Real Money to Get In-Game Currency: Eternal Bond Edition

[Magis]

I think SE would be thrilled if this game doesn't do much better than XI. It's still the most successful Final Fantasy to date. It never hit ridiculously high numbers (though back in 2003/2004 500k was pretty damn good) but the player retention was incredible.

FFXI was their most profitable game after a decade of collecting subscriptions. Depending on how the expansion is received, the game will either crash or succeed. 500k is a good amount and is honestly all that is needed for a MMO, but I don't see how this game can have a high retention rate. FFXI hooked you in because you put a long investment in the game. Players had worked hard and long to get their gear and kept playing because of the progress they had made before. Heck, getting to max level was a feat in itself. With XIV, there is very little of that. Your gear is recycled every patch. Getting to max level takes a couple of days grinding with many people maxing 50 on all chars. The only investment players have in this game is gil and their relic (which is optional), crafting and assets that are bought with gil as well I assume (housing). Maybe minions as well if you are a collector. There is no "hook" to keep you engaged, besides the initial thrill of "new content".

I am getting a bit off topic however with this rant.