The Final Fantasy series is a superb set of games that have become an important part of video game history. Final Fantasy XI is an especially strong title. It is a terrific modern update on the series, advancing it and taking it into exciting new territory.

Final Fantasy XI is an outstanding entry in a series that is nearly twenty years old. The Final Fantasy series was created by the Japanese company Square Co. in 1987. At the time Square were in a difficult position, as they had focused on making games for the Nintendo Famicom Disk System and this format had become unpopular. The company were eager for success and saw great potential in the role-playing genre. Final Fantasy was their attempt to make a new kind of role-playing title.

Final Fantasy came out in Japan at the end of 1987. It was excellent, offering a fresh and original role-playing experience. Final Fantasy’s strength was that it had a strong narrative that ran throughout the game. This made it very compelling and helped it to capture people’s interest. It was an enormous success and launched what would become a hugely popular franchise. It would lead to Final Fantasy XI and beyond.

When Square made Final Fantasy, they looked at the role-playing genre and explored the possibilities of what it could do. Final Fantasy was innovative, and this sense of invention would become a major element of the series, continuing all the way through to Final Fantasy XI. The first sequel, Final Fantasy II, was equally creative, surprising people by coming up with a completely new plot and characters.

The Final Fantasy series flourished and a number of dazzling games followed. Final Fantasy IV was a gripping, brilliant game and became the second title in the series to be released in North America. Final Fantasy VI had an enthralling story that gave it serious emotion and depth. Final Fantasy X used voice acting and beautiful three-dimensional visuals to create its own game world. These were all strong titles and laid the way beautifully for Final Fantasy XI.

Final Fantasy XI has continued the sense of innovation that is expected of this series. A highly ambitious game, it saw the franchise move into the world of online gaming. Final Fantasy XI is a massively multi-player online role-playing game. It is also unique as it is playable on both consoles and PCs, all of which connect to the same game servers. This has made it the first cross-platform title of its kind.

There was great curiosity about Final Fantasy XI before its release in 2002. Images and previews of the game captured people’s attention. A special bonus disk was included with the release of Final Fantasy X, containing a trailer for the game. Its creator Square Enix also held beta tests for the game to gather players’ feedback and improve it. This allowed them to handle any concerns that people had and fine-tune it.

Final Fantasy XI was launched in Japan on May 16 2002 for the Sony PlayStation 2. The PC release came on November 5th. It had its PC release in North America on October 28 2003, with the European release following in September 2004. The initial Japanese launch was a complicated affair, as the game required a hard drive for the PlayStation 2 console and stocks of these were limited at first. Square Enix responded well to any issues that developed, and also released a game patch to enhance it.

Square Enix adopted an interesting approach to the game, developing it and reworking it even after it had been released. The company has revised it since its launch and made it even better, adding in new areas and new content. This has enriched the Final Fantasy XI experience. There have been two expansions, Rise of the Zilart and Chains of Promathia, to complement the game. A third expansion, Treasures of Aht Urhgan, is planned for spring 2006.

Final Fantasy XI has established itself as a major presence in online gaming. It sold well, building up more than 500,000 subscribers by January 7 2004. There were almost a million game characters active within this time period. It was well received, enjoying many positive reviews from the game press. It was crucial in building up Square Enix’s PlayOnline service and more than fulfilled their hopes for the title.

Final Fantasy XI is a truly great game. It has combined the creativity and innovation that is the hallmark of Final Fantasy with a state of the art online gaming format. It is an amazing experience and has taken the series in a new direction. It will continue entertaining people for a long time to come.

Hunter Crowell is a researcher, avid online gamer, and creator of FFXI Gil Price List, a site that helps players find the cheapest place to buy their Final Fantasy XI Gil.

Hunter Crowell is an avid online gamer and researcher. He has created the following sites:
http://www.world-of-warcraft-gold.com
http://www.wow-gold-price-list.com
http://ffxi-gil.info

Having enough FFXI Gil is the most essential aspects of the game. Gil the major currency used when purchasing or trading items. To be a good player you will need allt he Gils you can get. No matter how great your game skills are you will need the Gils to get your equipments, armors, weapons and other items. Having the gears early in the game will help you advance to higher levels at a faster pace than others can. Here are some good tips to start your career in Final Fantasy XI.

Warp Quest

This method can get you about 10k gil within an hour. You need to start with 1k to purchase a slime oil. After you’ve purchased the slime oil, bring it to an NPC named “Unlucky Rat” in the Metal district of Bastok in exchange for a warp scroll. The scroll sells for about a good 7-10K. Seems easy? Well slight problem with this method is that you will need to have enough fame built up before the NPC will take your slime oil. You will be required to run around town doing low level missions to get your fame up. This is where it gets a little time consuming but 10k gil an hour for a lowbie is really good. You can also redo this quest by creating a mule account and transfering 1k gil to that character.

