My friend the "content locust" :(

[Edellis]

I come from FFXI, a game where content grew with each patch and expansion where sidegrades were the norm and there was always that one item to improve your set... have an Optical Hat for your evasion set thats nice but if you want to really make a good evasion set you need to go camp a Lv. 24 Hairpin for that extra 3 AGI yes a low level item was better than a higher level one even if only slightly.

While I do think FFXIV would benefit greatly from non-linear gear progression, camping enemies for hours/days/weeks on end just for a specific drop is something I will never be able to stomach again as an individual. I'll take tome leveling and lockouts any day of the year over 0.0042% drop rates. It's a necessary evil, in my opinion. Older generation MMOs are built around carrot sticking. The only reason I actually play FFXIV is because it seems to abandon this concept.



The problem you guys seem to have is that FFXIV is all about forward progress but doesn't do much in the realm of incentive for backpeddling. Sort of like an offline Final Fantasy title. That's simply a design choice that I really don't think is going to change. It has its pros and cons, just like the opposite design model. But forward progress is infinitely more appealing to non-mmo veterans and (most importantly) Final Fantasy fans.


The ONLY reason im capped in this game is because FFXIV never threw excessive EXP requirements or drop rates in my face in order to hinder my progression. Even at level 50, at the end of its content pool, it refuses to hinder progression with typical MMO tactics. Every dungeon you complete gives forward progress with Tomes that eventually will end in i90 gear. Even when you get no drops from a dungeon, you're still technically gaining gear.

That's just how FFXIV operates, and people enjoy it. It's a pace change that I personally can get behind. At least I know when im bored with the game, it'll be on my own terms, instead of frustration that eventually just makes me feel like i wasted my life because the 534,102 kills it took for Ultima Weapon +1 to drop from the rare golden dragon that spawns at random every 2 hours that the whole server camps really wasn't worth it afterall.

[Yurimi]

While I do think FFXIV would benefit greatly from non-linear gear progression, camping enemies for hours/days/weeks on end just for a specific drop is something I will never be able to stomach again as an individual. I'll take tome leveling and lockouts any day of the year over 0.0042% drop rates. It's a necessary evil, in my opinion. Older generation MMOs are built around carrot sticking. The only reason I actually play FFXIV is because it seems to abandon this concept.



The problem you guys seem to have is that FFXIV is all about forward progress but doesn't do much in the realm of incentive for backpeddling. Sort of like an offline Final Fantasy title. That's simply a design choice that I really don't think is going to change. It has its pros and cons, just like the opposite design model. But forward progress is infinitely more appealing to non-mmo veterans and (most importantly) Final Fantasy fans.


The ONLY reason im capped in this game is because FFXIV never threw excessive EXP requirements or drop rates in my face in order to hinder my progression. Even at level 50, at the end of its content pool, it refuses to hinder progression with typical MMO tactics. Every dungeon you complete gives forward progress with Tomes that eventually will end in i90 gear.


That's just how FFXIV operates, and people enjoy it. It's a pace change that I personally can get behind. At least I know when im bored with the game, it'll be on my own terms, instead of frustration that eventually just makes me feel like i wasted my life.

But you didnt have to camp the NM using my example optical hat could be obtained the difference in evasion was 3 agility both had the same base evasion bonus it was simply a question of if you were WILLING to camp the NM for that slight bonus. Yes there were some exceptions when it came to stuff like HNM gear but even then with the introduction of einherjar and nyzul and salvage gear that stuff kind of degraded too. You were now given options. Even in this game you get tomes for i90 but is it BiS is it the absolute min/max for your character probably not if you showed up using Myth hands over coil hands on scholar thats not the best but you are satisfied doing so because its progress right ? you didnt have to camp valkurm emperor for the hairpin you could simple grind gil and buy it you could do the BCNM for the sellable one you could camp the NM or settle for the 100% drop rate of the optical hat. you had choice. And the variety of available content to obtain "good" gear from was a rather large pool vs the current if you arent doing the latest stuff your wasting time model of XIV:ARR.