The Letter is up

[DurtiMonkeyToe]

I agree with what you are saying here, so don't think this is an attack, but the truth is appearntly SE has game designers and even they dont know what they are doing. The language they use with the consumer base is very ambiguous. They stated earlier this year that 1.18 would contain "dungeons", as in several, not one, maybe two. They said mid-june at the earliest and then wait until mid-june after weeks of silence to finally say it will be delayed.

They took NONE of the years and years of lessons they learned from running FFXI (which was a great mmo) and applied them to this game despite the fact that many of the same people work on this team. Most of the initail gameplay elements upon release (aside form the graphics and motion capture) look to have been created on a napkin over lunch. All outward appearences seem to indicate that this is the first time SE has ever made an MMO.

I have played and still play this game. I believe it to have a ton of potential. But even fitting the bill as a FF "fanboy", I find their poor use of PR, ambiguous language, and inability to set and meet simple deadlines tiresome. And for those that argue we all get to play this game for free, let me just make one thing clear: The few thousand of us or so that continue to play this game and respond to them about it are saving them a ridiculous amount of money on game testers and Q @ A people. I love this franchise, but being used and then jerked around with no clear end in site to when we will finally recieve the gameplay and experience we have been promised can make even its most loyal fans turn against them. And that really is my greatest fear. Those of us that are still playing and defending them are slowly running out of the energy to keep doing so without recieving anything in return on SE's end. This patch (especially now that its been delayed) has some pretty big shoes to fill, and frankly, from what I have seen out of SE's reworking of this game so far, am afraid they are setting themselves up to fall flat on their faces. I can only hope that I am pleasantly suprised come the end of July when it finally drops, but after months of being in their corner, I am begining to lose faith.

I want to believe you SE, I really really do, but much like a battered wife, I can only take false promises for so long before I pack my shit and don't come back.

To those of you that say good riddance to those that do quit, you are only cheering on this games demise. I feel for every person that has played this and been so dissapointed that they leave. Each person we lose should be fealt as a loss by the community. Only complete douchebags cheer on the fact that their team is losing.

I agree with you that it is frustrating to play a game that you want so badly to enjoy but to be endlessly bored in. I get it, believe me. But their are some statement you make that I disagree with.

1st) The team has changed. I know a lot of people say this is a common excuse, but it is valid. Yoshi and his team are going back and not only adding their own spin on the game, but going back and redesigning the work that was done by Tanaka's team (who, by the way, were the team that had experience from FFXI). These take time. It's easy for the community to speculate on how much time we THINK it should take, but it is going to take as long as it is going to take. Programming is only a portion of the game development cycle.

2nd) I don't think the team gets enough credit for what they have accomplished. They completely changed the SP system into a system that makes the leveling process easier to stomach. They added a slew of mid range NMs and gear. And the gear that was added is awesome, some of it almost comparable to the gear crafted from the level 50 NMs that the community spent ages camping and crafting. They have added Quests and Task Boards to break up the monotony of Guildleves. Is it enough? Maybe not, but I can't help but feel that the summer will be the real meat and potatoes of the changes.

[Biggs]

I agree with you that it is frustrating to play a game that you want so badly to enjoy but to be endlessly bored in. I get it, believe me. But their are some statement you make that I disagree with.

1st) The team has changed. I know a lot of people say this is a common excuse, but it is valid. Yoshi and his team are going back and not only adding their own spin on the game, but going back and redesigning the work that was done by Tanaka's team (who, by the way, were the team that had experience from FFXI). These take time. It's easy for the community to speculate on how much time we THINK it should take, but it is going to take as long as it is going to take. Programming is only a portion of the game development cycle.

2nd) I don't think the team gets enough credit for what they have accomplished. They completely changed the SP system into a system that makes the leveling process easier to stomach. They added a slew of mid range NMs and gear. And the gear that was added is awesome, some of it almost comparable to the gear crafted from the level 50 NMs that the community spent ages camping and crafting. They have added Quests and Task Boards to break up the monotony of Guildleves. Is it enough? Maybe not, but I can't help but feel that the summer will be the real meat and potatoes of the changes.

