Greetings, everyone!
We're pleased to present the full digest from the Letter from the Producer LIVE Part XXIII! If you missed the live stream, or if you just want to watch it again (and again), check it out below!
A: While we made adjustments to machinist in Patch 3.01, we haven’t only been looking at machinist, and have been looking into adjustments for all jobs based on the feedback we're receiving. There are adjustments we're already working on for Patch 3.05. I'd like to talk about each job individually during the show.0:02:58
Q: Are you planning on making adjustments to jobs other than machinist in the future?
A: The Patch 3.0 notes only listed the names of the actions that had been adjusted and did not go into detail about what was adjusted. When the patch notes were posted, the members of the development team were the only ones that knew the stats for jobs when they reach level 60. Furthermore, during the Letter from the Producer LIVE that took place right before the launch of Heavensward, there were comments about the character I was using with the Allagan tomestone of law equipment mentioning that both HP and MP were too high. Once you reach level 60, you’ll be aiming to get the equipment that you can purchase with Allagan tomestones of law. Afterwards, you can upgrade this equipment and obtain gear that can be purchased with items you obtain in Alexander. As you continue to upgrade your gear, your stats will increase significantly along with your item level. Due to this, actions that are based on percentages of your stats, such as Stoneskin depending on the amount of maximum HP, would destroy the game balance, and it was necessary to make large-scale adjustments to these actions for the 3.x patch series.0:03:39
Q: Can you tell us the reasoning behind the action adjustments made in Patch 3.0?
At the moment, everyone’s item level is growing considerably, and if we were to leave the effects as they were before the adjustments, I’m quite sure you can imagine how powerful they would become. However, releasing this information without actually experiencing the changes firsthand would only have led to debates about the numerical values. We received this kind of feedback right after launch while players were still leveling, but as more players are reaching level 60, feedback based on actually playing the game after getting equipment is starting to come in. This is the first time we’ve raised the level cap, and while our principle is to release all information for regular patches, we decided it would be best not to post this information ahead of time. However, this is something that we can look into doing in the future if we continue receiving feedback on it.
A: When adjustments to a certain job become necessary for each of the roles, our fundamental policy is to make adjustments to improve them in some fashion to keep them on par with each other. Adjustments that players often call “nerfs” definitely have a bad reputation, and quite frankly the development team doesn’t want to make those types of adjustments. As players ourselves, we have no desire to make adjustments that negatively impact the jobs we play. Essentially, our fundamental stance on adjustments is to enhance jobs so they are on the same level as the other jobs of the same role. However, when certain classes have certain abilities that upset class balance, or will obviously do so in the future, we can't just strengthen all other classes to match.We can't promise that the playerbase won't see some changes as nerfs.0:06:57
Q: There have been a lot of adjustments made in Patch 3.0, both positive and negative. Could you tell us the reasoning behind this?
An easy to understand example for Patch 3.0 is how we changed Shade Shift and Manawall from actions that nullify physical attacks to actions that reduce damage by a set amount. The reason for this was because these actions were too powerful. Looking back on the 2.x series, we realized these skills would be too advantageous if enemies only used physical attacks, so we began giving enemies more magic attacks. As a result, there are very few instances where this skill can be used, greatly reducing its intended utility. We felt it necessary to make overall adjustments to coincide with the release of Heavensward. Moving forward, we believe making these types of adjustments while battles are still in development will be best for a more interesting and overall enjoyable experience.
As a side note, Hallowed Ground is a core ability of paladin, and we did not make any adjustments to its effect.
A: At the moment we're working on fixes and balance adjustments for Patch 3.0, so to be quite honest, the development team doesn't have the time to look into new jobs right now. Furthermore, we originally had plans to introduce ninja early on, and we did so in a very special way. The next new jobs we implement will come around 4.0, and we won't be implementing new ones in the 3.x patch series.0:10:25
Q: Do you have any plans to add new classes or jobs in the 3.x patch series?
A: First, we removed the accuracy stat from the weapons that were added in Patch 3.0, and we plan to maintain this plan through the 3.x patch series. Up until now, even when obtaining a weapon that had a high item level, if you needed a certain amount of accuracy and this new weapon didn’t fulfill that requirement, you couldn't use it. Since there were many cases like this, we've chosen not to add accuracy to weapons. Furthermore, we've reduced the accuracy required to hit enemies to encourage players to equip higher item level weapons. We don't plan on adding accuracy to weapons in the future.0:11:07
Q: The healer equipment added in Patch 3.0 doesn’t have any accuracy. Will you be implementing equipment with accuracy in the future?
Regarding healer gear, while we didn’t add any accuracy to their gear, it's also worth noting that healer equipment didn't have accuracy at the release of 2.0 as well. We designed healers to be such that they didn't need accuracy, but with increases in item levels and increases to the required accuracy to hit enemies, healers’ accuracy became too low so we decided to add accuracy to their equipment over the course of the 2.x patch series. However, this time around we made adjustments to the required accuracy needed to land hits on enemies, and we’ve created a balance similar to that of the beginning of A Realm Reborn, so there's no need to have accuracy on healer equipment at the moment. In the future, if accuracy becomes necessary during the 3.x patch series then we will address this.
With that said though, because there's no accuracy on 3.0 weapons, when challenging older duties from A Realm Reborn, there are cases where you may have insufficient accuracy when level syncing with these new weapons, but we're planning to address this.
Item levels will continue to rise every two patches in the 3.x series, and it's because of this that we performed the adjustments that we did from the start while looking at the broad scope of the game.
A: Currently there are no plans for this. We’re concerned that it would take more time to match all of the roles together with the Duty Finder.0:15:01
Q: Do you have any plans to add a support role category?
A: The reason warriors have high DPS is because that is part of their base job characteristic. They also have a debuff that decreases an enemy’s slashing resistance, which they can take advantage of with their own attacks. Therefore, as an off-tank, warriors can deal high amounts of damage as they can continue to apply this debuff to their target. However, when they’re acting as a main tank, they won’t be able to constantly apply debuffs, so they won’t be able to output as much damage as they were while acting as an off-tank.0:15:26
Q: Even though warriors are tanks, they can deal a lot of damage. Will paladin and dark knight be able to deal similar amounts of damage?
