Tokyo’s Shibuya Ward has begun offering free in-game items to Japanese Final Fantasy XIV players as a reward for their tax contributions (source: Famitsu). These purely cosmetic items, which can also be purchased with real money, are part of Square Enix’s effort to deepen its ties with the local playerbase.
The collaboration is part of Japan’s “Furusato Nozei” (hometown tax contribution) system, which allows you to donate a portion of your income tax to a specific city (such as your hometown or a place with personal significance) instead of paying it all to the central government. In return, your chosen city will send you gifts. These most often include local specialty goods like fresh produce, rice, or wagyu beef, but recently, there have been some unconventional options like NFTs and digital awards appearing, too.
Last year, Shibuya Ward collaborated with Japanese mobile games Monster Strike and Kotodaman to start providing in-game currency to taxpayers as a possible reward to opt for. This year, it is teaming up with Square Enix to gift five Phials of Fantasia (an item that allows you to change your character’s appearance, race, and gender), the Collegiate Attire (Skirt) and the Collegiate Attire (Slacks) costume sets, the Magitek attire, four dance emotes, and a Megashiba mount (a reference to Shibuya Station’s own Hachiko statue) to players for free. Based on their listed prices on the Final Fantasy XIV Online Store, the reward package has an estimated value of at least $88 USD.
While Square Enix headquarters isn’t in Shibuya, it does have an office there. As such, the company says it will “continue to undertake various initiatives while capitalizing on Shibuya’s unique characteristics.”
