To buy or not to buy?

Drashan · August 2006

I've been reading up on these forums as to what sort of a game FFXI is... and it seems quite good. I'm just wondering, is it worth buying it? I mean, I really like the casual style of WoW, and I can take a grind to a certain extent, but not much. I love how it sounds as if the story plays a big role in the game and how it appears to have some quite original concepts.

Here are some questions which are still unanswered:

1. World PvP: Is there any? What's it like?

2. The Community: Are people helpful, willing to role-play etc.?

3. Leveling: Are we talking WoW speed or slower?

4. Rewards: Do avid players of FFXI feel like they've gained something from it? Or is it the sort of game you're likely to forget about a couple of weeks after you've stopped playing.

OK I think that's all, I'd really appreciate any helpful responces, thanks.

Bigstrongman · August 2006

1. There is a "form" of Pvp called Ballista. They recently introduced something called Brenner, which I believe is somewhat like it. I have only done Ballista about 3x in 3.5 years, cause I hate PvP. But there are some who do it a lot. PvP in FFXI is not a way you can build your character (ie. Unlocking skills, uber weapons, etc). The main reason ppl in FFXI do PvP is a break from exping/leveling etc. You probably will hate it there if youre looking for PvP.

2. Community is somewhat helpful simply due to the immense nature of the game. If you are the type of person to log on after downloading and expect someone to walk you thru on the teat without you reading a manual, youre gonna starve. But if you have questions from time/time about a few things, people will help you. Find someone with a "M" on their heads, they are players who wish to help you. Role play.. hmmm. This game does not lend itself to that. There is no "Shadowkiller from the 3rd house of Bonecrushing " and stuff. This game is really for, from what I saw much older players who are all about character development. I dont think Ive ever seen any roleplaying, just grab assing in town from the younger people.

3. Leveling. One, big, long, never-ending grind. Max level is 75 for a job and you will feel every single point of that exp after 40. With the new expansion they have places where you can "chain exp" for 60 and higher, but youll do that at 100 exp a kill; each kill will take about 3 mins.. so do that math. I had 4 75 jobs in that time, then they came out with spells (BioIII, FlareII, etc) that would require you to go back out into the world and kill for 30k MORE exp to get them. That was too much for me. So, if you hate to grind, do NOT buy this game. That said, you dont really havet to grind exp, you can do missions/quests with others up to a point.

4. Rewards. youd never forget this game. I played so long because even though I hated the grind, most times you forgot it when you got all your AF armor, or were able to use a uber weapon you got from a BC (kind of challenge you use seals you get from exping, which could drop good stuff). There are no guilds, there are "linkshells", basically small groups of ppl who support each other, help with quests, etc. Linkshells do not fight one another in the game, but they fight with one another over camping items, MPK issues (someone drags mobs on you to kill you), who/said/what/to/who etc. If you have a good linkshell with people you like, you will love this game and it will be VERY hard to leave.

Overall, think EVE online style character development.. FFXI will require huge amounts of time.

Drashan · August 2006

Really helpful that, thanks. Based on what you've told me, I don't think FFXI is the game for me, and I almost thought this before already. Thanks for giving honest, direct answers to my questions. I guess it's only £9.99 from amazon so I may as well have a go for a month at some point, but right now, I'm gonna stick with WoW and see what happens after patch 1.12. Thanks again.

eldar · August 2006

I'd have to agree with most of what he said with the exception of friendly and helpful community.

When I first started playing FF the community was god aweful. It was so bad that japanese did not like playing with Americans. It become a huge racial thing that caused very awful partying. Now I have two friends who also played with me, one who was a hardcore fanatic and the other who really wasn't interested. Overall the game gets boring. Waiting for parties gets boring and sometimes time consuming.

There has been reports of people waiting for 8 hours plus for parties in that game, longer than any other MMORPG. Plus another thing that makes it kinda worthless is the fact that once you hit around level 10-20 there is no such thing as solo. It becomes a must team game. So if you "try" to go kill something it will most likely completely destroy you in later levels which is sad. If the solo element of the game was in here besides beastmaster it would be a decent game.

