Blue Mage is a masterpiece of game design.

[Bonbori]

I wouldn't call it a "masterpiece" but I do feel that BLU is "Eureka done right". It makes overworld content and old dungeons relevant in an organic way while introducing the Party Finder to a lot of people who were previously unaware of it (a few people in my FC were surprised to discover it in their menus). All that without cramming masses of people into a time-limited self-contained instance that doesn't allow for multitasking (crafting/gathering or waiting in queue for PvP, roulettes etc.)

People are TALKING to each other in almost every AAR area! That actually feels kinda weird, but in a good way! Ironically, despite being mostly soloable side-content, BLU brought out the MMO part of the game more than anything else I've seen added since I started playing.

I have no doubt that the craze will die down eventually, but unlike Eureka, at least BLU doesn't rely on a hundred+ other people doing the same thing as you. A year from now, it will still be possible to solo-learn most of the spells and find PFs willing to run a BLU through dungeons and trials that have the exclusives.

[whiskeybravo]

I wouldn't call it a "masterpiece" but I do feel that BLU is "Eureka done right". It makes overworld content and old dungeons relevant in an organic way while introducing the Party Finder to a lot of people who were previously unaware of it (a few people in my FC were surprised to discover it in their menus). All that without cramming masses of people into a time-limited self-contained instance that doesn't allow for multitasking (crafting/gathering or waiting in queue for PvP, roulettes etc.)

People are TALKING to each other in almost every AAR area! That actually feels kinda weird, but in a good way! Ironically, despite being mostly soloable side-content, BLU brought out the MMO part of the game more than anything else I've seen added since I started playing.

A shining beacon of irony. People complained about stuff like FATE grinds for relics, so they made Eureka into it's own little instance. Now that the open world is dead, BLU brings back life to the open world, and garners comments like this "Eureka done right". So BLU is basically what relics used to be. Fascinating isn't it?

[Brynne]

I found BLU to be a lot of fun! One thing I didn't see people mention is that it seems to be better to party with a group of other BLU rather than solo, as the 'ability learn' is party-wide. Each person seems to have individual rng for the learning, and in a group as long as one person's rng triggers, everyone gets the ability. I went out with a party of FC friends, and we had a blast together while learning abilities super fast.

I do like the design in that respect. Totally possible to solo, but more effective in a group. It seems reasonably well balanced so far (granted, I'm only level 26 with 24 abilities). I will definitely be creating/joining four member blu parties for the other dungeons I need to run and eight member groups for the primals. And I'm looking forward to seeing what the Masked Carnivale offers when I get there.

[Adventica6]

Once the blu people realize they can't get good gear or run content that matters the charm will quickly wear off, trust me.

[SmokeyTheSequel]

Once the blu people realize they can't get good gear or run content that matters the charm will quickly wear off, trust me.

They could design a whole new type of end game with this kind of content. Reuse older assets in a fresh way is ingenious. Who's up for a new take on coil?!? blue mages and whatever other job they make unite!

[Reynhart]

Once the blu people realize they can't get good gear or run content that matters the charm will quickly wear off, trust me.

Or they simply have more memory than goldfish and are fairly aware of the restrictions...and they already realized that content doesn't matter at all when you're running it for the twentieh time and when it's completely irrelevant few months later.

[InkstainedGwyn]

Once the blu people realize they can't get good gear or run content that matters the charm will quickly wear off, trust me.

Or maybe they have the good gear on their other classes and they're playing BLU for the fun and novelty. Not everything has to be materially beneficial for people to enjoy it.

[ToriiMiyuki]

"materially beneficial"

Do you even know what you mean when you use these words? BLU is a complete joke, honestly - and every single one of you defending this sad excuse for 'content' are part of the problem.

[Clover_Blake]

I'm personally having fun, and I love seeing other players in the map. Blue is like fresh air.
If I want to do other content, I have tons of other classes. Meanwhile, I can enjoy Blue for what it is: its own kind of game.

[JohnSpawnVFX]

"materially beneficial"

Do you even know what you mean when you use these words? BLU is a complete joke, honestly - and every single one of you defending this sad excuse for 'content' are part of the problem.

That people mainly play for fun instead of chasing a carrot on a stick, and the ones that prioritize the carrot are the problem with MMOs in general?