Guild Wars 2 or FFXIV - Which MMO to choose

Guild Wars 2 or Final Fantasy 14? A difficult question. Both are great video games for a single player, incredible MMOs with excellent features and characteristics. We assume whatever our answer is, it will be due to our personal taste. 

For this reason, we believe it is better if we respond to this question by presenting much of the data we consider important. In order to give you the best information possible, we have prepared this Guild Wars 2 or FFXIV post about the strong points of these two amazing games. Come on, warrior, it is your turn to enter in the adventure! 

Table of contents:

* GW2 and FFXIV Lore

* Gameplay in FF14 and GW2

* Mechanics and interface in FFXIV and Guild Wars 2

* Classes and jobs in FFXIV and Guild Wars 2

* Skin, abilities, graphics, items, and stuff in Guild Wars 2 and FFXIV

* FAQ

GW2 and FFXIV Lore

If you haven't played any of these major MMORPGs and you ask yourself what you should expect from them, first of all, we have to take a panoramic look at the past of both games, to place ourselves in the complex line, context, and richness of both universes. 

The history in the living world of GW, both GW1 and GW2, spans over 10 000 years before the events of the game. The story of Tyria is divided into three great Eras: Before the Exodus, the Reign of Humans, and the Humanity’s Decline. 

• In the First Era, a long time ago, the god Abaddon was coming from far away and he faced other gods against the rule of limiting magic. The result of this early confrontation was great damage and the expulsion of Abaddon to the Realm of Torment. Then the remaining five gods abandoned Tyria and came back to The Mist. 
• In the Second Era, humans heard the call of the gods. Humans ruled the world and started to kill each other. They are rather violent to rule the world. The era meant three wars and many dead. It was too late for peace.
• In the Third Era, many years ago, Tyria declines before wars and sieges and the demons of Abaddon come back from The Mist converted the Earth into a dark version of itself. In this context, Abaddon was defeated again but his power still stays in every corner of Tyria. The promised 

As you have seen, Tyria, the world of Guild Wars 2, just likely Eorzea, is a world full enough of ancient creatures that just run around, including asuras, humans, Norns, dwarves, etc. Under the mist, three great continents rise, Tyria, Elona, and Cantha. In these three huge grounds, life expands and covers all the territory. 

Regarding FFXIV, from ancestral years, the planet of Hydaelyn has been brimming with life. In fact, all the creatures of this epic world wandered for all the lands and continents in, definitely, complete tranquility. In Eorzea, the westernmost continent, a great civilization went forward and arose and the people of this civilization lived a cycle of Astral and Umbral eras. 

In this context, the outer Garlean Empire goes for Eorzea and invaded it, leading this land to face a great Calamity. Almost five years have passed after the Calamity. Now, the previous warriors simply have become adventures searching for quests in this area and join a Guild. 

Hydaelyn is the world of Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn, but the main continent to explore, the largest continent, is Eorzea, and this is plenty of adventures. Hydaelyn is one of the biggest worlds we have seen in any MMO. In Eorzea you will find the Alliance of the three big started cities: Limsa Lominsa, Ul’dah, and Gridania. Mor Dhona, Ala Mhigo, and Ishgard also are three great cities that you will discover through the game. 

As you progress in the story, you will find a couple of little towns with, at least, their personal features, either their stories, people, races, creatures, or possibilities. For example, Vesper Bay or Camp Drybone. But all their stories are connected to the main story, an intricate net of events and intrigues in which everyone has influence. 

Regarding the landscapes, FFXIV's Eorzea presents a lackluster desert, the home of Miqo’te race and the Amalj’aa, a lush forest, the home of Elezen and Lalafell, a prolific island, home of Roegadyn and Hyur, high snowy mountains, home of Au Ra, and the land of Dragoon, Dravania., the Hinterlands and Forelands. All these landscapes continue the path of the previous travelers. 

Gameplay in FF14 and GW2

Actually, it is not unknown to anyone that the gameplay in Final Fantasy XIV: ARR is quite different from the other traditional games of the series because all the games of the saga are RPGs, contrary to FF14, which is an MMORPG. At first sight, it looks interesting. Let's dig into this. 

Basically, the gameplay in this game integrates highly all the features you have found in other games of the franchise in an excellent way, where the given plot, mechanics, combat style, buff characters stats, skill system, progression, party options, attack abilities, multiplayer modes, models, and real visuals are perfectly balanced and the gap is well minimized.

Looking forward, all these features work perfectly individually, at the same time, work in one way, empowering each other. Thinking on these traits, they are comparable to the gameplay in World of Warcraft, where each of these elements points in the same direction. Besides, we recommend you play this game as well.    

