User Submissions

User Submissions:

One of the things I love the most about what goes on with the game are the occasional contests that appear, where players get the chance to have their ideas put into the game (provided they win or the devs really like it). While I like the contests, this also means that we also lose out on the less popular submissions among these contests, to say nothing of the fact that the contests are kind of rare.

It is often that we hear that the reasoning behind why certain things can not be added to FFXIV is due to the issue of manpower on the development team which makes it so that everything places some kind of strain to get anything done. Rather than having the developers introduce every bit of content to the game, I instead propose that we get a user submission system going to allow the talented people within the community more opportunities to contribute to in game content.

Specifically, I believe it would be beneficial for it to be possible for people with the ability to have some way to create and submit their own creations and have them be added to the game, rather than just the odd contest here or there. It is my belief that doing this will not only give the player-base more content to enjoy, it could also lead to revitalizing some parts of the game that are less active.

Pros:

• More cosmetics, and potential revitalization of older or inactive content.
• More potentially interactive community (For example artists working together with creators, or more activity on the forums in general).
• Potential additions to Mogstation.
• Potential attraction of people interested in a feature like this.
• The feature can be expanded or downsized as necessary.
• Less (hopefully) strain on the development team to create non-priority items (such as a hairbrush furnishing,or an emote, for example).

Cons:

• This system would require moderation to function properly at all, which would still require some kind of manpower.
• If the feature is implemented worldwide, then similar or identical submissions could appear.
• Potentially could cause some problem with the current systems already in place with the game (I could not say for sure because I have no idea how the systems in place work at the moment but it still warrants mention).
• Potential quality inconsistency depending on how system is implemented.
• Less enthusiasm and relevancy for contests.

Conclusion: I would love to see more ways to both interact with other users and enact change within the game and believe this would be a great benefit both in the short and long term. I would also love feedback on this post as well, as I'm eager to see open and varied discussion on the matter.

I actually would be quite interested in some kind of system like this. Even if this type of system were connected to a cash shop model, I think it would be a worthwhile addition to the immersive player experience, not to mention addressing problems of third-party modding that is used frequently in this game to meet the same need. I personally find the disparity between a vanilla experience and the one that some players create for themselves disconcerting, as it often involves lack of consent on the other users around then to be modded. The more that can be done to create a more rich, but consistent user experience would be welcome!

One idea would be for the community to vote on types of items that are most highly prized and desired, and the data generated from such a survey or poll could be used to create a short list of more focused items that might help reduce the load of creations that would need to be managed and moderated, so creators would know where to channel their energies, dare I say not unlike crafting turn-ins? This way the items that are created will have a higher probability of being utilized and, if on a cash shop model, purchased (read: $$$).