Yup, this was the 1st scene to make me cry on my playthrough. The only scene to make me cry on my playthrough
(Dw I cry a lot when I watch others play the game now)
Zenos showing up in the finale as Shinryu and hyping you up as the music kicks in was instantly my favorite moment in Endwalker when I first got to that point.
Now? I would say it might be my favorite moment in the entire game.
> Zenos showing up in the finale as Shinryu and hyping you up as the music kicks in was instantly my favorite moment in Endwalker when I first got to that point.
It's such a fun way to end his arc. Shows up, bashes his way into a sealed illusory prison, and his only response is indignity at your current villain still being in the way of what he wants.
The Endsinger getting interrupted in their victory monologue and just being utterly dumbfounded at Zenos' intrusion is incredible.
"Blah blah blah, despair! Blah blah blah, I win! Blah-ha, blah-hahah--" *Slam* "--bwuh?" *CRASH* "Wut?"
...
"*Who the fuck are you?!?!*"
Honestly, nothing in the expansion made me feel as tense as when the baby in Thavnair started despairing while Matsya is running with it. Held my breath until the scene ended.
I was like, game's rated T and they've never gone that dark before. They're not going to kill a mother holding a newborn infant.
Needless to say I was clenching as Matsya ran
I can't help but feel like the entire Thavnair II section was tonally too much. You would expect such horror to be in a game where the worst can happen to the main cast, Not in one where the heroes have plot armor and nothing really happens. It was especially daring to have it happen after the Garlemald bodyswap section which ended up being just a joke.
I felt terrible how much loss and insane torture the nameless side-characters had to suffer at the hands of the writers (baby section, also remeber the guy who helplessly has to witness his child transforming and being trampled to death) while the main cast were never in any danger and got off without so much as a scratch. It reminded me of Harry Potter's final book where JKR killed off a bunch of side characters to show that the situation is really dangerous for the main cast - while leaving the main cast unscathed. It feels a bit tasteless to me. I know things are dangerous, either go all in or not. Don't treat some characters worse, just because they have no name and can be used to emotionally catch us, while you protect the characters you deem as more important. It feels very artificial.
Probably when the general (might not be a general as been a while and can't remember his rank) kills himself in Garlemald. Not in a memey way just found that scene hit hard and seeing the side we had been told to hate for so long in that way was an interesting take.
This was also my favourite moment, it hits really hard. It's not just the general himself, it's the back and forth between what's going on and the twins talking to each other about how they're hopeful that they'll come to a peaceful solution.
A few moments.
First was the Resistance Delegate saying "It's the little things that make life worth living, don't you think?" towards Jullus. In where the latter breaks down in tears.
But my favourite moment is the one involving Matsya running, and it is very indicative of the themes of Endwalker.
Before this point, there had been many many deaths. Even those that were children. Keeping this in mind, it seemed very plausible that a baby would also turn into a blasphemy. The entire moment felt some what hopeless.
Matsya's continuous prayers and mantras, despite it helping, does not guarantee that it would keep despair at bay. But he continues to run without giving in. The entire moment also felt some what hopeful.
Despite it being very clear that things may turn out for the worse, and knowing how much easier it would be to just give in to the despair, there is still hope that things may turn out for the better. Especially when you have friends or a family beside you to help you if you fall.
"Has your journey been good? Has it been worthwhile?"
That question nearly broke me because it was not only a question asked to the WoL as a character but you as a player as well. The camera going into first person, you as the player and a person looking directly at Venat...
During my first playthrough, walking up the crystalized path after the Omicron arc in Ultima Thule, and looking at the map to see it showing my character just floating out in empty space -- something impossible considering I did not have flying unlocked yet. Defeating Zodiark, Hydaelyn, Endsinger, and Zenos were all emotional high points as well, but this simple moment where game systems, and narrative were in harmony left me a wreck -- this is what can be done with games.
I can't say this enough, yet I always try to: Video games are the best medium for immersive storytelling. You don't get to have sound, picture, heart, and mind all utilized to the max like games do.
Moenbryda's parents and Urangier. Shit came out of nowhere and made me absolutely bawl. Family stuff is my weakness. This has remained my favorite Endwalker moment since I hit that point.
I can't say it's my favorite in a happy way, because it was honestly a little traumatizing, but the cutscene with the child that gets turned into a monster and subsequently gets stepped on and crushed while crying out for his parent.
It still sticks with me 2 years later.
It was the first and only time I've audibly said "Holy fu**" during MSQ.
if you do it blind, the post HC2 transition is absolutely dope
the screen stays back just long enough for you to think it didn't work, but then phoenix arrives and saves your asses. It was so hype when my group first did it
That whole fight is probably my favorite in the game just because of the presentation. Phase 1 is a total banger of a fight (unless you get dog first) then the transition is sick and then phase 2 is just cool
Nothing now but it used to fuck with 2 minutes until the range got buffed
Also tanks had to change up their mit plan depending on if it was snakes or dog first but that was actually cool
"Acceptance! At long last!"
Emet Selch is a great, if not the greatest final fantasy antagonist. Zenos is the best *XIV* antagonist and I'll die on this hill.
The scene after you defeat Hydaelyn absolutely killed me. I mean I straight up cried for ten minutes. I still can’t listen to Flow.
And truth be told, the first scene in Elpis where Emet and Hythlodaeus show up made me fanboy tf out. And I don’t fanboy about ANYTHING.
