The "Wow Refugee's" impact on the FFXIV Community?

[Ragnhar]

The only things I want from WoW in my FFXIV is their glamour storage system and their M+ system but toned down a notch as I do not want to be doing the same dungeons 156 times over and over for a few scraps of gear, not to mention here gaining gear is not a problem so M+ would be more of a novelty thing.

[Dustytome]

the only thing i didn't like coming from wow to xiv was the glamour system. like, the glamour closet doesn't come anywhere as close as convenient and useful as the transmog system. get an item's appearance once, and it's yours forever. but in xiv, you need prisms and have a limited storage space.

The glamour and account-wide collectables (mounts, achievements, companions, etc) are the features I miss most from WoW. I love having alts, but I'm still just one person. I also don't like rolling on the same rare items on multiple characters, especially when it's against someone that may not have it on any characters.

[Vexander]

Most World of Warcraft players I've met have been overwhelmed by how friendly and helpful the FFXIV community has been, and they, in turn, have been able to relax and be more pleasant in turn. That's my personal experience.

[Voltyblast]

The FFXIV community is the embodiment of the love and devotion to better the game that the developers have. I understand all communities will have toxic players I'm not stupid enough to think FFXIV is free of any keyboard trolls and I understand FFXIV has stricter rules regarding chat but that's not what I'm talking about

...well as long as you completely agree with everyone around you, sure the community is all sweetness and sunshine and the land of paradise.

But as soon as you try to say something even slightly negative, well, hope you got your tinfoil hat ready! Because you're gonna need it!

[KaijinRhada]

So now that I'm done with that I want to get into my questions.


Do you think the mass influx of "Wow Refugee" players will positively or negatively effect the community as a whole? And how so?

As a FFXIV player what are things that you would like to see change (or not change) within the game?

What is one thing you would want to say to "Wow Refugee's" before they enter the community?

I don't fall under the WoW refugee category, but I have been playing both games in a split fashion since the latter half of ARR, up until recently where I stopped playing WoW in the most recent expac. Here are my thoughts:

An influx of players simply mean that: more players. You're going to get a mix of players. If there is a common denominator, it's that people I know coming from WoW are surprised at how talkative and friendly people as a whole are here. Instancing in WoW is largely silent (the grand majority of the time), and occasionally with people trolling and yelling at each other for reasons. On the flip-side, criticism, even of the constructive sort, isn't taken as well here. WoW players leaving now could have left for a myriad of reasons: burn out (WoW is 15 years old, for those that don't know), wanting to try something new, frustration with game mechanics and/or story, guilds falling apart, etc... You get a blank slate when you start new somewhere, so I judge not by the games they play, but how they conduct themselves as a person.

Changes I would want to see in this game are hard for me to pinpoint, since I've not yet experienced highend-game in FFXIV enough and left raiding to WoW (which is still well designed, if you aren't playing an undesirable spec or class). Changes I want here are mostly aesthetic, such as a dye system where there are dye channels to apply multiple colours to gear (also more variety in colours). As far as job mechanics and combat goes, that will depend on how they currently are at any given point. Certainly there are jobs that can definitely use QoL improvements, but it's nothing compared to how obsolete some specs are in WoW at any given raid tier, so even underperforming jobs look great when you compare it to WoW.

As far as what I would want former WoW players to know before coming over, there's a few things. The game is story heavy; if you aren't going to be interested in the story, then this might not be a good fit for you. Additionally, the story (in my opinion) only picks up in the later part of ARR, and level 1-50 is going to feel like a bit of a slog in terms of combat. The GCD in this game is baseline 2.5 seconds compared to the 1-1.5 seconds in BFA, but once you get into the higher levels, you'll get more oGCDs to fill in those gaps (unlike WoW going backwards and adding most things onto the GCD). Your highend raids are 8-mans, not 20. 24 mans aren't quite LFR, they're a separate tier of raids. Your base party has 4 members, not five. Each Job has only one role, and there are no specs in this game. Crafting and gathering professions are their own Jobs with their own crafting and gathering mechanics. Mods are illegal in this game, but it also falls under that weird "don't ask don't tell" void.

In the end, both games have their pros and cons. Welcome to FFXIV. Be good and kind to each other, and have fun.

The only thing I've noticed is the crazy amount of new players coming into Zalera. Primetime is actually reflected in all cities now instead of just Limsa. A higher population in game is hardly a bad thing. With regards to toxicity I haven't noticed any big issues. I've been leveling an alt and I can't say things have gotten worse or better. I welcome more people into a game that I enjoy greatly.

I'm in a Discord server with people that post frequently on the Official WoW forums lore subforum, and from what I gathered, a lot of them play on Zalera.

[Vahlnir]

Most World of Warcraft players I've met have been overwhelmed by how friendly and helpful the FFXIV community has been, and they, in turn, have been able to relax and be more pleasant in turn. That's my personal experience.

