Final Fantasy 14: Evercold will miss its initial January 2027 release window by a few weeks, as producer and director Naoki Yoshida stated that the expansion will require three weeks of extra development time. Final Fantasy 14: Evercold will also herald the arrival of the Bastion and a new ranged physical DPS Job called the Zephyr.
Following the expansion’s first reveal at the Anaheim FanFest, Final Fantasy 14 continued to release a slew of content updates to tide players over and bridge the gap between Dawntrail and Evercold. The latest batch of FF14’s main story quests was released on September 8, which gave players clues about the state of the Fourth Reflection, a parallel dimension on the brink of collapse. The expansion will also introduce the Evolved Mode combat system, with the goal of consolidating some actions into single buttons while emphasizing what makes each Job stand out within a given role.
Final Fantasy 14: Evercold Delayed by Three Weeks
While Evercold was originally slated to launch in the latter half of January 2027, players will have to wait just a little longer to experience the game’s next expansion. During the Tokyo FanFest keynote, Yoshida said that Final Fantasy 14: Evercold will launch on Tuesday, February 23, 2027, and apologized for the three-week delay. Preorders for Evercold will begin globally on Wednesday, November 4, with several purchase options available for players to peruse. Regardless of the edition chosen, all Evercold preorders will include early access to the expansion starting February 19. Preorders will also include an exclusive Wind-up Kottr minion and the Halone’s Earring accessory that will grant players bonus experience points when worn, making it ideal for leveling Evercold’s two new Jobs.
Final Fantasy 14: Evercold Preorder Options (Starts November 4)
- Standard Edition — Includes Evercold expansion (digital download, requires FF14 Starter Edition and active subscription)
- Digital Collector’s Edition — Includes all Standard Edition content, plus in-game rewards: Crystalline Skyltborg weapon glamour for Bastion, Entreat Crystal emote, Valhallar Odin mount
- Collector’s Bundle — Includes all Digital Collector’s Edition content, Reaper Collector’s Statue, Kottr mini-plush, Ethos Keychain, Tapestry of the Fourth, Yoshitaka Amano artwork on the box
- All Evercold Pre-Orders — Includes early access and in-game rewards: Wind-up Kottr minion and Halone’s Earring accessory
Along with the previously-revealed Bastion, the Zephyr will be exclusively available in Evolved Mode. As a ranged physical DPS Job, the Zephyr uses a crossbow and fights alongside a falcon-like familiar called a “Nephele” to deal extra damage and provide support to their teammates. One of Evercold‘s new characters, a miqo’te named Visna, was also revealed to be a Zephyr. The new Job will use aiming armor and accessories, meaning it will share gear with the Bard, Machinist, and Dancer. Players who want to take up the mantle of a Zephyr first reach level 90 on another combat Job before accepting a quest in the forest city of New Gridania.
Two of Evercold’s main endgame features will be collaborations with the Final Fantasy 7 Remake series for its 8-player raid series and with Neon Genesis Evangelion for the 24-player alliance raid series. These collaborations, respectively titled Beyond the Lifestream and Ghosts of Desire, will be updated throughout Evercold’s patch cycle. The first chapter of Ghosts of Desire is slated to arrive in Patch 8.1, with 24-player Normal and 8-player Savage difficulty options available. Aside from the fact that giant mechs will be involved in some capacity, further details about Ghosts of Desire will be revealed in the future.
Yoshida said that more details about Evercold’s Evolved Mode combat system will be revealed at a later date, with battle system planner Hikaru Takumi co-hosting the broadcast. With development taking extra time than originally planned, it remains to be seen what else Square Enix will show before the expansion’s February arrival.
- Released
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August 27, 2013
- ESRB
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Teen / Blood, Language, Partial Nudity, Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco, Violence, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
- Engine
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Originally the Crystal Tools engine, but currently it’s a custom engine using parts of the Luminous Engine.
