The day that shall live in infamy. (In my house, at least)

Sometime last year, around E3 I'm guessing, I was sitting at home alone while my boyfriend (and gaming partner, who I happen to have met in Final Fantasy XI six years ago) was off playing Left 4 Dead at a friend's house. I found myself futzing around online and saw an article title somewhere that said simply "Final Fantasy XIV Announced".

Bwwwaaaah? My self said and clicked the link. I hadn't even gotten XIII yet and they were already on to XIV?

What the link lead to was a video. Sweet, I thought, bouncing a bit in my seat as the strains of Uematsu music started. I saw some pretty landscapes, some striking vistas, some oddly familiar hulking thing with an ax ... wait a minute, was that ...? No that couldn't ... wait what the fuck! That was a uh ...

My jaw positively hit the floor as my eyes tried to convince my brain that I was in fact seeing what appeared to be Galka and Elvaan and holycrap even a taru in stunning modern graphics doing something epic.

I watched, I admit with lame fangirl tears in my eyes, until the video faded to a close and the title appeared on the screen:

Final Fantasy XIV

I squeed. But no, they weren't done with me yet. A split second later, with a flourish of sound appeared below the logo:

Online

I can't describe my reaction because it's a haze but if it were possible for a girl to scream, stare gape eyed in wonder and fall into a dead faint all at the same time I would have done so. For six years things had been whispered my house, "What if ... they remade XI? Gave it a graphics update?" Such nonsense, I answered. Square-Enix is perfectly content with dominating the Japanese MMO market with XI. They haven't the time or interest. And yet here was the spiritual successor to my favorite online game of all time, teased in that short little video on my screen.

I never thought September 22nd 2010 would ever come. I was convinced that a myriad of horrible things would surely keep me from playing. My house would explode, a Tsunami would wipe out Japan, something would happen. Yet it came, I had the game in my greedy hands and for the past week I and my once doubtful group of friends have been having the time of our lives.

Today marks the start date for everyone who waited for the standard edition. Today the gates of Eorzea truely open. And like Vana'diel before it, it promises to be my happy home for many years.