The thing about FC's and why people choose not to join

[Elven]

Maybe they don't like pyramid schemes or they're self sufficient. What do you think?

[Volgera]

hmmm Its kinda hard being self sufficient on "new" end game contents.

Unless u choose a really terrible FC, pugging is hardly gonna be better than joinning a FC. IMO this is only what? 5% of what a FC can do for you. Hunts, maps, helping relics, grinding and, above all, a place where u can get into a really nice chat from time to time.

I love my FC!!! We have many great peeps here.

[Failia]

....or they havent found the right FC that they're looking for. Some people are picky and like to join one that they know they'll fit into. It's terrible joining an FC/guild/etc in any game where you don't fit in with the rest of the members or there's so many that all you are are another number on their roster.

[DeceptionsWrath]

Well i'm still without a FC currently, and it's because i'm kind of picky on what i get. Random invites are an instant no thanks. If i wanted to go with randoms, i'd duty finder what i needed. I want a smaller FC, like maybe 30ish, that does dungeons casually. With people that are friendly and not rude, people i can raid with and not get chewed out because i made one mistake. Just tough to find that and have enough people active to do raids regularly.

[Dark-Saviour]

Really don't feel like going into a huge amount of depth on it right now, but I won't join a FC because of a disdain for the very concept of guilds.
I feel they tend to degenerate communities into insular pockets of enforce an arbitrary sense of segregation.
I'd rather the pool of people I meet people from be 'everyone in the game' rather than 'these X people that happen to have the same letters over their head'.

Granted, not joining doesn't really solve the fundamental problem, as the very existence of guilds shifts the community in that direction, but at least I'm not part of the problem. :-\

[Cherry_Phox]

Really don't feel like going into a huge amount of depth on it right now, but I won't join a FC because of a disdain for the very concept of guilds.
I feel they tend to degenerate communities into insular pockets of enforce an arbitrary sense of segregation.
I'd rather the pool of people I meet people from be 'everyone in the game' rather than 'these X people that happen to have the same letters over their head'.

Granted, not joining doesn't really solve the fundamental problem, as the very existence of guilds shifts the community in that direction, but at least I'm not part of the problem. :-\

Well, they do give us a friends list. And we do have eight slots for LinkShells.

[Malzian]

Really don't feel like going into a huge amount of depth on it right now, but I won't join a FC because of a disdain for the very concept of guilds.
I feel they tend to degenerate communities into insular pockets of enforce an arbitrary sense of segregation.
I'd rather the pool of people I meet people from be 'everyone in the game' rather than 'these X people that happen to have the same letters over their head'.

Granted, not joining doesn't really solve the fundamental problem, as the very existence of guilds shifts the community in that direction, but at least I'm not part of the problem. :-\

The thing here is... joining an FC doesn't take you out of the community at large. It's tantamount to saying, "I joined <some organization> and have completely stopped talking to my friends and neighbors who aren't part of it." FCs and Guilds exist for 2 reasons... first it's an easy way of grouping up with your friends and having a consistent set of people you know will be there to help you if you need it. Second, a majority of people like feeling as-if they belong to something bigger than themselves and the act of contributing to those things makes them feel good.

Now the perks you get for being part of the guild are great (FC housing, the exp bonuses and the like), they were added to further incentivize joining a group, but the over-all mindset at SE has been that content in an MMO is meant to be played together with people you know. This is the core of gameplay for them in their MMOs and you could see this especially in XI.

What I don't agree with for what SE has done with it is how they've gated off some content behind having a large, thriving FC as the only way to access it... Personal Housing, Gardening, Chocobo 'Raising' (which is completely not the system I was hoping for, by the by). Anything where you need one of those inordinately expensive FC houses to do, which if you have a very small FC become mountainous underdertakings to achieve.

[Dark-Saviour]

The thing here is... joining an FC doesn't take you out of the community at large. It's tantamount to saying, "I joined <some organization> and have completely stopped talking to my friends and neighbors who aren't part of it."

It isn't an intrinsic issue, but that actually is the mentality these systems tend to foster due to a combination of history and just the nature of a lot of players. I've consistently seen a trend in the games I've played (with some worse than others, mind you) of, "Guild >>>> Everyone else. **** those scrubs." If you're not in someone's guild, you are inherently terribad and there's no need to ever do content with you or even associate with you.
And as soon as someone joins an online game, it seems they've been indoctrinated to believe they've "GOTTA FIND A GUILD! FAST!". That combined with the mass spam of invites half the guilds in any game seem to throw at everyone they see makes me confused as to why guilds in their current form can hold so much appeal as to consistently remain a thing.

In my eyes, a 'guild' should only consist of people you've met and already enjoy playing with; it should never be something you enter into before already having a relationship with all of the members. And at that point you don't need a guild because there is no need for that hierarchy and structure with that type of relationship.

But when people are indoctrinated into believing they need to be in a guild and place an unfounded sense of value on other players solely because they're in the same guild, it makes for a community where it is difficult to find the players I'd most enjoy playing with on a universal level.

[SendohJin]

In my eyes, a 'guild' should only consist of people you've met and already enjoy playing with; it should never be something you enter into before already having a relationship with all of the members.

that's impossible? you can't be friends with of all your friends' friends, or what if your friend has a brother/gf or whatever who also played the game.

[Yurimi]

I am looking for the right FC not some random FC where I won't fit and will most likely end up as a number... Random invites without so much as even a hi are instantly declined and the sender blacklisted after I send them a tell letting them know how rude I think it is.