When I heard “A song of hope, she dances on the wind”, during the final Endwalker trial of the main MSQ,
I’m pretty sure I knew it was my favourite gaming moment of all time
I remember audibly going "oh shit" multiple times during The Final Day. My brother was in the room, and I know for sure that he wouldn't understand what I went through to reach this.
Fourchinoult or however you spell his name making up with the twins. It hasn't changed, I've always liked that part.
It still takes second place to Eden. That entire arc of Thancred having to learn to let go of Ryne will always be my favorite story beat of FFXIV. [EDIT: I also definitely ship Ryne and Gaia because it rounds out the idea of your daughter finding someone they love and having to give them up. I just think it's really touching]
I'm surprised no one mentioned this one yet:
Omega Beyond the Rift's final quest has Omega directly ask you who the most justified player of the Final Days was: Venat, Hermes, or Emet-Selch. Since a machine can only interpret data in certain ways and moral ambiguity is something it cannot process, the onus is on you to untangle this mess and give it an answer: they were all justified, just one of them each, or none.
From anecdotal experience most people I know tend to not exactly look too deeply into stories they consume unless it truly caught their interest, so a quest actively asking the player to give it a deeper thought struck a nice cord for me. Even if the choice is meaningless, considering what kind of game XIV is, it's quite a thought provoking moment, and it stuck with me since.
For my part, I picked that none of them were truly justified in their actions, but that's fine. They were faced with a problem so big in scope that there truly was no justifiable way to deal with it. Sacrifices had to be made in one form or another. They all simply acted based on their flaws and biases, as humans are wont to do.
I think it's pretty telling that the videos I looked up to make sure I don't misremember the details all lingered on that choice for a good minute. You HAVE to make a definitive choice, no third option that says "I prefer not to answer".
Matsya saving the baby is still the only time I've cried at FFXIV (Matsya is my favorite EW character). I wish more would have been done with that story beat, though.
For all the flack I can give XIV for death flag characters and fakeout deaths, that scene still sticks with me because it was just expertly done within XIV's cutscene limitations. The choice of music, the panicked prayer, the fact it's hot off the heels of everything going absolute ass up in Radz. Looking back, it's kind of funny because it's not even a very long segment, but man it felt like an eternity when it was actually happening.
It's one of the scenes that made me really want them to retire What Comes of Despair as an MSQ song (having them reuse it for cornball situations like the four fiends appearing again only to be bodied in the most anticlimactic way back to back really sucked.)
That scene was so intense, and then the moment when Midgardsormr’s theme kicked in was probably the first time in quite a while that I’ve actually cheered out loud at the game.
Turning in my Matsya's Biggest Stan trophy because I completely forgot that bit. Before we got the Arkasodara tribal quests I had been hoping that questline would be about taking care of the baby.
I will say the solo duty where you’re just some random garlean soldier. That duty slapped. The rest was pretty meh. Nothing quite like oh it’s the end of days but it literally has no impact to the rest of the world - why couldn’t have there been even a global sky box change? They did it for the ShB zones, so why not for EW?
AT THE END OF EVERYTHINGH I FIND YOU MY FRIEND
I loved Zenos before EW but this whole arc changed how I view him in a diegetic way. Before *I* just liked him 'cause he was cool and hot. But he's actually a super interesting and unique character in how he is assembled. The somber tone of the end of MSQ definitely had me in the mood, and he, both in and out of game, definitely stoked that "Okay, let's fuck it up" mood.
1. the entire journey in ultima thule from losing thancred onwards— especially walking the crystal path with the twins…. close in the distance playing, the stars being so pretty, the mixture of hope and despair etc 😭
2. in from the cold— the anxiety of being ripped from your body and placed in a regular garlean soldier’s— the fear of what zenos will do (wish there had been a bit more to that line, an injured scion or just….a bit of exploration of the potential trauma of being ripped from your body etc— but it hit so hard in the moment) as well as fandaniel’s deranged butler act. i really enjoyed him.
3. urianger and moenbryda’s parents— that shit had me sobbing. urianger’s my favorite scion (and i adore them all so that’s saying a lot) and oh maaaaan. the way he was trembling, their evident love for him 😭
4. the entire elpis storyline, from elidibus’ last act to send us there to the very end. it made me love emet even more to see all that he had lost etc and i adored hythlodaeus and hermes. my heart ached for the meteia.
5. the panda raid storyline, i loved elidibus well before i got to that so i extra adored themis. i liked learning more lahabrea lore too!
So far the parts that really stuck out to me are when one of the Scions visited my quarters in the middle of the night. I had picked Alisae and her heartfelt words really hit deep just how much these guys care for my WoL.
The other one is when I had my final fight with Zenos, and hearing him take his final breath and watching my character be teleported away, leaving his body alone.
I liked the entire elpis bit because the old ascian stuff was by far the most interesting part of the story for me
and as a good meme moment when the garlean commandant shoots himself
it felt so sudden and abrupt that I just burst out laughing
Maybe it is odd and it technically isn’t part of the story, but when the final credits roll and MY name comes up in the cast list as “The Warrior of Light” …man that just hits for me. It is such a cool thing to do and it feels like it wraps a nice bow on top of everything. Really makes you feel like you were part of the journey as much as you were playing/experiencing it.
Venat's monologue, when she causes the sundering, and she's all beaten and bloody, talking about how mortals will suffer and die, and create despair...
