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New Player considering a purchase
VGJustice
Member Posts: 640
I've been considering FFXI recently, but I have a few questions about it that I'm hoping you guys could help me with.
How bad is the level grind, really? I've heard that this game is almost nothing but grind, just mindlessly killing monsters until you level up. How acurate is this description?
How are quests and quest rewards handled? Will I be spending more of my time doing quests, or just leveling up so that I can do one?
I understand that there is a multiclass portion of the game. How easy is it to change the secondary job? How easy is it to change the primary job?
Most likely, I'll be entering the game by myself, not knowing anyone. Is this a wise decision for me? Will I have an overly difficult time finding people to play with?
I like difficult games, but not if there is little to no concideration for player skill. How dependent is this game on items and equipment?
I have little love for solo play, and this is one of the reasons I've been looking at this game. How easy is it to find a group of players, on average?
I understand this game has a closed server setup. Would it be best to start on a fresh server or one that has been established for a while?
How is PvP handled in this game? I have little love for World PvP.
How much is the monthly charge for this game?
If I only purchase the basic game, will I still be able to interact with players that have the expansions?
Based on my questions above, would you generally recommend the game to me?
Thanks for taking the time to read this, and I will appreciate whatever answers you have for me.
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Comments
I've been thinking of joining up too, and from what i've read throughout the forums is this...
Lvl 1-10 is soloable (sometimes up to 12) 13 and on is when you apparantly begin to need groups or at least a partner or two.
I'm not sure how the quest rewards are handled exactly, i think from reading about the game, it's more often then not (talk to someone, do a task for them, return for reward)
As for secondary jobs, i belive you can switch between jobs and sub jobs rather easily.
Entering the game not knowing anyone: there's actually a lot of newcomers joing up recently as i've heard, and most are being directed and invited to join a server called ' Fenrir ' . From what i hear , that server has some very nice people compared to other servers, and help isn't too hard to find. I'm sure you'll get to know some people rather quickly in there, depending on your maturity and socialization i guess.
I've heard it *can be* hard to find groups sometimes, depending on if people have other things to do or friends to help out first. But some jobs are more desired at certain times and for certain quests in the game. So if your current ' class ' isn't wanted you could always switch to another job/sub-job and get in the group. I did hear tho, that leveling your White Mage class is a good idea from the start to get the heal and support spells, but then again that's just an opinion, as people's playstyles are different than others.
i don't know how PvP works, sorry. But the cost per month is $12.95, and can only be paid using a Credit Card or a Debit Card.
Instead of getting the Basic original game , there's a 2007 Vana' Diel (Spelling?) Edition of the game that includes the original game and the expansions and it's only 39.99 (Can) so about 29.99 (US) i guess. So it would be best to get that one.
So with all that said, to the best of my knowledge, if you don't mind the price, which is cheaper than most online games i've seen, but not by alot, it's not a bad game. People seem to love it. and there's lots of stuff to do outside of questiing/leveling. like farming/gardening for items, furnishing your in game home, crafting, and some other side quests and activities. And the community is supposed to be really good too, for the most part. I myself am really tempted to try it out, but i can't make up my mind
. Just writing all that makes me want it more now 
. If i start up, maybe we could help eachother out. Anyways sorry i took long with this. This is what i know. Hope that helps.
,Steve
Well the lvl grind really kicks in at the 50-75 range thats were most people start to really feel it. For the most part it is just grinding not much else to it in this game kill this mob over and over, maybe if your lucky you get a choice between 2-3 mobs
Well quests are handled a little different than most other online games I have played personally. Most games use quests to lvl or gain exp and other have some rewards as items and such. This game gives no rewards to speak of for actual leveling experience. you earn fame for doing quests in certain areas which help with various things such as prices for vendors in that region. There are certain quests that give really nice drops which are mostly used to put on AH to make gil. Most are at higher levels of course.
The multiclass portion of the game is a big + for this game. You only start off with a few jobs but once you get to lvl 30 you can start to obtain what they call advanced jobs. At lvl 18 you can do a quest and get a subjob (used to boost your main job class normally). these are for the most part straight forward and set in stone but tend to mix and match to your play style. Later on in the game people tend to get iffy about unusual job combinations which is understandable due to the grind that goes on past 50+. Changing primary job class is as easy as going to any major city and swapping jobs. One other thing to tell you is your subjob is always half of your main. So for instance your a 30 warrior/ 15 Monk. You also have to level your sub jobs up also they dont just magically appear at half your main job (which would be nice).
The community is the bread and butter of this game I believe. I have never had any problems in three years of playing this game finding help with anything I needed. As far as parties thats another story. As far as meeting people and making friends this is the best I have experienced in all the online games I have played.
