Famitsu Interview - YoshiP 3 Year Anniversary Interview

[StrejdaTom]

Yoshida stated they're going back to the basics. Simple doesn't mean boring. If you played ARR for 2 years and found the classes fun, I'm SURE you will like 4.0 jobs.

That's the problem. Some of the 50 level classes weren't fun. BLM, MNK plain boring.

I actually welcome an easier alex, it is about time that we had midcore content within the game the gap between casual and hardcore is huge. Now once they have sorted midcore endgame then it would make sense to start on hardcore content. As it stands for people atm it's either too easy, too hard or grind like a biatch.

I would rather progressive content where each fight is more difficult than the last. At present you go from baby bosses to oh wtf was that. Which is why they should of kept the normal hard and extreme for primals with each mode providing the gear needed to challenge the next tier.

The only problem here is that by making savage midcore the game will have no hardcore content.
I consider it quite a problem because the only thing that kept me subscribed since 2.1 were raids.

[Masekase_Hurricane]

That's the problem. Some of the 50 level classes weren't fun. BLM, MNK plain boring.



The only problem here is that by making savage midcore the game will have no hardcore content.
I consider it quite a problem because the only thing that kept me subscribed since 2.1 were raids.

I never said stop hardcore content I said there should be three tiers, fine push alex to midcore but bring in a new version for extreme. The gaps between the difficulty levels need putting closer together and the rewards needs increasing for the Hardcore to push people into it.

[MPNZ]

That's the problem. Some of the 50 level classes weren't fun. BLM, MNK plain boring.

All of the jobs have become skill-bloated and heavy, high-concentration rotation and buff management based at levels that are really opposed to dealing with the mechanics and dodging. I am so sick of just burning through bosses and dungeons, and the way that I'm forced to play is totally burning me out and counter to anything support related. I don't even have time to use wp without losing alot of dps and stopping my rotation, so it has a total negative impact on performance. It was all rotation, all the time after EA. And, I feel completely burnt out after 1.5 dungeons now. Seriously, how is this anywhere close to being fun. I totally don't get it.

[Nekodar]

The only problem here is that by making savage midcore the game will have no hardcore content.
I consider it quite a problem because the only thing that kept me subscribed since 2.1 were raids.

But you didn't have anything in 2.x that was hardcore, when compared to Gordias and Midas.

People loved coil and coil difficulty. And they hate Gordias and Midas difficulty. How can it possibly be a bad thing if next Alex is going down to coil difficulty again?

[Velhart]

But you didn't have anything in 2.x that was hardcore, when compared to Gordias and Midas.

People loved coil and coil difficulty. And they hate Gordias and Midas difficulty. How can it possibly be a bad thing if next Alex is going down to coil difficulty again?

Second Coil of Bahamut(Savage)

I would argue also that 2.0 did a better job working you into raids. 3.0 is you take on a ridiculously easy story mode, then take on a brutally challenging raid. No in between besides maybe one EX primal. 2.0 and 3.0's style is different. Its not so much about the difficulty, it is about how well you are worked into that difficulty. 2.0 made you take on Ifrit, Garuda, and Titan before going into Coil on their hard mode. First Coil worked you into Second Coil naturally and so on.

[Welsper59]

2.0 made you take on Ifrit, Garuda, and Titan before going into Coil on their hard mode.

Mmm I really wouldn't go that far to make it sound like the Primals were that huge of value. I mean it did make you have to do them, and they were good experiences for entry level play, but you really didn't need to master those fights to clear them... nor did you have to really farm them. People were going in with simple Philosophy gear and the easy to obtain Relic weapon (with some Myth gear as time went on) to clear turn 1. Likewise with turns 2-4. 5 was the only significant jump in difficulty and gear req between the turns.

I equate the stepping stones of the Primals to Void Ark and Nidhogg norm these days. Chances are that if you're seeing someone want to try Savage or even in the normal Alex raids, they've done at least one of those other HW raids. Not a whole lot has changed, given the fact that those intro mechanics are scattered all around now. It's not like we're not exposed to things, unlike during 2.0.

To be honest, I think the problem lies in how powerful our characters are now, rather than the mechanics themselves. This is a similar problem to what WoW experienced years ago (and still sorta does) with stat bloat and huge output potential. Actual resource management is practically non-existent and hasn't been for a very long time here.

[Nalien]

Actual resource management is practically non-existent and hasn't been for a very long time here.

I'd say Dark Knight is the only Job that manages it... MP/TP are fairly flawed resources anyway, given more or less all your actions are tied to them, so running out is pretty much the worst possible situation... That's why Dark Knight works though, it can run out of MP but still do its TP combo... Doesn't quite work the other way, since Unmend spam is fairly boring, thankfully running low on TP is fairly rare... Paladin is another Job that technically uses both resources, but it's no where near as polished as Dark Knight... Paladins MP recovery is iffy, and the way it uses MP doesn't strike me as central to the Job...

