Suggestions / Comparison ~ Character Creation & Playable Races

Like I mentioned it in my Introduction Thread, I will want to make suggestions on FF14, based on my experiences I have made with the Game so far, and with other games, mainly GW2, which is in my honest opinion one of the only games, that comes even close to the level of fun and quality ion certain aspects, that FF14 has, while being a game with no subscription fee in comparison.

I'll begin this topic first with a little compare between the playable races, where i must say, that in regard of this, GW2 wins the first point in creativity, because some of the FF14 races come over compared to the GW2 races like just soulless uncreative stereotypes of simpleton classics that I put into brackets, of simple designed racers you#d expect in like some kind of cheap LotRO clone game, but not like in a FF Game, with the exception of the Au Ra, which are unique enough to tell, that there has been put more effort in their design concept. maybe because they were the so far firest added new race after the first 5 that were from begin on there with the desastrous start of FF14, until ARR came.
Both games have multiple playable races.

On the side of FF14 we have

• Hyuran (Humans)
• Mi'Quote (Nekos)
• Lalafell (Gnomes)
• Roegadyn (Ogres)
• Elezen (High Elves)
• Au Ra

On the side of GW2 we have

• Humans
• Charr (Full Fur Neko/Ogre Mixture)
• Sylvari (Newborn Plant Folk)
• Norn (Norse like Half Giants with Animal Spirits)
• Asura (High intelligent long eared Gnomes)

So why do I say from begin on that the point of creativity goes clearly to GW2 and that the races of FF14 do look compared to them like soulless uncreative generics???
Simple because of the first point, that I'd like to suggest in this topic, how Square Enix should in my oppion improve Final Fantasy 14.

GW2 has something strong, that FF14 absolutely has not sadly, and that is makign each of the playable races give the player a different play experience, ald cultural experience.
When you play FF14, yes, you can choos,e in which Starting Town you want to begin you game, but your choice of which race you play, plays in this game absolutely no role at all. All races share in FF12 the exactly same storytelling...

GW2 compared to that offers for each playable race not only their very own racial Starting Towns, but theey all have also completely different racial based personal stories, the game tells you alot more about the different cultures of the races in that time, while you are basically in the beginner level maps.

There exists in FF14 no Racial Skills for example too, there exists no racial/cultural Armor Setss and Weapon Sets which are exclusive to wear and use only for a specific race that you play - unlike in GW2, where you have all this to have ways to make your choice of your played race visually more meaningful and in context of gameplay also too, by having exlusive skillls, which only your race has that you have chosen to play with your character - despite them being not more powerful, than the normal skills in the game, for the reason, to prevent player discrimination in the game, that people don't get later not into parties and other game content, only "because they play the "wrong race".

However, all this nice stuff adds to the flavor and immersion of the game and makes it in the end more authentic and trustworthy, if the playable races have various ways in the game to look, act and get played different and show this also as well too in the storytelling, that their culture is different, than that of the other playable races.

The races in FF14 are designed in my personal taste too much in a generic fashion, too much standard clichees in them within the Elezen, Lalafell and those ugly and boring completely unspecial looking Roegadyn - and there I thought before I started playing FF14, that GW2's Norn were already extremely uncreative and lazy designed, but them top it all - no words.

I know I know, I don't want to sound too harsh with my comments here and that stuff like this surely won't be changed anymore in a 5 years old game like FF14, but thats so far only my personal impression I received from FF14, compared to what I know and like from GW2, which I have played before since 2012, so before FF14 got remade as ARR.

But what I think is absolutely possible to do as improvements to strenthen the uniqueness of the races in FF14 is definetely to add:

- Racial cultural specific unique Weapon Designs which can be used only by specific
- Racial cultural based Armor Sets which can be worn by only specific races
- Adding new racial based Role Skills for each Class, so that each Choice Combination of Class + Race gives you some unique Role Skills to use, so that your Gameplay of your character becomes a bit more unique and different from that of other players, which maybe play the same Class, but a different race, than you.
- Add racial unique earnable mounts, which can be used by only a specifc Race, receivign them as reward from doing Quests for your own racial REPUTATION among your own race, similar like it works for the Savage Tribes, like Ixal, Goblins, Amal'jaa ect.
- Add as rewards racial unique "Skill Skins", so that players can make the design of their Skills look different eventually, so that the Bard Skills of a Hyruan may look perhaps under such a system different (at least for PvE Content, not PvP), than those of a Mi'Quote Bard.
- Give the Races of FF14 more unique perks and abilities that differentiate them from each other more, which play especially in the storytellign some kind of "role", so that the story feels different, based on which race you play. In GW2 it's made, so that the Asura, are the highest intelligent race, Charr on the other are very good with metal & warmaschines, Norn have their speciality to commune with animal spirits and transform themself into Animal Avatars, Sylvari have some kind of Hive Connectivity with that they can share their Wisdom, by having a connected "Dream" that they have while they are birthed from their Mother Tree, and Humans simply are the classical Allrounders there, which can basically everythign, but nothing very good and have a strong faith in Gods there from which they get their blessings.
Something similar needs FF14 too, to differentiate the playable races more from each other. To give them a soul and make them not look so much like such bland designed nobodies that these playable races are, where none of them even tries somehow to shine out of the masses with some kind of speciality..

In regard of Character Creation on the other hand, clearly wins FF14 the point, despite there being also some aspects, where I think, that both games could profit in the Character Editor from each other, if both games simply would get some aspects, where the other game did make in the Character Editor somethign better.
But seen from a clear point of factors, which outweight the negative things of each game's Character Editor, I must say, that the one from FF14 just is more enjoyable and fun, because you have there moch more choices, except for faces (there has GW2 more, why provides FF14 so less face options, but in return offers tons of hairstyles ???)

But first one after another.

While you have in FF14 alot of options while making your Character, there's not much as detailed as much options in the Editor of GW2.
However, the Editor of GW2 has in regard of my first point, that the playable races win there the point of more creativity, of not being soulless designed races with no cultures the feature, that each race has some unique aspects that ypou can choose, where I think, it would be awesome, if these kind of racial unique thigns could find their way somehow into FF14 too.

For example:

In GW2 as a Charr, you have the unique options to choose from a list of charr specific unique horns of their Hea,d and you can choose out of a various pattern of Fur Types, how the fur of the Charr shoudl lok like.
Now compare this with the Mi'Quote... HWat can we do with the Mi'Quote in FF14, to make them look among their own race more unique and different, from the next other Mi'quote character gettign made next after our Character?? Sadly there is nothign racial specific on them, except 1 thign only - their tail and even there you don#t have sadly very much options to choose from.

Would love if Mi'quote for example would look a bit more and strogner like actually cats, they are way too much human looking. Give them hands, that look more like cat paws with long pointy figner nails to make them look more like ferocious cat claws for example and do that as well with their legs/feet and add to their body a bit more "fur" on the arms and legs at least ;).

Norns in GW2 for example have unique body tatoos that make them look different. In FF14 we have sadly not at all the option to give our characters any tatoos at all, besides of the generic classical typical face tatos and war paintings in our faces. Whats also about our characters beign able to have if you want that - scars???