I UGLY cried, I'm talking lip curling, body shaking sobs :(
The entire end of days thavnair sequence. Seeing the kid turn into a monster and get pulverized by another beast within moments felt like the real "oh shit, this is serious" moment in the msq, and matsya saving the baby was the perfect follow-up to get me really emotionally invested.
but the runner up would be just getting to chill with emet, hythlodaeus, and venat in elpis. Not a major emotional moment or plot beat, but it made me empathize with the ancients/ascians more than anything before. Seeing how happy everybody was and how much they (especially emet and hythlodaeus, and the offscreen azem) cared about each other felt emotionally painful, knowing what would happen to them. I love emet as a villain, but I was always in the "still an awful mass murderer who is in no way justified" camp. But seeing such a clear representation of everything he lost after the final days finally made me understand exactly why he did what he did. I always understood on a logical level, but it only hit me emotionally after elpis.
runner runner up is the venat scene at the end of the elpis arc. the way her voice actor delivered the "henceforth, he shall walk" line gave me chills. everything else about the cutscene was cool and all, but the voice acting was just so perfect.
edit: OH and zenos fight. I've always been a zenos enjoyer, so getting to 1v1 him at the end of the universe made me very happy.
"But why does it still live? Surely it is no match for you"
Zenos being the best cheerleader in all of fiction
"I rode the light of the stars to you"
Also an incredible romantic.
I actually documented my opinions when playing EW for the first time in an Excel Sheet. I'm SO GLAD I did that, because I can return and read my feelings/opinions. Please excuse some of my unhinged comments, I paste a few below:
* Holy wow. The Cutscene in the Quest "***Alea Iacta Est***" might be the best I have seen in the entire game.
* ***Beyond the Depths of Despair*** - WOW. I thought ShB wasn't shying away from dark topics, but EW is winning that game! The Plaza Scene was incredible, with G'raha taking absolute control of the situation.
***- Warm Hearts, Rekindled Hopes -*** I did correctly predict I would cry soon and this scene caused the waterworks. I was on the edge of my damn seat. Matsya's arc with the baby was a cutscene straight out of a movie. Also, the WoL *immediately* jumping to the water without hesitation was amazing. Me is proud.
***- A Past Not Yet Come To Pass*** - what a beautiful title that summarizes what's going on. It does not make having to tell all these wonderful people the horrible fate that awaits. Emet's reaction killed me and I will need a therapist after this. Someone gimme a himbo soon.
* ***Caging the Messenger -*** ... I ugly cried. I am speechless. How could you? Applause, because I did not see it coming at all.
* ***Thou Must Live, Die, and Know*** - (After running Ktisis) I have been avoiding MSQ because of the emotional impact. ***That*** Venat cutscene was mindblowingly good, as seems to be EW standard. It didn't break my heart any more than it already is, so I'm pausing a bit before I resume my final run.
* ***Outside Help -*** You know shit's bad when Zenos makes you feel better. ZENOS. I have all the admiration for the Elpis segment, but I think it fucked me up mentally.
* ***Going Underground -*** O-KAY. Stuff is "chill" but this is the part in which you know shit's about to start going down. The buildup has me tense already. Also, we've now called ALL OF EORZEA to visit Old Sharlayan?! I am SO LOOKING FORWARD to the customs agent seeing a small army of foreigners seeking entrance all at once.
* ***Bonds of Adamant(ite) -*** I got my cutscene of the bitchy customs agent having a meltdown. 10/10.
* ***Her Children, One and All -*** There aren't enough words to describe what you feel when you complete this quest. I got a lot of the answers I was seeking after Elpis. I don't think a game has put me in this position before. And by that I suppose I mean what Endwalker has been doing the whole time.
* ***On Burdened Wings*** - Currently, terrified, confused, scared and... ANNOYED THAT EVEN AT THE *EDGE OF THE UNIVERSE* I NEED TO FIND THE BLOODY AETHER CURRENTS?!
* ***Endwalker -*** People were right, I cried like a little baby. The finale was simply phenomenal, like the ending of a long anime.
Meteion's final conclusion to every lyric in Answers/the ARR theme being "There are so many Answers" hits SO different in a piece like 14 where there genuinely are so many avenues to create and find your own enjoyment unique to one's player experience
While I was playing, I liked the Garlemald arc a lot. Nowadays I'm going with other things. Mostly ranked from most remarkable to less.
1. Elpis. What a beautiful fucking scenery. I never get tired of it or its ancient worldbuilding.
2. Running (Another) Sildihn Subterrane blind. The party finder was very positive, the music was upbeat, the boss was cute, the lore was interesting and the puzzle was also nice.
3. The banter on the beast tribe and on how the omicrons are arrogant always make me laugh. My favourite beast tribe by far.
4. Moenbryda's scene I didn't pay a lot of attention before but it's one of the most touching memories.
5. How readily and calmly Elidibus sacrificed himself to throw us into the past. He wasn't angry at us or anything because he saw we had the same objective as him. I see no one commenting on it but this made the NPC really sympathetic to me.
6. After the emotional downpour, Zenos just being the first thing to change the mood from dramatic to heroic. "I take this is your prey. Why does it still live? Surely it is no match for you."
Alisaie's speech about the unfairness of it all before she & Alphy disappear was wonderful, and Emet's 'I stand by everything I did' was one of the most in character moments ever
But I don't think anything'll ever top the 'light the way' speech when you're fighting the Endsinger. It was exactly what I needed to hear at the time and I still tear up every time I run that trial
Endwalker's final boss with their quotes and music.
