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The December version update has come, and with it a number of changes and improvements, as well as all-new content! Updates include the release of notorious monsters and the guildleves calling for their eradication, a wide variety of new gear and items, and much more!

View all of the version update details.

I know you have probably read this already, but SE's bias against North American gamers always has them putting up their Lodestone news when I'm asleep like every other American. That aside, let's go over the December updates for FF14!

December Version Updates (12/14/2010)

As promised in the Topics post of December 10, we would today like to announce the date and content details of the forthcoming mid-December version update.

Date & Times

Wednesday, December 15, 2010 from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Contents

• New enemies, including notorious monsters
• New guildleves (Cool)
• Many new recipes (Only seems natural)
• Further improvements to the naming and organization of market wards
• An additional free retainer slot (About damn time, might I add)
• Improved response times on the retainer exchange interface
• Further improvements to the user interface (Anything here is a vast improvement)
• Increased text limit for chat log input (Should have been done long ago)

For a complete list of changes, please see the comprehensive details posted on the day of the version update.

Second December Version Update

The development team is continuing to take player feedback to heart concerning the item search feature of the market wards. We are currently aiming to introduce the first of several changes by year's end, and assure you that additional improvements will be ongoing in order to make a more intuitive and functional system.

Details regarding the date and content of the second December version update will be announced in a future Topics post.

Until then, we hope that you continue to enjoy your adventures in Eorzea!

What would any MMO be without its own Christmas-themed holiday? Even though FFXIV is a rather incomplete game, we still aren't going to be without holiday this year. Read on for all the cool details!

History

The history of Eorzea is a dark one, stained with the blood of those who have fallen victim to innumerable episodes of strife. Several generations ago, one such episode erupted into a series of battles that not only claimed countless lives, but left thousands homeless and without food. Yet none were hit harder than the children of Ishgard, who, in addition to being left hungry and alone, were forced to endure the chilling alpine winds of Coerthas in order to simply survive.

But it is oft said, the darker the history, the brighter the acts of good do shine.

Each night, while on their routine patrols of the city, a handful of Ishgardian knights would seek out these children and offer them room and board within the walls of their company barracks. This, of course, was strictly forbidden by the knight's charter, and so the kind men and women, many of them once orphans themselves, would disguise the children in the jackets of their scarlet uniforms, allowing them to slip into the building unnoticed.

After many months, the fighting eventually subsided and peace once again returned to the realm. As Ishgard rebuilt, the number of orphans in the city-state eventually dwindled back to zero, and soon the wartime tradition was all but forgotten...

Until a group of former orphans gathered together in order to pay tribute to the knights who rescued them, and ensure that no one ever forgot their remarkable deeds. On the coldest week of each year, they would dress up in brilliant scarlet uniforms and pass out gifts to the children of the realm, in turn, passing along the happiness that they once received on a starlit night, many years past.

And that tradition lives on today in the Starlight Celebration.



Duration



Wednesday, December 15th (4:00 p.m. PST) through Friday, December 31st (7:00 a.m. PST)

Receive a Little Happiness



Each city-state has put up decorations for the festival, including trees, arches, and bells. By ringing the bells at the following locations, holiday helpers known as Smilebringers will present adventurers with one of several gifts:





Bell Locations


There are tons and tons of bell locations, and aren't hard at all to find. If you are the slightest bit curious, check out the Lodestone Entry.

Gifts

• Powdered Sugar
• Young Dodo Roaster
• Dodo Stuffing
• Dream Hat Materials
• Dream Tunic Materials
• Dream Boots Materials
• Twinklebox

*Presents are available for pick up once every four hours (earth time), with up to six being held for each adventurer in the event that they cannot collect their gifts right away. For example, if an adventurer returns to a bell 20 hours after receiving their last present, there will be five new presents waiting.

Create a Little Excitement

Players can use the gifts they receive to create festive items such as lavish outfits, scrumptious holiday sweets, and more!



Give a Little Smile of Your Own



Embrace the giving spirit by surprising a friend or stranger with a newly crafted Starlight Celebration creation!


Receive a twinklebox? Why not pass it along to one of Eorzea's less-fortunate children? There are NPCs in each of the six hamlets collecting donations, and presenting good Samaritans with Dream attire.


*There are a total of three pieces to the Dream attire set. As they are not exclusive, players may possess more than one of each piece.

If you are dying to learn more about Notorious Monsters, wait and see what SE has in store for you today!

More on FFXIV Notorious Monsters

Monster Distribution

Further adjustments to monster territory are currently underway. In particular, significant changes are being made to the placement and population of aggressive monsters in relation to gathering points to better ensure that Disciples of the Land can log, fish, and mine without fear of attack.

New Monsters

The December version update marks the return of two FINAL FANTASY series favorites—goblins and flan.



Goblin

With their oddly shaped gas masks and over-sized packs, goblins are one of the most easily recognizable beast tribes in Eorzea. For generations, commerce between the city-states and goblins was commonplace, making up an important facet to the economy, until one day, the whole tribe simply up and left, abandoning their cities and leaving no indication of where they were going or when they would return. Now, several decades later, the quirky beast tribe of crafters and gatherers has begun its migration back into Eorzea, but are the five races ready for them?



