Help me understand why PSN is needed to play this game.

[AdamFyi]

Incomping wall of text.

I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that PSN is most likely used for verifying the game licence. Just as the PC version - which requires you to input the serial code during installation to activate the game - the PS versions most likely require the serial code to access the game in the form of an online license..

Now here lies the point in which the OP is asking for; "Why do we need to be logged into PSN to log in?"

With the PC version, it only needs one verification check to activate the game by cross-checking the database for serial codes and once it has been used, it cannot be used again. The same also applies to the PS version. So this means that you can own the game, but, if you don't have the serial code, you can't play. In other words, you'd actually need to buy the game - probably to combat piracy.

This is a delicate situation when it comes to the PS versions. When it comes down to it - If the serial codes were tied to the CD or digital copy itself, anyone could just borrow/download a copy and gain access to the game without having to pay for the actual game. The online license is somewhere along the lines of a 'verification check' to see if you had purchased the game.

The same can also be said if the license was installed into the system rather than an online verification check like its PC counterpart - people can abuse this. The PSN portion of logging in is probably just that - a verification check and an identity check. That's why if you're logged in, you don't get booted as long as you stay logged in. This also acts as a second layer of security (for those who think this isn't secured) since you'd need the a PSN account that has the license in order to run the game as well as the game CD too.

Now here it begs a question; "Why?". As seen when you register an SE account, you are required to input that same serial code in order to complete your registration and to play the game. Why is PSN used instead? We already have the SE account verification to verify that we have already purchased the game, right? Actually, we can assume that this may be more complicated than it looks.

For the PC, merely lending the CD or copy pasting the files does not work as the license is kept in the computer. If the licese is copied as well, it will allow the user to run the game. But! Another brick wall has been set in order to block him from accessing the game - namely the SE account which requires you to register the serial code that comes with a fresh copy of the game. This is likely why the PSN version requires a verification check. Anyone can just steal a CD and play it without the need to verify if he had purchased it or not. Who's to say he didn't steal an SE account already? The PSN verification is likely used for this very reason - as a second layer of protection to prevent unauthorised access to your account.

In conclusion, we can assume that this tactic is used to prevent piracy as well as prevent the loss of any progression, characters and/or items that we have obtained. This is why SE locks your account if you attempt to log in from a different IP address and ask that you change your password - to prevent unauthorised access.

Whew, that was a long post! Please don't take this post seriously as it is merely just speculation on my part.

[Niwashi]

the reason that you need a PlayStation Network Account to play Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn on a PlayStation (regardless of type) is because you need a PlayStation Network Account in order to access the Internet on a PlayStation in the first place.

That's not true. Sony is not an ISP. You have to connect your PS3 or PS4 to whichever ISP is providing internet access to your home. Your console has to already be on the internet before it can even reach the Playstation Network, since it traverses the internet in order to get to the PSN. Sony provides authentication services and access to their Store. It does not provide access to the internet.

Now for some games, Sony's authentication services are used to verify your purchase of the game, but in this case, since it's a cross-platform game, SE is already providing all of that themselves. It's SE that keeps track of which versions of the game you've bought and whether your subscription is currently active. The fact that the PlayStation checks in with PSN is a holdover that's done just because there are some other games that need it. It's completely redundant on games like this one.

And to everyone who keeps saying essentially that they require it because they require it, yes, that's kind of the point of why people complain about it. It's required for no other purpose other than the fact that the decided to require it in all cases, whether useful or not. For this particular game, it's not useful.