FFXIV Developers Halt In-Game Housing Demolition Due to Hurricane Helene

FFXIV developers have temporarily halted housing demolition on select in-game servers due to the impact of Hurricane Helene in North America.

In late September 2024, Hurricane Helene struck the Southeast United States, resulting in significant devastation that affected numerous lives and properties. In response to this disaster, FFXIV developers announced the suspension of housing demolition on North American servers.

In a blog post, the team stated: “From all of us on the FFXIV development and management team, our hearts go out to those who were affected late last month by Hurricane Helene in North America.”

“Given the damages and various factors, we have decided to temporarily halt the automatic demolition of estates.”

Kugane in Final Fantasy XIV — Square Enix

Kugane, a port town featured in Final Fantasy XIV: Stormblood.

The pause on automatic demolition has been effective since October 2, 2024, at 1:08 a.m. (PDT). The affected servers include the Primal, Dynamis, Crystal, and Aether Data Centers.

Once automatic demolition resumes on these servers, it will pick up from the time remaining prior to the suspension. This means that players who haven’t accessed their homes for a duration before the pause will retain their original timer when services resume.

Additionally, it has been noted that players with properties set for demolition can cancel the process simply by entering their home or making improvements on their land.

While there is no specific date for when housing demolition will recommence, the developers mentioned they will continue to “monitor the situation in the coming days”and will update players with their decisions.

“It is our sincere hope that recovery comes swiftly, and those affected will be able to rejoin us in FFXIV soon,” they concluded.

In FFXIV, players can acquire their own house if they have sufficient Gil; however, they must visit their home within 45 days to maintain ownership. Otherwise, the house will automatically be demolished once this time limit elapses, allowing other players the chance to claim valuable plots of land in Eorzea, where real estate is highly sought after.

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