Tried it in 2003, not too bad. played white mage and bard to around 40. then i tried it again in later 2008. my god almost nothing has changed in 5 years. how is that possible? if anyone has read the developer interviews, they refused to change anything that would "make it too easy." what in gods name is enjoyable about being raped by a reskinned lizard. yeah, the community is nice, but the absolute refusal to make improvements to the game is what turned me off. i mean those developers were jerks about it too, they wouldn't even consider changes.… Expand

Masochistic. Honestly it is just that; the game was heavily created around community when it first released. Don't get me wrong MMOs are suppose to be about people helping one another; but when you start forcing people to do just about everything together plus throw in grinding and deleveling, those are ingredients for disaster. From levels 1-12 that took around 8 hours to gain. After that you are off to the dunes (that is if you could safely make it there. No you can not ride a Chocobo there; because the license to ride one is level 20). Once there, depending on server you might have a long wait for a party. Back then if you happened to be half way to the next level while other party members were only at 10,100 or even 300 into a level you would not be considered into a party. Why? Because after you have leveled your newly gained leveled just half others exp while you wanted to gain an exp buffer. If the people allowed you to stay and dwarf their exp you would be considered lucky. It would be rather hard to find another party with in your level and exp range. Thus started the waiting game. To which people decided to quit, tried to solo on their own or simply play Beastmaster. Adding insult to injury Chains of Promathia also frustrated people. It was hard to find people; let alone wanting to be picky about what kind of people you wanted helping you do missions for that expansion pack. People weren't willing to help out with missions if you weren't popular in one level another. During my 1 year and 11 months absents the game introduced Fields of Valor which introduced training Regime. Which is very nice when one can not find a party or they do not have time to stand around to wait for an invite. With players running around occupying areas leveling their adventuring fellow and low spawn rates it makes it rather hard to enjoy using the field manual pages to gain exp better. Can't really complain, but better spawn rate could fix that issue. If field manual isn't one's cup of tea then level sync can help with find a party; without worry about dwarfing the rest of the party's exp. Looking at these things and noticing how nice they are and a welcome to the game, it makes a person wonder; why wasn't this here before? Had it been there before WoW wouldn't exactly be tooting their own horn about the massive amount of players.… Expand

This game is recommended for gamers who have no life. The gameplay and the interface is great and so is the community; but the amount of time that you'll have to devote to this game just isn't worth it. I will say this though: FFXI is alot more fun and in-depth than anything that I can compare it to. I just don't like how it consumes years of your life to get anywhere in the story.

I bought this game with all expansions for only $7 and I feel totally ripped off. The PlayOnline system you have to use is clunky and annoying, and takes far too long to get setup, and has annoying music that can't be stopped. The Game itself has horrendous graphics, bad controls, and virtually no configurable options. This is the worst game I have ever played in my life, and I feel totally ripped off.… Expand

Final Fantasy XI looks nice and has some cool features. There are some things that holds it back. The low level hunting areas are always camped, a free for all that would try anyone's patience. The penalty for death is steep, especially losing a level on a death. This is made more glaring by the difficulty running away from a fight, it seems that the creature will follow you for miles. The interface and keyboard config is very difficult to get used to. It appears that there is no way to reconfig your keyboard to the way you like either, i would LOVE to be corrected on this one. All that aside, FF XI looks and sounds good. The gameworld feels enormous how enormous remains to be seen. Battle is a solid experience minus the inescapability and you feel accomplished when you level as it is not easy or short. The integrated auction feature that allows players to put up items for auction while attending to other things is ingenious. The gameworld never feels empty as there are constantly players around and on the go. While things may seem awefully crowded a lot of the time, a decent computer setup won't even blink at the load even at high resolutions. The wheel was not reinvented with Final Fantasy XI, but it sure provides a smooth and entertaining ride. … Expand

