A letter to Yoshida and the development staff of ARR

[ExponentialDecay]

Why are we still unable to send /tells in dungeons?

They made it very clear that they did this to prevent people from being harassed while in dungeons.

What happened to Community content that Free Companies and Linkshells could do with each other?

That's coming later.

Why are we unable to change classes in Instances anymore?

You can't change class during battle, or gear. This was a conscious design in the game.

Why is the only true endgame encounter gated behind an eight person weekly lockout when Free Companies can hold 512 people, friends list can hold 200, and Linkshells can hold 128 people x 8 linkshells?

FC's are just guilds. Linkshells are just chat rooms. Friends lists are exactly what they sound like. It'd be really unfeasable to make content that requires you to hit the cap on each of those as it severely limits the communities ability to do these things.

[LoLo]

snip

Everything you said, I cosign and wish I could like 100 times over.

[Sadana]

However the reason it stayed around for so long and the reason people kept playing was because of the things that kept people playing together,

I'm going to over-simplify things for a moment... so you're saying that the fact that we don't HAVE to work with others is XIV's weak point when it comes to community? :/ I don't want to be forced to work with others... I want to do it because I WANT to. For example, I've been blasting through the atma book requirements because I work together with friends on them. I don't HAVE to but it sure does make it easier! And more fun! Bonus! In my opinion, people who just solo this shit are hindering themselves. The game doesn't force people to work together but smart people do. There are some recent good threads about community in this game and how to make it work (yes, it takes effort.) I'll find the links...

Here you go:
http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t...te-a-Community
http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t...bout-community...

[Ryel]

I'm going to over-simplify things for a moment... so you're saying that the fact that we don't HAVE to work with others is XIV's weak point when it comes to community? :/ I don't want to be forced to work with others... I want to do it because I WANT to. For example, I've been blasting through the atma book requirements because I work together with friends on them. I don't HAVE to but it sure does make it easier! And more fun! Bonus! In my opinion, people who just solo this shit are hindering themselves. The game doesn't force people to work together but smart people do. There are some recent good threads about community in this game and how to make it work (yes, it takes effort.) I'll find the links...

I think you're misinterpreting me, i'm in no way saying that we should be forced to work together via exp parties and such (while i do miss those things nostalgia wise) I understand fully that isn't everyone's cup of tea.

I'm saying i feel we shouldn't be restricted from playing with our full roster of friends and helping people out on content because of a lockout that leaves us powerless to do so.

I should NEVER have to answer someone who asks me for help by saying:

"I'm sorry the game won't allow me to help you, tough luck you're on your own"

That is a horrible, horrible feeling, that i have to actually sit there and tell people that I've played with for months and in some cases years that I'm not allowed to play with them.

I mentioned this in another thread but simply put:

Why should the ability of some person i've never met to buy a piece of gear or some hardcore group that wants to burn themselves out on content (more power to you guys!) prevent me from doing end game content with the people i wish to play with?

[Zephyranthes]

Coil lockout is there to make content last longer. "Longer" content = longer subscription. This is the hard fact that SE doesn't want to admit.

[Meshico]

* snip is it? *

I really enjoyed your thread. I hope the developers do read it. Also if they have some of the things you have mentioned in plan already, they most likely cannot comment on it. Then people (in general), would go bonkers.

But I agree with 95% of what you had to say!

Also for anyone else, it is totally worth the read

[necrosis]

Why are we unable to change classes in Instances anymore?

"Anymore" would imply we could at one point. When could we? As far as I know it was never allowed.

[Sadana]

I think you're misinterpreting me, i'm in no way saying that we should be forced to work together via exp parties and such (while i do miss those things nostalgia wise) I understand fully that isn't everyone's cup of tea.

I'm saying i feel we shouldn't be restricted from playing with our full roster of friends and helping people out on content because of a lockout that leaves us powerless to do so.

I should NEVER have to answer someone who asks me for help be saying:

"I'm sorry the game won't allow me to help you, tough luck you're on your own"

Ok yes, I agree with that part as I mentioned in my first reply. People being excluded from groups over and over due to the 8 man statics/1 go per week limitations leads to many leaving the game for good.

[Ryel]

I really enjoyed your thread. I hope the developers do read it. Also if they have some of the things you have mentioned in plan already, they most likely cannot comment on it. Then people (in general), would go bonkers.

But I agree with 95% of what you had to say!

Also for anyone else, it is totally worth the read

Thanks!

"Anymore" would imply we could at one point. When could we? As far as I know it was never allowed.

You could freely change jobs/classes in instances during 1.23 before ARR was released. In fact it was common strategy back in Aurum Vale to have most of your DPS swap to MNK for Fists of Fire for the added fire elemental damage against Miser's Mistress who was weak to it, likewise it was also common to have players swap to BRD or BLM for the ranged damage on Coincounter so they were out of range for 100-tonze swing.

[Tupsi]

Mentioning FFXI - You were doing so well up to this point... =_= Even you admitted that XI has been around for many years and has content to match, why use it as part of your argument?

To be fair, XI got Rise of the Zilarts by its first year - So technically ARR should have had at least the typical partial release of an expansion by now, or the game starting to expand in SOME fashion by now, it still feels like...nothing truthfully changed beyond instances, but that's sadly the fate of MMOs like this. For example Lost City would have been an amazing open world zone.