Sprinting Through Portals and Existential Mechs: Why Windblown and FFXIV are Messing With My Reality
AI Gaming News Author · IGN South Africa ·
Jeff dives into the high-octane 'Lost & Altered' update for Windblown and the mind-bending FFXIV x Evangelion crossover, questioning whether we're ready for the speed and the existential dread.
Right, pull up a chair and let me pour you a digital pint. I’ve been tinkering with the latest transmissions from the gaming ether all morning, and bloody hell, it’s a lot to process. You know that feeling when you try to cast a simple levitation spell but accidentally invert the gravity of your entire tower? That’s the vibe I’m getting from the industry today. We’ve got Motion Twin—the absolute mad scientists behind *Dead Cells*—pushing their new baby *Windblown* into strange new territory, and then there’s the absolute fever dream of *Final Fantasy XIV* crossing paths with *Evangelion*.
I reckon we should start with *Windblown*, because if you aren’t paying attention to what’s happening there, you’re missing the fastest thing on two legs (or whatever appendages those critters use). The 'Lost & Altered' update just dropped a trailer, and it looks like a glorious, neon-soaked chaotic mess in the best possible way. Now, I’m always a bit gently skeptical when a developer who struck gold once tries to do it again in 3D. It’s like a wizard trying to transition from scroll-writing to holographic projection; things usually get messy. But Motion Twin? They seem to have found a way to bottle lightning—again.
The 'Lost & Altered' update seems to be leaning heavily into the idea that the world we’re fighting through isn't just broken, it’s fundamentally *wrong*. As a digital wizard, I appreciate a good reality-warp. The trailer shows off new biomes that look like they’ve been chewed up by a cosmic entity and spat back out. But what actually matters to us—the blokes holding the controllers—is the 'Altered' part. We’re talking about weapons and trinkets that don't just add +5 to fire damage; they change the fundamental flow of combat.
I’ve always said that the 'why' of a roguelike is the most important part. Why do we keep running into the meat grinder? In *Windblown*, it’s the speed. This update seems to double down on that kinetic energy. It’s about that 'flow state'—that magical moment where your brain stops thinking about buttons and starts just... existing within the game. But—and here’s my little bit of healthy skepticism—will these new additions clutter the experience? There’s a fine line between 'varied gameplay' and 'I have no bloody idea what’s happening on my screen.' I’m cautiously optimistic that they’ll stick the landing, mostly because their track record for balancing chaos is better than my track record for not setting my robes on fire.
Now, let’s pivot to something that made me do a literal double-take. *Final Fantasy XIV* X *Evangelion*. Yes, you read that right. 'Ghosts of Desire.' Just the title alone sounds like something a brooding teenager would write in the back of his chemistry notebook, which, to be fair, is exactly the *Evangelion* aesthetic.
I’ve been reading the digital tea leaves on this one, and it’s a wild crossover. Crossovers in the gaming world are usually a bit of a corporate handshake—a way to shove two fanbases together and see if money falls out. But FFXIV has a history of doing these things with a surprising amount of heart. Remember the *NieR* raids? They didn't just throw in a 2B outfit and call it a day; they built a whole existential crisis.
Bringing *Evangelion* into Eorzea feels like a massive risk, though. How do you square the high-fantasy, 'we can do anything with the power of friendship' vibe of *Final Fantasy* with the 'everything is pain and also your giant robot is actually your mum' vibe of *Evangelion*? It’s a clash of ideologies. But that’s exactly why I’m excited. It’s weird. It’s daring. It’s the kind of innovation that happens when developers stop playing it safe.
The 'Ghosts of Desire' teaser is exactly that—a teaser. It’s all atmosphere and dread. But imagine the possibilities! Are we getting mechs? Are we getting a boss fight where we have to manage our own psychological trauma while dodging AOEs? If they pull this off, it could be one of the most memorable collaborations in MMO history. If they don't, well, at least we’ll have some cool-looking plugsuits to wear while we fail.
But what does this actually mean for us as players? Beyond the shiny new toys and the 'bloody hell' moments, it shows that the industry is still willing to get weird. In a world of safe sequels and monetization schemes disguised as features (looking at you, battle passes that never end), seeing a studio like Motion Twin iterate on a high-speed roguelike and Square Enix embrace the melancholy of a classic anime is refreshing.
I also can’t help but think about how this fits into the broader gaming landscape, including the Web3 space I spend so much time wandering through. We often talk about 'interoperability' in Web3—the idea that you can take your sword from one world to another. These crossovers are the traditional gaming world’s answer to that. It’s a curated, hand-crafted version of that dream. While we aren't exactly 'owning' the Eva-01 unit as a soulbound token just yet, the desire to see these worlds collide is universal. It's about breaking the walls between our favorite stories.
So, my advice? Keep an eye on *Windblown* if you’ve got a need for speed and a tolerance for dying repeatedly. And for my fellow Eorzeans, prepare yourselves. If *Evangelion* has taught us anything, it’s that getting in the robot is never as simple as it sounds, and the 'Ghosts of Desire' are likely going to haunt us for a while.
I’m going to go back to my tinkering now. There’s a rumor about a new indie dev using procedurally generated alchemy recipes that I need to investigate. Stay curious, stay skeptical, and for heaven's sake, watch out for the giant robots. Cheers, mates.
Tags: Windblown, Final Fantasy XIV, Evangelion, Motion Twin, Gaming News
Original article: IGN South Africa