I have always been a fan of the Final Fantasy franchise, and curious of the MMORPG subculture, where even the most normal and very intelligent lose touch with the world outside their 17" LCD monitors. Sooo, Final Fantasy XI was my highly anticipated opportunity to regress into my own computer screen. Initially it was fun (<30 hrs gameplay), but it became tiresome and routine soon thereafter. It takes an incredible amount of time to level, missions are extensive but rewards are lacking, and monsters are mockingly repetitive. MMORPGs have incredible potential, but they do not cater to the occasional gamer, they are stricly for the hardcore (>28 hrs gameplay/week), all the best to you if you wish to devote yourself to hardcore gaming endeavors, but don't waste your life on FFXI.… Expand

let me just state that i love this game. I have played it on and off since the release date I own it on the PC and Xbox 360 and i love the community. It is not a WoW game You need to form a party to level up once you hit 11-13 or you are in for a long haul. Great game and I wont stop playing it unless FF14 is as great as i think it will be.

I have played FFXI for about 2 years. The Game does not run above 30FPS no matter how good your PC is. The game is very time consuming and requires 2-3 people to accomplish anything minor and 6-8 for anything more serious. There is a lot of cultural diversity on the servers with Japanese, French, German, British, South and North American players. Japanese players usually want nothing to do with English speakers so forget asking for help from them. Square Enix is working on FF XIV online which will basically be the same game except more WoW-like. In 2 years I was able to level 3 Jobs to LvL75 as well as about 6-8 subjobs to 37. Completed Chains Of Promathia, almost completed Rise Of Zilart and Completed Aht Urgan Missions as well as nation missions. All with a LOT of help. If you plan making any progress in this game, you HAVE to make A LOT of friends. Good Luck.… Expand

Bought it in 2005 and played for 3 years straight, retired a little over a year now… It is still to this day (7 years after launch) the best MMO out there. Has challenging and strategic game play that is completely superior to all other MMOs. It has awesome character design from a well respected and established artist from FFVIII, unbelievable music from another well established, multi award winning Square Composer. 24 jobs (last time I checked) that are perfectly balanced, and can be strategically combined, which is also an aspect that no other MMO developer has even attempted to implement. Very cool community that are more than willing to help. Yes, they become somewhat elitist and arrogant in end game, but are still very professional and accommodating to a fellow players. I actually learned some visual basic coding from creating Macros in this game, that I later took and used in my work place which got me transferred to the IT department. Yes… the game really has that much depth to it. It is difficult though, and it will drain your time if you’re not careful. There’s actually a disclaimer every time you log in warning you not to put your real life aside to play the game. Anyone who claims that other MMOs are anywhere near the same level as FFXI, I just classify in with the many who suffer from impaired judgment on quality from wading through the sewers of hack MMO after hack MMO.… Expand

First, the graphics are beautiful, and there are good low performance options if you can't handle all the high performance ones. The economy is innovative with an auction system, always-accesible player bazaars, and lots of balance it seems so far; you don't have an tough time getting gear and spells from the get go like in some other MMOs. As far as the server blunder, I think Square made a mistake with the World Pass system. I also thought that having nonsegregated servers would be a mistake because level 70 Japanese players would run every server. But that isn't true. They're mostly very nice, and you can occasionally get to group with one who is building up their advanced class. Finally, what I see Square doing is it is combining the most popular elements of each highly successful online RPG to date. From UO there is quasi-housing, or Mog Houses, point based skill advancement that seems to be a combination if EQ/UO with both skill levels and points, and a nice transportation system that seems very very cool - airships, chocobos, awesome! From EQ there is, of course, level based advancement, a very group conducive hunting system, a similar spell system, and hopefully big boss fights. And from DAoC there is RvR competition (not combat at least, yet). As far as Square's own innovations, I think the job system with subclasses, advanced jobs, and support classes is a great original innovation. And I'm sure there is more. Square has, once again, unsurprisingly, delivered. Best series ever + Best genre ever has to lead to something good :) … Expand