Under similar circumstances, having a team mate debuff a target's slashing resistance for example, Dark knights can also deal a fair amount of damage. But again, if they’re a main tank, they too will be unable to output that much damage. When comparing the damage output between warriors and dark knight, don’t compare it by the amount of burst damage, but the damage dealt over several minutes. You’ll see that dark knights are able to output a similar amount.
Paladin won’t be able to output that much DPS. Earlier I mentioned Hallowed Ground, but paladins specialize in defense, so their damage output is lower compared to the other tanks. These are all part of their job characteristics within the tank role, so warriors are able to output damage easier while acting as both main tank and off-tank.
A: No, even if your item level increases this will not change. The ratio between the amount of maximum MP increased with the increase of item levels, and the amount of MP consumed has been structured while considering the entire 3.x series. However, we may make some adjustments to specific jobs if there’s a situation where their MP may run out in raids and other end-game encounters.0:17:31
Q: As the level cap increased our maximum MP also increased, but it feels like the rate of MP consumption has also increased. Will this be fixed as our item levels increase?
A: While players may debate this, bards have an advantage where they can attack while moving, and they have been able to dodge attacks, handle mechanics, and support party members all while attacking. However, this doesn’t mean that they are always on the move, so when they’re not moving, they can use the Wanderer’s Minuet to become a stationed attacker to increase their DPS. This is how the development team imagined bards will be post-patch 3.0.0:18:21
Q: Since patch 3.0, the playstyle of bard has changed. Could you tell us how you envisioned bard's playstyle in Heavensward?
However, because you learn Wanderer’s Minuet at level 52, it created a situation where their DPS greatly decreased, so we decided to make adjustments. Also, bards were not able to switch between stances smoothly like healers using Cleric Stance. This is why we made adjustments so that they can increase the amount of DPS by recognizing situations where they don't have to move.
This doesn’t mean that bards won't be able to deal damage while moving. After becoming more familiar with a fight, there will be more room to experiment to output even more DPS by changing between stances.
A: This skill will block all the debuff effects that can be removed using Esuna. This is not for regular use, but instead we imagined this being used in future raids. For example, you can use Warden’s Paean ahead of time so that the healer doesn’t need to cast Esuna later. However, we’ll consider making adjustments if there is feedback such as where you may feel the duration of this ability is too short, or if you want this ability to block more types of debuff effects. But keep in mind this is a skill to be used after becoming more familiar with a fight and the strategies needed to beat it.0:20:23
Q: It’s difficult to find uses for bard’s Warden’s Paean. What would you consider to be an ideal situation to use it?
A: We made adjustments to machinist along with bard, but essentially, you'll want to maintain the the effects of Lead Shot and Hot Shot. You’ll also want to use your procs when they're triggered. Another major point for machinists is Wildfire. Machinist has various types of buff effects, so by gaining these buffs and using Wild Fire, you will be able to deal large amounts of damage when the effect duration is finished. However, as we continue to introduce more encounters, you’ll have situations where stacking buffs isn’t always the best option. We'd like players to experiment and try different things to see if they should use buff effects individually or stacked. Until now the focus was towards dungeons, so it might have been hard to see their actual potential, but machinists are quite strong.0:21:30
Q: It feels like machinist can’t deal steady damage. Could you tell us how you envisioned machinist in battle?
A: We mentioned this one month before the release of Heavensward. Since then, we have been finalizing Heavensward and we’re currently working on adjustments for jobs, so we haven’t been able to address this just yet. We need to create effects for all the egi actions when their appearance changes, so it’ll require some time. We still have to decide whether we'll add these as we’re done with each one, or add them all at once, so please give us some more time.0:23:09
Q: In Letter from the Producer LIVE Part XXI, you mentioned a system that would let us change the looks of summoner’s egi. Can you please tell us your progress on this?
A: Currently, when Enochian is reused, instead of overwriting the amount of time remaining, it shortens the duration first before overwriting the remaining time, and this is what made it hard to maintain. Since we have received a lot of feedback in regards to this, we’ll change this to overwrite the original effect. Additionally, we're looking into making adjustments to the effect of Thunder since it has little effect while using Enochian. For all other points, I believe there are parts that will take a bit of getting used to, so we would like you to first try out Enochian after the change and submit your feedback.0:24:11
Q: It's difficult to maintain Enochian. Are there any plans to change this?
A: We're currently looking into this. However, we do not have any plans to make any extreme adjustments until Alexander: Gordias (Savage) is introduced. There’s a tendency to simply compare actions like Holmgang and Living Dead or certain actions between scholar and astrologian, but instead of comparing individual actions, we are balancing the jobs by looking at the overall characteristics of the job, such as how dark knight can deal damage. We'll check the job's overall performance in the raid to see if Living Dead needs to be adjusted.0:25:01
Q: Compared to Hallowed Ground and Holmgang, there’s more burden for healers when Living Dead is used. Do you have plans to adjust this effect?
A: This goes for warriors as well, but the idea behind this is not to be able to use all the combos all the time, and instead we would like players to separate their uses based on the situation. For example, in situations where strength reduction is more effective, use the Rage of Halone combo. When damage takes priority over reducing a target’s strength, then use the other combos.0:26:32
Q: When using the Goring Blade combo after using the Rage of Halone combo, the strength reduction effect wears off by the time you try to use the Royal Authority combo, so I don’t have room to use Royal Authority. Could you please offer some advice on the best time to use this?
A: The reason the healing effect from Defiance doesn’t extend to these are simply because these are abilities and not spells. We are aware of feedback on how you feel there’s less synergy with scholars. However, we currently have no plans to change this. Because end-game raids haven't been released yet, we cannot decide if any type of change will break the balance within the tank roles, so please consider this when sending in your feedback.0:27:39
Q: Could you make it so warrior’s enhanced healing effect from Defiance extends to Lustrate and Tetragrammaton?
