FF14 players have rallied around an unexpected object; a low-poly bundle of grapes.
Final Fantasy 14 has quickly become one of the most popular MMOs in the world thanks to its approachable gameplay and fantastic customization. Style is everything in FF14, and the developers have created hundreds of outfits and character models to pick from. The importance of aesthetics doesn’t just end at the characters, however. The world of Hydaelyn is equally beautiful and diverse, with towering mountain ranges and bustling cities. But the star of the show for the past few weeks has been a few bunches of grapes.
The FF14 Endwalker expansion added a bunch of new places to explore, including a vineyard outside of Labyrinthos. The vines are periodically dotted with ripe grapes, which fans immediately noticed looked a little out of place. The bunches had a grand total of 12 polygons, giving them a PlayStation 2-esque vibe that stood out from the surroundings.
Instead of getting angry at Square Enix for the poor grape model, fans quickly rallied around the fictional fruit. Players began gathering around the low-poly grapes and cracking lighthearted jokes about them. The sensation quickly became a FF14 meme, with songs and videos dedicated to the grapes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFU6ZXgEai4
But the fun didn’t last long. Square Enix pushed an update on December 20 that replaced the low-poly grapes with slightly improved models. They still don’t look anything like grapes, but they blend in much better with the surroundings. The patch note stated that the grapes were originally compressed to save memory space, but they were never reverted after Endwalker’s official release. FF14 fans are now lamenting the loss of their precious fruit, but they could return due to fan outcry.
Will the FF14 low-poly grapes return?
While the grapes are now officially out of the game, it’s possible that they could make a return. Fans have taken to social media to request the readdition of the original grape model. Square Enix is known for supporting fan requests in FF14, so the low-poly grapes could return in a future update. For now, they are silent on the matter.
If you truly want to revisit the low-poly grapes, they’re actually still in the game. There are several similar bunches of grapes in Wineport that still port the 12-panel look. These grapes are green instead of purple, but that’s the only notable difference. Fans have begun bunching up around those grape clusters too.
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