Friends of mine, new to the game, becoming discouraged by STORY QUESTS

[Vaer]

I wonder how the story will play out for that. Since 3.0 wont be required for 4.0. How will the story transition from 2.55 to 4.0?

Could just be a new cast of characters that branch off from there and based on certain story progress their interactions with you could be different. I think they already have some of this with different dialogue depending on certain quests your character did or didn't do.

FFXI pretty much did this with some of their expansions. Most of them branch off to another area that isn't technically a continuation of the previous story line but are related in some way.

I mean even if you play like this and ignored 3.0 something tells me you wouldn't have some of the roulettes unlocked anyways and because of how content unlocks work in this game it would eventually come back to bite you in the butt when you can't access something because you didn't do any Heavensward content.

[MomomiMomi]

I wonder how the story will play out for that. Since 3.0 wont be required for 4.0. How will the story transition from 2.55 to 4.0?

I doubt it will. It'll probably be a branching story that starts after 2.0, not 2.55.

[Niwashi]

They really have to. Demanding new players to play through the massive ARR storyline and a whole expansion thereafter just to get into another expansion would be borderline suicidal on the business end of things. People simply won't do it. Unlike most MMOs, FFXIV has such an enormous amount of story content it will push away players not interested if you force them to press through all of it.

It's true that they have to allow people to play the next (4.0) expansion without finishing Heavensward, but it's not because of the amount of gameplay involved. It's because many players getting into an MMO will buy the base game and latest expansion. A few hard-core fans may buy all the expansions in between, but once there are several out, that can't be relied on. It will be commonplace for players to only have ARR and 4.0 unlocked, with no access to Heavensward because they haven't bought it. SE can't exactly get away with telling everyone they're not allowed to play the 4.0 expansion they've bought until they pay extra to also buy the 3.0 expansion.

The only way to get around that would be to decide that once 4.0 is released, 3.0 no longer counts as an expansion and becomes part of the base game, or to decide that purchase of 4.0 automatically includes access to 3.0, and so on with later expansions, so 5.0 would include both 3.0 and 4.0 for free, and so on. SE would be losing out on a lot of money from expansion purchases if they decided to do either of these, so I really can't see that happening.

With their only choices being to give 3.0 away for free, or to not require it, it's not surprising that they're not going to be requiring it.

They have already talked about making the next expansion not tied to HW. But with everything HW gave idk how they will handle the features added.

Well, presumably most of the features tied to 3.0 will remain tied to 3.0. You'll be able to move directly from 2.0 to 4.0, but would be giving up your chance to play an Astrologian or to run Alexander or to gain reputation with the Vanu Vanu, and so on. Players without 3.0 still wouldn't be able to even enter Ishgard, just like we can't now. It's hard to say whether there would or would not be an alternate chance in 4.0 to unlock flying mounts. (My guess is that there will, but it will depend on how necessary flight is in the new 4.0 regions.)

Yeah as bass says they had already mentioned it in a live letter or maybe it was in a Q&A (can't really recall where i had read about it)...about having new players "skip" the HW expansion, i understand why they need to do this but at the same time it seems a little sad new players won't get to experience the great story lines we have already experienced.

They have to make it possible to skip the first expansion (or any individual expansion), but that doesn't mean it will disappear entirely. Players who purchase it would still be able to play through the whole expansion and its full storyline (though they might do so either before or after they've played other expansions).

They will have it setup so that if you go through the next expansion after HW the dialog is different and the scenes different. As well as change HW so that if you go through the other storyline first the dialog and scenes will be slightly different.

That might be possible, but would become increasingly complicated once several expansions are out and at any point in the Heavensward storyline, a player might be at any point in the 4.0 or 5.0 or 6.0 expansions. I expect they'd more likely handle it like comparing the class quests to the MSQ. Story-wise, the level 50 Culinarian quest occurs at 2.0, but players who did it after 2.55 had an issue with the Sultana's involvement in that quest. I think it's likely that the storyline of 3.0 will conceptually occur prior to the storyline of 4.0 regardless of which order a given player does them in.

