Why is Yoshi P turning his back on the playerbase that loves this game the most?

[Astral145]

Are you sure you're still playing for the real qualities of the game and not by habit ?
I still payed my FFXI account for months before I realized that each time I logged off I just didn't have interest in anything...

Problem is, you can't prove that taking another path would not result in more susbcription loss.

If you don't like it, just suspend your account. Not as a "Duh, go away and stop bothering us with your whining !" but as a "That's the way you'll express your opinion about the game in a meaningful way".

No, it's not. The playerbase is too wide and too heterogenous for that. For anything someone want, you can find someone else that want the opposite.

money talks and unfortunately dropping sub is a double edge sword.... yes it will let SE know the players are unhappy but on the flip side would SE invest more $$$$ into the game if the bottom line reaches below tolerable levels?

The best option for the dev team is to sit down and lay all the complants/praises on the table and put it into 2 equations... what to keep and what must go....Once you have that the devs can then draw up a plan. This can be done and I hope they are working on this now if not then I wont be buying 4.0. I will be waiting weeks after 4.0 launches to see all the reviews of the game. If i see awesome changes then yes I will buy 4.0. If I dont see any changes or few changes I will then weigh my options and will see if 4.0 is worth buying.

[JunseiKei]

money talks and unfortunately dropping sub is a double edge sword.... yes it will let SE know the players are unhappy but on the flip side would SE invest more $$$$ into the game if the bottom line reaches below tolerable levels?

The best option for the dev team is to sit down and lay all the complants/praises on the table and put it into 2 equations... what to keep and what must go....Once you have that the devs can then draw up a plan. This can be done and I hope they are working on this now if not then I wont be buying 4.0. I will be waiting weeks after 4.0 launches to see all the reviews of the game. If i see awesome changes then yes I will buy 4.0. If I dont see any changes or few changes I will then weigh my options and will see if 4.0 is worth buying.

What decides what must stay and what must go? Surely, they have already deciding this and you're clearly unhappy with it.

[Mithrahn]

No. It is impossible.

Yes, it is impossible.

So they should stop trying to please everyone.
Stop beating around the bush.
Tell/show us outright which playerbase they want to please so the other playerbase may unsub for all eternity.
Stop stringing us along with halfassed ideas and/or plans.

[Reynhart]

The best option for the dev team is to sit down and lay all the complants/praises on the table and put it into 2 equations

They can't. The vast majority of the playerbase is silent, they won't criticze nor praise you, they'll just play the game.

The population won't drop in a flash, anyway because players play at a different pace. Some rush the content and get bored after 2 or 3 days. Some, after a week, etc...
So, if the majority wants the change, SE will see a slow and steady decrease in active accounts, giving them time to "fix" the game.

For me, I will absolutely buy 4.0, because it will deliver quality content even if for the MSQ alone. Then, I'd probably suspend my account for the next two months (or more) while waiting for 4.1. Rinse and repeat for each major patch. Losing 2/3rd of my fees will not crash the game, of course, but if enough people do that, it will send a clear message while still providing enough initial income to keep the game alive.

Its possible but is highly unlikely to please everyone...

Express a few changes you'll make, I'm pretty sure someone in this very thread will want the opposite for at least one of them. There, you're not pleasing everyone.

Tell/show us outright which playerbase they want to please so the other playerbase may unsub for all eternity.

With the recent interview, Yoshi-P kinda did that. That's why I feel those recent pessimist threads are much more serious than before. We know that the game will keep on with the same formula, and some of us don't like that.

[Astral145]

What decides what must stay and what must go? Surely, they have already deciding this and you're clearly unhappy with it.

Its pretty simple to see what must go and what must stay. The devs can clearly see what the players are doing... For example the devs can see how far each player has gone with the new relic. The devs can tell how often players run each piece of content and when they stop. The devs can also read complaints/praises on all the forums (JPN/NA/EU) and Reddit. They can see when a person subs and how long they stay subbed in-between major patches. I can keep listing more ways to tell if the player base is currently happy with current game.

The point is a lot of players are tired of grinding out tomes for multiple jobs if lucky then once finally reaching a happy point on gear progression for those jobs they have to start all over again. There are too many gates in this game.

