EC explains how the current progression system is flawed

[Dajinn]

Sarcasm? Cause im having loads of fun

more than likely what's actually happened is you've been conditioned by your environment to make you THINK that what you're doing in MMOs is fun.

[SinisterJointss]

more than likely what's actually happened is you've been conditioned by your environment to make you THINK that what you're doing in MMOs is fun.

Conditioned? You act like there is some brainwashing scheme behind mmo's. Some evil man rubbing his hands together with dollar signs in his eyes. If I wasnt having fun I wouldnt be playing it. Who are you to tell me any different?

[Shurrikhan]

Watched it, then another EC vid, then another, arriving finally at Extra Credit: Energy Systems - 3:18...
Now remembering the collective shouts of joy when the fatigue system was removed, replaced with "bonus xp" and leveling rates across any more than a single job remained unchanged, and more than 2 jobs slowed.

Conditioned? You act like there is some brainwashing scheme behind mmo's. Some evil man rubbing his hands together with dollar signs in his eyes. If I wasnt having fun I wouldnt be playing it. Who are you to tell me any different?

To be honest, there usually is. Whether or not it has been effective enough or balanced out by factors that would make the game enjoyable even without them to get you to play is up to you. If you like it, you like it. That just doesn't mean no one's trying to manipulate you. This is a business, after all.


To OP:
I can't honestly say that the vid in any way shows how XIV is flawed. Sure, it could be better--for one I'd certainly prefer if I was seeing more than just Neverreap and Fractal on a regular basis. But, overall I'm glad for what little gating it has, in that it keeps me logging into the game just enough to remember that I actually really like its combat. (Which could, again, be better, but does mostly feel leagues better than the other MMOs I've played.) The experience would likely be vastly improved if they were to find something in the mechanics itself, the flow of gameplay, etc., that could keep people playing almost endlessly regardless of specifically added content, but that's a lot like saying 'this can be solved with magic and/or the work of a long-awaited genius and/or our heads being freed from rears (but when, by extension, the majority of the industry are 'back-end' thinkers, how do we even notice?)...

[KisaiTenshi]

To OP:
I can't honestly say that the vid in any way shows how XIV is flawed.

I think the OP only watched it to the point they said "JRPG's still..." and assumed the rest of the video was going to say how WoW is superior to Asian MMO's.

No, quite the contrary. "Progression systems can be a great tool to shape the learning curve" *ding*ding*ding*, we have a winner.

Then they mention "If the designer is measuring the Time Investment to Reward(ratio) but the Player is Effort Investment to Reward... you get the Destiny Loot Cave"

"From the players perspective, if the most efficient way to progress turns out to be the least interesting thing to do... you don't want that." The first thing that comes to mind are the Beast Tribes repeatables, which are interesting as you unlock them, but once unlocked are pointless to do except for mindlessly grinding.

The better point is the character narrative. "It's hard to write a character who's mechanically all about healing and protecting their companion, exactly the same way you would write a warrior who is all about hitting stuff with an axe". The example used is Final Fantasy.

"We shouldn't be putting in a progression system to disguise lack-luster gameplay" *points at all the freemium games.

[CosmicKirby]

Conditioned? You act like there is some brainwashing scheme behind mmo's. Some evil man rubbing his hands together with dollar signs in his eyes. If I wasnt having fun I wouldnt be playing it. Who are you to tell me any different?

Conditioned would be the exact and proper word for it. MMOs are full of skinner box mechanics. We are operantly conditioned to repeat the same basic task, at first for great reward (lots of levels and bright flashes and sound at low levels) and the reward gets progressively slower before becoming a complete uncertainty, (end-game drops that might never drop).

One can call a spade a spade, but you can certainly enjoy the mechanism, especially if you are actually having fun.

[Greedalox]

more than likely what's actually happened is you've been conditioned by your environment to make you THINK that what you're doing in MMOs is fun.

To be fair you could argue that anything you find fun in any facet of life could have been conditioned into you. So what you THINK is fun to you... is actually fun to you.

[OJ191]

more than likely what's actually happened is you've been conditioned by your environment to make you THINK that what you're doing in MMOs is fun.

Brainwashing or not

if you're having fun who cares?

[Shirobi]

more than likely what's actually happened is you've been conditioned by your environment to make you THINK that what you're doing in MMOs is fun.

Is there a way I can give this a few hundred thumbs up? Seriously?