FFXIV Explains Why Sage Job Icon Is Being Changed

Final Fantasy XIV producer & director Naoki Yoshida has confirmed that the Sage job icon in Endwalker has been changed, due to trypophobia concerns.

You Are Reading :FFXIV Explains Why Sage Job Icon Is Being Changed

The design of the Sage job icon in Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker has been changed before the game’s release, due to concerns raised by players with trypophobia. Endwalker is the upcoming fourth expansion for FF14 and it’s adding two new jobs: the Reaper and the Sage. The expansion is set to release in November 2021.

The Sage is a healing class, with a selection of spells that grant buffs to other characters, as well as creating protective barriers against foes. The Sage class has been part of the Final Fantasy series since FF3, but the version in FF14 is a lot different, as the original Sage was the master of both black magic and white magic, while the new Sage focuses on healing/buffs. One thing the new Sage has that the old version doesn’t is the nouliths, which are floating blades that they can command to strike foes.

The job icons for the Reaper and Sage were unveiled ahead of Endwalker’s release this November. FF14 producer & director Naoki Yoshida released a statement on the official Final Fantasy XIV website, explaining that the Sage’s job icon has been changed. The original icon depicted four nouliths, all with holes in their hilts. Yoshida explained that the FF14 team had received feedback from players around the world that the icon was causing them discomfort, due to trypophobia.

Trypophobia is an aversion to the sight of several small holes clustered together, like the ones seen on lotus seeds or strawberries. The severity of trypophobia differs from person to person, but the feedback from the FF14 player base convinced Yoshida that the Sage icon should be changed, especially if it was going to be featured in merchandise outside of the game. The new Sage icon is the same as the old one, except the three holes that were bunched together are now gone.

It’s commendable that Yoshida and his team would make this change based on player feedback. The MMO is seeing a massive surge of interest which has led to overcrowded FF14 servers, to the point where it can take a while to even enter a server during peak times. It would have been easy to dismiss the claims of a minority of players, yet the FF14 team listened to the fans and made a change that would make them feel more comfortable while playing. Hopefully this change will have a positive impact on the player experience when the Endwalker expansion releases this fall.

Link Source : https://screenrant.com/final-fantasy-14-sage-job-icon-changed-trypophobia/