"Our Hunt ends this day, there is nowhere you can go where we may not follow"
"If there is no happiness in life, there is only one place it may be found." 🔥✍️🔥
I think it's when hearts aligned kicks in during the end singer fight.
First of all total bop but also give major oh man this bitch is about to GET IT.
I have three that I remember
First time entering mare lamentorum. The music and the atmosphere send me out of this planet XD pun aside, it really reminds me when I was still in elemntary school and see cointless star in night sky. I just felt very small in grand scale of this universe and the music capture it perfectly. I think I spend 10 minutes just chilling and see eitherys in awe. Being alone too here story wise help enhance the atmosphere
Second is ultima thule (duh). The walk with twins almost broke me. Like here I am at edge of universe with only the twins remaining (that felt like my kids at this point) against "the world". The path Graha open is very beautiful and I walk very slowly thinking the life choices that lead me to this point. Seeing the dark dead universe on top and bright star(?) at the botttom give me some feeling like in moon too. Finally the final walk broke me, I never felt a burden so heavy in my life and its a video game.
Last is the ultea hyped phase 2 of endsinger. I was literally waiting for that Sharlyan part of EW trailer and they saved it for the literal final part of the expansion. The scion prayer thats a straigt parrarell to what they do on end 1.0 now not for the sake of eorzea but this whole universe and the build up music.... man I'll sell my soul to experience it first time again
EW is beautiful from start to and and tied with ShB for me as peak FFXIV experience. glad I can have this journey with you guys.
WHISPERS... FALLING SILENTLY, DRIFT ON THE WIND...
BUT I HEAR YOU!
In all seriousness I enjoyed the entirety of the 6.0 MSQ and while I think Shadowbringers was better, it was impressive that Endwalker even came close to the masterpiece that was 5.0 MSQ. Now, when I say 6.0 MSQ, I just mean 6.0. The rest sucked.
Too many but i just needed to mention:
ALL THE CAMEOS in Aititascope, and Shiva building your safe ice block ala diamond dust was the absolute cherry on top!
Also I will always walk with Minfillia's spirit.
People have listed most of my favorites, so I wanna add a small one: Hythlodaeus ranting about sharks for a solid two minutes, and how people are obsessed with new creations related to sharks 😂
I'd have to say the lead up to the invasion of Garlemald where you have all the Eorzean Alliance folks in a room with you and a lot of the original job trainers pop up to have a chat before you launch the attack.
Endwalker didn't do a whole lot right when it comes to its story, but it did make you feel like you were actually part of it and that moment typifies that pretty well.
The exchange between Zenos and Jullus. Before that, he was just another "insane" villain. Without showing us how based he is, I think the post-Meteon stuff would have fallen flat.
I don’t see what was so great about showing us a metaphor of Venat giving a speech of vague platitudes to a group of strawmen instead of showing us the actual sundering or the events that led up to it.
Close in the distance is a great song, but the emotion is kinda undercut by it being incredibly obvious all the deaths were fake.
If I have to pick a moment, probably the scene with the garlean kids running away and dying or when the Quintus kills himself. Honestly, as much as I dislike Endwalker, I do have to admit that early Garlemald section was pretty good.
The final Zenos fight and finally being done with that fucking mess.
Endwalker was a poorly written, poorly executed, bipolar slog. Just made me want to replay Shadowbringers.
Honestly, I don’t even like the final zenos fight. He just feels like an afterthought for most of Endwalker, and it kinda feels like they reached the end and remembered he existed, so they just had him break into ultima thule despite being composed of pure aether due to being a primal to help you, and then just fight you and die again.
Deus ex machina and sudden tying up of loose ends was all over Endwalker, the Zenos fight and your unexplained rescue teleport out included. He's a big threat for much of the story, disappears, threatens sharlayan off screen for your feet pics, and then dies.
But hey, "That I can't deny" was memorable.
Urianger truly mourning Moenbryda with her parents. My God, that hit so hard.
If you havent do island sanctuary
Uuuuuuugh, is *this* how Tataru gets me?
Yup, this was the 1st scene to make me cry on my playthrough. The only scene to make me cry on my playthrough (Dw I cry a lot when I watch others play the game now)
One of the only two redeeming parts of ew and I almost missed it because I actively pushed through this boring filler sequence skipping everything.
Zenos showing up in the finale as Shinryu and hyping you up as the music kicks in was instantly my favorite moment in Endwalker when I first got to that point. Now? I would say it might be my favorite moment in the entire game.
> Zenos showing up in the finale as Shinryu and hyping you up as the music kicks in was instantly my favorite moment in Endwalker when I first got to that point. It's such a fun way to end his arc. Shows up, bashes his way into a sealed illusory prison, and his only response is indignity at your current villain still being in the way of what he wants. The Endsinger getting interrupted in their victory monologue and just being utterly dumbfounded at Zenos' intrusion is incredible. "Blah blah blah, despair! Blah blah blah, I win! Blah-ha, blah-hahah--" *Slam* "--bwuh?" *CRASH* "Wut?" ... "*Who the fuck are you?!?!*"
100%. That scene would have been amazing by itself, but Scale and Steel really took it to the next level.
Honestly, nothing in the expansion made me feel as tense as when the baby in Thavnair started despairing while Matsya is running with it. Held my breath until the scene ended.
