You can already start to prepare your FINAL FANTASY XIV themed costumes to be ready on time for the event!

Read on for the full terms and conditions

*Note that the picture is from a past event.

FINAL FANTASY XIV (“Game”) Cosplay Contest (“Contest”)

This Contest is being operated and promoted by:

Square Enix Limited registered in England and Wales with company number 01840186 (“Square Enix Europe”, “We”, “Us”, “Our”) with registered address at: 240 Blackfriars Road, London SE1 8NW, United Kingdom

The Contest is only open to attendees of the FINAL FANTASY XIV FAN FEST 2019 at La Grande Halle de La Villette, 211, Avenue Jean Jaures, 75019 Paris, France (“FFXIV Fan Fest”) who register to participate in the Contest at the FFXIV Fan Fest Contest registration booth on a first come first served basis (“Contestants”). Please note that a maximum of 50 Contestants will be allowed to participate.

PLEASE READ THESE RULES (“Rules”) CAREFULLY. By submitting an entry to the Contest you agree to accept and be bound by these Rules and the terms of any policies referred to in these Rules. We reserve the right to cancel or amend the Contest at any stage if deemed necessary in our opinion and/or if circumstances arise which are outside of our control.

Theme
Create your own costume inspired by the Game to wear and display at the Contest Parade that will be held at the FFXIV Fan Fest.

Entry Requirements
Contestants must be: 1) attendees of the FFXIV Fan Fest with a valid ticket; 2) holder of an active FINAL FANTASY XIV service Account during the Entry Period; and 3) cleared the security check conducted by the venue at the FFXIV Fan Fest event. Contestants under the age of 18 must obtain the permission of a legal guardian before participating in the Contest. The Contest is not open to employees, directors or other officers of Square Enix Europe or its respective affiliates, agents, media partners and suppliers.

How to Enter
Entry shall be on a first come first served basis and shall be limited to a maximum of 50 Contestants.
To register their Entry to the Contest, Contestants must:

1. Attend the Contest registration booth during the Entry Period dressed in his/her costume (“Entry”) to be photographed by Square Enix Europe’s representatives; and
2. Provide all of the following information (“Entry Details”):
   1. Square Enix ID
   2. (Character and World name
   3. The name and/or description of the Entry
   4. Nickname/stage name
   5. Choice of one (1) in-game Finalist Prize (as defined below)

Only one Entry per Contestant shall be accepted. An Entry worn by two (2) or more Contestants shall be treated as one Entry by one registered Contestant and any Prize shall only be awarded to the registered Contestant.

Accepted Entry Format:

• Only FINAL FANTASY XIV inspired costumes will be eligible.
• Costumes must not be dangerous to the wearer(s) or to others.
• Contestants must be able to maneuver in their costumes on their own without assistance.
• Costumes requiring the participation of two (2) or more Contestants must be worn by all participants.
• Contestants must undergo a security review by the venue ensuring that their costumes do not contain any dangerous items. The venue or Square Enix may refuse Contestants access to the event in its sole discretion. Contestants unwilling to submit to the security control will be refused entry. 
• Cosplay items, namely cosplay weapons, will be marked once they are reviewed by venue security. Only cosplay items/weapons that are marked will be allowed inside the FFXIV Fan Fest event venue. 
• PERMISSIBLE ITEMS: Costumes of the following nature are likely to be allowed:
  • Weapon replicas made of cardboard, foam, lightwood, or other non-dangerous materials;
  • Blunt or sharp weapon replicas made of light materials (removing any dangerous parts/points).
• PROHIBITED ITEMS: Costumes may not be made up of the following items:
  • Sharpened, pointed or dangerous metal objects;
  • Large heavy blunt objects;
  • Liquid objects with corrosive or hazardous materials; 
  • Loud objects such as emergency horns or alarms; 
  • Dangerous or heavy materials;
  • ‘Airsoft’ type replicas will not be allowed inside or outside the venue.

