Final Fantasy XIV Collector’s Edition Arrives Tomorrow

September 22nd marks the more or less “official” release date for Final Fantasy XIV, but only for those who have purchased or plan to purchase the Collector’s Edition, which offers eight days of play before the rest of us, in addition to the following:

• BEHIND-THE-SCENES DVD – Get an insider look at the making of FINAL FANTASY XIV with exclusive video content, interviews and more in this special documentary DVD
• SECURITY TOKEN – A FINAL FANTASY XIV branded Security Token used in addition to your regular password
• TRAVEL JOURNAL – Record your travels in this beautifully bound journal filled with pages of never-before-seen concept art
• RIGHT OF PASSAGE – Redeem a voucher to receive your fully personalized right of passage certificate, each stamped with a unique serial number
• FREE GAMEPLAY – Free gameplay for 30 days
• BUDDY PASS – Invite a friend to play free for a limited time
• GAME DISC
• GAME MANUAL

Hopefully, this means a full eight days and not eight days full of server problems. Of course, compared to the bloody mess of a beta, there should be fewer people around to stress out the servers, with the CE roping off access to VIPs only. But speaking of the beta, is this a club any of us really want access to anymore? I think I’m going to have to pass, myself (all the weird gameplay mechanics just don’t sound fun to deal with), but there still seems to be a decent amount of general interest in XIV, especially from those legacy players who have stuck with its predecessor for so long.

And with some lucky folks already receiving their Collector’s Edition in the mail, that means that at least a few people have elected to pay for it (Gamestop pre-orders were reportedly pretty strong, as well). As I said, I won’t be making the purchase and, to be honest, I’m kind of strapped for the cash anyway, but maybe a couple of my fellow Lore Hounds will pick it up and chime in with some impressions of the final build. And if anyone out there in the audience buys it, please be sure to let us know what you think, as well (though I imagine it’ll have a helluva time competing with Civilization V.

If you don’t want, or can’t afford the CE, the regular version will appear a week later on September 30th.