Final Fantasy XIV: Libra Eorzea - A Journeyer's Best Companion

Posted by Andrew Stevens on September 12th, 2013
iPhone App - Designed for iPhone, compatible with iPad

I’ve been interested in Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn since its release, though I knew better than to get involved with a game that would surely steal day after day away from me. However, when its companion app came out, Final Fantasy XIV: Libra Eorzea, I knew I had to give it a thorough look-over and discover just how useful it could be for those who do play the game. Thus, I started my journey into the realm of Eorzea.

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn is a massive online multiplayer role-playing game that features a huge world for players to get lost in. Just as a starting tip, the app feels useless to anyone who is just beginning the game as there is so much text, so much to discover, and so many hallways to get lost in. There is simply no time for dealing with an app that features a database full of all the items, quests, NPCs, achievements, and more. Sure I suppose you could do it, but I found it to be too much to begin with. Players need to take it easy and familiarize themselves with their surroundings first.

I found it best to start using the app after a few hours have passed and I began venturing outside the city walls. I eventually accepted a quest that I was more curious about, and by using the app I was able to see how much experience I could get and what items I could earn by completing it. Ok, so the game tells players that right off the bat before they even accept the quest. However, what makes it more interesting is that they can see what the follow-up quests will be and can view the exact same details for each quest. It also mentions who the quest giver is, the prerequisite quest, and the related NPC.

What makes seeing further in advance even more useful is that players can track down rewards that they may be interested in. So, it’s basically like seeing a trail to the reward they seek. Another nice option is that players can click on the reward and discover who is selling it. If the they have the cash, why bother waiting to complete a task when they can look and see that there are multiple merchants selling them? The app also tells the merchants location, so it’s not too hard finding them.

Speaking of merchants and knowing their locations; no longer do players have to travel to a merchant to discover if they have a particular item or not. They're able to pull up the merchant in the app and view their entire for sale list. This can surely be a time saver for a lot of people, allowing players to take a seat and pull out an iPhone or iPad to discover the exact location that holds the item they seek.

Libra Eorzea is full of that type of information, and it can be incredibly useful to all who take the journey across the realm. Also, during one of my sessions, I came across a group of people that had one of the guys ask another where he got a particular item. Well, by using the search option of the app, I was able to pull up the item and discover the selling NPC and what quests I could complete to earn the item. Talk about a nice addition to have! It also shows the attributes of the weapon, such as damage, auto-attack, and delay, along with item level, bonuses, crafting & repairs, and how much it sells for.

Another feature that players can certainly enjoy is the fact that they can login with their account through the app to see their character, which includes their level and what items they have equipped. This allows users to click on the item and discover all the same things I mentioned before (stats, merchants, quests), along with the durability of the item and spiritbond. Now, when I am out and about and away from my computer, I can tap on my character and look at my weapon to discover the durability. I can see if the durability is getting low and know that the first thing I need to do when I get home is repair my weapon or buy a new one.

Have you ever wondered what your friends are doing while you are away from the game? Libra Eorzea lets you view your friends list so that you can see their level and items. So the next time you go to sleep early before any of your other friends, you can wake up in the morning and quickly open up the app to discover their new level and items. It also lets you search for players, should you ever want to find someone while being away from the game. I think it’s pretty nifty being able to look at your character and friends’ characters and see what they’re rolling with.

The only bad thing about viewing characters in the app, and it’s a pretty negative mark on this feature, is that it takes a long time for the app to update. Even after clearing the cache and logging out and back in, it still ends up taking hours before I can see my new level and items that I earned during my last session. That needs to be fixed if anyone is going to really be able to appreciate this feature.

Overall, I really found the app to be quite useful and think that everyone who plays the game should definitely give it a look. It’s also free, so why not have the extra help in hand?

Now, to be a little bit picky and to create a bit of a wish list; where are the maps in the app? I want to be able to see an overview of everything in the game. I want to be able to tap an item and merchant and have it pull up a map to show me the location. Also, the same goes for quests. Where can I find a quest that features a specific piece of armor that I am after? Sure I suppose that could take away from the adventure a bit, but let the players decide that! Also, I want to be able to read my journal and logs from the app. I think it would be great to see my hunting log and discover what creatures I need to kill in order to gain experience. It’s great that I can research the game and its items while I am away from the computer, but it would be even better if I could dig around even deeper and make a game plan for what I should do when I get home.

For the most part, Final Fantasy XIV: Libra Eorzea is a lovely companion app that can provide a lot of helpful information to all players of the game. It’s a must have companion app once it improves the character area, and it’s the best companion app ever once it adds everything from my wishlist.

Alright, stop your reading, download the app and return to Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn!

iPhone Screenshots

(click to enlarge)

FINAL FANTASY XIV: LIBRA EORZEA screenshot 1 FINAL FANTASY XIV: LIBRA EORZEA screenshot 2 FINAL FANTASY XIV: LIBRA EORZEA screenshot 3 FINAL FANTASY XIV: LIBRA EORZEA screenshot 4 FINAL FANTASY XIV: LIBRA EORZEA screenshot 5
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