No MMO can surpass the beauty, depth, and addictiveness of FFXI. The game is over 8 years old, is is still going strong. In fact, there's more people playing now then there ever have been. The graphics are showing age, but you simply cannot find another MMO with characters and environments as beautiful and well-designed as those in FFXI. The combat isn't your average MMO combat, but more of a real-time system made to seem turn-based. It takes some getting use to, but it allows for more strategy than faster-paced combat. The sound is this game is jaw-dropping. The sound effects are well-done, but the music is just gorgeous. There are hardly any games(not just MMOs) that can match the quality of music in this game, except some very high-budget games, and the other Final Fantasy games. The story is of the same quality Final Fantasy fans have come to love, and surpasses some other Final Fantasy games, despite being a MMO. As of right now, you can buy the game for $20, which includes every single expansion pack(they're not making any more expansions), and all three mini-expansions. Paying $20 for the game with 1 month free, and then $12 per month after that, you will be hard-pressed to find any form of entertainment of this quality, for such a low price. Worth every penny.… Expand

Awesome, thats it just plain Awsome...

FFXI is a solid, beautiful MMORPG set in an FF setting. My only real gripes with the game are that it lacks any sort of PVP element and some battle areas have a disjoint mix of very hard and very weak enemies (and there's not enough slots to sell stuff at the Auction House). Note: it is possible to change your keyboard settings - it's in Settings ingame.

This is the best MMORPG around, and its soooo under rated.

Best game ever made IMHO. Still keeps me entertained after 3 years.

Worst interface I've seen in years. Very user-hostile (-3 points). Console level graphics (ie very poor, low res, low poly). On large monitors every thing is blurred. In game visibility is very low, with objects being largely just blobs at 10+ virtual yards. This is with every game provided graphic setting maxed (-1 point). Combat system painfully boring (-1 point). The no-return policy (due to the one register and you're out scheme used) is a big negative as well (-2 points). I'd have to agree with a previous poster, all the glowing reviews have to be due to the name on the box.… Expand

The user-interface takes some getting used to, but the game itself is polished, bug-free, lag-free, and because it's been out for a year in Japan, it's fleshed out with content. The one aspect that sets FFXI above other MMORPGs is the skillchain system that can be used at higher levels.

Not only a fantastic endeavor of gorgeously detailed graphics and strategic gameplay, but a true success in terms of multiplayer comradely. Time consuming as it is, you won't feel like a seconds been wasted after playing it. If you want a tactical, fun, and vastly open-ended game, look no further. FFXI allows the complete game experience to any one character!

It is the best game I ever played!!!!

Haven't played a final fantasy game that was worst than this since Mystic Quest. The battle system needs work, if this game wasn't called final fantasy most people would recognize the many errors that are encountered. The battle system is the most irritating part of this game, don't bother running away, monsters will hit you no matter how far you run; I know this from experience as i see players wiped out from monsters that appear right next to them from out of nowhere. Annoying instances you will also encounter are monsters that will appear from nowhere as you are resting, some will even appear during a current battle, usually resulting in a death if you are too weakened to fight. I agree that this game is beautifully created, but what's more important, a good solid bug free gameplay or pretty graphics with battle glitches that you pay for every month? … Expand

Greatest game ever made!!!!!

the gameplay is great, with a good system the graphics are beautiful, and the only issue there seems to be is everyones "cookie cutter" ideas of "the best" leveling spots, for any given level range there is prolly 4-8 areas to level... just because someone tells you you have to go doesnt mean you do.... anyways.. great game and good if you have friends and find good parties =D playing over a year and a half now , tried VG tried EQ2 and WoW came back to this everytime.... hehe =)… Expand

Simply the best MMO out there. A lot of people played it when it was new and were turned away by it's lack of content, but it has had seven years to grow and expand, and continues to get better over time.

Jack Attack must be confused. Besieged, Campaign, Level Sync, & Fields of Valor are all new systems added since 2003 that fix a lot of the complaints people had about the game. IMO if FFXi were released as a new game today, it would be the WoW killer. Trouble is, it is a 7 year old game; people like Jack Attack that played it in 2003 aren't willing to give it a 2nd chance and new players aren't willing to try an older game.… Expand

This is by far the best game i have ever played its most addicting, nice graphics, good storylines, and awsome chars and spells and specialskills too.everyone should play......NOW!

