Final Fantasy

Final Fantasy XIV Besieged By DDoS Attacks

The biggest threat to Eorza isn’t the Garleans, or some other villain that I don’t want to look up because I haven’t even finished Heavensward yet. It’s Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, which have been hitting Final Fantasy XIV since June and show no sign of stopping, according to the developers at Square Enix.…

A Closer Look At Cactuar Ass

You wouldn’t think that Fantasy Fantasy’s cacti enemies would have terrific tushies. Then again, you’ve probably never thought about their backsides. Typically, when Cactuar is depicted, the reoccurring character is shown in a dash pose.  We usually see a Cactuar head on, so there isn’t that much of an opportunity to check out the caboose. …

Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age: The Kotaku Review

One of the strangest features in Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age, which comes out today, is called the gambit system. This system allows you to write out a sequence of if-then statements, like “if you see an enemy, then attack it” or “if your HP goes below 100%, then use a Potion.” You can…

A Whirlwind Dance Tour Of Final Fantasy XIV Stormblood

Now that our Final Fantasy XIV Stormblood review is up, there are only four things left to do. Beat the final boss battle and dance, dance, dance. YouTube video creator Denmo has those last three covered with an outstanding musical journey through the expansion. Mind the spoilers. Fans have been creating music videos in their…

Square Enix Fixed Vaan’s Freaky Abs In FFXII: The Zodiac Age

In last year’s Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age trailer, it looked like we’d be stuck with Vaan’s spray-on abdominals. But now it seems like we won’t. Thank goodness for that! Note: This article was originally published on April 26, 2017. Below is a comparison from last year showing how Vaan’s PS2 abs stack up…

Podcast: Final Fantasy XII, Final Fantasy XIV, And… Other Games

Today’s Kotaku Splitscreen is made just the way you like it: heavy on the Fahey and the Final Fantasy First, Kirk regales us with stories from his backpacking adventures before settling down with me to talk Destiny 2 soccer (9:58), Mass Effect: Andromeda’s lack of DLC (15:43), and Zelda’s new content (24:44). Then we bring…

Final Fantasy XII’s New Fast-Forward Feature Is A Godsend

After several hours playing Square Enix’s new Final Fantasy XII remaster, I can confidently say I like it. I can just as confidently say that I like it a lot more because I can fast-forward through it. The remaster’s full title is Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age. It’s out on PS4 on July 11,…

Stormblood Makes Final Fantasy XIV A Better Game

Here stands Clan Destine, level 70 red mage, ready to take on the ultimate story battle in Final Fantasy XIV’s latest expansion. She’ll get to it eventually, but there’s a lot more to Stormblood than epic battles and new job classes. While I’ve spent a lot of time over the past week working my way…

Final Fantasy XII Is Way Better Than I Remembered

In 2006, when I first played Final Fantasy XII, I thought it was just fine. In 2017, I realize how silly that was. Final Fantasy XII is not “just fine.” It is tremendous. For the past week I’ve been playing an early English copy of Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age, the remastered PS4 version…

Final Fantasy IX Had Some Spectacular Backgrounds 

Series creator Hironobu Sakaguchi recently reiterated which Final Fantasy was his favorite. Hint: it was the last one he happened to work directly on. While Final Fantasy IX isn’t at the top of my list, you can’t deny it had some really beautiful backgrounds. With Sakaguchi playing favorites again, illustrator Kevin Hong took it as…

Final Fantasy‘s Creator Picks His Favorite FF

You might have your favorite Final Fantasy. Well, so does series creator Hironobu Sakaguchi. He likes Final Fantasy IX the best. Sakaguchi has mentioned this before, saying it’s the “closest” to his ideal of what Final Fantasy ought to be. Sakaguchi recently called the game, which he wrote and produced, his favorite when speaking with…

Bad New Final Fantasy XV Mobile Game Now Available

Released on iOS and Android just in time for most fans to be distracted by Episode Prompto, Final Fantasy XV: A New Empire is a generic multiplayer kingdom-builder with FFXV assets laid over top. Hooray. The free-to-play mobile game starts off promisingly enough. Those are definitely Final Fantasy XV characters right there. I see Prompto…

Final Fantasy XV‘s Episode Prompto Is Way Better Than The Last DLC

Everybody knows a Prompto in real life, don’t they? Prompto is the guy who’s always cracking dumb jokes, who hits on everything that walks, who tries his hardest to keep everyone smiling and feeling good. He’s also the guy harboring deep-seated insecurities that sometimes manifest as visions of his childhood self. Also he might be…

Here is a thing you can do in Episode Prompto, the surprisingly good Final Fantasy XV DLC that’s out today. Impressions coming tomorrow.

It’s A Great Time To Level Up A New Job In Final Fantasy XIV

With the launch of Final Fantasy XIV’s Stormblood expansion, tons of players are exploring the new post-level 60 content. But if you’re on the right game server, massive experience point bonuses are a great incentive to take a break from the new stuff and start a new job at level one. In the video above…

FFXIV Stormblood Feels Like Its Own Final Fantasy Game

Stormblood isn’t just a huge chunk of new content for Final Fantasy XIV. It’s the third game in an ongoing series, one that happens to share the same space as its predecessors. Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn told the story of the rise of the Warrior of Light (AKA the player character) and established…

Final Fantasy XV’s Off-Roading Looks Ridiculous 

The Final Fantasy XV 1.2 update is live, bringing an off-road upgrade to the Regalia. Called Regalia Type-D, it lets you drive all over the place and make some sweet jumps.  The 8.65GB update fixes bugs, adds Episode Prompto compatibility, and includes Episode Prompto music. It also makes off-roading possible. The Type-D option is available…

How To Take Down Susano, FFXIV Stormblood’s First Primal

Primal battles in Final Fantasy XIV are massive spectacles that pit a group of players against powerful creatures that usually show up in the series as summons. Stormblood’s first primal, Susano, gets more massive than most, but a well-coordinated group can take him down pretty easy. Susano is a take on Susanoo, the Shinto god…

Final Fantasy XIV‘s Director Says There’s Still So Much More To Do

Naoki Yoshida just wouldn’t stop looking at his computer. The beloved producer, credited with transforming Final Fantasy XIV from disaster to dream MMORPG, kept typing and clicking as I spoke to him last week in a private room at E3, frowning occasionally. So I asked what he was looking at. “Because we’re under maintenance right…

How To Unlock Swimming In Final Fantasy XIV Stormblood

One of the coolest new features introduced in Final Fantasy XIV’s Stormblood expansion is the ability to swim and dive, exploring exotic underwater locales. Anyone can tread water, but to go deep you’ve got to talk to some turtles. Final Fantasy XIV Stormblood Spoilers Follow Just like learning to fly in the Heavensward expansion, gaining…