Gw2 works just like this. WoW's system is a glorified additional bank tab but only mats can be placed in it.
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If they have a way to get rid of menu bloat while keeping the retainers while actually not having the menus pop up slow, sure keep them as the interface. As said though we need development feedback on this, if it would be easier to have a bank and have us walk to the market boards to get rid of that slow loading while giving us access more space. Supposedly the retainers can't handle more then 175 items.
So it is either revamp how we store items (and I really think this should been done in 2.0, the retainers are not covenant, they are an outdated 1.0 relic) or greatly trim out item bloating, like putting all currency in currency tab glam log, etc...
There is a lot of different ways they can approach the item space problem, that is what my list is for, but at the end of the day, it means SOMETHING needs to be done, it was put off all of 3.0 and looks like it will be again for 4.0 (no giving us a small on hand increase along with armory expansion that should taken place in 3.0 is not a fix)
I'm actually not sure you can blame this issue on 1.0. This is more an issue that SE is a little overly cautious in their netcode.
When you perform an action in WoW for example, the client estimates what it thinks will happen, and performs that action. It sends the result to the server, and if they match, the result is unchanged. If the server and client mismatch, then the server sends a correction to your client and it is updated after the fact.
In XIV, all action results are sent directly to the server, until the server replies, nothing happens. This is a safer approach, but unless your country has a good infrastructure, it creates lag.
True, but think about dropping from the level of sorting were used to, to a form of chronological or alphabetcial order for a sec. Its like a rotting tree in a butterfly house, for an awkward metaphor. Unfortunately for them, they made us quite used to having our stuff neat and tidy.
The retainer system is a direct carry over for 1.0, but the thing is, they fit for 1.0, for 2.0 they don't.
I do not have wards in 2.0 where I can interact with them to trade items to, because this option existed in 1.0, this was the VERY REASON retainers where taken off the listing as you spoke to them as mobile call. Now they are taken off the market boards for no reason other then "that is how 1.0 did things" retainers do not fit the game in 2.0 +, at all. talking to them directly in the wards was much more streamline then what we got now. I loved crafting next to them as I did item trades in the wards and I saw others doing it too.
But having the retainers serve as the interface isn't the real issue there. It's having each one have a separate inventory that causes it. If we had a single unified bank inventory, which we accessed by talking to a retainer (any of them), then we wouldn't be going from one to another for that. Sure the larger total inventory might take longer to load, but if we only had to wait for it once rather than over and over again, it wouldn't be nearly so frustrating.
The only time we'd be going from one retainer to another is when assigning and collecting ventures, or when putting items up for sale (if the later isn't moved off of the retainers to the MB), and for those we wouldn't need to load the bank inventory.
As said I am fine with that if they have to do it that way. I just feel the retainers, for whatever reason have limitations and just feel a new system that can be expanded be easier. They made a claim that seems like the retainers can't access more then 175 items for some reason, it may be a good idea to set something up that can handle inventory data, glam log , etc with a whole new thing so they are not dealing with these limitations. Basically I feel the easier way out for them to deal with the expanding game is cut inventory management ties from the retainers.
we need more comments from development to comment off of and see we can give them an idea on the best way to deal with item and currency management.
What scares me is that they may not want to deal with the item and currency management problem at all. Seeing as they are already handling it in the most profitable way possible using rent-able retainers. I'm afraid the fact that we've gotten this far with no response is starting to feel eerily telling of that notion. Not even getting into the fact that after all these years having inventory troubles it feels like we've never gotten them to take a serious look at inventory issues once until now with stormblood and even this feels like a stop gap rather than anything resembling a fix. :/ Just thinking of all the new gear that's going to be coming with storm blood terrifies me. x.x