@@Pompadourius It's on the weaker side of MMOs, but it does have some interesting fights. Just needs more varied and difficult dungeon content too and it'd be golden!
Yeah, that’s one thing that stuck with me, too. As if the weight of the world had finally been lifted from his shoulders. He even was able to finally smile at the end.
@@ivaultboytsr4894 not only is it not stained in blood but the colors of his warrior armor is brighter shades of red and brown. goes through the whole expansion with drab muted colors then at the end, the armor is its natural bright color palette.
I don't even know how to express all the emotions I was feeling. We did this on Dec 31st, after a terrible 2020 with a game that I can say definitely saved the latter half of the year for me. Not to mention all the messages I was getting from the community after cutscenes sending me all sorts of wonderful words or encouragement for the fight. Like, I was definitely feeling all sorts of things here.
Jesse, do you intend to ever upload the full stream VoDs of your FF14 experience? As someone who can never catch a livestream of anyone I follow, it would be nice to have that for the future.
I'm right outside the entrance for the dungeon before the dying gasp, been playing warrior since I started last year, gonna postpone finishing things up until I get Bravura thanks to this vid
That moment where Graha summons your party members to fight Emet Selch. I feel like it's the first time in an MMO where story and gameplay came together like that. I mean sure there are raids where the implication is that you a bunch of randoms invade a castle....but this just feels like on a different level.
The game usually makes mention in someone's dialogue of you getting your companions/fellow adventurers together for a fight. But yeah, Shadowbringers is the first time we see this sort of on the spot summoning of other players. That said, some of the mentions of your friends gets pretty comical, particularly in the Stormblood expansion... Lots of funny mentions of your friends just happening to go on a fishing trip to the east, and just _insisting_ that they help you in your endeavors, and who are you to refuse them?
It's the only time the game states that the other characters in your party are also WoL. Every other time, they're just other adventurers. _This times_ they are Warriors of Light from their own Shard.
@@Uldihaa You're going to have to provide an example then, because I'm pretty sure the game never uses the phrase "Warriors of Light" to describe the people who were summoned. I do agree that they are basically Warriors of Light since they have the blessing light, but I'm almost certain the game never outright states that.
*Ardbert appears walking towards the people* Me: Oh, they want me to cry, I won’t *Nyelbert, Renda, Branden and Lammit are there instead of the people* Me: D e f e a t
i spoiled myself on the ending before i played through shadowbringers myself so i wasn't that emotional until that part. that's when i started crying like a baby
When Ardbert shows up like "It's yo' boy!" Natsuko Ishikawa was the lead writer for Shadowbringers and she did a fantastic job. She worked her way up through the ranks and her talent shows with each project she was assigned to. She was the lead writer for the Rogue and Dark Knight class questlines (both of which - the DRK in particular - are considered to be the best class questlines by many fans). From class quests she got bumped up to writing the story for entire zones (of note: Coerthas Western Highlands and Azim Steppe). With her fantastic writing still shining through, they decided to give her the task of head writer on Shadowbringers. And yeah, Shadowbringers' story speaks for itself: the story is simply amazing. Here's hoping they give her the lead again for 6.0!
As a DRK main I can vouch that it is THE best job story, period. It makes the WoL feel like a real person processing their grief and frustration and failings. And the final job "quest" being what it was was a perfect endcap for the job story. She is literally my writing idol and this expansion just solidified that.
That moment where he offers the axe and the main theme kicks in is maybe imo one of the best music queues in gaming that I can think of. Just watching it still made emotion flare up inside me. And there were weeks after the words "remember us" just made me get a shiver. This game is amazing.
You ain't wrong my friend. I've watched a half dozen people go through that very cutscene and it hits me just as hard as it did when I did it back on 5.0 release. It's just too perfect.
Personally I prefer the music change during the Bahamut Prime fight when Bahamut starts casting Teraflare but this cutscene is definitely a close second.
@@l3x1c0n1c I agree but don't agree. That Shiva heel click was THE EXACT MOMENT where FF14 changed. ARR was an okay MMO, but the FF14 team didn't find their stride until patch 2.4 and the Shiva fight. Everything that followed that fight was where FF14 started transitioning to where it is today.
35:00 This was one of my favorite parts of this expansion. When the camera pans and you see Ardbert, you think he’s finally (in a symbolic way) getting the hero’s welcome that he and his friends deserved. Then the camera pans again and you realize it’s So. Much. Better.
One of my favorite parts that I didn't even notice until the 2nd time I saw it: The blood on his axe, the literal blood of his comrades, was gone in that cutscene. He's literally washed away his own guilt.
It's actually interesting because technically it's a 'downgrade' he went from the Atma step back down to the Zenith or just fresh Relic step. I was expecting him to be fully upgraded to Ragnarok Zeta.
The most touching part of all this is how Jesse could barely remember the scions names before 2.5, but the way his voice cracked in relief when they weren't dead after the fight, they have come so far together
I was the same way during ARR. I annoyed my bf by calling the scions Tatertot, Papa John's, Twunklord and Gwen Stefani Wannabe. Cut to this expansion and I'm literally sobbing over them all.
@@DoctorSciencetime I feel like that's how most players who are interested in this game's story were. The lead writer for shadowbringers did amazing work making us care about these characters. Now if she could just figure out how to make Zenos a compelling villian...
@@Bluelyre I knoooowwwww. I wish the vallens was the villain for the next expansion instead. At least he has some sort of personality and a reason for it.
It's been a year and I still tear up at emet's smile at the end. His long goal stopped, his legacy destroyed by shattered husks. He still smiles because he knows the world he loved still exists. It exists in all of us. His legacy is ours. Hades the gatekeeper of the death of his people had no one to take him across the river styx. It's so heartbreaking and happy. Perfectly shown in that smile.
I think I mentioned this in some other video, but my favorite part in this ending is the little smile Emet gives you after the "Remember that we once lived." line. For such a sardonic and trollish character, that was THE ONE TIME his smile felt actually genuine. Also, the scene with Ardbert walking down the bridge to reunite with his companions was the one that finally broke me.
I will never not cry when I see G'raha Tia tear up after you tell him that you're glad to see him awake. That shit took me out when I played it and I am not usually the type to cry at movies or games.
Same. Just finished 5.0 today. I don’t remember the last time I cried, but this ending made my cry, even after watching it for a second time here. Shadowbringers is truly a masterpiece.
Ardbert finally coming home to his waiting comrades while the Eternal Wind playing in the background is really one of the most emotional moments in FFXIV, already done with this story but I still got teary-eyed after watching this video 😭
That scene hits different if you did all the Role Quests. You set the other Warriors of Darkness free, and at the end they're there to greet their old friend. Like I know they show up even if you only did one, but still
I had the pleasure of working on this expansion (even if only as one small part of a great whole) and it still hits hard. Always awesome to see people’s reactions to what we at the time believed to be a genuinely superb game, one in which everyone put their heart into.
@@Rakka5 i was in localization QA. Most of my work was done taking the English localization and checking it for inconsistencies, misspellings, structure issues, etc. For example if someone in Wright said “go south to complete X objective”, but the objective was to the north, we would have to write it up to say North. We’d also get crashes and freezes to writeup of course but that was mostly Japan QA’s wheelhouse. It was a lot of Chicago Manual of Style research, spreadsheets (to scale of thousands of lines), familiarization with the whole story of the game, all the side stories, AND the FF franchise as a whole. My crowning achievement is TECHNICALLY (for obvious reasons) we got NA first on E1-4 legitimately, which was my first MMO raid ever. No cheats or debug. ES was another thing altogether lol
@@IvadNagrom thank you and the other guys work on bringing this great xpack onto FFXIV, both me and the wife LOVED the story, and small part? you guys do one of the best jobs, you bring the world of Eorzea to a wider audience! never say you play a minor part m8! Thank you.