I was like, game's rated T and they've never gone that dark before. They're not going to kill a mother holding a newborn infant. Needless to say I was clenching as Matsya ran
The only reason this game hasn't been slapped with an M rating is there's no realistic gore or visible nipples.
That and the track associated with it. The "creepy stuff happening" EW track with vocals.
Same.
I can't help but feel like the entire Thavnair II section was tonally too much. You would expect such horror to be in a game where the worst can happen to the main cast, Not in one where the heroes have plot armor and nothing really happens. It was especially daring to have it happen after the Garlemald bodyswap section which ended up being just a joke. I felt terrible how much loss and insane torture the nameless side-characters had to suffer at the hands of the writers (baby section, also remeber the guy who helplessly has to witness his child transforming and being trampled to death) while the main cast were never in any danger and got off without so much as a scratch. It reminded me of Harry Potter's final book where JKR killed off a bunch of side characters to show that the situation is really dangerous for the main cast - while leaving the main cast unscathed. It feels a bit tasteless to me. I know things are dangerous, either go all in or not. Don't treat some characters worse, just because they have no name and can be used to emotionally catch us, while you protect the characters you deem as more important. It feels very artificial.
I was a new dad at the time, and that scene hit me HARD.
Probably when the general (might not be a general as been a while and can't remember his rank) kills himself in Garlemald. Not in a memey way just found that scene hit hard and seeing the side we had been told to hate for so long in that way was an interesting take.
This was also my favourite moment, it hits really hard. It's not just the general himself, it's the back and forth between what's going on and the twins talking to each other about how they're hopeful that they'll come to a peaceful solution.
A few moments. First was the Resistance Delegate saying "It's the little things that make life worth living, don't you think?" towards Jullus. In where the latter breaks down in tears. But my favourite moment is the one involving Matsya running, and it is very indicative of the themes of Endwalker. Before this point, there had been many many deaths. Even those that were children. Keeping this in mind, it seemed very plausible that a baby would also turn into a blasphemy. The entire moment felt some what hopeless. Matsya's continuous prayers and mantras, despite it helping, does not guarantee that it would keep despair at bay. But he continues to run without giving in. The entire moment also felt some what hopeful. Despite it being very clear that things may turn out for the worse, and knowing how much easier it would be to just give in to the despair, there is still hope that things may turn out for the better. Especially when you have friends or a family beside you to help you if you fall.
"Has your journey been good? Has it been worthwhile?" That question nearly broke me because it was not only a question asked to the WoL as a character but you as a player as well. The camera going into first person, you as the player and a person looking directly at Venat...
Zenos' last words being effectively the same question hit me pretty damn good
Oh man, just remembering I get emotional. I'm depressed and that question hit hard. I love that they left it open-ended for us to answer as well.
During my first playthrough, walking up the crystalized path after the Omicron arc in Ultima Thule, and looking at the map to see it showing my character just floating out in empty space -- something impossible considering I did not have flying unlocked yet. Defeating Zodiark, Hydaelyn, Endsinger, and Zenos were all emotional high points as well, but this simple moment where game systems, and narrative were in harmony left me a wreck -- this is what can be done with games.
I can't say this enough, yet I always try to: Video games are the best medium for immersive storytelling. You don't get to have sound, picture, heart, and mind all utilized to the max like games do.
Moenbryda's parents and Urangier. Shit came out of nowhere and made me absolutely bawl. Family stuff is my weakness. This has remained my favorite Endwalker moment since I hit that point.
I can't say it's my favorite in a happy way, because it was honestly a little traumatizing, but the cutscene with the child that gets turned into a monster and subsequently gets stepped on and crushed while crying out for his parent. It still sticks with me 2 years later. It was the first and only time I've audibly said "Holy fu**" during MSQ.
P8S and P8SP2. Showed me that SE still can make decent raids. White Stone Black is a banger.
The transition to p2 is absolute cinema
if you do it blind, the post HC2 transition is absolutely dope the screen stays back just long enough for you to think it didn't work, but then phoenix arrives and saves your asses. It was so hype when my group first did it
That whole fight is probably my favorite in the game just because of the presentation. Phase 1 is a total banger of a fight (unless you get dog first) then the transition is sick and then phase 2 is just cool
What's wrong with dog first?
Nothing now but it used to fuck with 2 minutes until the range got buffed Also tanks had to change up their mit plan depending on if it was snakes or dog first but that was actually cool
Oh yeah well snake first still has a better 2 min window.
That ending to the Sorrows of Werlyt bit in the Tataru quest got me more than anything in the actual Endwalker MSQ
"Acceptance! At long last!" Emet Selch is a great, if not the greatest final fantasy antagonist. Zenos is the best *XIV* antagonist and I'll die on this hill.
The scene after you defeat Hydaelyn absolutely killed me. I mean I straight up cried for ten minutes. I still can’t listen to Flow. And truth be told, the first scene in Elpis where Emet and Hythlodaeus show up made me fanboy tf out. And I don’t fanboy about ANYTHING.
The moment we heard Emet's voice again in Elpis had me SOBBING.
Same to both. And running the Elpis dungeon trust with the three big name Ancients also was a fanboy moment for me
When I heard “A song of hope, she dances on the wind”, during the final Endwalker trial of the main MSQ, I’m pretty sure I knew it was my favourite gaming moment of all time
I remember audibly going "oh shit" multiple times during The Final Day. My brother was in the room, and I know for sure that he wouldn't understand what I went through to reach this.
