Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail Review - A Fresh Adventure in the FFXIV Universe

Since its announcement last summer, Dawntrail promised a change of pace from the massive, decade-long story of Final Fantasy 14. It was advertised as a summer vacation release, right at the start of the real-life season for most of the world—a perfect way to get away, explore new lands, and have some fun. 

Beyond that delightful promise, Dawntrail has a lot riding on it. No matter my feelings on this expansion, it’ll be easy to feel like any flaws at all are a disappointment given FFXIV’s precedent. After all, I previously, infamously, called Endwalker “a hell of a ride” with a 9.5 rating out of 10, while the previous reviewer gave Shadowbringers an 8.5. Even in its older, less jam-packed days, FFXIV has been touted as the new narrative standard for MMORPGs, bringing the Final Fantasy charm into the genre with fresh success. 

But that said, thereis a lot to be said about this expansion—and given its already-controversial status, including Stormblood comparisons, a lot of it is worth the discussion.

Is Tural worth crossing the Salt for, or is this worth waiting at port? Is this the change of pace we’ve been waiting for? Let’s get into it. 

FULL DAWNTRAIL SPOILERS AHEAD.

This is your first, massive, and final warning. 

World(building) peace 

The pre-patch, end-of-Endwalker material stated outright that as much as we’ll be helping the contender, we’re also going to this fresh new land, with little other known conflict, that hasn’t had a need to turn to its allies for help in recent history, and so this will be a far lighter-hearted adventure. Metanarratively, that’s a really hard standard to set and meet, especially in the context of the Final Fantasy franchise and the imagination of the (J)RPG genre as a whole. 

Truthfully, Dawntrail aims more for a 'classic shonen adventure' vibe than a JRPG vibe. You form a team with varying power levels behind a primary character who has a long way to go, then embark on an adventure with high stakes, learning about the power of