I guess it's time

[Velhart]

The problem is that this game population has been declining since 2.0, 3.3 released a month ago, and yet it's doing very little to keep people interested in the game, and the population is still declining.

If we want to compare. FFXI's increased and dropped as much as any other MMO, but always got numbers back for a while after new content/expansions came. No MMO is truly immune to this. People get bored and not play till the next patch/expansion. Can make content as fun or long lasting as you want. This is something that always happens.

Even hypothetically if FFXIV is at 500k subs, that is still really healthy for a game like this. Who honestly expects WoW numbers today? It was a right place at the right time scenario. Where is this "Has to be over a million to be considered not doomed." mentality?

[HeavenlyArmed]

No it's not.

Let's say there was a peak of 1m players in 2.0, then in 2.1 it declined to 750K and increased to 850k with 2.4, and declined again with 2.5 to 740k.

There's gains and losses but the total average amount of players is lower than in 2.0, so that's a decline.


I must be seeing ghosts then, because all the raiders i knew since 2.0 left and friends list keeps getting smaller online numbers, i wonder what that means.

That's not how the concept of time works. To say something has been happening since X point in time is to say that there has been no point in time since X that it was not happening. In your example, the best you could say is that it has been declining since 2.4. And the second part of what you said technically doesn't prove anything. People leaving the game does not mean the game is declining, for that to happen you need to have more people leaving than coming in, which we frankly have no reliable information on to judge with. I don't deny that the game is currently doing a poor job of retaining its core playerbase, but if there has been no word from SE on the game being in a poor state then the actual numbers likely don't fall too far from the usual trends which would mean that the game is in fact not dying.

[Thayos]

I'm sure there has been a slight decline, but the game is still healthy. In no way, shape or form is it dying.

That said, I think a lot of upper-midcore/hardcore players are having a rough time right now because they're realizing this game might not be for them -- and that's gotta be a tough realization for anyone who has spent so much time on it.

This thread is essentially a handful of people who want the game's core progression to be changed from vertical to horizontal, and that ain't happening. Not now, not at the expansion, not ever.

Yeah, my inner hardcore player would be delighted if the game went more horizontal, but I've still got FFXI for that. Meanwhile, I've got FFXIV as my game that I can keep up with without having to play for several hours per day. From very early on, Yoshi-P made it clear that FFXIV was designed for players like me. Why would SE change the formula now, especially when it's working?

[LalafellDown]

I'm sure there has been a slight decline, but the game is still healthy. In no way, shape or form is it dying.

That said, I think a lot of upper-midcore/hardcore players are having a rough time right now because they're realizing this game might not be for them -- and that's gotta be a tough realization for anyone who has spent so much time on it.

This thread is essentially a handful of people who want the game's core progression to be changed from vertical to horizontal, and that ain't happening. Not now, not at the expansion, not ever.

Yeah, my inner hardcore player would be delighted if the game went more horizontal, but I've still got FFXI for that. Meanwhile, I've got FFXIV as my game that I can keep up with without having to play for several hours per day. From very early on, Yoshi-P made it clear that FFXIV was designed for players like me. Why would SE change the formula now, especially when it's working?

you forgot about the people who want fun dungeons, meaningful gear that don't get replaced quickly and something something.

[Thayos]

you forgot about the people who want fun dungeons, meaningful gear that don't get replaced quickly and something something.

That's right! Dungeons that don't have hallways, bosses that aren't tanked and DPSed at the same time, and moar gimmickz.

Basically, FFXIV in space, and we attack enemies by running into them with force fields. And meteors.

[RobbieH]

I'm sure there has been a slight decline, but the game is still healthy. In no way, shape or form is it dying.

I didn't say it was dying i said it was declining since 2.0

You people and your generalizations of everything i'll never understand.

[LalafellDown]

That's right! Dungeons that don't have hallways, bosses that aren't tanked and DPSed at the same time, and moar gimmickz.

Basically, FFXIV in space, and we attack enemies by running into them with force fields. And meteors.

I like your brain storming, but I think we should leave the Ideas to the professionals.

[Thayos]

I didn't say it was dying i said it was declining since 2.0

You people and your generalizations of everything i'll never understand.

What?!?!?

1) I didn't say that you said it was dying.

2) I didn't even quote anything you said.

If anything, I was responding to the poster above me who also commented how the game isn't dying.

Don't assume everything is about you.

[KitingGenbu]

That's right! Dungeons that don't have hallways, bosses that aren't tanked and DPSed at the same time, and moar gimmickz.

Basically, FFXIV in space, and we attack enemies by running into them with force fields. And meteors.

Speaking of Phantasy Star Online 2, what did SE ever get from them? Since they got the Odin thing.

[Brannigan]

Speaking of Phantasy Star Online 2, what did SE ever get from them? Since they got the Odin thing.

SE took standing around in a lobby playing dress up from PSO2. They may have gone a little overboard with it, though.