I am excited to see what happens when subs kick in.

[Nikki]

Don't even need a crystal ball to tell how things go with P2P MMOs. Once free month is over, population nose dives..... then comes server merges and if population keeps dropping further then the announcement for F2P. FFXIV is a fun game but competition is really fierce these days and a lot of other MMO offers same and lot more for free or in buy to play package. So it is goign to be tough time ahead for FFXIV.

PVP isn't going to save this game though, i see a lot of people excited about PVP but the FFXIV combat isn't just suited for that. Anyone remember the failure PVP was in FFXI? housing is a nice addition but other MMOS are already ahead in that department too. So yeah more content is always good but i am not foolish enough to believe that all these features will help in boosting subs because they won't.

[Orsnoire]

Don't even need a crystal ball to tell how things go with P2P MMOs. Once free month is over, population nose dives..... then comes server merges and if population keeps dropping further then the announcement for F2P. FFXIV is a fun game but competition is really fierce these days and a lot of other MMO offers same and lot more for free or in buy to play package. So it is goign to be tough time ahead for FFXIV.

PVP isn't going to save this game though, i see a lot of people excited about PVP but the FFXIV combat isn't just suited for that. Anyone remember the failure PVP was in FFXI? housing is a nice addition but other MMOS are already ahead in that department too. So yeah more content is always good but i am not foolish enough to believe that all these features will help in boosting subs because they won't.

Even assuming that the game loses as many subs as SWTOR did (unlikely), the current population numbers are promising for a sustainable future for the game.



Bear in mind that any 1.0 players (not just those who were legacy) have already been billed and have already paid for their sub. Even with that in place, the game is still functioning at or near capacity. That means that not only has the game maintained a near-capacity concurrent login amount even after the first wave of subs, but it suggests that many of the players jaded from their experience in 1.0 (and thereafter quit) have stayed with the game. These players alone are enough to keep the numbers that SE was anticipating.

The only real question that remains is what proportion of players will stay of those who came in to the game with ARR. At this point, it's really hard to make that call. The fact is that nobody really knows, and we won't know for sure until the free month is over for new players.

Bottom line is, you claim that you don't need a crystal ball to tell how things go, and then you proceed to prognosticate using one. By the way, it's clearly broken.

[coffeepotz]

Don't even need a crystal ball to tell how things go with P2P MMOs. Once free month is over, population nose dives..... then comes server merges and if population keeps dropping further then the announcement for F2P.

Because FFXI totally did that.

[Jinko]

Jinko, you always make really sharp observations and I usually agree with you. You can't be saying because another game by an insanely cheap and lazy developer is the bar by which all new MMO content should be judged? Activision Blizzard is the very definition of being "good enough" and not going the extra mile

I'm not sure you can say Blizzard are a cheap lazy dev, granted graphically the game looks like a turd but underneath it there is a very solid game with very solid dungeon and end game content. (the reason so many people play WoW is because there is so much to do)

[Mishakai]

Well, Legacy/1.0 subs have kicked in already, and I still see plenty of Legacy/1.0 players on my server. Everyone in my FC who isn't Legacy/1.0 has already setup a subscription and are just waiting to get charged for their veteran rewards.

The whole, let's what and see what happens when subs kick in; It's basically the equivalent of someone saying that in winter, it might snow. Makes me wonder if some of the people who post stuff like this on MMO forums are all "IN YOUR FACE!! I SOOO TOLD YOU!! I WAS RIGHT!!!" every time it snows in the winter.

[The-Alchemist]

Because FFXI totally did that.

FFXI isn't part of the current mmo market is that way.

Most current MMOs do pop spike then die off.

[Genjisamurai]

I guess I am the only one who is amused by rude people in the game. Did Ifrit hard mode last night and a big fight broke out between the scholar and tank because the scholar was using clerical stance. It was funny. Adds entertainment to this game.

[Xatsh]

What will happen when subs kick in.

We will lose the mmo hoppers like every mmos does.

So instead of 1.1 million players we will probably endup with around 600-700k. What SE does with the major content patches will determine if that stabilizes or continues to fall. There is no denying the major issues with the endgame design... it is horrible atm.

ToRs issue was the game lacked endgame, just like ARR. But the difference is the content patch coming up is massive so Where ToR had almost no content patches XIV is getting a major patch in 2-3months. And it is not a small one with 1-2 dungeons, it is a mini expansion of sorts. (Basically everything that did not make it into launch more or less, nearly doubling/tripling endgame and adding PvP)

ToR's fundamental game ignoring the lack of content was also much weaker then ARR. Honestly the only thing that was better in my opinion was the story and voice acting... 2 things that honestly mean little when it comes to a mmos longevity. Because once you go through the story you are done it for good.

Legacy servers are still slammed with players atm no idea about non-legacy and we all paid. Now we are the diehards yes, but if 75% non-legacy players in NA and EU quit.. while the JP worlds are still at capacity almost all of them same for NA/Eu Legacy. The game will still be a smashing success in the long run.

Remember Yoshida Planned on sub 500k, we are near 1.1million. We can lose half the population and still be above projections for SE to continue feeding us content.

[Rydin]

I'm not sure you can say Blizzard are a cheap lazy dev, granted graphically the game looks like a turd but underneath it there is a very solid game with very solid dungeon and end game content. (the reason so many people play WoW is because there is so much to do)

I don't know... just companies that make 2 billion a year in subs and still charge for expansions... seems greedy to me. Also, not updating the graphics with even hi res texture packs (Which wouldn't exclude people with lower end machines from still playing the game). Seems like they only did what was necessary and nothing more. The responsiveness falls under "Necessary" in my opinion.

[Kanzer]

Not subbing. Too many issues.
- Visual lag... endgame completely broken and unplayable
- Outdated RGN system
- tab targeting abysmal

And lots more, but those are the most importants.

For the end game being completely unplayable, I'm sure having fun with it.

Being unable to do it personally doesn't make it unplayable, just sayin...