Starting on July 5th, Final Fantasy XI players will be able to purchase the follow-up to A Crystalline Prophecy – Ode of Life Bestowing and the precursor to A Shantotto Ascension – The Legend Torn, Her Empire Born, ready to deal with evil Moogles when Square Enix sets it live later this summer. The only requirements you need worry about are that you own the Rise of the Zilart expansion and that you have a character who is at least level 10. If you don't meet those two requirements, then welcome to Final Fantasy XI. Nice to see new players still showing up.

The plaintiff, San Francisco resident Esther Leong, claims that Square Enix "lied about or concealed its monthly fees, penalties for late payments, interest, restrictions and other things that should have been fully disclosed at points of purchase" — basically, Square Enix has been "deceptive".

The court filing reads:

The deceptive advertising, unfair and undisclosed business practices, and concealment concern, among others:

i. Licensing of the online games software disguised as a sale;
ii. Monthly fees ("fees") to play the online games;
iii. Penalties for late payment of the fees;
iv. Interest charges for late payment of the fees;
v. Charges while the online game account is suspended;
vi. Termination of the right to use the online games for late payment of the fees;
vii. User restrictions and conditions related to the online games;
viii. Termination of game data for payment of the fees.

The class action lawsuit is seeking in excess of US$5 million in damages.

Courthouse News Service [Official Site via 1UP.com]

Plot-wise, Square Enix explains, "One day, a giant crystal appeared in the skies above Jeuno, triggering a series of unexplained happenings across the land. Now, adventurers will set forth to unravel the mysteries of this primordial crystal that holds the secret of Vana'diel's past."

A Crystalline Prophecy - Ode of Life Blessing is the first of three packs, helmed by Final Fantasy XI designer Masato Kato. Kato also created the first FFXI expansion pack Rise of the Zilart as well designing Chrono Trigger and Xenogears.

A Crystalline Prophecy - Ode of Life Blessing is available from March 23, 2009 for US$9.99 via PlayOnline Viewer. Players who purchase the expansion scenario will not have access until the upcoming April update. Two addition add-ons have also been announced: A Moogle Kupo d'Etat — Evil in Small Doses and A Shantotto Ascension — The Legend Torn, Her Empire Born. Both of these will be released later this year.

Much like the Blizzard Authenticator released for World of Warcraft last year, the Square Enix Security Token is an actual physical device that, when linked to your Final Fantasy Online account, generates a constantly changing password that you can use to log in to your game account securely. It's a simple way to keep your items and in-game currency from suddenly disappearing from you in the middle of the night.

Square Enix has yet to set a price or release date for the Security Token, but with the added incentive of an exclusive in-game item with every Token purchase, it's sure to sell like gangbusters once Square Enix releases it via the PlayOnline Store.

Introducing the Square Enix Security Token [Final Fantasy XI]

It's believed that his email address was being used by item dealers to create Japanese PlayOnline accounts to access FFXI. He apparently was getting a ton of these emails because his address was being used to create money trading accounts that were expected to be insta-banned and then re-registered right away for the next batch of trading.

The gentleman then contacted Square Enix to complain and ask for the company to cease contacting him regarding FFXI. Square Enix, however, refused, claiming that it was impossible to stop sending these emails to just his email address. Instead of just giving up (and blocking this spam?), he took Square Enix to court.

In early 2007, he filed a lawsuit in small claims court — and lost. He didn't stop there, but appealed to a district court and won. Square Enix appealed to Japan's High Court, but the company's appeal was denied on January 26. The plaintiff, who represented himself without formal legal consul, will be awarded ¥50,000 (US$559).

Ordeal Detailed Here [個人情報が盗まれた Thanks, Muu!]

According to Square Enix, the company "discovered an issue that allowed players to create multiple items for certain treasures and rewards in areas such as Salvage and Assault by exploiting the game system."

This "issue" was apparently a bug — and a bug that many players had long known about before Square Enix handled.

During an emergency maintenance on November 26, 2008, Square Enix fixed this "issue" and discovered that players had already taken advantage of it before, in Square Enix's words, "it was addressed."

The company investigated a year's worth of logs throughout all areas of the games and then put the game's terms of use to, err, use.

"As a result of the investigation, approximately 400 players were temporarily suspended based on evidence gathered," Square Enix stated. "Approximately 550 players who committed more serious misconduct had their accounts banned."