It's definitely a better atmosphere but people will still be people which was the point I was trying to make earlier in this thread. We've all seen it recently with a certain decision regarding playable races. The forums aren't exactly a representation of those playing but man oh man did I see some real winners crawl out from the woodwork. They pay a sub otherwise they wouldn't be here, which also means they probably play the game. I love this community but jerks still exist which is why I can't say 'zomg this community is the pinnacle of awesomeness". It's the internet. lol There just doesn't seem to be as many jerks as I've encountered in some other games which is great. I hope it stays that way.

[Selova]

I've played WoW for 14 years, started 4 months after the game launched. I started FFXIV when Heavensward launched and have dabbled in both FFXIV and WoW simultaneously until BfA launched, I now strictly only play this game. It's incredibly sad and depressing to watch as a game you grew up with deteriorate into the current state that it's in.


My fondest memories and the moment the game peaked for me was in The Burning Crusades expansion, FFXIV is the only game that has given me that feeling i had playing BC and made me feel like i want to keep playing it and not just logging in 2-3 nights a week for 3 hours just to raid and do nothing else. It's obvious that FFXIV is getting a lot of "WoW refugees" which in my opinion, can only be a good thing for the games health.


I think a lot of people that have only played exclusively FF11 and migrated to FFXIV have a certain perception of WoW players and how toxic a lot of the community is and i think it stems mostly from the periodic decline that WoW has been in over the years. It turns out that people don't take too kindly as they watch the game they grew up with and loved gradually burn to the ground and is nothing but a lifeless husk of what it used to be. I'm seeing quite a few WoW veteran's, like myself give FFXIV a shot and from what I've been seeing and hearing they also echo my sentiments on how FFXIV is a refreshing oasis in a dry desert when it comes to MMO's and that it's given them back that oldschool feeling of actually wanting to play a MMO and being immersed in a fantasy world.


So, regardless of what hangups people might have with either WoW or it's community, I firmly believe all the previous WoW players coming over will only serve to improve the game, as it's currently in the healthiest state it's ever been and i hope it continues to move forward.

[Windwalker]

WoW made people anti social with garrisons, pvp created hate and split the playerbase between alliance and horde... in ffxiv however we work togheter, we need eachother to share tactics in dungeons/raids to beat a boss and move forward, which in turn creates more social experiences in dungeon and raid runs.

And thanks to the novice network, its only getting better, new players can ask questions, hints and tricks, all in all it creates a friendly enviroment.

The WoW folks are more than welcome to join and enjoy the game, as long as they play nice of course, if not, we can turn their attitude around.

[Imuka]

Here is the perfect example how toxic this Community can be: They needed to disable the Text Chat in the Feast.
I remember the times, when there was a Chat in the Feast and the whole Chat looked like it came straight out of LoL or Overwatch.

WoW made people anti social with garrisons, pvp created hate and split the playerbase between alliance and horde... in ffxiv however we work togheter, we need eachother to share tactics in dungeons/raids to beat a boss and move forward.

And thanks to the novice network, its only getting better, new players can ask questions, hints and tricks, all in all it creates a friendly enviroment.

The WoW folks are more than welcome to join and enjoy the game, as long as they play nice of course, if not, we can turn their attitude around.

The Dutyfinders make Players anti social, it makes every MMO anti social. 14 is also pretty toxic, when you play PvP or go for PUGS Primales or Savage and owning a House made Players just move between the MB and their House...maybe once every two weeks the visit Rhalgrs Reach to buy Gear.

You don't need other Players, you can be the biggest dick of the Game and you still find Players to play a Dungeon or a 24 Player Raid.
And the Game does not matter, WoW or 14. Every Game with a Dutyfinder became anti social in the long run.
Players don't need to leave their House, don't need to interact with somebody, they just need to press a single Icon to play Content.

The Novice Network is a joke. I stopped joining it, because you risk getting kicked if you tell somebody that what they say is just wrong.
90% of the Players running around with their Mentor Crowns have absolutly no clue what they are doing.
There is a reason why the Meme of "Mentors show you how not to do a fight" is a thing.

You make it sound like every WoW Player is a toxic Person and 14 is the nicest Community in the whole MMO Genre.
Every MMO is around the same Level of toxicity.
You could download the MMO with the cutest Graphics, filled with "Moe Moe Moe" Chibi Characters and fluffy Monsters and you will still find a bunch of Player who will flame you into the Ground for no reason.

[Windwalker]

Well, sad to see you had bad experiences, i guess this is true for most lower populated servers, Balmung got a very friendly community in comparison, new players cannot join, nor can bots. Roleplay may also play part in a more friendly community.

However, being negative will only breed more negativity. Give the network a chance, or perhaps show them there are people better than them that can actually be helpful.

Kicking someone from the network over something so trivial will only hurt those who do it, report them and move on, simple.

Something i noticed when it came to those people, is their need of getting attention, their social skills are whack and they gain attention by acting cool and hostile, this is true for most of the online world, sad people with messed up mental health, they simply need help and guidance towards the right direction.