Final Fantasy XI Shuts Down for Good on Xbox 360, PS2(Not a April Fools Joke)

[Jtbrig7390]

As of Yesterday Final Fantasy XI has shutdown on Ps2 and 360. The only way to play it now is on PC, There is plans for a mobile version in the future.

http://www.gamespot.com/articles/fin...GSS-05-10aaa0a

The first-ever Final Fantasy MMO has ceased operation on consoles, with servers for Final Fantasy XI going permanently offline today on two platforms.

Both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 2 versions of the game have been phased out as of earlier today, March 31. Square Enix warned players this would be happening last March, around the time it announced plans to develop a mobile version in collaboration with Nexon Korea.

Final Fantasy XI first launched in Japan in 2002 on PC and PS2. Western releases followed over the next two years on both platforms, with the Xbox 360 version coming in 2006.

Service for Final Fantasy XI's PC version continues; a note from Square Enix says that console players are able to move over to that version without having to buy any new software. Of course, that requires them to have a PC capable of running the game. Being such an old game, it doesn't require a particularly modern system to run. Nevertheless, a benchmarking tool is available to see how your computer will hold up running the game.

Meanwhile, the more recent Final Fantasy MMO, Final Fantasy XIV, continues to operate on PC and PS4 and sounds like it's doing reasonably well. Xbox head Phil Spencer talked last year about why the game isn't also available on Xbox One, and just recently, he said on Twitter that it would be "great" to have on the platform.

If you had the game on console you can move over to the PC version without needing to buy any software. You just need a PC that can run the game

I tried playing it about 2 years ago and OMG setting up a account (PC) was a fucken nightmare. If they do release a mobile version I hope its f2p and I hope the PC version go's f2p or at lease b2p so I can finally check it out.

How do you guys feel about this.

[Val the Moofia Boss]

I remember playing FFXI on my PS2 up until about... three years ago was it? Don't play it anymore though, and I believe Massively broke the news last year. Shame, because I believe the main story was never finished (we got to a new detour continent, and then... that was it).

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I tried playing it about 2 years ago and OMG setting up a account (PC) was a fucken nightmare. If they do release a mobile version I hope its f2p and I hope the PC version go's f2p or at lease b2p so I can finally check it out.

Highly unlikely, as a lack of future content updates will not be enticing new players, and the game is going to need a constant stream of revenue to support maintenance mode, something a cash shop will not fulfill, meaning subscription remains necessary.. Also, PlayOnline is unequivocally the most terrible MMORPG registration service that ever existed no question, even FFXIV's registration cannot compare.

[Jtbrig7390]

I remember playing FFXI on my PS2 up until about... three years ago was it? Don't play it anymore though, and I believe Massively broke the news last year. Shame, because I believe the main story was never finished (we got to a new detour continent, and then... that was it).

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Highly unlikely, as a lack of future content updates will not be enticing new players, and the game is going to need a constant stream of revenue to support maintenance mode, something a cash shop will not fulfill, meaning subscription remains necessary.. Also, PlayOnline is unequivocally the most terrible MMORPG registration service that ever existed no question, even FFXIV's registration cannot compare.

Yep good chance the mobile version will just get canceled.

I really wonder how big the playerbase is for it.

[Zcion999]

I remember playing FFXI on my PS2 up until about... three years ago was it? Don't play it anymore though, and I believe Massively broke the news last year. Shame, because I believe the main story was never finished (we got to a new detour continent, and then... that was it).

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Highly unlikely, as a lack of future content updates will not be enticing new players, and the game is going to need a constant stream of revenue to support maintenance mode, something a cash shop will not fulfill, meaning subscription remains necessary.. Also, PlayOnline is unequivocally the most terrible MMORPG registration service that ever existed no question, even FFXIV's registration cannot compare.

Having played both 11 (for years and years) and 14 for 1 year, I can relate. Why is Squeenix sooooo bad at MMO registration services ? Playonline was a terrible freaking piece of goddamn trash and the one for ff14 was not much better. Trying to change our accounts from old ff14 to ARR accounts was a nightmare. Everything is counter intuitive, everything just freaking sucks. They should have looked at BNet and done that. I am not usually in favor of straight up copying but for something like this, some kind of sanity is required.

Remember the crysta debacle ? My god what a fucking nightmare. It's a shame too because the two games are actually very good.

[Val the Moofia Boss]

Yep good chance the mobile version will just get canceled.

I really wonder how big the playerbase is for it.

When I left in 2003, all of the vanilla zones were empty, save for the starting zones where newcomers logged in to check out the title. All of the Zillart zones were empty too. I believe I only started seeing people until Ahrgant/Treasures (Forgot how to spell the name), and the capital cities were sparsely populated (as in, Goldshire had more people). This was on Bahamut server.

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On the other hand, I see FFXI has play potential in the same vein as the original GW, both of which are now in maintenance mode: FFXI has had fourteen years of updates and expansions. That's a gigaton of content right there. Plus, now that no more updates are coming, the game now has a definitive "end point", meaning if you start there is an end in sigt (as opposed to WoW's or FFXIV's ever moving goal post of "the end" because of updates). It's a dated game though, and like GW1 it's best played with friends. Also because it's pretty much dead, you won't have to struggle over kills and such. It's pretty much a Final Fantasy game with friend capability now, just with 6 times the amount of content as a normal FF game.

[Jtbrig7390]

I am surprsied the game is still running to be honest even on pc.

[endersblade]

Any idea when the PC version will shut off? I've never played it on console, only PC. I wanna play it the last few days before it shuts down, for nostalgia.

Or if it goes F2P (gods forbid) I will play the hell out of it. I spent soooo many hours in that game.

[Edge-]

Any idea when the PC version will shut off? I've never played it on console, only PC. I wanna play it the last few days before it shuts down, for nostalgia.

Or if it goes F2P (gods forbid) I will play the hell out of it. I spent soooo many hours in that game.

There aren't plans to close down the PC version. They're still creating content for it IIRC, they've just ended the main storyline in it.

[Val the Moofia Boss]

There aren't plans to close down the PC version. They're still creating content for it IIRC, they've just ended the main storyline in it.

There will be no more content for the game after it enters maintenance mode (which it did today), and the main plot was never finished (The beast war was never resolved, Bahamut got away, and Ziliart is still a wasteland). At least the countries somewhat united before the end, and even then it's tenuous at best.

http://massivelyop.com/2015/04/03/fi...ntenance-mode/

[Edge-]

There will be no more content for the game after it enters maintenance mode (which it did today), and the main plot was never finished (The beast war was never resolved, Bahamut got away, and Ziliart is still a wasteland). At least the countries somewhat united before the end, and even then it's tenuous at best.

http://massivelyop.com/2015/04/03/fi...ntenance-mode/

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxi/threads/50206

http://www.playonline.com/pcd/topics...22/detail.html

PC version will still be getting updates.

[Graeham]

I never got around to playing it, unfortunately. Something which I regret deeply. Just like I regret not playing FFXIV's 1.0...but I've stuck with FFXIV since 2.0 at least.

[Eleccybubb]

It does have a bit of popularity in Japan still hence why the PC version is still up. Console ones despite being cross play were just dead as hell.

[PuppetShowJustice]

FFXI was probably my favorite MMO of all time until they kicked it under the curb to focus on FFXIV and left a skeleton crew behind to keep the poor game going. They literally had one guy to handle everything combat related and the original team didn't have the sense to make notes about how class abilities and crap actually worked so the remaining crew was just screwed from the outset.

I'm sad we never got to see the Far East after having been teased about it HARD ever since Chains of Promathia launched.