A: We’re thinking of making overall adjustments. For card effects, while they have a flashy visual effect, you can’t feel much of an actual effect, so we’re currently making adjustments aimed for Patch 3.05 so that you can feel the effects of the cards and their usage. Some of our planned adjustments include being able to use Spread while not in combat and shortening the recast time for Shuffle. This will give astrologians more opportunities to make use of cards, which is the job's defining feature. As for Collective Unconscious and Celestial Opposition, rather than make adjustments while comparing them to other healer actions, adjustments will be founded on astrologian's special traits where they switch between stances and use cards. Since this a new job, as well as a bit more of a technical job, the effects of some actions may be difficult to understand, giving the impression that the job is weak, so we’ll make adjustments without waiting for raids to be introduced.0:28:56
Q: Are there any plans to make adjustments for astrologian?
A: This is mainly to recover Aetherflow stacks, but this isn’t something we envisioned to be used frequently as you will not be able to call forth the fairy while this is in effect. This was designed in a way so that, for example in raids, you can use this between phases, or in emergency situations where you would need to use up all the Aetherflow stacks in order to heal using Lustrate.0:31:13
Q: I don't understand the benefit of absorbing your fairy with scholar's Dissipation. How do you see scholars using this skill?
A: While it may feel like the rate that healing potency increases has become lower, the rate has been calculated based on level 60 and the fact that item levels will continue to rise in the 3.x patch series. Compared to the increase when going from level 1 to 50, the increase curve from level 50 to 60 is gentler.0:32:17
Q: Compared to level 50, when becoming level 60 it feels like the healing potency of fairies is lower. Is there anything affecting this?
A: With the number of healers increasing to three, we had to make adjustments to keep them equal to one another. Additionally, as I mentioned previously, we had to make adjustments to actions that are based on stat percentages. When looking at them as additional actions, it may feel like white mages have lost one of their advantages. However, to preserve white mage’s identity as a job with pure healing capabilities, we added extremely potent instant heals, and boosted their healing power in exchange for the advantages that were taken away. Though it may be possible to increase the damage absorption of Stoneskin II to 18%, it's difficult to determine if this would be the best course of action. If there's enough feedback, we'll consider it.0:33:29
Q: Can you please add a special effect to Protect and Stoneskin for white mage similar to how it was before Patch 3.0?
A: While developing this, there was a discussion about whether it’d be good to have an ability that gives five stacks while not in battle. However, the current damage values were calculated to be able deal damage nicely while in battle, so we are not envisioning battles where you fight against enemies with five stacks off the bat. In the event that we were to make this possible, it would make monk too strong, so we won't be implementing this at the moment.0:35:40
Q: It’s difficult to store up five stacks of Chakra while moving through dungeons. Can you add an ability that instantly gives the maximum amount of stacks?
A: Since the 3.x patch series has only just begun, I feel that there is still plenty of room for players to experiment and find ways to meet the directional-based requirements. However, there are situations when an enemy is in a wall or the boss positioning is such that it's difficult to execute attacks from the flank and rear. Not being able to attack in these situations results in a damage loss, so we'll be making adjustments in time for Patch 3.05. The level 60 cap will continue for a while, so we'd like players to get used to directional-based skills for the long-term and find ways to increase their damage output even more.0:37:05
Q: With the new combos for dragoon there are more directional-based requirements and it’s become more difficult to play. Do you have any plans to ease the directional requirements?
A: As I just mentioned, we've only just started the 3.x patch series, and the level 60 cap will continue for a while. Back during 2.0, rotations weren't perfected as soon as players hit level 50, and the same holds true now. It will become easier as players continue researching and experimenting. Additionally, having played at the level 50 cap for so long, I understand the feeling of wanting to master the jobs and be able to play as you did at that time. However, we’d like to hear your feedback after playing a bit more, and trying out Alexander: Gordias (Savage).0:38:42
Q: Ninja has become a very busy job with the addition of directional-based actions. Do you plan to make any adjustments that make it a bit easier to play ninja?
One thing I would like to note, however, when playing on a gamepad the amount of cross hotbar space is lacking, and this is one aspect that makes it feel like you are busier. I’ve gotten word that Minagawa, our lead UI designer, is working on a new feature he refers to as a “double cross hotbar.”
Again, we'll be making fine adjustments to jobs overall in Patch 3.05, and after implementing Alexander: Gordias (Savage) we will continue to address job adjustments as necessary. As I said earlier, the level cap will remain at 60 for a while, so please keep providing us with feedback.
A: We purposefully increased the options you can select during the main scenario in Heavensward, but we’re concerned that adding in an option such as “Cast cure?” in an exciting part of the story and not having the outcome change could have the opposite effect. Furthermore, there has already been feedback about the main scenario that mentioned that the outcomes turned out differently than they expected after choosing an option. Everyone feels differently, and it’s not something that is easy to solve. However, moving forward we will do our best to create situations that are in line with the important decisions you make.0:42:24
Q: During the main scenario quests there are times the Warrior of Light seems a little too passive. For future main scenario quests could you make it possible to choose what we do without affecting the outcome?
A: We've received a lot of feedback regarding these quests, and the moogles have taken a lot of heat from the players. We realize how strange it is for moogles native to the Churning Mists to get lost in their own homeland. Rest assured we won't be making quests like this again.0:43:52
Q: Do you plan on making adjustments to the quests in the Churning Mists so that it's easier to find certain NPCs and quest points?
A: I believe each staff member in charge of the main scenario has their own particular points. But as for the part I made adjustments to, or parts where I wrote the dialogue myself, I discussed with Maehiro how we wanted to give an overall feeling of players setting out on an adventure. The main scenario for A Realm Reborn was a continuation from FFXIV version 1.0, so it needed to have character introductions and parts which weren’t part of the original plan. We were especially particular with the parts where Ysayle made her appearance in Patch 2.4 and figuring out how to get the dragoon Estinien in the main scenario. We created it in a way that you can understand what they were thinking, and we also made it so they form a strong bond with and fight alongside the Warrior of Light.0:44:53
Q: The 3.0 main scenario quest series was really good. Can you please tell us which scenes and lines of dialogue you were especially particular with?
