Until 9am on May 26 PDT (2am on May 27 AEST / 4am on May 27 NZST), you can get the Starter Edition of Final Fantasy XIV Online on PlayStation 4 for free, and it’s yours to keep.
Final Fantasy XIV Online: Starter Edition comes with everything from Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, the acclaimed FFXIV relaunch from 2013, as well as a 30-day subscription. That means you’ll be able to play up to level 50, with access to the initial range of jobs—Paladin, Warrior, White Mage, Scholar, Summoner, Black Mage, Bard, Dragoon, Monk, and Ninja. It covers a wide range of dungeons and raids that are home to iconic Final Fantasy bosses like Ifrit, Shiva, and Bahamut, and you can also journey through the 24-person Crystal Tower raid, inspired by Final Fantasy III.
Final Fantasy XIV Online: Starter Edition also comes with the full A Realm Reborn story, including additional story elements added through subsequent updates prior to the game’s first expansion. Final Fantasy XIV is one of the best examples of storytelling in an MMORPG; if anything, it feels like playing a classic Final Fantasy game, only with occasional interactions with other players (and if you don’t like MMOs, you can keep those interactions to a minimum).
Being a subscription-based game, you’ll need to pay for a sub if you want to keep playing past the 30 days included with the Starter Edition. Subscriptions cost USD $12.99 / €10.95 per 30 days for the Entry Tier (which limits you to one character per server and eight total), or USD $14.99 / €12.95 per 30 days for Standard Tier (eight characters per server and 40 total). Standard Tier also has options to buy 60, 90, or 180 days at once, which works out slightly cheaper per month.
If you want to keep playing past level 50, and into the new content added by Final Fantasy XIV‘s three expansions, you’ll need to purchase Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers (which includes both the first two expansions, Heavensward and Stormblood, as well). This will let you level up to level 80, use the Dark Knight, Astrologian, Machinist, Samurai, Red Mage, Gunbreaker, Dancer, and Blue Mage jobs, and access new areas and features like flying mounts and swimming.
Final Fantasy XIV is one of the most popular MMOs on the go right now—and, I’d say, the most enjoyable. If you’re yet to jump in, this promotion is a nice, low-commitment way to try the game out, and see more than you could with the standard Final Fantasy XIV free trial, which caps at level 35.
