Returning to the game after 5 years.

[KaiKizuka]

So i must say i am lost beyond the horizon.

I owned the game at launch and played excessively when i was younger till around 2017.

I own the game including all DLC's until stormbringer on the Windows version. that's what it says in my service account status on my mog station.

so now i would love to get back into it, but here on steam. can someone explain to me how I can do that? can I buy only the 10 € base game and have all the DLC until stormbringer or do i have to buy endwalker (since i cant just buy stormblood again) to even be able to play. How does linking accounts work and what do i have to purchase. Do i have to put codes from steam into the mog station?

also if I purchase the base game on steam, I then have less versions on steam than written in my mog station, and if i purchase it till Endwalker on steam, i have more versions than written in my mog station?

Can someone shed a little light on this huge confusion to me. I was trying for an hour now and im confused as hell. thanks in advanced.

[KaiKizuka]

Originally posted by Seraphita:

You can't. Windows Version cannot move to the Steam version. You're stuck with it.

so what is the whole linking it to steam thing all about then? i am willing to pay again for the "Version" if that's required. no problem. all i actually care about is my account with my character i played thousands of hours with. with the purchases of collectors i made and the mounts and skins and whatsoever I've got. that's all.

can i play on Steam, with my old "Account" if i re-purchase the complete edition of FF14 on steam?

[Sunny]

Steam version and Windows version are NOT compatible.

You don't do any playing on Steam; you'll download the program from the Square Enix site directly, and launch it with that program, and login from there. No Steam involvement at all.

There are two ways for you to get on Steam with the game -- 1, start a new account (with all new characters, buying everything again), or 2- add as a non-steam game so you can hit 'play' from here (which gives you nothing except that Steam tracks your hours; up at the top of Steam there's a 'Games' tab; if you select it, you'll see the option to add a non-Steam game there).

You will have to renew your sub to get your characters back. You will NOT have to buy any expansions just to play. If you want to catch up to current content on your present account, you will ONLY buy Endwalker (it includes all previous expansions you don't have), and you will buy it directly from the Square Enix site, not from Steam.

Steam version and Windows version are NOT compatible. You can have only one (not both) on the same account. Any combo with console / Mac beyond that, but you only get one PC version with your same characters and such.

And for the love of little green apples, renew your sub and log in BEFORE you buy Endwalker, to make sure everything works and you can regain access and everything is there and so on.

I'm not here to debate whether or not it's good or bad that Windows/Steam aren't compatible; like it or not, that's how it is. Just explaining what you need to know to successfully get going on your toons again.

Steam version and Windows version are NOT compatible. (sorta sorry for the repeat on this but people seem to miss it no matter HOW I communicate it)

[Aidenel]

short answer:
You can't.

Longer answer:
Steam and Windows account can't use each other's clients anymore. They changed that not long ago. On top of that, buying the keys on Steam if you have a windows key will not work as it is basically a "seperate platform".
edit: but unlike say, Playstation, where you just buy all the keys and it works, having a windows key permanently locks you out of steam on that account.

[KaiKizuka]

I see. okay then. sad to hear... i am sorry if i sounded stupid here but i was away so long and i heard something about link / convert your windows acc to a steam one so u can have "better security", so i was in the believe that i can somehow convert that over, then only be able to launch the game from steam anymore but its more secure then or smth like that. That's what that all sounded like and maybe brought me on a false path.

I would have preferred to make all my purchases through steam also.

Sad but thanks for the detailed answers guys. so i will hope my acc wont get stolen and something lol.

[KaiKizuka]

one last question? what is your guys opinion? i have a character with all jobs and all crafters and all gatherers at 50-60. i'd had to check but i basically maxed out everything and grinded the game for 10 hours every day before i stopped. should i return and if so, whats a good way to get back into the rotation and story. Probably recap on YouTube and guide on YouTube. Also New Game + seems to be a thing now. Or is it to much after 5 years? should i rather start a new character.

What are your guys opinion about that.

[Sunny]

Originally posted by KaiKizuka:

Sad but thanks for the detailed answers guys. so i will hope my acc wont get stolen and something lol.

You should be able to setup a software authenticator on the mogstation; if you're concerned about security, I highly recommend it. There's an app for both iOS and Android. :)

get back into the rotation

Take your main and go into Palace of the Dead. It starts you at level 1, and as you level it adds your abilities back. That should give you a little bit of help in bringing the muscle memory back in a low-stakes environment where nobody's going to be too upset if you screw up (as long as you're in the early levels of it).

and story.

Youtube recap is probably your best bet, if you're at 50-60ish. MAYBE start a new toon and play just the intro to the story to sort of refocus it, but I don't recommend starting over unless you have somebody you're playing with or you recall that you actively enjoyed it. I love it it and I've played it a few times, and I still struggle to finish the bridge between ARR and HW every single time. It's rough, and even though they've streamlined it a lot, it's still a pretty big filter.

NG+ does not provide rewards. No XP, no gear, etc. It will let you do the story again, but for doing the start of the game, you might as well just make a new toon. OTOH, you could play through ARR and into the bridge until it gets super tedious and you remember how tedious, and then you can exit NG+ for that and skip to HW, so it's not an entirely bad idea.

The other thing you could try is that you can see most of the cutscenes in the inn rooms; there's a book you can read with the story in it, and your quest log has resolution paragraphs for a lot of completed quests. You COULD refresh your brain that way, too.

[Ralf]

Originally posted by KaiKizuka:

I own the game including all DLC's until stormbringer

Stormblood or Shadowbringers? This isnt WoW.

[Sunny]

Originally posted by Ralf:

Originally posted by KaiKizuka:

I own the game including all DLC's until stormbringer

Stormblood or Shadowbringers? This isnt WoW.

They said 50-60 range so I think it's safe to assume they meant Stormblood.