Whats funny Monkey is that I have made those exact same statements for the past 6 months since the team change in their defense. And I still feel that each of the things you have said are accurate and totally right. I also completely agree that the changes they have made so far since taking over have been needed and meaningful. The only problem is that people like you and I that have been playing the entire time since release havent really gotten anything new. I look at fixes and changes that should have been in the game already as needed and good overall, but these things arent enhancing my experience in the game just yet. It sucks that those of us that are most loyal to SE are actually recieving the least.

I am sorry if the above post makes it seem as if I am doggin on the new team and new changes because I am def not. They are taking this game where it needs to go at the best pace they can. But showing existing players new content like AF gear, Dungeons, and new things to do that ARENT fixes without a clear idea of when we will get them only makes me feel as if I am being led around by a carrot on a string. This last letter just really took something outa me. Oh well, hopefully I will wake up feeling better about things tomorrow. (I am sure fighting a summer cold isnt helping my mood )

[DurtiMonkeyToe]

Whats funny Monkey is that I have made those exact same statements for the past 6 months since the team change in their defense. And I still feel that each of the things you have said are accurate and totally right. I also completely agree that the changes they have made so far since taking over have been needed and meaningful. The only problem is that people like you and I that have been playing the entire time since release havent really gotten anything new. I look at fixes and changes that should have been in the game already as needed and good overall, but these things arent enhancing my experience in the game just yet. It sucks that those of us that are most loyal to SE are actually recieving the least.

I am sorry if the above post makes it seem as if I am doggin on the new team and new changes because I am def not. They are taking this game where it needs to go at the best pace they can. But showing existing players new content like AF gear, Dungeons, and new things to do that ARENT fixes without a clear idea of when we will get them only makes me feel as if I am being led around by a carrot on a string. This last letter just really took something outa me. Oh well, hopefully I will wake up feeling better about things tomorrow. (I am sure fighting a summer cold isnt helping my mood )

Like I said, I feel your pain. I'm not going to argue against how you feel, because a feeling is ineffable. I am frustrated too, with the wait. I have no desire to play anything bu PGL and still I have maxed out my MRD and am just piddling around on my THM while I wait. But it is hard to build up that urge to play when I am just doing the same thing over and over again even though I desperately WANT to WANT to play, lol.

[Biggs]

I am one of the fortunate peeps that has created a really great community on our ls (Altepan Warriors!!! Holla!) If it weren't for them I probably would have stopped playing months ago. Of course this line of thought only gets me frustrated about how little they give us LS leaders tools to work with for our linkshells (grrrrrrrrrrr) but I have said my peice about that in another post

On a more positive note, I still find myself in awe of how fantastic this game looks everytime I come through the main bridge in LL.
Tons of good stuff here, just need more to do!!!!!!

[DurtiMonkeyToe]

I am one of the fortunate peeps that has created a really great community on our ls (Altepan Warriors!!! Holla!) If it weren't for them I probably would have stopped playing months ago. Of course this line of thought only gets me frustrated about how little they give us LS leaders tools to work with for our linkshells (grrrrrrrrrrr) but I have said my peice about that in another post

On a more positive note, I still find myself in awe of how fantastic this game looks everytime I come through the main bridge in LL.
Tons of good stuff here, just need more to do!!!!!!

Same, though sadly I see my LS shrink day by day.

[Dreadnought]

Same, though sadly I see my LS shrink day by day.

thats whats sad to me. two extra weeks is a long time to alot of gamers, especially when theyve already waited so long for so little.
im wondering how many more developers SE could have put into this specific patch just to get it out in time, if at all.

[DurtiMonkeyToe]

thats whats sad to me. two extra weeks is a long time to alot of gamers, especially when theyve already waited so long for so little.
im wondering how many more developers SE could have put into this specific patch just to get it out in time, if at all.

I empathize with that statement, but the business side of me says it would be hard to rationalize the appointment of MORE resources to a game that is making NO money.