So I take it they had a cb for this game, did they not listen to the testers feedback?
Closed beta completed just before open beta began. This is open beta to get more players on the server but it is still beta. They are working on fixes and changes identified from CB. People sould have noticed that there have been patches every day since OB started. There probably will be right up until OB ends and then more on launch day.
And to the OP: You did access the online game manual for beta didn't you? It has a print feature if you don't want to keep going to the beta site.
What I don't know how to do is EAT FOOD in the game. I've seen people do it but I have no idea how. Seems like there should be a use item option but hell if I know.
On the screen there is a little backpack on the bottom right, click that and it should open up anything you can eat. I tried it a couple times and after i eat it seems to tell me if i like something or not and says i have a full belly affect. I have no clue what this does yet but I will keep playing with it.
After consuming an edible item you get the "Well Fed" status effect. What the status effect is, depends on type of item you ate (which of course you must learn by trial and error). In FFXI the main effects of edibles were (iirc) 1. Food: Stat enhancing 2. Drinks: active HP/MP regen 3. Candy: passive HP/MP regen.
The UI's never been Square's strong suit. Let's face it. Even when i tried FFVI, right after I had completed Secret of Mana, when I was a 14 years old square-nintendo fanboy (that was BEFORE the playstation was released guys), I was ranting about the interface. It took some time getting used to, to understand the menus and stats. (on a side note, the easiness of that Secret of Mana's UI, with its ring menus, was a state of grace in UIs that Square never touched again ever since, not even close to that).
I'm not gonna write the whole FF UI's history, suffice it to say that in the lastest installment to date (FF XIII), you have to spend so much time validating (especially in-between shops and upgrading items while aiming at the item trophee) that it's just insane. Not hardcore, not even challenging, it's just so insane that you sometimes better hide it, because, err well... people wouldn't understand how you can choose to spend your time like that.
That fact is, Square put us up to this. They're the ones thinking that UI's friendliness is overrated, and that players should struggle through it to "prove their worth" or whatever geeky japanese vision is at work there.
Now don't get me wrong. As I stated I used to be some kind of japanese video games geek in the 90s era, which means I totally get the japanese spirit of "challenge". I was into those SNK fighting games or weird J-RPGs that were never released in the west. I loved those games, because they made me use two parts of my brain: one was the usual thinking, the other was hand-eye coordination. It's just so great a feeling when, after trying to master a technique for literrally hundreds of hours (a combination of actions, of buttons), you just so happen to pull it off anytime you like.
But times changed. Video games evolved. I just can't play a RPG, MMO or not, the same way in 2010 as I did in 1994. I actually re-play FF VI maybe once every two years to get that feeling again--it's like reading an old book to me I guess--but there's no way I'm expecting the same struggles in a newly released game. Hear me well when I say that, even back in 1994, I'd have ranted about FF XIV's UI.
You'll see that, come release, FF XIV will lose in average at least 1.5 pts in user ratings over the web, just because of that slow and clunky UI design.
The UI is horrible, it took me ages to work out how to get into combat and then how to get out of it lol. It too me ages to work out how to respawn, I was asking in chat but noone replied cause everyone is off soloing. Frigging you never know where to go and wonder why it keeps warping you back if you try to run off.... it's an MMO I don't want to do these lame quests, I want freedom.
They tell you how to start combat within the intro cutscene. And even during the introduction quest. If you go to th crystal and look up call of the adventurer, its practially a manual for you to read.
I don't understand the complains about the UI, yes it is minimalistic and quite different what other mmos do but its actually similiar to the one in FFXI. But I agree there are some changes for the worse but thats just something you have to get used to till it feels right. But otherwise most tabs are pretty self-explanatory. The lag you guys experience with putting skills into your action bar is sadly related to the server location in japan.
The UI's never been Square's strong suit. Let's face it. Even when i tried FFVI, right after I had completed Secret of Mana, when I was a 14 years old square-nintendo fanboy (that was BEFORE the playstation was released guys), I was ranting about the interface. It took some time getting used to, to understand the menus and stats. (on a side note, the easiness of that Secret of Mana's UI, with its ring menus, was a state of grace in UIs that Square never touched again ever since, not even close to that).
I'm not gonna write the whole FF UI's history, suffice it to say that in the lastest installment to date (FF XIII), you have to spend so much time validating (especially in-between shops and upgrading items while aiming at the item trophee) that it's just insane. Not hardcore, not even challenging, it's just so insane that you sometimes better hide it, because, err well... people wouldn't understand how you can choose to spend your time like that.
That fact is, Square put us up to this. They're the ones thinking that UI's friendliness is overrated, and that players should struggle through it to "prove their worth" or whatever geeky japanese vision is at work there.
Now don't get me wrong. As I stated I used to be some kind of japanese video games geek in the 90s era, which means I totally get the japanese spirit of "challenge". I was into those SNK fighting games or weird J-RPGs that were never released in the west. I loved those games, because they made me use two parts of my brain: one was the usual thinking, the other was hand-eye coordination. It's just so great a feeling when, after trying to master a technique for literrally hundreds of hours (a combination of actions, of buttons), you just so happen to pull it off anytime you like.
But times changed. Video games evolved. I just can't play a RPG, MMO or not, the same way in 2010 as I did in 1994. I actually re-play FF VI maybe once every two years to get that feeling again--it's like reading an old book to me I guess--but there's no way I'm expecting the same struggles in a newly released game. Hear me well when I say that, even back in 1994, I'd have ranted about FF XIV's UI.
You'll see that, come release, FF XIV will lose in average at least 1.5 pts in user ratings over the web, just because of that slow and clunky UI design.
+1
People have to remember that this game isn't a PC port - it was designed from the ground up (separately from the PS3 version) for the PC. Its like they have totally undermined their hard work by slapping on crappy, user-unfreindly nested UI - which by the way, (IMO) doesn't even function that particularly well with a controller.
I love the game and can't wait for the 22nd, but the state of the current UI boggles my mind. It's like SE are completely ignorant to the MMO genre / wants of their playerbase.
Today I saw a very cute, cuddly looking lemur creature and decided to kill it because I was getting bored running down the narrow corridor that passes for a world. Well, the lemur kicked my ass, and then I died. Then I waited. Waited. Waiting.....hmmmm....start pushing keys. Nothing. Look in the menu. Nothing. Search help topics of most frequently asked questions. Nothing. This is the best you could do SE? Really?
I hope you go out of business and SOE buys you out. Even Smedley could come up with better.
To be fair to SE in this instance they did state in the email that you received as part of the beta signup that you should log in to the beta tester site for info and the manual.. which is also in game known as the Adventures handbook or something like that ..
hence..
"If a character’s HP is reduced to 0, he/she will be “knocked out” and no longer able to move or act. A character can be revived by selecting “Return” from the main menu, which will warp the character to the last aetheryte camp or aetherial gate selected from the Interactions menu.
* If a character is KO’d while participating in a levequest, he/she will be teleported back to the corresponding aetheryte.
