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It’s been about ten weeks since Stormblood came out — and man, maybe it’s just me, but it feels like years since Heavensward was current. I had to go to Ishgard for something a few days ago and my girlfriend, who was playing in the same room as me, said: “Where ARE you?”
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In FFXI, at any given time, there were multiple different goals you could be working toward. Every one of them was rewarding in its own right, and each had its own unique systems, rules and objectives.
Let's take PoTD for example. It's a neat system and provided people with something other than the usual grind they'd been doing to level up. But that's it. That's all you got in HW (well, except for Diadem 2.0, which also fell short).
Meanwhile, let's look at what similarly "event type" content was introduced during the timespan of just one expansion in FFXI - Treasures of Aht Urghan. This is content which, like PoTD and DIadem, exists aside from story missions and side-quests, new zones, and other content you'd expect to have with any expansion.
ToAU introduced: Assault, Nyzul Isle Investigation, Salvage, Einherjar, Besieged, and possibly something else I'm forgetting about. Now, just about any those systems by itself had more depth, variety and longevity than any comparable system FFXIV has introduced so far, since 2.0/Realm Reborn. Don't take my word for it. Hop on Google and look up the Assault system by itself. Or Nyzul Isle. Look how much each of those systems entailed.
Those systems remained active and relevant throughout all of Aht Urghan's cycle, and beyond. People were still engaged into that content even into the following expansions, alongside all the other new content added. They didn't peak for a few weeks, and then fall into near complete disuse once the novelty wore off and people had sucked all the usefulness out of them, such as with Diadem or PoTD, etc.
The thing that baffles me is, why? Why, in a MMO developed around 2000, on far more limited hardware, *for* far more limited hardware (FFXI was locked to dial-up connection speeds, for example)... why were they able to deliver so much more content, with so much more variety and depth, and keep it relevant for so much longer than Yoshida and his team have so far with anything they've done in FFXIV?
I don't think I ever heard of anyone in FFXI feeling like they had to do the same repetitive grind for months waiting for the next update, or expansion, because there was nothing else to do. I certainly never heard the Director or Producer suggesting people should go play something else while waiting for the next update - because there was plenty to keep them playing in the meantime. In my experience (anecdotal as it may be, though it's many people, across nearly a decade), people would go into a new expansion still working toward goals they'd set during the previous one.
This is why I'm disappointed with FFXIV, and get frustrated with Yoshida when he spins these absurd excuses for not adding more new options, while over-hyping the meager, short-lived offerings that are, as though it's *so much new content*!. It's why it's so aggravating to see how he seems so satisfied with what he's delivered with FFXIV. I *know* SE can do more than they are with FFXIV. They can do a *lot* more with it. I know this because *they already have* with another of their own titles, with far inferior technology and resources, and without the benefit of having a successful previous MMORPG to refer to and learn from.
I just don't get it.
Thank you for putting into words what I have been thinking all these years.
This is why I am so disappointed with ARR, even with 1.0's massive flaws (like FFXI had) the result is shallow, repetitive experience that is only fun to play between major patches.
He explained the game as a more "pick up for new content then set it until more arrived" MMO. Comparing it to FFXI seems unrealistic. That game had a slower battle system, hell, a slower system for everything in general. Traveling, UI, and what not. Tasks were certainly made more difficult and long by this, but was it enjoyable? Do you want to be continuing the grind (yes, a grind) for content in the previous patches, not able to complete it when the patches / expansions drop? I have played, and have plenty of friends who hadn't finished all they wanted to accomplish, where they ended up playing the game out of a feeling of necessity. While FFXIV does, only slightly, lack some goals (there are still longterm ones to grind for), it doesn't leave me with a long list of chores. I don't think it's fair. It is subjective, and that laundry list may seem enjoyable to you, but coming into FFXI when I did was beyond overwhelming and working toward the grind ended up feeling more like a chore than anything. If you finished everything, congratulations, but should an MMO take up that much of your free time?
In my 9yrs of FFXI with 60 ppl in my guild playing between 30-60hrs a week. Not once in that time did I hear anyone say man I am bored when is new stuff coming out. There was honestly nearly unlimited amount of stuff to do to progress. My guild ran 24hrs a day with typically 8-12hrs of scheduled events daily depending on World Boss Spawns times. Right now in FFXIV I have most ppl playing 8-12hrs a week because they run out of stuff to do.