If you were rushing to clear the story, you just needed to focus on the main scenario quests. However, there were also opportunities to flesh out the story around the main scenario. For example, there are times when the quest icon would be over Alphinaud's head, with Ysayle and Estinien standing next to him. By talking to Ysayle and Estinien, you can hear some more of the story related to the current situation in the main scenario, and also, if you return back to Ishgard at these times, the NPC dialogue changes, so you’ll be able to see more of their story. You may have missed the chance to read these stories, but we have made it so that players who have read these can delve more into the main scenario.
I have answered this several times during interviews, but I personally wanted the main scenario to focus on Alphinaud's growth. Alphinaud started off acting like he was above everyone else, but then he loses everything and now has to find his way. There's a scene where Alphinaud enthusiastically offers to deal with a primal threat, and Estinien steps in and points out that it’s the Warrior of Light who will need to put themselves in danger to handle it. We were especially particular about this part of the main scenario, and I was closely involved in its writing.
Also, this is a more detailed point, but we made an unreasonable request to Soken by asking him to create night time field music. And not just some specific track for a short event, but a proper score to give players the feeling they're truly out on an adventure. Because we wanted to be particular with this, we pushed Soken to create it in three days. You’ll also see NPCs at Camp Dragonhead with different dialogue at the turning point of the main scenario, as well as after the ending. While many may not take notice, we put a lot of work into these aspects of the story.
A: Since this involves spoilers, I won't go into details, but there are a couple characters that didn’t have a complete ending to their story, so we’ll add side quests and main scenario quests which focus on these. Additionally, we’ll explain some of the story through the Delivery Moogle quests as well. We’ll be doing something similar to what we did last year in August to celebrate the second anniversary since the launch of A Realm Reborn. We are planning to post short stories that you can read around this time.0:48:47
Q: There are many unique NPCs in the main scenario. Do you have any plans to add quests that focus on these specific characters?
A: Yes, we created these with a continuation in mind. There's also that mysterious Miqo'te after completing the quest, so we have plans for a story related to them.0:49:46
Q: In regards to the Doma adventurers quest, I really enjoyed the uniqueness of the characters. Do you have plans to continue these?
A: Talking about it too much would take the fun away from it, but certain NPCs related to the beast tribe quest may mention something different after completing the dungeon. These are really small things, but we were particular with them, so if you’re interested in lore, I suggest going back to these places to check the changed dialogue.0:50:17
Q: Is the Iksalion that appears in the Fractal Continuum related to the Ixal? If so, in the beast tribe quests Sezul Totoloc was in search of Ayatlan, but could the floating continent Azys Lla be it?
A: I think you’ll find out in 3.1. For those that haven’t seen this, keep an eye out!1:07:41
Q: You can sometimes see some type of airship flying around the Sea of Clouds. What is it?
Battle Content
A: While playing, I too have seen situations where the enemies jump from target to target. Since the level cap was raised, we believe this is due to the difference in item level. For example, the enemy's focus will jump around more in a situation where the DPS is geared up with law gear, and the tank is a fresh level 60. Additionally, tanks have new actions available as well, so there may be a situation where a warrior uses Overpower several times and then switches over to Deliverance to attack, but ends up losing hate. In this case they need to consider gaining more hate before switching. I have seen situations like this myself. Keeping this in mind, we’ll continue to observe the situation a bit more to see if the issue is due to the gap between item levels. We foresaw this type of issue arising in Patch 3.0, and have increased the amount of enmity the tank gains. However, we will increase this more if needed.1:08:33
Q: It’s difficult to maintain hate as a tank in level 60 dungeons. Are you planning some type of adjustment?
A: Odin's level cap has been increased to 60. The strength will gradually be lowered, so please give it some time.1:10:23
Q: It’s difficult to beat the Odin FATE now since there aren't many people around. Can you add new rewards to stimulate participation?
A: I’ll simply say “no comment,” for now, but that doesn't mean it won't ever be implemented (laugh)1:11:15
Q: Do you have plans to introduce an extreme version of the final boss fight in the 3.0 main scenario quest, similar to the Minstrel’s Ballad: Ultima Weapon?
A: We're planning on releasing some information related to Patch 3.1 during the 14-hour live stream that will be held in August. There is also a hint hiding in something I said earlier.1:12:07
Q: What are you planning for the new 24-man raid?
A: I understand this concern as I too am busy a lot. However, the daily reset system runs on the entire server, so it’ll be very difficult to implement this type of stacking feature, but we'll consider this.1:12:52
Q: Can you make it so the Allagan tomestone and Roulette bonuses carry over from the day before or the week before for the days wecan’t play?
A: We do not have any plans for this at the moment. We're planning new features that utilizes chocobos and magitek armor, so we may increase it when we release this or we may instead focus on balancing the content around it. If we increased the rank right now, it would disrupt the game balance.1:13:45
Q: Do you have plans to increase the rank of our companion chocobos?
A: The item level of the rewards you can obtain will be different. The designs of the rewards will be the same, but you’ll be able to dye the equipment from Alexander (Savage). There will also be special rewards that can only be obtained from Alexander (Savage). This isn’t something that will affect the strength of your character, but it's something you can show off.1:14:18
Q: Can you tell us the difference between Alexander and Alexander (Savage)?
However, the difficulty of Alexander (Savage) is really high, and we’re still trying to finalize how difficult it should be.
