The past two weeks, I’ve spent a lot of time digging through the archives here on the blog. It started rather practically; after I wrote about aesthetic updates, I figured I’d, you know, make them happen.
But it turned into quite the journey.
One of the fun little adventures I came across was my early days in decorating in Final Fantasy XIV, and how that sent me down a massive rabbithole of crafting and gathering to get my very own jute rugs. It was neat to look back on and realize how much of my identity in that game is wrapped up in my crafting and gathering now.
It also got me thinking about how drastically different designing is in FFXIV than in any other game I’ve played lately. After all, what other game requires you to shimmy wall partitions up inch by inch until you have a normal-looking wall? Where else do you have to create the canvas from scratch before you start painting?
And yet, for all the differences, interior design in FFXIV has taught me a lot about my own decorating style—lessons that have translated into the other games I play, too.
4 lessons about interior design from FFXIV
1. Homes are meant to feel lived in.
My very first design in FFXIV was a little collection of doggos from an event that had just happened. Eventually, those doggos ended up in storage, but they left a lasting impression on me.
If you look at a comfy home, one of the first things you notice is signs of personality. Clutter. It happens to us naturally, but designing in a game like FFXIV turns clutter and personality into an intentional choice. You have to think about what you want to include, where you want it, how much is too much before you go from comfy to messy.
I’m not always the best at following that lesson (I do love overdoing it with flowers sometimes!) but it’s always helped me build spaces that feel more me.
2. Layout matters as much as style.
My first priority whenever I’m designing a new map in Dreamlight Valley is that I want to understand how I’m going to move around in it. I don’t want to feel like I’m dodging my own decorations to get to a shop; I want that movement to feel natural.
In hindsight, that’s something I’ve always done with FFXIV, too. My first homes were just a mass of furnishings that I put down wherever I could, but over time, they started turning into paths through different spaces that could work for myself and visitors alike.
Sure, sometimes they’d find ways to get lost in the attic, but isn’t that part of the fun?
3. It’s okay to have negative space.
Remember how I said too much clutter can feel messy?
This lesson was a hard one for me to learn, and if I’m honest, I have my husband to thank for it. I’m terrible for trying to fill up spaces with anything I can, and I have to reel myself back in from fitting yet another furnishing in because there’s too much floor showing.
He, on the other hand, likes having open space. And if I put anything too far out into the middle of a room, I can guarantee it (rightly) won’t stay there.
Negative space lets your mind rest between busy areas in a design. And, well, it keeps you from stubbing your toes or getting stuck between furnishings you thought had enough clearance, too.
4. Item limits are just a challenge.
FFXIV has always been strict with its item limits. When you start doing things like false ceilings and wall paneling, 400 items add up fast. In fact, if I remember correctly, this one screenshot from my cottage build had nearly 50 items on its own:
There are also things you have to budget for—like camera-blocking items if you’re building false ceilings, useful items like your summoning bell, and invisible furnishings if you need to stop wall items from attaching where they shouldn’t.
At first, it feels pretty intimidating, but it’s given me a real sense for what I can get away with. It’s also given me a knack for finding ways to cheap out on item slots, as it were. Are there large space savers I can use? A furnishing that isn’t quite what I wanted originally that would solve multiple problems? Something I can trim for another feature I want more?
Each of these lessons has come in handy more times than I can count—in Final Fantasy, in Dreamlight Valley, even in real life if you think about square footage as your item count.
YOUR TURN
One thought on “What FFXIV home design taught me about video game decorating”
I just wanted to say I’ve recently found your blog through search for Island Adventures tips in FFXIV and am absolutely blown away by your designs. I hope this message finds you well, and don’t ever stop!