(Another MMO I played a lot prior to this one works this way. Like FFXIV, LOTRO is also a heavily story-centric MMO, but its main story is divided into many chapters. Most chapters can be individually started or skipped, but if you play a later chapter and then go back and play an earlier chapter, you get the story out of order.)

[MugenMugetsu]

In my personal opinion, I feel that any new players should have to do all of the same questing that each of us have done to get through the MSQs. It seems overwhelming, considering the number of quests, but really it doesn't take that long. I feel that if someone was interested in speeding through it they could finish it within 2 weeks if they focused on MSQ progression. Just my opinion. I halfass derp'd my way through the MSQ and never really felt like it was taking up too much of my time, and I didn't dedicate that much time to it, but I was easily able to clear all MSQs available.

I feel like if you're joining a world, with a story that is to be presented to you, and you are the protagonist, the "Warrior of Light" the defender of the people, at least put forth the effort to play the role. Sure other content is fun, but what are you in a hurry to get to exactly? Running the same 2 dungeons and whatever raids are available for "Allagan Tomes of Whatever" over and over and over and over and over again each week to get rewarded with some gear that you'll be replacing when the next "Allagan Tomes of Whichever" become available making all your hardwork and your gear somewhat obsolete anyway.

At least new players have the ability to bump their ilvls up a lot faster and are more easily able to catch up in that regards. If any MSQs were cut, I would agree that mundane fetch quests could go, but for the vast majority of the MSQs I feel that they should remain and new players should have to make their way through them. It.....really....does....not.....take....that....long. Aside from queue times. I fear queue times for Crystal Tower runs could definitely cause a delay with MSQ progression for newer players, but then again, it seems that there is an unofficial Sunday night CT raid night so there's at least that. Or a new player could grab friends, fc members, ls members, PF peeps, just as many people as possible and make their own groups to run the tower raids.

TL;DR New players should have to quest their way through the MSQs, both ARR and HW, imo. No shortcuts (unless SE removes mundane fetch quests). Sorry, but it doesn't really require that much time and effort and it's probably the most efficient way to level and acquire gear and gil easily when first starting out.

[CrimsonThunder]

ITT: This game is too FF, make it more WoW plz.

Lol.

[Nestama]

TL;DR New players should have to quest their way through the MSQs, both ARR and HW, imo. No shortcuts (unless SE removes mundane fetch quests). Sorry, but it doesn't really require that much time and effort and it's probably the most efficient way to level and acquire gear and gil easily when first starting out.

It sort of does if you can only play for two hours (example) a day.

[AngeloFlick]

ITT: This game is too FF, make it more WoW plz.

Lol.

Can't please everyone, such is life. As far as I am concerned the best thing about this MMO is how heavily story centric it is. If came expecting something else then I think that is a problem you made for yourself like if I bought CoD and then complained that is too centered around shooting. Maybe you could try WoW instead, they let you buy with RL money your way to level cap officially without having to put up with much of a story. I am sure SE could trim some of the story quests in terms of when asks for fetching 20 x items they could reduce to 5 x items but in terms of story quest quantity...that should remain how it is.

Why do all MMOs have to be the same? This is something ill never understand ever and will never accept it. I play FF because its an FF game I don't go in thinking oh I'm going to play this like WoW or Rift or Tera. Then sit here and complain because the features aren't the same. Play those games for what they offer just like play FF for what it offers.

All of this. Seriously, how many MMOs on the market are story driven the way FFXIV is? This is my biggest pet peeve about the current MMO player base, everyone wants all the games to be alike. If I wanted a game that played like that I would be playing.... WoW. Or Tera. Or Rift. Or whatever.

How about this novel concept-
FFXIV does not and should not cater to the entire MMO market because no other game does what FFXIV does.
I've been playing MMOs since 2001 and burned out on EQ, EQ2, Guildwars, WoW and etc 5 years ago. If FFXIV was like all the others I wouldn't be playing it, or WoW (or any other of the dozens of shitty WoW clones) or any other MMO. I'd be off playing single player or co-op games with my spouse.