A: I answered this in an interview right before Heavensward release, but amongst the level 50 dungeons, there are those that were introduced later down the line that have stronger monsters despite them being level 50. This is due to the increased item level. However, the item level sync is set equally, so the time it takes to complete the dungeons varies greatly. For this reason, if we were to make the amount of experience points earned equal, it would be much more efficient to run dungeons that can be completed in a shorter amount of time. Since we didn’t have enough time to calculate the amount of experience points players should earn, along with debugging, we made it so that you cannot gain experience points from these dungeons. Once the job balancing adjustments have settled down, we’re planning to calculate the experience point allocation. We cannot give a concrete schedule for this yet, but we’ll look into this once the situation settles down, so please wait a bit longer.1:15:34
Q: Do you have plans to make it possible to earn experience points post-level 50 from 2.0 dungeons?
A: We do have plans for this. Previously we mentioned plans to let you establish a squad within your Grand Company, so instead of just collecting something to move to the next rank, we wanted to do something like increase the amount of NPCs you can hire by gaining ranks. We are planning to unlock the new ranks once this is introduced. This doesn't look like it will be implemented in time for 3.1, but we will be working on it moving forward.1:17:09
Q: When are you planning to unlock new ranks for Grand Companies?
A: The company chest is probably one of the most delicate features in FFXIV. Although it may look like a simple storage box, since multiple players can interact with it simultaneously even a small mistake may cause the server to go down. We'll need some time for a thorough debug process to confirm stability. Since this is a quality of life improvement, we’ll proceed carefully with this task.1:18:22
Q: Do you have plans to place a company chest in Ishgard?
A: We're working on this, and it will be possible to change your free company name in Patch 3.1.1:19:18
Q: Will we be able to change our free company names?
Item-related
A: Since we have been receiving lots of requests for not only a minion, but a painting furnishing, we're aiming to add them in Patch 3.1.1:19:44
Q: Do you have plans to introduce a Haurchefant minion?
A: The recast time and efficacy of potions isn't suited to the current level cap, so we’re planning to make adjustments.1:21:14
Q: Do you have plans to increase the potency from potions and medicines to match the level cap increase?
A: It's possible to introduce more methods. However, we won't change the drop rate. We understand that they’re cute and there is a demand for them, but it’s because of their rarity that they are highly sought after. This is also what motivates players to go out and get them. After all, there needs to be an element of luck in a game. If everyone had these minions there would be little reason to display them, and not every minion is difficult to obtain. We'd like to keep the rare items as something you can brag about.1:21:37
Q: Do you have plans to introduce more methods for obtaining cute and/or rare minions?
A: We have been receiving many requests for this as well, so we’re talking about making it possible to obtain it through a future side quest.1:23:14
Q: Can you make it possible to glamour Haurchefant’s shield?
A:I want this too! (laugh)1:23:50
Q: Will Tataru ever create gear for us?
A: Starting with FFT, Matsuno's games involve lots of stylish fantasy designs. If there are enough requests then we'd like to add them.1:25:23
Q: For someone that loves Tactics games, I just can't get enough of the Valerian equipment. Will you be adding more designs from other FFT classes?
Other Content
A: We believe that only having the option to obtain upgrade materials through hunts is too restricting to players, so we're going to offer more options in Patch 3.05. However, since you will need these items when leveling your second job onward, we're considering gradually offering more options for obtaining these items.1:26:09
Q: Do you have plans to add other methods for obtaining upgrade materials other than hunts?
A: When we introduce new fields in the future, we would like players to first explore the area with their ground mounts and fly later on. We want the players to feel the need to fly in the area first so that they will have a greater sense of accomplishment once they are able to.1:27:01
Q: I would like to be able to fly as soon as I enter a new area. Do you have plans to make adjustments so we can obtain Aether Currents easier, or be able to fly faster than the way it's currently set?
However, when we were making the final adjustments, we created quests which offer Aether Currents as a reward. We adjusted it so that you can first complete the quests that reward Aether Currents, and then complete the other quests once you’re able to fly. However, some of these quests were tied behind other quests, so we would like to adjust these when we have the opportunity. Also, when we introduce new fields, we would like to make changes so you’re able to fly a bit earlier. However, being able to fly immediately upon entering a new area would defeat the purpose of creating new fields to explore. We want to keep the game-like feel, so when we’re creating this, we want to make sure there’s that sense of adventure. In regards to balance, we will be making adjustments based on player feedback.
A: During development, Idyllshire was originally designed to be included in the same area as the Dravanian Hinterlands, but we considered the fact that it would be heavily concentrated with players, and also that we're planning a lot of other things there. As such, we decided to separate it from the zone, which ended up being slightly inconvenient. In Revenant’s Toll, players are able to ride their mounts, which is convenient. However, this isn’t the same for Idyllshire, so we’re considering making it possible to ride mounts inside. Additionally, we’re looking into placing an aetheryte in the Dravanian Hinterlands. It might take some time, so we ask for your patience.1:29:26
Q: Do you plan on adding an aetheryte to the Dravanian Hinterlands?
A: I have several items that are already used for glamour stored in the Armoury Chest so I can glamour new gear as soon as I obtain it. Right now we’re looking into making a place where players can create glamours using gear stored inside a retainer’s inventory. The reason why we’re not making it possible to glamour from anywhere is because if this becomes available, it will put stress on the servers, therefore, we’re looking into places like a fitting room or a fashion stage, and we’ll make it possible to access retainers from there to free up space in the Armoury Chest.1:30:39
Q: A lot of new equipment has been introduced, do you have plans to implement an inventory specifically for glamour, or some type of gear log?
A: We are planning to have island exploration which is unlike anything available until now. We’ll go over more details regarding this in the next Letter from the Producer LIVE or before Patch 3.1 is released.1:32:11
Q: Do you plan on adding exploration anything like hidden treasure chests in the really large new areas?
A: Since there are many players who played FINAL FANTASY XI, we're going to confirm things related to lore first, and add more memorable monsters in future.1:33:01
Q: As an FFXI player, I was happy to see memorable enemies such as dhalmels and crawlers. Do you have plans to add other enemies from FFXI?