Square Enix Europe reserves the right to exclude an Entry at its sole discretion.

Prize

Finalists

We will be awarding thirty (30) Finalists with the below virtual Game prizes (the “Finalist Prize”) *:

• One (1) Modern Aesthetics - Strife (in-game item); and
• The Contestant’s choice of one (1) of the below FINAL FANTASY XIV virtual prizes:
  • Ahriman Choker
  • Mandragora Choker
  • Bluebird Earring
  • Scarf of Wondrous Wit
  • Noble Barding
  • Gaelicap

The Finalist Prize will be delivered to each Finalist via the in-game Moogle delivery service (which may be subject to change at Square Enix Europe’s discretion) to the character specified by the Contestant in their Entry Details. The Finalist Prize is a virtual prize with no monetary value and cannot be sold or transferred.

Winners

We will be awarding four (4) Winners from the Finalists with the below merchandise prizes (the “Prize(s)”) **:

• 1x Grand Prize for the “Best in Show” category:

The Grand Prize Winner will receive:

• One (1) Camera (value estimated at €300) with the following specifications (which may be subject to change)*:
• One (1) Signed copy of STORMBLOOD OST (estimated value at €39.99) 
• One (1) Signed copy of FINAL FANTASY XIV Lore Book Vol. 2 (Promotional item. Not for Sale. Estimated value at €44.99)
• One (1) FINAL FANTASY XIV Morbol Plush (Promotional item. Not for sale. Estimated value at €29.99).

• 3x Second Place Prizes.

Each Second Place Winner will receive:

• One (1) Signed copy of STORMBLOOD OST (estimated value at €39.99) 
• One (1) Signed copy of FINAL FANTASY XIV Lore Book Vol. 2 (Promotional item. Not for sale. Estimated value at €44.99)
• One (1) FINAL FANTASY XIV Morbol Plush (Promotional item. Not for sale. Estimated value at €29.99)

Prizes will be provided the Winners on the day of the Contest (except for the Grand Prize Camera which shall be delivered to the Grand Prize Winner). No substitutions or exchanges (including for cash) of the Prize will be permitted. To the extent permitted by law, the Prize is awarded “AS IS” and WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, express or implied, including, without limitation, any implied warranty of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

Prizes may be subject to change at Square Enix Europe’s sole discretion.

*The Grand Prize Camera shall be delivered to the Grand Prize Winner in March 2019. Square Enix Europe shall contact the Grand Prize Winner at the e-mail address registered to his/her Square Enix ID provided above prior to arranging the delivery of the Grand Prize Camera.

Entry Period
2 February 2019 from 11:30 (CET)* to 14:30 (CET) only. Entry period subject to change. Any changes will be announced on the FFXIV Fan Fest website. 

Winner Selection
The FFXIV EU Community Team will select thirty (30) finalists based on overall creativity from all the entries submitted (the “Finalists”) to participate in the on-stage Contest parade that will take place at the FFXIV Fan Fest (the “Parade”). The Parade is tentatively scheduled from 16:00pm to 16:45pm however is subject to change. The specific time will be announced via the FFXIV Fan Fest website closer to the FFXIV Fan Fest event date. A list of the Finalists will be posted on a notice board at the Contest registration booth at least 30 minutes (or such other time as advised by Square Enix Europe at FFXIV Fan Fest) prior to the start of the Parade. Finalists must be present dressed in his/her Entry at least 30 minutes prior to the start of the Parade. Square Enix Europe reserves the right to select additional Contestants to replace a Finalist who fails to participate in the Parade.

From the Finalists, the FFXIV EU Community and/or Development and Operations Team (the “Judges”) will select four (4) winners (the “Winner(s)”) based on overall creativity, skill and originality. Winners will be announced by the Judges following the conclusion of the Parade. Once the Winners are announced following the Parade, Prizes will be distributed to the Winners on-stage.