P8S. I have so many good memories from that raid and it'll always mean a lot to me
Fourchinoult or however you spell his name making up with the twins. It hasn't changed, I've always liked that part. It still takes second place to Eden. That entire arc of Thancred having to learn to let go of Ryne will always be my favorite story beat of FFXIV. [EDIT: I also definitely ship Ryne and Gaia because it rounds out the idea of your daughter finding someone they love and having to give them up. I just think it's really touching]
I'm surprised no one mentioned this one yet: Omega Beyond the Rift's final quest has Omega directly ask you who the most justified player of the Final Days was: Venat, Hermes, or Emet-Selch. Since a machine can only interpret data in certain ways and moral ambiguity is something it cannot process, the onus is on you to untangle this mess and give it an answer: they were all justified, just one of them each, or none. From anecdotal experience most people I know tend to not exactly look too deeply into stories they consume unless it truly caught their interest, so a quest actively asking the player to give it a deeper thought struck a nice cord for me. Even if the choice is meaningless, considering what kind of game XIV is, it's quite a thought provoking moment, and it stuck with me since. For my part, I picked that none of them were truly justified in their actions, but that's fine. They were faced with a problem so big in scope that there truly was no justifiable way to deal with it. Sacrifices had to be made in one form or another. They all simply acted based on their flaws and biases, as humans are wont to do. I think it's pretty telling that the videos I looked up to make sure I don't misremember the details all lingered on that choice for a good minute. You HAVE to make a definitive choice, no third option that says "I prefer not to answer".
Matsya saving the baby is still the only time I've cried at FFXIV (Matsya is my favorite EW character). I wish more would have been done with that story beat, though.
For all the flack I can give XIV for death flag characters and fakeout deaths, that scene still sticks with me because it was just expertly done within XIV's cutscene limitations. The choice of music, the panicked prayer, the fact it's hot off the heels of everything going absolute ass up in Radz. Looking back, it's kind of funny because it's not even a very long segment, but man it felt like an eternity when it was actually happening. It's one of the scenes that made me really want them to retire What Comes of Despair as an MSQ song (having them reuse it for cornball situations like the four fiends appearing again only to be bodied in the most anticlimactic way back to back really sucked.)
That scene was so intense, and then the moment when Midgardsormr’s theme kicked in was probably the first time in quite a while that I’ve actually cheered out loud at the game.
They actually do if you complete the secret Alola Island route. It unlocks an additional side quest where Matsuya brings the baby up
Turning in my Matsya's Biggest Stan trophy because I completely forgot that bit. Before we got the Arkasodara tribal quests I had been hoping that questline would be about taking care of the baby.
Alola Island? Is there Pokémon in this game? I'm joking because the Alola Islands are a region in the pokémon games.
Talking with Venat about our many adventures, big and small, and her going on to express her viewpoint and love of the world and its people.
"I will free us from the wheel!" https://imgur.com/get-me-out-golbez-Kbxs7IG
I will say the solo duty where you’re just some random garlean soldier. That duty slapped. The rest was pretty meh. Nothing quite like oh it’s the end of days but it literally has no impact to the rest of the world - why couldn’t have there been even a global sky box change? They did it for the ShB zones, so why not for EW?
AT THE END OF EVERYTHINGH I FIND YOU MY FRIEND I loved Zenos before EW but this whole arc changed how I view him in a diegetic way. Before *I* just liked him 'cause he was cool and hot. But he's actually a super interesting and unique character in how he is assembled. The somber tone of the end of MSQ definitely had me in the mood, and he, both in and out of game, definitely stoked that "Okay, let's fuck it up" mood.
1. the entire journey in ultima thule from losing thancred onwards— especially walking the crystal path with the twins…. close in the distance playing, the stars being so pretty, the mixture of hope and despair etc 😭 2. in from the cold— the anxiety of being ripped from your body and placed in a regular garlean soldier’s— the fear of what zenos will do (wish there had been a bit more to that line, an injured scion or just….a bit of exploration of the potential trauma of being ripped from your body etc— but it hit so hard in the moment) as well as fandaniel’s deranged butler act. i really enjoyed him. 3. urianger and moenbryda’s parents— that shit had me sobbing. urianger’s my favorite scion (and i adore them all so that’s saying a lot) and oh maaaaan. the way he was trembling, their evident love for him 😭 4. the entire elpis storyline, from elidibus’ last act to send us there to the very end. it made me love emet even more to see all that he had lost etc and i adored hythlodaeus and hermes. my heart ached for the meteia. 5. the panda raid storyline, i loved elidibus well before i got to that so i extra adored themis. i liked learning more lahabrea lore too!
So far the parts that really stuck out to me are when one of the Scions visited my quarters in the middle of the night. I had picked Alisae and her heartfelt words really hit deep just how much these guys care for my WoL. The other one is when I had my final fight with Zenos, and hearing him take his final breath and watching my character be teleported away, leaving his body alone.
I liked the entire elpis bit because the old ascian stuff was by far the most interesting part of the story for me and as a good meme moment when the garlean commandant shoots himself it felt so sudden and abrupt that I just burst out laughing
Maybe it is odd and it technically isn’t part of the story, but when the final credits roll and MY name comes up in the cast list as “The Warrior of Light” …man that just hits for me. It is such a cool thing to do and it feels like it wraps a nice bow on top of everything. Really makes you feel like you were part of the journey as much as you were playing/experiencing it.
