How to "add" about twice as many hairstyles:

[Iscah]

Perhaps they think it's an issue that the hairstyle list would end up very "messy" if they did that, and they wouldn't be able to file the variations next to the originals. I assume they can't re-order things without affecting the hairstyles currently equipped to characters, including NPCs.

But yes, I would love to see more variations and especially flipped versions of hairstyles. I try to keep my characters looking consistent, and there are a few things that would make good alternate hairstyles except they're parted on the wrong side and it looks strange. Also the hairline makes a big difference and varies a lot across styles.

[Iscah]

I don't think that Hairstyle is a really big work like making armor for every race. Or at least, it's really faster to do it.

I'm sure it's still a lot of work. They're quite complex - lots of individual moving pieces that have to look nice and respond to physics (wind, movement, colliding with the shoulders) and not break or look ugly when moving.

I'm not sure if they'd have some kind of template, or if each one needs to be built from scratch. Maybe some basic models that get customised.

[Hyperia]

I believe Yoshi said that the lack of additional character options is due to the data transfer limitations on the servers due to the legacy code from the 1.x series. Yes they can fix it but it takes a ton of resources, time and money.

[WhiteArchmage]

So people here, I suggest something ! Why don't we all ask Naoki Yoshida for that in the next Live letter Or propose something when a new Hairstyle creation contest come ?

I'd like to suggest that future hairstyle contest entries use the Viera/Hroth head as a base. At least the Viera head isn't too different from the other races and the main problem seems to be fitting the ears, so removing the ears for the regular head models seems more feasible than adding them (I acknowledge it's STILL a lot of work, but perhaps less than the other way around).

[Shougun]

I believe Yoshi said that the lack of additional character options is due to the data transfer limitations on the servers due to the legacy code from the 1.x series. Yes they can fix it but it takes a ton of resources, time and money.

Not sure about the 1.x part since I thought they also said recently they've left all that behind now, buuuut I also feel the recall that the issue is not designing hair styles or things like that- no issue of creativity but one born from technical limitations. Issues in general with handling that many options, similarly we've these issues with other data problems- think being unable to make all mog shop items account bound, hyur facial hair, eyebrows, viera and hrothgar hair/face limits, tackle box, difficulty with houses, glamour log limits, and general stuff like that.

I assume these issues are buried deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep into the core of the game and are complex, expensive, and terrifying parts to modify (as it could cause loads of things to break), but it seems to be in general an issue FFXIV struggles with a lot. I mean to be fair if you were going to have an issue it makes sense it'd be this one lol, massively complex and evolving jumble that has tendrils deep into everything. One of those things that is like "sounds scary.. and hard to deal with, but... please deal with it anyways". If it's so deeply buried into the code of FFXIV that it can't be properly excised then I actually hope FFXIV has a shorter life span than FFXI (time between FFXI and FFXIV's release), such that the next mmorpg is released sooner and with better support of big ideas (for example if they announced a FF MMO with better housing I'd leave immediately- or play both at the same time to finish this game's MSQ XD, and yes I'd give someone all my gil lol).

[Iscah]

I believe Yoshi said that the lack of additional character options is due to the data transfer limitations on the servers due to the legacy code from the 1.x series. Yes they can fix it but it takes a ton of resources, time and money.

That seems to be an issue for other character settings - eg. why they haven't added more "extra features" than the set five per race, and have to work with a fixed amount of option types. One slider-based setting per race (ears/tail/muscle), one "two options plus colour" (tattoos/earrings/Au Ra eyes), and how Hrothgar have ended up with such weird settings as they've twisted the usual way that they are applied, but can't actually add anything new.

Hairstyles seem to sit apart from all the other face issues because they can and do frequently add more choices. Evidently it was built from the start with the potential to be expanded, while the other elements are more rigid.

There's probably still an upper limit to how many they can add - but hopefully well beyond what they'll ever need to use up. They seem to have lacked forward planning with other database elements like inventory, though.

[Malmstrom]

Not sure about the 1.x part since I thought they also said recently they've left all that behind now, buuuut I also feel the recall that the issue is not designing hair styles or things like that- no issue of creativity but one born from technical limitations. Issues in general with handling that many options, similarly we've these issues with other data problems- think being unable to make all mog shop items account bound, hyur facial hair, eyebrows, viera and hrothgar hair/face limits, tackle box, difficulty with houses, glamour log limits, and general stuff like that.

I assume these issues are buried deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep into the core of the game and are complex, expensive, and terrifying parts to modify (as it could cause loads of things to break), but it seems to be in general an issue FFXIV struggles with a lot. I mean to be fair if you were going to have an issue it makes sense it'd be this one lol, massively complex and evolving jumble that has tendrils deep into everything. One of those things that is like "sounds scary.. and hard to deal with, but... please deal with it anyways". If it's so deeply buried into the code of FFXIV that it can't be properly excised then I actually hope FFXIV has a shorter life span than FFXI (time between FFXI and FFXIV's release), such that the next mmorpg is released sooner and with better support of big ideas (for example if they announced a FF MMO with better housing I'd leave immediately- or play both at the same time to finish this game's MSQ XD, and yes I'd give someone all my gil lol).

WoWs backpack immediately comes to mind.

It's been a long time since I have played it so maybe they've changed it by now, but I recall reading something about the base backpack being so ingrained into the code that they couldn't do anything about how small it was without potentially breaking literally everything.

[TheMightyMollusk]

WoWs backpack immediately comes to mind.

It's been a long time since I have played it so maybe they've changed it by now, but I recall reading something about the base backpack being so ingrained into the code that they couldn't do anything about how small it was without potentially breaking literally everything.

Part of the issue with WoW's default backpack was that they were afraid someone would deliberately find a way to unequip it and leave themselves without any actual way to carry items. Which, yeah, somebody probably would just to see what would happen.

[Fredco191]

* insert Raise macro *

i like this idea!

[MidnightS]

I'd love it if we could get some "up" versions of existing styles.