellent, but players have begun to find faults in the game in the last few years.Final Fantasy 14classeshave begun to lose their identity, and the gameplay loop and release schedule is starting to feel stale. The success of Dragonflight has also drawn manyWorld of Warcraftplayers back fromFinal Fantasy 14as well. With director and producer Naoki Yoshida also in charge ofFinal Fantasy 16, there’s cause to wonder if it would be best for him to focus on newer projects, rather than splitting resources to keepFinal Fantasy 14alive.
Final Fantasy 14 Has Only Just Begun
On the other hand,Final Fantasy 14is far from finished. There are regularly over a million players on any given day, only regularly falling behindPath of Exile,RuneScape, and the combined population of regularWoWandClassic WoW.Final Fantasy 14has nearly the same number of daily players asGuild Wars 2,Star Wars: The Old Republic, andThe Elder Scrolls Online– all MMOs also roughly 10 years old – combined.
Final Fantasy 14is showing no signs of slowing down yet. Its next expansion is expected to release early next year, bringing a graphical overhaul toFinal Fantasy 14. Yoshida himself does not intend to abandon it forFinal Fantasy 16or any other game in the future. In fact, he maintainsFF14’ssuccess influencedFinal Fantasy 16in a big way. According to recent interviews, he hopes to keepFinal Fantasy 14going for at least another 10 years.
Ultimately,World of Warcraftis turning things around in Dragonflight, and is still going strong, despite its 20-year anniversary arriving next year.Final Fantasy 14’sMMO predecessorFinal Fantasy 11only just went into maintenance mode this March after its own 20-year anniversary. There may be a day whenFinal Fantasy 14does the same, but that day is still probably a long way off. WhileFinal Fantasy 14is far from a new MMO at this point, it still has plenty of life in it.
Final Fantasy 14is available now for PC, PS4, and PS5.
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