Stay away and keep playing WoW but then again I hear WoW's not all that impressive anymore either.

Kingleopold · August 2006

"There has been reports of people waiting for 8 hours plus for parties in that game, longer than any other MMORPG"

If you're waiting 8 hours for a party, somethings wrong. Either you've aileninated a whole lot of people or you forgot to turn off /invis (the Away From Keyboard/Not Seeking marker). That said, it can sometimes be difficult to create or join a party very quickly, so having a plan B is always good. There's plenty of plan B's in the game to keep you entertained.

Telaki · August 2006

Originally posted by eldar

There has been reports of people waiting for 8 hours plus for parties in that game, longer than any other MMORPG. Plus another thing that makes it kinda worthless is the fact that once you hit around level 10-20 there is no such thing as solo. It becomes a must team game. So if you "try" to go kill something it will most likely completely destroy you in later levels which is sad. If the solo element of the game was in here besides beastmaster it would be a decent game.

If you're waiting on your butt for 8 hours, then you're seriouslly don't somthing wrong. Because you should NEVER sit and do nothing, theres always somthign to do, this game is only boring to boring people.

And btw, Bst, NIn, Drg, Smn, Pld, & Rdm can all solo effectively.

Drashan · August 2006

OK, I have some more questions because those replies have kinda equalled out my opinion of the game...

1) What's the economy like? Is it dynamic? Have gil-farmers trashed it?

2) Jobs: I've head you can be things like 'Gardeners' and stuff to get money, is this true? If so, is it a pleasant disctraction?

3) Player-owned housing? Is there any?

4) Combat? Is it very FF-esque or is it more of a stock MMORPG combat system?

Thanks once again.

Vaah · August 2006

It's a great game only if you have a group of friends who will play together regularly. I haven't touch the game for a long time now, but wish I had 5 real life friends interested in the game when I quit.

Garrik · August 2006

Originally posted by Vaah
It's a great game only if you have a group of friends who will play together regularly. I haven't touch the game for a long time now, but wish I had 5 real life friends interested in the game when I quit.

When i started i had no friends in the game, but now iv made many great friends who i can play with regularly. The game is cheap now and you get 2 out of the 3 expansions so id recommend just trying it out.

Rinic · August 2006

Originally posted by Drashan

OK, I have some more questions because those replies have kinda equalled out my opinion of the game...
1) What's the economy like? Is it dynamic? Have gil-farmers trashed it? RMT did trash it, but recently tons of RMT accounts were banned and on most servers prices are going down, but the thing is, people always complained about how expensive things are, except, they aren't expensive. When prices on some things go up, prices on EVERYTHING goes up, therefor the things you were farming before for 10k a stack, are now worth say 20k a stack.

2) Jobs: I've head you can be things like 'Gardeners' and stuff to get money, is this true? If so, is it a pleasant disctraction? Gardening is one thing you can do to make money. Theres also HELM (harvesting, excavation, logging, mining) wich you can do and make money. Gardening is probably the most expensive out of all of those.

3) Player-owned housing? Is there any? In your home city you have a "Mog House" which you can decorate to your likeing, you're the only one who can ever go into your mog house. In your house you can view your delivery box, storage, safe, change classes, etc. You can travel to other citys and "rent" a mog house (it's free). It comes fully furnished and has everything your normal mog house has except for storage, and gardening. (But your moogle warps back to your normal mog house to do the gardening for you.)

