Last November, Square Enix shocked the world of Vana'diel with the announcement of not one, not two, but three new mini expansions that would be coming to adventurers in 2009. In a whirling mixture of both excitement and skepticism, the community began to talk in a frenzy about what they thought it meant for the game and its future.

At Fan Festival 2008 in Hollywood, adventurers were again teased with previews, setting in motion further discussion about things such as the price point, the volume of content, which mini-expansion looked the most appealing, and when the release date would be.

Today Square Enix has given us some of that information, announcing that the first of the three, "A Crystalline Prophecy - Ode of Life Bestowing" will be available for advance purchase exclusively through PlayOnline.com starting March 23, 2009. The content will be available for play upon the release of the April version update. With a price point of $9.99, it goes without saying that March 23 will be one difficult day to do some Vana'diel shopping.

Discuss this on the Allakhazam forums.

Official announcement from PlayOnline.com:

The first installment of three new add-on scenarios, entitled "A Crystalline Prophecy – Ode of Life Bestowing" will be available for advance purchase through PlayOnline starting from March 23, 2009.
(*Players purchasing the scenario will receive access to the in-game content upon the release of the next FINAL FANTASY XI version update, scheduled for early April. )

In honor of this occasion, the official site for "A Crystalline Prophecy" has been updated with the latest news. Head on over to read all the exciting details!
You also won't want to miss the new promotional trailer, scheduled for release in the coming days, so keep watching this space!

Click here to access the official site.