Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail Reviews
As a whole, Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail is a stronger start to the next ten years of the game than we expected. But that doesn't make it immune to key criticisms. The game has come a long way, and there's only so much you can expect to change again without a full-blown sequel. Even still, the highs and lows felt too much like a literal rollercoaster over the 2+ weeks of evenings it took to power through its story content.
Dawntrail ups the ante with exhilarating combat experiences and builds a stunning new world, but meandering storytelling highlights the MMO's flaws.
Final Fantasy XIV's fifth expansion represents both a sequel and a new beginning for the franchise, but it fails to shine in the narrative component that had distinguished it so far in the MMORPG scene. However, there are many new features and the gameplay has benefited from the new additions, pending the additional content that will be released in the coming months.
Review in Italian | Read full review
The plot is one of the most important components of each add-on for FF XIV and the content that the vast majority of users go through. The expansion made combat more fun, and dungeons and raids more dynamic, but the disgusting pace of the narrative and the way it spends a lot of time on unnecessary things greatly blur the impression. Especially considering the fact that this is the start of a new storyline.
Review in Russian | Read full review
If you wanted more of the same ol’ same ol’ online Final Fantasy, this is what you’ll get. But I wanted something more. If Dawntrail is to be a new chapter, a potential start of a new saga, it needed a better opening, not this boring thing. Time will tell what will become of this.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail excels in its promise to bring exciting new jobs and combat scenarios to the New World. Unfortunately, it falls short of expectations when it comes to the narrative, which ends up being a mess of issues.
Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail is a slow start to a new chapter.
Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail starts with a slow burn that builds into an emotional, captivating inferno that tackles some deep themes and effectively balances new elements with old beats in more ways than one. Overall, it’s a brilliant first chapter to the new story arc that has left me eager to learn more about what the future holds in new patches and later expansions. I’ve fallen in love with Tural and its characters, and more importantly, Dawntrail has me obsessed on a new level with FF14 in a way the game has never achieved before.
Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail had a lot to live up to following the excellent legacy left behind by Shadowbringers and Endwalker. It doesn’t always hit the mark with incredibly slow opening hours and odd choices that permeate the entire expansion but there’s a lot to like about it as well. The battle content, soundtrack, and some impactful moments all come together to help push up an otherwise struggling expansion and this makes it a mostly excellent addition.
With Dawntrail, we take the first steps of the next decade in the story, but we have to honestly admit that it is a bit of a weak start. We will see what kind of story web they will weave over this.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
FFXIV Dawntrail starts with a trip to the New World, and it sets up the next narrative journey for the Warrior of Light.
Dawntrail has the benefit of years of gameplay and graphical improvements, and puts them to great use in designing some of the best dungeons and trials we've seen to date. However, its confused story prevents it from reaching its full potential, and will likely bump Dawntrail down to the bottom-to-middle of most player's tier lists. These issues aren't enough to ruin the experience though, so it's still a good time for Final Fantasy XIV players.
It’s not a perfect new beginning, but new beginnings rarely are. Instead, it has the growing pains of every long form story that has taken a shift into uncharted territory. We’re only just diving into a big new mythology, and there’s a certain excitement to that uncertainty.
Dawntrail does the job it needed to do by giving players the new adventure they need to get going once again. It takes a little while to get there, but when the payoff comes it shows how the narrative team behind Final Fantasy XIV is at hitting the emotional highs.
The Dawntrail MSQ is salient and beautiful in the exact way that has made the Final Fantasy XIV narrative so beloved…I play MMOs to connect to others, invest in my communities, raid, and be a part of something larger than just me and a television screen. Dawntrail captures that, and that’s truly what matters.
While it hasn't completely lost its luster, Dawntrail proves that it's about time for Final Fantasy XIV to change.
Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail is very messy, but still greatly enjoyable. Wuk Lamat is a lovable character who I hope sticks around, with a satisfying character arc tying in with the expansion's themes. Viper is a blast to play, and every dungeon or trial holds something new and unique. While the expansion isn't the best FFXIv has to offer, it has so much heart you can't help but smile.
Dawntrail marks the beginning of a major new story arc for the Warrior of Light and his handful of heroes. An often didactic story with a sometimes staid rhythm is accompanied by some of the best gameplay innovations introduced in the saga. The two new classes are fun and performing at the right point, but the older jobs have not yet been balanced in the best possible way. In any case, we look forward to knowing the future evolutions of this new and exciting epic.
Review in Italian | Read full review
A rich world and amazing dungeon design more than make up for dips in the story.