BYE TANAKA!

From Team NA! Good luck with whatever you pick up next~

F*CK YEAH!!!

When are we throwing the wheels up party?

Let's not have a thread to bash him more, there's been enough of them. It was said he was leaving for "health reasons."

This isn't a bash thread.

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Originally Posted by Phafi

Let's not have a thread to bash him more, there's been enough of them. It was said he was leaving for "health reasons."

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So far not a single bash was posted. Let's read threads before we make remarks on them, shall we?

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Let's not have a thread to bash him more, there's been enough of them. It was said he was leaving for "health reasons."

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That's code for being forced into retirement.

Last year I said that by 2~3Q FY2012 Tanaka would be forced out of the game due to his inability to listen to players and poor vision for a MMORPG. He has proven to be very capable at making single player console RPGs, and completely inadequate at making MMORPGs. He treated FFXI and FFXIV as just another single player console RPG, but with many players, and look what it did to both of those games. Community members stated several times that things were broken and their "vision" of both games were flawed, he refused to listen, even to his own test server / beta players. They took him off FFXIV to get that game fixed, and so far it's worked extremely well. Now that he's messed up FFXI even more (since abyssea) their pulling him off to increase profitability.

His choice was retirement or being humiliated by being made the executive manager for archival of file 13.

idk, there was a fuck yeah and it can attempt to prevent future posts doing it.

Allow me to be clear then. I did not create this thread with the intention of bashing him. However, I cannot control the posts that follow subsequently. That is for other posters and mods to control.

Can only hope his health gets better after his retirement.

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Originally Posted by Zumi

Can only hope his health gets better after his retirement.

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His health is perfectly fine. "Health Reasons" is the generic statement used in East Asia when someone is stepping down from a position of influence (Politician / Business) and they want to save face. SE can't publicly fire him as it would make them look bad, so instead they give you a choice, early retirement (all benefits of course) or be put into a position with a fancy title but absolutely zero responsibility or input into any decisions, executive director of a closet for example. Most take the retirement and live out their days doing hobby work, some cling on and refuse to leave.

I don't like what he did with XI and XIV, but he worked on some of the best single-player RPGs of all time. So, I hope he gets back on that and stays away from online games. He directed the DS remake of FFIII which was great, and was a producer on loads of great games I'm sure you're all fond of: Xenogears, Chrono Cross, Secret of Mana. Oh, and he was a programmer on one of my favorite games of all time: Final Fantasy Legend II (SaGa II in Japan).

So even though I think his policies were bad for XI and XIV, I wouldn't go so far as to condemn him entirely. He's done good work, but online games just aren't his thing and it's taken too long for SE to realize that.

so the guy to replace him is Matsui. Isn't he the guy in charge of XIV atm, who is responsible for the remains of tanakardization over there (relic weapons, world NMs, bad drop rates, bad UI, grind etc). Lets not get the hopes to high.

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Originally Posted by Monchat

so the guy to replace him is Matsui. Isn't he the guy in charge of XIV atm, who is responsible for the remains of tanakardization over there (relic weapons, world NMs, bad drop rates, bad UI, grind etc). Lets not get the hopes to high.

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He went to FFXIV after it flopped to do damage control. Don't associate him with the flub that was FFXIV. He also was an underling in Tanaka's FFXI, so he's already familiar with both. Also, he will be in charge of both XI and XIV until a new head for XIV is appointed.

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Originally Posted by Llana_Virren

He went to FFXIV after it flopped to do damage control. Don't associate him with the flub that was FFXIV. He also was an underling in Tanaka's FFXI, so he's already familiar with both. Also, he will be in charge of both XI and XIV until a new head for XIV is appointed.

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Wut?
Naoki Yoshida, better known as Yoshi-P, is in charge of XIV. He's both producer and director. As for XI, it's been Mizuki Ito more or less in charge for a while now.

Every log and ore I NPC from now on, I'll always remember Tanaka

http://www.famitsu.com/news/201206/24016883.html

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ーーなぜ、勇退を決意されたのでしょうか？

田中　じつは難病を患っており、体調的な面もあって、今回の決断をさせていただきました。プレイヤーのみなさんやスタッフに迷惑をかけるわけにもいきませんし、どこかのタイミングでケリをつけなきゃとは思っていたんです。またひとりのクリエイターとして開発現場に戻りたいということもあり、退職をお願いしました。

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Why, what has been decided to retire voluntarily?