A: We discussed ideas such as placing checkpoints in the skies on the field for some type of time-based challenges, but we couldn’t get this ready in time. Though it may take some time, we've been discussing various features, such as chocobo races limited to flying mounts. Everyone will probably want to control the chocobos themselves, so we're exploring various methods for doing this.1:33:31
Q: Do you have plans to add anything related to flying mounts, such as shooting or racing?
Crafting and Gathering-related
A: Previously when we introduced new swimwear the materials were only obtainable from rare fish, but that was too harsh. Therefore, this time around in 3.0 you can obtain the materials needed for the Thavnairian Bustier from Timeworn Dragonskin maps, and the drop rate isn’t that low. However, this map can only be obtained from level 56 or higher Disciples of the Land, and the difficulty of the Dragonskin maps requires a full party of level 60 players. Many players are currently still leveling their main jobs, going through main scenario quests, or upgrading their gear after reaching level 60, so there is not a high amount of items circulating around at the moment. We’re also thinking about lowering the crafting level, so in the future the difficulty should be one step lower. For example, if it’s possible to add high-end and standard vanity gear then we can separate these two, so we’ll continue to check players’ feedback on this. We’re currently looking into making adjustments to the difficulty of obtaining the materials needed to craft the Thavnairian Bustier.1:34:32
Q: Do you have plans to offer more ways to obtain materials needed for vanity gear so we can obtain them easier?
A: We discussed this internally quite a bit when creating the 3.0 main scenario quests. During our discussions we were talking about having the equipment other than that which drops in dungeons post-level 53 come from crafters. However, since this might result in players entering dungeons without procuring the proper equipment, we were concerned that this would cause stress from not being able to progress without buying equipment from crafters. Ultimately, we would like players to enjoy the main scenario by procuring the equipment for their first job through questing, and for their second job onward they will have to utilize crafted equipment. We will be implementing a lot of new level 60 recipes in Patch 3.05, so please use that opportunity.1:36:25
Q: With craftable gear being sold by NPCs and HQ gear obtainable via quests I feel like there is no opportunity for crafters and gatherers to shine. Will you be making adjustments in the future?
A: We're looking into this now, but you should be able to fulfill the stat requirements once you’ve procured the level 60 HQ equipment. If it looks like the quests are still too difficult we will look into adjustments.1:38:39
Q: Do you have any plans to ease up on the stats required for the level 60 gathering quests?
A: If we were to get rid of this restriction, it might cause everything to be done by a single individual. Since you can have FC members and even people that are not part of the same FC join up to do company crafting, you can use the Party Finder feature to search for players, and this may in turn boost the amount of free company members. While we may eliminate this requirement in the future, right now we do not have any plans to.1:39:15
Q: In small FCs it’s difficult to get four people together for company crafting. Do you have plans to remove this limitation in the future?
A: Honestly, part of me would like players to make these items themselves, but as long as there are people who purchase them and turn them in the prices will fluctuate. Once the leveling rush settles a bit, the price will balance out, and after this new recipes will be introduced, so it will gradually come into the shape we envisioned.1:40:16
Q: Collectables are efficient for leveling, but the prices of items that aren’t collectables are being driven down and it’s tough to make a profit. Do you plan on making adjustments?
There are currently a lot of opportunities for gatherers to make a profit, so please research what is possible and seize the opportunity for business.
A: We currently have no plans for this. If the level 60 cap continues on, and we decide that this needs to be increased, then we’ll put this up for consideration.1:41:46
Q: Do you plan on increasing the number of classes we can specialize in in future patches?
Housing-related
A: We’re currently working on features that will automatically relinquish houses that haven't been used in some time, as well as a feature for moving your house, and thinking of increasing the cap after this, so please give us some more time. We’re first going to deal with the shortage of available land.1:42:17
Q: Do you have any plans to increase the number of furnishings we can place in our house?
A: We’ll first implement a feature to automatically relinquish unused houses in order to increase the availability of land. In parallel, we’re also working on quality of life improvements for the extended wards. Once these are complete, we’re move onto optimizing the servers so we can increase the amount of furnishings that can be placed in houses. Without taking care of these first, players won’t be able to transfer their houses without relinquishing their existing house first, and this also creates a situation where it leaves an unused house. We'll be progressing with this one step at a time, and will be gradually applying changes from Patch 3.1 onwards. The Dragonsong War hasn't ended yet, so it’ll take some time before we can add a housing ward in Ishgard.1:43:01
Q: I really love the scenery in the new areas. Do you have plans to introduce a housing ward in Ishgard?
A: While this is not limited to Eternal Bond partners, we are planning to implement a system in Patch 3.1 for housemates. With this system you’ll be able to give permissions to share gardening, and chocobo stables, as well as allow others to place furnishings.1:44:46
Q: Can you make it possible to share a house with our Eternal Bond partner?
Mount-related
A: When creating the design of the 2.0 areas, we didn’t envision any flying features, so although they’re made with 3D polygons, they’re designed in two dimensions. These areas weren’t designed with vertical movement in mind, so we don’t have any exploration-related features either. Therefore, even if we were to make it possible to fly in these areas, there's nothing to make use of flight, and we would also need to rework all the divisions in the area so that the graphics quality is maintained while flying when zoomed out. While it is possible to address this, we decided it would be better to spend our resources on new game features or field areas. Therefore, we have no plans to make it possible fly in the 2.0 areas. However, if at some point in the future we have an idea for new features by making large-scale changes to these 2.0 areas, then we may consider it.1:45:37
Q: Will you make it possible to fly in 2.0 areas with our flying mounts?
A: There may be parts that are difficult to do, such as the timing of the turn, but I’m sure the motion team and programmers will try their best.1:47:16
Q: Can you please make it so the flying mounts will bank when turning during flight?
A: In regards to a minion, I'm sure the Minion Alliance will get to work on this as soon as they see this broadcast, or they may have already been working on it in secret, so please look forward to it. As for a companion, we would need to add levels and animations for attacks, so we currently have no plans for this.1:48:39
Q: Do you have plans to introduce a minion or companion based on the young dragon we see in Anyx Trine?