* For the duration of the Beta Test, characters KO’d will receive a weakness penalty which will not only lower total HP, but also reduce the speed with which their stamina gauge fills, as well as increase the length of casting times. This penalty will last five minutes before wearing off."
not exactly rocket science.. just needs people to stop and read for a second rather than speed clicking through everything.
it's like a lot of things being complained about, the learning curve is steeper than WoW, but, hey, you're right it isn't rocket science. There's lots of dumb stuff such as wondering randomly and missing starter quest, not being able to work out how to repair, not bothering to go to leve counter and then complain that there is no content...etc...etc...etc...
I really tried to give this game the benefit of the doubt. I tried, but two things I saw a few minutes after logging in, completely soured me on the experience.
The first thing wasn't even the UI, it was the same stupid slowness of movement that I felt in FFXI. The city (Limsa Lominsa or... whatever) is too large and/or the character running speed is too slow -- running from one side of the city to the other takes a needless amount of time. There's something to be said for an immersive world, but being bored of running to a merchant is not immersive.
Then consider that they pointed me to the Zephyr Gate for my first quest, which is not obvious on the map, nor was getting to said gate *thanks* to the map.
For some reason SE decided to stick with FFXI's artificial slowing down of "game life" to... I don't know, I guess promote the idea of using Aetherite teleports and chocobos? Why would you design a system that requires it to be tolerable? And then getting around the city is still a pain in the ass.
And then... there's the horrible UI, made even worse by the fact that an awful lot of things can't be custom-mapped to keyboard keys to ease the pain. Nothing is natural -- the only reason I could select NPCs without too much hassle is the F11 key I memorized from FFXI.
The fact that it still feels like FFXI is a bad thing, especially for a game that's trying to cater more towards casual gamers.
And this is why I don't get particularly excited about mmo launches anymore, or let myself get drawn into the anticipation and excitment. It's like lately every mmo that launches has to do something stupid to screw it up.
The game looks beautiful. Characters are nicely done, although there are not a lot of customization options. Animations are also well done. I love some of the emotes, very cute. Contrary to what some have said, I have noticed no performance problems or lag, atleast so far. Nothing wrong with how my mouse moves on my screen.
But the UI sucks. NGE Star Wars Galaxies moveover.
It's hard to get past this to see any other aspect of the game. The UI is how you as the gamer interact with the game world. It's definitely on the short list of most important aspects of a game. Who designed this crap? What planet are you from? Or what continent?
Today I saw a very cute, cuddly looking lemur creature and decided to kill it because I was getting bored running down the narrow corridor that passes for a world. Well, the lemur kicked my ass, and then I died. Then I waited. Waited. Waiting.....hmmmm....start pushing keys. Nothing. Look in the menu. Nothing. Search help topics of most frequently asked questions. Nothing. This is the best you could do SE? Really?
I hope you go out of business and SOE buys you out. Even Smedley could come up with better.
Ummm... Really?
1. Target mob with mouse, tab, enter, action button... depending on what controls you're using
2. Engage mob, with mouse click or enter or action button... again depending on what controls.
3. Select appropriate attack to use it... and you attack
4. Repeat 3 until mob is defeated.. unless you're picking on things stronger than yourself.
You seriously couldn't figure that out? How did you get past the intro/tutorial combat sequence?
That said, there are other things you can do during combat...
- Keep an eye on your Stamina bar to make sure you have enough to use your preferred ability (though you're likely doing this anyway)
- Keep an eye on your TP and use a weapon skill when you have enough and/or are ready to...
- Keep an eye on attacks you evade in the event you have a counter ability, like Haymaker for Pugilist and be ready to use that.
It's very simple, really.
On that note...
I give your post about 6/10 on the nerd rage scale though. Decent effort. The whole NGE reference was a nice bit of melodrama... if rather over-used by now.
Incidentally I had a more difficult time finding my way around pre-NGE SWG's interface than I have with XIV... but I figured that out, too.
"If you just step away for a sec you will clearly see all the pot holes in the road, and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
Today I saw a very cute, cuddly looking lemur creature and decided to kill it because I was getting bored running down the narrow corridor that passes for a world. Well, the lemur kicked my ass, and then I died. Then I waited. Waited. Waiting.....hmmmm....start pushing keys. Nothing. Look in the menu. Nothing. Search help topics of most frequently asked questions. Nothing. This is the best you could do SE? Really?
I hope you go out of business and SOE buys you out. Even Smedley could come up with better.
To be fair to SE in this instance they did state in the email that you received as part of the beta signup that you should log in to the beta tester site for info and the manual.. which is also in game known as the Adventures handbook or something like that ..
hence..
"If a character’s HP is reduced to 0, he/she will be “knocked out” and no longer able to move or act. A character can be revived by selecting “Return” from the main menu, which will warp the character to the last aetheryte camp or aetherial gate selected from the Interactions menu.
* If a character is KO’d while participating in a levequest, he/she will be teleported back to the corresponding aetheryte.
* For the duration of the Beta Test, characters KO’d will receive a weakness penalty which will not only lower total HP, but also reduce the speed with which their stamina gauge fills, as well as increase the length of casting times. This penalty will last five minutes before wearing off."
not exactly rocket science.. just needs people to stop and read for a second rather than speed clicking through everything.
I figured it out through good old-fashioned experimentation... Took maybe 30 seconds. The human brain can sort things out pretty quickly when it's motivated to.
To start, if my character is sitting or standing or lying there doing nothing - and my system hasn't frozen - it's going to be because the game is awaiting some input from me, or because of some state my character is in (frozen, paralyzed, etc). The game will give me some kind of feedback to my input. If I've just been slaughtered in the most un-tender way imaginable, the game's likely going to give me some message along the lines of "Umm you're dead, you can't do that" if I try to do something particularly life-like... such as moving, or sorting inventory.
Now, in any MMO I've played, when you're killed, you lie there and are given the option to return to a home point, usually with a count-down timer. You either wait, or click "return" or whatever and voila.. you're returned to your last homepoint.
Didn't take much at all to figure out "oh look... there's this "Return" button in the menu... well what do you know... it res's me and sends me back to my last Aetheryte Crystal."
Now, it would be easier if SE added a small window to the screen with "Wait" or "Return" on it just to save the browsing through the menu. Sure. No arguing that. Hopefully they'll add that some point... if for no other reason than to appease those who freak out if they have to press more than 1 button to do anything. But also because it would be little more convenient than, you know, pressing 1 more key to open the menu and then selecting the "Return" option from it... an action that apparently drives some people out of their mind.
The level of complaining, melodrama and exaggeration I see about things that I, and plenty others figured out on their own with very little time or trouble, is absurd.
If I didn't know gaming forums were rife with drama queens, the degree of complaining around this game, over the simplest things that are *not* difficult to figure out, would certainly be an eye opener. In this case, it's merely a reminder.
"If you just step away for a sec you will clearly see all the pot holes in the road, and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
Today I saw a very cute, cuddly looking lemur creature and decided to kill it because I was getting bored running down the narrow corridor that passes for a world. Well, the lemur kicked my ass, and then I died. Then I waited. Waited. Waiting.....hmmmm....start pushing keys. Nothing. Look in the menu. Nothing. Search help topics of most frequently asked questions. Nothing. This is the best you could do SE? Really?
