Let's Talk Games

[RedWyv3 Best Buy Employee]

I'm sure all of us can relate to this situation:

So your computer is a bit old. The gerbil inside is starting get a bit slow and long in whiskers, and so you've tallied your bills, your income, and your emergency fund. Then you've created a sixty-page Power Point presentation and presented it your your wife, complete with pie charts and graphs explaining exactly how and why you need a new computer.

It takes a few weeks, but she finally breaks down and agrees. Yes, you may go out and buy a new computer.

You are proud, and u unbeknown to her, you have carefully crafted your plans not to include just a computer, but the hottest, greatest machine in the face of the planet. It is of such superiority that you can classify it but under a single word.

'Sweet.' (with an emphasis on the 'e's)

You get your new machine and set it up. You install all your prerequisites and get ready for an awesome experiance. Except, your wife walks in, and she smiles so sweetly at you and states, 'as long as we have a new machine, you might as well go out and buy a new game, right?'

Naturally, you are suspicious. Yet, when the woman declares free-for-all on the budget, you're not going to argue. After all, you earned it, you should be able to spend it, right? Right? So you go back to the store and spend an hour deciding which game you want, and rush home with the fantastic grin that only gamers are capable of having.

You're excited.

Your wife, however, is sitting at the computer.

"Why honey," she said, all smiles, "Look, my facebook runs faster. I can now farm my grapes in half the time!"

"Great!" You say, annoyed, "When are you going to be done?" 

"Oh," she states, wearing a bigger smile then even you had just a moment ago, "It's so fast! Probably not long. I do have six accounts, through, and I wanted to play some Pogo, as well!"

So you sit, and wait, and sit and wait, and soon it becomes obvious what has happened. Your wife has declared YOUR computer as HERS. You attempt to reason with her, and she throws your earlier conversation back at you. Yeah, yeah, family computer. Yes, yes, equal sharing, we can't afford to buy a machine for just one person. Yes.. but when is it my turn?

Never, apparently. You finally give up and acknowledge the fact that your computer time will be those moments when she's at work, and your not, or she's out shopping, and you managed to weasel out of going.

So, you were all excited about PC playing, so your Playstation 3, your XBox 360 and your Wii just isn't going to cut it today. You set up your old machine, thinking - well, at least you can find a GOOD game. A really good game, that will play on this older, less capable machine.

And thus.. you read this...

Final Fantasy XI

Designed by Square Enix, the authors of all the Final Fantasy series, this is the first (but not the last) Final Fantasy that is MMORPG. Which means it's a game played with hundreds of thousands of other players. 

Well, it least it was in it's most popular time. Today, you can expect about three thousand people per 'server'.

Final Fantasy XI was at one point #2 behind World of Warcraft, and for good reason. It's a richly engaging online world, who's graphics more then beat World of Warcraft and most other online games without thought - even new, and modern ones. Yet, it requires very little resources to run.

The download is intense, admittedly, but I can attest, having had all sorts of internet connections in the past, that even the slowest 'broadband' speed will suffice. There are even some that still play under dial-up, through, that's pretty rare these days (and not recommended).

The world is rich and engaging, it's really fun, and you can use your PS2 style USB controller with it natively, once enabled in the configuration window. All buttons have function and it really saves you keyboard time, since the game was also authored for the Playstation 2. (It was the first MMORPG console game). 

There have been numerous patches released, and everyone in the world is friendly - I would know, I just rejoined!

For more information:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Final_Fantasy_XI

And the game itself?

Final Fantasy XI Online: Ultimate Collection - Windows

Model: 90921 | SKU: 9658775

SynopsisThe land of Vana'diel beckons the brave and adventurous to return and once again restore peace. Are you that fearless hero who can bring back glory in these dark times? Can you strategize your way to victory over strange and terrifying creatures? Will you amass and choose wisely from a huge assortment of weapons, magiks and items? Summon your courage and enter this realm of magic, swords and technology to banish evil on behalf of its citizens. Final Fantasy XI Online: Ultimate Collection includes the original Final Fantasy XI plus all expansions and add-on scenarios to date. Featured expansions include Rise of the Zilart, Chains of Promathia, Treasures of Aht Urghan and Wings of the Goddess. Also included are the three add-on scenarios A Crystalline Prophecy: Ode of Life Bestowing, A Moogle Kupo d'Etat: Evil in Small Doses and A Shantotto Ascension: The Legend Torn, Her Empire Born.

 3.8 Read reviews (4)

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[Aaron-BBY Community Connector]

It's been nearly seven years since FFXI's North American launch and I still play it occasionally.