Just Badge Quest

The Justice Badge quest is located in Winhurt and will require 1 rabab tail and 4 onions to complete. you can buy the stack of rabab tail in the auction house for 50-100gil. Easy to do at low level. In the docks of Winhurst you will find an NPC that you can give the rabab tail to. He will give you the Justice Badge which sells for 500-2000 gil in the auction house. After receiving the bad, give him 4 wild ionions and you’ll receive a scroll that sells up to 5000 gil. You can repeat this quest by using a mule.

Fire Crystals

A stack of first crystals can sell for 2000 gil easily over at the auction house. There are 2 good methods to collect fire crystals. The more commonly used method would be the usual beat the mob down and loot method. To start you need to be around level 7-10. You will need signet cast on you at your town gates. Head out North to Gusterburg where you will be able to find many vultures. You’ll only want to kill the vulters and nothing else to conserve time. To the Northwest of San D’oria there is an area full of Orcs. The orcs drop a nice amount of fire crystals as well. You can probably average about 3 stacks in an hour. 6000 gil in an hour for a level 7-10 is not too bad.

The other method of farming fire crystals is by gardening. You start by buying a brass flower pot in the auction house, several vegetable seeds and some water crystals. You then plant the flower plot in your Mog house and put in the vegetable seeds. Feed it some water crystals, after 1-3 days you will have 17 fire crystals come out of it. You can have up to 6-8 flower pots per house, you can easily make 20-30,000 gils every 2-3 days. It only takes a few minutes to purchase the accessories and to plant them. It’s a wealthy short term investment. Money growing on trees is the way I think of it.

For more recipes, quests and guides on farming FFXI Gil visit http://www.ffxigilguide.com. If you’re feeling lazy you and have the money to spare can always buy FFXI gil.

Ruibo is the marketing manager for Team-VIP. They offer a variety of services including World of Warcraft Gold, Power Leveling, Accounts and items.

Square Enix U.S.A. today announced that it would present the first ever Final Fantasy symphony concert in the United States on Monday, May 10th, at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. The event will take place just one day before the start of the Electronic Entertainment Expo.

Full details about the concert and the companies and people behind it can be found in the official release below.

Square Enix Presents ‘Dear Friends - Music From FINAL FANTASY-” Concert at the Walt Disney Concert Hall

FINAL FANTASY Debuts First Orchestral Concert in North America Celebrating Video Game Music

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 18 /PRNewswire/ — Square Enix U.S.A., Inc. (”Square Enix U.S.A.”), the publisher of Square Enix(TM) interactive entertainment products in North America, announced today that they will present the first FINAL FANTASY(R) symphony concert in the U.S. on Monday, May 10, 2004, at the prestigious Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, Calif. The performance will feature music from Square Enix’s world-renowned FINAL FANTASY video game series, performed by the acclaimed Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Los Angeles Master Chorale. This exciting event will be taking place during the week of E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo), the largest interactive entertainment trade show in the U.S.

“I am overjoyed about the FINAL FANTASY concert to be held in Los Angeles,” said series composer Nobuo Uematsu. “With this being the first FINAL FANTASY orchestral concert outside of Japan, it marks a very exciting moment in the history of the franchise. I am looking forward to seeing our fans at the concert in May.”

“FINAL FANTASY’s award-winning scores have captivated gamers worldwide and now we have an opportunity to share some of the series’ most memorable melodies with our fans and concertgoers for the first time in the U.S.,” said Jun Iwasaki, president and CEO, Square Enix U.S.A. “We are thrilled to bring this event to the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the new home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. The audience will be able to experience the emotionally-moving and powerful scores that have made melodies of FINAL FANTASY the finest in games.”

Uematsu will create the score for the two-hour concert. Featuring a full orchestra and a 32-person choir, this concert will mark the first of its kind in the U.S. A dedicated Web site featuring composer Uematsu, the “favorite FINAL FANTASY music” fan survey and concert information can be found at http://www.square-enix-usa.com/uematsu . Additional information about the concert including ticket sales, prices and on-sale dates will be announced at a later date.

The first FINAL FANTASY concert was held in Japan in February 2002, performed by the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra. Led by famed conductor Taizo Takemoto (New Japan Philharmonic), the sold-out concert was held at the Tokyo International Forum with over 5,000 guests. Building upon the success of the first concert, Square Enix recently announced a six-city, seven-show concert series titled “Tour de Japon — music from FINAL FANTASY–,” which will be held this coming March and April in Japan.