This entire sequence was the moment when I've realized that I'm playing one of the best games I've ever played in my entire life. And after that, the amount of dedication and emotion Jesse has put into this, and seeing his reaction just made it all the better. This game is something truly special.
Man, last thing I remember about Jesse talking about FF14 he was making fun of it and didn't want to touch it. Now seeing him like this really tells you this game is really something.
Yea a lot of WoW players think badly of it but once they play it, they fall in love with it. The story is better, the game mechanics are better. It's like if Blizzard didn't sell out to Activision and made a good MMO instead of the crap they make now-a-days.
@@nokturnallex2160 The problem is that the story is better... After ARR, and the mechanics are better... After ARR Which means that for fifty+ levels, FFXIV feels slow, and choreish
I think if Asmongold who is notorious for his vitriolic hate of FF14 actually sat down and played it for a while he would change his mind. There's a reason it's one of the most popular MMORPGs after WoW for so long.
@@palientologist I don’t think he will ever do that, he got lot of followers from WoW. Kinda remind me of Conan Doyle who hated Sherlock Holmes but had to keep going because it was what he was know for. Who know, he may be actually playing it and no one know it o.o
Had the honor (and it is an honor) to play this 2 weeks ago for the first time... "Remember....remember that we once lived"...and then this music. As if the end wasn't epic and emotional enough, they also had to put in one of the best soundtracks I have ever heared in any game! What they did with that one ending scene others can't do in an entire game!
the ending of 5.0 expansion had me feeling things, and I'm someone who barely felt anything if at all with Haurchefant and yet STILL 5.3 destroyed me... He's gonna be annihilated...
I was main tanking THAT fight in 5.3 on release day. When the cutscene happens, and the rescue occurs, I broke. I was just crying. Very hard to tank through tears. We wiped and then did it again, without me screwing up, but I was still sobbing.
at 10:17 is when the song finally clicked for me, I started playing in Shadowbringers and was annoyed by the music on the startup page everytime i logged in and saw people all up in the music on youtube and stuff and didn't get it until I hit that spot and I was like, "oh, that shit hits"
As someone who literally only beat this a couple weeks ago, coming here to see Jesse emotional while I was clapping and cheering during the hades fight is so appropriate. Also when that song kicks up when you find a party in DF it MAKES THE WHOLE EXPANSION.
40:35 Everyone skips the slideshow, which is kind of unfortunate because it ends with a picture (not a screenshot; it's not in the game) of Ardbert and his team back in their adventuring days before the flood. They looked so happy there, it almost made me cry.
You should give final fantasy 14 a try even if you don't want to buy it is free until the end of the first expansion if you get through the base game that's a bit slow to build up but sets a lot of the future plots even to this day stuff that happened in the base game is relevant. You'll have a great time if you enjoy the game play.
It's crazy that Shadowbringers is two years old and watching those end cut scenes STILL make me cry. Even after doing it on 5 different characters. It is such brilliant storytelling and I can't imagine anyone playing through it and not at least getting a little choked up.
Seeing this reminds me of when I played through Shadowbringers and all the emotions I felt, really gives me the chills. Shadowbringers truly was amazing - the gameplay, the story, the music, everyting.
This video was what convinced me to give FFXIV another shot after 6 years back in May. Last night I reached this stage with my character and... wow.... A part of me regrets having seen spoilers before playing but... just wow... These cutscenes made me tear up even without the context... now that I've made it through the game the floodgates just open up... Thanks so much Jesse for inspiring me to come back to possibly one of the best narrative experiences I've seen in gaming!
I absolutely adore how they found a way to sneakily give your character a whole lot more dialogue in Shadowbringers by upping the amount of dialogue choices you get to make by like a factor of 10.
One thing I love about Shadowbringers is this is first time that our comrades are fighting with us(Warrior of Light). That is something I missed from Realm reborn to Stormblood. Yes, we are the main hero of the story, yet from the Final Fantasy I played from 8 though 15 is that I am not alone in the quest. Our comrade at arms is as important to the story. In addition, compare to the other MMO games, we get to play as our comrades from a brief moment just like the other Final Fantasy that I grown to love.
I've seen this sequence play out dozens of times and EVERY. SINGLE. FUCKING. TIME. It still hits different. This is one of the best stories I've ever experienced, beyond MMOs, RPGs, or even Video Games. Natsuko Ishikawa is a fucking goddess of writing and deserves every single ounce of praise she's gotten for her work on this multiplied by a factor of 1000. It's frankly incredible, and I sincerely hope the XIV team keeps up this pace.
I’ve been playing FFXIV since heavensward and even if I can’t always find the motivation to play it all the time It’s still a game that I always come back to when new stuff gets added. The quality of the games story and content definitely makes it one of the best MMOS out there right now.
Watching Jesse go from the end of ARR all the way to this moment was a journey and a half! Who would have thought that such a great and compelling story could come from an MMO :)
Emet: sad, wistful; "My world will have no need of heroes..." He knows. He knows what you are, he knows what you do. He knows his greatest failure as Architect is not being able to craft a world where your role isn't necessary. Not being able to craft a world where his friend wasn't put in danger.
Rewatching these cutscenes again on stream made me notice that they really did do their damnest to make it look like that Emet-Selch killed Ryne. The shot was shown to go through her in some nature, the music instantly cut out, and they let her "hang in there" just long enough to say one last thing while clutching at her stomach before falling face first to the ground. And really they couldn't do something like that this effectively with anyone BUT Ryne, because as a denizen of the First and at the end of the story, there was no guarantee that she had the double layered armor of "Plot" and "Trust Member." The story team really pushed for that last moment of "there's no one left, all hope is lost".
Fun Fact: just as the theme of sacrificing the new to bring back the old is playing out with the ascians, it is also playing out with the player, with the scions being faced with Ryne having her existence taken over by Minfilia, or for Minfilia to fade for good and for Ryne to come unto her own.
FF14 and the friends I both made and reconnected with through it definitely saved me through 2020. I started playing back in April, got through all the msq by October, and now I'm an erstwhile 9th in their static for savage raids. Shadowbringers definitely holds up as an amazing expansion to a legendary game. The community was so surprisingly kind and nice, I never experienced anywhere near the toxicity I was expecting from an MMO, and it has kept me coming back for more every week. So glad to see you enjoying ff14, as someone who has been a massive MMO fan and even built this channel off of WoW. May you enjoy the rest of your experiences across Eorzea, Norvrant and beyond!
One fun thing is he actually does go through with the 'no more titles' too. Hades was his personal name (Emet-Selch being his title of office as it were as part of the 14), and unlike ALL the other bosses who get intro screens with titles and descriptors, etc his is just 'Hades'. A nice touch. Hades is also an interesting boss in that there's a LOT of mechanics without it being to overwhelming since the damage isn't too high for a competent runthrough (to the point you could get him into extreme form without significant mechanic changes, just by souping up his hp pool(s) a lot and increasing the damage), and maybe putting in some more stuff for phase transitions along the lines of Warrior of Light/Elidibus..
Ive played this game since Beta. My life is poured into this game and I've met the most amazing people [as well as meeting them irl] from this game. I just found your channel,and I was surprised to see this- and even though I have finished these scenes ages ago....I still cry when I watch others be moved just like so many of us were. I got goosebumps and I smiled ear to ear knowing that you were enthralled in the game!! I'm so happy for you and I hope your followers are inspired as well to try this game!!! [can't wait for you to get into 5.0+ ...talk about tears ahaha] so excited for you!!!
i dont know why, but grahas tears when you say his name is so touching to me. the fact that after over untold years that he spent known only as the crystal exarc, even to his adoptive daughter, and that the person who remembered was his hero he idolized straight up breaks him and he gives up on the act, even if for a few moments before he has to return to his duties. perfect
The crazy thing is this isn't even the "end" of the expansion, it's actually just the end of the leveling/beginning of the endgame experience! The technical "ending" to Shadowbringers takes place in 5.3 where things have just gotten more tense and emotional over the 2 major patches that came before it.