I started playing this game around the time the Xbox360 version came out. It is a lot of fun. You will have to do a lot of grinding. It will take you a lot longer to get to lv75 then it does it WoW for example. If you get find a group of people that play around the same time as you and can communicate well with since the amount of people playing has gone down. Use level sync and the fields of valor and the other new things they have added and you can still get to 75. Don't take the easy way out and get into a SMN burn and get to 75 and have no idea how to play your job correctly.… Expand

The Final Fantasy XI is SUCK... I downloding for Steam.. but i did pay for it... Its cost me $9.99 to Downloding Final Fantasy XI. Then After that.. I created my username on Final Fantasy XI.. Its need my Card to payment.. Oh man.. Its wasting my money to playing this game.. and Its not Free Online.. Oh man. I want my money back for Final Fantasy XI.. Its wasting my money........... **** THIS Final Fantasy XI...........................................… Expand

This game was my introduction to MMOs and as many I came to it simply because I was a fan of the series. I have to say I do not regret getting it and playing it for nearly 4 years. I made many friends and had so many great nights and moments. This game is a "hardcore" MMO done right.

With the advent of Abyssea, as well as experience being roughly doubled in non-Abyssean areas, experience points flow like spice and it no longer takes months to get a job to the level cap, it could be done in mere weeks. A lot of the past complaints seen in people's reviews have been fixed. Monsters do not immediately attack after spawning, instead having several seconds of "summoning sickness" where they will not attack, giving you time to get away. No, the graphics are not as shiny as other MMOs. Yes, there is a sharp learning curve when it comes to the game. It doesn't matter, because FFXI is for a breed of relentless gamer that will pursue everything they can. ... and just because the level cap is higher and more people get there faster doesn't mean the game is easier. Level 90 people STILL fail at Dynamis, die at the hands of certain Notorious Monsters, or just plain get whomped on for overestimating themselves. It's taken some time, but all those changes we wanted? We're getting - and it took long enough.… Expand

One of the best mmorpg i played (and i played a lot of them). The graphics are old now (a game launched in 2001)... and a game that not everyone will like... But the variety of gameplays are one of the most wide there was in a mmorpg (fishing, gardening, craft, fights, chocobo races,...ect....ect...). Many gameplay ideas was very creative/original when it was launched... and some are still today. I see 2 major points that could be very negative for some players : - It's a strongly team oriented mmorpg. At some level it become nearly impossible to play solo. - you can't move freely in the world. Some areas are composed in majority of corridors (external areas i mean)... you can't fall from a hill or a bridge...ect...ect... There will be plenty more things to say on this game... but to conclude and resume, i'll say : FFXI is a definitly not Mainstream mmorpg. It seem logic to me that most players will love it... or hate it… Expand

It is a masterpiece of gaming.

PERFECT!!!! If you can't escape a beast, just CHECK it before the fight.

A solid effort, just don't set your standards too high because this game doesn't re-invent the genre. Just because you might like other FF games doesn't mean you'll like this one; it's totally different.

Boring.

I enjoy being able to use different kinds of classes and a large varity of weapons/armor/magic/ect. And the world is beautifully made.

I love it. better than all others.

Hi, i'm one of the players of Final Fantasy XI,she's a fantastic game!,iwould vote to it as the finest game i've ever seen,thank you!

Well even if other poeple don't like this game i do. for all you ff freak's out there this game is a must. And if you like Star War's better then maybe you should just keep playing that instead.^^ See ya on Diablos^^

This game is as close to perfect as any PC game can come. Its constant updates will keep the game interesting for years to come. And to roger m., he OBVIOUSLY has a cheap video card and takes out his poor financial state like so...

I think that this game deserves a 10 because it's the first out of the series to be online and it wasn't forced out quickly just because they wanted it to be out. They actually put some thought into the game, and it's well designed and just a great game to play =)

This game rules. It's what I would expect from Square. I'm Squares #1 fan.

Mage's are col, cat people rule, whoever hates this game has to be a fool... Nice rhyme, huh 8O coolvile dadio (all cool like).

