What's it like playing Final Fantasy 14? 

Any game that can make me openly sob from both joy and sorrow is worth the time investment.

for anyone wondering, every time Jesse says " and then you play a little bit longer" is probably about 50 hours of playtime each.

"AND THEN THEY BREAK YOUR HEART" after the Shadowbringers trailer was perfection. Sobbing. Straight up sobbing.

Never has a game made me so happy to have my soul completely crushed than this game has.

This game broke my heart long before that... Thanks heavensward

They were breaking my heart by Heavensward. This is the only MMO I've stuck with long-term and a big reason for that is the story.

Honestly I got to “I think I really like this!” before I even finished ARR

When I tell you I was up at 3 in the morning hard down sobbing. Good times.

Very accurate, then you become an emotional vampire and watch everyone elses hearts break lmao!

When you weep for people that don't actually exist like they've been your friends your entire life then you know the storytelling is masterful.

You have made me remember 'The Walk' and for this I cannot forgive you.

yeah...yeah..yep...yup....it's exactly like that. Most of the community is in therapy now. We are working on issues that we didn't know we had. #hope

They break your heart multiple times, yet you keep coming back for more.

Cleared SHB in tears because of the cutscene before the last trial, had concerned roommates offering breadsticks while healers knew I was in a s t a t e

I recently created an account on the trial and indeed going through ARR is a bit rough, 70hrs in (20hrs of Character Customisation) and I still feel like Heavensward is so far away. Still I am going to keep trucking until I at least finish the trial content and make a decision on purchasing from there.

I just started this journey, and i can confirm. This is my experience so far. I was very unimpressed, especially early on, but it keeps growing on me.

Do you play longer enough to see yourself become part of the game Im legit emotional when it got to the Endwalker Such a emotions driving game

The part where you said "oh this is kinda interesting" and the Heavensward clip of you and the gang around the campfire was the EXACT moment I got addicted to this! FFXIV was my first mmo and loved my time with it the past 3 years.

I was at the "I really like this, this is a great game" at the first 20 levels of a realm reborn, though I also began when a realm reborn was the only content back in 2014.

me: ah an MMO to relax after a hard day at work. Just gonna take it easy game: haha she doesn't know

Wait this is exactly how it went for me LOL

Honestly been my process with playing the game since Heavensward came out and as its my first MMO.

YEEESSS! Ugh, I'm only just about to start Stormblood and u already feel this in my SOUL!

Who are you to dream, who are you to hope?

It only broke my heart like three or four times...

Endwalker was the best exploration of suicide and nihilism I've ever participated in without "participating"

So I'm now just getting into FF14, and haven't gotten to the heart break yet, I'm in the "oh, do I like this" bit. I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to them breaking my heart again, and again, and Again, and Again.

I have never wanted to forget and rexperience a game more than I did with shadowbringers and endwalker.

Jesse describing addiction the short /j

Played for Y'shtola, Stayed for Y'shtola. Also my friends never realised Y'shtola was blind til Endwalker.

I loved it from the day I started playing, actually I was obsessed for months before I got I finally got it for Christmas, but it’s true that it just keeps getting better and better

Lalafells were created solely for the cutscene prior to The Final Steps of Faith and I won't hear otherwise

For me the crowning point was the Sophia trial, she’s standing on a larger version of her own head, while the battle field tilts. ❤

Final Fantasy 14 is a helluva drug

break your heart with no endgame like the past expansions had

Meanwhile me staring at this game like a soulless machine

THEY BROKE MY HEART IN HW. I had to take a hiatus after that T_T

This is SO accurate.

Accurate, so accurate.

Facts! Like... how many times must my heart be abused?

No joke that scene with Hraesvalgr and Nidhogg fighting was the moment I started enjoying the game more. My issue is that i was playing with friends who were just rushing to endgame (Typical WoW players) and so i was trying to keep up with them skipping cutscenes mostly. Then i got up to that point and was like "Wait a second this shit is cool. There's two dragons fighting in the sky. How is that not cool?" Which retroactively made me go back to do the ARR story, learn about what i missed, learn more thoroughly about Heavenward and man now I've got 4500 hours in the game

FF14 1.0 was shut down and FF14 A Realm Reborn was made and released in two years. A two year time line for a complete MMORPG is very difficult to do.

Really glad I pushed myself beyond realm reborn where to me I finally started enjoying the game.

Oh they broke my heart, im getting ready for the next emotional roller-coaster

The level of accuracy is astounding

Heavensward grabbed the back of my neck and snapped me over its knee a long time ago and I was already reeling when it happened

They already broke my heart by the end of ARR and during Heavensward (HW my fave expansion), by the time I got to Stormblood I'm already numb from the heartache XD

Facts. I waited eight years for a certain 6.5 MSQ trial's music to sound like a late-gen Pokémon boss fight.

I gave up after learning my mount ability but it was pretty cool. I liked idling in town and listening to people play music sometimes

Man it broke my heart way before Endwalker. The Bloody Banquet, and then poor, poor Harchefaunt 😭😭

Due as soon as I hit Shadowbringers, I was sold. Only expansion that held my attention from start to finish

Sounds right up my alley

You described by actual progression to this game. Like good lord.

As a WoW player I have to agree with this, it hits you with the feels...