If someone doesn't like FFXIV because of the MSQ that's not a slur on them or on the game. It just means this isn't the MMO for them and that's ok. Different games for different people. But don't come in here and demand that this game change one of the core mechanics that makes it unique just because it's outside your comfort zone.

[FoxyAreku]

I don't see it as "anti-pick up and play" so much as "anti-pick up and it's already over". Endgame is just what the name says, it's where you're stuck after the game has ended. You've run out of content and have to settle for just biding your time by repeating the same few things over and over until more content comes out. It's the gaming version of busy-work, and only exists because it takes longer to develop new content than it does to play it. That this game has a comparatively longer section of actual gameplay before getting stuck there is one of its biggest advantages over WoW.

Your argument would work if this wasn't an MMO, but it is an MMO, and most people who are fans of the genre as a whole play MMOs for endgame group content, not for leveling or single player storyline.

quest task =/= story.
The story you find in the texts while speaking with NPCs. Don't mix it up with what you have to collect for the quest.

Also for reference, I like the story and questing too, but only when it's actual story or an actually interesting quest. Even I can see that 90% of the story in this game is pure filler. There is no other word for it, have you seen my signature?

Don't really care about your other points to argue further as it would lead nowhere and ultimately because thats your opinion on the matter so I respect that, but this^ right there is kind of defeating one of the major selling points of this game.

And my point still stands, if people are playing this game to only raid and nothing else then they are missing and skipping on a lot of everything else, there are much better suited mmo's out there for the people who love to raid and only raid.

You probably shouldn't even participate in a discussion if you are just going to ignore points brought up.

It's not opinion to say 90% of the story is filler, because if you think it isn't...then maybe you just don't know what 'filler' is.

Also: All my friends play this game, not some other MMO, and I'm not going to make them all go to some other MMO just to raid when we can accomplish it just fine in this game, that's why. Honestly, suggesting people 'go play something else if you want to raid' is a terrible way to look at it, and is never something you should suggest if you want a game like this to thrive. So your point is moot.

[Snugglebutt]

Your argument would work if this wasn't an MMO, but it is an MMO, and most people who are fans of the genre as a whole play MMOs for endgame group content, not for leveling or single player storyline.

Noticed in last few of your posts you keep saying things like 'most people'...learn to speak for yourself instead of adding fictional/imaginary weight to your argument. You do not know what most people want so just stick to what you do know and that is what you want or what you have been specifically told by 'some people' aka friends or family that might also play instead of 'most people' whom you do not know. If you are going to keep using the term 'most people' then back it up with actual factual proof/evidence or stop pretending you know what most people want.

[NaesakiAshwell]

-snip-

I've watched through too many long running animes to know exactly what filler is, and what takes place in FF XIV, side quests are what I'd called filler, sure they build up more of the world's lore if you're interested and pay attention to the npcs you interact with. I'll admit there are some main story quests that could be cut down, like the amount of times you have to run and see Minfilia when you could easily have it all relayed through a linkpearl scene or run back to the other location in Mor Dhona.

And it is your opinion because in your opinion you think 90% of the story is filler. Everything that take places is building up the characters we see and meet, if everything was cut down to what you consider to be the 10% there'd be barely any story and thus the content that SE is known for wouldn't be there.

Also my point isn't moot because your friends are in this game for raiding, when raiding is not even the main focus of this game and less than 10% of the games population even do savage and ex in the first place. This game is thriving perfectly well right now, and suddenly making the focus more raid intensive isn't just going to dramatically shift the numbers.

SE love weaving and telling their story and the majority of the playerbase love it. So I highly doubt they will ever change their MMO model.

If anything there needs to be more midcore content. The endgame is perfectly fine its just there are far too many people who rush to reach that endgame then complain they've done it all within a few months and complain at the lack of content, but oh wait they skip the other 90% of the game.