One Final Fantasy 14 player spent 450 hours and $5,000 immortalizing their MMO character with a life-size bronze statue

gamesradar.com:

You might love your MMO character, but do you love them enough to learn bronzeworking and spend 450 hours recreating their likeness in a statue that could last centuries? That's exactly what one Final Fantasy 14 player has done.

The character you see above is the Warrior of Light Yoko Akatsuki, and she's created by a reddit user who goes by icanit. (Thanks, PC Gamer.) The statue has a hollow body to save on weight and material costs, but the parts you're actually seeing are all bronze. icanit reckons that the volume of bronze is worth around $750, though all the materials, instruments, and mold assistance cost "around $5,000."

Yoko's statue stands at 150cm, which translates to just under five feet in American numbers. Yes, that is life-size - the character is a female Au Ra, who tend to be pretty short in-game. The statue weighs in at 135kg according to icanit, or 297lbs in freedom units. That's likely a bit heavier than the character's in-game weight, but hey, that Elemental Armor of Fending set probably contributes quite a bit.

icanit says "I did learn specifically for this piece, but will continue with sculpting as a hobby for the rest of my life." The project began in what I can only describe as prophetic terms - icanit says, "One day, I woke up and thought about the statue of my character in my garden. This was the beginning of everything else."

I don't think I'm going to be picking up bronzeworking (or putting down $5k) to get a real-life likeness of my own Warrior of Light, but I can't help but admire icanit's dedication and the results of all that work. May Yoko's reign over that garden be a long one, undisturbed by perching birds.

Only the best MMORPGs can get you this attached to your character.