I hope you go out of business and SOE buys you out. Even Smedley could come up with better.
To be fair to SE in this instance they did state in the email that you received as part of the beta signup that you should log in to the beta tester site for info and the manual.. which is also in game known as the Adventures handbook or something like that ..
hence..
"If a character’s HP is reduced to 0, he/she will be “knocked out” and no longer able to move or act. A character can be revived by selecting “Return” from the main menu, which will warp the character to the last aetheryte camp or aetherial gate selected from the Interactions menu.
* If a character is KO’d while participating in a levequest, he/she will be teleported back to the corresponding aetheryte.
* For the duration of the Beta Test, characters KO’d will receive a weakness penalty which will not only lower total HP, but also reduce the speed with which their stamina gauge fills, as well as increase the length of casting times. This penalty will last five minutes before wearing off."
not exactly rocket science.. just needs people to stop and read for a second rather than speed clicking through everything.
I figured it out through good old-fashioned experimentation... Took maybe 30 seconds. The human brain can sort things out pretty quickly when it's motivated to.
To start, if my character is sitting or standing or lying there doing nothing - and my system hasn't frozen - it's going to be because the game is awaiting some input from me, or because of some state my character is in (frozen, paralyzed, etc). The game will give me some kind of feedback to my input. If I've just been slaughtered in the most un-tender way imaginable, the game's likely going to give me some message along the lines of "Umm you're dead, you can't do that" if I try to do something particularly life-like... such as moving, or sorting inventory.
Now, in any MMO I've played, when you're killed, you lie there and are given the option to return to a home point, usually with a count-down timer. You either wait, or click "return" or whatever and voila.. you're returned to your last homepoint.
Didn't take much at all to figure out "oh look... there's this "Return" button in the menu... well what do you know... it res's me and sends me back to my last Aetheryte Crystal."
Now, it would be easier if SE added a small window to the screen with "Wait" or "Return" on it just to save the browsing through the menu. Sure. No arguing that. Hopefully they'll add that some point... if for no other reason than to appease those who freak out if they have to press more than 1 button to do anything. But also because it would be little more convenient than, you know, pressing 1 more key to open the menu and then selecting the "Return" option from it... an action that apparently drives some people out of their mind.
The level of complaining, melodrama and exaggeration I see about things that I, and plenty others figured out on their own with very little time or trouble, is absurd.
If I didn't know gaming forums were rife with drama queens, the degree of complaining around this game, over the simplest things that are *not* difficult to figure out, would certainly be an eye opener. In this case, it's merely a reminder.
This...this is priceless! Two thumbs up for Mike!
(DISCLAIMER - The use of the word YOU in the above post is not directed at any one person in particular, but towards those who fall into the category itself - there is no personal attack here, neither intentional nor implied.)
Today I saw a very cute, cuddly looking lemur creature and decided to kill it because I was getting bored running down the narrow corridor that passes for a world. Well, the lemur kicked my ass, and then I died. Then I waited. Waited. Waiting.....hmmmm....start pushing keys. Nothing. Look in the menu. Nothing. Search help topics of most frequently asked questions. Nothing. This is the best you could do SE? Really?
I hope you go out of business and SOE buys you out. Even Smedley could come up with better.
To be fair to SE in this instance they did state in the email that you received as part of the beta signup that you should log in to the beta tester site for info and the manual.. which is also in game known as the Adventures handbook or something like that ..
hence..
"If a character’s HP is reduced to 0, he/she will be “knocked out” and no longer able to move or act. A character can be revived by selecting “Return” from the main menu, which will warp the character to the last aetheryte camp or aetherial gate selected from the Interactions menu.
* If a character is KO’d while participating in a levequest, he/she will be teleported back to the corresponding aetheryte.
* For the duration of the Beta Test, characters KO’d will receive a weakness penalty which will not only lower total HP, but also reduce the speed with which their stamina gauge fills, as well as increase the length of casting times. This penalty will last five minutes before wearing off."
not exactly rocket science.. just needs people to stop and read for a second rather than speed clicking through everything.
I figured it out through good old-fashioned experimentation... Took maybe 30 seconds. The human brain can sort things out pretty quickly when it's motivated to.
To start, if my character is sitting or standing or lying there doing nothing - and my system hasn't frozen - it's going to be because the game is awaiting some input from me, or because of some state my character is in (frozen, paralyzed, etc). The game will give me some kind of feedback to my input. If I've just been slaughtered in the most un-tender way imaginable, the game's likely going to give me some message along the lines of "Umm you're dead, you can't do that" if I try to do something particularly life-like... such as moving, or sorting inventory.
Now, in any MMO I've played, when you're killed, you lie there and are given the option to return to a home point, usually with a count-down timer. You either wait, or click "return" or whatever and voila.. you're returned to your last homepoint.
Didn't take much at all to figure out "oh look... there's this "Return" button in the menu... well what do you know... it res's me and sends me back to my last Aetheryte Crystal."
Now, it would be easier if SE added a small window to the screen with "Wait" or "Return" on it just to save the browsing through the menu. Sure. No arguing that. Hopefully they'll add that some point... if for no other reason than to appease those who freak out if they have to press more than 1 button to do anything. But also because it would be little more convenient than, you know, pressing 1 more key to open the menu and then selecting the "Return" option from it... an action that apparently drives some people out of their mind.
The level of complaining, melodrama and exaggeration I see about things that I, and plenty others figured out on their own with very little time or trouble, is absurd.
If I didn't know gaming forums were rife with drama queens, the degree of complaining around this game, over the simplest things that are *not* difficult to figure out, would certainly be an eye opener. In this case, it's merely a reminder.
Geez, you guys seem to just defend for the sake of defending; I really expected more out of a guy like you however. It's not about "Oh christ, I have to hit one more button, I'm so pissed!" it's the fact that it's really bad UI design to not have a freaking "return" pop up window, or text instruction in the chat window, when you die - you know, like in every other mmo ever made to date? Even FFXI gave a message for god's sake. It just seems moronic to not include something so basic, for no apparent reason whatsoever. I'll even go as far as to shamefully admit that I actually ended up asking someone how to release. It's not that I didn't see the "Return" button in the menu, it's that I had seen it before while I was alive, briefly glanced at it and figured it was a "gate" system of some sort that I'd find more about later. I had no idea that it would suddenly have relevance when I died because nothing led me to that conclusion.
Then of course we have the multi-step process for obtaining loot into your inventory for reasons unknown, and the annoyance of constantly having to re-sheath your weapon manually after every fight. I'm not saying that either of these are a big deal, hardly, but what exactly is the point of making things less convenient? I'm sick of the, "They're just trying to be different and not hold your hand." argument that gets thrown around after any objection. I'm completely fine with them making the game slower paced and more difficult (in fact, that's the aspect I've been looking forward to the most) but no one should have to face more "challenge" when it comes to the UI.
So far, it really doesn't even seem as intuitive as the UI from it's predecessor, FFXI and that's something I hope changes soon.