Another huge let down are Relic weapons. 2.0 Relic weapon from i70 to i90 was awesome.... but once they added fates then more fates/hunts it killed it for me and for a lot of players I know... I almost picked it back up after getting the relic to i100 but the crafting/materia part which led to a huge gil sinks totally turned me off from wanting an overpriced glamour item. 3.0 is using the same format but slightly different... is it better than 2.0 sorta but it still turns me off...... I love a good grind as long as its stimulating and pushes me to want to be a better player. Content like legendary weapons is meant to motivate new or veteran players to run content that will ultimately make them a better player such as team work and learning difficult mechanics. In return for doing well you get a legendary weapon which carry with you into more incredible content.

In all honesty FFXIV's dev team slaps nurf band-aids on content all because players cant be bothered to get better. So in return we get content that is way to easy and we also get over powered gear that makes everything melt way to fast. I know FFXIV's dev team is talented and can really push awesome crazy content but nobody wants that... nope players just want to get tomes just for signing in daily.... hince why i hate this particular token system... Dont get me wrong I like a well thought out token system that rewards you with tokens for doing something that improves you as a player... meaning learning new mechanics... learning how to optimize load outs and strategies for each piece of content.... Things like that are missing from this game....

[JunseiKei]

Yes, it is impossible.

So they should stop trying to please everyone.
Stop beating around the bush.
Tell/show us outright which playerbase they want to please so the other playerbase may unsub for all eternity.
Stop stringing us along with halfassed ideas and/or plans.

They are playing around with things to see what will work with the player base. This has all been very vocalized in the Live Letters. If you didn't know that, it's worth staying up to watch them, or catching up on what was discussed from reliable translations. This patch brought about a few changes that came from listening to the player base. All of Alexander has come about from listening to players. It appears they are trying for a happy medium, but the issue therein lies just what that happy medium is.

[Reynhart]

The devs can clearly see what the players are doing... For example the devs can see how far each player has gone with the new relic. The devs can tell how often players run each piece of content and when they stop.

Think about that for a second. The devs can do that...they probably already do...so, if they keep going that way, it's because it currently works.
And why does it work ? Because even those who don't like this system are still doing it. You're bored of farming tomestones yet you're probably still farming them, because it might be useful later...You probably still do some daily roulettes, even if only the trial because it's short...

The devs can also read complaints/praises on all the forums (JPN/NA/EU) and Reddit.

Totally irrelevant sample for the whole community.

They can see when a person subs and how long they stay subbed in-between major patches. I can keep listing more ways to tell if the player base is currently happy with current game. The point is a lot of players are tired of grinding out tomes for multiple jobs if lucky then once finally reaching a happy point on gear progression for those jobs they have to start all over again.

The thing is, I doubt enough people actually unsub between patches. They probably play less because of boredom, but they still play once in a while (2 hours a week instead of 2 hours a day), so their sub is still running every month. And the dev totally don't care how many hours you play in a month.

You can't post on the official forum without an active account, so, any person who comes here to complain about the game is still funding it.

[JunseiKei]

Its pretty simple to see what must go and what must stay. The devs can clearly see what the players are doing... For example the devs can see how far each player has gone with the new relic. The devs can tell how often players run each piece of content and when they stop. The devs can also read complaints/praises on all the forums (JPN/NA/EU) and Reddit. They can see when a person subs and how long they stay subbed in-between major patches. I can keep listing more ways to tell if the player base is currently happy with current game.

My husband works 60 hours a week, raids for 9-12 hours a week, caps every week, and that's all the time he has to play the game. Considering he hates MMOs, but plays FFXIV and enjoys it, based on your standards, the devs should look at him and say "oh, we need to change the game." No, it's not so easy to see what "must go and what must stay." Yoshi has already said he is fine with 'fair weather players.'

I love a good grind as long as its stimulating and pushes me to want to be a better player. Content like legendary weapons is meant to motivate new or veteran players to run content that will ultimately make them a better player such as team work and learning difficult mechanics. In return for doing well you get a legendary weapon which carry with you into more incredible content.

This sounds like raids, to me.

In all honesty FFXIV's dev team slaps nurf band-aids on content all because players cant be bothered to get better. So in return we get content that is way to easy and we also get over powered gear that makes everything melt way to fast. I know FFXIV's dev team is talented and can really push awesome crazy content but nobody wants that... nope players just want to get tomes just for signing in daily.... hince why i hate this particular token system... Dont get me wrong I like a well thought out token system that rewards you with tokens for doing something that improves you as a player... meaning learning new mechanics... learning how to optimize load outs and strategies for each piece of content.... Things like that are missing from this game....

