Minimise the downtime please.

[Runespider]

So FFXI and FFXIV will be down for an unknown length of time, could be a week, could be a month, could be a lot longer.

I do understand the situation in Japan and I also understand that the situation didn't really effect Square directly that much as a company and the server downtime is more because of the power stations asking big companies to conserve power(correct me if i'm wrong). Understandable, but shouldn't a company the size of Square have some kind of plan being worked out to bring the servers back up asap? (maybe moving them to a different location to get around this or something?).

Would Blizzard let the game be down for an unknown amount of time if this happend, would any of the big TV stations? This maybe just a game but SE is a games company and that's pretty much all they are. Their entire work force exists to make and run games so it's a big deal for them. Something like this is a godsend to your competitors in the MMO field, ie Rift and WoW.

The reason I say this is because I assume long downtime will do damage to the games userbase, downtime on addictive games like MMOs that require a monthly payment and want to keep as many players on board as possible is a bad thing. What if a large number of your subscribers go off and try other MMOs and get hooked on those or if they lose the yearning to carry on with the games, I've had breaks from many games in the past and wholely lost intrest when I had the opportunity to go back.

FFXI is currently in an upsurge and I would hate for that to slide away. If this is a week then that's one thing but if there is a chance it could be extended and go on for a long time I hope there are plans to get around it and get the game back up asap.

Since FFXIV has been run for free for 6-7 months which is being done at a vast loss of money I can assume money can also be spent on something like this, which is far more important to both games and the bottom line of SE as a company long term.

This post is not being mean, it's not trolling it's being realistic.

[Rambus]

No idea how much the downtime will keep people from coming back.

I have a feeling that if one day downtime would stop someone from playing, a week will, and if a day didn't stop them from playing a week wont.

[Greatguardian]

Don't worry, Square Enix has plenty of management-level employees to worry about their revenue. I know we want to make sure they don't lose all their money, because that would mean we would be out of a game. But I'm sure their accountants want to make sure they don't lose all their money either, because that would mean they would be out of a job. Your concern is touching, though.

[Porcius]

I have to agree with Runespider on this. Although unfortunate this tragedy is, the rest of the world will go on. This tragedy will be overcome in time. Square-Enix has already taken a hit by shutting down it's servers and giving free play time which is most of their income as a company aside from add-ons. In a situation such as this, they should start preparing servers in their offices in California to have servers ready not only in rare cases such as this, but so that they may also minimize down time when it comes to doing server maintenance and updates which they can install on one server while the other is running. Please comment.

[Skyrant_Kangaroomouse]

Are you serious? Their reactor is going to melt and poison the whole of japan and the currents and winds will carry it over to the US or East Asia.

The USA is not even able to keep a stable power grid and has outages of whole states and bigger quite regularly. Big power consumtion industries incl. TV stations have been asked to go offline on a regular basis.

If a reactor is going to melt in your backyard we can talk about you beeing realistic asking your favourite game company to keep up the service so you get your daily kick.

PS: Don't give me that ***, I care about the game, this will affect the company revenues crap. If the servers are down they also don't generate any cost and i am sure a week or mroe will not affect the games in any way. You will be back like everyone else that is hooked.

[Kailea_Nagisa]

This game is not SEs only revenue you know -.- even if FFXI has to be down a month, if it will help the problem over there, then so be it. "Would Blizzard allow this" what a stupid question, its a DISASTER!......... normal does and don'ts are not applicable.

[Izzybella]

1) minimize
2) empathy please

[Runespider]

This game is not SEs only revenue you know -.- even if FFXI has to be down a month, if it will help the problem over there, then so be it.

Then when they turn the servers back on after that month and subscriber numbers are at an all time low what then? sack half the online MMO staff? more server merges? Any company that can't look beyond the problems right now and think about the situation they are putting the company in after the fact is going to be in serious trouble. XI makes a nice chunk of money for Square and they are hardly in a position to lose that.

Servers being down for a long time is a really really bad move.

A week is fine, we can find stuff to do for that long but 2-4 weeks++ isn't and will lead to subscribers looking into other MMOs and since a lot of people won't want to keep 2 subs going that's going to hurt Square, even more if they don't feel like resubbing to XI and instead stick with the new MMO.


1) minimize

Both are correct, I live in the uk.

[Kraggy]

Would Blizzard let the game be down for an unknown amount of time if this happend
Utterly silly comparison.

Blizzard's operations are huge and split across three US data centres (I believe) and several in the EU, as such there is no single point of failure barring World War III.

SE is based in Japan alone, while there are regional data centers they're purely account management.

As such, I'm sure SE have 'disaster recovery' plans which, like all but the largest of national and pan-national corporates envisage a 'local' disaster (fire, plane strike, whatever), but I'd be staggered if they had any thoughts about transferring operations off-shore due to a national disaster of this magnitude.

In any case, even supposing they DO have plans to move themselves lock-stock-and-barrel offshore, just how long do you think that will take?

If they haven't already got a plan for that written and tested it'll be more than a couple of weeks.

[Chiibi]

I do understand the situation in Japan
I honestly dont think you do AT ALL. People have died our friends and family are unable to be contacted so yeah STOP COMPLAINING ABOUT THE TIME FFXI IS DOWN

[illusionist]

I'm sorry,but we need understanding.Quake involved Nuclear plants which electricity is supplied to Tokyo area.It leads lack of electricity,we are having downtime of electricity even we are living out of massive damage area.already,one person died because her life support didn't work well while downtime.
It's not life and death problem for you,I know,
So,to say cynic way,If you can raise victims died from lack of electricity,Please insist shorter downtime.

P.S Thank you,Izzybella,and all supportive comments.

[Izzybella]

I'm sorry,but we need understanding.Quake involved Nuclear plants which electricity is supplied to Tokyo area.It leads lack of electricity,we are having downtime of electricity even we are living out of massive damage area.already,one person died because her life support didn't work well while downtime.
It's not life and death problem for you,I know,
So,to say cynic way,If you can raise victims died from lack of electricity,Please insist shorter downtime.

Prayers to you and yours illusionist :(

[Runespider]

I honestly dont think you do AT ALL. People have died our friends and family are unable to be contacted so yeah STOP COMPLAINING ABOUT THE TIME FFXI IS DOWN

What does this have to do with it? The reasons they gave for the downtime was that the power companies have asked them to reduce power usage and nothing to do with what you are saying. If this is the case then they need to take action to bring the servers back up asap to minimise the damage to the company. All the nice talk and good feeling in the world won't fix their bottom line when they realise how much damage long time downtime will do to two titles they run.

If this means hosting the game on servers in another country or indeed their other offices then why not? Don't they have Square US, Square EU etc?

[Luvbunny]

To the original poster of this thread, server is down for a week or two, no big deal, go play other games, or better yet, go and actually DO something with your life that is not related with playing video games. Maybe if you have the same dedication to your real life achievements, life would not be so bad after all. Quit whining over a week or two of not being able to play FFXI.

BTW, you will not be charged for the month of April for FFXI, which means, should they shut it down for 4 weeks, you have nothing to complaints about. 4 weeks away from FFXI probably a good idea. The sun is shining, go outside and smell the roses... or the polution :)

[Sorka]

I'm kinda hoping this'll be a wake up call to SE to have backup servers in another country so if this happens again they won't have to shut down the servers for an undetermined amount of time. I am wholly sympathetic to the plight of the Japanese people and fully understand the need to shut off any superfluous power-drains so I'm not going to be bitching and whining about how I can't play the game for X number of days.

[Izzybella]

1) minimize

Both are correct, I live in the uk.

My apologies! I learn something new every day :)

[Sureal]

if blizzard had all their servers in lets say LA, and a huge earthquake happened which caused a state of emergency then yes, they would shut down the servers, because they have to,

getting back to status quo and recovering from one of the worst natural disasters in recorded history > you playing ffxi

[Kindra]

Perspective, Yes games are what SE does. Lets ask this though, Are games more important the lives of human beings? Let's face it People run SE, most people tend to care about what happens to their fellow man.

As far as Blizzard goes, you should call them and ask them, "If you were in the same position as SE right now what would you do?" I am pretty sure that if the US were hit, and by hit i mean the entire US was in the same position as Japan, they would shut down servers for the sake of power for hospital's, and to allow people to cook their meals and so on.

There are so many other things you can do with this down time. To name a few: Read some books, spend time with family and friends, get caught up on house work, take a walk, go see a movie, watch TV, Play some other games... these are just a few of the things i can think of atm lol. Be thankful for what you have got. Be thankful your alive and well. Be thankful loved ones are alive and well.

I am not saying you aren't entitled to your opinion, but the way i see it is if they need to shut down for longer then a week so be it. Also I don't want you to think that I am degrading you or anything like that. This is the way i feel and to be honest I have grown tired of people complaining that they can't play a video game when real lives are at stake.

None of this is said in anger just the thoughts I have.

[chibowibo]

Wow so much cryin about a Game going down for some time? They need to save power because half the lines destroyed and the ones that left would burst with to much usage and how that end´s you guys in USA should know when you remember what happend a few years ago because in New York whole town did run out of power because of a singe line. I rather see them keep Hospitals and that stuff up then play a game. On a side note Sony and many other japanese companys did the same so you gona cry if you have to wait for a PS3 in a half year may be 1 day longer for delivery?

[Darkren]

What does this have to do with it? The reasons they gave for the downtime was that the power companies have asked them to reduce power usage and nothing to do with what you are saying. If this is the case then they need to take action to bring the servers back up asap to minimise the damage to the company. All the nice talk and good feeling in the world won't fix their bottom line when they realise how much damage long time downtime will do to two titles they run.

If this means hosting the game on servers in another country or indeed their other offices then why not? Don't they have Square US, Square EU etc?

This has all relavance, if you cant even have power for telecommunications, do you really think they give a damn about power for SE servers.
your original post seemed like you were more bothered about keeping your gaming addiction up, I really dont think you care about SE's financial losses.

[Runespider]

Keep in mind I do think what has happend in Japan is terrible and I sympathise with the situation there. I'm not saying they should put the servers up and to hell with the power concerns, not at all.

What I'm saying is if this is going to damage the 2+ titles and it's going to be down for a long time why not make plans and host the servers in another country or one of their other offices? I like FFXI and I don't want to see this horrible disaster cause damage to it or Square as a company long term. A big company like Square can take action to keep an important part of their business running surely?

The whole point of this post is if this leads to the servers being down for a long time, a week is nothing.


your original post seemed like you were more bothered about keeping your gaming addiction up

I haven't played FFXI for a few weeks actualy, I'm playing Rift and some other offline games. I still love FFXI though and do care about its future.

[Kindra]

So basic terms this thread is about having them set up back up servers in case something like this should happen again? Your not saying that they have to do it right now or anything just down the road right? And if the downtime should be more then a week you would be ok with that?

I only ask because i wanna make sure i am understanding you correctly :)

[Randwolf]

Keep in mind I do think what has happend in Japan is terrible and I sympathise with the situation there. I'm not saying they should put the servers up and to hell with the power concerns, not at all.

What I'm saying is if this is going to damage the 2+ titles and it's going to be down for a long time why not make plans and host the servers in another country or one of their other offices? I like FFXI and I don't want to see this horrible disaster cause damage to it or Square as a company long term. A big company like Square can take action to keep an important part of their business running surely?

The whole point of this post is if this leads to the servers being down for a long time, a week is nothing.

No matter how you state it, at the very least, telling S/E to pay attention to how long their servers are down is rude. When you post stuff like this, it makes your cares and concern for the people of Japan seem shallow and fake. Really, S/E does not need your advice on business matters or how to deal with their revenue concerns in a country which was hit by a disaster and is teetering on another one. I have no doubt they are considering ways to lessen impact on things that generate revenue. That would include various options to allow them to legitimately collect gaming fees. Just because they can do it, doesn't mean we need to pressure them to do it. And if you are one of the people that isn't there when the servers come up, I can't imagine it will be any great loss to the FFXI community.

