FFXIV’s New Oceania Data Center Is Helping Server Congestion

Recently, Final Fantasy XIV players rejoiced at the launch of the new Oceania Data Center, in hopes that they would see a noticeable decrease in the login queue time. Fans in the Oceanic Region of the world have waited for years to get their own server to join and enjoy Eorzea. Until now, these adventurers have had to settle for poor connection, while they play on the Japanese, European, or North American Data Centers. The new Oceania Data Center is a big step in alleviating the frustrating server congestion issues, which FFXIV players have been facing since before Endwalker’s early access period.

As the playerbase rose exponentially last year, problems began occurring for fans. In early December 2021, FFXIV players started receiving Error 2002 when kicked from the login queue. This code indicated that too many characters were trying to log in across the same Data Center. This was not the first struggle fans faced when trying to enjoy the latest expansion. The in-game AFK timer was reduced to 30 minutes to ensure that only active adventurers were playing the game. However, an issue occurred when players were being kicked while viewing the long end-credit scenes, after each expansion. The global shortage of semi-conductors has dramatically slowed down the server-making process. In mid-December, server congestion had gotten so bad that Square Enix decided it was going to suspend sales of the FFXIV Complete and Starter Editions. The introduction of a new Data Center has brought with it a glimpse at the end of the game’s server congestion.

The first Oceania Data Center was opened on January 25, 2022, to the delight of fans in the Oceanic Region. Details about the new server were posted on The Lodestone earlier in the month. This Physical Data Center currently hosts one Logical Data Center with 5 Worlds. Players that start a new character on the server will gain double experience and receive 10 silver Chocobo feathers. Adventurers that reach level 30 in any class, on a character created during the bonus period, will obtain one million gil and 15 days of free game time in FFXIV. Bonuses are also given to players that take advantage of the free Home World Transfer. For 90 days, adventurers will gain double experience until level 80 and obtain 10 gold Chocobo feathers. The post goes on to say, “These incentives will remain in place until the active player populations of the Worlds in question have grown to a specified number.” The Oceania Data Center is a major step forward to bring player login time back to normal levels.

Oceania Data Center Brings A Bright Future To FFXIV

While server congestion appears to be easing up on Japanese Data Centers, FFXIV’s Server Status still shows many North American and European Worlds as congested. The Lodestone post on the new Oceania Data Center mentions that expansions for both North American and European Data Centers are being developed to combat server congestion in FFXIV. North America can expect four new Worlds to be added around April 2022. Four Worlds will also be added to the European Data Centers around July 2022. More server expansions will be made in the future, but these extra Worlds will help reduce congestion tremendously.

Players have faced many frustrating issues as a result of server congestion. The global shortage of semi-conductors has stunted the process of making new servers for FFXIV for months. However, the future is looking bright for both players and the development team, as new Worlds are steadily being created. Final Fantasy XIV‘s Oceania Data Center is the first major step towards a fun and equal experience for all fans.

Source: FFXIV Lodestone, FFXIV Server Status

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