Although the gameplay in Final Fantasy XIV feels pretty much like the gameplay in WoW or ESO (The Elder Scroll Online), the difference is that, according to our judgment, FF14 is using this flows in a better way and makes more sense to us. Beyond a set of needed elements, the base game is an interesting item that characterizes the game, and from there the whole game expands at a slow pace and each one of the elements that appear is making sense.  

Paying attention, particularly to the plot, will allow players to connect with the characters and their stories in a natural and casual way. They may feel they are part of a great story. Even, each scenario allows you to know a different piece of the plot, though sometimes many of these scenarios do not have all the relevance that we would like and are a bit repetitive. As we said, the plot needs to be followed in a close way so that no detail is missed. 

The design of the world, the soundtrack, the core game, the mechanics, each of these things has been probably designed by the developers in one sense. 

Regarding Guild Wars 2, we have to mention that we can note that ArenaNet is trying to build a constant sense of adventure, less talk, and more action. Players might feel the sense of world flows is in accordance with the freedom you feel. The scale of the scenarios is overwhelming, which produces the sensation of being immersed in a universe that doesnt end. The transfer from the macro to the micro points in this sense. 

Mechanics and interface in FFXIV and Guild Wars 2

This aspect is closely related to the previous one. The mechanics depend on all the sense of fluidity, that is to say, the way in which the player relates to the environment. 

Talking about FF 14, despite having dozens of functions, the mechanics (fight, battle, crafting, gathering, grinding, deliver system) are easily configurable and are naturally related. Getting materials and moving through the Eorzea is very easy, and fun and the map we have at our disposal helps us to facilitate the task. 

Thanks to the Hotbar we can configure the battle system, the crafting system, the gathering system, and have access to the main menu, where we can check the armory chest, the inventory, the challenges, the world events, quests, and all the options are available. You don't have to open a new menu to operate the mechanics, just press the precise button in the Hotbar. 

The mechanics in Guild Wars 2 are very similar to the mechanics in FF14. If we compare both, we can note that we can easily focus on a target (mobile target, fixed target, etc.) and start with the interaction. This part works a little better in GW2 than in FF14. Often, the mechanics here are a continuum that doesn’t represent a great challenge.  

The menu in GW2 also is very easy to use and works as a list, a table of contents. Both interfaces are similar, showing on the screen all the information you need to move on, that is to say, the map, the current quests, the chat, and the skills and weapons menu. 

Classes and jobs in FFXIV and Guild Wars 2

FFXIV has some changes compared to previous games. This game absolutely returns to the classic formula of the first RPG of the franchise, which is worked and based on basic classes. In those times, the groups required to be made up of 4 persons, each person with a different role to play and powerful skills.

Depending on the class, generally, each character had a unique class and gear, or you could change the class according to your criteria. Now the Paladin, the Samurai, the White Mage, the Blue Mage, the Red Mage, the Summoner, the healers and others, have come back, and of course of their particular elements. 

Additionally to the classes introduced above, in any expansion, new jobs are added. If someone takes the choice of unlocking them, they have to pay for the expansion, reach the necessary level and complete the related quest to one character.

The classes, or professions, in GW2, on the other hand, are divided into three great categories. Each of these categories at the same time is divided into other three categories or professions.

Quests in FFXIV and Guild Wars 2

The player base of both games knows the quests are one the most important aspects of any MMO. These cool games include hundreds of quests (Main Scenario Quests, Side Quests, Daily Quests, all given for an NPC) of any or another genre, in general, some harder than others, and many of them help to understand seriously the development of the events. 

Regarding questing, FFXIV has an icon system, which indicates which is the Main Story Quest (in total over five hundred) and which are the Side Quests. In Guild Wars 2 MMO, the mark of the Main Quests is a green star, which indicates the current mission.

But there is more. In Final Fantasy XIV, you have additional quests that you can find in the Duty Finder. The categories you can in here are the following:

* Exist another type of quest called FATEs that are about running and jumping across the continent of Eorzea in which you must hit some goals. FATEs are available just for a short period of time and they have a reset from time to time. The idea is to complete the encounter as soon as possible.

Guild Wars 2, on the other hand, has the Story Journal, a tab that is used to show you the progress of your personal story. This tab is divided into chapters and episodes, and each of the episodes is divided into instances, which you have to complete to access the next one. The best of this system is that you can switch between stories any time you want, or replaying the episodes, something you can´t do in FFXIV. Instances that you are not completed yet, will show a button with the sign ‘Switch to this Story’. 

