"Mr Sandman? Give me a Sandbox game, and preferably with bugs included to preserve old-school authenticity. kkthxbye."

Hey all,

Let us take a trip down memory lane, shall we?

                         Ultima Online (1998)

                    Star Wars Galaxies. (Pre-NGE 2005)

In my opinion, these are two of the greatest "sandbox" games ever made for any platform.

For the uninitiated, a "sandbox game" indicates a gaming genre that is open-ended; like a child at a playground playing with his spade digging sand and doing whatever he chooses and pleases. There is no fixed end point, and no common beginning. Everyone can do things in the game at their own pace, their own time.

Many gamers baulk at this due to the openness of the genre itself, as there is no one surefire way to progress through the game. Most of these games are also skill-based, and do not emphasize on the numerical "Level" of the character to show growth. Thus, there is limited feedback for the inexperienced gamer to know if he is heading in the right direction towards the end-game.

But here is the thing about these sandbox games. There is no hard-and-fast endgame, just like in real life. Actually, a Singaporean chasing the 5Cs will beg to differ but that is a whole 'nother story. In UO, one could aspire to be a great Dragon Slayer or maybe a world-famous Fishcake Seller.

How you go about doing that will depend on the relevant skills that you have trained hard for e.g. cooking for hours in-game to hone your Culinary skills, or fighting monstrous beasts to train up the Sword skill for the ultimate battle with the fire-breathing winged one. The contacts that you make in the game are also paramount, as they can provide you with resources that you might need to achieve your immediate goals.

Fast forward to 2010. I see games now leaning heavily on FPS engines, and being more action-oriented and frenetic in pace. The majority of the public now want their games and fun like that, and being a business, the makers and developers have to cater to their crowd.

Once in while though, a franchise comes along wanting to be different. A rich brat entering a public school for the first time with his head held high; friendless but yet oblivious to it, as he is true to himself. He is different and he wants the world (school) to know.

I own the normal version on the left. Ah Jin own the Overpriced one in the middle.

That rich kid is Square Enix (Square)- makers of Final Fantasy XiV Online, and he is bringing the sand-spade to class. They have recently launched the game to much chagrin from their players. Square does not want to compete with the juggernaut which is World of Warcraft, so their choice was to go old-school sandbox style and get a niche market, supported by their impressive IP (The Final Fantasy Series) and their legions of fanboys. Square knows that the players will QQ about the characters' inability to jump, the absence of an auction house, the lack of meaningful quests, the lack of "direction" and pace, and an over-dependence on crafting and the player community in general.

But you know what? The same people who bitch now will still play the game. It is Final Fantasy after all, and not Crapa-Crapa Online. The brand itself is too big for these teething problems. "The MMO is new so give it time" excuse is also valid for now. And let's not forget the beautiful graphics of the gers races in the world of Eorzea- namely the Catgirl race and the Elezen (Human) race.

I personally pre-ordered three copies of the game on the 27th, but it has not yet shipped from the United States as they said the official launch date is the 30th. My friend Ah Jin bought the standard copy from Sim Lim on the 29th, installed it on the same day and is playing on the Besaid server. I thought that pre-ordering meant that I get the game on time at the earliest date that it could be played. Guess I was wrong there.

This inactivity did mean that I get to watch numerous videos of gameplay from Youtube and read about the latest news and happenings in the FF forums. From my gathering, there is an emphasis on vertical and horizontal character growth (Levels and Skills) and the freedom to mix and match skills and abilities due to its unique Armoury System. Gameplay looks slow like hell; almost chess-game like with a noticeable pause in between every hit. The world looks BEAUTIFUL though, and I can imagine what the game would look like on a top-end rig. And sadly on the other end of the spectrum, I can see myself playing the game on my computer.

*pauses*

Hmm. Bummer.

Okay, I will update more on my adventures in Eorzea when I get there eventually.

C'yall on the flip side.