And the reason is simple Lets look at Endgame (top tier progression content) between the two games at the start of the 2nd expansion.
IN ffxiv currently you have the following for primary progression.
450 tomes - 3 dungeons (Run 4 days of dungeons ~25mins a day)
4 instance bosses.
2 primals (which have a 3 week life span tops)
Hunts
Vs
IN FFXI: COP (2nd expansion)
8 Allaince Zones of Dynamis
12 Allaince Zones of Limbus
Sea
Sky
about 20 relevent world bosses
7 High tier alliance world bosses
about 15 instance boss fights which gave worthwhile stuff.
Also the economy was tied to primary progression... so anything that rewards money instantly was used for top tier Gear Upgrades. So all money making activities.
Both games had a ton of fluff content which was not top tier but here is my list might of omited something from XI been awhile since COP.
11 Endgame progression events VS 64 Endgame events. And FFXIV events take about 20mins FFXI each one was 30mins to 4hrs. Sky and Sea were actually more endgame each individually then all of FFXIV current endgame combined.
Yoshida gets credit for saving FFXIV but that is where it ends in my book. The game could be so much more then he is making it.
And the game needs allaince content for 8 up to 24 ppl.... aka stuff guilds can do actually together besides playing house. Way way way too much low man and static content in FFXIV.
In a good mmo you should never have to take breaks, you should never feel like you have to play something else, you should never feel like you beat the game.
1. Lack of methods to level alts from 60 to 70 other than roulette
2. DPS roulette queues
And i was right :P
The bottom line is that if it isn't an old school MMO then it sucks. Anything new is so shallow. MMOs are meant to take over your gaming life. You should have no time to play anything else and should never feel like your bored or have to take breaks. If so, then the MMO sucks at being an MMO. Most of the FC I'm in will be in discord server, but playing other games. The game seems great at first cause the story was very engaging, but it just bland and boring extremely fast. Heavensward at least took quite awhile to get to this point, but Stormblood is like a rotting corpse that it starting to smell.
Such as shame that almost any MMO from 1999-2008 is insanely better than almost anything from 2009-2017.
This guy hits the nail right on the head. With so much of an upgrade to technology it is a travesty that developers cannot achieve more that what has already been achieved a decade ago.
Again, here is another bottom-line. Games are being developed for the lowest common denominator of gamers. The is just an echo of a much larger societal problem, but it's the same problem that contributed to the downfall of WoW and the downfall of MMORPGs period.
Dumbing things down, making things easier, and making things take less time has created compounding issues with direct correlation; making things too linear, making things too simplistic and removing differentiation, making things take such a small amount of time that devs are always like hamsters on a treadmill trying to create more content.
The other issue that comes up is that with less time, less effort, and less complexity you inadvertently get less appreciation, less sense of achievement, and less time being content and gawking at your own achievement. This is a slippery slope that then leads to a sense of entitlement aka "Dev need to do MOAR! Make MOAR content for me to pl0w through!" and just general disappointment.
This will only end when a Dev decides to go back to the roots of MMOs and stops supporting the lowest common denominator. Don't have the skills to beat harder content? Too bad, keep trying until you get it. Don't have friends online to do that group content? Too bad, don't ask for solo content in an MMO, make more friends and stop being digitally anti-social. Computer can't handle the new engine or graphics the game has? Too bad, stop gaming on a potato and spend some real cash on a good gaming PC, learn how to build your own PC to save a few bucks, mow a crap-ton more lawns to finally afford a PC after 2 years of saving up, this will bring along with it a massive appreciation for your rig once it is up and running.
Instead of the 90s famous quote of, "Just Say No to Drugs", let us usher in a new millennial quote of, "Just Say Too Bad to the Lowest Common Denominator".
It has been proven that to raise the bar on anything you have to push the person to raise the bar themselves. So Devs and Dev Companies out there, Raise the bar on gamers and stop building such a lackadaisical playerbase. All your doing is hurting yourselves in the long run.
And so ends my manifesto. Didn't mean to say this much, but c'est la vie.