[CaelThunderwing]

you guy's Realise thanks to that earthquake, the affected Regions of Japan are experiencing what the north coast of the US did in 2003? (The great Blackout of '03) and have some sympathy for god's sake! and think of the lost lives!

a Break from the game is Something we all Need. so.. "<Jumping to new area> Real Life" >_> if they haveto keep Power off for too long they more than likely Will move the servers. SE isnt going to let XI/ XIV just end like this you guys should know better -_-

if you guys are anxious to keep and up and up on whats going on i suggest you bookmark http://www.tepco.co.jp/en/index-e.html thats the power company that supplies the power to the area where the server farm is. (your oddly better off viewing it in chrome or IE. it wont display properly in Firefox.atleast not the 4.0 RC1)

[arlais]

http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/9/2008/08/medium_warning.jpg

That is all. Take a step back. There's people suffering, and SE are doing the responsible thing about it. Taking a week from the game won't kill you.

[Cream_Soda]

So FFXI and FFXIV will be down for an unknown length of time, could be a week, could be a month, could be a lot longer.

I do understand the situation in Japan and I also understand that the situation didn't really effect Square directly that much as a company and the server downtime is more because of the power stations asking big companies to conserve power(correct me if i'm wrong). Understandable, but shouldn't a company the size of Square have some kind of plan being worked out to bring the servers back up asap? (maybe moving them to a different location to get around this or something?).

Would Blizzard let the game be down for an unknown amount of time if this happend, would any of the big TV stations? This maybe just a game but SE is a games company and that's pretty much all they are. Their entire work force exists to make and run games so it's a big deal for them. Something like this is a godsend to your competitors in the MMO field, ie Rift and WoW.

The reason I say this is because I assume long downtime will do damage to the games userbase, downtime on addictive games like MMOs that require a monthly payment and want to keep as many players on board as possible is a bad thing. What if a large number of your subscribers go off and try other MMOs and get hooked on those or if they lose the yearning to carry on with the games, I've had breaks from many games in the past and wholely lost intrest when I had the opportunity to go back.

FFXI is currently in an upsurge and I would hate for that to slide away. If this is a week then that's one thing but if there is a chance it could be extended and go on for a long time I hope there are plans to get around it and get the game back up asap.

Since FFXIV has been run for free for 6-7 months which is being done at a vast loss of money I can assume money can also be spent on something like this, which is far more important to both games and the bottom line of SE as a company long term.

This post is not being mean, it's not trolling it's being realistic.
They care enough about the people of their nation to lose a little money. They're alright in my book.

Hell, we don't even know how many of the employee's families were directly involved and taking leave time right now to help their families whose houses may have been torn down or deal with family deaths, etc.

[NightDagger]

This is something I have been talking about with a few friends. We are all going to play Dragon age 2, but that can only last so long. IF the servers are down for a month i would say 10% or so will not return to the game right away. It may even be higher, the fact is that we are all gamers & when we start a game we want full completion. We want all Achievements or Medals we can get, and that takes time. Everything in Japan right now is horrible & we know SE could really careless about getting their servers up asap (I don't care if it take 2 months to rebuild). The fact is that there is alot going on there & they are on not even close to being top priority for getting their power grid up and running. Just pray for them & accept the fact that Japan is in a time of need. Se knows that if they are down for a longtime they WILL lose some player base, BUT the players will return sometime. Maybe not in the first week back but within a month or two after. Face it they know we are hardcore & we can not just stop playing a game like this over a company making the proper decision.

I 100% agree that a large company like SE that relies on income from their online games should have backup servers in another country to prevent something like this happening to their income. But in the same sense how could they possibly keep both the systems identical? Would you really want them to be loading up the backup servers from LA that have not been updated for 20 hours? Just think you just finished you Emp. Weapon & got 2 pieces of AF3+2 done then Japan has this disaster & they load the LA servers up. Now you do not have the Emp. Weapon completed nor the AF# +2 drops you needed. Would you really like to spend that time completing them again? Hoping that your /random is better then the 10 other LS mates that need the same card/coin or w/e?

It the end we all want to have our game back, but we have to accept the facts in front of us and enjoy the break with our family & appreciate the things WE have.

NightDagger
Lakshmi

[Boldheart]

To the original poster of this thread, server is down for a week or two, no big deal, go play other games, or better yet, go and actually DO something with your life that is not related with playing video games. Maybe if you have the same dedication to your real life achievements, life would not be so bad after all. Quit whining over a week or two of not being able to play FFXI.

BTW, you will not be charged for the month of April for FFXI, which means, should they shut it down for 4 weeks, you have nothing to complaints about. 4 weeks away from FFXI probably a good idea. The sun is shining, go outside and smell the roses... or the polution :)

Your so cool lol, true post.

Prayers to Japan and the families that are in need. I so agree w/ what SE is doing w/ shutting down the servers but i do have suggestions that wouldnt hurt. Maybe they should have emergency/backup servers in California where there HQ is in the USA for just incase emergencies and what not, but that's not what is important right now but maybe could be future investments. I agree 100 percent w/ what they are doing w/ helping save electricity and helping/caring for those people in need, good job guys. God bless and hope everthing works out and gets back to good.

[Darkren]

They care enough about the people of their nation to lose a little money. They're alright in my book.

Hell, we don't even know how many of the employee's families were directly involved and taking leave time right now to help their families whose houses may have been torn down or deal with family deaths, etc.

Yep, and let them have their time off rather than making them think about building another server in the US.

SE are alright in my book too and loyal players will be loyal!

[Sinthetic]

i agree with Skyrant_Kangaroomouse

also if having the Servers Down for a week 1 month whatever
brings the power back on 1 min sooner to the People there it would be all worth XD

Besides its no big deal man 1 week 1 month till will pass like it always does XD

[Vivik]

To the OP:
There is a reason they are a multimillion dollar company. They know better than you.

[Kandu]

BTW, you will not be charged for the month of April for FFXI, which means, should they shut it down for 4 weeks, you have nothing to complaints about.

They should charge us for April and then donate that revenue to the Red Cross or similar organization.

[Fincat]

Understandable, but shouldn't a company the size of Square have some kind of plan being worked out to bring the servers back up asap? (maybe moving them to a different location to get around this or something?).


Just a thought... there is probably some sort of travel restriction/fuel usage restriction in effect as well as the restrictions on electricty. I'd say moving game servers is pretty low on the list of things to spend time and fuel on.

I can't wait to see posts in a few weeks if the situation there doesn't improve.

[Anethia]

I posted this in the announcement thread but I felt it would be appropriate here as well:


It's only been a day since the servers were taken offline and I'm already suffering the withdrawal symptoms. But I would rather see the people of Japan get the help they need from the power saved by me not playing than get my last 4 seals for my drg. Am I inconvenienced? Yes I am. But my inconvenience is small beans compared to the disaster our friends across the ocean have suffered and are still suffering. I think SE's decision was the right one (never thought I would say that) and I applaud them for thinking beyond the pocket book. Good work SE, our thoughts and prayers are with you.

To those of you complaining about the servers being offline, that's pretty selfish and uncaring. They are not even going to charge you for april and yet you still complain? How about taking that money your going to save and put it into a emergency relief fund to help with recovery efforts. Thats my plan and it should be yours too. Doing something useful with the money, not something hurtful with your words.

I've taken months at a time off from the game so it's no big deal if it's down for a week or down for 2 months. SE is very aware of the financial implication this decision has, I did the math and if the game has 300,000 players with atleast 1 account and 3 characters per account that's almost 5-6 million dollars SE is losing for the month of April. More when you consider many players have more than 1 account. I think SE knows the financial draw back to a prolonged furlough. Show some consideration that for once SE has made the right choice despite the financial loss.

[Randwolf]

They should charge us for April and then donate that revenue to the Red Cross or similar organization.

We actually are asking them to give us an 'opt in' for April charges. Not to the exclusion of the other Charitable Organizations, but so that they have a fund for any emergency needs their employees have. I'm sure S/E will be helping their employees from company funds. Of course that money comes partially from the fees we pay.

[Kjara]

Just watched the news, we're at 5000 deaths confirmed and around 10000 are expected... This sure isn't some of those "tragedies that happen everyday". My heart goes to them and I hope they will be safe from any future damage.

As for the break, who knows, maybe the one week pause is going to be used to move all SE's stuff somewhere else, where they won't have to worry about draining power to hospitals and other structures in Japan that now surely need it more. I doubt they expect to be able to turn serves on in Japan again in such a short time, so I'm sure they knew what to do when they asked only one week.

[Kavik]

For God's sakes people this is a GAME! Yes the company is important because of the amount of people that get their livelihoods from it, but its a god damn game, did anyone stop to think that at the very least 1/4 (I'm being conservative) of the people working at the Japanese site probabaly lost a loved one in this catastrophe, or if not a loved one a friend? I don't use disaster because it's not a strong enough word. This is the +2 (-2?) of what happened in hurricane Katrina, that was a disaster. If the US based SE was located in New Orleans the servers may never have come back up. That area has yet to fully recover years later and all it really did was flood because some moron decided it would be a good idea to put a city BELOW sea level behind a retention wall. The US freaked out when a couple thousand birds died off, we're talking about 2,000 Human bodies washing up on their coast, as many as 10k people missing that is 8,000 more under the rubble or washed out to sea etc, simply gone in one day. I don't know about anyone else but i grew up in a town of 5,000 people, my highschool had 3,000 students, to think about twice the population of a 'small' US town gone in an instant, as human beings we should be showing compation and not complaining about how our sitting on our asses is being disrupted because possibly hundreds of thousands of people are dying but it's not happening in our backyard so we don't care. Go read a book or *gasp* excercise.

[Runespider]

There is a reason they are a multimillion dollar company. They know better than you.

FFXIV.



So basic terms this thread is about having them set up back up servers in case something like this should happen again? Your not saying that they have to do it right now or anything just down the road right? And if the downtime should be more then a week you would be ok with that?

No i'm saying that these things should be being put into action if there is any indication that this could be a long term thing. Square US could rent servers and a few JP staff that know how to do it can hop on a plane with backups from the main servers and head to w/e to run the game from there or hand the torch over the america staff to do it. This is a multi million dollar game that brings a lot of revenue into the company not some small fry thing. Do you really think FFXI could not be run from the american office?

If FFXI and FFXIV will be down for 1-2 months it will have a horrible impact.

[Meril]

Basicly Il make it simple.... server went down... I started a 10 day trial of WOW... and Im getting invested. Give it 3 weeks and Il be gone for good. Trust me, Im not the only one. ITs just black an white, simple.

[Kindra]

Then this game is more important then the lives of fellow human beings.

I really don't care how long they take to come back up. I don't expect that someone from Japan should have to get on a plane just so I can play a video game. I hate to be blunt but if you had been saying its something that could be done to prevent this from happening again I could agree. I myself don't feel they should have to do it right now. I think that the state of their country is more important then a game or the profits they could get from it. They are not broke by any means.

Would I be happy if they did decide to do what your thinking if the game is going to be down more then a week or 2? Sure I would. But I am not expecting it. I just don't feel this is something they should be worrying about. When they come back up they are up, and I will be there. :)

Again this isn't in anger and just my thoughts on the matter.

[Kavik]

FFXIV.



No i'm saying that these things should be being put into action if there is any indication that this could be a long term thing. Square US could rent servers and a few JP staff that know how to do it can hop on a plane with backups from the main servers and head to w/e to run the game from there or hand the torch over the america staff to do it. This is a multi million dollar game that brings a lot of revenue into the company not some small fry thing. Do you really think FFXI could not be run from the american office?

