‘Final Fantasy XIV’ Changes Sage Icon After Original Triggers Players’ Trypophobia

The Final Fantasy XIV team has announced that they had redesigned the icon for the sage after players expressed their unease with the original look. Producer Naoki Yoshida expressed that fans experienced trypophobia, or the fear of bunches of small holes, upon seeing the icon.

Recently, more information on the new sage and reaper classes for the Endwalker expansion dropped on the official site, which happened to include the new icons. As Yoshida explained in an update to fans, the icon designs weren’t seen as a big reveal, but many players negatively reacted to the four small holes clustered together on their original draft. The severity of the reaction depends on the person, but enough players were deeply distressed by the design that the team decided to change it before the latest expansion launches.

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Yoshida thanked players for their input on the design, acknowledging the importance of a redesign due to the range of possible negative reactions players suffering from trypophobia could deal with. It was especially crucial for the team to make the change due to the prominence of the icon both in-game and on official FFXIV merchandise. Class icons are visible throughout menus and while in parties.

Sage’s new icon removes most of the holes from the cluster of pillars while keeping much of their original concept. Yoshida detailed the design change as such:

The design concept is unchanged, with the icon being based on the four nouliths which form the sage’s armament. The holes in the original design were added for detail, but they ended up appearing as a cluster. To address the problem, the new icon reduces the holes while accentuating the design concept. Now, comparisons will inevitably be made, and some of you may prefer the original. But we believe that designs like this are things that grow on you as you play the job, and ask for your understanding as we head into Endwalker.

Endwalker is quickly approaching, as it drops on November 23. Check out the official site for the game for more information on the upcoming expansion.

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