WoW this, WoW that: Why are FFXIV forum users so obsessed with WoW refugees?

[Miles064]

Saying "Blaming WoW is just an easy out" is dismissing the reality of what's happening, though. As I said before, no one is denying that there are toxic people in FFXIV's community. The reality is, there are less in FFXIV than there are in WoW, and not just because WoW has more subs. The ratio is higher in WoW than here. Pointing that out, and the fact that there's been a recent influx of unhappy people from WoW to FFXIV is not "blaming wow", it's simply acknowledging what's happening.

Didnt you just complain about "wow trash" before? Is that not "toxic"?

On topic though, as someone that has played both they are both "toxic" with different flavors. Most of the people i met in WoW i had zero issues with(just like FF). When it gets heated in WoW people tend to confront one another about it. In FF it seems more petty jabbing then direct attacks. At least in wow I never had to tell dps to use parts of their kits( blms not using fire4,brds in HW not using MW, tp users never using aoe, LB not being used at all, etc).

[Nedkel]

WoW's community, on the other hand, are notorious for their toxicity. It's a reputation they've gained over many years. In the early days of WoW, the community there was more like FFXIV's is now: friendly, helpful, decent people. But as more and more features were added that removed accountability and allowed the toxic side of the community to run rampant, the community gained a reputation for being toxic because they became toxic. That's not to say WoW doesn't have friendly, helpful, decent people; it does. But they're quiet now because being helpful, friendly, and decent frequently gets you trolled and mocked. The public perception of the community is reinforced by the behavior of the most vocal members of its community.

I came from WoW about five years ago. I was one of the trolls there, I would troll in trade with the best of them. But when I came to FFXIV, I watched the community before I participated in it. And I saw that it wasn't like WoW. People were helpful, would even go out of their way to help newer players. This made me happy and I wanted to be part of that. So I made a focused effort to be helpful. That atmosphere of helpfulness is nurtured and encouraged in FFXIV, due to the community's overall attitude.

It's this difference in communities that has so many here concerned about people coming from WoW. Players from WoW that are running from that toxic atmosphere would best qualify as "WoW refugees". The toxic members of that community, leaving because Blizzard can't get anything right anymore, those are the people we, the FFXIV community, are concerned about. We don't want an influx of toxicity. But we're getting it because FFXIV is one of the top dogs in MMO industry right now and there's a mass exodus of all kinds of players from WoW to other MMOs.

TLDR - No one denies that FFXIV has toxic people, but it doesn't have nearly as many as WoW. And we don't want the worst part of WoW's community, but we're getting far too many of them.

The thing is, FFXIV is a different game, and these WoW refugees are coming to this with different approach than they do in WoW, taking it less serious and like a game for fun, they shouldnt be really that bad afterall.

However i do agree WoW community in WoW is really different to one we have in FFXIV. They are really strict and expects from everyone they play their class at "acceptable" level, refuse to communicate with others, do not want to "waste time" doing dungeons a little longer.
I tried WoW for few months this year, never played it past lvl 40 to be honest i got to lvl 90, tried to tank in dungeons and i really didnt like it. My Eq was everything i was able to collect during lvling, people were judging me about my dps, about how much damage i take and why i dont pull big. It was night and day difference in experience between both games in the exact same role. I remember a guy saying to me i was useless because my rotation was off and i should find out myself why, duh.

I think when someone is playing the game for too long and too often then he is eating patience away from himself, the more someone does X thing the more annoying he finds it when he will meet a team who struggle to go through. The worst are old players who are literally no-lifing a game and plays it with attitude like it is some kind of competition of who is the fastest, does not matter which game because this kind of players are in both, but WoW has much more of them obviously. I understand complaining about someone who is playing a dps and deals less damage than healer or a tank and use same combo or same skill over and over again, but come on, some guys could be toxic for the kind of gear someone wears even without trying out his dps numbers like in the other thread on the forum or in the other someone got kicked because he played a "wrong" pet on a summoner.

FFXIV sadly is heading towards the same course WoW does, i mean people playing this game, they play it too much and get cocky over little things.

[Saefinn]

My experience of WoW was that there was a lot of toxic players. I had my share of really nice ones too. But I have come across my share here, they weren't as immediately obvious.

However, there can sometimes be different mentalities between communities, naturally I think communities should be able to meld together fine and respectfully, but of course, toxic people are generally are what ruins anything. That's not WoW community's fault, that's just toxic people's fault.

I've come across people in the FFXIV community since 2.0 with terrible attitudes. I've not experienced a spike in it recently. I have had high and low periods of coming across it.

