Game director and producer Yoshi-P confirmed that NA and EU same-region player matching tests will simultaneously begin November 10th. Testing on the Chinese servers will begin on December 1st.
The Japanese data centers started the same server tests in October after a 24-hour maintenance period. Expect the NA and EU servers to also be down for 24 hours before testing begins, Yoshi-P said on Friday of Tokyo Fan Fest, apologizing for the inconvenience.
How Same-Region Player Matching Works
Currently on the NA and EU servers, the game puts players from the same logical data center on a team. With same-region player matching, “players within the same physical data center will be eligible for matchmaking and party recruitment,” according to the Final Fantasy XIV website.
Same-region player matching should result in shorter queue times for duties as the game can pull teammates from other logical data centers. Players can match in the features listed below. Other features such as housing and the market board will be unaffected:
- Duty Finder
- Party Finder
- Crystalline Conflict ranked matches
- Cross-world linkshells
- PvP teams
- Fellowships
How Did Testing in the Japanese Servers Go?
In a wise move, Square Enix encouraged players in other regions to play on the Japanese servers for more feedback. The general consensus among players was that queue times were noticeably shorter.
FFXIV players also liked the convenience of the Visit Another World Server feature. This replaced the need to travel via your home world and is easily accessed through the aetheryte in Limsa Lominsa, Gridania, and Ul’dah.
Filling out a party can take a long time, so we’re glad to see same-region player matching coming to other regions. As another reminder, the testing for NA and EU will begin on November 10th with a 24-hour maintenance period before testing begins!
Check back with Icy Veins to stay on top of FFXIV and Evercold news, including more info on Zephyr, the new physical ranged DPS job!
