Release Date: June 2015
Beaten: January 2021
So, lets talk expansions, shall we?
I love a good expansion, whether I am playing an MMO or a single-player game. Expansions are a great way to test new things in a game you have already come to love. For example, in Guild Wars 2, expansions have been used to bring in gliders, special mechanics around the map, and even mounts. It tests what players love and what they don’t like as much, and, they usually add more story/lore to really give longevity to a game that might have otherwise grown stale. Some people see expansions as a mere cash-grab and a way to publish an unfinished game, but, I have never stood on those grounds.
Anyways, today, I want to talk about Final Fantasy XIV’s first expansion: Heavensward.
Back when Heavensward was first released, it added a few new things to the universe of FFXIV. It increased the level cap from 50 to 60, and it also introduced some new playable classes including: Dark Knight, Machinist, and Astrologian. Heavensward also introduced massive new maps/zones to be explored, and it was because these areas were so massive that flying was finally added into the game as a mechanic. There were also other things added like new dungeons and raids as well as new PvP areas/modes as well.
Naturally, this expansion came out in 2015, and I did not start playing the game until 2020…so the game has changed a bit since then. Rather than specific mounts being able to fly, nowadays, all of them can fly…and you can start flying immediately after reaching a certain point in ARR’s (A Realm Reborn’s) story. Also, the current level cap (with Shadowbringers) is 80. So there were some slight differences with the way I might have perceived the expansion while playing, all because of how the game has changed over time. Also, because I’m not sure whether or not I have a enough material to do a full-on review of Heavensward, I made this a quick blog about my “thoughts” so that you still get the gist of how I felt while playing through this expansion. So, bear with me here as we work our way through a list of things that I loved and hated while playing through Heavensward.
WARNING: Review Contains SPOILERS!
- The Story
All I can say is that Heavensward as far as story goes…is a LOT to take in and a lot to consider. Before an expansion starts, there is always a little episode of quests/story events that ease you into the expansion itself, and, the story that eased us into Heavensward really took the cake when it comes to being extremely INTENSE! If you watched the expansion trailer, you realize that the world has gone crazy. A Leader in the Eorzean Alliance was assassinated, their right-hand man now doesn’t have a right hand after he murdered the assassin. There was a massive betrayal which caused the Scions to flee and go into hiding, and there was death and chaos at every turn.
And now…we are in Ishgard.
There is no other way to put it! With nowhere else to go, we are finally introduced into the city proper in attempt to find sanctuary; finally let inside the gates to see just how bad things in Ishgard are when it comes to their war against the dragons. We are introduced to their high houses and are taken in by House Fortemp who is risking their very name and reputation to house what are essentially “criminals”. We get a glimpse into Ishgardian politics thus seeing how they treat the likes of heretics, and we see just how firmly the church governs everything that the people do. We also see the divide between those on the noble side of the city, and the beaten down beggars of the Brume. There is also a rebellion to deal with that plans on toppling the current head of the church. The heretics are now lead by the mysterious “Lady Iceheart” who doesn’t want to destroy Ishgard, but rather bring peace between man and dragon…but thinks the only way to do that is to topple the head of the church. But Lady Iceheart isn’t a crazed heretic. There sleeps within her an all-too familiar power, and she claims to know “the truth” about the war that happened a thousand years ago. There are Primals on the loose as we travel across new lands- these new Primals include the Lord of the Hive & the Ruler of the Clouds. And of course, we meet (once more if you main Dragoon) with the Azure Dragoon. The mighty Nidhogg is stirring, bent on his revenge against mankind, and with nowhere else to go and no leads on missing comrades, the Warrior of Light now stands with Ishgard in its defense.
So, what else can really be said? The story introduces some new characters (like Ysayle) while introducing us back to some old ones from before. We not only get a glimpse into how Ishgard works and functions, but we also get a glimpse into how Dragons live, we get insight to the plight of heretics, as well as learn the truth about the Dragonsong War. All the while, we learn of the Ascians and their involvement with the high church as well as learning more about the mysterious civilization known as the Allagans (and how the Garleans have been using their technology in their magitek designs). It’s really quite a lot to take in, but it flows so beautifully. Politics clashing with religion and a battle of what is right, just, and moral. It’s a very emotional expansion that will leave you invested in it every second you play. But, good as the story is (and I found it amazing), there are places where this expansion has flaws, and, there were things that I didn’t enjoy about the expansion at all.
