Within every MMORPG community, speculation on new races always runs rampant, especially when a game is based on an established IP like Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn.

Before the announcement of the Au Ra for the Heavensward expansion, the bunny-like Viera from Final Fantasy XII came up quite often in that kind of discussion, doubtlessly because Fran has always been a favorite among fans.

Turns out, as revealed today during a livestreamed panel at Nico Nico Chokaigi, that the Viera were actually considered as an additional race for the game, but ultimately the idea was discarded in favor of the Au Ra.

One of the main objections among fans to the addition of the Viera was the idea that they lent themselves to be a female-only race (at least for playable characters) due to the peculiar looks and lore behind the race's males, but Square Enix' concept artist had already overcome that obstacle, creating a concept for a male viera, that you can see alongside those for females just below.