4) Combat? Is it very FF-esque or is it more of a stock MMORPG combat system? You select a monster, then select attack, and make sure you stand close to it. From there you attack automatically until either you or the monster is dead. Every weapon has a certain delay on it, that is the time between your swings. This isn't like other MMO's where you sit there and go.. F1 F2 F1 F2 F1 F2 F1 F2. During battle you can use abilitys to cast spells or enhance attacks and such. As the battle progresses you get TP or Tactical Points, once your TP gauge reaches 100% (it can go up to 300%) you are able to do a weaponskill, wich is an attack that does much more damage than a normal attack. Such as, a weaponskill called Asuran Fists, where the person using the weaponskill does an eightfold attack on the target, or Flat Blade, where it doesn't do much damage, but stuns the monster for a second or 2, preventing them from doing anything, or interrupting an ability.

Thanks once again.

Hope this helped.

Telaki · August 2006

Originally posted by Drashan

OK, I have some more questions because those replies have kinda equalled out my opinion of the game...
1) What's the economy like? Is it dynamic? Have gil-farmers trashed it?
2) Jobs: I've head you can be things like 'Gardeners' and stuff to get money, is this true? If so, is it a pleasant disctraction?
3) Player-owned housing? Is there any?
4) Combat? Is it very FF-esque or is it more of a stock MMORPG combat system?
Thanks once again.

1) The economy varies, Server to server. Its really not as bad as people make it out to be, in some other thread somone was freaking out over a lvl 1 HQ sword going for 50k. Then you have to ask, "Well how hard is it to make gil on your server?" Because on mine 50k is about an hours worth of work (On Average). Gil is Gil, what the prices are now, and what the prices were 4 years ago are all in like a 5:1 Ratio. What you did when you first started to what you can do now will net you close to the same Ratio of gil (Like when I started 1mil was a lot, now 10mil is a lot. But it takes about the same ammount of time to make 10mil now as it did to make 1mil back then, Its just a number, But people see a big number then freak out over how the economy is full of big numbers and bullsh!it like that).

2) Umm I think you mean money making professions (Because we call war,whm,blm,mnk,thf,rdm, etc. Jobs) Theres crafting, which is a very long and boring proccess, most of the time thy'll be a constant gil sink hole untill you get them lvled a bit, and you might start making poor-decent gil. Gardening, umm 10 flowerpots at a time in your mog house, you examine then every RL day, After a few days you may get prompted to feed it a crystal, then last you can harvest. Some seeds take 3-4 days, others like Tree cuttings & saplings take 2 weeks (This is real life time). Theres chocobo digging, where your chocobo diggs int he ground for items (Very, very very time consuming). Also fishing (This is concidered a craft) don't think I need to explaint his one... And lastly just normal farming, killing XXX mob to get YYY drop and sell it for $$$$.

3) Nothing like EQ2 has, You have a mog house, its basically just a room with a moogle, and either a fireplace or foutain agasint the back wall, you can decorate it with furnishings, But its only for you to see, noone else can enter your mog house.

4) Very hard to explalin this one, its very unique. I would strongly suggestion going to some place like Youtube.com and looking up ffxi video's to see the fighting.

Drashan · August 2006

OK Thanks alot both of you, I figure I might as well just buy it since I can pick it up for 10.00 Pounds from loads of places, maybe even less. I've seen someone ask if there is a good server for noobs, without gil farmers and the like, and people responded "no". But is it true that every server has been ruined?

Garrik · August 2006

Originally posted by Drashan
OK Thanks alot both of you, I figure I might as well just buy it since I can pick it up for 10.00 Pounds from loads of places, maybe even less. I've seen someone ask if there is a good server for noobs, without gil farmers and the like, and people responded "no". But is it true that every server has been ruined?

Items are expensive on all servers (they do vary alot) but the servers are by no means ruind at all. I play on Ragnarok and im happy with it.

If you want a linkshell and a WP to Rag check out the LS site for DigitalBackSpin, im currently in the LS and its massive and full of great people in all time zones.

Here is a link.

DigitalBackSpin

Hope to see you in game.

Garrik

Jeremy26mnc · August 2006

I played FFXI and got pretty far.. then they made the fighting modes different and messed me all up. I never played it again after they changed the fighting style. But the graphics were nice and I had alot of friends.