Word has it that many of the damned and banned were long time FFXI players — perma banned, apparently.

IM-17 [BLUEGARTRLS Thanks, Josh!]

Reader Boko was at VanaFest and caught the announcement, pointing us to the new splash page set up for the expansion packs. The titles of the three are "A Crystalline Prophecy - Ode of Life Bestowing"; "A Moogle Kupo d'Etat - Evil in Small Doses" and "A Shantotto Ascension - The Legend Torn, Her Empire Born."

The rollout begins with Crystalline Prophecy in the Spring of 2009, followed by Moogle and then Shantotto. All three will be available for around $10 and will be purchased online.

There's more via the FFXI Creator's Voice Blog. The full announcement from that site is on the jump.

The Adventure Continues With Three All-New FINAL FANTASY XI Expansion Chapters!
*Available for online purchase only

■Masato Kato, who oversaw the original plot conception on FINAL FANTASY XI from initial release up through the Rise of the Zilart expansion, will also play a key role in the creation of this new series of installments.

■The first installment, A Crystalline Prophecy – Ode of Life Bestowing, is slated for release for all languages and platforms in Spring of next year. Subsequent installments will then follow, being released in intervals of every few months.
These expansions packages will only be available through online purchase via PlayOnline. The projected cost for each installment is around $10.00.

Unlike its predecessors, such as Treasures of Aht Urghan and Wings of the Goddess, this original series of expansion packages will be distributed exclusively as online add-ons. Players may rest assured, however, that version updates for the Wings of the Goddess expansion will still continue for some time. Concurrent with the regular version updates, the new expansions are being developed as a with a “novelette” approach. Indeed, a separate development team has been established specifically for these new expansions.

Additional Scenarios?
Up until now, expansion packs have generally been developed from a perspective of “lateral expansion,” focusing namely on the introduction of new areas. These three new expansions, however, will deepen the storylines running through pre-existing areas by ushering in all-new plots and intrigues. While not necessarily containing as much content as traditional expansions, these episodic scenarios are designed to take anywhere from one to two months to complete.

Target Levels?
Though the quests can easily be started by a solo player somewhere in the vicinity of level 30, they will tend to become more difficult as the storyline progresses. By the end, completion of the quests will likely require a party of level 75 characters, with the rewards being geared towards high-level players as well.
Players can engage in these new storylines simultaneously with any of the missions from preceding expansions without conflict.

Final Fantasy XI Expansion Chapters [Site]
The Adventure Continues with Three All-New Final Fantasy Chapters! [Square-Enix]

Absolute Virtue ~ 9/8/08 [Order of the Blue Gartr Thanks, Muu!]

With that in mind (and perhaps with one eye on the 18 Hour Boss Battle debacle) Square Enix has revealed plans to make Final Fantasy XI a bit more fun for newer players and to rebalance the game so a to allow experienced characters to stand side-by-side with newbies without it being completely embarrassing.

The "Level Sync" system is a way of powering down high level characters so that they can form parties with new players and everyone can play on a field that might be completely level but which is only a bit bumpy.

New Level Sync Feature to Change the Way You Party![PlayOnline - Thanks to Cayce White for the tip]

Clearly concerned that their customers might be in danger of A) doing themselves a mischief and B) not having fun anymore, Square Enix has responded with a series of changes to the MMO "to prevent such battles from exceeding a certain predetermined length of time"

In a post to the official site entitled "Regarding Specific Notorious Monsters" Square has announced that the major league bosses Pandemonium Warden, Absolute Virtue and Jailer of Love (all of whom would make excellent Emo album titles) and their associated pets will be modified in the game's September update.

Final Fantasy XI Online Official Site [Thanks to Jeff Amick for the tip]

Ordering the Leviathan-shaped pendent will also give gamers an in-game item of the same name. Pre-orders stop on Sept. 1 at 6 p.m. and Square says they won't be releasing this item again.

Players' Collection

How Long is Too Long? [Pet Food Alpha, thanks Brandon!]

Well not FFXI specifically, but the amendment to the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act passed this week makes it an unlawful business practice to run an internet gaming service without some way of canceling the service online, without requiring customers to call a phone number or mail a letter. Hit the jump for the full synopsis of the law.