The game I would concider to be difficult due to the fact of all the help you will need with things. For instance when you hit 30 to unlock certain advanced jobs, you will need higher level help. Equipment and things due come in to play but with how gil is hard to come by people understand. Weapon skills and magic bursts are prob the only real actualy fighting skill you may need but with a little practice you will have it in no time.
This game is not for solo so it would be a wise choice for the party interaction you will need just to level. Finding a group can be tough sometimes but once you learn how to make up your own party things become a lot easier. Then again there are times when a party is now where in site but make your own party and you will be fine.
Servers are all the same not like world of warcraft where they steady open new servers and what not. So any server is a decent pick I suppose may want to check other posts on good starting servers.
I myself am not for PvP so I dont know much about it, but from what I read it isnt a huge part as in wow or other MMO's. Your best bet would be to get the Vanadiel Collection 2007 that came out a few weeks ago, it has all 3 expansion packs and of course your free 30 days. The monthly fee is 12.95 I believe and for each additional content ID is an extra $1. So 12.95 for 1st character then any characters after are $1.
Yea this game sounds like it could be right for you from the questions you asked. The game is a bit more time consuming than say wow or other popular games, but the experience will make up for it. Its a great game hope this helped you out
Speaking as someone who played this game religously for nearly three years, the level grind is growing very tiresome, and it starts MUCH earlier than level 50. Expect to spend HOURS looking for a party. Even if you go as a bard now (very, very easy to get parties), you'll still be waiting to fill the other slots. You should also note that most times there are more players looking for party (lfp) between 74-75, then between all levels 1-40. The level distribution in this game is really "top loaded". I've been trying to level Blue Mage and Puppetmaster for weeks and managed one level in blue and solo'd a couple levels with Puppetmaster during peak weekend hours (outside of our weekly Dynamis run, that is).
The economy in the game is, in what is best described as "screwed". Either you farm for WEEKS on end, selling items that have deflated in value to pay for items that have marginally decreased in value is the norm unless you manage to get into a "sky" LS or otherwise, and you have no chance of getting into one of those before level 65 if you're lucky. And with SE continually boinking droprates, I really feel for new players entering the game. I haven't done sky in years because they're mostly nothing but scams. It's quite common for people to get members to "bank" the items in their linkshell, under the control of the shell owner. Then, one day, you'll discover that they took all the loot and started another LS and repeated the same scam with another character. Now, this also assumes that after outcamping every other linkshell for that Zipacna mob, that you get the drop from it. Just because you get the mob, doesn't mean it will drop what you were looking for. Say goodbye to 3 or 4 hours of your life and nothing to show for it except maybe a few "points" in the linkshell.
The snobbery in this game, and the pettiness that seems to be rampant is getting to be a bit much as well and is what is driving me to quit the game permanently this time. You'll always get a whiner who will quickly jump from the party when they discover you have no "refresher" (i.e., RDM or BRD), or if you don't have a powerleveller (PL).
The mass of players come across as very juvenile.
Anothe r thing I have noticed is that a lot of "new" players, are just established players "powerlevelling" another character using a second machine. I've also been told that it picks up after level 37. Why? Because established players break out their "subjobs" to level up.
Experience points are very hard to come by below level 37, unless you level certain jobs like WHM or BRD.
In all honesty, I'm returing to City of Villains/City of Heroes, largely because I don't want to spend six hours looking for a party like I did this evening. CoV/CoH may not be as complex, but at least you can log in and just "go". CoV has better graphics, less lag, and despite what people say, the storyline in FFXI is rather lame. The only reason people hold it in such high regard is because they are Square-Enix fanboys who believe even SE's crap is gold...
Someone said that if SE was in charge of real-life, you'd have to wait for your friends to come over so they can help you use the toilet. It's not a bad analogy, although incomplete.
If SE were to implement it, first, you'd need to do the first mission, open the door, and you'd need a specific configuration for that. Next, you'd need to set up another party to put the seat down and that requires a different configuration. Finally, after you finished the 22 minute cutscene on the toilet, you'd need another party and yet another configuration to wipe your behind. A good example of this is the Diabolos prime fight. If you don't go in with six black mages or six summoners, you can't do it (we've tried... repeatedly).
That's how tedious this game has become and it's sucked ALL the life out of it.
.. I 'malso is a veterian who has played this game for about 3yrs and 1/2 and acutally quit (thank god lol) this game can be tiresome @ times.. scartch that, ALOT of times..But i dont agree with you saying " you may want to save your money" because I think this game is worth buying.. Yes the first 1-40lvls is a punk because the amount of people who want to party up are very little depending on what surver you want to join and also the crowdiness in the very little amount of camps that is avaliable @ that lvl range... But since the new expansion came out which is last yr, I"m pretty sure there is more camps to lvl up.. But once you get passed that certain lvl range, like from 50-75 there are multiple zones where you can lvl up... this is when lvls comes quickley depending on what job you are.. If you just want to lvl up very quickly, choose a mage job since they lvl up quickly.. that is if you enjoy being in the sidelines like buffing people up etc...
