It’s the holiday season - time to head home, wrap up in a warm blanket, and get ready to… raid? In a period so aligned with meeting up with family, getting back to traditions, and enjoying the simple things in life, it might seem weird for someone to say that one of the most seasonal things gamers can enjoy is an MMO.
But MMOs and Final Fantasy XIV do have a distinctly seasonal edge, and it’s not just the Starlight Celebration, and fact there’s snow and presents around. Instead, there’s something less obvious that makes these social, online games perfect for the holiday season. An element that’s not immediately easy to put your finger on.
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One aspect is a real-world connection. The holidays are one of the few times every year where people of all ages get more than usual time off. While school and college students can enjoy their various seasonal breaks, once you grow up the only real time where there’s time for relaxation is the holidays. As a result, there’s so many people who decide to slip back into their favorite MMO during the holidays.
While the idea that someone would spend the holidays in FFXIV rather than with their family may seem sad to some, for many, it’s a genuine escape — a chance to socialize with people if you can’t have a traditional family holiday. FFXIV has these unique outlets for socializing, and having logged on to FFXIV on Christmas Day myself a few times (look, Endwalker had just come out, I was very attached to it), it’s heartening to find places like Limsa and Ul’dah have people wishing each other well in the chat.
What’s interesting is that Endwalker’s delayed release actually pushed it into the release window of its main competitor, World of Warcraft, and into the bounds of a holiday game. WoW was originally released in late November 2004, and most of its expansions, apart from Legion and Battle for Azeroth, have been released on a similar time frame, floating around the holiday season. And in the minds of many, this has planted the game firmly as a seasonal special.
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In 2012, Penny Arcade’s Michael Krahulik wrote a blog post saying that he and his wife Kara “always get the itch to play WoW around Christmas time. There is something about setting the laptops up in the living room, and playing WoW by the light of the Christmas tree that just feels really good. It’s like one of our Holiday traditions.” Something about that post stuck in my mind, and I realized I get the same itch (albeit for whatever MMO I’m playing at the time).
We’re not alone. Just a quick search finds like-minded folks over at Reddit. In 2017, u/shockwave2493 wrote: “When that cold weather starts to move in and I start getting in the Christmas spirit I always want to play WoW.” The comments are filled with people agreeing with them. And FFXIV is the same, as u/WytchHunter23 wrote in 2021: “Christmas means gaming in your grandma’s back room instead of at home.” And while the comments here are far more judgmental (“Go hang out with your family…” decries a now-deleted user. “Man’s leveling alts instead of spending time with the family.” says another), I think the spirit is the same.
MMO's can make it easier for gamers to stay in touch during the holiday season
There’s just something cozy and warm about playing FFXIV at this time of year. And beyond that, for many the option of spending time with family and friends in real life is a privilege that they don’t have. Family situations are complicated. As you get older, it’s harder and harder to stay in touch with friends. Sometimes your living arrangements make it impossible to put up loads of decorations. Or maybe you find yourself abroad or otherwise separated from those you’d want to spend the holidays with. And that’s when FFXIV can be perfect.
Even if you’re not in that situation, if you get some time, try playing FFXIV with the holidays in mind. The holiday spirit can absolutely exist within the gaming space, and not just in buying games and taking part in developer-made events.
Rather than just grind through the Starlight Celebration quest to get the item, think about decorating your player housing or in-game apartment, or enjoying the holiday spirit some other way. Start a snowball fight (/throw, by the way), give away gifts to strangers in cities, or try to find some Bards putting on a concert - there are a lot of ways to enjoy the festive season in-game, and most of them don’t need you to follow a quest or pay for a cash shop glamour.
