Is FFXI getting a cash shop?

[Dale]

I doubt it, I really do.
To be fair, the whole "set in their ways" died long ago, the game has changed and so has a lot of the playerbase and the ones truly set in their old ways quit and moved on long ago.

I'm going to have to disagree somewhat because I believe Seillan is making a point I agree with.

A lot of us have been turned off by modern trends in the MMORPG genre and returned home to FF XI. Quite a few of the older players I once knew still play this game, and all of them attempted to get into Final Fantasy 14 but just couldn't. So I really do think the only thing keeping Final Fantasy XI alive at this point is its appeal with older more traditional RPGers who are set in their ways and refuse to change to go along with this new generation of gamers. And to abandon that and give in to modern trends would doom this game I believe.

This game has changed over the years. You are right about that. But it still retains much of its original design and plays very differently to the modern MMORPG. This game still has long term goals and an emphasis on hard work - rewarding the player based on their in-game efforts rather the thickness of their wallet. So I think if they start adding a lot of the modern-day bells and whistles - like cash shops for example - they will be walking a very thin line and risk alienating the very people keeping this game alive.