In a recent interview, Final Fantasy XIV director Naoki Yoshida addresses numerous fan concerns over possible character death in the upcoming Endwalker expansion. The explosive trailer for the upcoming addition, along with the knowledge that the current Haedalyn and Zodiark story is coming to an end, makes it seem that a main character or two might be in the line of fire at the arc’s climax. For those unaware, the Haedalyn and Zodiark story began with A Realm Reborn in 2013, and whatever comes after Endwalker will begin an entirely new story arc.
Yoshida was quick to give his thoughts on possible deaths to come, reminding players that the demise of a character shouldn’t be the main concern. “As we’re moving towards that climax [of the Haedalyn and Zodiark story], we need to think about how the stages of that progression unfold, but we don’t feel, for example, as part of that we need to kill off a character. If a character dies that doesn’t spell the end of the whole story, or the end of everything happening there. So I think that’s one aspect that we think differently when it comes to creating and developing the story.”
Truthfully, much of Final Fantasy XIV‘s story focuses on overcoming tragedy and persevering against unimaginable odds. Yoshida–affectionately referred to by the community as Yoshi-P–continues: “The player along with the scions are going to be taking on their biggest challenge yet in Endwalker, so there is going to be very difficult trials and tribulations ahead, and so I would be very glad if you don’t have the focus on ‘oh, maybe this character is going to die,’ rather focus on the acts of all the Warriors of Light together with their companions combining their powers and energy together in order to combat that big difficulty that they face at the end of this story.”
Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker will release on November 23, 2021, for PC, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5. Today, it was announced that the game’s player base has surpassed 24 million people, making it the most profitable Final Fantasy title to date. Overcongestion has plagued the title for months now, though new anti-AFK measures and login caps have prevented the problem from getting worse.