But other then that, the game is quite enjoyable because its not a fast pace game and it requires interaction with other people alot.
"Diabolos prime fight. If you don't go in with six black mages or six summoners"
I'd have to second that.. When I did my diabolos fight it wasnt a full out blm or smn fight.. I acutally did it with a decent party.. I believe blm smn rdm 2 mnks and me (nin). but we did it when there was still glitches tho.. like me being the only one fighting it while the mnks do chi blast (charge before fighting) . blm nuking the shit out of it, rdm healing me and smn using its 2hr to kill it.. while there still up there.. But I doubt this still works.. But still, i've seen people beat diabolos fight with a decent party that isnt 5blms or 5smns... Its just fucking hard and will require you 3204983204 times till you get to kill that fucker lol...
for people who don't know who diabolos is, he's a tough smn fight because he has one move that can basically kill you in an instant.
I tried this game out for free on the xbox 360 for one month and I really liked it. I had a tough decision when the full version of the game came out. One of the reasons I liked this game so much is because it was my first ever MMORPG and only one to date. The reason I didn't continue playing was because 1. I jumped into next gen on the 360 for better graphics and this game came out in 2002. I really felt I wanted something with better graphics. 2. I didn't like how hard it was to form parties to go on certain quests. It would take a long time to recruit 5 other players just so I could finally go Kill the dragon. 3. I figured that someday soon something incredible will be coming out for the 360 such as a new MMO by square enix, Vanguard Saga of Heroes, or Age of Conan. Sadly, I have been waiting for 10 months and several times I've felt like ... maybe I should've kept playing FFXI. I am really cheap though, and if I am going to pay a subscription fee each month I want to have the best of the best.
It can get quite tedious at times. But hey, noone forces you to grind xp all the time. Do some crafting, fishing, questing or whatever a lil now and then, there's more to the game than watching the xp bar move. If you get a good group going you will level up relatively fast.
How are quests and quest rewards handled? Will I be spending more of my time doing quests, or just leveling up so that I can do one?
This is a mixed bag for me. You won't get any xp from doing quests and sometimes the item you get just aint worth the time it takes to do the quest, its just more efficent to buy it at the Auction House. But you will get fame and with higher fame more quests will open up (some of em with really nice rewards). Many quests got cut-scenes and I just love it. Some quests are worth doing just cause of the cut-scenes.
I understand that there is a multiclass portion of the game. How easy is it to change the secondary job? How easy is it to change the primary job?
You can change job in any of the main cities and some other areas. This is one of the few things you can easily solo :P
Most likely, I'll be entering the game by myself, not knowing anyone. Is this a wise decision for me? Will I have an overly difficult time finding people to play with?
I wouldnt worry. Unless you're a complete idiot you should be able to find ppl to play with. People lvl low-mid lvl jobs all the time. You can also try joining a Linkshell as soon as possible for some advice and companionship.
like difficult games, but not if there is little to no concideration for player skill. How dependent is this game on items and equipment?
Well, this aint no FPS or twitch game but Id say its fairly skill depedent. Gear helps, but it wont turn a bad player into a xp machine. Most of all, you need to be able to cooperate and work with others in alot of various situations. Not all parties work in the same ways.
have little love for solo play, and this is one of the reasons I've been looking at this game. How easy is it to find a group of players, on average?
People whine about this from time to time and its true, sometimes getting a party can take quite some time. But usually its not that bad (at least not for me). It depends on your current job and lvl but everyone run into bad luck sooner or later. But try to do something creative with the time, just dont sit and whine. go farm, craft, fish, quest, hit on a mithra...
I understand this game has a closed server setup. Would it be best to start on a fresh server or one that has been established for a while?
I think all servers are pretty much the same, there are no new servers or newbie servers as far as I know.
How is PvP handled in this game? I have little love for World PvP.
PvP have no real inpact on the game, you dont have to enter a PvP-game ever if you dont want to. I think its more of a fun thing to do on the side.
How much is the monthly charge for this game?
As already stated, 12.95 and 1 buck for every content-ID (character) above that. But since you can play all jobs on the same character you dont really need that many characters.
If I only purchase the basic game, will I still be able to interact with players that have the expansions?
Yup. Thought you cant enter any of the areas associated with the expansions, of course.
Based on my questions above, would you generally recommend the game to me?
Well, this is the mmorpg I play so yeah, I recommend it.