The MMORPG Final Fantasy 14 usually has a very friendly community, which has even received several awards for this very reason. Married gaming couples have now come together in a Reddit thread and are reporting on their experiences playing together.
There actually aren’t as many romantic elements in Final Fantasy 14’s story as you might think at first glance. At least the confirmed NPC pairs are mainly limited to side quests. But that doesn’t stop the game’s community from bringing their favorite characters together in fanart and fiction.
In the game’s subreddit, user SpaceCaseTrace asked what it felt like to play Final Fantasy 14 with a real partner. So far the thread has received over 150 comments with players sharing their experiences.
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“Don’t look at my screen” – the opposing couples
What experiences do the couples share? Many players write that although they play together with their partners, they are very different:
Reddit user lovelettersto says that the partner would play the main story very slowly while he almost sprinted through. They made a compromise: they play the MSQ together and dive into other content like PvP and Eureka for a change.
HorrorPotato happily talks about the completely different characters they would play: While HorrorPotato himself plays an Elezen at the maximum height, the husband has a Lalafell with the smallest possible height. He has also been a raider in World of Warcraft for many years, which is why he can help HorrorPotato in raids. However, when it came to the main story, they would have regularly shouted at each other, especially in Endwalker Early Access: Don’t look at my screen!
Dapperscanvenger’s husband, in turn, is absolutely funny to his partner: in Final Fantasy 14, he always collects the latest glamours (Final Fantasy 14’s transmog system) and puts them on his character. But then he also does real photo sessions. In reality, however, he would absolutely hate shopping and reportedly owns exactly 5 T-shirts and 3 pairs of jeans.
“We discuss which dialogue options we choose” – when the MSQ connects
In addition to the people who have very different playing styles, there are also many who bond over the long main story.
Reddit user Shadow0assassin0, for example, writes about his gaming experiences with his wife: We watch the cutscenes together and because the double sound makes it difficult to listen, we mute the laptop and only hear the sound from the television. We usually stop [wenn wir eine Antwort wählen dürfen] the playback and discuss which dialogue options we want to use for our characters. And then we synchronize the playback again by making the selection at the same time.
SendRamenNoodz says they have matching names in the game and that they often role-play together – in the game. They would send each other items – SendRamenNoodz, for example, sends his partner gear that was specially crafted and upgraded and gets fancy glamor and fish in exchange. They also enjoy the MSQ together – although the partner skips cutscenes and he doesn’t.
Final Fantasy 14 helped user Suruga_Monkey and his girlfriend feel close when they had to maintain a long-distance relationship. They started together in the game during the Heavensward expansion. To this day, they play the main story together.
“We met in the game” – From those who found love in the game
One or two couples who are now playing together didn’t start out together, but actually got to know each other in the game. Reddit user Iximaz says they met in the same static:
Iximaz filled the newly vacant position of white magician with her character Adalyn Keene. In fact, it was only because of their shared love for the character Haurchefant that things started working.
Ixima really raves about her boyfriend, who himself responds to the comment with a slight wink: “Wow, your boyfriend sounds damn cool.”
Iximaz’s probably not entirely serious answer: “As if you know anything about it, idiot.”
Final Fantasy 14 was most recently awarded the Golden Joystick Award for Best Game Community in 2022. Of course, things get a little rougher in this community from time to time. Mostly, however, she is known for her sometimes absurd ideas. For example: Final Fantasy XIV: Cat-Boy players meet for the alliance raid – and only in swimming trunks