FFXIV PC in September, PS3 delayed

By Oli Welsh Published 30 June, 2010

PS3 pushed to March 2011, beta in July.

Square Enix has announced a worldwide 30th September release date for the PC version of its new MMO, Final Fantasy XIV Online.

It has also revealed that the PS3 version of the game has been delayed until March 2011.

A special edition of the PC game will be released on 22nd September in Europe, therefore offering just over a week of early access to the game servers. A beta is expected to go live in early July: you can apply for it at the FFXIV website.

The monthly subscription fee will be £8.99 (€12.99), but you will need to pay extra for additional character slots: £2.10 (€3) a month apiece, up to a maximum of eight characters.

Retainers - non-playable characters that maintain item sales and storage while you are logged out - will cost 70p (€1), although the first one comes free.

Pricing for the PS3 version will be announced at a later time.

The Collector's Edition of Final Fantasy XIV will include the early access, a making of DVD, a security token, a branded tumbler, a map, journal, and free guest pass for a friend, as well as the standard 30 days of free gameplay.

If you pre-order it, you also get an in-game item, the Onion Helm, which speeds up your recovery after you're defeated in a fight. Standard edition pre-orders are rewarded with Garlond Goggles, which speed up skill progression.

As recently as E3, producer Hiromichi Tanaka was telling us that he expected to be able to release the PS3 version alongside the PC in 2010. But with the frequent setbacks to the release of MMOs on consoles, the news hardly comes as a surprise.

Tanaka also told us that it was the "closed" nature of Xbox Live which has blocked the game being brought to Microsoft's console.

Picture of Oli.

About Oli Welsh

Oli is Eurogamer's acting deputy editor and reviews editor and likes to take things one word at a time. He is among the best dressed people in South London.

Read more articles from Oli by visiting the Oli Welsh archive page.

You may also like...

Comments (21) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Entity #1 2 years ago

    Was kind of expecting the PS3 version to not be released at the same time, what with the P.C alpha/beta underway but no mention of the PS3.

    I'm kind of disappointed. I much prefered playing FFXI on the 360 over a P.C and would've bought it straight out on PS3 had it been released at the same time. Oh well... P.C version here I come!

  • romelpotter #2 2 years ago

    The monthly subscription fee will be £8.99 (€12.99), but you will need to pay extra for additional character slots: £2.10 (€3) a month apiece, up to a maximum of eight characters.

    I really want to play this game be it on ps3 or pc, I love the FF series and mmo's, but shit like this I don't get.

    I like to play with different chars as I go, I know this game isn't WOW and I am not trying to say it is, but using this ratonal, my monthly subs would be £25.79 which is £309.48 per year!

    Damn it thats too much.

  • stevetuck #3 2 years ago

    If its the job system that FF11 used then you can play different jobs (EG your elf can be a mage or warrior just by swapping at a moogle) on one account...
    Edited by 2 at 30/06/10 @ 19:26

  • Miths #4 2 years ago

    Shame about the PS3 version being delayed. I've really been waiting for a PS3 MMO (gamepad, recliner, big screen and all those usual arguments), but knowing my MMO habits, I'll probably buy the PC version in October and have gotten bored with it well before the console version is out :).
    So far only three or four MMORPGs have managed to keep my attention for longer than around 4-5 months. Although in fairness I do have ADHD so just keeping me entertained for a couple of months is quite an accomplishment :p.

  • riceNpea #5 2 years ago

    i can't wait for this.

    oh wait, i can.

  • Lukree #6 2 years ago

    Damn, read as SSFIV PC :(

  • Gradius #7 2 years ago

    So you have to pay a minimum of £100+ per year to play this, is this normal for an MMO? Seems like a lot to me....

  • Shakey_Jake33 #8 2 years ago

    The price is pretty standard for an MMO.

    As others have noted, FFXI allowed you to switch character class at will (as well as having any combination of main/sub classes), and each class has an independent 'level'. Assuming FFXIV has this, there is little need for more than one character. Some people did have multiple characters so they could have another character hold excess items, but it looks like the cheaper 'Retainers' deal with that here.

  • login_name #9 2 years ago

    I was gonna give this a go, in fact I was getting a little excited about it but I think I'll just wait for SWTOR & GW2. Extra charges on top of a high monthly fee to have "features" nearly all MMORPGs give out as standard is just not something I'm willing to support.

  • Jamiesan #10 2 years ago

    "Yes it's normal, and yes it's a lot of money for 1 game. In return for your money you get.....lots of grinding. Joy!"

    As an FFXI player, I get WAY more time out of the game per pound spent than regular £40 'blockbuster' titles, which last me about a week.