Flan

The unique characteristics of this creature include a gelatinous outer-layer of protective flesh that can alter its aspect to varying elements depending on the flan's disposition, a gaping maw capable of devouring small land beastkin in a single swallow, and a pair of sinister eyes that some say can gaze straight into one's soul. The species is commonly classified as a voidsent, or not of this world; due to the flan's advanced cognitive abilities and its uncanny ability to mimic basic speech, however, there are some naturalists and scholars who believe the species may be actually related to man.

Notorious Monsters

In the past weeks, several topics posts were released detailing notorious monsters (NMs) that will be appearing in upcoming faction levequests. Today's post, however, will be covering those NMs not bound by guildleves; those NMs that roam unchecked through the wilds of Aldenard and Vylbrand. Some are simply large, while others are utterly towering. Some wield foul magicks, while others deliver devastating strikes. Some will only appear at certain times of the day, while others will wait for a certain type of weather before emerging. The one trait, however, that they all have in common is that their strength is "impossible to gauge," and therefore should not, by any means, be underestimated. Adventurers with the courage to take on these nefarious creatures should do so with the utmost caution...though, a few companions to even the odds would not hurt, as well, for only those who survive the challenge will reap the spoils that await.

Uraeus

Territory

Coerthas Eastern Lowlands
Drops

Uraeus Skin

Appearing in ancient religious manuscripts as loyal servant to the sun goddess, Azeyma the Warden, this peiste is unique in that its brilliant silver scales reflect the light, making it seem that the creature is constantly emitting a radiant glow. Many a hunter has set out into the mountains in pursuit of this scalekin's rare skin, only to succumb to the monster's razor-sharp fangs, nail-like claws, and lethal poison.



Great Buffalo

Territory

Western La Noscea
Drops

Bloody Lance Head

Thought to be an ancient relative of the common water buffalo, great buffalo have an average lifespan of over three hundred years and can grow to a height of over six yalms. During the Age of Endless Frost, enormous herds of these colossal beastkin, would migrate back and forth across the frozen wastes in search of forage, but climate change, hunting, and disease has caused their numbers to gradually dwindle, and now only a few of the hoary creatures are known to remain on Vylbrand. Their thick hides are almost impossible to penetrate, and it is rumored that the weapons of champions unsuccessful in felling the beasts can sometimes be found still lodged under the shaggy coats.



Dodore

Territory

Mor Dhona
Drops

Dodore Wing

The unmatched wit and cunning of this cyclopean ahriman has earned him a hoard of loyal minions who follow Dodore as he wreaks his havoc on the countryside. While the common classification for ahriman is voidsent, that has not prevented some rogue scholars to proclaim that Dodore's supple Hyur-like flesh and single Lalafell-like eye proves the creature is a chimera, begotten in some dark laboratorium by the blasphemous experimentations of a twisted thaumaturge.



Elder Mosshorn

Territory

Western Thanalan
Drops

Mossy Horn

For reasons unknown to naturalists, there are certain aldgoats which do not display the short, two-decade lifespans that are most commonly exhibited in their cousins. For this they are given the name mosshorn aldgoat, and can be easily recognized not only by their enormous size, but also their beautifully curved horns, which are said to collect colonies of moss over the many years of their growth. What is even more intriguing, is that these aldgoats will often become "aware" that they are different early in their lives, and leave their respective packs in search of other mosshorns.

There are actually a few announcements from SE, but they are ultra important to all FFXIV players out there.



A New Director at the Helm

Thank you for your continued interest in and support of FINAL FANTASY XIV.

While more than two months have passed since the official launch of FINAL FANTASY XIV service, we deeply regret that the game has yet to achieve the level of enjoyability that FINAL FANTASY fans have come to expect from the franchise, and for this we offer our sincerest of apologies.

After thorough deliberation on how to meet those expectations, it was decided that the most viable step was to approach improvements under new leadership and with a restructured team.

To realize this vision, and in doing so, provide our customers with a better game experience, we have assembled our company's top talent and resources. Taking over the role of producer and director is Naoki Yoshida, a passionate individual for whom customer satisfaction has always taken top priority. Not only is he one of our Group's most accomplished and experienced members, Naoki Yoshida is also a charismatic leader possessing the skill to bring together and effectively helm a team which encompasses a wide range of responsibilities. We also welcome several new leaders handpicked from other projects to work with the existing talent on FINAL FANTASY XIV.

We realize time is of the essence and are fully determined to provide our customers with quality service. It is because of this that we ask our customers to be patient until we are able to confidently present them with a concrete plan outlining FINAL FANTASY XIV's new direction. The free trial period will be extended until that time.

Regarding the PlayStation 3, it is not our wish to release a simple conversion of the Windows version in its current state, but rather an update that includes all the improvements we have planned. For that reason, we have made the difficult decision to delay the release of the PlayStation 3 version beyond the originally announced date of March 2011.

