Final Fantasy XI

Final Fantasy XI (Fainaru Fantajī XI) is the first massively multiplayer online role-playing game to be released in the Final Fantasy series. It debuted in Japan on the Sony PlayStation 2 on May 16, 2002 and was released for Microsoft Windows-based personal computers on November 5 of the same year.

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. It will also be available on the Xbox 360 in early 2006. Final Fantasy XI is the first cross platform MMORPG, as both PC and console versions connect to the same servers.

A fee of $12.95 USD is charged monthly for the first content ID, and $1.00 USD monthly for any additional content ID thereafter. Final Fantasy XI was scored by Nobuo Uematsu, Naoshi Mizuta, and Kumi Tanioka. The expansion packs were scored by Mizuta alone. The second expansion to the game, Final Fantasy XI: 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.

Five days later, on September 21, 2004, the expansion was released in North America for $30 USD. 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, is currently in development due to release April 18, 2006. In January, 2006, the Final Fantasy XI North American Xbox 360 Beta was released in the February issue of Official Xbox Magazine.

The Game:

Final Fantasy XI takes place in a world named Vana'diel.

There are currently 31 servers available for play. These worlds are named after summoned creatures from earlier Final Fantasy games (Diabolos, Ifrit, Ramuh etc.). PC and PS2 (and the upcoming Xbox 360) players from across all nationalities play together on all servers.

A player is allocated to a random world when they create their first character. Subsequent characters will be assigned to the same server unless the player has obtained a world pass to another server. A world pass (a 10-digit passcode), when given to a player, will allow the player access to a particular world. Once on a world, a player may not move to another world, except during World Migration which only happens when there is an imbalance in server population.

The four main cities in Vana'diel are Bastok, San d'Oria, Windurst, and Jeuno. The rest of Vana'diel is made up of a number of outdoor, dungeon, and minor town areas that have a complex topology. While most areas are accessible by walking, various modes of transportation facilitate movement. Each area in FFXI is quite large and much of the game play consists of getting from point A to point B. 

Transportation

• Walking/Running
• Chocobo Rental (Requires completion of the Chocobo's Wounds Quest [1] to acquire a license)
• Ferry (Selbina<->Mhaura)
• Barge (Bibiki Bay<->Purgonorgo Isle, Carpenter's Landing)
• Airship -- Airship Pass obtainable via any of the following methods:
  • Purchase for 500,000 gil
  • Earned by achieving Rank 5
  • Completion of the Kazham Airship Pass Quest [2] or purchase pass for 150,000 gil (Airship to Kazham only)
• Teleport (White Mage spell) to various Crags around the world
• Warp (Black Mage spell ) to a Home Point
• Outpost Teleport between a region's outpost and your home nation (Requires completion of Regional Supply quest).
• Bloodporting, Deathwarping (a deliberate player "suicide" for the purpose of returning to one's home point)
• Certain items also give a player the ability to Teleport, Outpost Teleport and Warp (Mea-Ring, Scroll of Instant Warp, etc).

Communication

A linkshell is a form of communication utilized in the game whereby gameplayers can communicate to each other all across Vana'diel. A linkshell, as described in-game, is a unique shell that is purchased by an individual seeking to create one. The buyer must select a color for the linkshell and subsequently distribute the "linkpearls" from the linkshell to other gamers. Linkshells can have an infinite amount of members. This allows players with similar interests to communicate at all times. Linkshell owners can assign "pearlsacks" to individuals within the linkshell for heightened levels of recruitment in order to spread linkpearls to others at an increased rate. Linkshells serve different purposes, where some are utilized for Notorious Monster (bosses) fights, mission organization, event planning, or mere chat and jest.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Final Fantasy XI".

Related Article:

• Beginners Final Fantasy XI guide
  Collecting Gil in Final Fantasy XI may be a little difficult. Starting the game with good tips and proper farming techniques during the early stages of the game can go a long way.