Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn is all the rage these days, and it's only getting larger as it expands with updates and other consoles. The second major patch, 2.2 Through the Maelstrom, is due this week and the PlayStation 4 version will be released a month from now.

With all this news, those solo minded Final Fantasy fans who have avoided online gaming like the plague might be confused about what they get from a subscription based MMORPG. Square Enix has left a checklist of items on PlayStation Blog, sharing everything $15 a month guarantees you for the lifetime of the video game.

  • New Main Scenario Quests, continuing your story
  • Two new raids
  • Housing
  • New Dungeons
  • New Dungeon Hard Modes
  • New primals to fight: Leviathan and Good King Moggle-Mog XII
  • A new difficulty for primal fights, Extreme Mode
  • Player versus Player Combat
  • Treasure Hunts
  • New factions (Beast Tribes) with Daily Quests
  • Tons upon tons of new quests of all kinds
  • New customization options for your characters
  • Tons of optimizations and new features for the game

I am not one of these Final Fantasy fans. I have enjoyed subscriptions to Everquest, World of Warcraft, and even Final Fantasy XI back when no self-righteous fan would give it a chance. It is not my fear of a subscription which is holding me back from Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn. It is the sheer terror of losing my social life once again to a fantasy world of digital friends, something I haven't done since college.

Plus, I enjoy playing games at my own pace these days, not having to worry about parties, guilds or outgunning others in an online deathmatch. Everything I have read about A Realm Reborn, though, makes me believe that Square Enix has that accommodated for anti-social gamers like myself and doesn't force you into playing with others.

Final Fantasy XIV Amano

They've even got some new Yoshitaka Amano art to hype the post, and the game just looks so "Final Fantasy," a rare commodity for Final Fantasy games these days. Oh no… I can't get sucked back into this again!

Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn patch 2.2 Through the Maelstrom will be released on March 27. The PlayStation 4 version will be released on April 14. See you there? We will see.