As people are mentioning the expansion ending being later here is a crash course for those unaware. In FFXIV between expansions there are a series of patches that go from x.1 to x.5 . The story continues in all patches but the story relevant to the current he or expansion goes until x.3 . Starting from x.4 the story starts to change tracks and guides you to where the official start of the story in the next expansion takes place. Similarly the trailers that are released before the major expansion often hint the story developed in those later patches and teasing what will be appearing after.
I first saw this video existed when I started playing. Now finally, 380h of playtime and a finished msq later, I can watch your ShB reaction spoiler free. Every second worth the wait!
Before you went into the series of quests leading to the Level 79 dungeon, you leveled your WAR to Level 80, hoping for the eventual "bro-down" with Ardbert somewhere down the line, and my thoughts about that idea is that it will definitely be worth the wait. AND FOR CRYING OUT LOUD, IT WAS DEFINITELY WORTH THE WAIT! This whole ending scene was enhanced because of this. And I'm so glad you did it your way.
The thing that I love about how this ending came about is that this expansion feels like a lot of the older Final Fantasy games. You go off to find companions that will then travel with you and help you fight your advisories together and solve the world's issue. Then finally you all come together to take on the big bad at the end of the journey. This expansion notes that the Scions and WoL/WoD is an actual party instead of like previous expansions where they would send the WoL to go do tasks on their own and occasionally meet up.
Heavensward felt like that as well, at least for me, when you were looking for Hraesvlgr with Estinien, Ysayle and Alphinaud. The scene at the bonfire was probably one of my favorites because of that
I am so glad your channel didn't get deleted, Jesse. I have been watching you for years now, your videos got me through the worst parts of my childhood, including my constant depression and thoughts of suicide. If it wasn't for you, I might not even be alive today. When life was shit, I knew I at least had your videos as a pick me up after bad days, which were often. Thank you so very much for existing, Cox. I love you and everything you do. I was on the verge of crying when I found out your channel might have gotten deleted because of those 3 strikes, thank god it all got resolved peacefully. I look forward to watching you for the next decade+
I absolutely love when you have the super hype and serious build up to the fight with Emet-Selch, and Graha summons the 7 other Warriors of Light - like it's literally an ALL THE WARRIORS moment. Plus you just get stuff like the random Hrothgar who looks like he was just yeeted across time and space and away from whatever bar he was chilling at. And the guy wearing the Namazu head. Like for real, I don't want to go to whatever alternate universe that is from...
Crying at the exact same beats as Jesse does. God it's such a nice ending and I can't get over that final cut when WoL holds their finger up. 5.3 makes me have even heavier tears though, I hope it affects him just as much.
Shadowbringers made me feel all of the emotions but I think the closest I came to shedding a genuine tear was Lyna's "I am fine" speech. For me this part was more just absolute chills. 5.3 though? Good God, I was an absolute mess. And it just. Keeps. Hitting. You. There's like a straight hour of content solely designed to turn you into a complete emotional wreck.
@@icantthinkofaname1009 To quote someone else: "My heart has already been ripped out. It's already on the floor. It's bleeding and they just keep beating the shit out of it. It's beautiful."
Gosh I cannot wait to hear your thoughts on FFXIV as a whole. I remember hearing you talk about doing such a video, so I look forward to that! Thank you for playing this game, and a big thank you to both your community, and FFXIV's community, for being so welcoming, heartfelt and kind. FFXIV had such an odd impact on my life, one I didn't expect. I went into it when I wasn't at a great part of my life, and created a character who acted as my friend, telling me of their adventures and the like. It gave me comfort, and so the game had become a big part of my life over the last year or so. I won't say the game 'saved' my life or anything like that, but it definitely brought me out of a pretty dark place I was in. I get emotional just thinking about moments of the game, especially Shadowbringers, and seeing your journey progress much like mine did brought joy back into my heart, and now I look forward to both our journeys. I hope people don't mind me sharing my thoughts in that way.
Man, I'm so goddamn glad I went on this journey with Jesse and everyone else. I started off watching what I could catch around the end of the ARR patches and by Stormblood I was 100% in. I don't think a story beat in a game I was only watching on stream has ever made me tear up before, but seeing Ardbert reunited with his friends got me during the stream and it hit just as hard now. Thank you, Jesse.
Dude, you held it together far better than I ever did playing through that end part. I actually had to get up and walk away when the other heroes were summoned.
Also because he genuinely was trying to find a compromise. He genuinely wanted to see worth in the world that remains, but was plagued by the memories of what once was and his grief for his family/friends was too much to bear. What happens in 5.3 makes me love him even more -- SPOILER WARNING, STOP READING. SERIOUSLY, SPOILERS. The fact that he sets pieces up on the board for AFTER his own death to ensure that (insert 5.3 villain here, trying to be vague) doesn't have to suffer alone for eternity with a half-forgotten goal, the fact that he thinks ahead to that and does this only out of kindness, my god what a character.
He is legitimately the first villain that I ever wanted to simultaneously give a hug to because he needs one, but also punch him in his smug ass face. I hope he gets remembered as one of the best Final Fantasy villains in the years to come.
@@fgfh10004 when he says "the victor will write the tale and loser become the villain" he truely means it. he fights till the end but when he finally loses he fully accepts that by his own terms he is the villain of this tale. and in his final moment having lost all he asks is that his people, not him, at least not be forgotten. that all he fought for won't be erased... that the warrior of light will be a better victor than he would have been.
shadowbringers is just a good expansion and one of the few games where i generally cried to and had real emotion affect on you since you get so invested in the story and all the characters. since you feel like you always part of the story and it takes you on a journey.
Emet Selch is one of the best-written villains I've ever seen. Mainly because he doesn't see himself as a villain, he's trying to bring back the people he knew and loved. I truly felt for him.
I picked this game up as well during the start of this year which saved it for me, but didn't quite get into it completely until March and April. I never expected the story to hit me so hard with so much emotion, it made me question all that time spent on WoW or even GW2 (which doesn't have a bad story but hard to compare), knowing that this existed, even if Shadowbringers had only been out for about a year. Even after the xpac story was completed, I was graced with the opportunity to enjoy the most amazing patch story that comes later and be part of the experiencing it with everyone for the first time which peaked the same emotions even more. Now I'm just looking forward to each story progression and for the next xpac, having never felt this excited since looking forward to a favorite TV or anime show, or during the time I thought GW2 had amazing story, but this is just different and on a different level now that I know what peak storytelling is, and I absolutely love it.
Simply one of the greatest stories ever told, and if you think about it, isn't it the story of all of us as well? What legacy will we leave behind when we inevitably pass on? Who will remember us? How many different lives have we lead in our lifetime and which of them is the true unshattered version of ourselves? We can but only hope the memories and lessons we leave behind are able to lead those who walk after.
Man I will always love this moment and this song, nothing quite matching the feeling and emotion of how hyped this got me. Also I love that Urianger is just passed out in the water.
"If you had the strength to take another step, could you do it? Could you save our worlds?" That might be one of my favorite lines in an RPG ever. In that moment, it's an extremely personal question to the player, and kudos on SE on allowing you to put in an answer to it, even if you're only given two choices. Shadowbringers is easily my favorite MMO expansion, and I feel like I've been playing games in the genre forever at this point.
I love so much that you were as deeply moved as the rest of us by this story. A lot of the joy of 14 is seeing others fall in love the way we all have. Thank you for sharing this with us Jesse
I JUST got here a few nights ago, and now I can FINALLY watch this. Dude. My man, my buddy, my friend...I hope you let it all hang out. This finale was packed with so much love and passion for the story that was being told. It truly was an Epic Gaming Moment.
