So I'm not seeing how this is them changing things up from 2.0/3.0

[SecretCrowds]

Here we go again. We had the numerous threads similar to this one during the wait for HW too. I expect it is going to be a repeated cycle and this argument will resurface each time before an expansion and last till 2 months after the expansion releases.

People were complaining how SE was sticking to the same formula and that they were disappointed because "expansions are supposed to change the game fundamentally" before HW too. I can never fathom where this idea came from. Why do some people expect expansions to change how an MMO is fundamentally? If they wanted the basics of the game to be changed, why are they even playing in the first place.

Don't get me wrong. FF14 is definitely not perfect. However, we can't deny that SE has made changes to improve (whether they worked or not) and is still trying to do so. Heck, why are people even complaining in this thread that SE is giving a gear of your class at the end of a dungeon. Isn't that part of trying to improve and change the flaws of the game, where people ran dungeons several times and the "rng" that people always complain about is causing them not to get any gear drops?

Just because that changes you personally want is not being implemented by SE doesn't mean that the game hasn't been changing.

[azura84]

Here we go again...

It's a continuing discussion because it's a continuing issue. SE in the past did plenty to change the design and flow with each new expansion, I still remember Chains of Promethia, driving players to seek gear that had previously gone to waste so they could play in some of the new areas with level caps. The biggest stagnation of XIV is the lack of creativity. They already have multiple stats in the game they don't bother using (elemental resistances, slashing/piercing/blunt), whole 3d worlds that become wastelands within a weeks and repeated and recycled content. Deep dungeon is basically a watered down Nyzul, Daidem is a failed Dynamis and Alex is just a re-skinned Coil, all with rewards that become outdated the next morning. About the only lasting aspect that continues is building is relics. You can call us old timers if you like but "settling" for what we have isn't something that should be encouraged in game development.

[Airget]

With this, gotta wait to see the Battle System changes to decide if they are being stagnant or not. And honestly any content can be considered "watered down" because the one thing you neglect with said examples are the fact that all those pieces of content were time based. Dynamis I believe is 1/day now, but it use to be an awkward time like 3 days and some hours or something to the extent where you could only do it twice a week.

If Diadem had the same restrictions as Dynamis, then said weapons would be even rarer as each group could only go twice a week at most, and yet with the current setup one can go twice in an hour.

It's a different game ideology which I prefer since XIV reduces the amount of time based restriction to content in favor of being able to do it to your heart's content. However the ability to do it to your hearts content does cause people to be ungrateful because they don't realize how freeing it is to have the freedom to not be restricted to access to certain content on a day to day basis.