is this game near the end of it's life?

[Alisa180]

fun is subjective. some people enjoy grinding.

This. There's a reason Asian MMOs are infamous for being grindy. Over there, they like the grind. Which is of course, in complete contrast to the tastes of us over here in the West (with exceptions, naturally). The FFXIV devs, being from JP, might very well find this relic grind fun. Heck, for all we know (and I presume nothing) most of the JP playerbase will find this fun as well. And since they seem to listen to the JP playerbase first and foremost, if they're having fun with it, they'll likely see little reason to change it in the future.

On that note, 'repetitive content': Japan's culture has a big thing about tradition. 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it.' In JP, games are praised for sticking to the working 'formula', where here in the West such a thing is criticized as dull and boring. Again, I can't claim to speak for the JP playerbase, but while we over here are screaming about content being 'same old, same old', the JP playerbase may very well be perfectly fine with it, and may even get upset if things change too much too quickly. We ask for things to be different. Over in Japan, if something is good, all they ask is for more of the same.

Brutal honesty time: I don't mind the repetitive content. It feels nice, knowing what I can expect, and if I enjoyed it before, that I'll likely enjoy it again. The caveat is though, I'm unusual in that way. I used to be a game tester, which at its worst was the definition of mind-numbing repetitiveness, and I loved the job to absolute pieces (a pity transportation issues forced me to quit or I'd still be doing it).

[Havenchild]

This. There's a reason Asian MMOs are infamous for being grindy. Over there, they like the grind. Which is of course, in complete contrast to the tastes of us over here in the West (with exceptions, naturally). The FFXIV devs, being from JP, might very well find this relic grind fun. Heck, for all we know (and I presume nothing) most of the JP playerbase will find this fun as well. And since they seem to listen to the JP playerbase first and foremost, if they're having fun with it, they'll likely see little reason to change it in the future.

I have played many of a Korean MMOs (F2P) and this reeks of F2P development. I have never spoken to a Korean in those same MMOs that ENJOYED severe grind like this in fact most hate it equally if the player bases were anything to go by.

The sole reason in the F2P enviorment these massive grinds are introduced, is due to both "the limit on game time" they have in most MMOs there (Fatigue system) and by doing these long grinds, they will require subsequent logins and the more you are logged in, the more money you will spend on the cash shop in theory via demand. By the same logic, It is done in a game like this to elongate the content and keep people subscribed for the lull period, which is pretty bad considering the income they get monthly.

[Yukiko]

There's a reason Asian MMOs are infamous for being grindy.

While it is true, that asian players like grinding, it is not true that they like the FFXIV grinding.
The difference in most JRPGs is that you grind for progress while in FFXIV we are stuck on same level and are grinding outdated gear.