Provides that an Internet gaming service provider that provides service to a consumer, for home and personal use, for a stated term that is automatically renewed for another term unless a consumer cancels the service must give a consumer who is an Illinois resident: (1) a secure method at the Internet gaming service provider's web site that the consumer may use to cancel the service, which method shall not require the consumer to make a telephone call or send U.S. Postal Service mail to effectuate the cancellation; and (2) instructions that the consumer may follow to cancel the service at the Internet gaming service provider's web site.

Square Enix's course here is pretty clear. Cancel the accounts of anyone living in Illinois. That'll show em!

Online Fantasy Game’s Absurd Cancellation Policy Leads To New Law [Silicon Alley Insider via Game Politics]

No, of course they didn't. Explaining that virtual goods have no real monetary value, they refused to do anything. This completely makes sense to me. What doesn't is the reaction garnered from educators across the country.

"What happened here is somebody stole almost $4,000 and got away cold," said Joshua Fairfield, an associate professor of law at Washington and Lee University in Virginia.

"This is just a matter of zeros," Fairfield said. "The first time IBM loses $10 million, we're going to see some police action."

While countries like China and Korea already have laws in place that make virtual theft a crime, the United States has no such laws, and I for one am glad. If the government acknowledges these items have value, them that value can be taxed. If you argue that his stuff was worth $3800, where is the government's cut? I don't think this is a box we need to be opening. What do you think?

When a virtual crook struck this gamer, he called real cops [TwinCities.com via Wired Blogs]

The pleading letter, full of details on how to rejoin the Final Fantasy XI world, resulting in plenty of hugs, tears of joy, and a re-up of your monthly subscription is below. Quickly now! You've only got about four months to spare.

RETURN HOME TO VANA'DIEL COMES BACK TO FINAL FANTASY XI

Popular Campaign Allows Customers to Revive Their Characters

LOS ANGELES (October 24, 2007) - Square Enix, Inc., the publisher of Square Enix™ interactive entertainment products in North America, announced today that the popular FINAL FANTASY® XI "Return Home to Vana'diel®" campaign is back. Customers who have deleted Content IDs, or deleted PlayOnline® accounts, are now able to rejoin their fellow adventurers in the world of Vana'diel by utilizing this service. This exciting campaign returns just in time for the launch of WINGS OF THE GODDESS™, the fourth expansion to the award-winning world of FINAL FANTASY XI, which ships to retailers across the nation on November 20, 2007.

"Return Home to Vana'diel" offers customers two different ways to revive their characters. If the customer previously deleted their FINAL FANTASY XI Content ID, where the character's information is stored, they can apply for the Type A service. Customers who have unsubscribed from PlayOnline can apply for the Type B service. To learn more about the "Return Home to Vana'diel" campaign, visit the official FINAL FANTASY XI Web site at http://www.playonline.com/ff11us/index.shtml. The "Return Home to Vana'diel" campaign will run until February 29, 2008.

Uniting players in North America, Europe and Japan, FINAL FANTASY XI is the first massively multiplayer online role-playing game capable of simultaneous communication across multiple platforms: PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, Windows® and Xbox 360®. Now in its fifth year of service, FINAL FANTASY XI has a community of more than 500,000 subscribers and more than 1.7 million player characters from around the world.

The official FINAL FANTASY XI Web site can be found at http://www.playonline.com/ff11us/index.shtml.

After sitting through the forty five minute Square trailer extravaganza at TGS, I'm a bit surprised I didn't see this one included in that mix although this is being touted as the "TGS Trailer". Square's booth was packed and bigger than most houses so I guess it's not too much of a shock that I missed it. Final Fantasy XI Online has struggled a bit to keep up with it's FF brothers. Will this be the one that brings it back into the public consciousness? I don't know, but this trailer sure looks nice, but then again, don't they all?

While Nintendo's clumsy and spartan online game offerings should ensure that this comes as a surprise to no one, Tanaka did reveal a slight surprise, according to Gamespot's report, in that he'll soon be able to reveal more of his next-gen online RPG. I've got five bucks on Final Fantasy XI-II.

Square Enix: Nintendo saying no to cross-platform MMOs [Gamespot]

...we are currently planning an exclusive in-game item for this event. I can't talk too much about it, but I've seen it and I can't wait to unveil it!

If you haven't gotten enough Final Fantasy XI: Online, there's an expansion pack coming. Excited? Well, just look at these folks. They've even got their cell phones out and are sending questions to the Final Fantasy XI: Online Althena no Shinpei Q&A so that their questions can be read live on stage.

Yup. Brian Ashcraft