This is THE WORST beta i have EVER been in, not only did it take 12 hours to download, and 2 hours to get the downloader working, but now i cant even play the game cuase the client crashes upon startup. good job Square enix, you lost me as a loyal customer.
I am SO glad this beta is weeding out the whiny folks and close minded so called "gamers" who can't stand to use controllers on PCs or who don't like not jumping in a game, or who can't understand its FRIGGING BETA!!!!!. This will make the community IDEAL and actually mature and not filled with emo 1333 speak. THank you, SE. This Open Beta is pissing off people who think everyone should do everything they do or have ever done. I love it!
^^ This hehe.
Someone near and dear to me on these forums, we're getting married, once said "You have to laugh when a game that isn't Whack a Mole causes players to go into meltdown". She is a wonder that one.
I love snails. I love every kinda snail. I just want to hug them all, but I cant. Cant hug every snail.
So far, it really doesn't even seem as intuitive as the UI from it's predecessor, FFXI and that's something I hope changes soon.
^QFT. Just give me access to Lua, I can fix the interface or someone can. The current interface is designed for a controller not a keyboard and mouse and needs a nearly full rewrite. It's poor at best and really inexcusable in a game that is as good as it is in many other ways.
Geez, you guys seem to just defend for the sake of defending;
... lol?
What you should have said was "people complain for the sake of complaining".
And if you notice... I agreed that a pop-up window would be helpful and a good idea. However, the reaction some are having to it - along with other aspects of the interface that require maybe 1 or 2 extra seconds to perform at most - is way over the top and drama-queen nerd-raging in its purest form.
You open the menu.
You select Return.
You go back to your last crystal or node.
Done.
At the end of the day, what you're ranting about is *one extra keypress* that takes .5 seconds to execute. That's *it*. Whether it's on a pop-up screen, or in a menu makes no difference... It's *one extra keypress*.
When they have entire game systems to develop, implement, bug-fix and balance, I don't think "oh noez, people will be upset if we make them press one extra key" is something that's very high on SE's "must do" list, nor should it be... as much as I'm sure that will disappoint some around here.
Thank you, though, for providing a perfect example of the melodrama I referred to in my last post. You demonstrated it beautifully.
"If you just step away for a sec you will clearly see all the pot holes in the road, and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
This is THE WORST beta i have EVER been in, not only did it take 12 hours to download, and 2 hours to get the downloader working, but now i cant even play the game cuase the client crashes upon startup. good job Square enix, you lost me as a loyal customer.
I am SO glad this beta is weeding out the whiny folks and close minded so called "gamers" who can't stand to use controllers on PCs or who don't like not jumping in a game, or who can't understand its FRIGGING BETA!!!!!. This will make the community IDEAL and actually mature and not filled with emo 1333 speak. THank you, SE. This Open Beta is pissing off people who think everyone should do everything they do or have ever done. I love it!
^^ This hehe.
Someone near and dear to me on these forums, we're getting married, once said "You have to laugh when a game that isn't Whack a Mole causes players to go into meltdown". She is a wonder that one.
People seem to confuse complexity with lack of content and quality quite a lot nowadays, anything that is tagged as unpolished and lacking quality is instantly labeled as hardcore or "not hand helding" by the fans its a natural defense no one likes to see the game they are hyped about not achieve the popularity they expected.
I really do understand the frustration at the end of the day SE is on the market to make a buck, if it ends up the route of all the previous mmos like warhammer then its not gonna be good, word of mouth is a powerful thing amongst gamers, I remember when this was announced how I used to hear the ppl I play with praising how awesome it would be to now just comments about how disappointing it was to the point they just scratched it off their watch list.
These ppl the fans are happy to "weed" out of the game early are probably the ones that could make this game a success and ensure more money and funding is thrown at it, the opposite means less development, cuts on budget and ultimately less quality.
This is THE WORST beta i have EVER been in, not only did it take 12 hours to download, and 2 hours to get the downloader working, but now i cant even play the game cuase the client crashes upon startup. good job Square enix, you lost me as a loyal customer.
I am SO glad this beta is weeding out the whiny folks and close minded so called "gamers" who can't stand to use controllers on PCs or who don't like not jumping in a game, or who can't understand its FRIGGING BETA!!!!!. This will make the community IDEAL and actually mature and not filled with emo 1333 speak. THank you, SE. This Open Beta is pissing off people who think everyone should do everything they do or have ever done. I love it!
^^ This hehe.
Someone near and dear to me on these forums, we're getting married, once said "You have to laugh when a game that isn't Whack a Mole causes players to go into meltdown". She is a wonder that one.
People seem to confuse complexity with lack of content and quality quite a lot nowadays, anything that is tagged as unpolished and lacking quality is instantly labeled as hardcore or "not hand helding" by the fans its a natural defense no one likes to see the game they are hyped about not achieve the popularity they expected.
I really do understand the frustration at the end of the day SE is on the market to make a buck, if it ends up the route of all the previous mmos like warhammer then its not gonna be good, word of mouth is a powerful thing amongst gamers, I remember when this was announced how I used to hear the ppl I play with praising how awesome it would be to now just comments about how disappointing it was to the point they just scratched it off their watch list.
These ppl the fans are happy to "weed" out of the game early are probably the ones that could make this game a success and ensure more money and funding is thrown at it, the opposite means less development, cuts on budget and ultimately less quality.
Nope, the Japanese fanbase alone will be bigger then FF11's because the population has grown and aged-woot. So that plus anything the rest of the German, French and English speaking world can throw at the game is going to keep development nice and frequent.
I love snails. I love every kinda snail. I just want to hug them all, but I cant. Cant hug every snail.
Geez, you guys seem to just defend for the sake of defending;
... lol?
What you should have said was "people complain for the sake of complaining".
And if you notice... I agreed that a pop-up window would be helpful and a good idea. However, the reaction some are having to it - along with other aspects of the interface that require maybe 1 or 2 extra seconds to perform at most - is way over the top and drama-queen nerd-raging in its purest form.
You open the menu.
You select Return.
You go back to your last crystal or node.
Done.
At the end of the day, what you're ranting about is *one extra keypress* that takes .5 seconds to execute. That's *it*. Whether it's on a pop-up screen, or in a menu makes no difference... It's *one extra keypress*.
When they have entire game systems to develop, implement, bug-fix and balance, I don't think "oh noez, people will be upset if we make them press one extra key" is something that's very high on SE's "must do" list, nor should it be... as much as I'm sure that will disappoint some around here.
Thank you, though, for providing a perfect example of the melodrama I referred to in my last post. You demonstrated it beautifully.
Melodrama? Really, that wasn't even my intention. I'm over the issues with the UI as I've figured them out already. That is, however, clearly not the entire point I was making, and it seemed to completely elude you. The fact of the matter is, it's 2010, mmorpgs have been developed for over a decade and there are just certain things that most gamers come to expect in terms of polish and intuitiveness. If a company can't even live up to the simplest of standards regarding a user interface, why should I believe they won't half ass everything else? Like I said before, it's just bad, lazy design, and although some apparently aren't bothered in the slightest by a cumbersome UI (You, for example), that doesn't mean the majority feels the same way. It's a simple thing to streamline, so why not do it? There's just no excuse.