I play it constantly...Its really good....I have 15 days playtime on it so far.

I love how the low posts concentrate on graphics. I won't even get into the fact that you just might need a better computer. I'll agree with the difficulty to get your money back for playing, except for the free month. In addition, every MMORPG is this hard to stop playing. Anyway, This game is SO much more than graphics. Its got so much team efforts going around, there is no comparison. The gameplay FAR supersedes any flaw you may think it has with graphics.… Expand

It's very good.

this game is the most amzing game ever they did somin grate still a bit repetitive but still amazing if i only could play it right now i woould be on 24 freaking 7.

Best online game EVER!!! is there anything more to say?

The best MMO since AC. Only forced grouping after level 10 drops the score from a ten.

* Smooth launch. * High quality. * Standard (tried and true) game mechanics. Probably one of the best put-together MMPs out there.

It's pretty and well animated. But in a genre that desperately needs new gameplay ideas, it doesn't have any. The same ol', same ol' with a lousy interface.

In the beginning.. the game lags... but as you gain exp... it slowly gets more and more interesting... give it time and it WILL grow on you... I love it now...

This game rocks, who ever the joker is that gave it a 5 is stupid, he must not know how to SKILLCHAIN!!!!!!!!! Skillchaining is were its at folk the explosions and magic burst are cool, and you get a good group you wouldnt have to run away!!!!

Complex game that will drive the some idiots back to FPS where they belong. If people can't figure out the keyboard, then maybe they should quit using computers hehe.

I compare it to Asheron's Call that I played for four years. FFXI graphics is much better. It actually looks like I'm watching an anime cartoon on TV (gotta have the right vid card to experience that). That took it to a vote of 11, however, the interface is terribly keyboard controlled instead of ez-click-mouse-action (-2). The critters are very much turn-based and not much of a variety to choose from -up to tedious leveling to level 10 (-1). The music, battle sounds and action sounds stinks and I keep speakers off (-1). as an adult player, I would give it another -1 for being so childish (no blood and guts, pain and fear) just a smiling face hitting the ground and disappearing. It seems like a cute game for kids only. For us hardened gamers though it's not much of a thrill other than watching pretty crystal synthesis and say "oops it failed" :) I will stick with it a bit longer before I fall back to my beloved action packed Asheron's Call.… Expand

If the game seems fast but the graphics aren't good enough for you, go ahead and turn up the settings even higher. Click on the windows Start button, Programs, PlayOnline, FINAL FANTASY XI, FINAL FANTASY XI Config. The only option you need to change is the Background Resolution which changes the quality of both the characters and terrain. My game graphics went from pixelated to crisp just by changing that one setting.… Expand

This game rocks.

My experience pretty much mirror's Mike's. All the same plus's and minus's. I however give it a 9 as you can get used to the clunky interface. Mobs chasing you to the end of the world is a problem. I'm half expecting to see a Goblin Butcher waiting for me in my house when I get back to Bastok. "thought you could outrun me huh?"

THIS IS A REALLY GOOD GAME. With that being said the game has several STRONG aspects, but it is far from perfect. That is why I gave it a 9. This does not meant it will stay a 9 for ever. They are still improving the game with patches to fix the minor glitches it has. So just be patient. As far as the people who give this game a bad wrap, they obviously suck at the game, plus they suck at all games and they should not even be allowed to utter the word "game."… Expand

I was very addicted to the game from 2002-2005, then quit playing around level 45 when the grind got to hard. I was excited to see the Ultimate Collection on Steam and thought it would be fun to experience the awesome grouping mechanics and sense of accomplishment this game alone could offer. However, I quickly remembered the inanity of the Playonline system and antiquainted keyboard playstyle, and couldn't bring myself to even bother trying to level my taru. I went ahead an uninstalled, and suggest you think hard before dropping any money on this dinosaur. FF 14 will be out next year, and I'm hopeful it will keep the rewarding parts of FFXI and ditch the old antiquainted grinding and ridiculous game mechanics and registration systems.… Expand

The entire game is held back by its console heritage. It's far too grindy. Only hardcore fans of JRPGs can find this garbage fun. If my friend hadn't bought it for me, I wouldn't have even tried it. Thankfully he had another friend that wanted the account because after 16 hours I couldn't bring myself to double click the launcher.

