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Ffxiv Dawntrail Female Hrothgar Reveal Were They Worth The Wait (1)
Image: Square Enix

FFXIV Dawntrail’s graphics update is ruining some characters ahead of 7.0

Warriors of Light look a little different in Dawntrail.

Final Fantasy XIV’s Dawntrail expansion is set to launch at the beginning of June alongside a graphical overhaul that will completely redo the game’s lighting and models across every zone, and a Benchmark test is now available so PC players can put their rigs to the test.

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The Dawntrail Benchmark is the first public taste of the 7.0 graphics update and while its main purpose is to see if your PC can handle the expansion’s new system requirements, most people are downloading it to see what their Warriors of Light look like with the new lighting and graphics. It turns out, that better graphics don’t always equal better designs.

Once the Dawntrail Benchmark went live, several FFXIV players took to the forums and social media to voice their displeasure with the new graphics because their custom characters look completely different now. Viera characters, Final Fantasy XIV’s bunny race, seem to have been hit the hardest by Dawntrail’s graphical overhaul.

It’s not just the different lighting and textures that players are upset about. Dawntrail’s new graphics have completely changed the appearance of facial features and markings that players have come to know and love. Lips, noses, and eyes are drastically changed compared to their vanilla versions, and with every bit of a character’s face looking slightly different, the result is an unrecognizable Warrior of Light.

The Final Fantasy XIV development team knew that some players would react negatively to the new visual style and is offering every player a free Fantasia (appearance chance) with the release of Dawntrail, but so many FFXIV players are deeply attached to their custom Warriors of Light and a new character design isn’t an ideal fix. Some players are saying it’s just the lighting of the Dawntrail Benchmark and that things will look better in-game once 7.0 releases, but there’s no denying that the new character models look different. At least the new female Hrothgar models look great.

Thankfully, there’s still some hope for players who booted up the Dawntrail Benchmark and were met with unrecognizable characters. The FFXIV team is still making changes through the release of 7.0 and feedback will be taken into consideration for the full release of Dawntrail. Make sure to leave comments on the FFXIV forums if you’re unhappy with the new visual changes. In the meantime, make sure to wrap up any unfinished business you have in Endwalker like the FFXVI collab.


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Author
Image of Diego Perez
Diego Perez
Currently serving as a Senior Staff Writer at PC Invasion, Diego Perez has been writing about video games since 2018, specializing in live service games like Destiny and Final Fantasy XIV. His work is featured at publications like Game Rant and Attack of the Fanboy (where he served as Associate Editor), but PC Invasion is home to his best work. When he's planning content or writing guides, he's yelling about Ape Escape or grinding Lost Sectors in Destiny. Plus, he has a Bachelor of Science in Telecommunication Media Studies for Texas A&M University.