Anyway, I'm done talking about this; I've seen you post before and I always figured you to be a level-headed person, but judging by your attempts to flame perfectly legitimate criticism without a better counter argument than, "It's just takes a few more seconds to do everything, figure it out, get over it.", I'm inclined to change my opinion.
This is THE WORST beta i have EVER been in, not only did it take 12 hours to download, and 2 hours to get the downloader working, but now i cant even play the game cuase the client crashes upon startup. good job Square enix, you lost me as a loyal customer.
I am SO glad this beta is weeding out the whiny folks and close minded so called "gamers" who can't stand to use controllers on PCs or who don't like not jumping in a game, or who can't understand its FRIGGING BETA!!!!!. This will make the community IDEAL and actually mature and not filled with emo 1333 speak. THank you, SE. This Open Beta is pissing off people who think everyone should do everything they do or have ever done. I love it!
^^ This hehe.
Someone near and dear to me on these forums, we're getting married, once said "You have to laugh when a game that isn't Whack a Mole causes players to go into meltdown". She is a wonder that one.
People seem to confuse complexity with lack of content and quality quite a lot nowadays, anything that is tagged as unpolished and lacking quality is instantly labeled as hardcore or "not hand helding" by the fans its a natural defense no one likes to see the game they are hyped about not achieve the popularity they expected.
I really do understand the frustration at the end of the day SE is on the market to make a buck, if it ends up the route of all the previous mmos like warhammer then its not gonna be good, word of mouth is a powerful thing amongst gamers, I remember when this was announced how I used to hear the ppl I play with praising how awesome it would be to now just comments about how disappointing it was to the point they just scratched it off their watch list.
These ppl the fans are happy to "weed" out of the game early are probably the ones that could make this game a success and ensure more money and funding is thrown at it, the opposite means less development, cuts on budget and ultimately less quality.
Nope, the Japanese fanbase alone will be bigger then FF11's because the population has grown and aged-woot. So that plus anything the rest of the German, French and English speaking world can throw at the game is going to keep development nice and frequent.
So it will follow the success of Aion, hell even L2 is still going on that model their population is still growing in korea/china. Sounds great!
This is THE WORST beta i have EVER been in, not only did it take 12 hours to download, and 2 hours to get the downloader working, but now i cant even play the game cuase the client crashes upon startup. good job Square enix, you lost me as a loyal customer.
I am SO glad this beta is weeding out the whiny folks and close minded so called "gamers" who can't stand to use controllers on PCs or who don't like not jumping in a game, or who can't understand its FRIGGING BETA!!!!!. This will make the community IDEAL and actually mature and not filled with emo 1333 speak. THank you, SE. This Open Beta is pissing off people who think everyone should do everything they do or have ever done. I love it!
^^ This hehe.
Someone near and dear to me on these forums, we're getting married, once said "You have to laugh when a game that isn't Whack a Mole causes players to go into meltdown". She is a wonder that one.
People seem to confuse complexity with lack of content and quality quite a lot nowadays, anything that is tagged as unpolished and lacking quality is instantly labeled as hardcore or "not hand helding" by the fans its a natural defense no one likes to see the game they are hyped about not achieve the popularity they expected.
I really do understand the frustration at the end of the day SE is on the market to make a buck, if it ends up the route of all the previous mmos like warhammer then its not gonna be good, word of mouth is a powerful thing amongst gamers, I remember when this was announced how I used to hear the ppl I play with praising how awesome it would be to now just comments about how disappointing it was to the point they just scratched it off their watch list.
These ppl the fans are happy to "weed" out of the game early are probably the ones that could make this game a success and ensure more money and funding is thrown at it, the opposite means less development, cuts on budget and ultimately less quality.
Nope, the Japanese fanbase alone will be bigger then FF11's because the population has grown and aged-woot. So that plus anything the rest of the German, French and English speaking world can throw at the game is going to keep development nice and frequent.
So it will follow the success of Aion, hell even L2 is still going on that model their population is still growing in korea/china. Sounds great!
Meh, as many FF11 NA players will tell you. In the beginning of the game, and even sometimes afterwards, it was better to play with Japanese players. Much more calm and relaxed and weret crazy QQ'ers *cough cough* like some NA players. So yah i dont care if the population is scewed(sp) that way.
They have an auto trnslate function. Ill be content. I loved my japanese friends. Honestly, uber chill.
I love snails. I love every kinda snail. I just want to hug them all, but I cant. Cant hug every snail.
This is THE WORST beta i have EVER been in, not only did it take 12 hours to download, and 2 hours to get the downloader working, but now i cant even play the game cuase the client crashes upon startup. good job Square enix, you lost me as a loyal customer.
I am SO glad this beta is weeding out the whiny folks and close minded so called "gamers" who can't stand to use controllers on PCs or who don't like not jumping in a game, or who can't understand its FRIGGING BETA!!!!!. This will make the community IDEAL and actually mature and not filled with emo 1333 speak. THank you, SE. This Open Beta is pissing off people who think everyone should do everything they do or have ever done. I love it!
^^ This hehe.
Someone near and dear to me on these forums, we're getting married, once said "You have to laugh when a game that isn't Whack a Mole causes players to go into meltdown". She is a wonder that one.
People seem to confuse complexity with lack of content and quality quite a lot nowadays, anything that is tagged as unpolished and lacking quality is instantly labeled as hardcore or "not hand helding" by the fans its a natural defense no one likes to see the game they are hyped about not achieve the popularity they expected.
I really do understand the frustration at the end of the day SE is on the market to make a buck, if it ends up the route of all the previous mmos like warhammer then its not gonna be good, word of mouth is a powerful thing amongst gamers, I remember when this was announced how I used to hear the ppl I play with praising how awesome it would be to now just comments about how disappointing it was to the point they just scratched it off their watch list.
These ppl the fans are happy to "weed" out of the game early are probably the ones that could make this game a success and ensure more money and funding is thrown at it, the opposite means less development, cuts on budget and ultimately less quality.
Nope, the Japanese fanbase alone will be bigger then FF11's because the population has grown and aged-woot. So that plus anything the rest of the German, French and English speaking world can throw at the game is going to keep development nice and frequent.
So it will follow the success of Aion, hell even L2 is still going on that model their population is still growing in korea/china. Sounds great!
Meh, as many FF11 NA players will tell you. In the beginning of the game, and even sometimes afterwards, it was better to play with Japanese players. Much more calm and relaxed and weret crazy QQ'ers *cough cough* like some NA players. So yah i dont care if the population is scewed(sp) that way.
They have an auto trnslate function. Ill be content. I loved my japanese friends. Honestly, uber chill.
Good it works for you, didnt do wonders for NA/EU Aion nor L2.
These ppl the fans are happy to "weed" out of the game early are probably the ones that could make this game a success and ensure more money and funding is thrown at it, the opposite means less development, cuts on budget and ultimately less quality.
I highly doubt that.
