Concerned about Leveling System for Occult Crescent

I am very excited for the new Field Operation: Occult Crescent! The areas look amazing and the phantom job mechanic is very exciting!

My worry, though, is seeing that the leveling system will be akin to Eureka's "elemental" leveling system. My biggest concern of all lies in whether I can help friends through the areas if I get ahead or vice versa. The one thing I really disliked about Eureka (especially in the starting zone) was that, once a friend got a level too high compared to the others, they either had to speedrun an alt character, or could not help and would have to wait for the other(s) to catch up (unless we went to an NM, which didn't pop up often in the early zones), making leveling horrendously slow/boring for people who would have to go off on their own to do it.

I'm a person who likes to play with my friends (and also sprouts) and assist them through the game whenever they need help, so I really really hope that this system doesn't do the same lockout where, if you or your friend are too high in level, that you can no longer help each other through the zone. If so, I highly suggest the team reconsiders enstating that restriction for this content, at the very least.