If FFXI and FFXIV will be down for 1-2 months it will have a horrible impact.

What is there is no plane to fly them because they're all shipping washed up bodies here or there or dropping aid to people on hospital rooftops where people are dying of starvation? Think a bit before you say stuff that is only related to money.

[Vivik]

FFXIV.

I knew you would try to play that card. Fortunately the development staff of 14 had nothing to do with the server shut down. Their thinking was ass backward and have since been replaced by competent people.

[Meril]

I mean just the fact alone there holding back the game due to PS2 hard drive space issues is rediculus... Im gonna go with a game thats interested in moving forward for long time.

[Vivik]

Oh and just in case you missed the whole tsunami/airport thing here's a vid. Hope in your world they have seaplanes for those servers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DSSssHxm4Y

[Kavik]

I mean just the fact alone there holding back the game due to PS2 hard drive space issues is rediculus... Im gonna go with a game thats interested in moving forward for long time.

Yes moving forward for a long time like FFXI has been doing for the last 10 years? I've been playing 7 and my husband has been playing since the NA release, they are considering the feelings of the players, like my husband, that began on ps2 and still play on ps2, this shows more forward thought then losing a large chunk of their fan base because it's no longer on an easily (to them) accessible console. Most of us on the front lines of a recession don't have the spare funds to just randomly go buy a ps3 or xbox 360, that money is better spend on our non-existant health care systems. So you just go play WoW, we players with loyalty shall remain here.

[Meril]

Im sorry u still play on PS2... thats why unlike WOW they give many console options.... upgrade already....

[Kavik]

I play and have always played on computer, that wasn't the point of the post, think about someone other then yourself. WoW also offers the ps2 option, so they can't be THAT advanced :o They probably don't have problems with the ps2 because WoW doesn't have the depth of content we oldschool players enjoy.

[Meril]

oh I diddent know wow was for ps2 ... XD sorry bout that

[Runespider]

I knew you would try to play that card. Fortunately the development staff of 14 had nothing to do with the server shut down. Their thinking was ass backward and have since been replaced by competent people.

Im saying that a huge company like Square can sometimes have no idea wtf they are doing and make a horrible mistake that could have long standing effects on the entire company. They put out an important game in such a state that it has become a laughing stock. Which negates your argument.


I really don't care how long they take to come back up.

I wonder if the staff at SE or the families of those staff that are directly linked to these 2 games and that could lose their jobs due to a bad decision share your feelings on this.

As a bad example, lets say mcdonalds closed all there stores down nationwide as an act of sympathy for 9/11 for a month, (yes i know it's different but it's gives an idea). In that time the customers that frequent there had to goto burger king instead and gained a taste for that, to the point of prefering it. Then when Mcdonalds opened again the amount of customers dropped by 10-20% leading to widespread staff cuts, you think everyone including the mcdonalds staff would be so appreciative of the thought behind the store closures now?

Square have offices across the world, it's not some small fry games company. I don't think it's that far fetched to think something this important that makes as much money as it does could probably be run from one of them for a short while till things settle down again in Japan.

[Odintius]

Played on ps2 also and moved on for sole reason of when SE was saying ps2 limitation this and that so I wouldn't be a person holding back any progress of content that could be added if wasn't for those limitation's.

[Kavik]

All of which Japan has in place. But my mom works at wal-mart and when the police had a gunfight in their parking lot they DID lose all their revenue, at that same walmart when the power in our entire town went down for 2 weeks they shut the walmart down 6 hrs in because vital systems such as the fire department needed that energy. You obviously don't have a lot of real world experience points >.>

[arlais]

SE irrisponsibilty to plan correctly is not a direct reflection on Japans tragety..... were talking about SE, not Japan. U think if the power went out at walmart they would just lose all there revenue??????? no... thats why they have generators... and backup plans...

Why are you wasting time here complaining about it if you're going to warcraft? Go. Have fun. Adios, byebye, ciao.

[Lexin]

Im saying that a huge company like Square can sometimes have no idea wtf they are doing sometimes and make a horrible mistake that could have long standing effects on the entire company. They put out an important game in such a state that it has become a laughing stock. Which negates your argument.


I wonder if the staff at SE or the families of those staff that are directly linked to these 2 games and that could lose their jobs due to a bad decision share your feelings on this.

As a bad example, lets say mcdonalds closed all there stores down nationwide as an act of sympathy for 9/11 for a month, (yes i know it's different but it's gives an idea). In that time the customers that frequent there had to goto burger king instead and gained a taste for that, to the point of prefering it. Then when Mcdonalds opened again the amount of customers dropped by 10-20% leading to widespread staff cuts, you think everyone including the mcdonalds staff would be so appreciative of the thought behind the store closures now?

Square have offices across the world, it's not some small fry games company. I don't think it's that far fetched to think something this important that makes as much money as it does could probably be run from one of them for a short while till things settle down again in Japan.

Only one problem here in no way is McDonalds tied to 9/11... However SE is tied to what is going on in Japan.

Honestly I have 1 suggestion for you please just quit the game!

[Kindra]

SE irrisponsibilty to plan correctly is not a direct reflection on Japans tragety..... were talking about SE, not Japan. U think if the power went out at walmart they would just lose all there revenue??????? no... thats why they have generators... and backup plans...

So they have a responibilty to you to make sure that, in case their people have to shut off power to save lives and so forth, you can still play a video game? I am trying to be understanding here but its getting harder and harder with these types of statements. Either way when the severs do come back up, 1-2 weeks or 2 months I don't care which, I will be there. Its your choice if you wanna be there or not.

Hmm... I wonder who owns SE?

[Runespider]

Honestly I have 1 suggestion for you please just quit the game!

What does me quitting a game I enjoy have to do with what i'm talking about? If you can't understand the argument don't reply.

I don't even play FFXI right now and haven't for weeks, I still pay my sub and have never let it drop for the last 8 years though. This is about long term damage to a game I value, if this downtime is a lot longer than a week.

[Meril]

correct, ty runespider

[Kavik]

So they have a responibilty to you to make sure that, in case their people have to shut off power to save lives and so forth, you can still play a video game? I am trying to be understanding here but its getting harder and harder with these types of statements. Either way when the severs do come back up, 1-2 weeks or 2 months I don't care which, I will be there. Its your choice if you wanna be there or not.

Hmm... I wonder who owns SE?

Totally agree and anyone who has heretofore not seen my signature my feelings about this game should be quite clear regarding my thoughts on when the servers should come back up. And to merill, I do not and have never lived in the 'ghetto' that stuff happens everywhere, if you weren't at home (i'm imagining your parents basement, either that or at college paid for by those parents whom you never lived in a ghetto or 'small town' with) playing video games which you're complaining about quitting on a forum designed for those games, maybe you would see some of it.

[Kindra]

Im saying that a huge company like Square can sometimes have no idea wtf they are doing sometimes and make a horrible mistake that could have long standing effects on the entire company. They put out an important game in such a state that it has become a laughing stock. Which negates your argument.


I wonder if the staff at SE or the families of those staff that are directly linked to these 2 games and that could lose their jobs due to a bad decision share your feelings on this.

As a bad example, lets say mcdonalds closed all there stores down nationwide as an act of sympathy for 9/11 for a month, (yes i know it's different but it's gives an idea). In that time the customers that frequent there had to goto burger king instead and gained a taste for that, to the point of prefering it. Then when Mcdonalds opened again the amount of customers dropped by 10-20% leading to widespread staff cuts, you think everyone including the mcdonalds staff would be so appreciative of the thought behind the store closures now?

Square have offices across the world, it's not some small fry games company. I don't think it's that far fetched to think something this important that makes as much money as it does could probably be run from one of them for a short while till things settle down again in Japan.

You forgot where i said SE isn't broke....I am pretty sure they are taking care of the companies family's and such.
And they are linked to the Income of 1 game. XIV isn't being charged to play.

And your right Mcdonalds was a bad example lol. I don't eat out much so i really don't care. And also 9/11 was a tragedy and if McDonalds decided to do that that then i would have supported that choice.

I also don't think this is as important as you do. I'm sorry but that's how i feel.

[Lexin]

What does me quitting a game I enjoy have to do with what i'm talking about? If you can't understand the argument don't reply.

I don't even play FFXI right now and haven't for weeks, I still pay my sub and have never let it drop for the last 8 years though. This is about long term damage to a game I value, if this downtime is a lot longer than a week.

If it's down for more then a week then so be it and when the servers do come back online guess what the game will still be there your characters will still be there.

[Lurea]

You do realize that the death toll is well over 10,000 and counting right? "A tide of up to 2,000 bodies washes up along the coast as millions struggle with quake's aftermath." is the current front page of most news pages. As important as the game being up may be the SE, I'm fairly certain that aside from saving power, these people need time to find and support their families, as well as grieve over the loss of their loved ones. You do not understand the situation clearly, so please stop offending the others that do.

"On the coastline of Miyagi prefecture, which took the full force of the tsunami, a Japanese police official said 1,000 bodies were found scattered across the coastline. Kyodo, the Japanese news agency, reported that 2,000 bodies washed up on two shorelines in Miyagi."


SO let me ask you, if you and your family had 2,000 bodies washing up into your back yard, would you have ANY mindset to play a game? Stop worrying about SE's finances, LET THEM do that. Have some heart and just wait it out like all of us are. It's much easier to wait for a game to come back up, than it is to find that your family and friends have died.
This is one of the worst natural disasters we have ever seen.

[Vivik]

Totally agree and anyone who has heretofore not seen my signature my feelings about this game should be quite clear regarding my thoughts on when the servers should come back up. And to merill, I do not and have never lived in the 'ghetto' that stuff happens everywhere, if you weren't at home (i'm imagining your parents basement, either that or at college paid for by those parents whom you never lived in a ghetto or 'small town' with) playing video games which you're complaining about quitting on a forum designed for those games, maybe you would see some of it.

Nowai, he does not need FFXI. He has not played for 4 weeks! He's just here looking out for the rest of us. What a great guy....LOL:rolleyes:

[Darka]

A games company should have had a backup plan in case of a natural disaster? I forgot when MMOs were as important as things like Hospitals being maintained. XI is a declining game, face it. They aren't going to spend tons of cash on a backup server for a game with less than 500,000 subscribers. This is budgeting 101. Nor can they simply fly their servers to some other country, travel = energy, energy = low supply.
Also, stop pretending this is one of SE's largest sources of income, they make way way more from other games, anime and movies that they publish. If people quit within a week, they were probably going to quit anyway, they stated a long time ago that they would continue to release content for XI so long as people still played it.

The QQ corner is that way ->

[Kindra]

Meril i get the impression that you really don't like XI anymore.

[HFX7686]

I have other things I can do. I'll keep my three accounts going. It's not a big deal. A week or a month or more, I'll still play when it comes back up. I'm sure most people will.

Stop being alarmist.

[Meril]

I do... I just want them to stop the PS2 limitations exuse and get the servers back up, the basic responsibilities of any multi-million dollar corperation. Before its lost

[Odintius]

I do... I just want them to stop the PS2 limitations exuse and get the servers back up, the basic responsibilities of any multi-million dollar corperation. Before its lost

Really lmao!!

[Kindra]

They won't lose as many as some are thinking. Worrying about their money gain isn't helping anything though. They will do what they have to. I am sure that if they could have predicted this there would have been back up servers. But they didn't really have a fortune teller to do so. XI has been running how many years now and this is the first time the servers have had to be shutdown? Just take these things into consideration please. Not asking you to change how you feel just asking you to think about that point. No rush just think about it please. :)

Not said in anger. :)

[Meril]

there u go saying things like "idiot" ... is that really neccissary for you to make any kind of point? if you can read correctly there is an "and" btween the PS2 comment and servers. read plz then post

[Lexin]

there u go saying things like "idiot" ... is that really neccissary for you to make any kind of point? if you can read correctly there is an "and" btween the PS2 comment and servers. read plz then post

I wasn't trying to make any point just saying what your making yourself out to look like.