I'm there with you man the feels this game gives you is overwhelming and actually makes you love the villains and know why they do things and emet selch is one of the most loved characters in ffxiv
This is why Shadowbringers is the best Final Fantasy in modern times. The swell of the music, the insurmountable odds, the coming together of heroes. It is more than the sum of its part. Shadowbringer is one of the Final Fantasy titles that really made you feel like a hero.
You leveled a Warrior anticipating something like this finale, but think of those who started as or used to main Warrior in a previous expansion or two before Shadowbringers came out, who were handed their axe once more for the final battle.
I don't follow Jesse. I know of him, I know he did some Minecraft stuff, but he's always been in my peripheral vision as a gamer. To find this clip of him appreciating FFXIV, a game that I love dearly, has filled my heart with joy. The joy of sharing an experience. Please bring more.
Wait, Jesse has been playing FFXIV AND made a reaction video about the ending of Shadowbringers!? My excitement is immeasurable and my day has been made! Can't wait to see how you liked it! Edit: Ok, this was an amazing reaction video! The fact that you weren't voicing your feelings every time something happened was a welcome change from some of the other reaction content that I've seen about FFXIV. Instead you let the face-cam do it's thing. I felt it enabled me to share the experience with you instead of experiencing just your reaction. I was on that feels trip too earlier last year. I can but thank you for the opportunity to take that trip again. If only I had known you were streaming this I would have been a part of the viewership as much as possible. I'm excited for the future FFXIV content you might share with us, be it here on RUclips or Twitch, or any other platform, really. Once more, thank you Jesse, and keep up the great work! May 2021 be a better year for you and for all. .....Meanwhile, in Garlemald.....
Similar to you Jesse, I got really into this game last year in July and it saved my year. What an amazing game, and the characters really feel like family now. I can't wait to see what comes next.
The best first video to upload after all that nonsense... We ALL know how stressful that must have been for you - Yet you kept positive and happy, as much for our own sakes as yours, throughout. Our Jesse
I felt it from the very beginning of the game honestly. I finally got fed up with WoW and my role in the story being cameraman, and decided to download the free trial. And just stepping off the boat in Limsa and having npcs talk to me like I'm actually there and tell me about the world and their troubles felt great, and it kept getting better from there.
When you came back to XIV and it looked like you were enjoying yourself enough to stick with it. This moment is one I was looking for. Hell a lot of us in the FC were. I've watch so many get to here and I still get goosebumps and still break down into tears. I'm excited for you to continue forward there still so much more for you to see in the patches. Along with the raid story too!
If you haven't already, this might be a good time to check out the Shadowbringers opening trailer. One thing that didn't strike me until I watched your vod of this scene is that Emet-Selch uses the exact words of... well. Bookends to a great story.
My favourite pastime is watching people’s reactions for Shadowbringers.
I've been watching a bunch of 5.3 reactions and cried every time. Don't know what that says about me, but there we are
The ending was really good,peob the best storytelling ff has had in ages.
If only FFXIV was fully voice acted to make up for the poor gameplay. It's really a shame, because the game could easily be so much better!
@@TheCooderix The gameplay is good, it just takes a while to get there.
@@Pompadourius It's on the weaker side of MMOs, but it does have some interesting fights. Just needs more varied and difficult dungeon content too and it'd be golden!
Emet-Selch was slouching in his other cutscenes, but in the final scene, he was no longer slouching. He didn't have to bear the burden any more.
Yeah, that’s one thing that stuck with me, too. As if the weight of the world had finally been lifted from his shoulders. He even was able to finally smile at the end.
Stand tall my friend
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA - Never caught that small detail until I read this comment 3 months after the fact....Oh god the emotions, they're back.
Another detail i missed during my playthrough was at the end ardbert's axe is no longer stained in blood when he sees his friends again
@@ivaultboytsr4894 not only is it not stained in blood but the colors of his warrior armor is brighter shades of red and brown. goes through the whole expansion with drab muted colors then at the end, the armor is its natural bright color palette.
I don't even know how to express all the emotions I was feeling. We did this on Dec 31st, after a terrible 2020 with a game that I can say definitely saved the latter half of the year for me. Not to mention all the messages I was getting from the community after cutscenes sending me all sorts of wonderful words or encouragement for the fight. Like, I was definitely feeling all sorts of things here.
Love everything your wonderful self does. Always excited when I see anything new pop up :) hope this next year is better for all of us
Experiencing this amazing emotional journey of a story again with you has been a treasure Jesse so thank you as well ❤️
Im so glad you love it. This game is fantastic and i cant wait for you to experience what comes next
Jesse, do you intend to ever upload the full stream VoDs of your FF14 experience? As someone who can never catch a livestream of anyone I follow, it would be nice to have that for the future.
Hell yeah!!! I am so happy you got into this game :3
For context. Jesse went to level warrior all the way to 80 for this moment.
yeah, he mentions that at the very end of the video LOL
honestly respectable
"How many years have I waited for this moment?"
Entirely worth it
As a Warrior main myself, playing through these scenes as a Warrior with the Bravura was so emotional
I'm right outside the entrance for the dungeon before the dying gasp, been playing warrior since I started last year, gonna postpone finishing things up until I get Bravura thanks to this vid
That moment where Graha summons your party members to fight Emet Selch. I feel like it's the first time in an MMO where story and gameplay came together like that. I mean sure there are raids where the implication is that you a bunch of randoms invade a castle....but this just feels like on a different level.
The game usually makes mention in someone's dialogue of you getting your companions/fellow adventurers together for a fight. But yeah, Shadowbringers is the first time we see this sort of on the spot summoning of other players. That said, some of the mentions of your friends gets pretty comical, particularly in the Stormblood expansion... Lots of funny mentions of your friends just happening to go on a fishing trip to the east, and just _insisting_ that they help you in your endeavors, and who are you to refuse them?
It's the only time the game states that the other characters in your party are also WoL. Every other time, they're just other adventurers. _This times_ they are Warriors of Light from their own Shard.
@@Uldihaa Well, not really. They're heroes from other shards and time periods yes, but they never call them Warriors of Light.
@@goldi947 Nope, the game does state they are WoL via the incantation used to summon them.
@@Uldihaa You're going to have to provide an example then, because I'm pretty sure the game never uses the phrase "Warriors of Light" to describe the people who were summoned. I do agree that they are basically Warriors of Light since they have the blessing light, but I'm almost certain the game never outright states that.
*Ardbert appears walking towards the people*
Me: Oh, they want me to cry, I won’t
*Nyelbert, Renda, Branden and Lammit are there instead of the people*
Me: D e f e a t
i spoiled myself on the ending before i played through shadowbringers myself so i wasn't that emotional until that part. that's when i started crying like a baby
R.I.P. to them all. :')
I really like the small touch in that scene where the blood is no longer on Ardbert's axe.
@@scootlaboot9666 Not only that but his, and the other's armor are back to their original color instead of being dyed black.
I held it together all through the prior scenes, but this was the straw that broke the camels back for me too.
When Ardbert shows up like "It's yo' boy!"
Natsuko Ishikawa was the lead writer for Shadowbringers and she did a fantastic job. She worked her way up through the ranks and her talent shows with each project she was assigned to. She was the lead writer for the Rogue and Dark Knight class questlines (both of which - the DRK in particular - are considered to be the best class questlines by many fans). From class quests she got bumped up to writing the story for entire zones (of note: Coerthas Western Highlands and Azim Steppe). With her fantastic writing still shining through, they decided to give her the task of head writer on Shadowbringers. And yeah, Shadowbringers' story speaks for itself: the story is simply amazing. Here's hoping they give her the lead again for 6.0!
She also was one of the main writers for the Crystal Tower Alliance Raid quests.
not sure if you're already aware but she is officially coming back for Endwalker!
@@lmcfleury Hadn't heard anything official about it, so I thank you very much for informing me! :^)
And she's back at it! Hell yeah!