The people some are hoping to weed out are the ones who would get in game and then complain about pretty much everything and then quit to go back to whatever game they came from, or wait on another one to complain about. Those people are fickle and flighty and do nothing to help a game's longevity beyond their initial purchase. In some cases, those type of people seem more invested in seeing a game fail than succeed.
The game *doesn't* need those people to succeed. FFXI didn't have "those people" and it did just fine for many years with a very healthy population.
What FFXIV needs to succeed is a dedicated core playerbase that enjoys the game for what it is... not one that bitches and gripes and whines and complains and rants about everything it isn't.
"If you just step away for a sec you will clearly see all the pot holes in the road, and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
This is THE WORST beta i have EVER been in, not only did it take 12 hours to download, and 2 hours to get the downloader working, but now i cant even play the game cuase the client crashes upon startup. good job Square enix, you lost me as a loyal customer.
I am SO glad this beta is weeding out the whiny folks and close minded so called "gamers" who can't stand to use controllers on PCs or who don't like not jumping in a game, or who can't understand its FRIGGING BETA!!!!!. This will make the community IDEAL and actually mature and not filled with emo 1333 speak. THank you, SE. This Open Beta is pissing off people who think everyone should do everything they do or have ever done. I love it!
^^ This hehe.
Someone near and dear to me on these forums, we're getting married, once said "You have to laugh when a game that isn't Whack a Mole causes players to go into meltdown". She is a wonder that one.
People seem to confuse complexity with lack of content and quality quite a lot nowadays, anything that is tagged as unpolished and lacking quality is instantly labeled as hardcore or "not hand helding" by the fans its a natural defense no one likes to see the game they are hyped about not achieve the popularity they expected.
I really do understand the frustration at the end of the day SE is on the market to make a buck, if it ends up the route of all the previous mmos like warhammer then its not gonna be good, word of mouth is a powerful thing amongst gamers, I remember when this was announced how I used to hear the ppl I play with praising how awesome it would be to now just comments about how disappointing it was to the point they just scratched it off their watch list.
These ppl the fans are happy to "weed" out of the game early are probably the ones that could make this game a success and ensure more money and funding is thrown at it, the opposite means less development, cuts on budget and ultimately less quality.
Nope, the Japanese fanbase alone will be bigger then FF11's because the population has grown and aged-woot. So that plus anything the rest of the German, French and English speaking world can throw at the game is going to keep development nice and frequent.
So it will follow the success of Aion, hell even L2 is still going on that model their population is still growing in korea/china. Sounds great!
Meh, as many FF11 NA players will tell you. In the beginning of the game, and even sometimes afterwards, it was better to play with Japanese players. Much more calm and relaxed and weret crazy QQ'ers *cough cough* like some NA players. So yah i dont care if the population is scewed(sp) that way.
They have an auto trnslate function. Ill be content. I loved my japanese friends. Honestly, uber chill.
Good it works for you, didnt do wonders for NA/EU Aion nor L2.
If I recall correctly, Aion and L2 had servers separated by region. FFXI doesn't, and neither will FFXIV. So, all regions are playing together on the same servers... thus it's far more likely that you will find yourself grouped with Japanese, or French or German players. In those cases, yes, the autotranslate function proves very helpful.
And I agree that Japanese players I've had the good fortune to group with are much more laid back than most Western players I've grouped with.
"If you just step away for a sec you will clearly see all the pot holes in the road, and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
This is THE WORST beta i have EVER been in, not only did it take 12 hours to download, and 2 hours to get the downloader working, but now i cant even play the game cuase the client crashes upon startup. good job Square enix, you lost me as a loyal customer.
I am SO glad this beta is weeding out the whiny folks and close minded so called "gamers" who can't stand to use controllers on PCs or who don't like not jumping in a game, or who can't understand its FRIGGING BETA!!!!!. This will make the community IDEAL and actually mature and not filled with emo 1333 speak. THank you, SE. This Open Beta is pissing off people who think everyone should do everything they do or have ever done. I love it!
^^ This hehe.
Someone near and dear to me on these forums, we're getting married, once said "You have to laugh when a game that isn't Whack a Mole causes players to go into meltdown". She is a wonder that one.
People seem to confuse complexity with lack of content and quality quite a lot nowadays, anything that is tagged as unpolished and lacking quality is instantly labeled as hardcore or "not hand helding" by the fans its a natural defense no one likes to see the game they are hyped about not achieve the popularity they expected.
I really do understand the frustration at the end of the day SE is on the market to make a buck, if it ends up the route of all the previous mmos like warhammer then its not gonna be good, word of mouth is a powerful thing amongst gamers, I remember when this was announced how I used to hear the ppl I play with praising how awesome it would be to now just comments about how disappointing it was to the point they just scratched it off their watch list.
These ppl the fans are happy to "weed" out of the game early are probably the ones that could make this game a success and ensure more money and funding is thrown at it, the opposite means less development, cuts on budget and ultimately less quality.
Nope, the Japanese fanbase alone will be bigger then FF11's because the population has grown and aged-woot. So that plus anything the rest of the German, French and English speaking world can throw at the game is going to keep development nice and frequent.
So it will follow the success of Aion, hell even L2 is still going on that model their population is still growing in korea/china. Sounds great!
Meh, as many FF11 NA players will tell you. In the beginning of the game, and even sometimes afterwards, it was better to play with Japanese players. Much more calm and relaxed and weret crazy QQ'ers *cough cough* like some NA players. So yah i dont care if the population is scewed(sp) that way.
They have an auto trnslate function. Ill be content. I loved my japanese friends. Honestly, uber chill.
Good it works for you, didnt do wonders for NA/EU Aion nor L2.
If I recall correctly, Aion and L2 had servers separated by region. FFXI doesn't, and neither will FFXIV. So, all regions are playing together on the same servers... thus it's far more likely that you will find yourself grouped with Japanese, or French or German players. In those cases, yes, the autotranslate function proves very helpful.
And I agree that Japanese players I've had the good fortune to group with are much more laid back than most Western players I've grouped with.
I dont recall FFXI being a massive success which it isnt, not saying its not gonna keep going, L2 is still going regardless. More attention brings more money which equates to more content, its business 101, games like L2 and AION clearly lack an edge when it comes to funding and development and that really comes down to how popular it is. Its not gonna die I just wouldnt expect it to be a major thing.
In my opinion this game is going to be over shadowed by a lot of the future releases considering how it is now.
Comments
Closed beta completed just before open beta began. This is open beta to get more players on the server but it is still beta. They are working on fixes and changes identified from CB. People sould have noticed that there have been patches every day since OB started. There probably will be right up until OB ends and then more on launch day.
And to the OP: You did access the online game manual for beta didn't you? It has a print feature if you don't want to keep going to the beta site.
After consuming an edible item you get the "Well Fed" status effect. What the status effect is, depends on type of item you ate (which of course you must learn by trial and error). In FFXI the main effects of edibles were (iirc) 1. Food: Stat enhancing 2. Drinks: active HP/MP regen 3. Candy: passive HP/MP regen.
