It’s clear from some of the additions to Final Fantasy XIV in patch 6.1 as well as the direct statements from producer and director Naoki Yoshida that the FFXIV team wants people to be able to play through the game’s story completely solo. That might seem a little bit odd when the game is, you know, an MMORPG, and it’s one of the questions asked of the man in a recent interview on the official PlayStation blog. But as Yoshida himself explains it, this is about expanding the people who get into the game even if they don’t all go on to embrace high-end progression:
The answer is simple; my concept is to make the most of FFXIV’s characteristics as a story-driven MMORPG, and make it so that only the story can be played through on a solo basis. So, “marrying” isn’t the right expression, and what I want to do is lower the barrier for entry among those who feel intimidated by MMORPGs or who are not good at multiplayer games. Of course, I’ll be happy if players are satisfied after completing just the story, or if throughout their journeys they discover the fun of multiplayer and MMORPGs, leading them to try out various types of content.
Yoshida further discusses keeping the team motivated for future developments, explaining that the quickest way to damage the game and future improvements is by losing passion for the project from the design end. He also talks about the graphical upgrades planned for the next expansion and fan theories surrounding the Myths of the Realm raid series; check out the full interview for more.
