Current Final Fantasy XI director Yoji Fujito speaking with Dengeki Online revealed that before the game’s 20th anniversary in 2022, Square Enix had considered ending support for the game in 2024.
“There was a real possibility that 2024 would be the year updates would come to an end, with the game shifting into a so-called maintenance mode, where only system upkeep would be performed,” said Fujito (via Automaton).
As the game neared its 20th anniversary the development team received “a lot of support” from players to keep the game running.
“We thought, if The Voracious Resurgence wrapped up and FFXI clearly started losing its momentum, then maybe we really should prepare to end it. But that didn’t happen. I took this as a sign that we should keep running the game.”
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Full Article – https://www.vgchartz.com/article/464717/square-enix-considered-ending-final-fantasy-xi-in-2024-but-fans-have-kept-it-going/
