Something is definitely brewing for Final Fantasy 14 and which Square Enix is expected to present in the coming days.
The publisher spent the last week trademarking “A Hero’s Bonds” in the United States, Canada, and Europe to suggest an upcoming announcement in the coming days. The said trademark was incidentally filed last year in Japan but has only now been secured in the west. That and “Forspoken” which Square Enix has recently trademarked for the United States and Australia as well.
There is obviously no way to ascertain what those two trademarks mean. The only clue is that Square Enix will be hosting an announcement showcase for Final Fantasy 14 on February 5, 2021. The publisher has been strongly rumored to be revealing a new expansion pack during the digital event which could be titled either A Hero’s Bonds or Forspoken with a larger likelihood of being the former.
Final Fantasy 14 has received three major expansion packs to date: Heavensward in 2015, Stormblood in 2017, and Shadowbringers in 2019. Considering the one-year difference between all three releases, a fourth expansion pack could release somewhere in 2021. Square Enix may have as well planned to announce the fourth expansion pack in 2020 but pushed those plans ahead due to COVID-19 and the resulting global lockdowns.
Final Fantasy 14 is now available on PlayStation 4 and PC. The acclaimed online game requires a monthly subscription to play but does offer thirty days of free game time for newly created accounts. The trial allows newcomers to level their characters up to 60 and experience content from the first expansion pack, Heavensward.
Final Fantasy 14 can also be played on the new PlayStation 5 through backwards compatibility. The new console reduces load times drastically which is always a bonus when playing any massively multiplayer online role-playing game.