Video game music has become increasingly popular in the last few years — with the technology available in today’s gaming consoles, video game music has been able to move beyond the stereotypical blips and bleeps of its predecessors and has become more sophisticated. Music in games today plays an integral role, enhancing the gamers’ overall gameplay experience. While still a growing market, video game soundtracks are now sold in major outlets and feature a variety of genres including rock, hip-hop, electronica, classical compositions and songs performed by popular artists. The FINAL FANTASY soundtracks, which are original compositions, have grown to such popularity and the series’ veteran composer Nobuo Uematsu was named as one of the “Innovators” in Time Magazine’s “Time 100: The Next Wave — Music” feature. Square Enix hopes to pioneer the appreciation and awareness of not only its musical creations, but also video game music throughout the industry. Currently available exclusively on America Online’s Radio@ Network, the FINAL FANTASY radio station features 200 tracks from the top-selling FINAL FANTASY video games and is available for listeners on Radio@AOL, Radio@AOL for Broadband and Radio@Netscape under the “Soundtracks & More” category. This is the first ever radio station on the AOL Radio@ Network dedicated to a single video game franchise.

About FINAL FANTASY
FINAL FANTASY is one of the best-selling video game franchises in the world, with more than 48 million units sold worldwide. Created by Hironobu Sakaguchi, the first FINAL FANTASY was released in 1987 in Japan and 1990 in North America. Spanning across multiple platforms, the long running series has introduced the world of cinematic role-playing games (RPGs) to millions of gamers around the world. The most recent installment in the series, FINAL FANTASY XI, is the first online title in the series and provides a brand new gaming universe that contains the award-winning visual content, innovative gameplay and deep storyline seen throughout the series. It is also the first cross-platform (players are connected to the same world whether they are playing on a PlayStation(R) 2 computer entertainment system or personal computer) and first cross-continent massively-multiplayer online RPG (MMORPG). The twelfth installment, FINAL FANTASY XII, is currently being developed and scheduled for release in Japan in summer 2004.

About Los Angeles Philharmonic Association
The Los Angeles Philharmonic, which launches its 86th season in October 2004 at Walt Disney Concert Hall, has developed steadily in artistic stature and prominence since it was founded in 1919. Today, under the dynamic leadership of Esa-Pekka Salonen, who became the orchestra’s tenth music director in 1992, the Philharmonic is recognized as one of the world’s outstanding orchestras, received enthusiastically by audiences and critics alike. Both at home and abroad, it has, as the Berliner Zeitung stated, “…proved that it belongs among the best in the United States.”

This is a view shared by the more than one million Southern Californians who experience performances by the Los Angeles Philharmonic each year. There is a 30-week winter subscription season at Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a 12-week summer festival at the legendary Hollywood Bowl, where “Music Under the Stars” has been a popular tradition since 1922. The orchestra’s involvement with Los Angeles also extends far beyond regular symphony concerts in a concert hall, embracing schools, churches, and neighborhood centers of a huge and vastly diverse community. More information can be found at http://www.laphil.com/ .

About Walt Disney Concert Hall
Walt Disney Concert Hall, designed by acclaimed architect Frank Gehry, is one of the most recognized architectural landmarks on the West Coast and one of the world’s most sophisticated and acclaimed concert halls. The curved exterior of the 293,000-square-foot Walt Disney Concert Hall embodies the energy, innovation, and creative spirit of the city of Los Angeles and its orchestra. The sculptural composition of the hall is already a striking addition to the city’s cultural and architectural landscape. The building occupies a 3.6-acre site - a full city block at the intersection of First Street and Grand Avenue in the historic Bunker Hill area of downtown Los Angeles. More information can be found at http://www.laphil.com/ .

About Square Enix Co. Ltd. and Square Enix U.S.A., Inc.
Headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, Square Enix Co., Ltd. (Square Enix) develops, publishes and distributes entertainment contents including interactive entertainment software and publications in Japan, North America, Europe and Asia. Square Enix brings two of Japan’s best-selling franchises — FINAL FANTASY(R), which has sold over 48 million units worldwide and DRAGON QUEST (DRAGON WARRIOR(R) in North America) which has sold over 31 million units worldwide — under one roof. Square Enix is one of the most influential providers of digital entertainment content in the world and continues to push the boundaries of creativity and innovation.

Square Enix U.S.A. Inc., located in Los Angeles, Calif., handles operations in North America including localization, marketing and publishing of Square Enix titles. More information on Square Enix U.S.A. can be found on the Internet at http://www.square-enix-usa.com/

Square Enix announced at a fan event in Tokyo that the upcoming release of Final Fantasy: Advent Children to Blu ray is scheduled for March 2009. The Movie will include a bonus disk which will contain trailers for Final Fantasy Agito XIII and Final Fantasy Versus XIII.

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