Players who have already completed the Main Scenario Quests in Final Fantasy XIV can do so in a new game plus.
Introduced with the Shadowbringers expansion, this feature allows players to relive the story without starting over with a new character.
The plot of XIV has attracted an unexpectedly large fan base.
For an MMO, the tale is remarkably well done.
Well, FFXIV is a little different; rather than switching gears and delivering a new tale with each expansion, Final Fantasy very much keeps going in the same direction from A Realm Reborn all the way to Endwalker (which ends the storyline).
That tale, needless to say, is not light reading.
And it features a large cast going through personal struggles over the course of numerous episodes (not all of them winners).
If you’ve been playing XIV from the beginning, you know that the time span between the game’s prologue and the present day might easily be measured in years.
Or, if you’re like me, you probably rushed through a lot of these sequences to get to the conclusion.
To reach level 80, you may have only a vague sense of what happened in Eorzea, and you may wish to go back and tackle the story at your own leisure.
The purpose of New Game Plus is to allow players to re-experience these classic plots without having to start over with a whole different character.
How Do I Start New Game Plus?
You’ll just have to win the game, I guess.
With the completion of “The Ultimate Weapon” quest, players can consider A Realm Reborn to be complete once they reach level 50.
It’s the one where you have to complete The Praetorium, the eight-player dungeon with two stages and lots of mandatory cutscenes.
You can encounter an NPC named “Wistful Whitebeard” in Western Thanalan (x:12, y:14) who, once you’ve reached that level, will enable that function in the Duty Finder.
Only content that you have completed will be available for replay, so if you have just finished A Realm Reborn, you probably won’t feel like going back through it again.
However, once you choose a chapter, you’ll enter New Game Plus mode, which effectively creates a new instance for your character to explore.
New Game Plus replaces your normal mission log with a customised version that forces you to pursue the chapter’s main quest.
Of course, there are restrictions on what you can do in XIV if you play this way.
The main issue is that you will not gain any benefits from your efforts.
My only motivation is to watch the cutscenes and engage in the major battles once more.
Besides, outside of your New Game Plus Chapter, you won’t be able to make any further progress or finish any sidequests.
Moreover, you cannot cancel it during cinematic sequences or instance events.
The same holds true for how many chapters you can work on at once.
Therefore, you must finish the current chapter before proceeding to the next.
Press the! button that appears next to the mission list to leave New Game Plus mode and return to the main game.
What Can Be Replayed With New Game Plus?
The content of New Game Plus is not limited to the Main Scenario; in fact, it allows you to relive the majority of the narrative arcs in the game.
You can go back and complete the narratives for your jobs, raids, and professions in crafting.
Furthermore, the complete of the Hildibrand quest line is available to be viewed at your leisure.
Do these quests if you haven’t already.
Hildibrand’s exploits are the pinnacle of XIV’s optional content.
And in return, they provide you access to the game’s most dapper cosmetics.
It bears repeating that there are no benefits to completing the storylines in New Game Plus.
Thus, your chances of recovering a misplaced piece of gear or a discarded piece of glitz are slim to none.
New Game Plus vs. Creating A New Character
We’ve discussed the many uses for secondary characters to play with your main one.
However, when deciding between New Game Plus and creating an alt, it’s important to consider your goals.
Obviously, if you make a new character, you’ll have to start the game over again and play through the plot from the beginning.
You aren’t given any options for where to begin, and you can’t easily go back to your previous level whenever you want.
Playing as a different character, however, will reward you in kind for sitting through the sequences a second time.
It will also provide you with plenty of extra space for storing things.
Therefore, New Game Plus is your best bet if you only want to replay specific sections of the game.
Thus, you can go forward or back to your preferred parts of the plot without missing out on any of the story’s essentials.
If you’re looking for a fresh start, however, a new character is a good option.
It’s possible that this will feel great as a sense of freedom.
When you re-experience the MSQ without the time constraints of trying to catch up, you may find that you have a far deeper appreciation for the story.
You may be more curious and inspired to take courses you’ve never considered before.
Unlike New Game Plus, starting over with a fresh character will make the entire game world accessible once more. Everything boils down to the specifics of your needs.
