Final Fantasy 14 Mobilereleased a mid-July update that locked access to the game’s market board and other economic functions behind a paywall that requires players to spend a minimum amount of money before they become available again. TheFinal Fantasy 14 Mobiledevelopment team stated that the changes were made in an ongoing effort to curtail real-money trading (RMT) and other illicit activities.
Final Fantasy 14 Mobileis a collaborative effort between Square Enix and Tencent subsidiary Lightspeed Studios, with the latter serving as the main development team behind the project. Compared to the PC and console releases of Final Fantasy 14, the mobile game’scombat system was made with touchscreens in mind. In short, Jobs like the Bard, Paladin, and White Mage have had their spells and abilities simplified for the mobile port.Final Fantasy 14 Mobileis currently available in China as a free-to-play title, with a closed beta test in Japan now underway.
Given thatFinal Fantasy 14 Mobileallows players to pay a fee to skip some tedious tasks, the game has also attracted attention from bad actors. As reported by longtimeFinal Fantasy 14content creator MrHappy1227,FF14 Mobilereleased an update on July 11 that took measures to combat real-money trading (RMT) and other “black market activities” that go against the game’s terms of service.
Ina post on Bilibili, later translated to English by theFF14 Mobilecommunity Discord, the development team announced that face-to-face trading, market board access, and company chest usage would be locked behind a paywall to combat RMT activities.FF14 Mobileplayers must spend at least 30 yuan (roughly $4.18) to regain access to those features. The fee is just under a third of the price of an entry-level subscription toFF14on PC and consoles, which starts at $12.99 per month before sales tax.
Final Fantasy 14 Mobile Locks Market and Trading Behind A Paywall
Rewards from completing main story quests will also be trimmed down as part of the anti-RMT countermeasures taken by Lightspeed Studios. WhileFinal Fantasy 14 Mobileis taking steps to combat RMT, players also noted that the game has other glaring issues concerning the game’s open world. In late June,Final Fantasy 14 Mobileplayers spotted a towerfrom theShadowbringersandEndwalkerexpansions that should not appear in the mobile version at present, given that its main focus is onA Realm Reborncontent.
While themicrotransactions ofFinal Fantasy 14 Mobileremain a contentious topicfor players, it is not clear how long the restrictions on the market board and other features will remain in place. Only time will tell howFinal Fantasy 14 Mobilewill change ahead of its eventual Western launch.
