Yoshida Clarifies FFXIV’s Upcoming Changes Aren’t Quite "A Realm Reborn"
- ⚡Xe⚡
- Apr 16
- 3 min read
Naoki Yoshida spoke with Famitsu about the future of Final Fantasy XIV, including the next expansion. He clarified that it should not be compared to A Realm Reborn in scope, as it does not involve a full rebuild of the game from the ground up, though he noted there may be some similarities in nuance.
"Calling it 'A Realm Reborn' is a bit of a stretch."
The North American Fan Festival, taking place April 24–25 in Anaheim, will play a key role in presenting the overall direction of the game moving forward. Yoshida confirmed that the keynote will go beyond the usual expansion overview and offer broader insight into the future of Final Fantasy XIV.
"I plan to talk a bit more about the future of FFXIV and delve deeper into what's to come. In particular, the keynote at the North American Fan Festival will include some information that might make people think, 'You're revealing this even though patch 7.5 hasn't been released yet?'"
He described the presentation structure as directly tied to the Patch 7.5 main scenario, describing the NA keynote to “part zero,” Patch 7.5 itself to “part one,” the European Fan Festival keynote to “part 1.5,” and Patch 7.56 as the conclusion (“part two”). This approach links real-world announcements with in-game story progression.
"Regardless of the expansion pack, I plan to reveal everything we're planning for the future of FFXIV all at once."
Yoshida added that the keynote will include announcements beyond standard expectations, such as larger story developments and new systems. However, due to time limits, not every detail will be fully explained on stage.
"The amount of information for the keynote alone would be overwhelming."
The team is also preparing live demonstrations during the event, though Yoshida noted these will be rough around the edges since they are still in active development.
"Since it's still in active development, with the UI currently in debug mode and all, it'll be much rougher around the edges than our previous live demos,"
Yoshida also hinted that some existing systems may be phased out or reworked in future updates.
"By the way, while we're announcing things for the distant future, there might be some elements that make you think, 'Does this mean this is going away?'"
The NA Fan Festival keynote is expected to outline a long-term roadmap, with more details and deeper dives planned for the later events in Europe and Japan.
"We intend to fully meet 100% of what you all expect from a typical Fan Festival, but please know that there will be more than just that."
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About FINAL FANTASY XIV Online
With over 30 million total registered players, FINAL FANTASY XIV is one of the most popular MMORPG games today. Since its relaunch in 2013 with A Realm Reborn, the game has enjoyed a stunning resurgence from the first expansion pack to 2021’s Endwalker™. Each expansion continues the epic tale that has spanned the past decade — a gripping saga of light against dark that has kept players coming back for more. The latest expansion release has players embarking on a brand-new adventure with the launch of Dawntrail™ on July 2, 2024.
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