FFXI deserves and needs an Expansion Pack announcement similar to Seekers of Adoulin

[Alhanelem]

Didn't they also say something along those lines just before RoV too? I remember a lot of people I know quitting due to the announcement, but also before RoV cause they thought it was the end.
This (and iirc, they did something similar before TVR too) is one of the things that makes me think there's a chance we could get some sort of expansion / "expansion" (RoV style), just because SE has done this multiple times already.

Which is honestly a terrible way to do it tbh, since the time they did it for RoV, it just decimated my friends list and linkshells, then once again wiped out the remaining people I played with, just a bit before TVR. So it honestly wouldn't surprise me if 6-12 months after TVR ends (and probably another "last update" announcement), SE suddenly announces some new expansion or even just more new story with one or two new content.

While I do appreciate it when a company does announce an end date well in advance, so people don't feel ripped off if they just dumped a ton of money into it a month before it ends, it's also equally as bad to announce the end and then after losing a ton of customers, they change their mind and then it doesn't bring those people back because they thought it ended and didn't keep up with it anymore or saw any new announcements elsewhere.

They NEVER explicitly stated the game was ending. People decided for themselves what these announcements meant. The devs can't predict the future. Obviously conditions were better than they expected. They did suggest the nature of updates might change, but they didn't say there wouldn't be any.

I also don't personally know anyone who quit becuase "they thought the game was ending after this." Even if that were true, why wouldn't people want to experience it first?

[Obysuca]

I also don't personally know anyone who quit becuase "they thought the game was ending after this." Even if that were true, why wouldn't people want to experience it first?

Ah, so just cause you personally don't know anyone who did, you assume it's not true? lol
Also, I stated that the people who left, did so at the announcement of no more major updates, not the announcement of RoV, so they wouldn't even think to stick around to experience it. You'd be surprised at the amount of people who lose interest/desire to play a game when it's assumed to be ending, especially when they see announcements from the company itself that implies it, and yes, stating the game is going into maintenance mode and won't be receiving major updates, does in fact, imply the game could be ending.

[Alhanelem]

Ah, so just cause you personally don't know anyone who did,

That's not what I said nor the logic I used. The implication was supposed to be "I don't think this is the common viewpoint you say it is." i.e. If "everyone" thought this way, surely I would be aware of someone in a similar situation; but I'm not. That doesn't mean no one felt that way.

And again, "major" updates doesn't mean "no updates." And certainly not an "end date." They did NOT say the game was ending. They did NOT say that updates were ending. Only a shift in the update structure.
They merely changed their update model from bigger patches less often to smaller updates on a monthly basis. They still added new content. Maybe they weren't very clear about their intentions, but they never said there would be "no updates." They also never used the phrase "Maintenance mode." That's just a conclusion some people apparently came up with.

And obviously, we did get updates far beyond RoV, including job adjustments, battle content, and a new story (okay, they did imply there wouldn't be new story, but as far as I'm concerned, that was just a pleasant surprise, again, they didn't say updates were ending)

[Tarmarkvar]

Didn't they also say something along those lines just before RoV too? I remember a lot of people I know quitting due to the announcement, but also before RoV cause they thought it was the end.
This (and iirc, they did something similar before TVR too) is one of the things that makes me think there's a chance we could get some sort of expansion / "expansion" (RoV style), just because SE has done this multiple times already.

I don't recall that. I wish I could find the announcement again, but they had specifically said no more major updates, and a switch to smaller, monthly updates.

What they have given us since then has been a LOT smaller than something like a full fledged expansion. All content since then has involved reusing existing monsters and existing zones. It's new, but minimal effort new.

[Alhanelem]

I don't recall that. I wish I could find the announcement again, but they had specifically said no more major updates, and a switch to smaller, monthly updates.

The thing is this was misconstrued by a bunch of people as "maintenance mode" or "no new content." But that's not what it meant. All it meant was the game was going to be updated monthly, and new things would be released whenever they were ready- and this was partly to facilitate things like the monthly objectives and Ambuscade. We also still got new battle contents over time, and as they became ready instead of compiled into a big patch.

It was a change to a different update structure, not "maintenance mode."

[Demonviper]

SE let the player base down hard on the 20th, although honestly I doubt anyone there cares enough to even read these forums.

[Alhanelem]

SE let the player base down hard on the 20th, although honestly I doubt anyone there cares enough to even read these forums.

It only let down people who thought something wild was going to happen. If you didn't, the anniversary website with its reflection on the past and the interviews and art and all that, the minigame event, the producer saying "here's to 20 years and many more" and announcements of upcoming content (whether we knew it was eventually coming or not) really doesn't sound so terrible.

I'll give you SE built things up a little bit, but I wouldn't agree they built things up to the point where "new expansion" or "remaster" or something huge like that was a reasonable expectation.

[Pixela]

[Alhanelem]

Also apparently the new battle content coming down the pipe will take place in a new area with new art, according to the AMA (well, they called it a "battle area," so I'm just assuming they're talking about the same battle content they said is coming)

[BST]

So basically the Ambuscade area with a different texture and color.