This or GW2?

[Shinoba]

As a broke ass student i cant choose between FF14 and GW2. Anyone played both and can say what FF14 does better than GW2?

[D. Flame]

You can play FF14 for free up to level 70 and the first two expansions, so...

[Shinoba]

Sure but who knows when it will be on sale again

[GeminiEclipse]

Probably Summer sale, or Winter sale.

[Havok]

Originally posted by Ahri 🌸:

Sure but who knows when it will be on sale again

sorry, but that isnt an excuse.

First, the amount of content, in the thousands of hours that you get from this in free trial is massive. You pay nothing.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/312060/FINAL_FANTASY_XIV_Online_Free_Trial/

Second, there is a new expansion right around the corner, so you are 100% better off, sale or no sale, buying the complete edition when dawntrail releases for $60, instead of spending $25 now, and $40 for dawntrail. Saving the $5 aside, there just isn't a point. You won't get to endgame in 3 months. And, thats 3+ months that you can, play for free with the trial.

Third, and arguably the most important reason to do the free trial and milk it for all its worth, is that when you purchase the game and register your code, you are forever unable to go back to the free trial on that service account. You are locked into subbing to play. Why wouldn't you milk 2000 hours off the free trial for, well, free.

To circle back to your question, I havent played GW2 enough to say what its like at the end game. But, it feels clunky comparitvely, however, plays more wow-esque, than FF14, which is largely MSQ and narrative focused until youre endgame, then it becomes a themepark MMO.

Either way...

GW2 = Free with 0 expansions and restrictions
FF14 Free Trial = Free with 3 expansions and restrictions

Download them and determine for yourself which is better suited for you.

[Sunny]

What are your priorities?

GW2 is mostly focused on overworld content. Go to zone, do stuff in zone.

FFXIV is mostly focused on instanced content; the overworld content is there to facilitate.

FFXIV story is on rails; GW2 you can maybe find the coherent story (it is there!) if you work hard and stay in zones until they're done (and not until you're leveled enough for the next).

Content is--um, both of them save the world with the power of friendship, so it really just depends if you prefer Western Fantasy tropes or Western Fantasy-influenced-by-JRPG tropes. Both of them have instances of CARE BEAR STARE ACTIVATE going on in the story.

PVP in GW2 is more of a focus than it is here, by a significant amount.

GW2 has "dead" content; FFXIV bribes veteran players to do lowbie stuff. There's things in GW2 you just can't do, because it's zone content and requires a zone full of people to open areas or things. None of it is *relevant* content, but it's still stuff walled off. There are also parts of the story that the world has changed over top of, so you just sort of skip chapters as you play (but to be fair, they have started fixing this; living world season 1 is now available where it used to be blocked off).

Both have cosmetic cash shops; GW2's shop does have pay to skip the equipment grind elements, but it's nothing that will generally impact your play if you don't participate. It will be TEMPTING to outright buy the mats for your endgame weapons/gear, but you can reasonably grind it out. Just takes a while.

Guild Wars 3 is currently in development; FFXIV has 10 more years planned for this game.

GW the emphasis is on the MMO part of the word, FFXIV the emphasis is on RPG.

Guild Wars does GROUP content very, very, very, very, very well. Big scale, small scale. It's very well done and a lot of fun (but also means that only recent and current stuff is feasible, because if you don't have critical mass for the earlier stuff it's not even doable, let alone fun). FFXIV is a Final Fantasy game with multiplayer elements. Both of them excel at what they are doing, it's just that they're very different things.

[Silly]

GW2, without a doubt.

[Sunny]

oh I left one very important part out of my last post, sorry

the short people race in GW2 are way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way cuter than the lalas

I said what I said

(cat people here are cuter tho so it balances, and gw2's elves are trees)

eta: more seriously, it should also probably be mentioned that unless things have changed, the holy trinity in GW2 is...nonexistent, or maybe just more complicated in how you do party comps. They don't really have tank/healer/dps lined out like FFXIV does.

[AmAtic]

FF!4 hands down.

[FlyingTorcensoredWhale]

Do you like exploration?

GW2 does exploration in overworld and optional platforming much better than FFXIV. Which was a major selling point for me. Finding hidden stuff and hidden challenges is very fun (for me), bit might not be for others, who prefer a linear gameplay.

Also, there's more agency in GW2 in how you engage with quests, including some choices you can actually make in quests. Ain't gonna change the big story, but it's very nice for replayability.

FFXIV does crafting better. Frankly, it does crafting better than main story. I said what I said. I am invested in making the best trousers for that marauder lalafel, so he can woo his lady. I do not care about cringe twins or milfa (or whatever is her name) and their railroading fetchquesting ways.

[Be Gay, Do Crimes, Smoke Weed!]

Free trial. You'll be spending a long while playing ARR plus two expansions for free and 95% of what you can do during that time can be done during the free trial. Paying for it will net you social features and end-game content that you won't be reaching that quickly anyway.

You'd save a lot of money, so you'd be able to do this and GW2

[Stormy Dawn]

Originally posted by Sunny:

oh I left one very important part out of my last post, sorry

the short people race in GW2 are way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way cuter than the lalas

I said what I said

Those are some serious fighting words.

[Legiondorf]

FF14 because the graphics jank in GW2 is awful check out the big derpy nord guys start zone and any fire sprite in GW2 if you need to see jank for yourself.

[weiss]

Originally posted by Ahri 🌸:

As a broke ass student i cant choose between FF14 and GW2. Anyone played both and can say what FF14 does better than GW2?

exploring wise would i say GW2 o.o FF14 has some exploring stuff too like those lookouts which you can find and give even some lore about the places if ya are into that öö

graphic wise (expecially when it comes to skill effects) definitly FF14. for example: i can not play anymore WoW ... the skill effects are so boring in there that i fall half asleep. its in GW2 the same.

progression wise? probably GW2 again because FF14 is restrictive on this which ticks expecially WoW players off ^^. ARR is very hard to get through in FF14. i still hope they find a solution for this. because A Realm Reborn breaks the patience from a lot of peoples and therefore making it not through it. one of FF14´s major problems is that most classes start to get fun at lv 50+ before that is it just very slow because of the 2,56GC. at lv 90 are ya not longer noticing the huge GC due to many filler skills.

but when it comes to story content would FF14 top GW2 again. FF14 did this so much better, expecially how they involve the player character into the story ... and not being a silly bystander like it often is the case.
at the end depends it on what you like more

Originally posted by Sunny:

oh I left one very important part out of my last post, sorry

the short people race in GW2 are way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way, way cuter than the lalas

i do not agree.

[causality]

GW2 is a better game but FFXIV is a better service if that makes any sense.

[AlienCatFrog]

Just play wow..