What would make you return to ffxi? (if you left and came back for the free access)

[Zumi]

I tried to get people to play FFXI on my FFXIV FC to play some during the free week, like I said its all people from my 11 ls and nobody really wanted to come back for the free week to play some. Did get 2 people to bite in previous free weeks, one of them played for 10 min and said "no not playing this again". Other person I got to play for like a day, exp on some rabbits and raptors in that one seekers snowy area but that was about it.

One of the biggest problems is the game population there is like 200-300 people on at peak times with about half of them afk bazzaring in jeuno most of the people are also JP players who are left. Would it be cool to try new delve the new nms in the new RoV areas. Guessing SE will merge servers take them down to 2-4 after the final update the major problem for returning players is there is nobody to do anything with past story missions which are solo.

[Zumi]

I think you hit the nail on the head. The gaming scene atm is... depressing for the most part. Instant gratification kiddies running amock with their candy crush and such. I have friends who feel the same way, they are bored of XIV but force themselves to play it. The mindset of some of these players is horrid though. Look at the person you quoted, clearly that guy doesn't have a clue. He really considers minion pets and glamor as content LOL, oh man those DEVs must make a killing on their cash shop off those people. He mentions "pretty graphics" several times... I even had a comment against me on youtube saying "let ffxi go already ffxiv is the future" so I said "why let ffxi go? its a game like any other and its still fun, age has nothing to do with it" and he responds "it has outdated graphics" like really...? I can only imagine these kids are like 12 years old or something.

Is it really hard to believe that people actually like different stuff then you?

[Draylo-]

Oh I believe it, but I feel the stuff they like is inferior and its a shame FFXI isn't given their time I know what you mean about people not wanting to come back to XI even though its free, always puzzles me.

[Vanfrano]

I think you hit the nail on the head. The gaming scene atm is... depressing for the most part. Instant gratification kiddies running amock with their candy crush and such. I have friends who feel the same way, they are bored of XIV but force themselves to play it. The mindset of some of these players is horrid though. Look at the person you quoted, clearly that guy doesn't have a clue. He really considers minion pets and glamor as content LOL, oh man those DEVs must make a killing on their cash shop off those people. He mentions "pretty graphics" several times... I even had a comment against me on youtube saying "let ffxi go already ffxiv is the future" so I said "why let ffxi go? its a game like any other and its still fun, age has nothing to do with it" and he responds "it has outdated graphics" like really...? I can only imagine these kids are like 12 years old or something.

Honestly, I know all this talk is useless and I'm sure you know that too. I must admit that I grew tired of all these people saying "amen" to pretty much everything SE did on FFXIV when clearly they take the players for granted and offer something absolutely worthless. I've been following FFXIV since the beginning and it amazes me how people do not see what they are served or just chose to accept things as they are, believing every word of "incredible effort and devotion" from the team and in particular from the producer. How long will they cope with this? I'm watching, and I may end up sounding like a troll but this is not my goal, at all, I simply don't understand -and I really try to- how most of the people came to accept all of this, even paying for it. My faith in humanity takes a hit every time.

Anyway, I will just say that I deeply enjoy these sweet moments in FFXI even though I am playing entirely solo now by choice. I enjoy reading people like you, Stompa and others sharing their love for this game, knowing how we all feel about it and seeing that I am not alone (and crazy, for some) in how much I love Vana'diel. This world has been our second home for several years and I never ever felt this anywhere else, and probably never will again.

[Alhanelem]

You can complete each floor of Alexander Savage once a week, first you're not sure you'll be getting a drop, then you have to wait several weeks cumulating tokens to exchange for equipment.

No, it's not terrible drop rates in disguise. Form a premade party, do 2 runs, and odds are pretty good most people in the group will get something. If not in 2, then in 3. Unlike things like the Tartarus mail where entire alliances might go in and not even see it drop much less get it.

I think you hit the nail on the head. The gaming scene atm is...

No, not really he didn't. Different people like different things. I'm not sure why there's a problem with this? And it's hilarious lumping FFXIV in with Candy Crush? The only way to "instant gratification" in that game is to throw lots of money at it for cheat boosters, anyway. FFXIV is far from instant gratification. Also, you ridicule minions and glamour but some people enjoy customizing their avatars as much or even more than they like playing the game itself (Not just FFXIV either, but any game with a character creator or appearance thing going on in it). Who are you to tell them they can't like this that or the other thing?

when clearly they take the players for granted and offer something absolutely worthless.

Maybe it's worthless *to you*, but who are you to say that it's worthless to other people? Just because you don't like it and think it's bad, doesn't make it some kind of almighty fact. Different people like different things, and I'm more convinced than ever that the hate for FFXIV displayed here is purely resentment for the perception that it was specifically created to kill their precious baby, FFXI. Well, I keep coming back, so obviously that didn't work, did it? In many of the posts above, what I see basically amounts to "STOP LIKING WHAT I DON'T LIKE!"

And seriously, why am I like not allowed to like both FFXI and FFXIV? Why do I get crapped on for even mentioning the game here? That's really not fair. The fact that you keep seeing me back here should be regarded as a testament to FFXI's brainwashing power, lol- seems I can't stay away from it forever, even if I try to! Let people like what they want and stop hating them for it.

