Can we get an idea on what to expect from the open world in version 2? (A bit long)
I would like to respectfully request from the moderators that they provide us with some semblance of an indication of what the developers' plans are concerning the open world in this game, come version 2. I am not, and neither do I think the community is, a foe of good instanced content. However, right now, all the event additions, and announcements concerning future event additions, seem to circle around the twin concepts of instanced dungeons and timed events.
Other than free roaming NMs (I don't think they deserve the title of HNMs) there's only two imperfect open-world events besides the monotonously repetitive guildleves: Behest and Caravans. Behest is in bad need of refurbishment, since it's something so laughingly easy that it constitutes nothing more than a timed XP giveaway. The mechanics of it, not touched since its original appearance at launch, are notoriously clunky; they allow for easy trolling and renegade-type spoiling of the event for other players.
Caravans, although more enjoyable than behest, also would benefit from some improvements, and the addition of some variety to their scheme. (Do we always need foe-spawn points to be at exactly the same spots? Wouldn't a bit of unpredictability as to the direction, amount, strength, routes, and mechanics of the foes add much needed excitement?) Unfortunately, if Caravans today occupy a spot in the affections of players, it's due to the fact that's an easy event to spam in order to procure GC seals, which is kind of sad. In the future, with the addition of more and more GC events and quests, perhaps the game's population won't have to rely on spamming events (the mentioned caravans, Toto-Rak speed runs) in order to earn seals.
Also, all these events are timed, which has long been the rule in FFXIV, imparting a cookie-cutter feel to the available activities in the game.
A lobby world in which people only maintain a perfunctory relationship with the environment might be easy to develop, but it's also easy to outgrow and get tired of. Many of us in the community think that a rich, varied, colorful, competitive, and perpetually challenging open world is the fundamental backbone for a game that will remain successful over many years. We also understand that, with all the changes planned for the open world maps in v. 2.0, it might be difficult to introduce open world events at this stage and that, perhaps, many are already planned. But for precisely this reason, a little bit of a panorama of things to come would be extremely welcome, in order to maintain the excitement level for us Legacy Players high and bubbly.
This quote, I already included in another post of mine, but that was buried on dead-leg of a long thread, and I think it deserves to be read, as does the entire blog entry from which it comes. In it the writer describes in 17 words, what held him rapt for years in his favorite MMO. That that game was the spiritual forbear of FFXI explains why so many of the veteran players of SE's previous MMO usually repeat this same mantra:
Quote:
How I Feel About Everquest in 17 Words:
Danger. Risk. Survival. Freedom. Mystery. Fantasy. Discovery. Camaraderie. Community. Escape. Defeat. Victory. Gain. Loss. Excellence. Skill. Excitement.
R
