[Dengeki Online] Post 2.3 Interview with Yoshi-P: 2.3 highlights and future plans

[EdwinLi]

putting it together for the storyline

Main Story 2.X

- 2.3 is the mid point of 2.X story so looks like 2.5 will be the ending for 2.X and then we will obtain 3.0 for expansion after 2.5

Crystal Tower
- Now it is officially confirmed CT 3rd Raid will be the last CT raid so now we wait for 2.5 to enter the World of Darkness and fight the Cloud of Darkness.

[Ulathskullsplitter]

putting it together for the storyline

Main Story 2.X

- 2.3 is the mid point of 2.X story so looks like 2.5 will be the ending for 2.X and then we will obtain 3.0 for expansion after 2.5

Crystal Tower
- Now it is officially confirmed CT 3rd Raid will be the last CT raid so now we wait for 2.5 to enter the World of Darkness and fight the Cloud of Darkness.

Yep. Looks like 2.4 will be the end of coil and 2.5 will end CT. So 2.5 is likely the last patch before expansion. 3 months in between put 2.4 in October, 2.5 in January, and expansion in April. Sounds about right. They originally said they want an expansion before the games 2 year mark.

[Radacci]

putting it together for the storyline

Main Story 2.X

- 2.3 is the mid point of 2.X story so looks like 2.5 will be the ending for 2.X and then we will obtain 3.0 for expansion after 2.5

Crystal Tower
- Now it is officially confirmed CT 3rd Raid will be the last CT raid so now we wait for 2.5 to enter the World of Darkness and fight the Cloud of Darkness.

If 2.0-2.3 is *halfway* the story content must be colossal, if it's to be fit into just 2 more patches; most of the story, is in 2.0.
2,1-2,3 put together, isnt as much as is in 2.0 (looking at XIVDB, there's 238 quests, in Umbral Era chain, which is 2.0. and 57 in Astral Era, which is 2,1-2,3. Together that's 295 quests.)
Although lots of the quests in 2.0, were shitty fillers, like the whole banquet thing, for yourself, before Titan.
But doubling the story content, in just 2 patches.....hmmm....

[EdwinLi]

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2.4 and 2.5 won't be large since 2.X storyline are a continuation of the 2.0 storyline showing the after math of 2.0 events and setting the stage for 3.0 storyline.

Think of 2.X storyline like the OVAs of Animes.

As of now it appears the only Large storyline will be the X.0 Storylines while the X.X storylines serve as continuations and stage setters for what will happen in the next X.0 Storyline showing glimps and lores of upcoming Major Protagonists and Antagonists.

[Starlord]

2.4 and 2.5 won't be large since 2.X storyline are a continuation of the 2.0 storyline showing the after math of 2.0 events and setting the stage for 3.0 storyline.

Think of 2.X storyline like the OVAs of Animes.

As of now it appears the only Large storyline will be the X.0 Storylines while the X.X storylines serve as continuations and stage setters for what will happen in the next X.0 Storyline showing glimps and lores of upcoming Major Protagonists and Antagonists.

Unless the Ascians are apart of 3.X storyline. I see 2.X Continuing where 2.X left off. till they reach 3.0 where 2.X ends officially.

Expansions are essentially there own game within a MMO game. I mean sure there will be lore before the expansion comes out about " New lands and the dangers within them" told by NPCs.

I believe the story will wrap up in 2.X storyline. and 3.X story will begin on it's own not with the help of 2.X story.

Story will probably wrap up with the adventurers saving Ishgard from their demise and as a reward they allow you into their City-State. 3.X will probably start there as they are still at war with the Dragons.

My prediction anyways :P

[EdwinLi]

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That only works if they plan to allow players to create new characters and start them out at level 50.

3.0 is going to be lvl 50 to (new max level) content and 3.X will be (new Max level) content after all.

The story size may be 2.0 size for 3.0 but that only means the storyline will be that long since for all we know the level cap may increase to lvl 60, 70 or maybe 80 after all. There no promise of increasing the level cap up to lvl 100.