Tanaka : Suffering from incurable diseases and Tanaka fact, there also aspects physical condition, I was allowed to make a decision this time. So it does not bother to go to our players and staff, and I have to put a buttoned at the timing is not somewhere I had expected. Sometimes it is you want to go back to development as a creator of one site, and asked to retire also.

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/cheer to you Tanaka San

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Originally Posted by Phafi

Let's not have a thread to bash him more, there's been enough of them. It was said he was leaving for "health reasons."

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Because even if were not bashing tanaka we are all thinking this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2fQ4d89jXc

I have just resub to ff11 not because of this but because a new expansion is now set for next year , it is what i wanted to see to make me resub, this a few days after i almost left ff 14 for good so i have decided to give 14 another shot.

The direction the games go in will be if i stick with them or not.
Not trying say anyone style is better than another just that i know what style of game play i enjoy.

On tanaka, i wish him good health and respect the type of games he makes but they just not what i enjoyed, really i hate to see people in poor health and it would be great if he can recover and his family there for him because thats whats most important.

I didn't agree with some of the decisions Tanaka made (in regards to FFXI and FFXIV) but I had no ill will toward the man. After all, business is simply business. Nothing personal.

That aside, I hope he gets better and enjoys his retirement to the fullest.

Am I glad he's going to be gone from XI? Yeah, I am. I don't wish him any pain or suffering though and I'm sure most people don't. We can have it both ways on this. I think most of us can separate the professional from the personal.

Well hopefully with Tanaka retired there's a chance the 1500 HMP requirement is adjusted. Preferably before the new expansion goes live and everyone abandons VW entirely.

they won't change it due to many people having already completed. What could change is more ways to acquire them, which in the end amounts to the same.

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Originally Posted by Monchat

they won't change it due to many people having already completed. What could change is more ways to acquire them, which in the end amounts to the same.

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Yea but I don't know if you remember but when relic trials first came about they consisted of an insane amount of kills after slaving away I finally finished them just to have them severely lowered in the near future, they can do anything they want, they have shown this much, honestly they need to fix the Umbral issue, 20m+ a pop is ridiculous I could just make another relic and have them both 95 instead of having one 99 lol

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Originally Posted by Mirabelle

Well hopefully with Tanaka retired there's a chance the 1500 HMP requirement is adjusted. Preferably before the new expansion goes live and everyone abandons VW entirely.

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Everything in this game is doable. The way to get this is to get an LS that is willing to help one specific member to get the HMPs. If you really wanted to, it could be done in a matter of a month. The only things that really need fixing and balance are stupid events where its a PD + Embrava + Zerg fight. THat is where the balance issues are. When people see soloing as a triuphant feat, they need a new game. When people see an MMORPG as a place to generate a virtual income and base an economy on greed, they need a game. When people see not needing friends and only use them as tissue paper, they need a new game. This game isn't hard. Its just full of lazy, greedy, stupid people.

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Originally Posted by Sayomi

Yea but I don't know if you remember but when relic trials first came about they consisted of an insane amount of kills after slaving away I finally finished them just to have them severely lowered in the near future, they can do anything they want, they have shown this much, honestly they need to fix the Umbral issue, 20m+ a pop is ridiculous I could just make another relic and have them both 95 instead of having one 99 lol

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umbral marrow prices have diminished tremendously, due to demand droping. 20m a pop you're being cheated. on quetz they are 18m+ in bazar but do not sell for that price.

Tanaka gets so much UNDESERVED hate it's unbelievable.

If not for him there wouldn't have been a FFXI. You also have him to thank for getting us Seekers of Adoulin. Hindsight tells a different story. People were hating on the lack of content to VW and Legion and such, Tanaka gets the blame and is called shit all throughout, while this whole time they've been working on a relatively large expansion with all original areas, new enemies, new jobs, new gameplay, new guilds, etc. in secret. I guess he just grinned and took it like a man, since it seems the devs actually do like to participate in the community when no one's watching and I doubt he missed the massive shitstorm of hate and whining. He apparently loved FFXI.