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I tried this game upon recommendation from a friend I have played lots of MMO's and my friend literally waxed lyrical on how good this game was so when the game became available for 9.99 on steam for the game with all the expansions i bit the bullet and bought it. After going through the ridiculously over complicated system of signing up for a account i logged into the game made a character (warrior class) and tried to get into the game. The first disappointment for me was the overcomplicated and terribly unfriendly User Interface.I bought the game without a instruction booklet from steam so imagine my dismay at the lack of a in game help search!!!! There is a help desk to contact customer services but no in game help searchable database ? The whole menu system didnt make any sort of sense to me or flow at all. The very fact you seem to have to use a keyboard for everything didn't help me to bond with the game......The graphics were terribly blocky (even after maxing the settings) i did do a search in google and made some registry tweaks to make it run on a wide-screen resolution which helped a lot (but should a user have to do this to make a game work ?). Levelling in game seems to take a age which isnt a bad thing and but after fighting one monster / foe you need to rest for 2 to 3 un-needed waste of minutes meditating to gain your health back to be able to attack again. I have tried to like this game for my friends sake but maybe the fact i have been spoilt by other MMO's or just the fact that i have given up due to sheer frustration , has left me with a bitter taste towards this game and the time and money i have wasted on it. I would recommend this game for die hard fans of the final fantasy genre only.… Expand

game did not age well.. boring and a huge time sink.. Other players have been playing for years and so it is hard to find people who want to group with a new player.. the fact that the game still requires a monthly subscription and looks like it comes from the 90s lead to the low score. I grew up with final fantasy and have played many mmos and this is by far one of the overall weakest mmos still running.. does not deliver a good value in terms of time or money spent.… Expand

Let me preface this review by saying that I was warned about this game by a friend, and decided to take the plunge anyway, because it was on sale. I am writing this review in an attempt to prevent you from wasting your time and money the way that I have. I have been playing video games since 1984, but Square-Enix has achieved something with this game that no other developer I have seen has been able to achieve. They made this game impossible to log in to. I guess that's easy money for them, less update money and what not. First you download the game, easy so far. Then you are informed you must make a play online account. After a maze of button clicking and applications, you achieve that. Then they inform you that you must transfer your Play online account to a Square-Enix account. After an even lengthier search and application process, you achieve that. Then you are told that you need to obtain a content ID, but not told how do do that. After hours of searching and doing general searches on Google, I was able to create a Click to buy account, after more application process. The parent company for Click to Buy is based in EU, so my credit card account was frozen at this point. A call to the credit card company unfroze my card, and after more work, I was able to confirm my account. I then attempted to log onto the game again, and was still told that I had no "content ID". At this time I re-entered all of my game codes and double checked all of my accounts, all of which appear to be in order. When a third attempt to log onto the game came out with the same results, I contacted "customer service" (yes, I put that in quotations for a reason) and have been waiting for about the last 24 hours for a response. I also forgot to mention that my wife was hoping to play as well, but Click to Buy won't allow her to create an account unless she has a credit card under her own name, so even if I figure this out, I would probably have to get a second credit card under her name, so she can set up her own account. I have spent somewhere around 12 hours, over the last 72 hours, involved with this process, and appear to be no closer to resolving the issues. Meanwhile, my 30 day free period, that comes with the game purchase, is being used up and I still haven't even made it to character creation. If you have any love for your own sanity, avoid this game the same way you'd avoid a cracked out transient hooker with obvious STD's. Believe me, the only way that this game would be worth your while, is if they paid you for all the time and irritation you're going to experience trying to get it to run! My friend tells me that this is only the beginning, and that after you start playing, you'll wish it never had started working. Long story short, play WoW, you can be up and running in the time it takes to load up and create a character, and you won't need therapy afterward so that you can re-enter society without screaming obscenities at passersby, because of the pent up tension and aggravation!… Expand