When you complete an episode, you can replay it without a problem. In addition, some of these quests are marked with a purple icon, which indicates that is part available inside that episode. Thanks to this mark, you can go directly to the uncompleted part without the need of playing the entire episode. The instances that exist in GW2 are the following:

Skins, abilities, graphics, items, and stuff in Guilds Wars 2 and FFXIV

Like any trending top massive online RPG, just like WoW, both GW2 and FFXIV have really great graphics, but not with the best quality (remember both games belong to two previous generations) but decent ones. The atmosphere created, especially in GW2, is overwhelming and represents the sense of the world in a very accomplished artistic way. 

Regarding Skins (armor skins, crafting skins, etc) it is really nice to see how in FFXIV a huge number of styles of the previous games of the franchise (Onion Knight, Yitan Tribal, Cloud Strife, etc.) returns and gets a good additive to the plot, in addition to being able to change the color of the outfit and each part of it. 

Both games remain offering hours and hours of fun, and there is nothing wrong with choosing one over the other. The duration of the game is also an important aspect to consider. FFXIV A Realm Reborn takes about 70 hours to finish, but with all the expansions, Heavensward, Stormblood, and Shadowbringers, that time is doubled. GW2, on the other hand, takes about 60 hours entirely. 

Furthermore, the game of Square Enix has multiple updates and gimmicks and it grows regularly. GW2 has two expansions: Path of Fire and Hearth of Thorns. In both the experience is magnificent, just in the first game is bigger. Fans and veterans know this. 

At this point, we guess we have to make a decision. Then we choose FFXIV because, right now, this fantastic game presents a great development when it comes to the universe and gameplay, which lets you enjoy all the story from the beginning until the end (IMO). Guild Wars 2 is not far behind but it is still young; GW2 has a huge potential. Both games stand on their own feet.

At this moment, you may wonder what game is better. Overall, testing both is the only way to find out that. There is not a magic key. The final decision depends totally on you. 

If you are a fan and you are interested in reading additional content or you are looking for other tips, you can read the other guides we have for you related to these games that we have loved since always here, in Sellers and Friends. We are uploading articles weekly and monthly. Just click on the following links to access all the information. 

• Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn Guides
• Guild Wars 2 Guides

What's more. You can buy FFXIV Gil and a large amount of Guild Wars 2 Gold at a super price here, in Sellers and Friends. Just check the money offers we got for you, fill the form and start to enjoy your currencies. If you have felt bad for not finding your place, don't do it anymore. you are on the right server. 

What it's done, it's done. Thanks for your interest and reading until here. We know it can be a bit boring. We hope that everything we have brought has been a great impact on you, no matter what video game you deal with. If you have tried both games, you know what we mean.

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FAQ

Why should I play FF14 instead of Guild Wars 2?

Never let anybody ever tell you anything about which game you should prefer. That is going nowhere. We believe the decision is up to you. Many people on our team and members of the community prefer FFXIV (we assume we are nostalgic and FF is our favorite saga), but recently mostly players are preferring Guild Wars 2. If you have free time, make sure of playing both; there are lots of reasons to do it.  They are totally worth it. Then you can quit if you want.

Guild Wars or FF14, which game is funniest?

Well, keep in mind that FFXIV is active since 2010, its date of release, and has more content, which means more hours of playing, maybe too much. Guild Wars 2, on the other hand, is working to develop its world and doesn’t have so much content but the story is a thing. GW2 put the tiles in its story. There are several reasons to prefer one over the other. Both games are part of the holy trinity of current MMOs, Tera, FFXIV and GW.

Which game has a better learning curve?

Yeah, we believe Final Fantasy XIV handles the action learning curve in a better way due to its renowned and fast combat system and improvements. Although to learn everything about it can take you several months. On the other side, you just need maybe, one day or two, to break the curve in Guild Wars 2, and that is a good reason to try it. We can say GW2 is easier. You have to test both to compare this point.

Are GW2 and FFXIV pay to win?

Since they were released and in any update, neither game requires a subscription or it is free to play, but it is not necessary to pay for getting special items, some advantage, or improve your gaming. Of course, you can buy for going deep and get some mini items or unique content, such as mounts or clothing, but nothing essential. Anyway, we can't say that in the future things are not going to change. 

How is the end game content in Guild Wars 2?

Honestly, we don't think there is an ultimate truly content restricted to the level cap. There are many different types of challenges that keep the player improving all the time and that is a plus, even though there is a max level.  If you have a chance of playing both games, you will figure it out. 

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