Then come vana'fest, the man looked pretty damn ill. Seriously, look at a pic from a year ago or so, then watch his vana'fest footage. I was talking about it with my friend and wife, and at the end he retired due to "health problems".

Thank you very much Mr. Tanaka.

I will pray for his speedy recovery on his health issue. In the corporate world, resignation due to "Health Issues" has been used and abused far too often, but we can never really imagine what challenges maybe facing. Mr. Tanaka, I "/solute" you on being a great innovator and producer/director some of SE's great single player games. Big shout out on Chrono Cross (I wish a direct sequel was made) Final Fantasy III & Final Fantasy Legends II. I am sure he has one heck of a demanding position with the company and at sometimes probably felt like it was overbearing. But, I give you thumbs up for stepping to the plate and trying to make a difference on FFXIV & FFXI. I say use that energy you have, Tanaka, and look into doing remakes and sequels to the games that in demand for the Chrono series and Final Fantasy franchise.

Thanks to Mr. Tanaka for his service to Square since 1983. I didn't always agree with his design choices, but cannot deny his love for video games and contributions over the past 30 years. He was the driving force behind a lot of great single player games, and helped shape FFXI which has been around and much loved for 10 years. I wish him the best in his retirement and long happy life for his remaining years. He did look sick at the vanafest and hope retirement will agree with him.

I'd like to mention that you guys are being ungrateful to an generous extent. The man did help make the Final Fantasy franchise what it was on the Final Fantasy VII days. Now, if you want to target someone for the games doing poorly, target the CEO Yoichi Wada. -_-;

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Originally Posted by Siiri

Thanks to Mr. Tanaka for his service to Square since 1983. I didn't always agree with his design choices, but cannot deny his love for video games and contributions over the past 30 years. He was the driving force behind a lot of great single player games, and helped shape FFXI which has been around and much loved for 10 years. I wish him the best in his retirement and long happy life for his remaining years. He did look sick at the vanafest and hope retirement will agree with him.

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Completely agree. I wish him well.

Thank u for the many game expieriences given to us by your hard work over the years, Hope your health gets better and that u enjoy ur retirement.

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Originally Posted by Puck

I don't like what he did with XI and XIV, but he worked on some of the best single-player RPGs of all time. So, I hope he gets back on that and stays away from online games. He directed the DS remake of FFIII which was great, and was a producer on loads of great games I'm sure you're all fond of: Xenogears, Chrono Cross, Secret of Mana. Oh, and he was a programmer on one of my favorite games of all time: Final Fantasy Legend II (SaGa II in Japan).

So even though I think his policies were bad for XI and XIV, I wouldn't go so far as to condemn him entirely. He's done good work, but online games just aren't his thing and it's taken too long for SE to realize that.

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Eh i hated chrono cross from its storyline basis, while the battle system was somewhat innovative from a standard take turn RPG it felt like a step back from what chrono trigger was also via scraps and tidbits basically suggest that every main character from trigger was dead including robo (prometheus was integrated into mother brain and eliminated during the course of the story) that and it had far too many characters with little to now back ground story or direct story line involvement, having a few POWERFUL but baseless special characters is nice, but not 30+ (iirc 40ish total) non essential and normal playable characters.

That said cross had some of the best music of its time, have a few of em in my mp3 player in fact good nostalgia music.

Heh kind of got off on a long tangent, he has really done some great works in the past but the fact that he will no longer be heading up 11 makes the future of the game seem brighter as such i will not miss him as director of this game, though am sad to know that SE had lost some good expertise in the single player world.

In reguards to the undeserved hate he had garnished while lack luster content was being released due to the new expansion being developed i can't agree that it was totally undeserved, only in the fact that if they were going to go through with this they could have been teasing us with tidbits and hints all the while much like how they use to when these forums first came out instead of letting people get pissy and subscriptions starting to lapse.

Would have kept peeps interested/excited through the bland parts.

tl;dr Disliked Chrono Cross' story line for killing off trigger's characters, will not miss tanaka where 11's concern but SE did lose a great man, he deserved any hate he got during the last year of lack luster content because he failed to hint/tease to keep us placated and or excited for things to come.