    Edit: For the people complaining about being charged more for extra characters. Read the comments above! In a game like WoW, you pick a class for your character, then can make more characters if you wanna try other classes. In FFXI/FFXIV, your character can change class at will, meaning you only need one!
    Edited by 1 at 30/06/10 @ 22:48

  • Futaba #11 2 years ago

    I'm still undecided about getting this. Don't get me wrong, I want it, but I became the gaming equivalent of a heroin junkie when I joined the world of FFXI.

  • twoism #12 2 years ago

    I thought this one was meant to be free to play, ala Guild Wars. Should have known that rumour was too good to be true :-(

  • alcides #13 2 years ago

    lolz at the pricing.

    lolz of shock.
    lolz of disbelief.

    I had no idea. No idea an MMO could cost such stupid money. Forgive my overreacting. LOLWUT?

  • SleepyMagpie #14 2 years ago

    Seems like a lot of people have missed a point about this game: You won't really need more character slots in the way you do with other MMORPG's, since any character can in effect become/switch to any class. You just need to slot the equipment and voila - your skilling up begins. This hearkens back to Ultima Online and the like, and that character/skill system. Looking forward to going back to the future. Remember though, this puts much more importance in the look and feel of the one character you will be using - so pick and customize that toon carefully!

    Also - pricing? An MMORPG veteran like me thought somewhere around 10 pounds - around one of our 100 kroner bills here in Norway - was the standard rate for most online pay per month games.. Guildwars is a good and notable exception, but not really a full fledged MMORPG either though. For us here in Scandinavia the price amounts to a pint of beer and a packet of nuts or crisps down the pub. That's the prices we live with, so I'm not really complaining about FFXIV's rates. ^^

    P.S. Missed that a few other posters had covered that you only need one character game mechanic point earlier.
    Edited by 1 at 01/07/10 @ 04:05

  • davisorle #15 2 years ago

    @RobJenx

    In oder to do that there has to be crossgaming annnounced and I dont remember such thing and in the second hand why and who would buy and be playing this on the PC for over half year and then pay another new released tittle and the game all over at full price with new Sub and specially from the PC version tto a console for an MMO and not stick with the first one?

    I do agree with the "ouch" on the delayed date but lets just say that I wont even particiapate in my aproved Beta account cause Im not going to be paying 13+ Euros a month and an additional 3 per char slot cause thats just fucked up all over. I tend to have my own guilds in MMOs and I tend to make the least 2-3 chars from starters for personal reasons. So Id have to be paying over 20 a month and thats not all cause I know ill have too many bank alts like in every other MMO. There is a reason Blizz increased chat capasity PER server for each account and yet Square fails to get the basics. ffs

    And then retainers? Not only this game from the gameplay so far looks like it will have so much nasty grinding but also now looks and sounds more and more like in between Lineage and AION :( so next stop Star Wars as a last hope for good MMO cause Im positive i wont like FFIV as much as I love the whole IP this is just all going wrong.

    @SleepyMagpie

    When I log in I want to know my char wont need any class + skill + tallents + weapons + all thhe kinds of bullshit in order to play each and every time I feel like it just so I can have only one char slot. You know what I mean? Cause you obviously havent had either over a class char in an MMO or havent really played one -.- It would be the most annoying thing ever. And thats without even the Guild responsibilities.

  • mushroomyakuza #16 2 years ago

    If they've improved all the stupidly nighlingly shit bits of FFXI, I might give it a go. So I expect; MUCH easier means of travel for low-levels, less ridiculously time-consuming grinding, MUCH MUCH MUCH more effective party-finding, the option of playing solo, easier ways of changing class and equipment, a variety of environments and most importantly a vastly improved respawn system. That'd be a good start.

  • menage #17 2 years ago

    This will probably mean that the pc gamers can expect a bugfest they want cleaned up for the console release.

  • Climhazzard #18 2 years ago

    Im pretty confident this game will be a huge improvement over FFXI as they've obviously been planning and developing this game for quite some time.

    As for those saying if its anything like XIII they wont be getting it don't be daft, its a totally different type of experience. Cant compare single player to that of an mmo.

  • Vanmunt #19 2 years ago

    Gives me a chance to look at DC Universe for a few months, going to wait for PS3 version as I don't like PC gaming.

  • Arwin #20 2 years ago

    Hopefully all these MMO on PS3 delays are for incorporating Move ... this will defiinitely help make it more attractice to those who previously played MMOs on PC (and easier in general if you have the Move anyway).

  • Hypercube #21 2 years ago

    I was a bit disappointed too that they'd kept the "pay more for extra characters", but if the 'non-player' extra chars can act as mules, then that might not be so bad.