[Meril]

Exactly ... you havent been trying to make any point at all ... eccept to lash out and insult... anyone can do that...
The point I have REALLY been trying to make this whole time is that there need to be a separation between SE and Japan... SE provides service to UK australia canada mexico US China Korea ect..... there should have been a backup plan...
And there should be some sort of appropriate actions taking place soon or customers will get what they want somewhere else... I dont want to come back to an empty game, before the crash they were already talking about a MAJOR server merge, THis will indeffinatley make it worse

[Anethia]

If you had even read the statement released by SE you would know they ARE NOT CHARGING YOU FOR APRIL. You have zero room for complaint since they won't be charging for services not rendered. And if the if the servers have to be offline longer than that then they most likey won't charge you for that either. SE is being considerate of YOUR pocket book at the expense of their own. They are well aware of what this could do in the long term. I suggest you just back off now because you started a fight you can't win.

One last thing, if SE had backup servers don't you think they would have used them multiple times by now rather then taking the game completely offline during server maintenance?

[Darkren]

I do... I just want them to stop the PS2 limitations exuse and get the servers back up, the basic responsibilities of any multi-million dollar corperation. Before its lost

isn't this a playstation and a mother nature issue rather than a SE issue?

you are talking about keeping the server alive so that there wont be a player loss, but wouldn't getting rid of the PS2 or not providing the same content for PS2 also cause a player loss form PS2 users? you are totally confused in any of your arguments

[Darka]

Exactly ... you havent been trying to make any point at all ... eccept to lash out and insult... anyone can do that...
The point I have REALLY been trying to make this whole time is that there need to be a separation between SE and Japan... SE provides service to UK australia canada mexico US China Korea ect..... there should have been a backup plan...
And there should be some sort of appropriate actions taking place soon or customers will get what they want somewhere else... I dont want to come back to an empty game, before the crash they were already talking about a MAJOR server merge, THis will indeffinatley make it worse

Idiot was correct. You don't have a backup plan for a game that is already dying/declining. Secondary servers are expensive, XI doesn't make much profit, if anything it probably just makes enough to sustain the current servers, let alone backups. So you have no choice but to wait it out, QQing here changes nothing.

[Meril]

to answe your post
I would have rather paid my fee and played the game.
The lovely favor does not exuse there lack of responsibity to have a backup plan. end of.
AGAIN
this is NON Japan realted.
SE attack only

[Odintius]

The server are location in japan which I very well pretty sure you are aware of and the fact that an major earthquake hit cause alot of damage isn't at all the issue. Could they have backup servers in different parts of the world sure maybe they will now that this happen to them. But at least have some compassion for japan right now there nothing they can do atm with the crisis going on over there. They sure didn't ask for an almost 9.0 earthquake to happen right off there shore line and have 3 nuclear powerplant meltdown explosions and radiation, fire's a tsunami hitting there coast no its all because of the ps2 limitations im sure...

[arlais]

And there should be some sort of appropriate actions taking place soon or customers will get what they want somewhere else... I dont want to come back to an empty game, before the crash they were already talking about a MAJOR server merge, THis will indeffinatley make it worse

News just in from SE. They're sending SOLDIER and the turks out with Shin-ra executives to to sort Tokyo power company's ridiculous demands, and while they're at it they're borrowing Ellone Loire to transport SeeD troops back through time before the earthquake, to break into their own building to grab server backups and hightail it to the good old US of A where no natural disasters ever happen so they can have the game running for you with utterly minimal downtime.

...Would you like a moogle with that?

[Meril]

I have meade substantial donations to Japanese funds HOWEVER IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH SQUARE ENIX! WAKE UP!

[Vivik]

to answe your post
I would have rather paid my fee and played the game.
The lovely favor does not exuse there lack of responsibity to have a backup plan. end of.
AGAIN
this is NON Japan realted.
SE attack only
The whole reason for your post is Japan related. If there was no earthquake you would not be bitching. So yeah it IS Japan related.

[Kindra]

Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't SE a Japanese company? And isn't their home office in Japan?

[Darka]

You are the true idiot if you dont think there making $ off FFXI LOLOL ROFL
and I mean ALOT!

After accounting for per server costs, a billing server, a support server, website, php hosting and GM staff, you're gonna be looking at around 1-1.5m$ for the servers/month, for a game with less than 500,000 subscribers. LOT OF PROFIT HERP DERP

[Zyrs]

Since Friday's 8.9 quake (the largest quake in the last 140 years in Japan), Japan has experienced more than 154 aftershocks of magnitude 5 or greater, and 27 of magnitude 6 or greater. These aftershocks are causing damage to already weakened buildings, berms and retaining walls, along with causing fears of another tsunami in already devastated areas.

I really don't understand the point of this thread. SE and all of Japan have more important things on their minds right now than whether SE should create back-up servers in another country or move the ffxi servers now. If they do decide to move the servers, it will be at the recommendation of their own employees in IT and accounting not a random ffxi player on a forum.

[Naturebeckles]

Exactly ... you havent been trying to make any point at all ... eccept to lash out and insult... anyone can do that...
The point I have REALLY been trying to make this whole time is that there need to be a separation between SE and Japan... SE provides service to UK australia canada mexico US China Korea ect..... there should have been a backup plan...
And there should be some sort of appropriate actions taking place soon or customers will get what they want somewhere else... I dont want to come back to an empty game, before the crash they were already talking about a MAJOR server merge, THis will indeffinatley make it worse

Meril... I feel for you. It's like a many against one like me in a different thread yesterday. Just because SE isn't vocal about their plans doesn't mean they don't have a contingency plan in action as we speak. The Japanese Power company is I guess planning these rotating blackouts through the end of April at least. SE says the game will be down for at least a week with updates to come. Either they're telling us a week just to make us feel better or they really are in the middle of implementing a migration or contingency plan. So, hang tight for a bit and let's see what happens. ^^

PS: Tell Gamisra I said "hi". *wink*

[Kjara]

just reading from a news-by-minute site of my country right now:
it sounds like rationed electricity in Japan is going to last *at least* till the end of April, that's what the Tepco operators said. For over a whole month Japan is going to have regular scheduled black-outs of 90 minutes through the whole day and night.
So yeah this sounds like it's going to last even longer. Gotta deal with it.

[Odintius]

I have meade substantial donations to Japanese funds HOWEVER IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH SQUARE ENIX! WAKE UP!

Yes those evil Square Enix Corporations thug's get them. How dare they shutdown the server's while in middle of a crisis .

[arlais]

I offically throw in the towel with the hand full of hill-billies I have been hearing from ...

Byebye, take care!

[Meril]

Byebye, take care!

clever....

[Lexin]

Goodbye please remember to open your eyes next time and look at the larger picture and not just the one where you have to play a game.

[Kindra]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/events/japan-quake-2011/beforeafter.htm

A friend posted this on Facebook. They are before and after pics basicly and as of March 13th. Given that this topic s about why SE shutdown the servers i thought pics might help.

[Qtipus]

This post is not being mean, it's not trolling it's being realistic.

No, reality is all the crap going on in Japan currently, not your ability to play this game. You aren't being billed for a month, so it's not like you're getting railroaded. Pretty sure if SE sees the downtime will be long-term, they'll do something like move the servers somewhere else. If people quit over a day or few of downtime, good riddance for now. We'll likely see them back when their A.D.D. gets bored with whatever else they happen to find.

[Odintius]

Quick call the US Navy in to power up Square Enix server's oh and make a call to President Obama he need's to make an offical annoucment to demand Japan Government to make FFXI server's top priority of the clean up.

[Meril]

Its not that difficult... take ur 12.95 X 500k suscribers (6mil 475k) for one month... and MOVE THE DAMN SERVER! EASY ! DONE!

[Meril]

oh .. and with that 6 mil per month OFFER PS2 USERS a HARDDRIVE UPGRADE !!!!!

[Darkren]

Its not that difficult... take ur 12.95 X 500k suscribers (6mil 475k) for one month... and MOVE THE DAMN SERVER! EASY ! DONE!

would prefer SE to donate that money to Japan victims rather than build your server for you.

[Meril]

I would prefer that also, but t wasnt offered as an option.

[Qtipus]

Its not that difficult... take ur 12.95 X 500k suscribers (6mil 475k) for one month... and MOVE THE DAMN SERVER! EASY ! DONE!

Yes, physically pick up the servers, move them elsewhere (which will likely involve moving them across a huge body of water somewhere), set up some internet service that can handle the upload necessary (which usually takes upwards of 2-4 weeks to implement completely), rewrite your software to point to the new location, then pray it all works.

Sunshine is a wonderful thing y'know.

[Naturebeckles]

So FFXI and FFXIV will be down for an unknown length of time, could be a week, could be a month, could be a lot longer.

I do understand the situation in Japan and I also understand that the situation didn't really effect Square directly that much as a company and the server downtime is more because of the power stations asking big companies to conserve power(correct me if i'm wrong). Understandable, but shouldn't a company the size of Square have some kind of plan being worked out to bring the servers back up asap? (maybe moving them to a different location to get around this or something?).

Would Blizzard let the game be down for an unknown amount of time if this happend, would any of the big TV stations? This maybe just a game but SE is a games company and that's pretty much all they are. Their entire work force exists to make and run games so it's a big deal for them. Something like this is a godsend to your competitors in the MMO field, ie Rift and WoW.

The reason I say this is because I assume long downtime will do damage to the games userbase, downtime on addictive games like MMOs that require a monthly payment and want to keep as many players on board as possible is a bad thing. What if a large number of your subscribers go off and try other MMOs and get hooked on those or if they lose the yearning to carry on with the games, I've had breaks from many games in the past and wholely lost intrest when I had the opportunity to go back.

FFXI is currently in an upsurge and I would hate for that to slide away. If this is a week then that's one thing but if there is a chance it could be extended and go on for a long time I hope there are plans to get around it and get the game back up asap.

Since FFXIV has been run for free for 6-7 months which is being done at a vast loss of money I can assume money can also be spent on something like this, which is far more important to both games and the bottom line of SE as a company long term.

This post is not being mean, it's not trolling it's being realistic.

I agree with you and that's why I asked my IT friend some questions yesterday when he and his wife were at my house. One of two reasons why SE is telling us a week: Either they're trying to keep us quiet and happy, or they already have a disaster plan in place and are currently working on a migration so they can have everything up and running in a week (or maybe a few days longer at the worst). My friend works for a multi-billion dollar company in Arizona and they have a disaster contingency plan that he's a part of. So, that's what I'm thinking is going on. One thing is don't underestimate the Japanese. They are very smart people and I don't think from a business standpoint, they're standing around in their executive offices helpless to the power situation.

[Miera]

Honestly I am glad they shut down the servers, they should have done so sooner to reserve power for more important things such as hospitals and such, but I guess they wanted to keep them up for a little for people to communicate with eachother about the unfortunate turn of events.

I could care less if it takes a week or two for the servers to be up. Could you imagine if they kept them up like you wanted them to and cause the whole servers to get destroyed from all this crap going on? Could you imagine having to start over to the very beginning? {Thanks for the offer, but I'll have to pass.} I'm fine with a week of no FFXI, I got other things I can be doing anyway.

[CrystalWeapon]

The bottom line is this disaster is effecting all of japan, the nation isn't all that huge of a landmass and the fact that several reactors are on the verge of and or have had partial meltdowns means that large areas are experiencing power shortages.

Yes McDonalds didn't shut down due to 9/11 but it's not a matter of insensitivity. They're not shutting down because of people's feelings, they're shutting down because they have to. It's a matter of conserving power for the facilities that absolutely need it i.e. hospitals and such.