As a DRK main I can vouch that it is THE best job story, period. It makes the WoL feel like a real person processing their grief and frustration and failings. And the final job "quest" being what it was was a perfect endcap for the job story. She is literally my writing idol and this expansion just solidified that.
That moment where he offers the axe and the main theme kicks in is maybe imo one of the best music queues in gaming that I can think of. Just watching it still made emotion flare up inside me. And there were weeks after the words "remember us" just made me get a shiver. This game is amazing.
I will argue that the best (maybe nostalgia speaking) was when the snap happened in the first fight against shiva, but this one is pretttty great.
You ain't wrong my friend. I've watched a half dozen people go through that very cutscene and it hits me just as hard as it did when I did it back on 5.0 release. It's just too perfect.
Personally I prefer the music change during the Bahamut Prime fight when Bahamut starts casting Teraflare but this cutscene is definitely a close second.
@@l3x1c0n1c I agree but don't agree. That Shiva heel click was THE EXACT MOMENT where FF14 changed. ARR was an okay MMO, but the FF14 team didn't find their stride until patch 2.4 and the Shiva fight. Everything that followed that fight was where FF14 started transitioning to where it is today.
Genuinely the most epic gaming in moment history, IMO.
35:00 This was one of my favorite parts of this expansion. When the camera pans and you see Ardbert, you think he’s finally (in a symbolic way) getting the hero’s welcome that he and his friends deserved. Then the camera pans again and you realize it’s So. Much. Better.
He and his family can rest now.
One of my favorite parts that I didn't even notice until the 2nd time I saw it: The blood on his axe, the literal blood of his comrades, was gone in that cutscene. He's literally washed away his own guilt.
@@TallWartortle No, no rest. He's telling them goodbye-because we've got more adventures to take him on.
And that's when I teared up
This gets me every time, it's such beautiful story telling
I love the detail that Ardbert's weapon is no longer bloody when he is walking into the Crystarium for his reunion.
He also shaved!
And he has the level 50 Job Gear you get from the Coffer.
@@gasparguruoftime5475 He always has that.
@@jijonbreaker No he has the stuff you get that's level 45. The coffer is different.
It's actually interesting because technically it's a 'downgrade' he went from the Atma step back down to the Zenith or just fresh Relic step. I was expecting him to be fully upgraded to Ragnarok Zeta.
The most touching part of all this is how Jesse could barely remember the scions names before 2.5, but the way his voice cracked in relief when they weren't dead after the fight, they have come so far together
I was the same way during ARR. I annoyed my bf by calling the scions Tatertot, Papa John's, Twunklord and Gwen Stefani Wannabe. Cut to this expansion and I'm literally sobbing over them all.
@@DoctorSciencetime I feel like that's how most players who are interested in this game's story were. The lead writer for shadowbringers did amazing work making us care about these characters.
Now if she could just figure out how to make Zenos a compelling villian...
@@Bluelyre I knoooowwwww. I wish the vallens was the villain for the next expansion instead. At least he has some sort of personality and a reason for it.
@@Bluelyre I mean she made Elidibus a good character, and I thought that was impossible since I started playing back in 2.2.
For me at least it was similar; the twins, for example, went from "which of you is which" to "*Don't you dare harm my children*"
It's been a year and I still tear up at emet's smile at the end. His long goal stopped, his legacy destroyed by shattered husks. He still smiles because he knows the world he loved still exists. It exists in all of us. His legacy is ours. Hades the gatekeeper of the death of his people had no one to take him across the river styx. It's so heartbreaking and happy. Perfectly shown in that smile.
Thank god his legacy was destroyed. Shows where he was in the wrong . He deserved that axe.
I think I mentioned this in some other video, but my favorite part in this ending is the little smile Emet gives you after the "Remember that we once lived." line. For such a sardonic and trollish character, that was THE ONE TIME his smile felt actually genuine.
Also, the scene with Ardbert walking down the bridge to reunite with his companions was the one that finally broke me.
He was genuine when he was all happy to want to kill everyone. He deserved that axe.
When the bass of the guitar for the Shadowbringers theme hits. You know it is about to go down
LogoshGaming thanks for the name of the song-had to go grab it after hearing it here!
Emet-Selch: *"Why do I hear Shadowbringers music?"*
I will never not cry when I see G'raha Tia tear up after you tell him that you're glad to see him awake. That shit took me out when I played it and I am not usually the type to cry at movies or games.
Same. Just finished 5.0 today. I don’t remember the last time I cried, but this ending made my cry, even after watching it for a second time here.
Shadowbringers is truly a masterpiece.
Ardbert finally coming home to his waiting comrades while the Eternal Wind playing in the background is really one of the most emotional moments in FFXIV, already done with this story but I still got teary-eyed after watching this video 😭
Yeah I finished the expansion pretty soon after it dropped. Was freaking fantastic and emotional. Just watched this and cried all over again.
That scene hits different if you did all the Role Quests. You set the other Warriors of Darkness free, and at the end they're there to greet their old friend. Like I know they show up even if you only did one, but still
I had the pleasure of working on this expansion (even if only as one small part of a great whole) and it still hits hard. Always awesome to see people’s reactions to what we at the time believed to be a genuinely superb game, one in which everyone put their heart into.
Thank you for your work. Do you mind if I ask what part did you do exactly?
@@Rakka5 i was in localization QA. Most of my work was done taking the English localization and checking it for inconsistencies, misspellings, structure issues, etc. For example if someone in Wright said “go south to complete X objective”, but the objective was to the north, we would have to write it up to say North. We’d also get crashes and freezes to writeup of course but that was mostly Japan QA’s wheelhouse. It was a lot of Chicago Manual of Style research, spreadsheets (to scale of thousands of lines), familiarization with the whole story of the game, all the side stories, AND the FF franchise as a whole.
My crowning achievement is TECHNICALLY (for obvious reasons) we got NA first on E1-4 legitimately, which was my first MMO raid ever. No cheats or debug. ES was another thing altogether lol
@@IvadNagrom thats adorable and awesome, i hope ya having the best day!
@@IvadNagrom wow your amazing dude , thanks for your contribution ❤️
@@IvadNagrom thank you and the other guys work on bringing this great xpack onto FFXIV, both me and the wife LOVED the story, and small part? you guys do one of the best jobs, you bring the world of Eorzea to a wider audience! never say you play a minor part m8!
Thank you.
This entire sequence was the moment when I've realized that I'm playing one of the best games I've ever played in my entire life. And after that, the amount of dedication and emotion Jesse has put into this, and seeing his reaction just made it all the better.
This game is something truly special.
Man, last thing I remember about Jesse talking about FF14 he was making fun of it and didn't want to touch it. Now seeing him like this really tells you this game is really something.
Yea a lot of WoW players think badly of it but once they play it, they fall in love with it. The story is better, the game mechanics are better. It's like if Blizzard didn't sell out to Activision and made a good MMO instead of the crap they make now-a-days.
@@nokturnallex2160 The problem is that the story is better... After ARR, and the mechanics are better... After ARR
Which means that for fifty+ levels, FFXIV feels slow, and choreish
@@fanta9377 and from 1-max level wow is a chore
I think if Asmongold who is notorious for his vitriolic hate of FF14 actually sat down and played it for a while he would change his mind. There's a reason it's one of the most popular MMORPGs after WoW for so long.
@@palientologist I don’t think he will ever do that, he got lot of followers from WoW. Kinda remind me of Conan Doyle who hated Sherlock Holmes but had to keep going because it was what he was know for.
Who know, he may be actually playing it and no one know it o.o
Had the honor (and it is an honor) to play this 2 weeks ago for the first time...
"Remember....remember that we once lived"...and then this music. As if the end wasn't epic and emotional enough, they also had to put in one of the best soundtracks I have ever heared in any game! What they did with that one ending scene others can't do in an entire game!
