I wish everything was harder and there was capped level content.

[DPZ2]

To Eyervan:

Welcome to the 2010's and the new standard for MMOs. It's been trending that way since the early 20-oughts.

For some reason, game developers found they received more sales/subscriptions using the new standard than they did the old. I'm not sure you could even find a brand-new MMO that would give you that same sense of accomplishment, although I hear that the failed Wildstar (prior to going F2P) might have had the grindy-sense-of-accomplishment features you remember.

I would certainly abandon FFXI pretty quickly (as I did with Wildstar) if it were my brand new subscription MMO of the month in 2016. I don't have time for that sort of thing anymore.

[Eyervan]

To Eyervan:

I would certainly abandon FFXI pretty quickly (as I did with Wildstar) if it were my brand new subscription MMO of the month in 2016. I don't have time for that sort of thing anymore.

Yeah. I guess it makes sense. However, I do wish they'd cater to diehards rather than people who play for a few months then quit cause they lose interest. Die-hards will spend hundred of dollars/thousands of hours playing your game for years, and casuals will play your game until some new hype game comes out and jump ship. If they really cared about money they'd make more micro-transaction content via mogstation items. Monthy fee's might make you 13-15 bucks per person, but new cosmetics will make you much more and the beauty is, they are optional. I know I've spent like 700+ dollars on Dota2 cosmetics in under a year... <.<

[m3eansean]

Yeah. I guess it makes sense. However, I do wish they'd cater to diehards rather than people who play for a few months then quit cause they lose interest. Die-hards will spend hundred of dollars/thousands of hours playing your game for years, and casuals will play your game until some new hype game comes out and jump ship. If they really cared about money they'd make more micro-transaction content via mogstation items. Monthy fee's might make you 13-15 bucks per person, but new cosmetics will make you much more and the beauty is, they are optional. I know I've spent like 700+ dollars on Dota2 cosmetics in under a year... <.<

Money talks -- it is infinitely more profitable to make an accessible, easily consumable game. Your diehard hundreds of dollars and thousands of hours are a drop in the bucket compared to what you can make by opening the game up to all types of players. The "glory days" of hard MMO's from 15 years ago are gone, and will not return because money trumps all.

Also having a ton of micro-transactions in your game to access full content is widely despised by many players and has been part of the reason this game has been a success on the sub model, by not providing special perks to those who want to pay for them.