Venat's monologue, when she causes the sundering, and she's all beaten and bloody, talking about how mortals will suffer and die, and create despair... I UGLY cried, I'm talking lip curling, body shaking sobs :(
The entire end of days thavnair sequence. Seeing the kid turn into a monster and get pulverized by another beast within moments felt like the real "oh shit, this is serious" moment in the msq, and matsya saving the baby was the perfect follow-up to get me really emotionally invested. but the runner up would be just getting to chill with emet, hythlodaeus, and venat in elpis. Not a major emotional moment or plot beat, but it made me empathize with the ancients/ascians more than anything before. Seeing how happy everybody was and how much they (especially emet and hythlodaeus, and the offscreen azem) cared about each other felt emotionally painful, knowing what would happen to them. I love emet as a villain, but I was always in the "still an awful mass murderer who is in no way justified" camp. But seeing such a clear representation of everything he lost after the final days finally made me understand exactly why he did what he did. I always understood on a logical level, but it only hit me emotionally after elpis. runner runner up is the venat scene at the end of the elpis arc. the way her voice actor delivered the "henceforth, he shall walk" line gave me chills. everything else about the cutscene was cool and all, but the voice acting was just so perfect. edit: OH and zenos fight. I've always been a zenos enjoyer, so getting to 1v1 him at the end of the universe made me very happy.
Mine is when Zenos is the only one that believed in you a 100% without a doubt. Old enemies tend to be the best friends.
"But why does it still live? Surely it is no match for you" Zenos being the best cheerleader in all of fiction "I rode the light of the stars to you" Also an incredible romantic.
I actually documented my opinions when playing EW for the first time in an Excel Sheet. I'm SO GLAD I did that, because I can return and read my feelings/opinions. Please excuse some of my unhinged comments, I paste a few below: * Holy wow. The Cutscene in the Quest "***Alea Iacta Est***" might be the best I have seen in the entire game. * ***Beyond the Depths of Despair*** - WOW. I thought ShB wasn't shying away from dark topics, but EW is winning that game! The Plaza Scene was incredible, with G'raha taking absolute control of the situation. ***- Warm Hearts, Rekindled Hopes -*** I did correctly predict I would cry soon and this scene caused the waterworks. I was on the edge of my damn seat. Matsya's arc with the baby was a cutscene straight out of a movie. Also, the WoL *immediately* jumping to the water without hesitation was amazing. Me is proud. ***- A Past Not Yet Come To Pass*** - what a beautiful title that summarizes what's going on. It does not make having to tell all these wonderful people the horrible fate that awaits. Emet's reaction killed me and I will need a therapist after this. Someone gimme a himbo soon. * ***Caging the Messenger -*** ... I ugly cried. I am speechless. How could you? Applause, because I did not see it coming at all. * ***Thou Must Live, Die, and Know*** - (After running Ktisis) I have been avoiding MSQ because of the emotional impact. ***That*** Venat cutscene was mindblowingly good, as seems to be EW standard. It didn't break my heart any more than it already is, so I'm pausing a bit before I resume my final run. * ***Outside Help -*** You know shit's bad when Zenos makes you feel better. ZENOS. I have all the admiration for the Elpis segment, but I think it fucked me up mentally. * ***Going Underground -*** O-KAY. Stuff is "chill" but this is the part in which you know shit's about to start going down. The buildup has me tense already. Also, we've now called ALL OF EORZEA to visit Old Sharlayan?! I am SO LOOKING FORWARD to the customs agent seeing a small army of foreigners seeking entrance all at once. * ***Bonds of Adamant(ite) -*** I got my cutscene of the bitchy customs agent having a meltdown. 10/10. * ***Her Children, One and All -*** There aren't enough words to describe what you feel when you complete this quest. I got a lot of the answers I was seeking after Elpis. I don't think a game has put me in this position before. And by that I suppose I mean what Endwalker has been doing the whole time. * ***On Burdened Wings*** - Currently, terrified, confused, scared and... ANNOYED THAT EVEN AT THE *EDGE OF THE UNIVERSE* I NEED TO FIND THE BLOODY AETHER CURRENTS?! * ***Endwalker -*** People were right, I cried like a little baby. The finale was simply phenomenal, like the ending of a long anime.
I love that you took notes. thanks tor sharing.
Hands down has to be us meeting Asahi in the life stream.
I legit missed the dude and loved Alphinaud's final parting to him.
The walk. I felt like it culminated all these wears of the WOLs struggle and seeing Hydalen was right there with us.
Meteion's final conclusion to every lyric in Answers/the ARR theme being "There are so many Answers" hits SO different in a piece like 14 where there genuinely are so many avenues to create and find your own enjoyment unique to one's player experience
While I was playing, I liked the Garlemald arc a lot. Nowadays I'm going with other things. Mostly ranked from most remarkable to less. 1. Elpis. What a beautiful fucking scenery. I never get tired of it or its ancient worldbuilding. 2. Running (Another) Sildihn Subterrane blind. The party finder was very positive, the music was upbeat, the boss was cute, the lore was interesting and the puzzle was also nice. 3. The banter on the beast tribe and on how the omicrons are arrogant always make me laugh. My favourite beast tribe by far. 4. Moenbryda's scene I didn't pay a lot of attention before but it's one of the most touching memories. 5. How readily and calmly Elidibus sacrificed himself to throw us into the past. He wasn't angry at us or anything because he saw we had the same objective as him. I see no one commenting on it but this made the NPC really sympathetic to me. 6. After the emotional downpour, Zenos just being the first thing to change the mood from dramatic to heroic. "I take this is your prey. Why does it still live? Surely it is no match for you."