My God Shadowbringers was a masterpiece
@@KainsAddiction i almost see you on every comment trash talking, what are you? wow agent ? 🤣
"You bout to make me cry" Oh my dear sweet Summer child, you have no idea what's waiting for you in the following patches...
End of 5.3 had me both laughing and in tears.
the ending of 5.0 expansion had me feeling things, and I'm someone who barely felt anything if at all with Haurchefant and yet STILL 5.3 destroyed me...
He's gonna be annihilated...
"The rains have ceased and we have been graced with another beautiful day, but you are not here to see it."
@@LaughingComedian Spoilers mah dude -_-
I was main tanking THAT fight in 5.3 on release day.
When the cutscene happens, and the rescue occurs, I broke.
I was just crying. Very hard to tank through tears.
We wiped and then did it again, without me screwing up, but I was still sobbing.
You know.. when you want to cry a bit, just come back to this video. Works every single time.
at 10:17 is when the song finally clicked for me, I started playing in Shadowbringers and was annoyed by the music on the startup page everytime i logged in and saw people all up in the music on youtube and stuff and didn't get it until I hit that spot and I was like, "oh, that shit hits"
He cried a lot during this ending. Little did he know that Endwalker was around the corner and the psychic damage was just beginning.
It's been a few years since I played through Shadowbringers and seeing Ardbert walk towards his group of friends still fucking wrecks me emotionally.
Ysayle's final sacrifice, Tsukuyomi, end of 5.0, and end of 5.3 are easily some of the best moments in all of gaming.
I'd swap Ysayle's predictability with Final Steps of Faith.
Ysayle actually disappointed me, since I didn't really feel like her arc was complete.
Agree completely with the Final Steps of Faith though.
As someone who literally only beat this a couple weeks ago, coming here to see Jesse emotional while I was clapping and cheering during the hades fight is so appropriate. Also when that song kicks up when you find a party in DF it MAKES THE WHOLE EXPANSION.
40:35 Everyone skips the slideshow, which is kind of unfortunate because it ends with a picture (not a screenshot; it's not in the game) of Ardbert and his team back in their adventuring days before the flood. They looked so happy there, it almost made me cry.
I don't even know what's happening or who any of these people are and I still got goosebumps.
You should give final fantasy 14 a try even if you don't want to buy it is free until the end of the first expansion if you get through the base game that's a bit slow to build up but sets a lot of the future plots even to this day stuff that happened in the base game is relevant. You'll have a great time if you enjoy the game play.
It's only one of the best games ever made, and one of the best stories ever told.
You should definitely give Final Fantasy 14 a go, and in my opinion, the Shadowbringers expansion is by far the best.
It's the song. It's great on its own. But tied to the story and characters, and the moment, it's even better. Perfectly done cutscene.
Sounds like you need to play FFXIV
Every so often I come back to Jesse’s reaction… the reaction that led me to try out ffxiv :) Sigh one year in and it still grips me…
I forgot how this is one of the few times where Urianger absolutely YELLED out that line
It's crazy that Shadowbringers is two years old and watching those end cut scenes STILL make me cry. Even after doing it on 5 different characters. It is such brilliant storytelling and I can't imagine anyone playing through it and not at least getting a little choked up.
G'raha, best boy. I cried like a baby during this part. I was also mad that I could not pick him up and carry him home in my femroe arms.
G'raha is a fucking gem.
@@Rakka5 literally.
@@belgariontheking1 Hah! Excuse me while I go laugh and cry away from human eyes.
I screamed his name when you see his face. I was so happy and sad.
Just finished this last section and my god I wanted my character to give him a good hug. Made him cry by saying his name and I felt so bad but happy
Seeing this reminds me of when I played through Shadowbringers and all the emotions I felt, really gives me the chills. Shadowbringers truly was amazing - the gameplay, the story, the music, everyting.
right? i cried for a second time watching his stream
@@misteryofdragonfly freaking SAME! I'm now sitting here thinking about doing new game + for the story ~*.Experience.*~
This video was what convinced me to give FFXIV another shot after 6 years back in May. Last night I reached this stage with my character and... wow.... A part of me regrets having seen spoilers before playing but... just wow... These cutscenes made me tear up even without the context... now that I've made it through the game the floodgates just open up... Thanks so much Jesse for inspiring me to come back to possibly one of the best narrative experiences I've seen in gaming!
I absolutely adore how they found a way to sneakily give your character a whole lot more dialogue in Shadowbringers by upping the amount of dialogue choices you get to make by like a factor of 10.
One thing I love about Shadowbringers is this is first time that our comrades are fighting with us(Warrior of Light). That is something I missed from Realm reborn to Stormblood. Yes, we are the main hero of the story, yet from the Final Fantasy I played from 8 though 15 is that I am not alone in the quest. Our comrade at arms is as important to the story. In addition, compare to the other MMO games, we get to play as our comrades from a brief moment just like the other Final Fantasy that I grown to love.
I've seen this sequence play out dozens of times and EVERY. SINGLE. FUCKING. TIME. It still hits different. This is one of the best stories I've ever experienced, beyond MMOs, RPGs, or even Video Games. Natsuko Ishikawa is a fucking goddess of writing and deserves every single ounce of praise she's gotten for her work on this multiplied by a factor of 1000. It's frankly incredible, and I sincerely hope the XIV team keeps up this pace.
I finished Shadowbringers in 2019 and that first bass note when Ardbert offers his axe STILL HITS THE SAME AS WHEN I FIRST SAW IT
Can we just have all your FFXIV streams uploaded to youtube Jesse? I just want to watch them over and over again!
THIS. THIS THIS THIS.
they are on his twitch channel under collections... at the moment there are more than 200 hours to watch :)
@@egliukse until they have to be taken down because of more copyright nonsense.
I hope he does do this. The VOD system on twitch is a mess
Oh MAN i need to go see them before they're taken down;;
I’ve been playing FFXIV since heavensward and even if I can’t always find the motivation to play it all the time It’s still a game that I always come back to when new stuff gets added. The quality of the games story and content definitely makes it one of the best MMOS out there right now.
Same. I have long since gotten tired of the MMO grind, but I still show up every expansion for the story.
Yoshi-P has said that he WANTS us to play like that. He's perfectly fine with us taking breaks, and I love him for it.
Watching Jesse go from the end of ARR all the way to this moment was a journey and a half! Who would have thought that such a great and compelling story could come from an MMO :)
Emet-Selch: "I will expunge your stain from history."
Lil JC: "I'm BBQ sauce! My stain is forever, and I'm a spicy boi!!"
Emet: sad, wistful; "My world will have no need of heroes..."
He knows. He knows what you are, he knows what you do.
He knows his greatest failure as Architect is not being able to craft a world where your role isn't necessary.
Not being able to craft a world where his friend wasn't put in danger.
@@archon9513 that's not his place. It's the WoL decision/ Azems decision.
@@archon9513 If his goal was to create a world without heros, dont become the villian trying to commit genocide.
Watched this with my fiancé (who I met through FFXIV!) on new years as you streamed. We both teared up so bad. Thank you for posting this!
Hell yeah. Always nice to see another who found their partner through a game they both love.
Its hard for me to make friends on here, kudos and mad respect to you who found a whole fiance 😭😂
Fighting away tears, and majestically failing at it, is the correct reaction for the entire Shadowbringers endings.
Rewatching these cutscenes again on stream made me notice that they really did do their damnest to make it look like that Emet-Selch killed Ryne. The shot was shown to go through her in some nature, the music instantly cut out, and they let her "hang in there" just long enough to say one last thing while clutching at her stomach before falling face first to the ground.
And really they couldn't do something like that this effectively with anyone BUT Ryne, because as a denizen of the First and at the end of the story, there was no guarantee that she had the double layered armor of "Plot" and "Trust Member." The story team really pushed for that last moment of "there's no one left, all hope is lost".
