Here is our FFXIV PLL 80 Summary. Learn everything you missed from the latest Live Letter with all the new information about the upcoming Dawntrail expansion.
After the director and producer of FFXIV announced the release date of the new Dawntrail Expansion, we’re all starving for more information on the next chapter of the critically acclaimed MMORPG. And while we’re all eager to see the new jobs in action, this PLL is all in the name of the graphics update coming to Final Fantasy XIV.
Since the broadcast was all in Japanese and part of the 14-hour anniversary stream, we’ve compiled everything you’ll need to know in this hand little summary.
FFXIV PLL 80 Summary
This entire PLL was mostly about the upcoming Graphics Update. Naoki Yoshida and his team explained in great detail the graphical changes coming to FFXIV at the start of the new expansion. If you want to learn more about the upcoming expansion we encourage you to check out our coverage from previous live letters and Fan Fests.
FFXIV Dawntrail Benchmark
The live letter kicked off with the benchmark test for FFXIV. For those of you who aren’t familiar with those, these are simple tests that will score if and how well your PC can run the next Expansion. Usually, this is just a reel of cutscenes being rendered in real-time. But you’ll also be able to make your character and try out the new graphics update.
The Benchmark for FFXIV will be available on Sunday, April 14, 2024, for PC and Mac. You’ll find the download link on the Loadstone or via the FFXIV Launcher.
7.0 Graphics Update
As expected, the graphical update for FFXIV is more than just a higher resolution for textures. Not only has the game’s entire shader system been overhauled, there are also a lot of new additions in terms of antialiasing and dynamic resolution. But let’s start from the top.
The foliage system has been completely reworked, grass it now dynamically generated and has actual models that will react to players and creatures running through it. Animations for mounts have also been overhauled which will now look a lot more realistic while moving around.
Another big update is the rescaling of textures. Old zones and new, you’ll notice that textures have been reapplied across the board, offering a higher level of detail than ever before. In addition to that, older zones will also be reworked, featuring new details and models. Some of these improvements will only be available during the 7.x patch cycle.
Textures for armor, weapons, and so on have also been reworked. This is still a work in progress though and the team will spend 7.x and beyond, making sure all the older pieces of equipment will be up to snuff.
Lastly, and probably most importantly, AMD FSR 1.0 and Nvidia DLSS 2.0 alongside various antialiasing options will be available come 7.0. With the graphics update also come some limitations to the PlayStation 4 and Xbox Series S. The former will be forced to enable dynamic resolution and LOD while the latter will only enforce LOD Shadows.
Blacklist Improvements
Finally, the Blacklist feature of FFXIV will become functional. Blocking or muting a player will now apply to every single one of that account’s characters. You now have the ability to mute players and limit their conversation to auto-translate and you can even kick them out of your house.
On top of that, you can now add words to the game’s chat filter. Similar privacy options will also apply to the Loadstone and your character’s online profile. Here you can block players and change your privacy options to your liking. That way, players who are blocked can no longer stalk your activities/blog posts.
Road to Dawntrail
As we approach Dawntrail, there are a few more things to note. Later this month, the popular Yo-Kai Watch event will return to FFXIV, for more information please check out the Loadstone.
The media tour will take place in May, with an event held in Los Angeles and another in Germany. There’ll also be another PLL, presumedly on the 16th which will focus on battle content from the upcoming expansion.
We’ll of course have coverage on all of that and more here on ESTNN so stay tuned.