Final Fantasy XI Available for Digital Download

Square Enix say that they are now offering Final Fantasy XI 2008 Edition as a digital download in Europe in an effort to attract more players towards the MMO title. The game will be priced at 39.99 Euros and the download package, available from Metaboli and other partners, will contain the original game, as released in 2002, and all the expansions that have come since then, including Rise of the Zilart, Chains of Promathia, Treasures of Aht Urghan and Wings of the Goddess, the latest addition to the game.

Final Fantasy XI takes place on Vana’diel and as a player in the game, you will have to be in charge of defending your people, fighting both monsters and other players to save your men and the entire world from destruction.

John Yamamoto, who is the president and Chief Executive Officer of Square Enix, stated on launch that “It’s never been easier to join the exciting world of Final Fantasy XI. Digital distribution of Final Fantasy XI 2008 Edition allows players that have difficulty obtaining physical copies of the game to download the adventure with the bonus of all the expansion pack content. I hope many more players enjoy and experience the exciting world of Vana’diel and all that Final Fantasy XI has to offer”.

The game was originally released in May 2002 and generated a lot of buzz because it allowed people on the Xbox 360, the PlayStation 2 and the PC to play in the same game world. Square Enix say that around 500,000 players and some 1.7 million characters are now in the game world and that the game experience is still going strong, despite the age of the MMO. It received several awards back when it was launched, being praised for the fact that it offered cross platform play. Currently, there are rumors pointing that the game might just be getting a sequel.