Final Fantasy XIV’s Evercold expansion adds Bastion tank job, FF7 raid, and Switch 2 launch details

Square Enix used the Final Fantasy XIV Fan Festival keynote in Berlin to show more of Evercold, the MMO’s next expansion, including its new tank job, fresh areas, raid plans, and several system changes planned for 8.0 and beyond.

The big reveal was Bastion, a new tank job that mixes melee and ranged attacks through a gauntlet-like weapon. Evercold takes players to the Fourth, a frozen shard where people have moved into skyborne cities and “Realmships” to survive. The keynote showed Naglfar, the Realmship of Water, Hringhorni, the Realmship of Fire, and Falgarthr, a new player hub.

• Bastion is the new tank job for Evercold, described as a main tank with both melee and ranged tools.
• The 8-player raid series is called Beyond the Lifestream and is based on Final Fantasy VII, with Cloud shown in key art. Motomu Toriyama is handling story, Kazushige Nojima is supervising, and Tetsuya Nomura is overseeing art design elements.
• A new raid difficulty is being added between Normal and Savage. Square Enix is also introducing “Season Gear,” which can be upgraded through that middle tier to help bridge the gap into Savage.
• General Action Skins will arrive with Evercold, while the first Job Action Skins are planned for patch 8.1. Some retired action animations are also coming back through the system.
• Chocobo companions will be usable in paired dungeon duties in patch 8.1, allowing two players and two chocobos in an instance. Chocobo breeding changes are planned for 8.2.
• The Nintendo Switch 2 version launches on August 4 with a limited free play period for testing. Subscription fees are expected to kick in after about a month, though a free trial also appears to be planned.

The keynote also touched on the previously announced Evangelion-themed alliance raid, now confirming Mahiro Maeda as guest artist and designer. Maeda’s credits include Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time, Mad Max: Fury Road, The Animatrix, and more.

Patch 7.56 is set for September 8 and will help set up Evercold’s story. Square Enix also plans to test its merged regional Party Finder in Japan on October 12 after a 24-hour maintenance, with North America, Europe, and China to follow once the system is ready.

One smaller surprise: Keybound Brawler, a new typing game mode, launches October 28. Its first version is Final Fantasy VII-themed and includes Gold Saucer-style rewards such as Barret and Tifa outfits, with more themes planned later.