Classic servers?

[Kalimairo]

Dear square enix i know this might disappoint you and the current fans would dislike it but we all know 75 era s the best version of this game, it would be nice to have an option for classic FFXI What would you lose to add this up? please just test it even a beta server am an all fan of FFXi with 18 years of play time i just want to play the old game,... iam still subbed to xi retall.... Nasomi and eden is not the same please square :( give us a beta test than decide if its worth it...


would also be nice to see how many players would play it if u add a beta test i guarantee there would be 15k + players that would. FFXI 75 era is even better than EQ prime

[Alhanelem]

Will not happen, it has already been shot down by SE in interviews there's been two really long threads written about it, and there's plenty of ways to play stuff "classic" within the game already:

-Don't complete the level 80 limit break
-Use the Level Sync feature
-Intentionally delevel a job
-Play content that still has level restrictions

Here's a summary of reasons why they won't do it, but I recommend looking up the old threads on the topic.



-SE already considered the idea, which means they did a cost benefit analysis that concluded the gain from doing it didn't outweigh the cost

-Requires development resources the devs don't have or would have to take away from the current game that people do still play. Further resources would be required to update the two versions in tandem which again they don't have

-Would require SE to have an archived old build of the game from 15+ years ago (they don't)
-It would divide the community and potentially hurt existing players
-Nobody can seem to agree on what really constitutes "Classic" (Base game only, which was never played outside of Japan? Zilart? TOAU? Everything up to Abyssea? Different people have different ideas about this)

WoW and some other more famous MMOs can get away with this because they have much larger playerbases and the fan base for an old version of the game isn't likely to cut into the regular playerbase to the degree that it would cause any harm. FFXI was never as big as those games and thus has far less to gain from it.

[Pixela]

Go on Asura right now and use /yell to make one single classic party, it's easy right? you only need 5 people to agree and then use level sync. You won't be able to do it.

Almost nobody wants this.

[Alhanelem]

And to cover my behind on the claim that SE has commented on this. From the original classic server thread:


Oh, btw, to really and truly put this to bed once and for all, Gamer Escape asked about this in an email interview of sorts (was among the things supposed to happen at pax): https://gamerescape.com/2020/04/10/1...y-xi-dev-team/ (https://gamerescape.com/2020/04/10/11-questions-for-the-final-fantasy-xi-dev-team/)


Gamer Escape: With the launch of World of Warcraft Classic, there has been talk of having classic servers for other games. We’re curious about your thoughts on having a classic server for FINAL FANTASY XI where maybe the level cap is at 75?
Akihiko Matsui: Truth be told, we have no snapshot data of the level 75 era, which would make it very difficult to replicate things as they were back then on this type of server.
Yoji Fujito: As things stand today, we are unable to meet these requests, simply from a version management perspective. If the goal was simply to limit level growth to level 75, that is something that could be done in theory, but we would be unable to provide any changes on top of merely adjusting the level cap and do not have the ability to provide any support for it with our current bandwidth.
Furthermore, it goes against our company philosophy to just toss something out there and say “Here, have fun!” without giving it the due care that our fans would rightfully expect, so a level 75 server it isn’t in the cards at present.

The closest thing we're likely to get to anything "classic" is the mobile remake, which is apparently still in the works.

Of course, private servers are a thing that exists, but are technically illegal so you'll have to search for that on your own. But anyone who really wants this that badly is probably going that route.

[Zehira]

I'd rather to keep playing than sitting in Mog House waiting for invite. :)

Yes, FFXI was great back day. I miss being a leader of a Japanese exp party.

[Alhanelem]

I'd rather to keep playing than sitting in Mog House waiting for invite. :)

Yes, FFXI was great back day. I miss being a leader of a Japanese exp party.You're Japanese? You've had me fooled all this time.

[Zehira]

No, I am American. It's because my name is Zehira which sounds almost like Zehi (是非). Just add Ra to the end of it to make it sound more cute.

Zehi can mean:

Black and White (RDM).
是非家に来てください　I'd really like you to come to my house.
我々は是非を話し合った　We discussed the right and wrong.
是非もないことだ　It can't be helped.

I have invited some of JP ONLY players into my party before. Weird right?

[Pixela]

Players don't miss the game as it was back then (it's the same), they miss the forced social interaction.

