They were family. In that moment — mere hours among the thousands been and gone — that monk, that thief, and that white mage were effectively family. It was a bond of necessity, a bond driven by the brutality of a world that wanted nothing more than to see us fail.
That was the world of Final Fantasy XI twenty years ago, where convenience wasn’t a word — nothing like the online worlds of today. It was a time when we thought more real meant more good and more fun. Square’s debut MMO embraced that, and wanted — nay, needed — every second you had spare if you wanted to make your way in its web-based world.