This has less to be with the devs and more to do with player attitudes. There have been plenty of times others have tried to help other players improve, only to receive toxic and hostile responses back. This as silly as I pay my sub, so I'll play how I want and you can't tell me what to do. Even vote kicking someone politely offering advice. However, those aside, SE actually watches how many players actually clear content. Jeeze, only 7.8% of the world's population had cleared T13 roughly a year ago? Still, what you're speaking off sounds heavily like raids. Even if you know a general strategy, that doesn't mean it's optimal for your raid group. It makes me wonder, then, if you simply haven't been exposed to the elements you appear to be wanting.

[Vaeria]

I pre-ordered 1.0 on PS3 from Gamestop a LONG time ago, only for it to never be released. I've been here since the beta phase 1 on PS3, and since then, I've only took a two month break due to how poor I played the game, then another 4 weeks due to being out of town for work. During those times, however, I was still subbed (822 days last I checked).

I don't think I can truly ever let this game go, especially considering:

1) I played FFXI from 2005 up until I retired when SE took the game down from consoles.
2) With my current gaming life, I only want to play MMOs. With my loyalty to FFXI, and only wanting to play MMOs, FFXIV is all I need.

Unless I'm going out of town, or there's maintenance, or a power outage in my area, there's never really a day that I DON'T log in.

Much as I complain..I actually fall into your #1, 2 and 3 statement category too. Save for jumping back to some soul calibur every now and then on ps 3 for reasons I wont bother mentioning, FFXiVs all Ive really been interested in playing, with FF11 before that, w/o missing a day pretty much.

I'll be honest..I love FFxiv. I look forward to getting off work , grabbing some dinner, and jumping back in til all godawful hours of the night/ day. Hell...its 2 hours til the fix patch is done and where am I? Watching porn? No..on an ffxiv board. So ya, in spite of all my grumbling, I really like the game. And yes, I'll admit in a heartbeat that Yoshi and team have put some SERIOUS effort (even if money is the #1 motivating factor) into making FFxiv an enjoyable experience. That being said...

I can only compare it to this. You work one unusually hot and long summer, each day...and finally get the money needed for a new bike. Upon getting said bike, you ride it to death...really enjoy it. Through crashes and spills, it holds up better than well, and you have no doubts or regrets that youve gotten your moneys worth. 10 summers later..its time for a new bike. But not even a week after you set yourself to start working for it, mentally prepared to go the distance and all...your uncle gives you a brand new one, free of charge. After a month or so..it breaks. No worries...for soon..he gives you yet another one. This cycle continues for some time, with the generous uncle always being willing to keep you supplied with bikes.

I understand the OPs viewpoints as well as many of the counter arguements. In short, time changes things, for better and worse..and many people feel like 14 is progress, considering the number of players and such. Its just that, if you came from 11, you knew what it ment to suffer, knew what it ment to figuratively be 'poor', knew what it ment to suffer, want, and wait. Weathering all those things, if you were still able to reach your goals, the reward was that much more enjoyable. As well (as anybody who knows what the words Maat and Testimony mean) you were allowed to see just what you were capable of enduring.

Why the HELL would I wanna play an mmo where Im forced to suffer?

I know, I know....and by providing casual friendly, easily accessible content, yoshi's doing his best to shield people from this. But when you become aware of what your limitations are, ESPECIALY when in regards to something that you genuinely enjoy doing (MMOs) then to some extent..you WANT to be tested, you WANT to stretch your muscles, you WANT to take that punch right to the chin, grin, shrug it off and say "that the best you got?" By releasing content that makes you sweat, cuss, and throw your controller at my cat Spanky in frustration, and then you win, its just more satisfying. Nyzule Isle...lamps. Palace of the Dead...no lamps. Which did you look heavenward and give thanks after completing floors? Aleport..you step outside to do some leveling....get gobbie aggro. You run some distance and look behind...and hes still following you. You hit sprint and make a dash for it...look behind again...hes still following you...and getting closer. Youre now almost to the zone...and now hes stabbing you. You make it out the zone with 13% hp..and sweat on your brow cuz you didn't set homepoint.

just asking to make it a little more interesting is all. Not at all saying its bad. Whats there is good. Just put some Jalapeno peppers on it plz.

[Astral145]

Not just raids. It can be other kinds of content. Legendary Weapons are not suppose to be easy to get or be easy to upgrade. Adding crafting, fates and low end content makes it easy and extremely boring to get. Which is why I never completed them.