What a journey it's been for Final Fantasy XIV. Debuting in 2010, the Square Enix MMO was the definition of a hot mess, launching in such a spectacularly broken state that the developers hatched a dragon to destroy the entire realm.

A Realm Reborn kickstarted what has become one of the most cherished MMORPGs of its day and one that gives other massive titles some serious competition. It was certainly a gamble to take the game offline and reboot the entire world, but it paid off. Now the story that began with A Realm Reborn is drawing to a close in Endwalker, the fourth expansion pack that adds new locations, classes and a massive storyline expansion, wrapping up the saga that began Final Fantasy XIV's current ongoing narrative. For that conclusion, players will journey to two key new locations, which CBR was able to preview in a hands-on media event for the game.

Related: Final Fantasy XIV: What to Know About the Story Before Endwalker

Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker's new hub world, Old Sharlayan

For our hands-on experience, the game started in the new hub world of Old Sharlayan. While we weren't able to see the world with any quests or active NPCs, it's hard to deny that it is one of the most gorgeous worlds we've seen in the game yet. Old Sharlayan is a massive seaside port with a certain dreary mood to it. Even without an active local economy, it's easy to imagine how gorgeous and bustling it will be once it's filled with potion-selling Lalafells and weary adventurers preparing for their next adventure.

From there, we moved on to two new areas, Thavnair and the Imperial Capital of Garlemald. Garlemald is an impressive, desolate wasteland, surrounded by wrecked Magitech vehicles and covered in white snow, creating a genuinely haunting atmosphere as you explore the area. There we found all manner of terrifying enemies, many of whom appeared to be technology-based. There were real challenges throughout, but nothing we couldn't handle, thanks to the two new classes.

Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker's haunting Imperial Capital of Garlemald.

Throughout the preview, we were able to take a look at the support-focused Sage and DPS-focused Reaper classes, both of which feel like incredibly natural evolutions of FFXIV's existing classes. The Sage was a lot of fun to play in a support role and is packed with exciting healing mechanics. The chief Sage mechanic, Kardion, is an effect granted which allows players to heal by casting specific magic attacks, such as Phlegma, which damages a target for a potency of 360 and nearby enemies at 30% less. Essentially, the Sage fills a battle medic role, perfect for players who want to run support but aren't content to hide in the background casting Cure magic.

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But the Reaper was hands down the most fun to play as and who we spent the most time with. For starters, with a Final Fantasy-styled black-cloaked appearance and a massive scythe, the Reaper just looks cool as hell. The class abilities were spectacular, too. Hell's Ingress and Hell's Egress let you teleport up and down the battlefield, allowing you to be anywhere. This proves to be particularly useful to get into the thick of battle or back off to recover health and cast buffs. The Soul Gauge mechanic was a little more complicated, as it required balancing multiple stacks to achieve a powered-up state, but it was well worth learning for some of the bigger encounters.

The lush jungles of Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker's new world, Thavnair.

Those bigger encounters happened off the coast of the other new addition to the game, Thavnair. Thavnair is a bit lusher than Garlemald, comprised largely of a massive jungle environment with a lot of character, from giant elephant statues to gigantic, terrifying ape and tortoise-like monsters who laid us out quickly. In the distance, a massive peak of gorgeous rose-colored crystal overlooks everything, though we were unable to find a route to its peak in the preview. There's plenty to do here and more than enough varied environment, but the key feature has to be the horrifying Tower of Zot looming in the background. No matter where you are in Thavnair, the Tower of Zot is visible, firing a sinister beam of energy into the sky.

Related: Can Your PC Run Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker?

The Tower of Zot is the game's new dungeon, and it is a truly intimidating sight to behold. The interior is full of gruesome, organic towers reaching up toward the sky. Inside we faced down with the three Magus Sisters: Minduruva, Sanduruva and Cinduruva. They're no pushover, especially in the final phase, when all three were fought at once, with one sister reviving the others as they fell. The tower proved to be a hell of a challenging experience, but with the help of a balanced party (or the revamped TRUST system), we were able to persevere.

The ominous Tower of Zot looms over Thavnair in Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker.

To be fair, we're trying our best not to give too much away about what we saw in Endwalker. While what we saw was limited to a handful of open-world encounters and the intimidating Tower of Zot, what we encountered was absolutely remarkable. Seeing what Final Fantasy XIV has become following its catastrophic launch is truly a story for the ages. What's more, the developers assured us that Endwalker, while the conclusion of the current primary ongoing narrative, is nowhere near the end of the massively popular MMO.

Despite its rocky launch, FFXIV is now one of the top-rated MMOs on the market today, and fans, new and old alike, have plenty of time to catch up before Endwalker releases on PC, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on November 23. For those who have yet to take the drive, Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn and its three expansions Heavensward, Stormblood and Shadowbringers, are available now.

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