Quote Originally Posted by RLofOBFL View Post
Wouldn't adding this horizontal stuff pretty much require changes from the ground up on the entire stat system?
Generally no - we do have "horizontal progression" already after all. Gathering gear for your Paladin when you normally play Ninja is not fundamentally different from gathering a set to improve a specific ability or gear for a specific resistance on your Ninja. The only difference is that your gameplay actually changes in the prior case, whereas it remains nearly or the exact same in the latter.

The pacing of patches however is tuned to accommodate people who only play one job. Ever noticed that pattern? It takes roughly 3 months to gear out one job in full tomestone equip and roughly every 3 months new upgrade options become available (via tomestones or weekly locked upgrade items). And why is that? Because not everyone participates in the "horizontal progression" we have, as it is considered optional (You do not need to enhance your alt-job gear/levels to participate in content). Plus, some people have a preference for keeping their gameplay the same, aka stale.

And when you add relevant "horizontal progression" on the single-job level to the point that single job players don't get bored, you kill off multi-jobs entirely. And all the while, you also need to keep in mind that you cannot make gear so tedious to obtain that casuals cannot make noteworthy progress in the little time they have or you'll lose that demographic.

I can't say I envy the devs here :3