Please integrate FFXIV further with the Steam client for Steam owners

[Johners]

As a happy owner of FFXIV on Steam, I'm slightly annoyed by the lack of proper Steam client and account integration that this release of the game has.

Installing the game through Steam should distribute the entire game through Steam, not just the launcher that I then have to open in order to download the actual game client. More importantly, there shouldn't be a need for an additional launcher and pressing play should take me straight into the game much like it does for other online games such as Destiny 2.

I don't mind having the Square Enix account for tracking my progress and being able to make that cross-platform for the macOS and PlayStation versions of FFXIV also but beyond that, Steam should be my point of interaction. Adding, changing or cancelling a subscription should be possible directly via Steam rather than going onto Mogstation and billing through Steam.

Likewise, purchasing optional items from the cash store should also be a possibility directly via Steam. As a customer, I'd much rather billing through Steam (or PlayStation for that matter) than doing subscription/cash shop through a separate store. It's one less company that's storing/processing my billing information directly so it's a lesser security hassle.

As a happy Steam customer, one that's also looking at buying a Steam Deck, I'd love for the Steam release of FFXIV to actually be a proper Steam release and not a standalone game poorly thrown onto the platform as it currently is. Many big publishers are already releasing like this on Steam, FFXIV should be another such release.

(I'm not about to get pedantic about account security as nothing is truly hack proof but PlayStation/Steam has a really robust system and I've personally never had any issues keeping an account safe that way. I'm also aware that platforms can targeted directly via malicious attacks but I'd trust a major platform holder more than an individual publisher, especially one such as SE with a janky store front as it is).

[Shibi]

...As a happy Steam customer, one that's also looking at buying a Steam Deck...

It's a pity the Steam Deck won't run FFXIV any more. It would have made an awesome portable platform for it.

[Johners]

It's a pity the Steam Deck won't run FFXIV any more. It would have made an awesome portable platform for it.

It’s a real shame because the Steam Deck, and SteamOS 3.0 in general which will be made available for other devices, is really cool and the existing launcher situation isn’t a great handheld UX.

Even on PlayStation the UX is bad because you have the launcher which requires an OTP every time you want to play. Could be better in not having that launcher on PlayStation also and taking users straight to the game after pressing play.

[VirusOnline]

It's a pity the Steam Deck won't run FFXIV any more. It would have made an awesome portable platform for it.

Damn the UI scale is actually not bad.
I had expected worse.

[Padudu]

It's a pity the Steam Deck won't run FFXIV any more. It would have made an awesome portable platform for it.

It's so bizarre to have that as an ad just to make it unplayable not even 2 weeks later lol

[Lunalepsy]

It's a pity the Steam Deck won't run FFXIV any more. It would have made an awesome portable platform for it.

Yeah, it's a shame.

[TaleraRistain]

This is a rather tone deaf thread given what's going on right now. Though not entirely surprisingly considering you've been going into the threads about the Steam issue and being rude in them.

[Johners]

This is a rather tone deaf thread given what's going on right now. Though not entirely surprisingly considering you've been going into the threads about the Steam issue and being rude in them.

I don’t see how this is tone deaf, I purchased a Steam game and would like an experience on par with the other Steam games that I also have. I like the platform and would prefer games learned into as much of the feature set as possible that other games such as Destiny 2, for example, do. It’s not rude for people to ask for things that are counter to what you want because you purchased a Steam copy X years ago and regret the decision now. You already have an exit route, make a new account standalone from Steam. It’s a tough choice because you lose all that progress made under the Steam account/license but you still have that choice.

[Asllana86]

It’s a tough choice because you lose all that progress made under the Steam account/license but you still have that choice.

For some, thousands of hours of progress is not a choice. That's a crazy statement to make.

[TaleraRistain]

I don’t see how this is tone deaf, I purchased a Steam game and would like an experience on par with the other Steam games that I also have. I like the platform and would prefer games learned into as much of the feature set as possible that other games such as Destiny 2, for example, do. It’s not rude for people to ask for things that are counter to what you want because you purchased a Steam copy X years ago and regret the decision now. You already have an exit route, make a new account standalone from Steam. It’s a tough choice because you lose all that progress made under the Steam account/license but you still have that choice.

It's tone deaf because you know the other threads are out there (because you can't stay out of them) and Steam players are having issues just getting logged in because of recent changes and you post this *right now*.