Is playing FFXIV on Linux against ToS?

[Packetdancer]

By a technical read of the TOS, potentially. I doubt they would ever enforce it, as the way you run it under Linux (e.g. using WINE or some variant) is the same way the actual official macOS version runs (using Crossover, a gaming-focused version of WINE that runs on macOS).

Obviously it doesn't count as a "third party tool" when Crossover is bundled with the actual mac version, but still. Considering the game is available through Steam, I'm assuming they don't count Steam (even with overlays and controller remapping) as a "third party tool" for these purposes; given that Steam can also run the game on Linux via Proton (another gaming-focused version of WINE), it seems real dang unlikely they're going to raise a fuss about anyone doing that.

I mean, I doubt they're going to outright say "yes this is okay" because someone'll try to find a loophole there to, I dunno, make a modified version of WINE that allows them to cheat in some fashion. I just would be shocked if SQEX enforced TOS against someone running the game under WINE, everything considered.

So, I mean... do so at your own risk, obviously. But personally, I would not assess that risk as being a terribly high one.

[Johners]

Snip for characters

The key difference between the official macOS client and running the Windows client via WINE/Proton is that only one needs a third party launcher.

On Windows, the launcher uses a proprietary Microsoft standard that doesn't work in WINE/Proton so you have to setup a version of XIVLauncher in order to actually play the game. If we run that against the word-for-word terms of service, it's a third party tool and breaks the terms of service to do so. If SE ever change the launcher so it runs fine in stock WINE/Proton, there's nothing else that suggests you'd be breaking the ToS, you'd just receive no customer support as they don't officially support this use case.

On macOS, Square Enix ship the game with a CrossOver compatibility layer that works with default launcher. This doesn't break the terms of service because no additional third party tools are being used but rather it's a custom and officially supported compatibility layer.

[Shibi]

On macOS, Square Enix ship the game with a CrossOver compatibility layer that works with default launcher. This doesn't break the terms of service because no additional third party tools are being used but rather it's a custom and officially supported compatibility layer.

The official launcher only works on now quite old and insecure versions of OS X. Pretty much like the MAC equivalent of Windows 7.

If you want to use the current release of OS X you can't run the supplied launcher. It's simply not compatible.

SE are actively selling a product that won't work on the current OS.

[Remolia]

The official launcher only works on now quite old and insecure versions of OS X. Pretty much like the MAC equivalent of Windows 7.

Well, they fit well together, since this launcher looks exactly like an artifact from late 2010: its laggy, its slow, it cant save passwords, it cant properly interact with steam to save login. Some times I don't even bother to play the game coz of this launcher asking my password again and I am too lazy to type it, and then press ton of buttons to finally log in into the game world.