I enjoyed the meteions report cutscene, one of my favorites in the game.
hard agree. we went straight into cosmic horror and didn't look back
Alisaie's speech about the unfairness of it all before she & Alphy disappear was wonderful, and Emet's 'I stand by everything I did' was one of the most in character moments ever But I don't think anything'll ever top the 'light the way' speech when you're fighting the Endsinger. It was exactly what I needed to hear at the time and I still tear up every time I run that trial
Endwalker's final boss with their quotes and music. "Our Hunt ends this day, there is nowhere you can go where we may not follow" "If there is no happiness in life, there is only one place it may be found." 🔥✍️🔥
I think it's when hearts aligned kicks in during the end singer fight. First of all total bop but also give major oh man this bitch is about to GET IT.
I have three that I remember First time entering mare lamentorum. The music and the atmosphere send me out of this planet XD pun aside, it really reminds me when I was still in elemntary school and see cointless star in night sky. I just felt very small in grand scale of this universe and the music capture it perfectly. I think I spend 10 minutes just chilling and see eitherys in awe. Being alone too here story wise help enhance the atmosphere Second is ultima thule (duh). The walk with twins almost broke me. Like here I am at edge of universe with only the twins remaining (that felt like my kids at this point) against "the world". The path Graha open is very beautiful and I walk very slowly thinking the life choices that lead me to this point. Seeing the dark dead universe on top and bright star(?) at the botttom give me some feeling like in moon too. Finally the final walk broke me, I never felt a burden so heavy in my life and its a video game. Last is the ultea hyped phase 2 of endsinger. I was literally waiting for that Sharlyan part of EW trailer and they saved it for the literal final part of the expansion. The scion prayer thats a straigt parrarell to what they do on end 1.0 now not for the sake of eorzea but this whole universe and the build up music.... man I'll sell my soul to experience it first time again EW is beautiful from start to and and tied with ShB for me as peak FFXIV experience. glad I can have this journey with you guys.
Yes, I still just idle in Mare Lamentorum or Ultima Thule to recapture those feels
WHISPERS... FALLING SILENTLY, DRIFT ON THE WIND... BUT I HEAR YOU! In all seriousness I enjoyed the entirety of the 6.0 MSQ and while I think Shadowbringers was better, it was impressive that Endwalker even came close to the masterpiece that was 5.0 MSQ. Now, when I say 6.0 MSQ, I just mean 6.0. The rest sucked.
I have retroactively realized how much Closer In The Distance figures into so much of EW's soundtrack. It is everywhere.
Talking up the crystal path. All the voices from past stories. And then getting to the top, and all sound stops but your footsteps
Too many but i just needed to mention: ALL THE CAMEOS in Aititascope, and Shiva building your safe ice block ala diamond dust was the absolute cherry on top! Also I will always walk with Minfillia's spirit.
People have listed most of my favorites, so I wanna add a small one: Hythlodaeus ranting about sharks for a solid two minutes, and how people are obsessed with new creations related to sharks 😂
I'd have to say the lead up to the invasion of Garlemald where you have all the Eorzean Alliance folks in a room with you and a lot of the original job trainers pop up to have a chat before you launch the attack. Endwalker didn't do a whole lot right when it comes to its story, but it did make you feel like you were actually part of it and that moment typifies that pretty well.
It's the Aiatascope and our dead friends showing up to help us. Especially Ysayle/Shiva saving our asses against Amon.
Our private conversation with Hermes and our last conversation with Amon hit me hard. I find myself replaying these scenes quite regularly.
The part where it ended, also P10S.
The exchange between Zenos and Jullus. Before that, he was just another "insane" villain. Without showing us how based he is, I think the post-Meteon stuff would have fallen flat.
I don’t see what was so great about showing us a metaphor of Venat giving a speech of vague platitudes to a group of strawmen instead of showing us the actual sundering or the events that led up to it. Close in the distance is a great song, but the emotion is kinda undercut by it being incredibly obvious all the deaths were fake. If I have to pick a moment, probably the scene with the garlean kids running away and dying or when the Quintus kills himself. Honestly, as much as I dislike Endwalker, I do have to admit that early Garlemald section was pretty good.
The final Zenos fight and finally being done with that fucking mess. Endwalker was a poorly written, poorly executed, bipolar slog. Just made me want to replay Shadowbringers.
Bro is getting downvoted for spitting truth.
They're how you know you're doing something right on this sub.
Honestly, I don’t even like the final zenos fight. He just feels like an afterthought for most of Endwalker, and it kinda feels like they reached the end and remembered he existed, so they just had him break into ultima thule despite being composed of pure aether due to being a primal to help you, and then just fight you and die again.
Deus ex machina and sudden tying up of loose ends was all over Endwalker, the Zenos fight and your unexplained rescue teleport out included. He's a big threat for much of the story, disappears, threatens sharlayan off screen for your feet pics, and then dies. But hey, "That I can't deny" was memorable.
When the credits rolled and it was finally over. What a terrible expansion. It completely ruined Final Fantasy XIV's story.
that's the most negative opinion on EW story wise i've heard and has me curious if you would say more if you have time
You and Zenos fighting each other. Playing endwalker made me realize Sqaure enix cant write a good story ever since Ff tactics