A Recent Yoshi-P Post that probably needs to be read (Translation)

[Dawiichan]

"Furthermore, we are offering a play experience unlike any other MMORPG by providing content that is only available to enjoy now. "
Hey kids, remember the temporary quests/content WoW had pre-Cataclysm where, for example, Sylvanas got Valkyries and players were able to reclaim Gnomeregan? You can't experience those things anymore in the game. Furthermore, this is not the first time WoW has done that. Also, WoW isn't the only game to do that unfortunately for FFXIV, WoW is the MMO leader right now so yeah, it will be seen as taking from WoW.

Exclusivity is not being unique. Exclusivity is letting you have something that others can/will not. Saying that SE is taking that idea from blizzard is like saying an exclusive DLC to a PS3 game is taking the idea from blizzard.

"Content Finder" = Dungeon Finder. In WoW it is also cross server. However, WoW's servers are not only language specific but type specific (PVP, PVE, and RP). The computer then forms groups based on each pool in addition to langauge specific servers.

I give you this one.

"Language Servers (language servers and global servers)"- Granted WoW doesn't have both the way Yoshida-san wishes to make it here. However, having global servers is fairly pointless because people will simply go with language specific.

Having preferred language servers doesn't make it anything like WoW. First of all they're servers. Second of all WoW has different regions so all the servers are based off one language.

"PvP/Large Scale PvP"- ok PVP... a major component of WoW. I mean one doesn't think of WoW without thinking of PVP (however good/bad it may be. I don't care)
In WoW you have Arena which will be equivalent to the FFXIV Colosseum and then the "Large Scale PvP" sounds a lot like Battle Grounds.

Having PvP does not make it a wow clone. First of all FFXI had similar PvP to what was described. There was something like a PvP arena and they also had large scale(more like faction) PvP. They're adding things that were already there. [/QUOTE]

Also since I've heard you can level via PVP- hey, you can also level WoW via PVP.

No one I know has even heard of this. I've yet to see this once.

But more importantly than taking these things from WoW is the fact that SE basically didn't take anything that made FFXI unique (or FF in general) and make it amazing nor did they use the FF lore to make FFXIV more like an FF game.

Classes, Jobs, Instanced Bosses(BCNM/KSNM). A rich(yet thus far incomplete) story line?

If they had maintained what FF is known for- characters, storyline, world (just to name a few) it wouldn't be such a big problem. However, I've heard nothing and most importantly- have seen nothing that is going to prove otherwise.

Cid is probably the only, if not one of the few universal FF characters in the FF universe. Yet Cid has already appeared in FFXIV. Pretty sure they just said that we are getting an exclusive story line on the Seventh Umbral Era. Then the world... honestly the only major land marks FF has is a chocobo forest and a room with a crystal in it.

Plus it also sucks that we have to pay for this crap as it is now. If he won't be giving us a discount then he should at the very least not charge us until after 1.22 so we can see these oh-so-amazing changes, cause darling, I don't trust SE. They've been biffing rather spectacularly for the past several years with each new game release.

I don't disagree with the discount on subs. I honestly believe they should too but I wouldn't be disappointed if they don't. It's your decision on what you believe the game is like and if paying is worth it but considering that you said certain things don't exist which actually do, my guess is that you haven't played enough to know all of this.

With what points you have given, I do not see how they are all specific to WoW and how SE is striving away from FFXI/FF. I do believe that looking at other MMO's successful ideas is a good thing, but I don't believe that with the information they are giving that it will be a copy of anything but a FF game.

[Anapingofness]

Exclusivity is not being unique.... I don't believe that with the information of anything but a FF game.

Firstly let me begin by saying a word of thanks to you Dawiichan for a rather in depth rebuttal. It must have taken a bit of time to go point by point.

That being said it is clear to me that the point I was trying to get across wasn’t being understood. The fault lies with me and for that I apologize.

Allow me to clarify and possibly rephrase so that I am understood better. I will do my best to be brief however in an effort to be better understood the post may become somewhat lengthy.

It is not so much the point that SE is “taking WoW concepts” as SE is doing it in a rather arse backwards manner.

It is completely irrelevant if WoW/Blizzard had coined any of these terms or if they had simply taken them. In fact, many of us know that WoW has taken from other games before whether that is an idea for mounts or the idea for storyline. It really doesn’t matter.

What matters is that WoW right now is the “best” MMO out there. By best I mean it is the one that is the most popular and as a result brings in the most money. That last part is the really important part in this.

As of right now FFXIV is the worst MMO out there. On a scale of 1 to 100, with 1 being the best and 100 being the worst- FFXIV is at number 100. It goes without saying that WoW would then be Number 1.

This is because when the game launched is was far beyond sub par without even the most basic/standard of functions. However, I will not go into those. I think by now we all know what they are.

Let’s get back on track.

It is because FFXIV is in such a pickle that it will be seen as taking from WoW. SE appears to be fairly desperate and not only that but it follows simple logic. If WoW is Number 1 then you will take the things that make it Number 1 and adapt it to your game.

Unfortunately, in my opinion, SE has strayed too far from what makes an FF title an FF title. Certainly, FFXIV is a beautiful game- that was one thing that even the bad reviews agreed on.

That being said, people wouldn’t have as much of a problem about SE “taking WoW mechanics” if it didn’t feel as if they were going further and further away from the FF feel that we all grew up with.

You pointed out that the description of PVP felt as if it was describing the PVP FFXI had? To that I say, by God I hope you’re right.
Unfortunately when I read those notes all I could interpreted it as “WoW mechanics… really? D= What about all of the FF-ness? Where is it going? Are they completely ignoring the 9 years worth of experience they’ve gotten from FFXI?”

Clearly, I wasn’t the only one. Perhaps the fault isn’t entirely with me.

Perhaps the fault may lie with the vagueness of the statements that can clearly be linked to WoW (for the aforementioned reasons) without the explanation of how it will fit into the FFXIV world? How will these choices effect the community? Such as the Content Finder being cross all servers vs just one.

I think that this is a good question to ask at the next LIVE letter. Can he clarify/explain some of those statements?

Maybe that will help douse some of the anger felt by the fans who feel cheated and more than a little betrayed?

I will say one more thing, Yoshida-san has given us a lot of information. This much is true. However, to me, it is not enough. I look at the PDF's and ask "What exactly is Parlay going to become" or "What does Character System mean?" or "What does Large Scale PVP mean?"

They may seem like silly questions but I don't know if that means that we'll be able to make our characters chubby, short, pick the size of their eyes or bewbs or what? I mean, do we get sliders or will we still be picking from preset models and swatches?

Hopefully we get more choices but then again, we could get less. Giving us a bit more information wouldn't hurt, just enough so that you don't have as many people claiming it is "becoming a WoW clone".
I realize that you can't make everyone happy but right now... we're all this game's got and there's not that many of us. Not enough to keep it afloat and unfortunately because of the situation it's losing a staggering amount of players.

I apologize for the long read, I did try to make it brief. I hope this explained my views better.