Twenty-three years after launch, Final Fantasy XI servers are overwhelmed by a new wave of players

What just happened? Final Fantasy XI was the first massively multiplayer online entry in the iconic JRPG series. Remarkably, it's still being actively played today – so much so that the developers recently had to temporarily suspend new account registrations due to a surge in player traffic.

Final Fantasy XI was also the first online RPG to offer cross-platform play between PlayStation 2 consoles and Windows PCs. Despite requiring a monthly subscription, FFXI remains remarkably popular. A surge in player activity, from both returning veterans and newcomers, has put a strain on the servers, prompting Square Enix to take temporary but drastic measures to address the issue.

Yoji Fujito, who has served as FFXI's director since 2016, recently shared a written update on the game's official website. Square Enix is taking action to ease severe traffic congestion on Asura, the game's most populated server.

Some servers are ...