[KokonoeAiyoko]

The ubercasuals in this game need a boogeyman so they don't feel any guilt when they get kicked for being dead weight in group content.

This post is why but not for the reasons given.

[CazzT]

Didnt you just complain about "wow trash" before? Is that not "toxic"?

On topic though, as someone that has played both they are both "toxic" with different flavors. Most of the people i met in WoW i had zero issues with(just like FF). When it gets heated in WoW people tend to confront one another about it. In FF it seems more petty jabbing then direct attacks. At least in wow I never had to tell dps to use parts of their kits( blms not using fire4,brds in HW not using MW, tp users never using aoe, LB not being used at all, etc).

The "wow trash" I'm referring to are the toxic members of WoW. I would say ffxiv trash" when referring to the toxic members of FFXIV. No, that is not toxic.

And to be fair, you don't have to tell people in WoW to use XYZ skill because they only have like 2 or 3 to use. If you can't figure out how to play at a decent level in WoW, you're really just not even trying. I know that sounds a little elitist, but it's simplified to the point where a banana could play it. Which is sad.

[CazzT]

FFXIV sadly is heading towards the same course WoW does, i mean people playing this game, they play it too much and get cocky over little things.

This is my biggest worry about FFXIV. I fell in love with the community here. It's why I wanted to be a Mentor. I was proud when I finally got it. It wasn't until a couple months after that that I found out about the poor reputation it has gained over the past couple years. So, I do what I can to show not everyone with a Crown is a horrible person. But the community here is what has made my time in Eorzea so amazing and epic. Loading into a dungeon and someone says "first time here" and before I can finish typing another person says "Welcome to [insert dungeon]! Let us know if you need any help or tips on bosses!" In WoW, "first time here" results queuing up again because you just got kicked.

[LiteBrite]

All MMOs are toxic, epically in the end game content. Where the hardcore crowds aren't really ever welcoming to new players trying to break into end game.. And I be shocked if I ever saw a FC, out their own little inner click, try to acutally include their other FC members and try to teach them end game content, instead of being just a number that makes their FC look bigger... And not just helping with a roulette duties ques.

[Misutoraru]

I can't speak for WoW since I never played it enough, but in regards to FF I don't believe this for a second. In nearly 900 dungeons/trials/etc, I can count on my fingers how many people I've met that were consciously holding the group back and refusing to listen to advice. I like venting as much as anyone else, but honestly, I don't get things to vent about often at all. Most players are perfectly adequate, and most runs (I use DF almost exclusively, by the way) go off without a hitch. To insult the game's community by saying they actively put in the least effort possible is disingenuous. Either you're getting way too upset over the occasional troll, or you're intolerant to newer/learning players that are probably going to be very receptive of advice. Most people I've given advice to (easily 95% or more) generally thank me for helping them improve.

I always think I am living in a different world than many forum user
I mean see how many ppl complain about their party or team mate not living up to "standard", yet I run mostly with DF, and i only very seldom see those terrible player. The chance is like only 1 in 50 or even 1 in 100 run I have met someone who isn't trying to do their role properly and refuse to listen for advice

[Makeda]

This dude is obviously a butthurt WoW player, and is the perfect example of toxic.

While you might be on the same side of this debate as me... no one's position is EVER helped with the word 'butthurt'... All you do is actually help out the folks who say this place is also toxic when you use phrasing like that...

[NessaWyvern]

I'd like to mention that WoW has more "zones" of toxicity, and if you avoid those zones, it's less toxic than FFXIV. In FF14, toxicity is rarer, but seemingly random. Sometimes raids are a bit toxic, sometimes dungeons are, sometimes PvP is.
In WoW, you just have to avoid the trade chat and ERP areas, and it's not bad at all. I never had any problems in leveling dungeons, battlegrounds were pretty chill, people expect lots of people to die in the huge raids.. It has actually (excluding trade chat) gotten less toxic. MoP was more toxic than legion, people seemed to be having a lot of fun in Legion. (I skipped warlords, and I'm skipping this new one).

Certain servers are less toxic in WoW too, NA servers are full of trade chat talking about Trump, Oceanic servers trade chat had... And I'm not lying, A group of people talking about how a player was friendly, and good at the game and they all liked him. No joke, I was really surprised to see that in a so called "toxic" game.
No matter what trade chat you go to however, you'll always see [Thunderfury Blessed Blade of the Windseeker].
Also Horde has more chill than alliance, for some reason.