A: This is on our list of tasks to implement.1:49:37
Q: Will we ever see our Draught Chocobo fly?
A: I’m sure everyone is starting to get used to the speed of the flying mounts, the regular mounts might feel slower in comparison, but we currently have no plans to increase their speed. However, there’s room to increase the speed of flight for flying mounts, so we may do this.1:49:49
Q: Do you plan on increasing the speed of regular ground mounts?
A: This would require pecking and kicking animations for all mounts, and since there are some mounts where a kicking animation isn't feasible graphically, this would be difficult.1:50:15
Q: Similar to the glamour system, can you make it so we can change the appearance of our chocobo companion to look like a different mount?
A: In general, in future expansions, we intend to use vertical space when designing areas, under the assumption that players will be using flying mounts. However, while one of Heavensward's main features was the introduction of flying mounts, we're going to start considering what might feature in the next expansion.1:51:33
Q: This might be a bit early to ask, but will flying mounts play a role in future expansions?
A: Since dhalmels are so popular, I'm sure the mount lead will look into it.1:52:20
Q: Please implement a dhalmel mount!
Graphics-related
A: The Vanu Vanu were unexpectedly popular, so we'll aim to get this in for Patch 3.1.1:52:56
Q: Would you please consider adding the Vanu Vanu dance emote?
A: We believe discerning whether an enemy's attack is physical or magical is part of the strategy. We don't really have any plans to actively handle this for players.1:54:45
Q: There are times where I can't tell if an enemy's attack is physical or magical. Would it be possible to change the color of the damage so we can easily distinguish this?
A: This would be a job for the Motion team, but creating player character emotes take a higher priority. If they’re thinking of adding a new emote that they have yet to propose to me, they’ll probably discuss which one to prioritize, but I'd have to check with them.1:55:26
Q: Can you make it so the chocobo in our stables are more lively, such as sitting or crying?
A: If this were possible, we would have done it from the beginning. (laugh)1:56:37
Q: Can you make it so we can change the color of Au Ra horns, and select horn types and face types separately?
This is going to be a bit technical, but there's a strict limit set for the size of each character's memory allocation, and we try to work within these limits. For Au Ra, we're using nearly all of the available memory at the moment. I'll check again once more, including color changes, but if we made it possible to separately select the horns and face, the point where they connect may end up looking weird, so it could be very difficult to accomplish.
A: Currently, the Character team is working on new changes so that monk weapons fit closer to the fist. We're determined to further increase the amount of glove-type weapons, so please look forward to it.1:57:42
Q: Do you have plans to increase the availability of glove-type monk weapons in the future?
A: We're going to add this in Patch 3.1. We actually had it ready before, but because it used too many polygons we weren't able to release it. We're currently making adjustments to this. We were even scolded by the programmers who said that we were spending too many game resources on an afro hairstyle.1:58:32
Q: Do you have plans to introduce an afro hairstyle?
A: Since we just released the DirectX 11 version, we would like you to enjoy this version for a while. Naturally, we understand that higher graphical quality is better, and since this is a FINAL FANTASY game, we would like to be particular about the graphical quality. Where the opportunity presents itself, we will do our best to improve the graphical quality in the future.1:59:30
Q: The graphic quality has become much more beautiful with DirectX 11, but will they become even better in the future?
A: We released the DirectX 11 version in Patch 3.0, and are currently doing some fine-tuning. Once we can confirm stability of the client, we’ll consider gradually implementing code from the DirectX 11 version on the PS4. It’ll probably not be something that we implement all at once, but instead add slowly over time. As for the PS3 version, the technical specifications are different. Therefore we won’t be able to transfer over the DirectX 11 features.2:00:38
Q: Do you have any plans to improve the graphical quality of PS4 similar to the DirectX 11 version?
User Interface-related
A: For each character, item data is the greatest source of data, both in terms of frequency of writes to the database and total data transferred. Particularly with the number of players connecting to dungeons following the reset each Tuesday, we need to take care that we don't exceed server bandwidth and bring the server down, and so it's taking us a long time to make large improvements on this front. With no visible changes, it must look like we're not making progress. But with each patch we have been making gradual optimizations, and I'd like to one day see an increase in space. But if, for example, increasing space introduced the risk of a server crash, or required us to put limitations on zoning into instances, these sort of things would ultimately lower the quality of life that you've experienced up until now, and therefore there wouldn't be any point to do it. So, although it's in small steps, we continue to make improvements, and we ask you for your patience.2:01:58
Q: Since 3.0, my inventory and Armoury Chest have been super full. Do you plan on adding more inventory space?
However, we’re fully aware that item management is very difficult at the moment, so until then, we’re considering ways to greatly increase the retainer’s abilities. For example, a feature that stores and retrieves whole gear sets to and from retainers, a feature where you’ll be able to glamour from items stored inside your retainer’s inventory, or a feature where you can store all the gear you don’t use to your retainer. Once these types of adjustments become available, we’ll move onto optimization to increase the inventory and Armoury Chest. Minagawa is currently working hard on writing up the specifications for this, so please give us some more time.
A: We’ve been receiving lots of request for this as well, but currently the macros are stored on a per-character basis, but we’re thinking about making this account-wide, and making it so that the total number of macros available to all characters can be used by one character. Minagawa and the other programmers are currently looking into this. However, we’ll need to make sure the macros you have already created aren’t lost during the merge. We’re currently looking into how we should finalize the implementation, by either managing it per macro, or by total number or macro lines. We’ll update you with further details once we have made more progress, either through the forums or other means.2:05:06
Q: Can you increase the maximum number of lines for macros, and the total number macros we can save?
A: Currently there’s no way to sell items directly from your retainer to NPCs, as you’ll first need to retrieve the item from the retainer individually and then take them to a nearby merchant. As part of the quality of life improvements for retainers, we’re going to make it so that you’ll be able to directly sell items from your retainers.2:06:47
Q: Do you have plans to make it possible to sell items on the market board, or send retainers on ventures, without switching between each retainer?