Failure by the Second Place Winner(s) or Third Place Winner(s) to collect the Prize before the end of the FFXIV Fan Fest will result in the Prize being forfeited by the Winner(s). We reserve the right to re-distribute any unclaimed Prizes.

Inappropriate Submissions
Entries containing obscenity, vulgarity, discrimination, or any other offensive subject matter and/or containing any plagiarized or copyrighted material will not be considered by the judges. Entries which infringe upon copyright/intellectual property, personal credit, privacy, are counter to public order and/or morals, are judged to be grossly deviant from the established theme, do not contain all of the required information or contain erroneous information may face disqualification. Square Enix Europe reserves the right to judge whether or not material is appropriate for public display.

Consent, Moral Rights and Release
You irrevocably and unconditionally grant to us and our successors, assignees and licensees all consents and licences required pursuant to the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (“CDPA”) and all other laws now or in future in force in any part of the world which may be required for the use, recording, reproduction, distribution and other exploitation of my performance contained in the Photos whether or not as part of the Contest, in any and all media by any and all means now know or invented in future throughout the world.

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, you irrevocably and unconditionally waive all co-called “moral rights” relating to the Photos or your performance or the Contest to which you may be entitled by virtue of any law in force in any part of the world. In particular, you confirm that we may alter, adapt, change, revise, delete from, add to and/or rearrange in whole or in part the Photos and/or your performances given in relation thereto and recorded by us, in any manner we choose. You irrevocably agree that you will not in any part of the world maintain or support any claim for infringement of your moral rights by reason of any alteration or deletion from any Photos made by us, our successors, assignees and licensees

You agree to waive and release, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any and all claims, both known and unknown, against us and any of our affiliates, and their respective officers, directors, shareholders, employees, contractors and agents (collectively, “Released Parties”) based on, related to or arising from your participation in the Contest, including, but not limited to, claims for personal injury, property damage, economic loss or wrongful death (other than in respect of personal injury or death due to our negligence) (collectively, “Released Claims”). In releasing claims presently unknown to you, you are waiving all rights and agree not to sue or make any claim against any of the Released Parties with respect to any of the Released Claims.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY AND INDEMNITY
TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMISSIBLE BY LAW SQUARE ENIX EUROPE WILL NOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY ENTRY THAT IS SUBMITTED TO THE CONTEST THAT INFRINGES THE COPYRIGHT OR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OF A THIRD PARTY. YOU WARRANT AND AGREE THAT YOUR ENTRY WILL CONTAIN WORK THAT IS ENTIRELY ORIGINAL TO YOU AND DOES NOT INFRINGE OR INTERFERE WITH ANY THIRD PARTY COPYRIGHT OR OTHER RIGHTS AND YOU AGREE TO INDEMNIFY SQUARE ENIX EUROPE AGAINST ANY LOSS ARISING OUT OF ANY BREACH OF YOUR WARRANTY.

In the event that an entry violates a third-party’s copyright, the user’s Service Account may be suspended or cancelled. All entries and other materials (the "Entry Materials") (including all copyright, trademark, and other proprietary rights associated therewith) submitted by you become the property of Square Enix Europe upon submission, and Entry Materials will not be returned to any contestant. In consideration of our acceptance and review of your Entry Materials into the Contest, you hereby assign to Square Enix Europe absolutely all right, title and interest for the full duration of copyright in and to the Entry Materials throughout the world. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, you acknowledge that Square Enix Europe will own all rights to use, modify, and make derivative works of the Entry Materials, without separate compensation to you or any other person or entity. You agree to take, at Square Enix Europe's expense, any further action (including, without limitation, execution of affidavits and other documents) reasonably requested by Square Enix Europe to effect, perfect, or confirm Square Enix Europe's ownership rights as set forth above in this paragraph. Entry Materials may be used by contestants only for purposes of the Contest or for private, personal, non-public viewing. Entry materials received by Square Enix Europe may be destroyed by Square Enix Europe at any time following the Contest.

Governing Law
These Rules and all or any dispute arising from them shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales.