Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker is going out with a bang - kind of. It's not the end of the popular MMORPG, but it does conclude a decade-spanning story arc involving Hydaelyn and Zodiark, and it does this in an astounding and often surprising way. The latest expansion introduces new mechanics, improves on old ones, and packs in an impressive amount of world-building and storytelling for a character-driven narrative that aims to take players to the moon and back (literally). In most respects, Endwalker delivers - serving as a great expansion that rewards longtime fans while still paying plenty of attention to newer players.
FFXIV's previous expansion, Shadowbringers, was always going to be a tough act to follow. ittedly, the story in Endwalker doesn't start off with the same amount of immediacy and mystery that Shadowbringers did. For a game about the world ending, the earlier parts are pretty chill. Players will visit the beautiful India-inspired Radz-at-Han and Thavnair region, run around high society in Old Sharlayan, and explore numerous new zones from pretty early on. Villain Fandaniel shows up to monologue and taunt the party, but overall, the earlier parts of the game are all about exploration and getting to know these new areas and cultures. It also works to balance the darker story elements that take up the latter part of the Main Scenario Quest.
The game is gorgeous from the beginning, and the music is an instant highlight - adding quirky new themes that also harken back to motifs players have heard in previous Final Fantasy titles as well as in FFXIV. Endwalker's early dungeons, like The Tower of Zot, are nice callbacks to earlier FF games, and they're a great example of what the new expansion does so well: In many ways, this is a love letter to the entire Final Fantasy series. Bosses, characters, locations, and more are callbacks to previous entries like FF10, FF12, FF4, and FF3 - and that's only to name a few. People who haven't played these games won't be left in the dark, but these references are still nice winks and nudges to longtime fans.
Unifying a decade's worth of story (and possibly even a 35-year-old series) is a tall order, but it's handled incredibly well. Still, the real drive here is to see what happens with Zodiark and all the characters players have gotten to know along the way. There are so many narrative curveballs in Endwalker that the story never feels like a slog. Outside of a short period around level 85 of the MSQ, the story never felt like it dragged, and even then, there were plenty of surprises and new plot elements thrown in that it never felt too arduous. Perhaps more than any other FFXIV expansion, Shadowbringers has been lauded for its story - and Endwalker somehow manages to top it.
The story gets ittedly dark at times, but this is cleverly offset by sillier moments (like the cute, bunny-esque Loporrits being obsessed with carrots) and sweeter cutscenes (newcomer Meteion). What works so well is that these characters are not simply ancillary to the main plot but are actually vital to it. By the end of it all, players will have the adrenaline of hopping off a roller coaster mixed with the sadness of leaving a funeral. Endwalker knows how to handle its story and characters, and the writing has never been better.
In of characters, FFXIV: Endwalker introduces a new mechanic: letting characters run around with players outside of instances. It helps make the journey feel less lonely at times, but it's also the one part of the new expansion that doesn't quite work. Characters will follow the player in Endwalker, but the AI may lead them into the ocean or over a wall - or they may get stuck behind a crate, running but never going anywhere. It can be frustrating in certain quests, and sometimes the only solution was to run too far away from the character to get the dreaded "Duty Failed" notification and start again. It's a fun idea, but the execution needs a little work.
It gets worse when this mechanic is used for stealthy follow missions, in which players must keep a safe distance from the NPC and remain hidden at random times. There are rocks or trees nearby, but if they're noticed, they must start back at the beginning - a feature that gets rather annoying, rather fast. It doesn't help that this new mechanic gets overused, especially in the first half to the MSQ, but it thankfully plateaus a bit later on.
The two new jobs in Endwalker, Sage and Reaper, can be unlocked without getting into the new regions, and as usual, players will start under-leveled (level 70, rather than 80) at those jobs. It's a minor inconvenience - albeit, an expected one - and it's nice to finally see a new healer class in FFXIV. Thus far, it doesn't feel like either job brings too much new to the table, especially for players who already have a favorite job nailed down. Sage is somewhat interesting with its "damage to heal" mechanic, and Reaper looks incredibly cool, but once the shine wears off, it's entirely possible players will return to their longtime favorites. Still, it's been fun to experiment with these jobs and in of their respective roles, they work well.
FFXIV: Endwalker also has more story and cutscenes than previous expansions, a fact that's noticeable from the get-go. However, it never feels like too much. Some players may feel the urge to hit the "Skip" option, but none of the cutscenes felt overly long or packed in too close together. Players have invested a lot of time into the game and getting to know these characters, and the dialog and cutscenes never feel overstuffed (not even during some of Urianger's classic long-winded spiels or lore dumps in the last half of the MSQ). It often feels like a last hurrah with old friends, but the melancholy undertones are perfectly mixed with good old-fashioned camaraderie and happy moments that really emphasize why these worlds are worth saving.
Endwalker also shines by packing in story quests and experience that keeps the player where they need to be. In previous FFXIV expansions, there were times when a Duty Roulette or FATE grind was necessary to get up to the required level to continue on with the story, but that never happened in Endwalker. Between the MSQ, Aether Current quests, and finding new areas, the experience should always keep players at the required story level - or even ahead. New armor pieces and weapons are also constantly unlocked through the MSQ, so players should never feel like they're falling behind in of gear, either.
It's not just the MSQ and cutscenes that are bigger, though. Endwalker also covers a lot of literal ground, taking players all across the map to various countries and worlds. Pretty much every landmass that hasn't been explored in FFXIV yet makes its way into Endwalker, as well as a few surprising zones that help explore the past and flesh out FFXIV's deep lore. This can make for some uneven narrative beats and gameplay gaps - the tonal whiplash between Radz-at-Han, Labyrinthos, and Garlemalde early on, for example, took some getting used to - but Endwalker's globe-trotting adventure is almost exclusively enjoyable.
The gameplay improvements in Shadowbringers are in place for Endwalker as well, although some of the new changes (like no belts) feel like they don't really matter. Finding Aether Currents in new zones is still a headache, and most of the side quests are still just time sinks (unless someone is leveling an alt and needs the experience), but all of this is minor compared to the bigger picture. More than anything, players want to see how the Zodiark storyline ends, what happens to characters they've known for a decade, and what's in store for FFXIV once Endwalker's credits roll.
There are plenty of narrative and gameplay surprises thrown in along the way. Characters from the past reappear, and a twist about halfway through the narrative still feels shocking days later. Thankfully, it all pays off by Endwalker's ending. Fandaniel never quite hits the villainous high notes of Shadowbringers' Emet-Selch (arguably the best Final Fantasy villain in decades) and Zenos' return always felt a bit contrived, but these are only small gripes in a story and expansion that are both spectacular.
There's plenty of laughter and tears along the way, and Endwalker manages to send off the Zodiark and Hydaelyn saga on an incredibly high note. Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker is a real crowdpleaser, and it should also leave everyone hopeful for what the future has in store for the MMORPG, even if this expansion is going to be incredibly difficult to top.
Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker is available now on December 7, 2021 for PC, Mac, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5. Screen Rant was provided with a game time code for the purpose of this review.
Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker
