Power Fantasy [[Spoilers]]

Is it me or did Endwalker lapse into power fantasy a bit too hard. I mean, I know this game tries to make out that you are the best thing in the whole word but the whole Azem thing is a little ridiculous and completely invalidates the point of making your own character.

Also, now the Hydalean is dead, we should have lost our power as we were "chosen" by her... so can we go back to being just a normal person now because the demi-god stuff is getting old.

This story just completely jumped the shark at the end and invalidated any emotional payoff at all. Do people not enjoy humility and just being a small part of a way larger world?

I'm inclined to agree. A large part of the appeal of FFXIV to me was that it didn't jump the shark in the same way as WoW did when it came to seeking the 'next big thrill'. I wouldn't say that the storytelling in this game was always perfect or free from bizarre twists though I appreciated the relative slow burn and sense of build up.

I'm not sure how the game is going to scale back things in a way that leads to humble adventuring again. I absolutely want that to happen but the constant hero worship wears thin for me and our character is now, unfortunately, the saviour of the entire universe.

You're not alone. I feel the same way. I guess this is why I prefer expansion like ARR-SB. You really get the sense that while we're the hero, we still are human that can get hurt and lost. ShB took it a step further, but ultimately I still like it since the WoL really struggled to contained the light, and only win because the bad guy gets sentimental with us.

Change of lead writing.
Ishikawa is very good at writing sympathetic antagonists and melodrama. But once she took over the power of friendship to do anything vibe definitely took over full force in Shadowbringers onwards.
I think no better example exists that shows the contrast between the grounded and borderline low fantasy depiction of Heavensward and the MCU x Naruto Shippuuden style from Endwalker than how the scene where every named character is conveniently reunited in the same day at the precise time you're returning from the center of the universe from a trip with no set date for returning.

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Originally Posted by Kozh

the WoL really struggled to contained the light, and only win because the bad guy gets sentimental with us.

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I don't think that's the case at all. Are you implying that the bad guy wasn't doing their best? I think that does a disservice to both their character and ours.

On the subject of the thread, I think false humility is bad. If we're to defeat powerful enemies (which we have since 1.0, though I wasn't there to see it), then it's not being humble to not acknowledge our strength. At the same time, the story also acknowledges that we have plenty of help. The final trial literally devoted an entire cutscene of our friends helping us, as an example.

Also, Azem is said to make use of help from companions.

A normal person in this kind of setting is simply a liability. Even if we started as one, we have to grow stronger, and whether or not that means we get to be the best is irrelevant as long as we are strong enough (with help) to defeat the bad guys.

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Originally Posted by ddwarbird

Is it me or did Endwalker lapse into power fantasy a bit too hard. I mean, I know this game tries to make out that you are the best thing in the whole word but the whole Azem thing is a little ridiculous and completely invalidates the point of making your own character.

Also, now the Hydalean is dead, we should have lost our power as we were "chosen" by her... so can we go back to being just a normal person now because the demi-god stuff is getting old.

This story just completely jumped the shark at the end and invalidated any emotional payoff at all. Do people not enjoy humility and just being a small part of a way larger world?

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I wouldn't say I really agree with the demi-god assessment.

I feel the story has always done a decent enough job of portraying us as needing outside help to achieve our goals, and while we are obviously very strong, I've never felt particularly superhuman. More Captain America 'peak human performance' than outright Superman level stuff.

As such, I don't really feel the need to be powered down or anything.

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Originally Posted by ddwarbird

This story just completely jumped the shark at the end and invalidated any emotional payoff at all. Do people not enjoy humility and just being a small part of a way larger world?

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You would like WoW's story then. You are just a nameless champion that doesn't actually do anything significant and is just a means for the main characters to tell a narative.

I like FFXIV story because my character is actually part of the story and the main character. Makes me feel more attached to the other main characters I fight with and my own player character too.

I feel like it's just a natural progression for MMOs. Level 5, you help a lost kitty, level 90, you kill nihilism because you killed so many gods the ones who remain are all at your beck and call at this point.

Hopefully the end of this story arc marks the end of this specific power creep. Maybe some time away from the action and away from Hydaelyn will diminish our power a bit.

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Originally Posted by Juun

You would like WoW's story then. You are just a nameless champion that doesn't actually do anything significant and is just a means for the main characters to tell a narative.

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IMPORTANT NOTE: This only applies to WoW Classic. Current WoW expansions are just as 'chosen one' and 'god killer' as FFXIV is now, the only difference being is that the characters almost never refer to you by name ('champion', 'maw walker' is said about twice as much in WoW to refer to you than 'warrior of light' is in FFXIV), and they still try to distance you from the story in cutscenes, because the WoW writers have an IV drip of everclear.

I was definitely hoping that we'd lose the blessing of light in the last trial, and canonically become less powerful in post-patch content, having peaked vs Meteion and needing another 10 years to reach similar power again.

Afaik though, losing the blessing isn't a big deal for our power level (I think we even fight Meteion without it since Hydaelyn is dead at that point?) I'm not 100% sure what our macguffin rock is capable of, but it seems it's basically replacing Hydaelyn as a super power source. And I'm leaning more towards thinking the writers will somehow try to up the stakes with an even GREATER universe-ending baddie.

Fingers crossed though.

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Originally Posted by Jandor

I wouldn't say I really agree with the demi-god assessment.

I feel the story has always done a decent enough job of portraying us as needing outside help to achieve our goals, and while we are obviously very strong, I've never felt particularly superhuman. More Captain America 'peak human performance' than outright Superman level stuff.

As such, I don't really feel the need to be powered down or anything.

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If the cinematic trailers are anything to go by, the Warrior of Light is well beyond peak human. Between clashing with Zelidibus hard enough to split the sky, taking hits that send him flying, clashing with a Sin Eater with enough force to cause an explosion, and destroying said Sin Eater as a Dark Knight while also leaving a massive gouge in the ground, the WoL is closer to one of the MCU's hard hitters than Captain America.

Even without taking the trailers into consideration, the WoL is capable of blocking Susano's building sized sword, moving faster than the eye can see as a Monk, outright teleportation as a Reaper or Ninja, and firing laser beams.

You're low-balling yourself if you think the WoL is anything less than superhuman.