Fun Fact: just as the theme of sacrificing the new to bring back the old is playing out with the ascians, it is also playing out with the player, with the scions being faced with Ryne having her existence taken over by Minfilia, or for Minfilia to fade for good and for Ryne to come unto her own.
FF14 and the friends I both made and reconnected with through it definitely saved me through 2020. I started playing back in April, got through all the msq by October, and now I'm an erstwhile 9th in their static for savage raids.
Shadowbringers definitely holds up as an amazing expansion to a legendary game. The community was so surprisingly kind and nice, I never experienced anywhere near the toxicity I was expecting from an MMO, and it has kept me coming back for more every week.
So glad to see you enjoying ff14, as someone who has been a massive MMO fan and even built this channel off of WoW. May you enjoy the rest of your experiences across Eorzea, Norvrant and beyond!
One fun thing is he actually does go through with the 'no more titles' too.
Hades was his personal name (Emet-Selch being his title of office as it were as part of the 14), and unlike ALL the other bosses who get intro screens with titles and descriptors, etc his is just 'Hades'. A nice touch.
Hades is also an interesting boss in that there's a LOT of mechanics without it being to overwhelming since the damage isn't too high for a competent runthrough (to the point you could get him into extreme form without significant mechanic changes, just by souping up his hp pool(s) a lot and increasing the damage), and maybe putting in some more stuff for phase transitions along the lines of Warrior of Light/Elidibus..
Ive played this game since Beta. My life is poured into this game and I've met the most amazing people [as well as meeting them irl] from this game. I just found your channel,and I was surprised to see this- and even though I have finished these scenes ages ago....I still cry when I watch others be moved just like so many of us were. I got goosebumps and I smiled ear to ear knowing that you were enthralled in the game!! I'm so happy for you and I hope your followers are inspired as well to try this game!!! [can't wait for you to get into 5.0+ ...talk about tears ahaha] so excited for you!!!
i dont know why, but grahas tears when you say his name is so touching to me. the fact that after over untold years that he spent known only as the crystal exarc, even to his adoptive daughter, and that the person who remembered was his hero he idolized straight up breaks him and he gives up on the act, even if for a few moments before he has to return to his duties. perfect
Even as a hardcore WoW player I can’t imagine something LIKE THIS for an expansion ending. Closest thing was Legion but not as impressive as this.
It gets better. Just wait for the end of 5.3.
The crazy thing is this isn't even the "end" of the expansion, it's actually just the end of the leveling/beginning of the endgame experience! The technical "ending" to Shadowbringers takes place in 5.3 where things have just gotten more tense and emotional over the 2 major patches that came before it.
Its not even the expansion ending lol. The expansion ending is on another level!
As people are mentioning the expansion ending being later here is a crash course for those unaware.
In FFXIV between expansions there are a series of patches that go from x.1 to x.5 . The story continues in all patches but the story relevant to the current he or expansion goes until x.3 . Starting from x.4 the story starts to change tracks and guides you to where the official start of the story in the next expansion takes place. Similarly the trailers that are released before the major expansion often hint the story developed in those later patches and teasing what will be appearing after.
Still can't believe this all went down at midnight New Year's Eve. Seriously perfect timing. What a great start to the new year.
Love you Jesse!
I first saw this video existed when I started playing. Now finally, 380h of playtime and a finished msq later, I can watch your ShB reaction spoiler free. Every second worth the wait!
Before you went into the series of quests leading to the Level 79 dungeon, you leveled your WAR to Level 80, hoping for the eventual "bro-down" with Ardbert somewhere down the line, and my thoughts about that idea is that it will definitely be worth the wait.
AND FOR CRYING OUT LOUD, IT WAS DEFINITELY WORTH THE WAIT! This whole ending scene was enhanced because of this. And I'm so glad you did it your way.
The thing that I love about how this ending came about is that this expansion feels like a lot of the older Final Fantasy games. You go off to find companions that will then travel with you and help you fight your advisories together and solve the world's issue. Then finally you all come together to take on the big bad at the end of the journey. This expansion notes that the Scions and WoL/WoD is an actual party instead of like previous expansions where they would send the WoL to go do tasks on their own and occasionally meet up.
Exactly. I even dare to say the Trust system was specifically made for that feeling
Heavensward felt like that as well, at least for me, when you were looking for Hraesvlgr with Estinien, Ysayle and Alphinaud. The scene at the bonfire was probably one of my favorites because of that
I am so glad your channel didn't get deleted, Jesse. I have been watching you for years now, your videos got me through the worst parts of my childhood, including my constant depression and thoughts of suicide. If it wasn't for you, I might not even be alive today. When life was shit, I knew I at least had your videos as a pick me up after bad days, which were often. Thank you so very much for existing, Cox. I love you and everything you do. I was on the verge of crying when I found out your channel might have gotten deleted because of those 3 strikes, thank god it all got resolved peacefully. I look forward to watching you for the next decade+
Roughly 18 months since I did this story and the ending still makes me tear up seeing the guy walking to meet with his dead friends again.
Doing all the role quests first made this seen all that more beautiful
I absolutely love when you have the super hype and serious build up to the fight with Emet-Selch, and Graha summons the 7 other Warriors of Light - like it's literally an ALL THE WARRIORS moment. Plus you just get stuff like the random Hrothgar who looks like he was just yeeted across time and space and away from whatever bar he was chilling at. And the guy wearing the Namazu head. Like for real, I don't want to go to whatever alternate universe that is from...
I am figuratively screaming (it's late here) - finished this a month ago and now I can see Jesse laugh/cry! What a day :)
Crying at the exact same beats as Jesse does. God it's such a nice ending and I can't get over that final cut when WoL holds their finger up. 5.3 makes me have even heavier tears though, I hope it affects him just as much.
Shadowbringers made me feel all of the emotions but I think the closest I came to shedding a genuine tear was Lyna's "I am fine" speech. For me this part was more just absolute chills.
5.3 though?
Good God, I was an absolute mess.
And it just. Keeps. Hitting. You.
There's like a straight hour of content solely designed to turn you into a complete emotional wreck.
@@icantthinkofaname1009 that scene was so gut wrenching. I felt her pain and frustrations.
@@icantthinkofaname1009 To quote someone else: "My heart has already been ripped out. It's already on the floor. It's bleeding and they just keep beating the shit out of it. It's beautiful."
Gosh I cannot wait to hear your thoughts on FFXIV as a whole. I remember hearing you talk about doing such a video, so I look forward to that!
Thank you for playing this game, and a big thank you to both your community, and FFXIV's community, for being so welcoming, heartfelt and kind.
FFXIV had such an odd impact on my life, one I didn't expect. I went into it when I wasn't at a great part of my life, and created a character who acted as my friend, telling me of their adventures and the like. It gave me comfort, and so the game had become a big part of my life over the last year or so. I won't say the game 'saved' my life or anything like that, but it definitely brought me out of a pretty dark place I was in. I get emotional just thinking about moments of the game, especially Shadowbringers, and seeing your journey progress much like mine did brought joy back into my heart, and now I look forward to both our journeys. I hope people don't mind me sharing my thoughts in that way.
"Oh you tower over your misbegotten ilk, no doubt."
Lalafell WoL: "Are you making fun of my height, Mr. Selch?"
Man, I'm so goddamn glad I went on this journey with Jesse and everyone else. I started off watching what I could catch around the end of the ARR patches and by Stormblood I was 100% in. I don't think a story beat in a game I was only watching on stream has ever made me tear up before, but seeing Ardbert reunited with his friends got me during the stream and it hit just as hard now. Thank you, Jesse.
So happy you and the artist were able to work things out. Glad to see you back
I was so hyped when I got to this point in the story. Like I could barely contain my excitement when the music started.