- Inconsistencies:
This was something I noticed a lot in Heavensward, but there were a few inconsistencies in the story…ESPECIALLY for those of us who were playing as a Dragoon. So (spoiler alert), in the Dragoon storyline, you come across a man who used to be the Azure Dragoon. These Dragoon are chosen by the eye of Nidhogg and are basically given the power of one of the great heroes of Ishgard known as Haldrath (the one who first defeated Nidhogg, taking his eyes, though he later succumbed to their influence). Well, this man sends you on a quest to find a fugitive who has stolen a great treasure only to find out that you are after Estinien Wyrmblood who is the CURRENT Azure Dragoon.
So, after finding him and learning that you have been chosen by the eye as the new Azure Dragoon- you end up defeating an Estinien that becomes corrupted by the eye and then after besting him, you take up the mantle as the Azure Dragoon.
It was already weird enough that after fighting a corrupted Estinien you later find him again (even though he seemed beyond hope) and he just passes off this possession of his, saying that he just “got better”, but he literally states to other NPCs that he is no longer the Azure Dragoon. And if you are playing as a Dragoon at the time that he says this, he will claim that the title of Azure Dragoon now belongs to you (the player). Now, fast-forward into Heavensward, and, even if you are playing as a Dragoon, Estinien has taken back his title. It was only near the end of the expansion that he claims that you are the ‘other’ Azure Dragoon…but this one thing just showed that there was a huge inconsistency in the story, and that class quests might not have been handled in the best way as they almost seemed non-canon. There is also the fact that they introduce Estinien almost as if you had met him before, which, if you play anything other than Dragoon, I can’t say whether you actually meet him prior or not.
- Maps & Aether Currents:
I actually really liked most of the new maps that Heavensward had to offer. I loved being able to fully explore Ishgard for once, and all the maps were gorgeous in their own ways. I like the Dragon Skeletons and frozen ruins scattered about Coerthas, and loved the wild nature and the hive of Dravania. I loved the endless sea of clouds as you explore cloud-top, and even really liked Zenith where the Great Dragon Hraesvelgr dwelled. There were so many different types of areas from the floating islands to the overgrown forests. The maps could be confusing at times. Whereas areas in ARR felt rather easy to navigate and were mostly flat, the maps in Heavensward were all different levels and showed where flying was going to be necessary. It made everything feel so fresh…having to fly to get to a floating island out across the endless skies. But, what really irked me about being able to fly? AETHER CURRENTS!
So, as I mentioned before, in 2021, flying can be unlocked after reaching a certain point in the vanilla-story for ARR. There isn’t anything special you need to do, you just need to follow the storyline. Simple, right? But, HW takes flying in a different direction with the aether currents. Scattered across the maps are these whirling balls of green energy. These are aether currents. You find these currents by using a compass that will point you in their ‘general direction’. After you find a current, you must attune to it. This wouldn’t be bad on its own if you just had to find all the currents in order to fly…but the catch? Some currents are unlocked only through side-quests! And some side-quests? They don’t appear until you are through a certain part of the story and/or have done other side-quests. And that final aether current? You don’t unlock it until you are near the final story mission on the map!
I mean, I get what Square Enix was going for. They didn’t want people to fly right away and completely cheese their experience by not bothering to truly explore. But, these new areas or so massive and your characters & mounts so slow that it can actually be painful to go from point A to point B. Not to mention, some of the Aether Currents can be really hard to find sometimes, especially when you have massive maps broke up into sections that you can’t access right away until you’re farther in the story such as Cloudtop. Aether currents were and still are the bane of my existence when it comes to these expansions, and it’s just not a feature I would miss when it comes to future expansions. I will give FFXIV credit where credit is due however in that handling in this MMO is done so much better than in WoW. There really is less of a grind for flying, so, I can’t complain too much. But, as I said prior, if you only had to find the aether currents, I wouldn’t mind as much…but the ones you have to complete quests for are the ones that truly bother me if nothing else.
