Game director Naoki Yoshida has had to step up to his podium and once again explain the stance that Square Enix has towards the use of third-party plug-ins in Final Fantasy XIV. With the release of the latest Ultimate raid, The Omega Protocol, hundreds of players have been pouring time and devotion into trying to be the first to get a clear. While the winning team has claimed victory, it became apparent very fast by the community that members of the prestigious achievement utilized third-party plug-ins to win. This revelation forced Yoshida to pen his displeasure of using plug-ins and the consequences to come.
The victors in question, a static called UNNAMED_, uploaded a video of their progress, and it was blatantly obvious that they were using a zoom hack to vastly improve their field-of-view. Yoshida states that the team is aware of the matter and is conducting an investigation. This examination will include reports received, as well as self-confessions and other information.
Should the investigation deem those involved guilty, the potential consequences include temporary account suspension or a permanent account ban. However, Yoshida made it clear that the results will not be made public. This falls in line with the penalties given when this same situation occurred during the previous Ultimate raid, Dragonsong’s Reprise. Penalties are also being given to those who uploaded footage of the cutscene that plays after clearing The Omega Protocol (Ultimate) before the first clear was achieved.
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Yoshida also reaffirmed Square Enix’s stance on the use of third-party tools in Final Fantasy XIV. While the company has turned a blind eye to their use provided players didn’t talk about it in-game or post about it publically, it is very much against the terms of service to use them. Furthermore, Yoshida made it clear that having to address this matter once again is personally disappointing, and the fights are designed to be completed without the use of questionable plug-ins.