I'm sure you would like them to keep running but the fact is there are no contingencies to run from outside of Japan and what's done is done, deal with it. Complaining now isn't going to do anything about it, grin and bare it and just be glad that you weren't affected by it.

Emotions are bound to get high on a subject like this, so yes you run the risk of getting attacked for comments that show a tad insensitivity to the whole situation. As far as calling everyone rednecks, I live about 2 hours southeast of New Orleans, I have a degree in Computer Science as well as Mathmatics. < Where you live has nothing to do with your intelligence level, it's ok to defend yourself but being stereotypical while trying to push a point that you shouldn't argue with insults won't get you anywheres.

[Meril]

6+ MIL in 1 moth is even more wonderful

[Darka]

Its not that difficult... take ur 12.95 X 500k suscribers (6mil 475k) for one month... and MOVE THE DAMN SERVER! EASY ! DONE!

AGAIN

Travelling requires some kind of energy
Energy is being regulated by the GOVERNMENT
Government > SE

[Naturebeckles]

Its not that difficult... take ur 12.95 X 500k suscribers (6mil 475k) for one month... and MOVE THE DAMN SERVER! EASY ! DONE!


In a disaster situation, they don't have to physically move the servers. They have backup servers or can purchase them and it's matter of moving all the information to the new servers. Which, if they have a backup plan in place for such disasters, all the information they currently have on the shut down servers is backed up anyway.

[Meril]

ty nature, finally some intelligent insight. makes sense and will most likey be the truth. then it will shut these half-breeds UP FOR GOOD!

[Meril]

AGAIN I WILL SAY IT! $ TALKS

[Meril]

people saying " physically move things " are they *** retarded?????

[HFX7686]

In a disaster situation, they don't have to physically move the servers. They have backup servers or can purchase them and it's matter of moving all the information to the new servers. Which, if they have a backup plan in place for such disasters, all the information they currently have on the shut down servers is backed up anyway.

Are you that hard up for a FF11 fix? It'll be a week or a few weeks. There are other video games. Play them instead. Stop being insensitive and alarmist.

[Birdkiller]

Aren't the reactors going into meltdown due to damage from the earthquakes as well as the power demand? If that's the case, if they put the servers back up and we were playing the game, wouldn't we only be aiding the meltdown of said nuclear power plants? :<

[HFX7686]

Actually, she's spreading sensationalism, alarm, and anger. We can live without FF11 for a few weeks. It won't kill any of us.

[Qtipus]

All im hearing is a bunch of cry babies.

That or a couple people very effective at trolling.

[CrystalWeapon]

You keep arguing money but if they were not previously set up it would cost a huge amount to even just rent servers in another location for the 24 that we have in place now in Japan as a short time fix for the players not affected.

[Naturebeckles]

There is a reason that person is on my ignore list, Meril. I suggest you do the same. I'm hoping for the best too. Aside from the horrible disaster over there, the original poster does, in fact, bring up a lot of valid points. And if SE wants to save themselves financially, they would be working on a contingency plan as we speak to get things up and running again. As one of my friends said (heartless, I know, but true and funny), the people whining about not playing aren't the people you want to ban from the game. It's the people who tell us whiners off and go play other games. Because at least SE can guarantee that us "whiners" will be coming back to play!

[Naturebeckles]

Aren't the reactors going into meltdown due to damage from the earthquakes as well as the power demand? If that's the case, if they put the servers back up and we were playing the game, wouldn't we only be aiding the meltdown of said nuclear power plants? :<


No. A friend of mine told me yesterday the explosions so far have been hydrogen explosions at the nuclear facility and that they were currently pumping sea water into the reactors to kill them to prevent a meltdown.

[Schultz]

Seriously guys, you'd complain no matter where the servers were. Japan is facing a crisis that will take years to recover from, maybe more if the reactors meltdown.

Moving the servers state side would be a bad move maintenance wise. As I said on GW, has anyone ever had to phone a NOC to get a machine repaired? I would honestly extend our current maintenance timeframes from 10hrs roughly to up to 2 days. Software upgrades wouldn't take that long, but hardware upgrades are another issue.

So please think of the bigger picture, and not just yourself. I'd be really surprised if I don't hear of some class action lawsuit being filed against SE by some idiot because of mental anguish caused.

[Qtipus]

people saying " physically move things " are they *** retarded?????

No, assume for a second all of the hardware to run this game is located in one building (probably an off-site backup). Assume for another second all of the hardware is subject to the power company's request to turn off non-essential equipment. Assume for another second still all of said hardware is subject to the rolling blackouts while they get things fixed. Said location isn't safe to conduct business from. If that's the scenario (which is likely), you're not simply going to set up a redundant datacenter w/o it being subject to the same conditions currently present meaning some sort of physical move would happen. You don't have to look any further than the recent POL hardware maint. to see that this is likely how they have things set up.

It's like someone else said earlier, SE likely has a plan and they're giving it a few days before taking action. Sorry to say, a bunch of people being able to play a video game probably isn't at the top of their concern list at the moment and rightfully so. If that pisses you off or makes you angry despite getting free service, you got bigger things to worry about than FFXI.

[Kindra]

Meril I will ask this before I get all defensive.... Are you saying I'm not smart enough to understand what your saying?

I do recall saying earlier that if its not something they have in place now then so be it I can understand that. I also said that if SE were talking about something that could be set up in the future, you know the whole live and learn thing, to prevent this from happening again then I am fine with that idea as well.

Getting this riled up over something that you can't do anything about has got to be bad for our health.

[HFX7686]

There is a reason that person is on my ignore list, Meril. I suggest you do the same. I'm hoping for the best too. Aside from the horrible disaster over there, the original poster does, in fact, bring up a lot of valid points. And if SE wants to save themselves financially, they would be working on a contingency plan as we speak to get things up and running again. As one of my friends said (heartless, I know, but true and funny), the people whining about not playing aren't the people you want to ban from the game. It's the people who tell us whiners off and go play other games. Because at least SE can guarantee that us "whiners" will be coming back to play!

I don't think that SE is going to crash and burn financially because their servers are down for a month. People will come back.

Stop trying to spread alarm and panic. You're not helping the situation at all.

[HFX7686]

And yet you continue to read my posts. I'm not really concerned with you reading my posts, actually. I just want to make sure others don't believe your nonsense.

[Meril]

no kindra, just wanna focus on the facts, and future. from a buisness perspective. but yes, they should have ahd a backup plan in ANY case! its just responisble buisness for a company that sees 6M + in revinue off 1 game alone in 1 month...

[HFX7686]

no kindra, just wanna focus on the facts, and future. from a buisness perspective. but yes, they should have ahd a backup plan in ANY case! its just responisble buisness for a company that sees 6M + in revinue off 1 game alone in 1 month...

Their backup plan is to shut the game down to conserve power in Japan because everyone in their country needs to conserve power so they have electricity for emergency services.

I think this is a good plan and I fully support it.

[Darka]

Its not 6M revenue, it's tax deducted, at least a third has to cover the servers costs, and lets not forget the employee's salaries, whatever profit they make is going to future content/updates, there's not enough to host back up servers on top of that, lets not forget the water cooling and electricity costs either.

[Meril]

AGAIN
for a company that provides serviceis to 6 CONTONENTS .... there backup plan shold NOT even have to DO with JAPAN!

[Dubberrucky]

Just going to add my 2 cents here but there is more at stake as SE than just the power situation in Japan at the moment. My heart goes out to everyone that was effected by this disaster. I for one would be happy to see the game back online hosted temporally in another location until power is restored to Japan at the level to host the game there again, because I would like to see the SE Japan employees to have the job security left to be able to deal with their troubles at home without having to worry if their job will be safe as they search for their loved ones. Flame me if you like but it stands to reason. I know some Katrina survivors and some of their biggest concerns were on top of the disaster being cleaned up and finding their loved ones was what about my livelyhood after? The power situation over there is a major issue and if anyone thinks it will be fixed in a week or two they are overreaching. No one wants to see people loose their jobs over being shut down it may be insensitive but it is business sense the longer they stay shut down the more likely to loose customers the more likely to cut jobs especially to those who will still need the income to get back to their lives after things have been sorted out.

[Birdkiller]

And yet you continue to read my posts. I'm not really concerned with you reading my posts, actually. I just want to make sure others don't believe your nonsense.

I don't, I'm pretty sure just last year they said the game has finally started to make more money through its subscriptions than what it costed them to make it, so if it took like 8 years to actually start making money from this, I doubt a week or a month of downtime will make any difference financially. If players leave, they leave. We can't control that as much as we can't control earthquakes and tsunamis. If anything I guess all the impatient people will have left.

[Schultz]

Gotta love Ignore Lists. Just another way to see the world the same way Fox News reports it.

[HFX7686]

AGAIN
for a company that provides serviceis to 6 CONTONENTS .... there backup plan shold NOT even have to DO with JAPAN!

These services are not essential to any of those six continents. I am sure everyone can survive for a few weeks without FF11.

I don't even understand why they would need/foresee the need for a backup plan in a disaster of this magnitude. People in Japan are running out of food. The grocery stores can't get food on their shelves. I don't think that people are screaming about the lack of a backup plan for that. They're actually waiting calmly in line, getting what they can, without panic or anger. Can't you do the same for a video game?

[Meril]

THIS SITE WAN NOT CREATED TO EXPRESS HEART FELT WISHES TO THOSE IN DISASTER!!! IT HOW TO MAKE SE STAY AFLOAT!!!!!
Make dontaions and prayers @ www.yajoo.com!!!

[Meril]

EVERYONE NEEDS TO SEPARATE SE FROM JAPAN!!! END OF!

[HFX7686]

I don't, I'm pretty sure just last year they said the game has finally started to make more money through its subscriptions than what it costed them to make it, so if it took like 8 years to actually start making money from this, I doubt a week or a month of downtime will make any difference financially. If players leave, they leave. We can't control that as much as we can't control earthquakes and tsunamis. If anything I guess all the impatient people will have left.

I think you are completely and totally right.

[Odintius]

I'm sure there having business discussion's going on about the situation and find a way to work it. But for the here and now were going to have to wait instead of making up conspiracy theories on stuff they may well be out of there control. Should they consider a backup yes I can agree on that. No buisness is perfect they can reflect on this and either correct it or not but for the current circumstances they have to make a call.

[Vivik]

EVERYONE NEEDS TO SEPARATE SE FROM JAPAN!!! END OF!

End of what?

[Meril]

SE is a business NOT a country OR DIYING PPL!

[Vivik]

Mindless dribble

LOL, I get it!

[Naturebeckles]

Gotta love Ignore Lists. Just another way to see the world the same way Fox News reports it.

Actually, ignore lists are good for saving unnecessary stress. I hope there isn't a 200 person limit like there is on the game.

[Odintius]

SE is a business NOT a country OR DIYING PPL!

So were does the business reside at? Where do they get the energy to support there company? Guess SE better make big plan's on making a huge man made island off the coast and offically make it there own.

[Dubberrucky]

Gotta love Ignore Lists. Just another way to see the world the same way Fox News reports it.

lmao I don't agree with your point of view /ignore

[HFX7686]

Actually, ignore lists are good for saving unnecessary stress. I hope there isn't a 200 person limit like there is on the game.

Blinkers are great things for the stubborn.

[Lexin]

So were does the business reside at? Where do they get the energy to support there company? Guess SE better make big plan's on making a huge man made island off the coast and offically make it there own.

lol Call the mega movers.

[Schultz]

Look at Tokyo, I don't think I've heard of any buildings that have suffered major structural damage. The city has been build with earthquakes in mind. Tsunami's and Nuclear Meltdowns, that's something you can't plan for and mitigate easily. SE has decided that their services are not as important as others.