Aetherflow is the only other resource I can think of that comes close to working as such, and even that feels more like managing cooldowns than a resource... The recovery of stacks is just too static, while Dark Knight getting MP for Dark Arts is fairly dynamic, not to mention Dark Knight just out right has more toys to play with in that regard (7, compared to 4 or 5), plus none of those toys are really locked to the resource being managed... You cannot Bane without Aetherflow, but Dark Knight can use all its toys without Dark Arts...

Hope they don't make Dark Knight ridiculously basic to play... I mean, it already is hilariously simple in AoE situations... Still, it's perhaps my favorite Job at the moment, hope they don't ruin it... Only thing I'd quite like is something like Monks Meditation mechanic combined with Black Mages Convert... That'd technically make MP management on the Job a whole lot simpler, but since you're throwing HP away for MP, it's something you'd use between fights... Even adds some complexity IMO, since I might be incline to push it and use it in combat on some occasions...

[Velhart]

snip

You and I played a different 2.0 then. Tons of people had a major roadblock with these three primals, especially Titan. The game just got released, most players were still adjusting to the game. Not much was expected from you until Praetorium. Even then, Ifrit hard was definitely a fight where you had to start taking things seriously. Sure with our experience today their mechanics are a walk in the park, but when people were just starting, it was quite an ordeal. It did feel very rewarding downing Titan and finally getting to see Coils for the first time. Experiences feel better when they were earned, not simply just handed to me.

Then play your classes in the way you deem simple. But don't force everyone else to play simply too.

There is a difference between simplifying and dumbing down. Increasing timers and such to not feel like you are micro managing so much especially in a raid fight can help not cause so much frustration. Them making abilities more convenient to use isn't dumbing anything down. Doing things like increasing buff timers, changing how some abilities work does not dumb down the combat. It also allows developers to make harder content. Again, they are not dumbing down things. You are not going to see Enochian on BLM go away. They may make methods to manage it easier, but it isn't going away. BRD's and MCH's casting stances won't go away, they may make more abilities that proc to make the stance feel more natural. Well, it does feel natural on MCH, I am pointing more towards BRD.

I agree with Mantrus, you're not forced to play w/ the update abilities. The level 50 rotations still exist and you can use them if you so please. That was the point of the 1st quote I linked from YoshiP. Players can play the game as they please, so if the level 50 rotation suit you better then use them, but you shouldn't expect to preform at the same level as someone fully utilizing the new abilities. This shouldn't be forced on everyone.

Sure, your 12.99 a month, you play how you want. Just don't expect others to put up with it. Not learning your new abilities is only a detriment to yourself and the people you play with.

[Welsper59]

You and I played a different 2.0 then. Tons of people had a major roadblock with these three primals, especially Titan. The game just got released, most players were still adjusting to the game. Not much was expected from you until Praetorium. Even then, Ifrit hard was definitely a fight where you had to start taking things seriously. Sure with our experience today their mechanics are a walk in the park, but when people were just starting, it was quite an ordeal. It did feel very rewarding downing Titan and finally getting to see Coils for the first time. Experiences feel better when they were earned, not simply just handed to me.

Yes, but you and I weren't referring to the rewarding experience, we were referencing the methodology and exposure to learning. Unless I misinterpreted it, you said it yourself here...

Its not so much about the difficulty, it is about how well you are worked into that difficulty.

For the most part, we already learned what we needed to, so the same types of mechanics are thrown into easier situations like dungeons. Even for new players, they're being shown at least some similar mechanics as they level or progress their character, alongside completely new ones. The main difference being the watered down version it is, although part of that is due to what I mentioned. The fact we can ignore a lot of them is a testament to it. That being that our characters are over powered compared to how they were during 2.0. Managing MP, for example, was more of a factor progressing than it is now. I mean, its never been a situation where you OOM for casting wasting a couple heals or anything, but it's hard for someone to argue that we have the same or greater degree of difficulty with MP now than we did then. Again, just as an example.

I know it's by design that we are be able to faceroll those types of learning experiences now, but it doesn't change the fact that they ARE still something everyone experiences as they level or gear up. It just comes down to 1) our own outlook of accepting how powerful/OP our characters have become (as in little to no worries about anything like resources outside of messing up scripted content or rotation) and 2) the devs design philosophy behind why we're that OP. Learning the mechanics about something is one factor about difficulty, but it will become stale because once we learn it, we know it. You'll almost never have that same degree of difficulty again with the same mechanic thrown at you and there's only so much that can be done before that well of completely unique ideas runs dry.

[Velhart]

snip

Right now the only thing between story mode and Savage is the EX primal of the month. Do you think that is all that is needed to be raid ready?