Vanfrano, really all it is, is the game isn't for you. That doesn't make it bad or defective, not everything can appeal to everybody. The people you see praising Yoshi P and the dev team are simply showing their appriciation because they're genuinely having a good time. I'm not sure why that's so hard to understand, even if you don't see what people find fun about the game. The simple fact is, they do find things fun about the game, and you shouldn't have to understand why to accept that.

[Shinun]

I think the game having so much solo content, and stopping major updates after rhapsody is what's going to get me to do alot of subbing because then it becomes almost a giant solo RPG.

Between FFXIV and FFXI I feel the better value is FFXIV because as a legacy player their is quite a difference of paying as low as $7.99 for upwards of 40 characters a month. (I use 8 Characters on Zalera.) compared to $12.95 + $1 for each mule it's not even close. Sadly that does play a big role in which I choose to play the last few years.

What I don't like about XIV and what I did like about XI before the level cap increase was not having a gear treadmill where after months of work everything is flushed. It's why I believe games like GW2 which the incentive for different gear is for the most part purely for cosmetic glamours and not constant stat upgrades is one of the best options for these types of games. Thankfully that seems to be in the future what FFXI will play like where after you get your gear and work towards your final peices the rest will just be for stylelock.

I also feel like XI as a pure game is the better of the two due to the vast amount of content you can do. Now, most of it is obsolete. That goes the same for XIV once heavensward came out ARR content was completly obsolete. But, in both games you can still partake in the content for fun and this is where XI shines compared to XIV. XI has more options of different styles of content to partake in. Now, this isnt a fault of XIV as much as it's that XI has been out for so much longer. XIV has some fun content like Chocobo Racing, and Triple Triad, and really fun PVP. But the boredom and burnout comes in when other then those few side options all you have really is DF Dungeons and trials, which most people are burned out on a vast majority of them from all the tunneling of the Relic Weapon Questlines from 2.0

[Alhanelem]

It's why I believe games like GW2 which the incentive for different gear is for the most part purely for cosmetic glamours

Except FFXIV is pretty much all about this. When you continue your "gear treadmill", you build up a collection of often awesome looking stuff that now serve a second purpose of making you look however you want, and awesome in the process. The further irony is it was FFXIV that used the term "glamours." It doesn't matter what gear you get so much as simply getting it. in FFXI there is a lot of content that doesn't get played because the rewards suck. in FFXIV that doesn't happen because even doing old content (via the roulette) can help you get new gear. Plus, as I said before, XI still has treadmills, they just work differently because of the progression style.

It works better for FFXIv because it didn't spend 7+ years frozen at the same level cap. If FFXI had not waited so long (or never did it at all, one or the other), it would have worked out better.
(1.0 XIV doesn't really count because most people didn't play it until ARR and 1.0 was almost a totally different game)

[Vanfrano]

No, not really he didn't. Different people like different things. I'm not sure why there's a problem with this? And it's hilarious lumping FFXIV in with Candy Crush? The only way to "instant gratification" in that game is to throw lots of money at it for cheat boosters, anyway. FFXIV is far from instant gratification. Also, you ridicule minions and glamour but some people enjoy customizing their avatars as much or even more than they like playing the game itself (Not just FFXIV either, but any game with a character creator or appearance thing going on in it). Who are you to tell them they can't like this that or the other thing?

Maybe it's worthless *to you*, but who are you to say that it's worthless to other people? Just because you don't like it and think it's bad, doesn't make it some kind of almighty fact. Different people like different things, and I'm more convinced than ever that the hate for FFXIV displayed here is purely resentment for the perception that it was specifically created to kill their precious baby, FFXI. Well, I keep coming back, so obviously that didn't work, did it? In many of the posts above, what I see basically amounts to "STOP LIKING WHAT I DON'T LIKE!"

And seriously, why am I like not allowed to like both FFXI and FFXIV? Why do I get crapped on for even mentioning the game here? That's really not fair. The fact that you keep seeing me back here should be regarded as a testament to FFXI's brainwashing power, lol- seems I can't stay away from it forever, even if I try to! Let people like what they want and stop hating them for it.

Vanfrano, really all it is, is the game isn't for you. That doesn't make it bad or defective, not everything can appeal to everybody. The people you see praising Yoshi P and the dev team are simply showing their appriciation because they're genuinely having a good time. I'm not sure why that's so hard to understand, even if you don't see what people find fun about the game. The simple fact is, they do find things fun about the game, and you shouldn't have to understand why to accept that.

It's not really about "not liking what I don't like", it's more about "open your eyes and see that this game doesn't respect its playerbase and manipulates it". Also, don't take things too personally, obviously you're allowed to like both games.

[Alhanelem]

"open your eyes and see that this game doesn't respect its playerbase and manipulates it"

This is completely false. It totally respects its playerbase. It's actually incredible how many things the community asks for and flat out gets just because they asked for it. They certainly don't say "we have no plans" to almost every single suggestion, request, etc. The players are manipulating the game, not the other way around.

But really, my point was, the players aren't just mindless worshippers. They have reasons to be enjoying what they're doing.

The same goes for FFXI; the people playing it now love it for a reason, and even the players who stopped loved it for other reasons, and not just because they were tricked into saying so.

[Vanfrano]

But really, my point was, the players aren't just mindless worshippers. They have reasons to be enjoying what they're doing.

I think they are for the most part and SE knows that perfectly well. This doesn't only apply to SE players by the way.
Let's just agree to disagree I guess.