They have voluntarily turned off their service to help. At the same time they understand that they offer a paid service and that even if the downtime is only a week, interruption to a paid service has further ramifications, so they are giving everyone a free month as a gesture of good will, and thanks for the understandings of what they did.

Anyone with their nose out of joint still should get a reality check. No moving the servers wouldn't have helped the situation, disasters like this could happen anywhere. Sure having redundancy built into your service by having server farms on a few different continents would have been a wise thing to do, but that would mean that they would need to employ more people to maintain those server farms hardware wise.

I would rather have one skeleton crew maintaining one server cluster and the money saved on maintaining 3 international crews used to further develop the product. Don't get me wrong, I deal with redundancy networks as a job and I know the value of having services up 24/7 even if something like this happens, but I think that a service of their scale might not be as easy to manage as we think.

A mod should lock this before anyone else says something they will regret later on. Some people are still in stage 1 grief at the moment, while most are already on stage 6. If you don't believe me, look at the players donating the money they would have spent on this months fees towards the Red Cross relief appeal.

[Kindra]

Meril I am not saying this to be mean or anything but your asking people to separate SE from Japan. Please don't take this the wrong way but people may have a hard time doing that because SE is in Japan. We would say the same thing if SE's California office were having this very same issue, and people were worrying about them. They would say the people of California. Its hard to separate them because they are going through a very rough time. And because the people SE has working there in Japan are from Japan. Just trying to help you understand that its hard for us not to take that into consideration.

As far as if they should have had a back up plan i will be honest yes. But i can also understand why they wouldn't. And as i said before if SE decides to have back up servers or already has them and is just waiting to SE how this play out this week then so be it. I do hope they do put up back up servers somewhere else in the future if they haven't already.

[Darkren]

SE is a business NOT a country OR DIYING PPL!

your right SE is not a country, but the disaster has already affected worlwide businesses not just Japanese ones. so what point about business are you actually trying to make?

[Naturebeckles]

lmao I don't agree with your point of view /ignore


I've seen you around on the server and didn't really know you too well. But I gotta say, I like what I read when I read you here on the forums. ;)

[Sama]

Can remote server be a possibility? It's easy and it works the same way as it is now.

[Lexin]

Okay the the energy conserving was a "volunteer" thing SE shut their servers off. Looks to me they value their country more then money.

[katoplepa]

even Toyota and Honda and Nissan have suspended their productions, so... be patient! you will come back to play with more enthusiasm!! if you love FFXI you will come back when it will come back, like every player who quitted in the past and then they all come back...

[Schultz]

Actually, ignore lists are good for saving unnecessary stress. I hope there isn't a 200 person limit like there is on the game.
If you've ever worked in a public environment dealing, you'd know that people dribbling nonsense are a way of life. A teller with an angry customer can't just pull up their ignore list then stare blankly at the customer as if nothing is happening. They have to get their manager involved and resolve the dispute/situation.

IMHO Ignore Lists are just another way of saying, I'm right, you're wrong, please go away, I have no time for your opinion. A very right wing approach to opinion censorship. That's my opinion and I'm open to anyone elses opinion on the subject. I'm not out to prove anyone wrong, just stating my opinions on the conversation at hand.

[Chronofantasy]

To OP: With a disaster like this I don't think SE is worrying or carrying about their revenue right now. I wouldn't be surprised if they're donating a large chunk of the company's money to help support their country and those lives who are struggling whether it be strangers or loved ones. I have a feeling people at SE actually cares about their own people that they will actually risk going bankrupt just to do whatever they can to help those in their country that have survived this horrible tragedy. If you care enough about SE's profits then you should also be understanding and care for these people too and hope that these people will recover and survive on anything they can get.

The loyal fans of SE will remain with SE and FFXI/FFXIV even if the servers are down for many months. Even if the servers have to merge down to one server with a few thousand players I'm sure SE will prosper and pick up again with their other projects. SE has made the morally correct decision here by shutting off their power and people will respect the company for that. If SE kept their powers and server on just to satisfy their players and to gain profit, do you really think the company would have a good reputation around the world?

For myself personally, I don't think I'm going to touch another MMO until FFXI does come back. There are a lot of other games to play that aren't MMOs and there's a lot of other stuff to do outside of gaming as well. There's a million things that can be done everyday and maybe this is a good thing for those outside of Japan to finally get a break from their gaming addiction on FFXI. It's a horrible cause for this with Japan though. I really hope the survivors can survive and recover from all of this and that Japan can stand strong once again soon.

[Odintius]

If you've ever worked in a public environment dealing, you'd know that people dribbling nonsense are a way of life. A teller with an angry customer can't just pull up their ignore list then stare blankly at the customer as if nothing is happening. They have to get their manager involved and resolve the dispute/situation.

IMHO Ignore Lists are just another way of saying, I'm right, you're wrong, please go away, I have no time for your opinion. A very right wing approach to opinion censorship. That's my opinion and I'm open to anyone elses opinion on the subject. I'm not out to prove anyone wrong, just stating my opinions on the conversation at hand.

Oh yes and the left would never ever would do something like this unthinkable keep the politics out of it just blinds you to reality! But for the ignore list I never use it to many people get there feeling hurt way to easy now and day's. Is really anybody right on there opinions no that why it called your opinion...

[Naturebeckles]

If you've ever worked in a public environment dealing, you'd know that people dribbling nonsense are a way of life. A teller with an angry customer can't just pull up their ignore list then stare blankly at the customer as if nothing is happening. They have to get their manager involved and resolve the dispute/situation.

IMHO Ignore Lists are just another way of saying, I'm right, you're wrong, please go away, I have no time for your opinion. A very right wing approach to opinion censorship. That's my opinion and I'm open to anyone elses opinion on the subject. I'm not out to prove anyone wrong, just stating my opinions on the conversation at hand.


I agree with your first paragraph. I have to deal with the public at school on the days I'm on the salon floor doing hair on clients that come in. I mentally prepare myself for that so I can handle it. However, when I come home and I'm on the computer to relax, I feel I should not have to put up with people who tell me I'm an idiot for having a certain opinion. I don't censor people who have something intelligent to say to me without insulting me. I do censor people for being douchebags to me, regardless if they think they have a right to do so or if they just like laughing about it. It's my computer screen, it's my stress level during a time I'm supposed to be relaxing... and I'm going to censor the people on this forum who raise my stress level. It's not about me being right and that person being wrong. It's about "I'm just not going to talk to you anymore, because it's pointless and I don't come on here for this stress."

[Moemo]

I would just like to say that my thoughts and prayers are with the people of Japan. I would also like to suggest SE start a voluntary way for people to donate to a relief organization to help those displaced by this huge disaster. They can provide a link to an organization or collect the donations themselves. It's time we stop thinking about ourselves and help those that have no shelter, food or water and have lost loved ones!

[Dubberrucky]

I was actually not making fun of anyone in particular simply laughing at the reference and similarity to fox news. It was a true strike.

[HFX7686]

I was actually not making fun of anyone in particular simply laughing at the reference and similarity to fox news. It was a true strike.

Ah yes, it is true for Fox News too!

[Anethia]

You keep arguing money but if they were not previously set up it would cost a huge amount to even just rent servers in another location for the 24 that we have in place now in Japan as a short time fix for the players not affected.

About time I saw you pop in. Been waiting all day to see you say something.

[bishop]

Go outside and play a game of street ball.

[Amperage]

First off.. My heart goes out to all of the families affected by this great tragedy. Watching the video feeds from Japan leaves me in awe of the huge undertaking the Japanese people have ahead of them in an attempt to recover from the recent disaster and continuing threats related to it and a newfound admiration for the people involved. I couldn't imagine facing such a thing in the US and maintaining any semblance of order.

Having said that I do have a couple points I would like to make regarding the apparent witch hunt going on in this thread. Anybody who suggests that a company such as SE who is at it's heart a games company and service provider should have a contingency plan in place in the event something like this should happen is being attacked by people on their moral high horses.

I don't think the OP is suggesting FFXI should take priority in Japan over the other problems they are facing, but merely saying that they consider resuming operation in another location temporarily to protect not only their bottom line but also all of the jobs of the employees currently employed by a company which honestly isn't "raking in the cash" at the moment.


Idiot was correct. You don't have a backup plan for a game that is already dying/declining. Secondary servers are expensive, XI doesn't make much profit, if anything it probably just makes enough to sustain the current servers, let alone backups. So you have no choice but to wait it out, QQing here changes nothing.

I think you overestimate the costs of operating a small cluster of servers and the amount of actual player data contained on said servers. I maintain a number of local business networks and servers. Even stuff as trivial as employee personal folders are backed up off location to secondary domain/file servers in the event of hardware failure or otherwise. It's just not that expensive even for small businesses to maintain backups of pretty large amounts of data.

[Midnitelouie]

I think you overestimate the costs of operating a small cluster of servers and the amount of actual player data contained on said servers. Even stuff as trivial as employee personal folders are backed up off location to secondary domain/file servers in the event of hardware failure or otherwise. It's just not that expensive even for small businesses.

I think you underestimate the cost of a full Enterprise level network. We're also not talking just storage here. We're talking bandwidth.

So... You're looking at 25 servers. (24 if you don't count Atomos, the test server.) Then you're looking at...four? Five login servers clustered to handle the login process. And the PlayOnline servers. And the billing servers. And... On top of that? I go back to bandwidth. Even if you're looking at a server with a very low population, figure minimum online population of at least 500 at any given moment. And let's say for giggles that you're looking at everyone connecting with a 56k modem connection.

500x56 = 28000 or roughly 28 MB/sec. Multiply that times 24 for the servers, and you're looking at 672 MB/sec just for the server worlds alone...

Additionally, let's look at the human factor in all this. Would you want to be the President asking your IT crew to come in to work in extremely hazardous situations, just so you could transfer all this over? Or asking the GMs to attempt to ride herd over the complaints? Or the Customer Service department to handle the complaints due to login congestion, etc...etc...etc...

For the first time I can remember? I really have to applaud SE for handling this the way that they are. Which in my mind is the only humanitarian way that they could do it.

Screw this "It's a multi-national business! They're losing money!" line of thinking. You don't want to come back to an "empty" game? See ya. Don't let the door hit you where the good Lord split you. It'll make farming that much easier...

[Chamaan]

I'm sure the Prime Minister will get right on this. Emergency generators will be at the Squeenix offices by day's end, no doubt. That pesky Godzilla problem they're having with nuclear reactors can wait.

Also, I'm sure a company large as Squeenix had the foresight to invest in insurance that recoups revenue losses in the event of stuff and junk. If anything the forced break is nice. A lot of my friends have finals right now, and when we do come back to the game it'll be after a rejuvenating rest.

Go out, meet a woman, meet a man, whatever works. Or at the least find a cute one and follow her home and watch her shower from the tree outside her bathroom.

[Emdub]

Greetings!

Although we always appreciate the flow of ideas and opinions we want to make sure that the posts are always polite and constructive. Not everyone will agree with a post from another player and they are welcome to discuss their opinions as long as they are constructive to the topic. If a thread goes off topic to a certain degree or becomes a flame war, we will have to moderate and take action on the posters involved. An excessive amount of inappropriate posts will lead to the suspension of posting privileges.

Having said that, please feel free to continue this discussion but be wary of posts that are inciteful, insulting or too far off topic.

We appreciate your understanding and cooperation and apologize for any inconveniences this may have caused!

Thanks!

-=Game Master Emdub=-

[Skyrant_Kangaroomouse]

They should charge us for April and then donate that revenue to the Red Cross or similar organization.

Best Post i have read so far, Kudos to you Kandu!

SE, I support this idea, take my subscription and donate it to the efforts in japan as you see fit!