The FINAL FANTASY XIV team is working hard to bring our customers an unparalleled adventure, and we ask for your continued understanding and support as we march ever diligently towards that goal.

President and CEO, Yoichi Wada

Changes to the Development Team and Much More

The development and management teams would like to make an announcement regarding personnel changes.

[Organizational Changes to the Development Team]
To improve the service of FINAL FANTASY XIV, Square Enix has made the following changes to the development team:

Managerial Changes

Producer/Director
Naoki Yoshida

Section Leader Changes

Assistant Director
Shintaro Tamai (FINAL FANTASY X, Front Mission 5: Scars of the War)

Lead Game Designer
Nobuaki Komoto (FINAL FANTASY IX, FINAL FANTASY XI)

Lead Combat System Designer
Akihiko Matsui (FINAL FANTASY XI)

Technical Advisor
Yoshihisa Hashimoto (Next Generation Game Engine Development)

Lead Programmer
Hideyuki Kasuga (FINAL FANTASY XI, DIRGE OF CERBERUS -FINAL FANTASY VII-)

Senior Concept Artist
Akihiko Yoshida (FINAL FANTASY XII, Vagrant Story)

Lead Artist
Hiroshi Takai (FINAL FANTASY XI, THE LAST REMNANT)

Lead UI Designer/Lead Web Designer
Hiroshi Minagawa (FINAL FANTASY XII, Vagrant Story)

These members will make up the development team's new core-a core dedicated to ensuring we achieve a level of enjoyability that will more than satisfy our customers. Under a schedule of more frequent version updates, the new leaders and their respective sections will strive for continued improvements to FINAL FANTASY XIV service operation and development.

[Extension of the Free Trial Period]

As stated above, the newly restructured team's top priority is to bring about improvements to the game's enjoyability, and therefore we have decided to extend the free trial period until we can provide a plan that outlines a level of enjoyment that will satisfy both us and our customers. When we are confident that we have reached that goal, we will notify our customers immediately.

[Future Version Updates]

At present, the development team is putting the finishing touches on the previously announced version update, which is still slated for release in mid-December. In addition, there is one more version update scheduled for release before year's end. Details on the content and dates of these updates will be released in the near future.

[Delay of the PlayStation 3 Version Release]

Although the release date for the PlayStation 3 version of the game was previously announced as late March of 2011, we regret to inform that this date has been changed.

The PlayStation 3 release will be delayed until we are confident that the game has reached the level of enjoyability and service befitting the FINAL FANTASY name for users on all supported platforms. We offer our sincerest apologies to any fans anticipating the PlayStation 3 release, and humbly ask for your continued patience and understanding as both the development team and Square Enix as a whole strive towards making FINAL FANTASY XIV a truly enjoyable and unforgettable adventure.

[New Development Team Policy]

I would like to take this opportunity to greet all of you—those currently playing FINAL FANTASY XIV, those who have taken a respite from playing, and those awaiting the PlayStation 3 release—and offer a brief word by way of an introduction.

No doubt there are very few, if any, among you who have ever heard the name Naoki Yoshida. To be sure, I have never been in the fore on any of the titles I have worked on in the past. I am, however, honored and privileged to work alongside many talented and inspiring colleagues, and with their support have enjoyed making games for a number of years. I am aware that a great many people will think the responsibility of leading FINAL FANTASY XIV is far too large a task for someone so unknown. After all, even my very best may seem no more than a drop in the bucket when considering the sheer scope of FINAL FANTASY XIV. But working together with me are the very talented and very capable development and management teams, whose dedication and motivation are unwavering. I would like to ask you to please put to rest uncertainties that you may have.

Now, more than ever, myself, the development team, and Square Enix as a whole, are committed to furthering our efforts to provide a quality service.

Everything we do will be for our players and customers.

FINAL FANTASY XIV Producer/Director, Naoki Yoshida

Goodbye Tanaka, You Probably Won't Be Missed

First of all, I would like to apologize for our inability to fully satisfy our users with the initial release of FINAL FANTASY XIV. I take full responsibility for the game's current situation, and have therefore made the decision to step down from my role as producer. A number of concerns that have been voiced by users, such as the design of the user interface, availability of tutorials and game content, and battle system functionality, represent key issues that must be addressed. While improvements are already well underway in many areas, we were unfortunately not able to incorporate player feedback as quickly as we would have liked. We are aware, however, that in many cases, addressing these issues will call for a reworking of game elements. As these changes are our first priority, they will be commanding our full attention and efforts. It is to that end that we have put a new organizational structure into place for the development team. Under this new system, FINAL FANTASY XIV will see changes and additions in line with the desires and expectations of players. Though no longer producer, I will be continuing to support the development team in other capacities, and personally hope that you will continue your adventures in the realm of Eorzea.

Hiromichi Tanaka

Well there you have it. In my opinion, I think Lead Game Designer Nobuaki Komoto was totally off the hook, but maybe that's just me. I wish Mr. Yoshida good luck with his newfound position - in the game's current state he definitely has his work cut out for him.