Do people see this game as an MMO?

Can't think of an MMO that covers every little thing...

We got VR chat and second life that are purely user driven without gameplay.
Minecraft is technically an mmo based around building.

FFXIV, WoW, GW2, ESO and so on are so called theme-park mmos with various attractions scattered here and there.
Only thing needed for the mmo part is that a decent amount of players can play together, and if you find a lack of communication, at least in the open world of FFXIV then maybe you could try out GW2 instead since that's their strong point, while FFXIV seems to have a stronger focus on RP especially with the housing.

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Originally Posted by Velnora

That would be copium. There are many games, where the content itself provides intrinsic value. GW2 is a perfect example. The way the open world is incorporated into the gameplay and gives reason to go out there is 100x better than what FF14 provides.

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I agree. I wish we'd get more reasons to go outside. The FATEs in ShB were a nice enough idea but poorly fleshed out. FATEs offer nothing of value. No strategy and no noteworthy mechanics other than don't pull too much. That's why I vastly prefer CEs from Bozja where you actually do stuff and I hope we get something similar in the overworld.

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Originally Posted by Payadopa

I agree. I wish we'd get more reasons to go outside. The FATEs in ShB were a nice enough idea but poorly fleshed out. FATEs offer nothing of value. No strategy and no noteworthy mechanics other than don't pull too much. That's why I vastly prefer CEs from Bozja where you actually do stuff and I hope we get something similar in the overworld.

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Compared to WoW it seems like a lot more goes on outside in FFXIV, not that that is saying much in modern WoW.
You have to actually unlock all the trials and such through quests. And BLU skills and stuff. And Gold Saucer and house areas are sort of "outside world" to me, they always have people.

Seems like it is just FATEs that lack in rewards, I think they got targeted for nerfs a few times too. At one point they were one of the fastest ways to level and grind groups were up 24/7. This may have been superceded by PotD since it was before that came out.

Pretty much everyone else has already covered it, but it's largely a mix of both game design and social trends. The game is definitely designed less around (forced) social interaction than a lot of MMOs in the past, but that's not really a FF14 only thing and more of just a modern MMO thing in general. It's still more social than some but there's no question it's not a situation where you have to chat and ask for groups outside of dungeons, etc. It's also a truth that many people, even in FCs, have moved their interactions off of in game chat and into voice and discord channels. That's just the natural course of how the technology has progressed.

As for me, I'd say that I generally like where FF14 is in this regard. If I want to chat in game, I can and sometimes do. If I don't, I don't have to. If I want to chat with my FC, I can do so in game but we also have an active discord too. FF14 strikes the right balance for me of being an MMO I can comfortably play by myself but while still supporting robust social elements if/when I want them.

I like the choice to be social or not. Sitting around grinding for hours listening to someone chatter about things is not my idea of fun. Seriously let's go backwards.. not. You can't force spontaneous interactions. The old way of MMOs is gone and trying to force people into what you feel a MMO should be will not work. Like I said leave barrens chat in WoW, usually there are two or three people who dominate global chats and it gets out of hand really quickly. Attention seekers keep on seeking wider audiences and personally I don't want to be subjected to their nonsense. If you are having trouble finding social interaction in this game then maybe it's a you problem because there is plenty of it to be had. I have seen this topic on every MMO I have played in the past 15 years. Always the same arguments chicken little the sky is falling because no one talks to me!

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Originally Posted by VelKallor

They still do stand around and talk..but more often than you might realise, they are in party chat or whisper or in a Linkshell or NN...again youre basing this assumption on what you SEE...not whats actually there. You arent in my linkshell, you cant see me talking..you arent in my party, you cant see me talking, you arent in my Discord channel you cant hear me talking...and that Discord is by INVITE only.

I dont use the ingame chat often, as I find that the voice systems for STEAM or Discord are far more conducive to rapid communication. I can also voicechat to people from other servers and datacentres and other games via Discord..you dont see that either.

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I find it interesting you keep pointing out this 'fact' when you yourself are speculating yet tell me I shouldnt do that, you're insinuating that people are just talking on discord or other platforms instead without actually knowing they are.

Funny enough, I was in Zadnor majority of today levelling my summoner and I organized full groups in Zone 3 and fascinatingly, only came across 2 people who were talkative out of the many people who came and went without so much as saying a word. The group's I organized were a fate spam, so there were plenty of times we were standing around in zone 3 waiting and yet, I found myself mainly talking to myself bar the very few exceptions.

I never said that anti-social people were bad for MMO's - I'm not sure why people are low-key attacking me because they can't accept the fact that there's been a social change in online games. Is it denial? Is it because people can't handle a single bad thing said about Final Fantasy? Or just simply unobservant? Me, an individual who loves talking to people & getting to know others noticed this change and it's considered a controversial topic to many for a reason I have yet to understand.

I see this more of a online rpg with multiplayer aspects. The problem with this game is that we are focusing too much on what's going on in the hot bar. Constantly pushing buttons like Street fighter. Had the battle system been more like 11, people would probably communicate waaaaaay more in between. There is no communication in this game. You can literally get through everything without typing a single word for help from others. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing... But come on now.... Building memories from the adventure with others is what makes mmos special. Even a simple sub job quest in 11 felt more impactful with help from friends... Chatting it up while at it. Final fantasy xiv has its upsides... But to not even need to talk during dungeons.... Man I dunno. That's just sad

You know what I digress... Maybe saying this is not a mmo is wrong.... Let's call it mmo-lite

Heck.... Even xiv 1.0 had more social interaction elements when doing exp parties and dungeons. Whether we all want to agree with it or not.... Yes... Xiv 2.0 plus improved on several issues... But something special was lost.

The main reasons u see this imo would be people either just looking to complete their in game goals as efficient and fast as possible or people being shy or introvert by nature.

One other thing would be people getting afraid of someone reporting them cause they said something someone don't like, most peeps don't pay their sub just to see it get banned for some random conversation or words they said, so if social interaction with strangers could result in that then they probably do the socializing on a 3rd party app like discord,etc.

Me personally, if I'm not sleepy when I'm in game, then I'm a chatterbox , I never shut up and I love interacting with others, the social experiences I've had in this game is one of the reasons I still play after 8 years.

Doesn't bother me, since I rarely talk to others in RL unless it's needed to conduct some business, such as ordering in a restaurant.

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Originally Posted by Velnora

Let's be honest. If it wasn't for the story and the Final Fantasy name, this would be a terribly generic theme park mmo, without archaic systems and a god awful engine.

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I mean, in your opinion, sure. But for me, that's not accurate at all. I don't know a single thing about the story, as I skip through every bit of dialogue and cutscene that is thrown at me. And I've never played any Final Fantasy game before.

I enjoy the content. I enjoy the dungeons, trials, the mostly reasonable grinds. It's the only MMO I've been able to play for more than 10 minutes before getting bored. It's not disgustingly grindy like a lot of MMO's, which I can't stand.

As for the social aspect, I play this game with my spouse. I'm not using it to make friends. I don't need to make friends because I already have someone who I do everything with. And even when we don't do content together, if we're working on different things, or he's playing a different game, I still don't talk. Unless I need to tell someone a mechanic they don't understand or something. The most vocal players really don't seem like people I would get along with.

I'll talk to FC members if they start conversations, but otherwise I usually stick to myself. I don't want to be forced to talk to people. I don't want to have to ask around for someone to run a dungeon with me. That seems like an incredible waste of time, and honestly, dumb.

Sure, it's an online game. You play with real people. But that doesn't mean I have to talk to every single one of them. And just because no one is talking in shout 24/7 doesn't mean there's no social interaction in the game.