Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn is at this weekend’s Nico Nico Chokaigi to present the game in a special cross-promotion with Windows 8. The team was on hand to talk about the game, including director/producer Naoki “Yoshi-P” Yoshida. Yoshi-P’s stage performance included fusing with a Miqo’te to become “Yoshi’te”, the result of which you can see in the images below. There was also Final Fantasy XIV-themed cosplay, complete with the new default outfit designs by Kazuya Takahashi.
A Realm Reborn’s beta testing is currently in Phase 2 of 4. In Phase 3, which is safe to put in May, the PlayStation 3 beta will commence; Square Enix is working with Sony to prepare for this. In Phase 4, the team will shift to an open beta and begin testing PvP (Player-versus-Player) content. With regard to the upcoming release, Yoshi-P confirmed that the game will release this summer and simultaneously on PC and PS3.
The Final Fantasy XIV team also lifted the veil off two new Japanese voice actors that will be voicing key characters in the game. Yuuichi Nakamura (Cid Raines — Final Fantasy XIII, Trey — Final Fantasy Type-0) will voice Thancred and Shinnosuke Tachibana (Kristoph — Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume, Capel — Infinite Undiscovery) will voice a new character named Alfino. In our earlier report, voice-work for a new trailer was underway — that trailer is now scheduled to be released in the third week of May.
The development of a smartphone app as a companion to the game is also planned, and players will be able to check the online status of their friends and Free Company cohorts as well as check a database of in-game information including what items drop in a certain dungeon. A new soundtrack is also in the works, featuring music from Masayoshi Soken and Nobuo Uematsu.
The second day of the Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn presentation will contain a panel with Yoshi-P and 2ch founder Hiroyuki Nishimura, and we’ll bring you any notable developments!
Source: Final Fantasy Network
[26/04] The Primals & Beastmen Tribes of Eorzea
Of course, mentioning the Beastmen needs mentioning of the Primals, who appear as classic Final Fantasy summons. In Version 1.0, Ifrit, Garuda, and Good King Moggle Mog are each challenged with a party. In A Realm Reborn, more Primals will appear. Through an official website update, Square Enix brings us more information and images of the Primals and Beastman Tribes. Expand the article to read on.
Ifrit — Ifrit, he incarnation of fire and fury, is worshipped by the lizard-like Amalj’aa tribe. Even amongst the primals, Ifrit is highly given to savagery, his temper quick to erupt in a conflagration of death. His breath ignites the very air, his claws melt the strongest steel, and his twisted horns scorch the heavens. Those who would face him must be prepared to withstand the fires of hell.
the Amal’jaa — The hulking Amalj’aa are a race of nomadic beastmen who inhabit the grasslands of Paglth’an, where they subsist by hunting the native wildlife. These worshippers of the primal Ifrit believe that the region of Thanalan has been purified by sacred flame. In their efforts to reclaim this holy land, Amalj’aa warriors have clashed time and again with the forces of the sultanate of Ul’dah.
Ramuh — Lightning given sage form, Ramuh is venerated by the sylphs. Though depicted in legend as a wise and benevolent elder who harbors ancient secrets, Ramuh is a merciless arbiter of those who would defile the sacred depths of the forest, striking down interlopers with fulminating bolts of lightning.
the Sylphs — A diminutive people who dwell deep within the Black Shroud, sylphs resemble delicate dolls wrapped in vibrant leaves. By and large, these woodland folk hold favorable relations with other races, and have become an almost common sight since a trade in crystals was established. The Garlean invasion of the Black Shroud, however, has quickly soured the sylphs’ view of outsiders.
Garuda — The queen of storms, Garuda is the chosen primal of the Ixal. Though elegant of form and graceful in motion, the capricious and ruthless nature of this bloodthirsty being engenders mindless terror even amongst her devoted worshippers. Her wrath often erupts without warning, and descends upon her victims with unbridled fury.
the Ixal — This aggressive mountain tribe claims the wind-blasted canyons of Xelphatol as their domain. Though their race has long since lost the capability for flight, the feathered beastmen are fervently proud of their vestigial wings. The Ixal stage frequent raids into the Black Shroud, and fell trees to offer in worship to their patron deity, the primal Garuda. Such behavior, however, leads to violent confrontations with the people of Gridania.
Titan — Titan is the indomitable will of the earth made manifest, beloved of the kobold clans.
Compassionate and gentle, Titan is as a father to his tunnel-dwelling worshippers. But woe betide those fool enough to provoke this colossus─for when his anger is waked, the very earth trembles and heaves under the unstoppable fury of his mountainous bulk.
the Kobolds — The kobolds are a race of mole-like creatures who have excavated a warren of tunnels beneath O’Ghomoro, a mighty peak rising in northern Vylbrand. Believing the ores of the earth to be a gift of the primal Titan, these subterranean beastmen seek to divine their deity’s teachings through the arts of alchemy and metallurgy. Despite forging a peace agreement with Limsa Lominsa, recent conflicts over mineral deposits have led to a resurgence of hostilities.
Leviathan — Lord of all waters, revered by the ocean-dwelling Sahagin. Lurking in the lightless depths, Leviathan devours all that crosses his path. In ages past, seafaring folk believed that tidal waves were a sign of the great serpent’s wrath, and they sought to appease him with living sacrifices.
the Sahagin — This aquatic race of beastmen reside in a city built at the bottom of the Indigo Deep. Known for attacking ocean-faring ships and dragging sailors screaming into the murky depths, the Sahagin are often the subject of angry and fearful curses on the streets of Limsa Lominsa. Since the advent of the Seventh Umbral Era, these hostile denizens of the sea have taken to seizing territory along the Vylbrand coastline in order to establish new spawning grounds.
The remaining Primals include Shiva, Odin, Bahamut, and Moogle. While each of these Primals has yet to reveal their associated Beastmen Tribes (if they even have one), further updates to Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn may shed some light on their followers.
Source: Final Fantasy Network