Where were you right? Did the score get changed into a 7.X or low 8.X? No. Was the original article sponsored? No. did you express your opinion and nothing more? Yes.
You had an opinion and you still have it, it doesn't mean you're right, it just means no one changed your mind.
/Cheers,
Lahnmir
Kyleran on yours sincerely
'But there are many. You can play them entirely solo, and even offline. Also, you are wrong by default.'
Ikcin in response to yours sincerely debating whether or not single-player offline MMOs exist...
'This does not apply just to ED but SC or any other game. What they will get is Rebirth/X4, likely prettier but equally underwhelming and pointless.
It is incredibly difficult to design some meaningfull leg content that would fit a space ship game - simply because it is not a leg game.
It is just huge resource waste....'
Gdemami absolutely not being an armchair developer
Content lacking.
Following same content cycle for 2 years+.
Balance issues
Getting easier and easier
Most content is obsolete within a week of release.
Terrible content such as; POTD, Diadem, Verminion
Incoming relic grind serves no purpose and is just a carrot for casuals.
Lead developer says in an interview that the game is designed for people to just resubsribe every patch...
dead world
so sad
4 bosses every 6 month
1-2 primals every 6 month (obsolete after a day for anyone competent)
max level dungeons that are faceroll and only there for daily capping of currency
such a sad state of the game
That's like going to the zoo looking for an Ewok.
~~ postlarval ~~
/Cheers,
Lahnmir
Kyleran on yours sincerely
'But there are many. You can play them entirely solo, and even offline. Also, you are wrong by default.'
Ikcin in response to yours sincerely debating whether or not single-player offline MMOs exist...
'This does not apply just to ED but SC or any other game. What they will get is Rebirth/X4, likely prettier but equally underwhelming and pointless.
It is incredibly difficult to design some meaningfull leg content that would fit a space ship game - simply because it is not a leg game.
It is just huge resource waste....'
Gdemami absolutely not being an armchair developer
Sadly it seems like one of two things,just a pile of followers that jump on every Blizzard game no matter how good or bad it is or people don't really like content,they like simple dungeon looting.
I have not seen an aggressive game since FFXI ,other than perhaps FFXIV and let's give a tad of credit to TESO as well.However most of these games do in reality ONLY one thing,instance looting,the rest of these games are meaningless in scope to what players are really doing.
So a fullly fledged mmorpg we are not seeing ,small linear ideas of repeating content is what we are seeing time and time again.
Yes FFXIV has done a LOT for the game and genre however the one failed area that i can't accept is the class/combat structure and so happens that is the most important part to ruin.Yes compared to the Wowe's and GW2's it is easy to one up those games but i still look at FFXI's classes and combat and i feel it is way better than all the rest in the genre.I am of course speaking of 1-75 after than FFXI became worse and more like Wow and FFXIV.
Item levels are the worst most laziest design ever,Square should have never copied Blizzard's bad ideas.
Bottom line is that FFXIV is second best behind FFXI in some capacity,better in others,but overall still better than anything else in the market.Too bad i am not looking for better than the market,i am looking for a game that i want to play,a structure more like FFXI but with added tweaks and improvements.
Never forget 3 mile Island and never trust a government official or company spokesman.
I'm looking forward to 4.1, and hoping it brings some needed improvements (and good content), because if not, I'm not sure how long I'll stick with it vs. just checking back in every ~6 months for the story updates.
To be fair to the FFXV team, even if it's apparently just a shallow theme park (according to a lot of posts in this thread), it must be a pretty well-done shallow theme park to keep them positive for 10 months. Most other theme parks burn out before that for a lot of posters here from my observations.
The biggest observation made thus far is that the last FF MMO that is nearly TWO DECADES old had better-designed content.
For whatever reason they (the FFXIV dev team) have elected to create content with a pre-designed (and short-leashed at at) expiration date.
FFXI built UPON its activities/content, FFXIV builds OVER theirs.
It's a tired, cyclical approach and promotes all of the "Patch-sub" that you see.
For me, I'm not even going to bother with re-subbing knowing full well I will just cancel it the next month or maybe at best two.
Maybe if I get the MMO itch again ill give it a go when its incredibly cheap (<$20) ill scratch it with Stormblood for a bit.