Telaki · August 2006

Originally posted by Drashan

OK Thanks alot both of you, I figure I might as well just buy it since I can pick it up for 10.00 Pounds from loads of places, maybe even less. I've seen someone ask if there is a good server for noobs, without gil farmers and the like, and people responded "no". But is it true that every server has been ruined?

The people you're refering to, and possibly yourself want a Utopia, And i'm sorry to break your heart but it doesn't exist. Every Online game, within a few months will have RMT on it. If you're looking for somthign without it, Play single player games. To anyone who plays MMORPG's they're just part of the economy, What they do, is just the same as what any other player can do, they just do it 24/7.

The economy's are in no way ruined, people just like to complain.

Drashan · August 2006

Hmmn yea I suppose. I've just never realised that it was a problem actually... I mean there are shit loads of these 'Pay for virtual cash sites'... I never thought they could be trashing the WoW economy so I guess it ain't a big problem.

Also thanks for the help but I think I'm going to buy Lineage 2. This may seem a little random but I have been looking at similar topics on the Lineage 2 forums, so thanks, but I guess I won't be seeing you in-game.

Garrik · August 2006

Originally posted by Drashan
Hmmn yea I suppose. I've just never realised that it was a problem actually... I mean there are shit loads of these 'Pay for virtual cash sites'... I never thought they could be trashing the WoW economy so I guess it ain't a big problem.
Also thanks for the help but I think I'm going to buy Lineage 2. This may seem a little random but I have been looking at similar topics on the Lineage 2 forums, so thanks, but I guess I won't be seeing you in-game.

Let me just warn you about Lineage 2, you where bothered about messed up economies, so my advice would be stay away from Lineage 2 most defiantly as it is well know for having the #1 most messed up economy ever. Seriously the starting prices even for noobie gear is insane, by the time your level 20 to get yourself fully kitted in top of the line D grade (the only stuff worth getting) you need about 1.5 million adena, its insane and it only gets worse. Trust me i played Lineage 2 for quite a while and that game even tempted me to give in and buy 50 mil worth of adena at times (very stressful in game times ) but i didnt because its not only a waste of money but it also just further messes up the economy.

Seriously, the L2 prices and inflation are insane. But goodluck with it anyway, i hope you enjoy it there.

Garrik

jk3592 · August 2006

Man~ get ready for some serious grinding. This game is just a big grind fest. Quests are a bitch, you very often need help to complete them, farming for gils are another long time consumption (why bother the economy got f-ed up anyways), level cap quests are also a bitch, everything in this f-ing game takes a long painful process, and if you don't have a good linkshell or a permanent party... good luck finding one (YOU CAN'T SOLO SHIT, F-ing NOTHING) you'll be sometimes waiting for hours. I left this game when I reached level 50 thf 25 nin, and when I look back at it, I had fun here there but, I regret it. It's just my opinion don't kill me~ FFXI fans... I was once a fan too.

Telaki · August 2006

Originally posted by jk3592
Man~ get ready for some serious grinding. This game is just a big grind fest. Quests are a bitch, you very often need help to complete them, farming for gils are another long time consumption (why bother the economy got f-ed up anyways), level cap quests are also a bitch, everything in this f-ing game takes a long painful process, and if you don't have a good linkshell or a permanent party... good luck finding one (YOU CAN'T SOLO SHIT, F-ing NOTHING) you'll be sometimes waiting for hours. I left this game when I reached level 50 thf 25 nin, and when I look back at it, I had fun here there but, I regret it. It's just my opinion don't kill me~ FFXI fans... I was once a fan too.

First, You revived a 2 week old (dead) post, and second, Gil is plural. (That means no "s")

P.s. Go change your diaper, somthing smells

jk3592 · August 2006

Telaki = HCTIB A

narakuu · August 2006

FFXI PWNZ... but anyway.. didnt you say you take grinding to a certain extent? L2 is probably the game with the most annoying and longest grinding i have ever experienced. Sure FFXI has a bit of grinding too but somehow L2 always felt more annoying and longer.

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