Final Fantasy XIV Paying Subscribers “Highest” Since Launch Thanks to Stormblood

Giuseppe Nelva November 20, 2017 6:07 PM EST

Square Enix CEO Yosuke Matsuda clarifies that the release of Final Fantasy XIV's expansion brought paying subscribers to the highest figures since launch.

Earlier this month, we heard that the release of Final Fantasy XIV‘s latest expansion Stormblood led to an increase in paying subscribers, but we didn’t have much color on how significant that increase was.

Enter Square Enix President and CEO Yosuke Matsuda, who commented during the latest quarterly conference call for investor, mentioning that not only the increase was “sharp,” but that it caused paying subscribers to be the “highest” that they have ever been since the game’s release.

“1H saw the release of the “STORMBLOOD” expansion pack for “FINAL FANTASY XIV.” This release drove a sharp uptick in subscriber numbers and brought us to the highest paying subscriber count we have had in the four years since launch.”

This is certainly pretty flattering, as it’s not exactly common for pay-to-play subscription-based MMORPGs to peak four years into their life cycle. It’s also entirely warranted, considering that Final Fantasy XIV is arguably the best MMORPG on the market nowadays, sporting one of the best Final Fantasy stories of all time.

It’s even more impressive considering that the Final Fantasy XIV we know and love was relaunched in 2013 following a long and extremely immersive in-game storyline after the first version of the game launched in 2010 ended up being a massive commercial failure, lambasted by fans and critics. It’s pretty much a unique story or rebirth and samurai-like determination and stubbornness that has no equal in the market.

If you want to read more about Final Fantasy XIV‘s latest expansion Stormblood, you can check out our review.