As the saying I follow goes "Pray for the best but expect the Worst" so there are a lot of possibilities right now.

If your hypothesis does happen then new players can create a new character for 3.0 that start out in lvl 1 which would mean 3.0 content will be lvl 1 to (new level cap content). however this will also mean more reworking of the storyline to remain consistant with 2.X storyline which will have 2.X characters becoming Legacy Status players for a Legacy Version of 3.0 Storyline.

Yet if 3.0 start out as lvl 50 content then new players will have to work their way through 2.X content like us currently to reach 3.0 content in the lvl 50 range. This way they can keep the 2.X storyline and make 3.0 a continuation of 2.X storyline from where it ended.

[Airget]

If your hypothesis does happen then new players can create a new character for 3.0 that start out in lvl 1 which would mean 3.0 content will be lvl 1 to (new level cap content). however this will also mean more reworking of the storyline to remain consistant with 2.X storyline which will have 2.X characters becoming Legacy Status players for a Legacy Version of 3.0 Storyline.

Nah you're thinking to much into it, they wouldn't need to create a "legacy" story for 3.0 because that was a perk just for the 2.0 story, the idea behind the "legacy" characters is they all came back around the time the empire decided to make their big move which is why it's emphasized the way it is. There would be no reason to have a similar thing occur for 3.0 because in all technicalities all the warrior's of light have awoken.

They don't have to be to consistant with the story, if you have noticed they have started to make slight tweaks to the game to have NPCs respond to characters based on how far they have gone in certain quest/stories. So with that in mind 3.0 story could easily go through the following
-Oh you are the warrior of light
-Oh you are an adventurer sent from Eorzea
-Oh newcomer you've come at a good time our nation is in need of adventurer's like you on our side.

That's all it really comes down to just how the NPC reacts to the player and they are working on that most likely so that 3.0 could have 1-50 content and offer a new "starting point" for players.

Let's take XI for example cause I think this is the best way to express it.

Each of their expansion was pretty much self contained and at most required a lv 30 requirement to do that content. However when the expansion was finished and done and later down the line they added content which required both sides of the coin to be finished, so in this case this would be the 2.0 story and 3.0 story where by completing both of them you would unlock a new questline to complete.

I would give them faith to do it right, and as stated above with the tweaks of NPCs referring to players based on their "reputation" I think it is safe to say that they know what they are doing when it comes to working on NPC interaction with new and veteran players with expansion content, heck they do have 1yr+ to work on it lol.

[Eekiki]

Nah you're thinking to much into it, they wouldn't need to create a "legacy" story for 3.0 because that was a perk just for the 2.0 story *snip snip*

Also, the 2.0 content more than likely won't go away when 3.0 is released. That wasn't the case when going from 1.0 -> 2.0.

[Falen]

Unless the Ascians are apart of 3.X storyline. I see 2.X Continuing where 2.X left off. till they reach 3.0 where 2.X ends officially.

It's fair to say that Ascians in general probably won't become extinct in the future, as to their involvement at 3.0 and beyond...who knows? (Random Speculation: Could gain physical forms and mortality, subsequently becoming a new race.)

Expansions are essentially their* own game within a MMO game. I mean sure there will be lore before the expansion comes out about " New lands and the dangers within them" told by NPCs.

We've already been getting hints at places like Thavnair, Radz-at-Han, Sharlayan, Meracydia, etc. New continent would probably be Meracydia and the continued theme of Allagans and other fallen civilizations.

(Cont.)

[Falen]

I believe the story will wrap up in 2.X storyline. and 3.X story will begin on it's own not with the help of 2.X story.

It will probably follow the same vein of FFXI expansions, which is a different crisis altogether (like how Chains and Aht Urghan were completely separate from the other "main" storylines and Zilart and Wings tied into the original storyline)

Story will probably wrap up with the adventurers saving Ishgard from their demise and as a reward they allow you into their City-State. 3.X will probably start there as they are still at war with the Dragons.

3.0 could very well expand into Dravania, where Revenant's Toll/Ishgard are the gateways.