14 DAY TRIAL // Final Fantasy XIV hasn’t exactly been the most successful release made by Square Enix, but the Japanese company is confident with the current state of the online game and confirmed that it’s going to start charging a monthly subscription on January 6, 2012.
Final Fantasy XIV was hyped as one of the biggest new MMOs out there, picking up where the very successful Final Fantasy XI left off. Sadly, its release on the PC was a failure, as the online game was plagued with bugs, glitches, missing content and a lackluster story that didn’t keep players interested.
Square Enix took the decision to turn the online game into a free to play experience, at least until it could fix all these issues and make it a worthwhile title.
Now, just as the game is close to receiving a massive Update 2.0 which should turn into the experience it should have been, Square Enix has confirmed that it’s going to start charging a monthly subscription for players.
While the regular prices were a bit high, the company confirmed that it’s going to lower them until Update 2.0 is actually released, as a token of its appreciation for players who want to support the game.
As such, a monthly subscription will now cost £6.99/€9.99 (around $13), a 90-day one will go for £12.57/€17.97 ($23), while a 180-day one will be priced at £34.14/€47.94 ($63). What’s more, players are also going to have to pay a basic service fee of £2.10/€3.00 ($4) for every character they use.
The company also confirmed that those who’ve yet to choose a billing plan will have their accounts temporarily suspended until they reach a decision.
“We are bringing an end to the extended free trial period and are introducing subscription-based billing to Final Fantasy XIV on January 6th, 2012,” the company said. “Please note that if you have not selected a subscription plan by January 5th, 2012, your service account will be temporarily suspended. If you wish to continue to play Final Fantasy XIV beyond January 6th, 2012, you will have the opportunity to set up a subscription plan starting from December 16th, 2011 via the Square Enix Account Management System.”
Are you going to start spending money on Final Fantasy XIV or will you wait until Update 2.0, whenever it might appear, to see if it’s worth it?