[Kitheren]

The reason Square Enix has decided to shut the servers down on both games is not to inconvenience any of us. It is because the power company in Japan has asked everyone in the country to conserve power by not using it on frivolous things. Maybe to you a game is not frivolous. But when that power could be put to better use like a hospital, I would sacrifice any amount of time needed of this game being down.

It's a G A M E. Get over it.

Too many people in this world care only for themselves and don't even bother to actually read the information that was stated. And I friggin' Q U O T E~


Due to the continuous earthquakes occurring in the eastern regions of Japan since Mar. 11, 2011, the power companies in Japan have encouraged everyone to cooperate by conserving as much energy as possible as it is feared there will not be enough power supply. Based on the current situation, we have decided to shut down the game servers temporarily, and therefore to suspend services of FINAL FANTASY XIV, FINAL FANTASY XI, and PlayOnline temporarily.

Don't believe me? http://www.playonline.com/ff11us/polnews/news20541.shtml So there.

[Valix]

Would Blizzard let the game be down for an unknown amount of time if this happend, would any of the big TV stations?



That is just a testament to how much your own country doesn't care about its people, They would rather keep there business running then help there troubled community.

I'm not from Japan (I am Australian if it makes a difference) but I think the people of Japan should feel proud of SE for putting aside business for the community, if other mega corps around the world could take a lesson from them the world would be better for it.

[Kitheren]

That is just a testament to how much your own country doesn't care about its people, They would rather keep there business running then help there troubled community.

I'm not from Japan (I am Australian if it makes a difference) but I think the people of Japan should feel proud of SE for putting aside business for the community, if other mega corps around the world could take a lesson from them the world would be better for it.

Agreed. Thank you for stating that.

[Dymlos]

Really, REALLY!? They're hell in a handbasket right now and you want them to minimize the downtime? Please! I would rather have them keep the servers offline until everything is a-okay. My main concern is the people of Japan to get their lives in order, not play an MMO.

Hell, right now I feel useless, not being able to do much to help out the Japanese in their time of need. I can donate food, and money and I still feel like it's not enough.

[Xensai]

go do what S.E is doing.. Filling out their social obligations meaning.. Their turning their servers off to help the people suffering right now.. sorry ur all tucked away in your little bed in the Fine outstanding Moral abiding country of the USA...

[viion]

You guys way to sensitive and emotional, need to chills outs a bit. This is nature.

Anywho i think the OP needs to realise the obvious here, businesses dont plan for: Earthquake/Tsunami/Meltdown events.

[Kjara]

instead of keeping raging threads like this up on the forum I'd like to see a thread to keep us updated on the situation in Japan to help us understand the situation better. I'm keeping a minute-by-minute news site up all the time when I'm at the computer to see what the news are, but I bet other countries (I'm in Italy) can get other if not better news.
It would sure help these stressed players to see that the Japan is working to get back in shape (and it is. Go check news.)

[Komori]

From my knowledge, not all of japan was even devasted; hence how you saw japanese players online after the quake and talking to some of us about it. It was the northeast coast bit. Not the whole island, if I'm mistaken. I'm sorry. And no, that doesn't change the fact that this was a needed thing to help solve the blackouts so that they can get back up and running and I very much hope that they can, and as quickly as possible. I would hope other countries would have more involvement besides putting it on their news also. Hell, if China got the slightest bit involved with their troops, I think it would be up a little faster. But dunno the odds of that happening <.< So I will just work around not having the game.

[Runespider]

Makes no sense to me how Square can continue to run FFXIV for free because they can't charge without losing mass numbers of players, an action which basically eats money and continue to do this for 6+ months yet can't rent some servers in their US offices or in another part of Japan to make sure an important set of titles does not take long term damage from loss of subs.

MMO's are addictive in nature, thats how they keep us playing for years. We won't go cold turkey well after weeks or months (even the high horse people will rage after they have been without their fix for months) we will either lose intrest and get on with our lives (unlikely for most) or play other games out of boredom and be forced to stick with those for an extended period of time, trying other games is one thing, being forced to play them weeks/months to the point you get into them is another. Any other business realises this is a bad idea, a popular TV station being down for months which has serious competition for ratings forcing people to watch the competition, if WoW was down for months and almost its entire playerbase going to Rift for months would that not be bad for business?

If this ends up being a weeks downtime no big deal but it could be months, Square have not said they will take action if it ends up being a long term deal.

[Kjara]

I would hope other countries would have more involvement besides putting it on their news also.

For my nation, I can say it was decided that it was decided to send on Tuesday a "team of experts on the field that will valuate with Japanese authorities about times and modality for an eventual operation of assistance from our country" (translating this from the Italian news site I'm reading). My country sucks so I wish Japan the best of luck and hope other countries will help because I can't expect much from Italy -.-; We're [Too Weak] and our leader thinks he's God so that doesn't help either.

[Kindra]

"I made a post yesterday and a lot of people got on their high horse, will be funny to make the post again in a month and see the difference. People like that are usually cool till it has a serious effect on them, then they change their whole outlook.

Suddenly the suggestion of a major company setting up rented servers or something in their american office to keep the game running will look a lot more appealing to everyone."

Rune I thought this post should go here. Rather then where you made it lol. Anyway I wanted to point out how this one post looks to me. When you say that in a month this will have a "Serious effect" on them you have taken your point and made it invalid. Why I say this is because if a Game has such a "Serious effect" on people then they need to really look around.

Saying that they should have had a back up plan is one thing. Saying what you said in this post says to me its not about worrying about SE profits, its about worrying if you can play the game or not.

Again its not in anger just pointing out how it looks to me. :)

[Imakun]

For my nation, I can say it was decided that it was decided to send on Tuesday a "team of experts on the field that will valuate with Japanese authorities about times and modality for an eventual operation of assistance from our country" (translating this from the Italian news site I'm reading). My country sucks so I wish Japan the best of luck and hope other countries will help because I can't expect much from Italy -.-; We're [Too Weak] and our leader thinks he's God so that doesn't help either.

All we're good for is assistance to the population, we're no good at giving opinion on earthquakes or nuclear emergency that's for sure lol

Anyway, SE is a worldwide major company. I'm sure they have emergency plans for situations like this and now they're merely acting according to the government's advice to save energy for the good of the nation.

[viion]

Also remember its not all SEs fault, i bet ISP companies have also been asked to reduce their threshold as well as power companies asking to store/redirect energy.

[Randwolf]

That is just a testament to how much your own country doesn't care about its people, They would rather keep there business running then help there troubled community.

I'm not from Japan (I am Australian if it makes a difference) but I think the people of Japan should feel proud of SE for putting aside business for the community, if other mega corps around the world could take a lesson from them the world would be better for it.
Funny, that wasn't what I saw after Northridge, 9/11. the shooting in Arizona. So, you judge an entire country based on the actions of a few. A few who have also been called out by their own countrymen. What is the term for someone who paints everyone with the same brush based on the actions of a few? Seems that is what you are doing here.

[Wze]

It should be noted that thirteen prefectures in Japan are having mandatory scheduled blackouts to conserve energy. This is a government decision and as such SquareEnix has no say what-so-ever. I'm not sure within which prefecture their servers are hosted but it is entirely likely they are in the effected area. Just trying to open some people to the possibility of this downtime being out of their hands. The scheduled blackouts are assumed to last for roughly one week, however the listing has no end date at this time hence SE not giving any definite info. Hope this helps explain a little more to those with no access to Japanese news.

[Kitheren]

It should be noted that thirteen prefectures in Japan are having mandatory scheduled blackouts to conserve energy. This is a government decision and as such SquareEnix has no say what-so-ever. I'm not sure within which prefecture their servers are hosted but it is entirely likely they are in the effected area. Just trying to open some people to the possibility of this downtime being out of their hands. The scheduled blackouts are assumed to last for roughly one week, however the listing has no end date at this time hence SE not giving any definite info. Hope this helps explain a little more to those with no access to Japanese news.The only real solution to any more issues causing the servers to shut down (God willing they would have no loss of life) would to have back up servers in the US. However, that would cost more money and with the constantly flucuating number of players, I don't think they can afford that right now.

All we can do is wait. And it sucks. But I think most of us need a break from the game.

Ehh then again, I don't think that this game is the most important thing right now. And it makes you realize that it is not always gonna be there to play. Maybe we will appreciate it more?

[Rocman]

It is a tragedy, My prayers go out to everyone in Japan. But i do agree everyone else should not suffer because of it, SE has hubs in California and the UK. I dont understand why those hubs could not keep the servers up, that would not affect the power in Japan at all.

[NightDagger]

It should be noted that thirteen prefectures in Japan are having mandatory scheduled blackouts to conserve energy. This is a government decision and as such SquareEnix has no say what-so-ever. I'm not sure within which prefecture their servers are hosted but it is entirely likely they are in the effected area. Just trying to open some people to the possibility of this downtime being out of their hands. The scheduled blackouts are assumed to last for roughly one week, however the listing has no end date at this time hence SE not giving any definite info. Hope this helps explain a little more to those with no access to Japanese news.

I am not sure where you have got your info from but if you look at the TEPCO site and translate it they state that the rolling blackouts will be going on until at least the end of April. They also state that unless they are able to get the current reactor fuel rods covered & the heat exchanger repaired they will not be able to provide any stable power until the end of summer due to people will have to use their air conditioners & the system will be overloaded.

I know everyone is looking on the bright side about everything but don't keep staring at the boards waiting for SE to say "Servers back online tomorrow" cause that day is in the future. This could actually have a greater effect on SE then people are willing to admit, the fact is in two months from now when SE announces that they may be coming back online they will only have maybe 50% of their client base.

Hope for the best & expect the worse. That is the way of life, wishful thinking is nice but the facts tell a different story.

NightDagger
Server - Lakshmi

[Ezikiel]

so we aren't being charged while servers are down?

[Kailea_Nagisa]

so we aren't being charged while servers are down?

no we are not, as of right now they said they are not chrgin for April, and if the servers continue to be down, we wont be charged till they are back up.....if ever

[Thehobo]

There are some truly ignorant people in this world. If an earthquake DEVASTATED the United States, or Europe, or anywhere else as that is much more populated than Japan, I believe if the headquarters was in that location, the servers would be down. Runespider, your "concerns" for their financial success fail in one sense, my friend: If the game servers are not on, then there isn't any costs from employees working, no power bill for this amount of time, more power for the much more important things like HOSPITALS. Now, if there isn't a cost to go with the loss of revenue, it's what businessmen call breaking even. Now, shut up, dude. Seriously. I have been playing FFXI since 2005, but you know what? If they keep it off for a month, so be it. I respect that decision 110%. Heck, they even gave us no payments all the way through April. EVERYONE gets free FFXI until May. Quit whining and suck it up. It will be okay.

P.S. All those in Japan, I pray for the safe return of all your family and friends. And I am very sorry for all losses (Financial, personal, friends, family, etc.)

[Chiibi]

dont just pray donate to the japan red cross.

[Randwolf]

There are some truly ignorant people in this world. If an earthquake DEVASTATED the United States, or Europe, or anywhere else as that is much more populated than Japan, I believe if the headquarters was in that location, the servers would be down. Runespider, your "concerns" for their financial success fail in one sense, my friend: If the game servers are not on, then there isn't any costs from employees working, no power bill for this amount of time, more power for the much more important things like HOSPITALS. Now, if there isn't a cost to go with the loss of revenue, it's what businessmen call breaking even. Now, shut up, dude. Seriously. I have been playing FFXI since 2005, but you know what? If they keep it off for a month, so be it. I respect that decision 110%. Heck, they even gave us no payments all the way through April. EVERYONE gets free FFXI until May. Quit whining and suck it up. It will be okay.