This game broke my heart in one part of arr, i will not spoil, but man i just love this game, i will play it until the day i die ❤.

i have played and it is the only game to ever make me cry I would play but well time

100% on point for most players these days. I actually enjoyed the Realm Reborn stuff back when I started playing, before they shortened that section of content, but I know most people find it boring. That's fine though. If it's not your cup of tea then okay, but at least try to get to Heavensward before you write the game off is all I, and the majority of the ffxiv community, ask of you. This game has characters that will pull you in, you'll become invested in them until the story rips the rug out from under you and leaves you crying on the floor, feeling like you can't proceed forward, but you must continue onward my fellow Warriors of Light! You must see this story through to the current content for the story and the characters are worth the struggle and the pain. And when you finish up to current content and stand with the rest of us waiting for the day new content is released, you can look back at all you've achieved, everyone you've met, and look forward to the future will your new friends.

I reached Shadowbringers when Lockdown started and that was a very time.

Ah. the basic “how i got into my addiction” story.

Don't forget the endgame, "I wish I could experience that for the first time all over again.."

so its like a stokholm syndrome in a game? if you stay long enough you'll get attached...

Even though it’s an MMO it’s worth playing, at minimum, as a single player game that forces you into groups about a dozen times or less.

Cant stop falling asleep when im playing it

My first day around summer 2020 when I started.

FF14 is a great way to test if your tear duct is functional.

I am playing since release and this is very spot on 😂

Hands down, one of the best MMOs - personally as someone who played a ton of MMOs intensely, I have to stay that if you had to average all pros and contras of an MMO to choose the best one, Final Fantasy would take up that price. If you look at it, divided by categories then it would exceed the social aspects of an MMO and the availability, additionally casual friendliness and many more. It lacks on other sides I dont wanna elaborate further atm but averagely I'd rate it the currently best MMO.

The make or break is at the first "and then you play a little bit longer". Most people will say nope and get out.

Then you hear Echo for the first time after the journey and the flashbacks of your Ffxiv life renders you speechless.

I never cried from a video game, so idk if this will take a slice of my tears.

I just started playing it and this is exactly how it’s going😂

Endwalker experience First trial: What the fuck?! Final Trial: I AM NOT CRYING, MY EMOTIONS ARE JUST LEAKING OUT!!!!

*SPOILERS* I just started playing FFXIV, and for awhile the story felt like it wasn’t doing anything for me, like it was just kinda there to lead you to the next big cool fight (for reference I’m still in ARR), but then there was a moments that made me realize “holy shit I’m actually loving this game” and it was walking into Waking Sand just like any other time you’d been there, and seeing bodies lining the hallway and the rooms completely dark, then again seeing the cutscene of the Imperial lady just gunning people down, including her own soldier. It actually made me realize I cared about these characters and what happened to them

I was wondering when Jesse will mention the heart break lol

got to lvl 40, never left the starter area, got bored and never picked it up again.

that was the haurchefant moment...

My heart got broken too when I finally caught up to 6.3 msq

And then you scream unintelligibly with a variety of emotions at every set of patch notes

Why i forsee that ending to the short? I played Endwalker. THAT'S WHY. Damn it YoshiP..

The only part of FFXIV that felt like “ughhhh” was Post ARR. ARR for me was fun… then post ARR was so sluggish and long. But everyone kept telling me Heavensward forward is beautiful and I’m so glad I continued. This game means everything to me! FFXIV FOR LIFE 💜💜

It happens much quicker than that. I saw the graphics and was like this is whatever. Then I saw some scenery and was like this is kinda interesting. Then I started with the 'slow' gcd and was like do I enjoy this? Then I really enjoyed all of ARR and thought it was really good. And then HW broke my heart (for the first time) with the quest 'A knight's calling'.

The starting area took double digit hours to get through and I was so bored. I would love to play with my friends but I was just too bored to power through it 😔

You forgot “Then you play a little bit more reaching endgame and they tear your soul apart”

I just started and this accurate so far haven't gotten to the Heartbreak

When I played the game all I could think about is how mindfuckinglyboring the main quest was, I got to about level 67 and was tired of not having fun then quit and never played it again.

You can trust this man with this opinion because he despised the game for the longest time.

Not even close, I was hooked from the start. I started playing 2 years ago, i have 800+ of hours of playtime (on my main), and only just got to the end of the 2.x patches this week. xD

The quest was short, but it gets better further in, the next FFOL would be either the 17th or 18th installment of Final Fantasy, probably by 2025 or 2026

I like how "a little longer" is several expansions later.. poor sprouts man xzd

I haven't even gotten to Heavens ward yet and my heart got broken for my book worm bro

I'll be honest- I've played the free trial and before I even finished ARR, I bought the full game and subbed right then and there. 😂

Enters Endwalker Cries twice

Thats addiction right there I tell you addiction

I went "I really enjoy this!" as early as the time I got to lvl 25 and had to buy the game because Free Trial's only at lvl30. My "break your heart" moment was when I had to carry bodies of my Waking Sands crew. Shit's cruel, mang.

Not gonna lie I was like this is a what the fuck moment.... Started droping in like flies..

for me I was hook after the Ifrit fight i loved hot it looked and it made me want more

FFXIV is one of the very few times in gaming when the phrase "it gets better after 100 hours" is actually true, Warframe is another like that.

I'M AT THE BEGINNING OF STORM BLOOD. WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT?! I DON'T KNOW IF IM MENTALLY PREPARED FOR HEARTBREAK?!

To be fair I was already enjoying ff14 when I first started it was a little getting use to but I was enjoying it and granted my enjoyment went higher with my progression through each expansion but OH BOY did it break my heart like no other with ENDWALKER my heart still broken to this day because of it

12000h in I still gave tears of joy and sadness