Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail

Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail marks a turning point among all the expansions in the series. The environments feel fresh, the story features a central character you immediately empathize with, and the narrative includes a conflict you'll be eager to resolve. The beginning could be faster and more manageable, but each mission is rewarding and guides you to the story's core. The new jobs are entertaining, though the Viper can be challenging to level. Again, the music is excellent, but the dungeons and trials are much more difficult. It's a reboot that's well worth enjoying and experiencing.

Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail delivers in all the ways players should expect a FFXIV expansion to do so, and upped the quality bar with a graphical update that really makes it a beautiful expansion to explore. Long time players might find it to be a bunch of old stuff done up in a new way, it's in many ways an improvement from what's come before, and that's all I can ask for.

Dawntrail goes exactly where Final Fantasy XIV needed to go, experimenting with the player character's role in this world as its borders expand.

Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail is a fantastic expansion to the best single player MMO today. There were some hiccups during the game’s prerelease, but since launch, everything’s gone very smoothly. Even on launch day, when traffic was at its height, it only took me 30 minutes to log on, which is a vast improvement from Endwalker’s launch. If you’re curious about playing Final Fantasy XIV, you’ve got hundreds of hours ahead of you, before you make it to Dawntrail’s content. But if you’re at all curious, Final Fantasy XIV is a great introductory MMO, and one that puts its story first. I happily recommend Final Fantast XIV: Dawntrail to all JRPG fans.

Dawntrail is another excellent expansion for Final Fantasy 14. The story takes a while to get going, but once it's finished setting the scene it takes some pretty big swings in the second half that left us captivated. The dungeons are the best the game has ever had, the new Pictomancer class is an absolute joy to play, it's got incredible art design, and a soundtrack that's gorgeous. Here's to another 10 years of Final Fantasy 14.

Dawntrail is roughly the same game as Endwalker and the previous expansions, with a few minor nuances and differences. You may find that boring, but bottom line this is still the best you can find in the mmorpg field at the moment. In any case, it is more than enough for loyal players who are ready for new content.

Dawntrail’s story itself is a bit of a letdown, but the foundation has been laid for future expansions, and I know Creative Studio III can make the most of it. Meanwhile, the gameplay is fantastic, the graphics update is lovely, and the music continues to impress. Dawntrail may not reach the bar set by Shadowbringers and Endwalker, but it’s still a lot of fun to play.

Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail has changes in the direction of this MMO after 10 years of its initial release. Dawntrail has a slower pace, but once we get down to it, we will find everything that makes this title special.

Dawntrail is a great expansion with a story with ups and downs, but that sets the stage well for what could become the new Final Fantasy XIV saga. Furthermore, the improvements brought by the graphical update and the new combat mechanics prove that there is still a lot of potential to be explored in the future of the MMORPG.

After the masterful conclusion of Endwalker, Final Fantasy XIV leaves on new foundations with Dawntrail. Carried by its lighter tone and its endearing characters, it is in its second part that the adventure takes off, after a sluggish start and some less interesting passages. But more than anything, it is through its graphical update and its magnificent new areas that the experience wows us. With more exciting boss fights, two new fun jobs to play and plenty of comfort options, Dawntrail is an expansion that continues in the right direction instilled by Naoki Yoshida and his teams for over a decade. Hoping that the course is maintained in the next updates and expansions.

The main story has blips, but Tural is a wonderful world to explore and, importantly, creates a solid foundation for more FFXIV updates to come. [Issue#44, p.76]

In the end, Dawntrail does the job it needed to do by giving players the new adventure they need to get going once again. It takes a little while to get there, but when the payoff comes it shows how the narrative team behind Final Fantasy XIV is at hitting the emotional highs. The dungeons, boss fights, and location designs further demonstrate the team’s impressive ability to keep injecting fresh mechanics and sights to a fully matured title. It may ultimately be regarded as an expansion that keeps the game rolling rather than bringing it to a new level, but Dawntrail is a worthy continuation of Final Fantasy XIV’s line.

Dawntrail is by far the most complex expansion that Final Fantasy 14 has ever had to tackle: after concluding a ten-year-long story, it had to lay completely new narrative foundations, a goal it has only partially achieved. Similar to what happened with Stormblood, it suffers from much weaker writing compared to the usual standards and is particularly marked by significant pacing issues; however, it compensates with an exceptional "Battle Content" design, promising tons of satisfying encounters.

Quotation forthcoming.

Dawntrail ups the ante with exhilarating combat experiences and builds a stunning new world, but meandering storytelling highlights the MMO's flaws.