Endwalker, the dramatic conclusion to the story of Hydaelyn in Final Fantasy 14, adds a big chunk of new content to the MMO. It includes six new zones, two new jobs (Reaper and Sage), and, of course, a new set of dungeon instances. These dungeons are some of the most impressive in the game's long history, which is appropriate for its grand finale.
Even though they are all worthy of Endwalker, some of them are definitely more impactful and enjoyable than others. Fans, of course, are encouraged to explore all of them. Out of all the new dungeons in Endwalker, which among them are the best of the best?
This list contains spoilers for the entire Endwalker story.
8 The Tower Of Babil
This climactic dungeon represents the final assault on Garlemald and the Telophoroi, in which the Warrior of Light moves to destroy the heart of the enemy operations. In practice, however, it ends up being a fairly standard Garlean-themed dungeon. There have been several Garlean dungeons in the game already, usually outposts in occupied countries.
Castrum Abania, Baelsar's Wall, and the ever-popular Praetorium are all similar in style. For this reason, despite being so important, it doesn't rank highly. The battle against Anima is a true spectacle, but such a famous Final Fantasy summon being the boss of a regular dungeon is actually a small disappointment on its own.
7 The Tower Of Zot
The first dungeon in Endwalker is simple but effective. The tower itself is a grotesque combination of flesh and architecture reminiscent of the Daedra towers in The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion. The highlights of the dungeon are its bosses, three divine sisters which are a reference to the lesser-used Final Fantasy summon, the Magus Sisters.
Each one specializes in a different type of magic, communicated through mechanics: one covers the arena with raw attacks, one focuses on status effects to disable players, and one uses support magic to strengthen the other two. Along with the dungeon name itself, this is all a throwback to Final Fantasy 4. Although the Tower is both impressive and fitting for the horror of the scenario, it doesn't feature much design variety, which places it on the lower end of the list.
6 The Stigma Dreamscape
A trip through the dreams of a malevolent combat AI is a great theme for a dungeon. Each of its three stages represents a different Omicron conquest. Despite its potential, it ends up being less interesting than the scenario suggests.
All three stages are dark, gray, and indistinct. Almost all the enemies are variations of Omicron war machines. Perhaps it's fitting for a heartless machine to preserve a cold version of the past, but that doesn't make it a nice place to visit. The dungeon music, a version of Omega's theme, is a high point, but it's not a new song, so it isn't worth much for the purposes of this list.
5 Smileton
The Escher-like architecture of the Lopporits' planned housing district is a great dungeon setting. Walls, windows, doors, and ceilings twisting every which way, accompanied by an up-tempo jazz version of the expansion's theme.
The bosses employ a fun series of mechanics, from causing damage based on facial expression to 3D printing copies of their own attacks. It also includes the best named area in the game: "Under Construction (Sorry!)." Despite these pros, the dungeon has little emotional impact, and is mainly a silly side mission.
4 The Aitiascope
Possibly the most dramatic dungeon in the game, the Aitiascope is a journey into the afterlife. It takes the appearance of a stunning landscape of crystal. Its most striking feature is the friendly memories that appear throughout, each representing a deceased major character.
It's a touching moment to receive aid from these very old friends, especially for an expansion that celebrates the history of Final Fantasy 14, but their impact is actually fairly minor in terms of actual gameplay. On top of that, only a couple of past antagonists show up as bosses. For these reasons, despite being so important, the Aitiascope takes a middling spot on the list.
3 Ktisis Hyperboreia
The Elpis zone in Endwalker includes some of the most interesting content in the game, and this dungeon is no exception. The facility, built to test a variety of animals for release into the world, includes a variety of environments, making for a beautiful setting that cycles naturally.
Players battle through desert, tundra, staff offices, holding areas, and finally ascend into the sky. It culminates in a battle against Hermes, which is an extremely significant moment in the game's story, as well as representing a rare battle against a transformed Ancient. As a bonus, players can choose to enter the dungeon with a Trust party of legendary figures from the past.
2 Vanaspati
This dungeon is the player's first look at the Final Days in Eorzea: The land of Thavnair is beset by beasts, and the Warrior of Light must face the worst of them. The scenery is somewhat basic - it's mainly burning rainforest - but the real impact of the dungeon is its depiction of this cataclysm. Fleeing villagers, consumed with despair, transform into monsters that players must immediately fight. A mother and her children fall to the spreading darkness one after the other, and must be put down as well.
The bosses' designs are especially good here: the first covers the ground itself with screaming mouths, and the second appears to be a large bug, but (as seen from behind) is actually the huge, distorted head of one of the peaceful elephant villagers. Altogether, the dungeon hits hard for first-timers, and is the perfect visualization of the real consequences of the Final Days.
1 The Dead Ends
The last dungeon in the Endwalker story is also its best. It is split into three parts, each representing the end of an entire civilization. One falls to disease, one to war, and one to apathy, and all of them feature their own designs, enemies, and boss. The sheer range in design is impressive enough on its own - moving from atomic warfare to the golden splendor of the Plenty - but the knowledge that these peoples died in hopelessness cuts a little deeper than an average dungeon might.
The whole experience is full of little, memorable moments: the plagued creatures who curse each other rather than the disease, the Terminator-like war machines covering the ground with targeting reticles, the earnest pleas for Ra-la to end one person's tortured existence. It's fortunate that the dungeon is so good, since high level players may find themselves running it many times to earn the coveted Starbird pet, which has a chance to drop at the end.
Final Fantasy 14: Endwalker is available on PS4, PS5, and PC.