So are consoles holding back this game?

[Laraul]

Is the web browser on your phone holding back the web browser on your computer? No, they are two different builds.

Is the PS3 holding back the other versions? No, because they are two different builds. The PS3 version only needs 14GB free to install the game plus the expansion and any upcoming content. The PS4 version needs 40GB. And the PC version currently uses 20GB. The PS3 version uses lower resolution textures, simpler models and animations. The PS4 version looks identical to the PC's DX9 client running at maximum settings, but currently lacks the visual enhancements provided by the DX11 version.

Obviously if the console versions we're holding back the PC version, then the PC version should lack the improvements w/ the DX11 client. If you think features should be included with the PC version (i.e. User Interface Addons) there's no reason why support can't be added, even if the PS3/PS4 versions end up lacking support for such a feature.

[Colorful]

snip

Put some more thought into this, the PS3 is clearly holding the game back. What if they wanted to add larger areas, or a city without loading screens? PS3 can't take that. Huge open world bosses? Same can be said. A TP bar with numbers? Again, PS3 doesn't have enough RAM and they don't want to exclude them from participating in such content.

[Laraul]

Put some more thought into this, the PS3 is clearly holding the game back. What if they wanted to add larger areas?

You mean like the new Heavensward areas? They are enormous. And we have huge open world bosses w/ rank S hunts. And if they want to add larger areas, they could... larger areas take longer to transverse though, which means more time wasted on trying to get to where you want to be.

The PS3 version lacks the inventory grid and gil display, both of which are present on the PC and PS4 versions. When the focus target window is visible, the clock and exp bar are hidden on the PS3. The 3.1 patch isn't out yet, so we don't know how the TP bars will work exactly. But if the PS3 version is unable to display numbers, theres no reason why the developers could not allow show both the bar and numbers on the PC and PS4 version. People wanna blame everything they find wrong w/ the game on the PS3. It's an easy scapegoat since it's seen as the weakest link.

[Zoralink]

~Snip~

The larger areas with nothing in them but copy pasted enemies, the instanced world, the world bosses that require us to cull the number of players down to an abysmal number, the inventory that is naturally split apart in the first place, the limited number of windows we can display at a time, etc, etc.

The lack of a clock and exp bar will not have a tangible effect on a boss fight (Where you would use focus target in the first place) whereas a number shown for TP will.

There's any numbers of ways it's clear designing for PS3 is holding the game back, the concessions SE makes constantly make it clear they have to hold certain things back for the sake of (pretending) there's parity between PC and PS3.

[Colorful]

snip

I'm referring to more traditional open world bosses, possibly the size of Bismarck in the open world. But the exact reason they gave for not having a TP bar was PS3 limitations, and the work around was not displaying the actual numbers but just a bar for 3.1. As for why it doesn't only display a bar on the PS3 and have both numbers and a bar on the PS4/PC? I've got no clue, probably boils down to a possible disadvantage between the playerbase. I'm referring to city areas, not open areas. But as you might have no noticed, the render distance on little specific details is abysmally low for FFXIV, even mobs.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't S rank hunts usually have the PS3 dropping into the single digits (FPS)?