Since, the items stored on a retainer is data that's very important to players, we ensure that transmissions are handled one at a time. If we were to make it so that you can access several retainers simultaneously, the load on the server could cause problems, so we’re looking to limit the places where you’ll be able to do this. We’re currently working on various tasks related to retainers, so please give us some more time.
A: We’re currently working on ensuring that this feature doesn't exceed its available memory allocation. It’ll probably be difficult to show the numbers, so we’re planning to just show the bar itself. We’re aiming to implement this in Patch 3.1.2:08:04
Q: How is the feature to see our party members' TP coming along?
A: Currently you can enlarge the UI display up to maximum of 140%. But the chat windows are a separate implementation, so they can't be addressed with this system. However, resources such as the flying text are not in high resolution, so if you were to enlarge them up to 300% they would look pixelated. If that’s not an issue, I’ll talk with Minagawa to see how it’ll look when it’s enlarged more, and we'll consider adding this.2:08:48
Q: Can you make it so we can enlarge things like the flying text for 4k monitors?
A: I feel like the number available right now is enough, and changing the favorite destinations is just a hassle for some people. That said, only having three favorite destinations when there are four cities doesn’t feel right, so depending on player feedback, we’ll look into this.2:11:01
Q: With the number of aetherytes added in 3.0, do you have any plans to increase the number of favorite destinations?
A: Please look forward to future development. As for making it a playable character, I personally don’t have any issue with this. However, there are many restrictions on game development.If the game doesn't pass ratings and other reviews, it can't be sold. In the worst case, it can even lead to the game being recalled and the servers being closed. This is especially true for MMORPGs as you can use emotes on each other’s characters.2:12:11
Q: What is with the small Miqo’te that can be seen in that one area? Is this something we will be able to choose as a new race in the future?
By the way, Lalafell heads are too big to treat them as children─they're Lalafells, and they're treated as a non-human type of race.
A: The technical QA team has obtained a Windows 10 test environment from Microsoft and is currently looking into this, and currently sees no technical issues. Once we can confirm stability, we’ll make an announcement. If you're waiting for confirmation, please wait until then. And of course, until then, you’re free to try it at your own risk.2:14:46
Q: Windows 10 is scheduled to be released in July 2015. I would like to know the current plan for FFXIV supporting it.
A: It's a secret. We’ll release information gradually once we’re closer to the release date, so hang in there.2:15:46
Q: When exactly is Patch 3.1 planned for? Even just an estimate is fine, so can you please tell us?
A: We had planned for jobs to be unique to players, while retainers can only be set as classes. However, since there are requests for wanting to have the retainers wear various gear, including job-specific gear, and since there aren't any classes tied to the new jobs, we’re going to allow jobs to be set for retainers. This is already on our task list, but we may not make it by Patch 3.1.2:16:43
Q: Can you make it so we can set our retainer as the new jobs?
A: As your progress through the scenario the dialogue of NPCs will slightly change. There are likely many who have already passed these parts, but if you’re still progressing through the main scenario quests, be sure to check it out.2:17:33
Q: Is there anything in Patch 3.0 that everyone may have missed but you want everyone to take notice of?
For those of you who are already attempting the more difficult encounters in the game, it’s a nice change of pace to try and solo dungeons. So once the dust settles from increasing your item level, give it a shot. It’s also a lot of fun to run time attacks solo and think about efficiency during your run.
A: It really depends on them, but I’m thinking there wouldn’t be enough content to fill a book.2:18:52
Q: Are there any plans to create a book version of the columns Yoshi-P writes for Famitsu?
A: Yoshida: It might be the death of Soken.2:19:51
Q: When will you sell a soundtrack with the music added in Patch 3.0?
Soken: Our plan is to first sell it digitally, and once a bit of time passes from that we will release a higher quality version on disc. We’d like to start the digital sales around the time of Tokyo Game Show 2015.
A: Yoshida: As game designers, we are particular about wanting players to hear the battle music when they enter into battle, and having the field music resume once battle is over. As such, we haven’t added this kind of option.2:21:44
Q: I’d really like to enjoy the field music even when I’m in battle, so could you add an option to turn off the battle music?
Soken: System-wise we will look into whether we can do this.
A: We’ve finished obtaining all of the server equipment, and we’re setting up both the data center and the FFXIV game servers for operation. After everything is set with the equipment, we will be installing all the server software and performing checks. At the latest we plan on beginning operations at the end of 2015, but at the earliest we might be able to start around Patch 3.1.2:23:00
Q: Can you tell us about the progress of the European data center?
The number of European players has been increasing, and while there were those who were worried when looking at the number of PS3/PS4 package sales, with early access and the fact that you could play immediately, the number of digital version sales helped make it a top-selling PS4 title. Additionally, with the growth of players moving from PS3 to PS4 and PC, a large amount of free trials converting to full service, and a huge boost in PC players, we’re very far away from the conditions people were concerned about.
A: I'm a big fan of Tactics Ogre and its world setting.2:26:17
Q: Why did you implement Valerian and Baldur equipment in Patch 3.0?
A:2:29:43
Q: Can you give us a glimpse into the future?As I mentioned before, we will be making fine adjustments to jobs in Patch 3.05.
A:2:30:49
Q: Can you tell us more about Alexander (Savage)?We’ve been receiving feedback mentioning that the token drop rate in Alexander: Gordias is low and the lots are very competitive. While we don't have a set timeframe, we’re looking into increasing the number of drops.
A: As I mentioned previously, the new Frontline will not have a symmetrical map, and the starting positions will change each time. The key to this battle is excavating the gathering-like points around the map. You can expect a very different battle from the Frontline you’ve seen up until now. Additionally, we will be adding a ton of new PvP equipment. Be sure to make use of your newly acquired level 60 actions on the field of battle!2:44:11
Q: Can you tell us more about the new Frontline campaign?
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08-18-2015 02:54 PM #1
Letter from the Producer LIVE Part XXIII Digest (08/18/2015)
(16)Gildrein - Community Team
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