What are the chances of ever getting similar sized massive zones/maps that 1.0 had?

[Leowilde]

*Skips 5 pages, late to thread*

OP: I agree. Definetly supporting this. Though the original 1.0 maps were (for the most part) fairly uninteresting compared to the area designs now, they were so large they felt real. They don't feel real no more.

[Kiayin]

I couldn't agree more. There are so many invisible walls everywhere they could as well have done without jumping. ARR right now feels like a pointless world with pointless mechanics and pointless mobs. Everything of interest is instanced.

[Skapoc]

I enjoy huge open world areas but the problem with them is that no one would go to these places unless you give them a reason to go and currently there is none. Maps and dailies aren't enough incentive to go out exploring. If they made the area huge and there is nothing to do in them except some quests, these areas quickly become ghost towns. It would take time and effort that could be spent on more important things to make these areas important.

Also with waypoints no one is going to run though a zone to get to another zone. The argument to this is take out waypoints and if you take waypoints out it hinders new players to the game who don't have a mount and would need to run though these zones to do all the quests they need to do. New players are the lively hood of any MMO and you don't want to lose them in the first month.

In other words SE doesn't have any incentive to make huge open areas and the game clearly doesn't need them. It's a shame but it is what it is.

[odintius]

Sagolli desert should have three zones for itself alone :P

[Radxen]

Really this system reminds me of FFXII with the zones and all, only Ivalice felt so much larger.
I know it wasn't online and stuff but still, that was a PS2 game and FFXIV's Eorzea feels like the went backwards with the maps. :/

I can only hope we will see Garlemand like we were able to see Archadia in FFXII, that was fun walking around the enemy's city and getting to know them better

[Penguinmayhem]

Personally, I'd rather not have even more humongous stretches of scenery to have to run back and forth across every day.

[Naunet]

Personally, I'd rather not have even more humongous stretches of scenery to have to run back and forth across every day.

With aetherytes, there's very required little running. I doubt that would change much with larger maps.

[edit] for clarity

[Estellios]

http://youtu.be/CA7GGnyNwEs

I hated that stupid stream with the 2 trees.

I think it's funny that the people complaining about having fast travel (can save several minutes of time) are complaining about loading screens (several seconds). FF14's zones are generally around the size of 11's zones, you just move much quicker on foot and mounted in 14 compared to 11.

1.0's maps were massive but there were only 5 actual zones. As an example, what we have as Northern/Central/Western/Eastern/Southern Thanalan was all one zone that still had loading screens, just hidden. All the major sections were connected by long, narrow tunnels which were where the loading took place.

[TeraRamis]

I disagree. You can have everything, its called WoW. Alas it does not have that FF skin on it, so you may be right in that respect (you can't have everything). But really, World of Warcraft does everything this game does but better and has more content, AND the world is seamless and HUGE and completely OPEN. Disregarding the FF skin, why would anyone pay $15 a month for an inferior product?

Because they started selling 90s. That's why I quit. I'm quitting this too, though. Lacking content... small world... no PvP. It's just not worth playing atm.

[BlueMage]

Sagolli desert should have three zones for itself alone :P

I agree.

Sadly, Sagoli is only 20-25% of one zone...

Wow, what a "desert"!

Hopefully more of it opens up and is done properly in an expansion.