Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker will usher in a number of major changes to the game when it launches on December 7, 2021. One of the most significant ones is happening entirely “under the hood,” and may reset players’ level progress.
In order to rein in “inflation” and keep the game running smoothly, the development team is adjusting the numerical scales FFXIV uses internally. These scales and formulas do things like determine damage and health values for players and enemies. Unfortunately for some players, this will result in a level reset when Endwalker goes live.
During the November 6, 2021 Letter from the Producer Live broadcast, producer Naoki Yoshida mentioned that the level reset will occur as a result of implementing the “downscaling” for Endwalker. Players between levels will have their experience points reduced. This will place them at the beginning of their current level. For example, if a player is halfway between levels 71 and 72 when Endwalker goes live? The level reset will set back that progress, making it as if they had just achieved level 71.
This will affect all classes, jobs, trust NPCs, and retainers. The team recommends that, prior to the FFXIV Endwalker launch, players level up any jobs that are close to achieving a new level. This will minimize any XP loss suffered from the level reset. While the team tried to find a solution for preserving players’ XP, it would have taken weeks of server downtime to do.
To clarify the reasons behind the level reset in FFXIV Endwalker, Yoshida went into more detail. The downscaling is necessary to keep the values in Final Fantasy XIV manageable. According to Yoshida, the sheer size of the values being calculated has begun to introduce bugs into the system. For example, damage text popups have become so large that, in some instances, the game cannot render them properly. Once implemented, the downscaling will cause in-game values to appear as a fraction of what they were. Actual scaling will not be adjusted, so players should not see a difference in the “feel” of their attacks. These types of adjustments are common in MMORPGs. Games like World of Warcraft and Dungeons and Dragons Online also underwent their own “stat squishes” at various points.
Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker goes live on December 3, 2021 for early access customers, and December 7, 2021 globally on PS4, PS5, and PC. Check out more details on Endwalker‘s additions.
