8.0 and World

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Originally Posted by Cilia

You have been paying attention to the plot, right? They're clearly setting up a reflection-hopping grand tour.

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I actually think how they could structure future expansions is we travel to somewhere on The Source, but we get our foot in the door into an unexplored reflection. Like we go to Meracydia, but somehow get in contact with The Fourth as an example. Coincidentally, there are 6 surviving reflections so I think the 'season finale' expansion could be the 'shard hopping expansion.'

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Originally Posted by mallleable

I actually think how they could structure future expansions is we travel to somewhere on The Source, but we get our foot in the door into an unexplored reflection. Like we go to Meracydia, but somehow get in contact with The Fourth as an example. Coincidentally, there are 6 surviving reflections so I think the 'season finale' expansion could be the 'shard hopping expansion.'

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Oh, I would hate it if we got an expansion where the six zones were each a separate reflection... Imagine there was only one zone to explore on the First. That would have sucked.

Back from finishing 7.3, it's hard to ignore the importance of the remaining shards in the state of the story. But I guess we still have to get a better picture from the villains' plans to better imagine what the stakes are.

If anything, I can say what I do not want, and that is anything cosmic-sized. Endwalker did it, it was kinda odd for me, I'm fine with other planets being side-story content like cosmic explorations.
I also think there are places on Aetherys which should keep some sort of mystery aura until the story can fully commit to them. Sorry for the persecution on EW, but I feel that the six zones ended up being underdeveloped by being crammed into one expansion when Thavnair and Garlemald deserved more time, and the Ancient's world bleeding into the end of the universe could have benefited from more time too. So if we finally get to say Meracydia, I hope for some very focused writing on its own story.

(And I absolutely would NOT mind a far shorter MSQ than EW and DT for 8.0 actually. I'm also fine with the expansion focusing on 2 or 3 scions, leaving the others for a while. And allocate that extra questing time to new job quests for instance)

The Post-EW void story could've been a side quest like Werlyt but they put it in MSQ. This leads me to believe that they plan to revisit this storyline in the future. The most logical location is Meracydia, perhaps Meracydia AND the void.

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Originally Posted by Yuella

The Post-EW void story could've been a side quest like Werlyt but they put it in MSQ. This leads me to believe that they plan to revisit this storyline in the future. The most logical location is Meracydia, perhaps Meracydia AND the void.

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I agree but I think they just "upgraded" that story to MSQ. Not that it actually means something leading to Dawntrail or the future, rather that it sort of ties in some questions we had about the Void for a while, and it allowed some updates about the world after 6.0, how Thavnair and Garlemald move on.

They didn't want Endwalker to "end" in 6.3 which is the traditional way they write MSQ, so I just think they went with that instead of writing more about Endwalker and adding to a story that was already quite massive.

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Originally Posted by mallleable

I actually think how they could structure future expansions is we travel to somewhere on The Source, but we get our foot in the door into an unexplored reflection. Like we go to Meracydia, but somehow get in contact with The Fourth as an example. Coincidentally, there are 6 surviving reflections so I think the 'season finale' expansion could be the 'shard hopping expansion.'

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Not only would that be incredibly repetitive after we've had a patch storyline and a whole expansion following this plotline, it would also require a plot device for each reflection to explain how they're doing this. The Void was something of a special case because it's close enough to resonate and the Ninth had the Key (a device specifically designed to connect to other reflections). We already have the Key and the Gate beneath the Skydeep Cenote; why go with the repetitive "Going on vacation but OH NOES it's another reflection crashing my party! I COULDA BEEN AT A BARBECUE!!!" formula?

Makes more sense to use the things that have already been set up than contrive ways for more Interdimensional Fusion incidents, and the Void had the preexisting rationale of being "closer" to the Source than other reflections.

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Originally Posted by Mansion

I agree but I think they just "upgraded" that story to MSQ. Not that it actually means something leading to Dawntrail or the future, rather that it sort of ties in some questions we had about the Void for a while, and it allowed some updates about the world after 6.0, how Thavnair and Garlemald move on.

They didn't want Endwalker to "end" in 6.3 which is the traditional way they write MSQ, so I just think they went with that instead of writing more about Endwalker and adding to a story that was already quite massive.

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6.X was designed to be filler for getting Dawntrail prepped (like how the Seventh Astral Era was filler for Heavensward) and a lead-in to how stories are going to go from here on out. So far, it's been conflict with errant reflections which involve a sundered Ascian-provoked war designed to cause a Rejoining (that wound up being botched) and bizarro incarnations of a previous Final Fantasy protagonist.

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Originally Posted by Cilia

why go with the repetitive "Going on vacation but OH NOES it's another reflection crashing my party! I COULDA BEEN AT A BARBECUE!!!" formula?

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Conceptually I agree with you, but you're making a poor case, because this scene sounds amazing. I'm picturing Thancred in an apron with an elaborate charcoal grilling setup that he's never got to crack out because this just keeps happening.

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Originally Posted by Cleretic

Conceptually I agree with you, but you're making a poor case, because this scene sounds amazing. I'm picturing Thancred in an apron with an elaborate charcoal grilling setup that he's never got to crack out because this just keeps happening.

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As an Independence Day shout-out, it's more of a "Warrior of Light dragging an inactive robo-guard through the burning Shaaloani desert while occasionally screaming at and kicking it in a rage over their fun adventure being ruined" type thing.

Many players' reactions to Zoraal Ja's midgame attack on Tuliyollal. True story!

(I would not object to such a scene for comedy purposes though.)

I'm hoping that in 8.0 we'll experiment a very devastating moment like the one in 10 where operation Mi'ihen fail, wen tidus saw all of the dead bodies on the beach, save for one survivor.

A go away from the scions would be nice.
I expected it allready for 7.0. Because whe had heared all the plans of the others. Maybe, Thranced and Uriange could come again (after half of 7.0 had they nothing to do and didnt showed up in 7.1-7.3).

One critic point i have by the scions is in the first place, that they have to many mages. Aside of Thranced and part time job Estinien, is everyone of the current scion a magic user. That make a magic user WoL less special (esspecialy as a BlM, Ysthola is stealing my role as the wizard^^).

A new group with new faces (and remix of magic user and meele user, maybe even some ranger -like bard/machinist) could be nice.