- Beast Tribes:
Beat Tribes and their particular quests was not something I started to mess around with until I was finished with Shadowbringers. Even now (as of writing this blog), I have just finished the ARR Beast Tribes (well, mostly) and haven’t even begun to mess with the Beast Tribe Quests in HW. But, for those that are curious, Beast Tribe Quests have their own little story attached to them and you are rewarded by doing these daily quests with experience, gil, ventures, and reputation. Over time, as you gain reputation, you will unlock more daily quests which offer better rewards, and even special currency. Also, as you gain reputation with a specific beast tribe, their merchants will unlock special items for you to purchase. these items generally consist of crafting materials, dyes, furnishing items, and then later on contain a unique minion and mount. I do know that one of the beast tribes in HW requires crafting, while the other one does not. But again, it is not something I have messed with myself, and therefore, I have nothing much to say about it. But, if you’re a collector (like me) and like to get unique titles, mounts, and minions, then doing beast tribe quests is something to look into.
- PVP:
I do not play PVP, I have never even tried PVP in FFXIV, and though it does have its own community, I have heard that said-PVP community is not as large as you might see on other MMOs like WoW or GW2. I have also heard that PVP is rather limited in what it offers in FFXIV. But again, I have never tried it myself and therefore can not really give a true opinion on this mode of play.
- New Classes:
I have not personally tried any of the new classes that were unique to HW when it first came out, however, it has been known for some time that the Dark Knight class quests are some of the most beloved quests in the game to this day. I also have a friend that mains Dark Knight and she could gush forever about how she never even considered tanking until she played that class, and her story is very similar to others who now main Dark Knight as well. I have a few friends that play as Astrologian and they like it as a healing class. I have never tried anything outside of DPS however, so I can not say whether it would be something I would enjoy or not. Lastly, I have not tried Machinist nor do I know anybody that mains it, so I am unsure of how I feel about said-class. It looks cool though.
- Alexander Raid:
I really liked the Alexander Raid, and, just like the Primal Tracks, the raid itself has some of my favorite tracks from the game within it. I just found the map layout to be really fun, really liked the battle mechanics in general, and even the story was interesting and rather touching. The raid itself also offers some really cool gear if you get the materials to trade for it, as well as offering some really neat mounts as well. My only complaint with the raid itself is only that it is no longer considered ‘relevant content’ and therefore, trying to que for the raids takes a really long time unless you are in a Free Company that wants to run it with you OR you grab a friend and then run as much of it unsynced as you can first. I ran at least 50% of the raid unsynced and then had to ask for some help as a few of the mechnics were beyond me, but with a group, it’s easy to do.
While you do not have to play the raids, it is something that I do highly suggest. It not only has an interesting story, but Alexander does have references later on which you might miss if the raid is something you choose to gloss over…and again, Gordian armor just looks awesome.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Heavensward is where I feel the real game takes off. ARR is what they often call a “slow burn” where you are getting swallowed into this intricate world, learning all the history of Eorzea and Hydaelyn as a whole, learning what part you play as a Warrior of Light, and really getting to know the main cast of characters that you will be sticking with for some time (as well as the role they play in all this). I can not stress this enough…but, unlike most expansions where the story is separated enough from other expansions (or even the vanilla portion of the game -ARR) to where you don’t need to know what happened with the story prior to get absorbed, FFXIV is just one continuous story. What you know from A Realm Reborn will still be important in Heavensward which will then be important for the events of Stormblood which will then be just as important for what happened in Shadowbringers. So, while the grind may be boring, I don’t advise skipping any part of the story or else you will get lost. ARR introduces so much it can be overwhelming…and for some, even a little boring. But, I truly believe that the story that is introduced in Heavensward makes all of it worth it. But, that is merely my opinion.
Inconsistencies aside, my only gripe is that while the story itself is amazing, I found so much of the expansion itself somewhat forgettable? I can remember bits and pieces of the maps, but not so much what there was to do there. I can’t remember many quests that stood out in my mind except the ones I hated (Moogle quests…just…kill me). The Primal battles were excellent and still have some of my favorite tracks, and as always, the soundtrack in general is absolutely amazing. The raid for HW has to be one of my absolute favorites, and again, has banger soundtracks. I only wish I had played them back when it was considered relevant content so I could get the full experience.
But what do YOU think?
Have you eve played FFXIV? What were your thoughts? What is the most memorable moment in HW to you? What moment had you at your most emotional? What is your favorite track? Did you try any of the new classes?
As always, let me know your thoughts and opinions in the comment-section down below. Thank you for your continued support of this blog, and I will see you all in the next one!
- Video(s):
OMG Girls Game! 