UI/UX Tips for Final Fantasy XIV

Final Fantasy XIV is an incredibly vast MMORPG with a UI that can be overwhelming for new players. However, the right tip or trick can simplify the UI and streamline your gameplay experience in sometimes dramatic ways. Here are 3 practical changes you can make to help make the most out of all that information on your screen.

1. Turn off some of the lights

If you go to the part of the menu seen above you will see the "Battle Effects Settings". Changing these settings will change how often you see the ability effects from yourself and everyone around you. I have all the bells and whistles on for me but I limited the constant flashing for everyone else. This has been a bit of a lifesaver for me personally in huge raids.

2. Setup your crosshotbar toggles

I'm a controller guy! I know, it's not for everyone. This is how I do it and, at least I think, remain a very credible tank.

• Create 2 crosshotbar sets: One set is for when your weapon is out and and the other is for when it is sheathed.

• Turn on "Enable auto hotbar switching when drawing/sheating weapon": Now every time you pull out your weapon you will have one set of hotbars and when your weapon is put away you will have a different set of hotbars.

I have 1, 2, and 7 setup for when my weapon is sheathed and 3 and 4 for when my weapon is out. I keep the right half of 1 and 3 matching because then I can be ready to attack at any moment and my crosshotbars will swap automatically. I then keep the left half of 1 for things like mounts and sprinting and all of 2 and 3 for emotes! 3 and 4 are all battle abilities with limit break, sprinting, and some food sprinkled in.

3. Custom logs!

You can edit your logs in a bunch of ways! You can change their name and just about everything that is logged. I usually make a couple of custom logs. One that's called something like "Stuff said" that is for anything a PC or NPC says. The other one I make is called something like "Loot" and is to tell me when anything has been added to my inventory.

There's SO MUCH more!

There are literally hundreds of ways to modify the Final Fantasy XIV UI. By taking the time to look through everything you can do with it you can tailor almost everything to your exact specifications and that's before you even get into macros which I will probably write something about later. Have fun out there, and if you are actually reading this then leave some tips below!