P.S. All those in Japan, I pray for the safe return of all your family and friends. And I am very sorry for all losses (Financial, personal, friends, family, etc.)
I don't agree with Rune. But, one of the largest costs to companies is salaries and benefits. Most full-time, salaried employees are usually paid when a company isn't open. Their benefits are also paid. Now, the company can do things such as suspend pay for extreme cases. But, most won't do it because of the damage to morale and employee loyalty. However, if this does stretch out into a long-term thing, S/E may be forced to suspend salaries or pay people at a reduced rate. Benefits are usually the last to go because those are contractual with the companies that provide the services.

[Rocman]

It's not that we are ignorant, i already donated to the red cross. I was a katrina victum so i completly understand what they are going through. But you know something "The show must go on". This is life, it sucks but things happen. We help when/if we can but again "The show must go on"... Now your happy to get april for free huh? News flash, read on the facts FFXI will be down all of april and perhaps may. People have the right to be upset, i totally understand why some people need FFXI, i am one of those people.... I have no family, friends, nothing in my real life, ffxi is my family, its all i have. So yes i miss it dearly!

[Randwolf]

It's not that we are ignorant, i already donated to the red cross. I was a katrina victum so i completly understand what they are going through. But you know something "The show must go on". This is life, it sucks but things happen. We help when/if we can but again "The show must go on"... Now your happy to get april for free huh? News flash, read on the facts FFXI will be down all of april and perhaps may. People have the right to be upset, i totally understand why some people need FFXI, i am one of those people.... I have no family, friends, nothing in my real life, ffxi is my family, its all i have. So yes i miss it dearly!
I'm not being flippant, or mean, or condescending. Your statement really says you need a break from the game and to spend some time with non-virtual friends. Although we all know the game is designed to be addictive, there is a warning when you log in about placing this game above the real world. Have you checked to see if any FFXI gamers are near you. Maybe you all could get together and spend some real world time with each other.

[Rocman]

I'm not being flippant, or mean, or condescending. Your statement really says you need a break from the game and to spend some time with non-virtual friends. Although we all know the game is designed to be addictive, there is a warning when you log in about placing this game above the real world. Have you checked to see if any FFXI gamers are near you. Maybe you all could get together and spend some real world time with each other.
I lost my family and wife in disaters, Thank you for your concern but I dont need a break from ffxi. ffxi is the only thing that keeps me sane. I know it sounds nuts but its a good outlet, better then turning to drugs right? I am now disabled so i cant work either. So again thanks for your concern but there is some of us that need ffxi!

[GERM]

Are you serious? Their reactor is going to melt and poison the whole of japan and the currents and winds will carry it over to the US or East Asia.

You people need to lay off this.. it was already mentioned this was a tragedy and he wasn't saying anything about that but in the fact that yes I am still living my day to day life and what not I help when I can to others so don't start going postal just because you feel you have to implement your save the whale comments every time someone has an opinion or question about the game.. The world doesn't revolve around Japan and I'm sorry they are effected by Earth's nature and it sucks that people are hurt and killed but this isn't a thread about a person being morally selfish.. This is a thread about legit questions and concerned based off a lot of peoples everyday lives and we have the right to express our concern about the effect of this game based on our lives..


I'm not being flippant, or mean, or condescending. Your statement really says you need a break from the game and to spend some time with non-virtual friends. Although we all know the game is designed to be addictive, there is a warning when you log in about placing this game above the real world. Have you checked to see if any FFXI gamers are near you. Maybe you all could get together and spend some real world time with each other.

and I think you need to lay off the Dr. Phil routine too.. You are in no position to dictate others lives, habits or addictions.. Once again this was a thread based off concerns of a customer and not meant to be taken personally by anyone based off the disaster.. Either you are traumatized by this because of some personal effect it has on you or your just flaming anything that isn't related to saving the rain Forrest.. go start a thread and name it "the support of those in need" or something then you have every right to jump on everyone's "OPINION" that doesn't follow the thread

[Bahamut]

SE should have went green and put up a windmill farm, and solar panels to run its servers... /shame.

Maybe they can take this time to rethink going green now.

Nuclear power is always dangerous, we all need to go green to avoid these kinds of threats to our population and lands.

And most importantly being off the grid, safe from natural disasters like this and EMP waves from solar flares, or even enemies.

[annewandering]

With all the terrible things going on in Japan right now one thing to consider is the economy. It is going to cost so much to get things up and running again. Right now it looks like the power shortages are going to be going on for some time. It takes time to get new power sources up and running and at least three, more likely four, and who knows how many more reactors are going to have to be replaced completely. I have not heard if any other power sources are affected by the earthquakes and tsunami.
There are plans for at least 6,000 megawatts of power to be sent to Japan by Russia via undersea cable.
One week sounds more than optomistic. It sounds very unlikely that FFXI or any other big business in Japan to be up very soon. Unfortunately in order to repair damage and rebuild it is going to take huge amounts of money. To get that money they have to get business up and going as soon as possible. In fact I would put it fifth in priority right now. Water, food, shelter, health concerns then businees up. It is absolutely vital to get the businesses up. How they can do it without electricity I dont know without moving as much as possible off Japan temporarily. Anything to get it going as soon as possible. Of course that doesnt reemploy people in Japan but it is without doubt that many of the Japanese will be involved in rebuilding.
They will be able to get reduced cost loans from other countries but it is better to get their own sources of money going as soon as possible.
Into all this comes SE. It is true we want the game back as soon as possible BUT it is IMPORTANT to them that they get it up and going soon too. A healthy business contributes to a faster recovery for Japan. As self serving as it sounds it is true that the sooner we can play the game the better for Japan it is. I would rather buy US products for our own economy but right now it wouldn't be a bad idea to help support Japan by buying their goods.
Its good to contribute to charitable organizations but for the pride of Japan it would be good to support them in our buying practices too. Our hearts are out to you, Japan. We are behind you in your rebuilding and know it will happen. Hard times are still ahead but it will get better.

[Randwolf]

You people need to lay off this.. it was already mentioned this was a tragedy and he wasn't saying anything about that but in the fact that yes I am still living my day to day life and what not I help when I can to others so don't start going postal just because you feel you have to implement your save the whale comments every time someone has an opinion or question about the game.. The world doesn't revolve around Japan and I'm sorry they are effected by Earth's nature and it sucks that people are hurt and killed but this isn't a thread about a person being morally selfish.. This is a thread about legit questions and concerned based off a lot of peoples everyday lives and we have the right to express our concern about the effect of this game based on our lives..



and I think you need to lay off the Dr. Phil routine too.. You are in no position to dictate others lives, habits or addictions.. Once again this was a thread based off concerns of a customer and not meant to be taken personally by anyone based off the disaster.. Either you are traumatized by this because of some personal effect it has on you or your just flaming anything that isn't related to saving the rain Forrest.. go start a thread and name it "the support of those in need" or something then you have every right to jump on everyone's "OPINION" that doesn't follow the thread

Sorry, but if someone lays information out there that is concerning, I'm not going to just let it go by without a responding. And, yes, I have a degree in counseling psychology. It would be irresponsible of me to not point out what appears to be behavior that is unhealthy. And, uncaring on anyone's part to not direct that person to some more positive path. The internet has become flooded with people who think they are watching T.V. and don't give a thought to the fact a real person is making that post.

[annewandering]

SE should have went green and put up a windmill farm, and solar panels to run its servers... /shame.

Maybe they can take this time to rethink going green now.

Nuclear power is always dangerous, we all need to go green to avoid these kinds of threats to our population and lands.

And most importantly being off the grid, safe from natural disasters like this and EMP waves from solar flares, or even enemies.

Lovely but wouldnt the government need that electricity for their grid? Also the tsumami would have wiped out solar even faster than the nuclear plants, admittedly without the radiation danger.

[lllen]

I can't believe some of the stuff I have read about SE having to shut down because of a horrific catastrophic event. First I want to say this is only a GAME!!! I have played this game for several years, and from what I have read, it is a good thing that SE shutdown there is definitely some people who need a break from playing to get their head on straight. Some people don't think the troubles of Japan will effect this country, well look at the stock market, look at the economy every country's major troubles/events effects the well being of another. I want to play as much as all of you, but if it was on a scale of 1-100, one being the most important event in life, playing ffxi is about 2000 in the scheme of life. It is only a game.

[Dazusu]

I have a degree in counseling psychology.

Unless your expertise is solicited, keep it to yourself. For someone with a degree in psychology, you seem to have forgotten several basic rules. Being non-directive is a good place to start - specially for someone you don't know.

[Scuro]

This is all I"m going to say too this,

Get over yourself when people have lost their homes and loved ones, it won't kill you to take time off from the game, but it might kill people in Japan if you don't. If it does afflict you, then you are obviously in violation of the beginning user agreement to not forget your REAL Life. If you have friends and family or friends that are your family in game, then be prepared for such situations and talk to them through outside sources such as Skype, TS, WHATEVER. Hell even Mail them letters if you like, but I really don't see how being asked to take a week break is a life or death decision. Get over yourself, Care for the people that need us most and why not donate the money we didn't have to pay for this month too the cause rather then squandering it on a 2 liter and a pizza.

[Lithera]

Wow, it has only been two freaking days. The week of is far from being over. Should SE of had back up servers somewhere outside of their home nation, maybe. Are the Ceo's of SE dumb enough not to realize the longer XI at least is down the more money they will loose? Probably not. Even if they did have back up servers at the moment some where else other than japan they would have one heck of a time making sure things are running smoothly due to phone services being spotty at best. Also some of the prefects mentioned in the mandatory rolling blackouts are HUGE. Ignoring the fact that the country they just happen to be based in having multi nuclear plants trying to play Russian roulett at this time one has to remember that a few towns got wiped out to sea by 4ft waves caused by the tsunami. Now I don't know how you go measuring waves for height but if it is just like you do for people I would pretty damn sure any phone electrical or Internet lines got fubared by something that is almost as tall as my 5'3 butt. Before we start trying to double default at the starting line about not having an update by now if servers will or will not be up by next Sunday by NA standards try and remember they have four more days to update us.

[Randwolf]

Unless your expertise is solicited, keep it to yourself. For someone with a degree in psychology, you seem to have forgotten several basic rules. Being non-directive is a good place to start - specially for someone you don't know.
You're absolutely correct. In a counseling session, the healthiest path is when the client realizes they have a problem and take it upon themselves to work on it.

[Chiibi]

what you need to understand is that ffxi is down for 2 reasons. firstly they were asked to by the power company, and secondly because they have MORE IMPORTANT THINGS TO WORRY ABOUT.

[Rocman]

This is all I"m going to say too this,

Get over yourself when people have lost their homes and loved ones, it won't kill you to take time off from the game, but it might kill people in Japan if you don't. If it does afflict you, then you are obviously in violation of the beginning user agreement to not forget your REAL Life. If you have friends and family or friends that are your family in game, then be prepared for such situations and talk to them through outside sources such as Skype, TS, WHATEVER. Hell even Mail them letters if you like, but I really don't see how being asked to take a week break is a life or death decision. Get over yourself, Care for the people that need us most.

I love how people think since we miss the game so much, the game helps us through everyday life, Thats this means we dont care? I am all about myself because i use FFXI as an outlet to escape everyday pain like this disaster?
Have you dontated anything to the japan red cross or do you just sit there and say you feel bad? I did my part, i gave money to help, and if i was healthy i would fly over there to help in anyway possible like i did for 9/11.
So dont sit there and try to judge people you dont know just because they miss something even if its as silly as a game. Because it might be just a game to you but its important to some people.

[Chiibi]

but rocman you're not talking about missing the game. what you have is a full blown addiction.

[Enkrateia]

We certainly appreciate this discussion about wanting to get back into the game as soon as possible. As someone who also plays, I am looking forward to being able to get back into the game.

However, this thread has ceased to be about the downtime, and become more of a commentary on each other depending on the positions that are held. Because this discussion seems quite irreparably off topic now, we will be locking the thread so the discussion cannot continue.