Tanaka-san,

Thank you for 10 years with Final Fantasy XI.
All the best in future and take care of your health!

田中さん

このＦＦＸＩの１０年間に大変ありがとうございました！
お大事に　お疲れ様でした

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Originally Posted by Return1

Tanaka gets so much UNDESERVED hate it's unbelievable.

If not for him there wouldn't have been a FFXI. You also have him to thank for getting us Seekers of Adoulin. Hindsight tells a different story. People were hating on the lack of content to VW and Legion and such, Tanaka gets the blame and is called shit all throughout, while this whole time they've been working on a relatively large expansion with all original areas, new enemies, new jobs, new gameplay, new guilds, etc. in secret. I guess he just grinned and took it like a man, since it seems the devs actually do like to participate in the community when no one's watching and I doubt he missed the massive shitstorm of hate and whining. He apparently loved FFXI.

Then come vana'fest, the man looked pretty damn ill. Seriously, look at a pic from a year ago or so, then watch his vana'fest footage. I was talking about it with my friend and wife, and at the end he retired due to "health problems".

Thank you very much Mr. Tanaka.

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He gets hatred as a developer, not as a person. It's totally fair to call Tanaka out on all the silly, poor, backwards and stubborn decisions that got him the ire of both NA/EU/JP players because so many of them could have been avoided had Tanaka stopped developing in his bunker and communicated with the base that would have been more than happy to nudge him in the right direction.

For all the mockery of balance and Tanaka himself most players would have liked the guy if he simply had been more vocal to the concerns of his customers. He may have been skilled at single-player games but it was clear that Tanaka was not the ideal choice for MMOs and he nearly killed two SE titles in the process.

You're right that time will tell if Tanaka was the sole reason this game suffered so much but as it stands:

Tanaka the developer = Bad.
Tanaka the person = Unknown.
Tanaka the ailing human being = Deserving of empathy.

http://asecular.com/ran/0310/usslinc...sh-mission.jpg

I was listening to/watching the stream at night/early morning (my time), and while I do understand quite a bit of Japanese, I wasn't quite certain that he was 'passing the torch' and leaving, but there we have it.

I'm sure there are people jumping for joy, but I for one do hope he will be OK, and am able to say thank you, and farewell with the best regards in mind.

さ
ら
ば
だ
。
。
。

desu tanaka-san....desu

I hope Tanaka will be ok and has a quick recovery. Thanks for all you have done for Final Fantasy XI and past games, Tanaka!

The reason there is so much hate for Tanaka is that he worshiped the status quo and used it as his guiding principle. Basically his design philosophy was that nothing should change. New gear, content and abilities, as long as nothing changes. Our relative power level and ability to accomplish goals must remain the same no matter what content is released, hence the years and years of side grades and "situational" gear. The fact that gear obtained in 2005 was still not only relevant but often the most powerful in slot in 2008 is testament to the problem. He didn't like Abyssea because it changed the status quo and allowed us to do things we couldn't do before thus forcing more work on the development team. He then spent the rest of the time after Abyssea trying to force the status quo of 2008 back onto us.

This isn't a bad idea for single player console RPGs, it's the absolute worst thing you can do for dynamic evolving MMORPGs.

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Originally Posted by saevel

This isn't a bad idea for single player console RPGs, it's the absolute worst thing you can do for dynamic evolving MMORPGs.

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Considering Tanaka had no idea what he was doing - FFIX has done pretty well for its self being in its tenth year of service, with enough subscribers to warrant a new boxed expansion and thousands of people turning up to VanaFests whenever they're thrown. Not to mention the fact that all the same people who sit on the forums and cry about the game every day continue to be active subscribers, and by extension, players.

Remind me again why we're all still subscribed?

The fact you're still subscribed yourself makes your posts in this thread scream of hypocrisy.

Clearly the man was doing something right; and if you think he made all the decisions of every aspect of game play, then you're severely mistaken. Judging by how well written your posts are, I'm surprised that the content of them is as flatulent as it is. MMOs need teams and experimentation to get things right, and while I agree that FFXI (or any other MMO for that matter) don't always come up with the best ideas - to scream "zomg it's all tanaka's fault" is pretty short sighted.