Square Enix has announced that Stormblood, the latest expansion for Final Fantasy XIV, will be released on June 20, 2017. The news was just a small part of the excitement and celebration at this weekend’s Final Fantasy XIV Fan Festival in Japan, which followed up on some of the teasers that happened at the North American version of the event in October.
Among the other bits of new information divulged was the reveal of the “secret class” hinted at during the Las Vegas event, which is officially the Red Mage; as in previous Final Fantasy games, this class will blend black and white magic abilities while also possessing decent melee capabilities. Beyond that, the expansion will also give players the ability to swim in some specific bodies of water, unlock a new beast tribe and a new Primal, and feature a special raid called “Return to Ivalice.”
This latter bit is particularly noteworthy. Not only will it feature a return to the beloved setting of Final Fantasy Tactics and Final Fantasy XII, but the director of those games — Yasumi Matsuno — will head up the design team and pen the scenario. For players of Final Fantasy XIV who thought they’d have to wait until the release of Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age to see Ivalice again, this is no doubt exciting news.
Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood is the second expansion for Square Enix’s massively popular MMO, coming on the heels of 2015’s Heavensward.