One of my biggest trivial complaints in life is that there's a severe lack of fashionable gaming merch. Shapeless t-shirts with a design slapped on the front of them have their place, of course, but I've always longed for something a little more. Like Final Fantasy 14 fat cat sneakers, perhaps? Or even a fat cat hoodie? Well, an upcoming Puma collection is doing just that.
The sportswear brand is teaming up with the critically acclaimed MMORPG, putting its own panther-y spin on some classic motifs from across Eorzea. The collection's been made to honour the game's upcoming 10th anniversary—of its re-release, anyway—and has been aptly named A Wardrobe Reborn. There's a little bit of everything here—sneakers, sweatpants, hoodies, hats and more.
Most of the items have taken inspiration from either the Dalamud logo—the little fiery circle you see in a lot of Final Fantasy 14 branding—or the fat cat, an adorable chubby feline that's been everywhere in the game. There's a fat cat backpack, sneakers, and an amazing hoodie that has its cute little face plastered everywhere. Dalamud gets slapped on a nice crossbody bag, some sweatpants and a bucket hat. There are four pairs of sneakers inspired by the darkness and light themes prevalent across the game, too. I'm definitely not eyeing up both of those purple pairs.
OFFICIAL FFXIV X PUMA SNEAKER COLLAB HAPPENING HELLO?!?!!!!!!! 😱😱😱 pic.twitter.com/Q7dnzJPqG4March 6, 2023
Not only that, but Puma's put a Final Fantasy twist on some of its own classic designs. There's a purple t-shirt that looks an awful lot like the brand's panther logo adorned with some Final Fantasy-style illustrations, though it feels a lot more remiscent of Final Fantasy 10's vibes to me. A similar makeover's been given to the standard Puma lettering, too. It's a great blend between casual streetwear mixed with a dash of my favourite MMO.
The collection goes live on Puma's website and in "select Puma retail locations" on March 15 for most of the world, with North America able to join the fun on March 25. The only confusing thing is figuring out which pieces are available in which region. I can see around half the collection on Puma's UK website, with the sneakers nowhere to be seen. Hopefully the full collection will be available worldwide—I've asked Square Enix for clarification and will update if I hear anything back.
