Final Fantasy XIV has been riding quite the wave of hype lately. This year’s annual Fan Fest event saw not just the announcement of a new expansion, Dawntrail, but also some eye-catching collaborations and a new Xbox port. While I imagine this news was enough to get a few players back into Eorzea, those who held off are being rewarded for their patience.
From now until August 31, players who have remained unsubscribed for 90 days can play for up to 14 days for free. As usual for these events, the 14-day timer starts whenever you choose to log back in within this window. In other words, a player who returns on August 30 can theoretically play into September if they wish. Just note that the timer will start from the moment the game begins downloading updates, so try to start with a strong internet connection if you wish to maximize your playtime.
It is a bit surprising to see this promotion only apply to players who haven’t played for 90 days. Normally the restriction only mandates 30 days of a lapsed sub, so players who recently unsubbed are out of luck. It would also be nice if subscribed players got some extra free time too, but them’s the breaks. On the plus side, 14 free days is better than the usual giveaway of four days, so anyone who qualifies for this can really dig their teeth into the game again.
A good opportunity to catch up in Final Fantasy XIV
Obviously, qualifying players would do well to use this time to catch up on the main story. After all, anyone hoping to return for Dawntrail will need to clear through the story quests added to Endwalker via its many patches. Additionally, we should only see one major patch with a few smaller follow-ups this expansion, so anyone who catches up now will be nearly ready for Dawntrail.
That said, there’s a ton of content in the game, so there’s not really a wrong way to spend your time here. I may just pop in to play Triple Triad and try on the nicest clothes, which I estimate aligns me with roughly 95% of the playerbase.
This free period doesn’t apply to new players, not that they’d have much to gain from it. After all, the critically acclaimed free trial still lets adventurers play for an unlimited amount of time before they make the subscription jump, albeit with some restrictions. Additionally, trial players can access Stormblood soon, which will add a huge amount of content to an already massive slice of the game.
Aspiring adventurers can download Final Fantasy XIV on PC, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5. Xbox Series X|S owners can join the Light Party at some point after the launch of the game’s 6.5 patch.