[Zehira]

Yes, compared to Japanese parties, we did a poor job together most of time (remember Valkurm Dunes?). Oh, loldrg has finally been freed from the forced social interaction. :)

[Pixela]

Aside from the fact almost nobody wants wants forced social interaction anymore, it would be a total disaster if they did anyway. People back in the day were fairly tolerant of others, even if they were annoying. 2020 is zero tolerance time, it would be near impossible to have forced social interaction these days.

The GM calls would never end.

[Dragoy]

Go on Asura right now and use /yell to make one single classic party, it's easy right? you only need 5 people to agree and then use level sync. You won't be able to do it.

Almost nobody wants this.

Well, my little character on Asura has been in a linkshell for a number of years, that limits their levels and content to 75, so there are a bunch, but... prooobably not 15k or more.

Oh and on top of that, they can also play the post-75 content at will... so yeah, I'm also on the boat for 'no thanks'. The time and effort could be better spent, I believe, as they're already very limited.

If they were to open-source things, then the community could do that work but that's probably pretty unlikely to ever happen as well.

[Alhanelem]

Players don't miss the game as it was back then (it's the same), they miss the forced social interaction.
Cynical sounding but basically the truth. The community is what made the game. You had to cooperate to do most things so that meant forging lots of bonds with other players. Even if they made a classic version of the game, it would not be the same as the first time we experienced it.

[By-Tor]

You are not alone. Being able to play on a 75 cap official server is one of my biggest, most profound gaming desires.

[Alhanelem]

You are not alone. Being able to play on a 75 cap official server is one of my biggest, most profound gaming desires.
Suffice it to say that desire will never be fufilled. You can merely simulate it by self imposing restrictions.

[Immortal]

its a conundrum that will never be solved or sated. The people don't realize its the community that made that era and how new everything was, not the actual gameplay. I can't understand how people find spending 10 minutes per crab to EXP or sitting around in town for 5 hours LFG was fun at all.

[Alhanelem]

its a conundrum that will never be solved or sated. The people don't realize its the community that made that era and how new everything was, not the actual gameplay. I can't understand how people find spending 10 minutes per crab to EXP or sitting around in town for 5 hours LFG was fun at all.
I 100% agree. The community was chiefly responsible for making the game what it was, and even if you time warp the game to any arbitrary earlier time, the community isn't going to magically reappear and be exactly how it was before. We're also colored by our previous experiences, so it isn't going to be just like before regardless.

[BobbinT]

i'm actually quite confused whenever these kind of request appears: did those people actually done majority of content, as in exhaust them, & yearn for much challenging experiences? Coz I always felt like overwhelmed with so many content FF11 has, don't think have time for classic server. Unless, some only prefer specific content to play with & don't bother with rest? :?

[By-Tor]

I'm new here and have been looking into threads regarding this issue. I find it interesting that there's always the same group of around 5 people who always try to discourage people like me to use the only means of communication between players and SE (this forum) to ask for a classic server. This small group have been doing it since 2015, afaik.
For anyone who reads my post in the future, don't refrain from using the forums to make your wishes known to Square as this is the only way they can see the demand for this, despite pservers being so popular.

[Alhanelem]

I find it interesting that there's always the same group of around 5 people
That's mostly becuase that small group of people is basically the only group that still reads and posts here more than anything else. I'd really like to see you cite examples of me telling you to stop posting or trying to prevent you from posting (which no one here has the capability to do.) But considering this is your second post here, I can't really find any myself.

I'm sorry you feel you're being repressed, but that's not the case. I'm simply stating the facts. SE has already made their position on this officially clear: It won't happen. Chief reason among them being they don't have an old version of the game to go back to internally. It's not like I'm pulling this out of my behind or anything, SE said it. And given their lack of ability to implement it for reasons they've stated, no amount of begging for it, even if 1000 people came here begging for it, would likely make it happen.

I'm glad you want a classic server. Unfortunately, you're not going to get one from SE, the only option is to use the tools within the game (it is a simple matter to keep your level cap at 75 and limit yourself to doing content as someone at that level) or use an illegal private server, which I don't endorse for obvious reasons.

Please understand: I'm not here to suppress you. By all means, keep on posting if you want. But the horse has been beaten, dragged through the mud etc. by far more than just that "small group of people." Feel free to search the forum and read the old threads on it.

Just because WoW did it doesn't mean it's going to work for every MMO.