The UI's never been Square's strong suit. Let's face it. Even when i tried FFVI, right after I had completed Secret of Mana, when I was a 14 years old square-nintendo fanboy (that was BEFORE the playstation was released guys), I was ranting about the interface. It took some time getting used to, to understand the menus and stats. (on a side note, the easiness of that Secret of Mana's UI, with its ring menus, was a state of grace in UIs that Square never touched again ever since, not even close to that).
I'm not gonna write the whole FF UI's history, suffice it to say that in the lastest installment to date (FF XIII), you have to spend so much time validating (especially in-between shops and upgrading items while aiming at the item trophee) that it's just insane. Not hardcore, not even challenging, it's just so insane that you sometimes better hide it, because, err well... people wouldn't understand how you can choose to spend your time like that.
That fact is, Square put us up to this. They're the ones thinking that UI's friendliness is overrated, and that players should struggle through it to "prove their worth" or whatever geeky japanese vision is at work there.
Now don't get me wrong. As I stated I used to be some kind of japanese video games geek in the 90s era, which means I totally get the japanese spirit of "challenge". I was into those SNK fighting games or weird J-RPGs that were never released in the west. I loved those games, because they made me use two parts of my brain: one was the usual thinking, the other was hand-eye coordination. It's just so great a feeling when, after trying to master a technique for literrally hundreds of hours (a combination of actions, of buttons), you just so happen to pull it off anytime you like.
But times changed. Video games evolved. I just can't play a RPG, MMO or not, the same way in 2010 as I did in 1994. I actually re-play FF VI maybe once every two years to get that feeling again--it's like reading an old book to me I guess--but there's no way I'm expecting the same struggles in a newly released game. Hear me well when I say that, even back in 1994, I'd have ranted about FF XIV's UI.
You'll see that, come release, FF XIV will lose in average at least 1.5 pts in user ratings over the web, just because of that slow and clunky UI design.
They tell you how to start combat within the intro cutscene. And even during the introduction quest. If you go to th crystal and look up call of the adventurer, its practially a manual for you to read.
I don't understand the complains about the UI, yes it is minimalistic and quite different what other mmos do but its actually similiar to the one in FFXI. But I agree there are some changes for the worse but thats just something you have to get used to till it feels right. But otherwise most tabs are pretty self-explanatory. The lag you guys experience with putting skills into your action bar is sadly related to the server location in japan.
+1
People have to remember that this game isn't a PC port - it was designed from the ground up (separately from the PS3 version) for the PC. Its like they have totally undermined their hard work by slapping on crappy, user-unfreindly nested UI - which by the way, (IMO) doesn't even function that particularly well with a controller.
I love the game and can't wait for the 22nd, but the state of the current UI boggles my mind. It's like SE are completely ignorant to the MMO genre / wants of their playerbase.
To be fair to SE in this instance they did state in the email that you received as part of the beta signup that you should log in to the beta tester site for info and the manual.. which is also in game known as the Adventures handbook or something like that ..
hence..
"If a character’s HP is reduced to 0, he/she will be “knocked out” and no longer able to move or act. A character can be revived by selecting “Return” from the main menu, which will warp the character to the last aetheryte camp or aetherial gate selected from the Interactions menu.
* If a character is KO’d while participating in a levequest, he/she will be teleported back to the corresponding aetheryte.
* For the duration of the Beta Test, characters KO’d will receive a weakness penalty which will not only lower total HP, but also reduce the speed with which their stamina gauge fills, as well as increase the length of casting times. This penalty will last five minutes before wearing off."
not exactly rocket science.. just needs people to stop and read for a second rather than speed clicking through everything.
I really tried to give this game the benefit of the doubt. I tried, but two things I saw a few minutes after logging in, completely soured me on the experience.
The first thing wasn't even the UI, it was the same stupid slowness of movement that I felt in FFXI. The city (Limsa Lominsa or... whatever) is too large and/or the character running speed is too slow -- running from one side of the city to the other takes a needless amount of time. There's something to be said for an immersive world, but being bored of running to a merchant is not immersive.
Then consider that they pointed me to the Zephyr Gate for my first quest, which is not obvious on the map, nor was getting to said gate *thanks* to the map.
For some reason SE decided to stick with FFXI's artificial slowing down of "game life" to... I don't know, I guess promote the idea of using Aetherite teleports and chocobos? Why would you design a system that requires it to be tolerable? And then getting around the city is still a pain in the ass.
And then... there's the horrible UI, made even worse by the fact that an awful lot of things can't be custom-mapped to keyboard keys to ease the pain. Nothing is natural -- the only reason I could select NPCs without too much hassle is the F11 key I memorized from FFXI.
The fact that it still feels like FFXI is a bad thing, especially for a game that's trying to cater more towards casual gamers.
Ummm... Really?
1. Target mob with mouse, tab, enter, action button... depending on what controls you're using
2. Engage mob, with mouse click or enter or action button... again depending on what controls.
3. Select appropriate attack to use it... and you attack
4. Repeat 3 until mob is defeated.. unless you're picking on things stronger than yourself.
You seriously couldn't figure that out? How did you get past the intro/tutorial combat sequence?
That said, there are other things you can do during combat...
- Keep an eye on your Stamina bar to make sure you have enough to use your preferred ability (though you're likely doing this anyway)
- Keep an eye on your TP and use a weapon skill when you have enough and/or are ready to...
- Keep an eye on attacks you evade in the event you have a counter ability, like Haymaker for Pugilist and be ready to use that.
It's very simple, really.
On that note...
I give your post about 6/10 on the nerd rage scale though. Decent effort. The whole NGE reference was a nice bit of melodrama... if rather over-used by now.
Incidentally I had a more difficult time finding my way around pre-NGE SWG's interface than I have with XIV... but I figured that out, too.
and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
I figured it out through good old-fashioned experimentation... Took maybe 30 seconds. The human brain can sort things out pretty quickly when it's motivated to.
To start, if my character is sitting or standing or lying there doing nothing - and my system hasn't frozen - it's going to be because the game is awaiting some input from me, or because of some state my character is in (frozen, paralyzed, etc). The game will give me some kind of feedback to my input. If I've just been slaughtered in the most un-tender way imaginable, the game's likely going to give me some message along the lines of "Umm you're dead, you can't do that" if I try to do something particularly life-like... such as moving, or sorting inventory.
Now, in any MMO I've played, when you're killed, you lie there and are given the option to return to a home point, usually with a count-down timer. You either wait, or click "return" or whatever and voila.. you're returned to your last homepoint.
Didn't take much at all to figure out "oh look... there's this "Return" button in the menu... well what do you know... it res's me and sends me back to my last Aetheryte Crystal."
Now, it would be easier if SE added a small window to the screen with "Wait" or "Return" on it just to save the browsing through the menu. Sure. No arguing that. Hopefully they'll add that some point... if for no other reason than to appease those who freak out if they have to press more than 1 button to do anything. But also because it would be little more convenient than, you know, pressing 1 more key to open the menu and then selecting the "Return" option from it... an action that apparently drives some people out of their mind.
The level of complaining, melodrama and exaggeration I see about things that I, and plenty others figured out on their own with very little time or trouble, is absurd.
