The information blowout on Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn is continuing at a steady pace, as today Square Enix released a new video showcasing the interface and features of the upcoming PS3 version, and a brief guide for those that quit Final Fantasy XIV early after its rocky launch and are about to return to Eorzea.

The video, that you can see at the bottom of this post, is narrated by Director and Producer Naoki Yoshida and Community Manager Toshio Murouchi, and walks us through the basic features and interface of the PS3 port of the game, starting from character creation and moving on to basic controls, main menu, map, duty kist and quests, the extremely clever cross hotbar and finishing with combat.

The interface is probably very similar to what we'll see on the PS4 version that will follow in early 2014. Most elements are also similar when using a controller on PC.

The video showcases what seems to be a solid and user-friendly experience for console gamers that may have never experienced a MMORPG.

In addition to that, the developer also released a quickstart guide for those that quit the game in its early months and will come back to try the game with the upcoming phase 3 of the beta on June the 14th.

While all the characters created in Final Fantasy XIV have been transfered to A Realm Reborn, the old servers that were opened at the launch of the first game have been since merged, and the table below will tell you where your characters are within the new servers.

FFXIV_servermerge

I have to say that seeing the old dear "Mysidia" name up there brings back memories...but I'm digressing. The second table that you can see below will tell you on which datacenter your new server is.

FFXIV_datacenter

If you've been placed in a region you don't like, or you prefer another server, you don't need to worry. After the beginning of the third phase of the beta a server transfer form will be made available, and your character will be transfered to your server of choice at the outset of phase four.

Of course, whether you're a new player coming with the PS3 version or a returning one that left early, you may probably want to catch up with the game's story, since A Realm Reborn will basically be a sequel. In order to do so, you can check out the eight chapters of my "The Story So Far" column, that include the whole storyline and all the relevant cutscenes for your viewing pleasure.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/3H90I39KdCU