This part still makes me cry like a child. I love the story of FFXIV. I'm so glad to see you enjoying it.
Dude, you held it together far better than I ever did playing through that end part. I actually had to get up and walk away when the other heroes were summoned.
Emet Selch was a good enemy. With his constant appearances and taunts
Also because he genuinely was trying to find a compromise. He genuinely wanted to see worth in the world that remains, but was plagued by the memories of what once was and his grief for his family/friends was too much to bear. What happens in 5.3 makes me love him even more -- SPOILER WARNING, STOP READING.
SERIOUSLY, SPOILERS.
The fact that he sets pieces up on the board for AFTER his own death to ensure that (insert 5.3 villain here, trying to be vague) doesn't have to suffer alone for eternity with a half-forgotten goal, the fact that he thinks ahead to that and does this only out of kindness, my god what a character.
He is legitimately the first villain that I ever wanted to simultaneously give a hug to because he needs one, but also punch him in his smug ass face. I hope he gets remembered as one of the best Final Fantasy villains in the years to come.
Emet Selch would be my BFF in another less shitty life. That's how much I like him.
I'm going to miss the obnoxious sneering glorious bastard
@@fgfh10004 when he says "the victor will write the tale and loser become the villain" he truely means it.
he fights till the end but when he finally loses he fully accepts that by his own terms he is the villain of this tale.
and in his final moment having lost all he asks is that his people, not him, at least not be forgotten. that all he fought for won't be erased... that the warrior of light will be a better victor than he would have been.
shadowbringers is just a good expansion and one of the few games where i generally cried to and had real emotion affect on you since you get so invested in the story and all the characters. since you feel like you always part of the story and it takes you on a journey.
Emet Selch is one of the best-written villains I've ever seen. Mainly because he doesn't see himself as a villain, he's trying to bring back the people he knew and loved. I truly felt for him.
The first cutscene in this gave me the biggest goosebumps of the whole game. Your reaction was so good too. Great content dude, thanks!
I picked this game up as well during the start of this year which saved it for me, but didn't quite get into it completely until March and April. I never expected the story to hit me so hard with so much emotion, it made me question all that time spent on WoW or even GW2 (which doesn't have a bad story but hard to compare), knowing that this existed, even if Shadowbringers had only been out for about a year.
Even after the xpac story was completed, I was graced with the opportunity to enjoy the most amazing patch story that comes later and be part of the experiencing it with everyone for the first time which peaked the same emotions even more. Now I'm just looking forward to each story progression and for the next xpac, having never felt this excited since looking forward to a favorite TV or anime show, or during the time I thought GW2 had amazing story, but this is just different and on a different level now that I know what peak storytelling is, and I absolutely love it.
Simply one of the greatest stories ever told, and if you think about it, isn't it the story of all of us as well? What legacy will we leave behind when we inevitably pass on? Who will remember us? How many different lives have we lead in our lifetime and which of them is the true unshattered version of ourselves? We can but only hope the memories and lessons we leave behind are able to lead those who walk after.
Man I will always love this moment and this song, nothing quite matching the feeling and emotion of how hyped this got me.
Also I love that Urianger is just passed out in the water.
My hair was stood right on end the moment that guitar sliced through the aether.....!
"If you had the strength to take another step, could you do it? Could you save our worlds?" That might be one of my favorite lines in an RPG ever. In that moment, it's an extremely personal question to the player, and kudos on SE on allowing you to put in an answer to it, even if you're only given two choices. Shadowbringers is easily my favorite MMO expansion, and I feel like I've been playing games in the genre forever at this point.
I love so much that you were as deeply moved as the rest of us by this story. A lot of the joy of 14 is seeing others fall in love the way we all have. Thank you for sharing this with us Jesse
Now all i can ever picture is Ardbert handing lil Jc that giant butterfinger.
I like how this is the one fight where it actually makes sense for there to be 7 other heroes, and watching everyone zone in is so good.
The game saved the latter half of the year for you, and your streams played a big part in saving the whole year for many of us.
I JUST got here a few nights ago, and now I can FINALLY watch this. Dude. My man, my buddy, my friend...I hope you let it all hang out. This finale was packed with so much love and passion for the story that was being told. It truly was an Epic Gaming Moment.
I'm there with you man the feels this game gives you is overwhelming and actually makes you love the villains and know why they do things and emet selch is one of the most loved characters in ffxiv
Jesse becoming an FFXIV fan was the 2020 plot twist i was welcome to see :D
This is why Shadowbringers is the best Final Fantasy in modern times. The swell of the music, the insurmountable odds, the coming together of heroes. It is more than the sum of its part. Shadowbringer is one of the Final Fantasy titles that really made you feel like a hero.
The iconic moment duty finder became cannon
Jesse, I know pretty much nothing about FFXIV, but I absolutely love seeing how much you love this game. Thanks for all the wonderful content
You leveled a Warrior anticipating something like this finale, but think of those who started as or used to main Warrior in a previous expansion or two before Shadowbringers came out, who were handed their axe once more for the final battle.
I switched from Warrior to Gunbreaker when this expansion started.
Not gonna lie.
It. Felt. Great. Getting handed dat axe.
You said it for us both.
I don't follow Jesse. I know of him, I know he did some Minecraft stuff, but he's always been in my peripheral vision as a gamer. To find this clip of him appreciating FFXIV, a game that I love dearly, has filled my heart with joy. The joy of sharing an experience. Please bring more.
Wait, Jesse has been playing FFXIV AND made a reaction video about the ending of Shadowbringers!? My excitement is immeasurable and my day has been made! Can't wait to see how you liked it!
Edit: Ok, this was an amazing reaction video! The fact that you weren't voicing your feelings every time something happened was a welcome change from some of the other reaction content that I've seen about FFXIV. Instead you let the face-cam do it's thing. I felt it enabled me to share the experience with you instead of experiencing just your reaction. I was on that feels trip too earlier last year. I can but thank you for the opportunity to take that trip again. If only I had known you were streaming this I would have been a part of the viewership as much as possible. I'm excited for the future FFXIV content you might share with us, be it here on RUclips or Twitch, or any other platform, really. Once more, thank you Jesse, and keep up the great work! May 2021 be a better year for you and for all.
.....Meanwhile, in Garlemald.....
Similar to you Jesse, I got really into this game last year in July and it saved my year. What an amazing game, and the characters really feel like family now. I can't wait to see what comes next.
The best first video to upload after all that nonsense... We ALL know how stressful that must have been for you - Yet you kept positive and happy, as much for our own sakes as yours, throughout.
Our Jesse
What I truly like about the MSQ of FFXIV it made me feel " I was important. " " I matter in this world "
I felt it from the very beginning of the game honestly. I finally got fed up with WoW and my role in the story being cameraman, and decided to download the free trial. And just stepping off the boat in Limsa and having npcs talk to me like I'm actually there and tell me about the world and their troubles felt great, and it kept getting better from there.
Ardbert walking towards the spirits of his companions fucking broke me.
When you came back to XIV and it looked like you were enjoying yourself enough to stick with it. This moment is one I was looking for. Hell a lot of us in the FC were. I've watch so many get to here and I still get goosebumps and still break down into tears.
I'm excited for you to continue forward there still so much more for you to see in the patches. Along with the raid story too!
Jesse Cox you are the most genuine guy out there. Love your unfiltered reactions.
This was so good... watching your reaction .. wow. It’s been over a year and this all still makes me cry. Thanks for sharing. Gosh my heart
Jesse's giddy love for Zenos is so great.
Its fun to see someone enjoy Zenos for once. The amount of hate he gets is ridiculous
I love the Dante/Vergil dynamic we have with Zenos.
The scene that made Party Finder canon
If you haven't already, this might be a good time to check out the Shadowbringers opening trailer. One thing that didn't strike me until I watched your vod of this scene is that Emet-Selch uses the exact words of... well. Bookends to a great story.