Server congestion has gotten so bad in Final Fantasy XIV that the Standard and Complete Editions of the widely popular MMORPG have been temporarily pulled from the market. Since the game's revival with the launch of A Realm Reborn in 2013, the playerbase has been steadily rising. The acclaimed story had attracted a massive amount of fans, surpassing 16 million players ahead of Shadowbringers. Leading up to and throughout the release of the new Endwalker expansion, this year has seen a massive surge of players from other games in the genre. The recent deluge of adventurers and a lack of server space has caused publisher Square Enix to suspend the sale of Final Fantasy XIV for the immediate future.
Endwalker launched on December 7, 2021, and the frustratingly long queue to log into the game has not subsided. Ahead of the release, the development team made preparations for the population spike by increasing login caps and implementing a 30-minute AFK timer. This ensures that only active adventurers are playing and funnels more fans inside. They also optimized the servers to prioritize owners of Final Fantasy XIV over free trial users to help lower queue times. The global shortage of semi-conductors has prevented the development team from creating new Worlds to house their rising playerbase. While the situation is not ideal, fans have been given free game time due to recent server congestion as compensation. Game Producer and Director Naoki Yoshida addressed the decision to temporarily suspend the sale of the Standard and Complete Editions of Final Fantasy XIV online.
A post on The Lodestone on December 15, 2021 details Mr. Yoshida's response to the ongoing situation. Seven free days of game time were previously given out to players, but now adventurers will receive a total of fourteen days. He goes on to say, "we have decided to temporarily suspend the sale and delivery of Final Fantasy XIV Starter Edition and Complete Edition."
This decision was made after the servers continued to receive a massive influx of players. Based on previous expansions, the congestion subsides as adventurers log in at different times or finish the story. This has not been the case so far in Endwalker and frustration is growing among fans. Mr. Yoshida also reported that in some cases FFXIV's error code 2002 was a bug that "was part of a login-related program created back in version 1.0." The bug was identified and the fix will be rolled out in Patch 6.01 on December 21, 2021.
Free Trial Registration & The Sale Of FFXIV Are Temporarily Suspended
Unfortunately, no word was given on how long the Starter and Complete Editions of FFXIV will be unavailable for purchase. Free trial registrations are also suspended at the moment. However, existing players can still purchase digital upgrades for their accounts. To address some of the concerns about future updates, the post mentions that the Pandaemonium: Asphodelos (Savage) Raid in Patch 6.05 will still be released as scheduled.
Those looking to start their adventure in Eorzea will, unfortunately, have to wait a little longer until the temporary suspensions on new Final Fantsy XIV players have been lifted. In the meantime, fans can check out the expansive library of other great games Square Enix has published. For fans that have yet to purchase the game, they can look forward to enjoying the huge amount of content added in the free FFXIV trial when access returns. The borders to the world of Final Fantasy XIV may be closed for now, but they will open again in 2022.