If I didn't know gaming forums were rife with drama queens, the degree of complaining around this game, over the simplest things that are *not* difficult to figure out, would certainly be an eye opener. In this case, it's merely a reminder.
and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
This...this is priceless! Two thumbs up for Mike!
(DISCLAIMER - The use of the word YOU in the above post is not directed at any one person in particular, but towards those who fall into the category itself - there is no personal attack here, neither intentional nor implied.)
Geez, you guys seem to just defend for the sake of defending; I really expected more out of a guy like you however. It's not about "Oh christ, I have to hit one more button, I'm so pissed!" it's the fact that it's really bad UI design to not have a freaking "return" pop up window, or text instruction in the chat window, when you die - you know, like in every other mmo ever made to date? Even FFXI gave a message for god's sake. It just seems moronic to not include something so basic, for no apparent reason whatsoever. I'll even go as far as to shamefully admit that I actually ended up asking someone how to release. It's not that I didn't see the "Return" button in the menu, it's that I had seen it before while I was alive, briefly glanced at it and figured it was a "gate" system of some sort that I'd find more about later. I had no idea that it would suddenly have relevance when I died because nothing led me to that conclusion.
Then of course we have the multi-step process for obtaining loot into your inventory for reasons unknown, and the annoyance of constantly having to re-sheath your weapon manually after every fight. I'm not saying that either of these are a big deal, hardly, but what exactly is the point of making things less convenient? I'm sick of the, "They're just trying to be different and not hold your hand." argument that gets thrown around after any objection. I'm completely fine with them making the game slower paced and more difficult (in fact, that's the aspect I've been looking forward to the most) but no one should have to face more "challenge" when it comes to the UI.
So far, it really doesn't even seem as intuitive as the UI from it's predecessor, FFXI and that's something I hope changes soon.
^^ This hehe.
Someone near and dear to me on these forums, we're getting married, once said "You have to laugh when a game that isn't Whack a Mole causes players to go into meltdown". She is a wonder that one.
I love snails.
I love every kinda snail.
I just want to hug them all, but I cant.
Cant hug every snail.
Shadus
... lol?
What you should have said was "people complain for the sake of complaining".
And if you notice... I agreed that a pop-up window would be helpful and a good idea. However, the reaction some are having to it - along with other aspects of the interface that require maybe 1 or 2 extra seconds to perform at most - is way over the top and drama-queen nerd-raging in its purest form.
You open the menu.
You select Return.
You go back to your last crystal or node.
Done.
At the end of the day, what you're ranting about is *one extra keypress* that takes .5 seconds to execute. That's *it*. Whether it's on a pop-up screen, or in a menu makes no difference... It's *one extra keypress*.
When they have entire game systems to develop, implement, bug-fix and balance, I don't think "oh noez, people will be upset if we make them press one extra key" is something that's very high on SE's "must do" list, nor should it be... as much as I'm sure that will disappoint some around here.
Thank you, though, for providing a perfect example of the melodrama I referred to in my last post. You demonstrated it beautifully.
and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
People seem to confuse complexity with lack of content and quality quite a lot nowadays, anything that is tagged as unpolished and lacking quality is instantly labeled as hardcore or "not hand helding" by the fans its a natural defense no one likes to see the game they are hyped about not achieve the popularity they expected.
I really do understand the frustration at the end of the day SE is on the market to make a buck, if it ends up the route of all the previous mmos like warhammer then its not gonna be good, word of mouth is a powerful thing amongst gamers, I remember when this was announced how I used to hear the ppl I play with praising how awesome it would be to now just comments about how disappointing it was to the point they just scratched it off their watch list.
These ppl the fans are happy to "weed" out of the game early are probably the ones that could make this game a success and ensure more money and funding is thrown at it, the opposite means less development, cuts on budget and ultimately less quality.
well i dont think i will buy this game.. unless after 6 months or so it turns out to be the next great thing since sliced bread or something
Nope, the Japanese fanbase alone will be bigger then FF11's because the population has grown and aged-woot. So that plus anything the rest of the German, French and English speaking world can throw at the game is going to keep development nice and frequent.
I love snails.
I love every kinda snail.
I just want to hug them all, but I cant.
Cant hug every snail.
Melodrama? Really, that wasn't even my intention. I'm over the issues with the UI as I've figured them out already. That is, however, clearly not the entire point I was making, and it seemed to completely elude you. The fact of the matter is, it's 2010, mmorpgs have been developed for over a decade and there are just certain things that most gamers come to expect in terms of polish and intuitiveness. If a company can't even live up to the simplest of standards regarding a user interface, why should I believe they won't half ass everything else? Like I said before, it's just bad, lazy design, and although some apparently aren't bothered in the slightest by a cumbersome UI (You, for example), that doesn't mean the majority feels the same way. It's a simple thing to streamline, so why not do it? There's just no excuse.
Anyway, I'm done talking about this; I've seen you post before and I always figured you to be a level-headed person, but judging by your attempts to flame perfectly legitimate criticism without a better counter argument than, "It's just takes a few more seconds to do everything, figure it out, get over it.", I'm inclined to change my opinion.
So it will follow the success of Aion, hell even L2 is still going on that model their population is still growing in korea/china. Sounds great!
Meh, as many FF11 NA players will tell you. In the beginning of the game, and even sometimes afterwards, it was better to play with Japanese players. Much more calm and relaxed and weret crazy QQ'ers *cough cough* like some NA players. So yah i dont care if the population is scewed(sp) that way.
They have an auto trnslate function. Ill be content. I loved my japanese friends. Honestly, uber chill.
I love snails.
I love every kinda snail.
I just want to hug them all, but I cant.
Cant hug every snail.
Good it works for you, didnt do wonders for NA/EU Aion nor L2.
I highly doubt that.
The people some are hoping to weed out are the ones who would get in game and then complain about pretty much everything and then quit to go back to whatever game they came from, or wait on another one to complain about. Those people are fickle and flighty and do nothing to help a game's longevity beyond their initial purchase. In some cases, those type of people seem more invested in seeing a game fail than succeed.
The game *doesn't* need those people to succeed. FFXI didn't have "those people" and it did just fine for many years with a very healthy population.
What FFXIV needs to succeed is a dedicated core playerbase that enjoys the game for what it is... not one that bitches and gripes and whines and complains and rants about everything it isn't.
and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
If I recall correctly, Aion and L2 had servers separated by region. FFXI doesn't, and neither will FFXIV. So, all regions are playing together on the same servers... thus it's far more likely that you will find yourself grouped with Japanese, or French or German players. In those cases, yes, the autotranslate function proves very helpful.
And I agree that Japanese players I've had the good fortune to group with are much more laid back than most Western players I've grouped with.
and the cash shop selling asphalt..." - Mimzel on F2P/Cash Shops
I dont recall FFXI being a massive success which it isnt, not saying its not gonna keep going, L2 is still going regardless. More attention brings more money which equates to more content, its business 101, games like L2 and AION clearly lack an edge when it comes to funding and development and that really comes down to how popular it is. Its not gonna die I just wouldnt expect it to be a major thing.
In my opinion this game is going to be over shadowed by a lot of the future releases considering how it is now.