The Final Fantasy 14 benchmark for Dawntrail has been announced, alongside news that we’ll finally be able to create our own female Hrothgar ahead of the race coming to the MMO. Game director Naoki Yoshida also took some time to show off the graphical improvements coming with the 7.0 update, alongside what we can expect from upscaling technology options.
There was a lot to unpack in the 80th live letter ahead of the Final Fantasy 14 Dawntrail release date, so I’ll be focusing on what we can expect from the upcoming benchmark tool alongside the comprehensive 7.0 graphics update, as Yoshida made a point of going into a lot of detail. With our trip to Tural closing in for the MMORPG, there’s a lot to get excited about in Final Fantasy 14.
When it comes to the highly anticipated 7.0 graphics update, Yoshida starts off by showing what a lot of the grassy and flower-filled areas will look like with direct comparison screens. “The grass looks so much more detailed, the hair as well,” Yoshida explains (via translation in the FF14 Discord). Flying mounts will also tilt in the air, making them feel just a touch more realistic.
Yoshida then says something to the effect of “Next up I want to look at the ground. Yes. The ground. A gaming stream that looks at the ground,” before showing off detailed comparison shots of cobblestones. Here you can see the drastic changes to floor textures, with their quality improving across the board. Shadows and reflections will get better with 7.0 as well, with Yoshida adding “We’ve improved and changed the textures for every field from every expansion, so when you’re done with your new adventures, please take some time to go back.”
Perhaps the most important graphical change was shown off next though, as we got a really good look at flowers in 7.0. Much like with the ground and shadows, they just look better, with Yoshida adding “This is how we originally wanted these fields to look.”
After taking a look at the new textures, we’re told that Super Resolution support will come to FF14 “on all platforms,” which aims to restore the quality of low-resolution images. AMD FSR 1.0 will be supported by default, but graphics cards that support DLSS 2.0 will also have Nvidia’s option available in the settings.
You’ll also be able to choose between 50-100% resolution scaling with FSR, with both scaling options working to automatically adjust the resolution of your game when it goes below a desired threshold.
With that, it’s worth looking at what we can expect from the Final Fantasy 14 benchmark for Dawntrail. Going off of the last benchmark for Endwalker, you’ll likely be able to download some separate software that will let you tinker with settings while telling you how well your PC can handle the content. We also know that a character creation tool for the female Hrothgar will be included (just as Endwalker did for the Male Viera) and you’ll likely be able to take this character into the full game as long as you own Dawntrail.
You can check out the new benchmark trailer below, which hides plenty of new skills and additions coming to 7.0.
Endwalker’s benchmark tool let you try FF14 out and see how it runs, but it wasn’t software that let you play the actual game, so it stands to reason that Dawntrail’s benchmark will be the same. If you’re looking at upgrading your rig for Dawntrail after checking the benchmark tool, you’ll want to use our how to build a gaming PC guide to help you get the best beast possible.
The Final Fantasy 14 benchmark for Dawntrail launches on Sunday, April 14 at 12am PT / 3am ET / 8am BST / 5pm AEST, with the female Hrothgar character creator available in the benchmark itself.
If you’re diving back into Eorzea ahead of Dawntrail you’ll want to brush up on your Final Fantasy 14 Island Sanctuary, otherwise, we can help you choose your next job with our breakdown of all the Final Fantasy 14 classes.
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