Option to unlock content without mandatory MSQ

[Packetdancer]

I mean, I think the bigger problem is that unless I've wildly misunderstood, the OP defined the feature not just as making MSQ wholly optional but also not spoiling the story. So that you could, for instance, sign up, skip right to the Eden raids and go into savage raiding, and then go back and play the story later when you had more time... but not have the Eden raids have spoiled you on any of the MSQ.

Even if mechanically they were willing to make the MSQ optional, that has implications for the MSQ narratively.

It's easy to say "oh, if the MSQ was optional and folks could just go right to Eden raiding out of chargen, that wouldn't affect anyone else's enjoyment of the story". But if SquareEnix were to constrain themselves such that no piece of non-MSQ content could reference things from the MSQ (to avoid spoiling the MSQ for folks), at that point you've changed the nature of the storytelling and the pieces don't all interlock. And changing the nature of the storytelling itself does impact how other people will enjoy the story.

Whether or not I care about someone else skipping the story of not, I would find the game a lot less compelling as a player if the story didn't build on past bits of story; if nothing in the MSQ was ever referenced in any non-MSQ content, I'd feel less like it was a tale of a world and more just a collection of disjointed individual events. And personally, that would interest me less.

Would I stomp off in a sulk because people could skip the story? No.

Would I probably lose interest in the story and wander off to something with a story I found more compelling instead? I know myself well enough to say, "yeah, probably."

And while I don't know how many other folks who are here for the story would say the same, I'm fairly certain that the total quantity is greater than 1.

[SamRF]

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If you're talking about me (OP) you have indeed misunderstood me and I also wasn't too clear on my intention in those replies. Here are some previous replies that acknowledge some things from your post:

Tbh that is kind of a good point. I'm not sure actually how my relationship with MSQ would change if this option is implemented. While I'm pretty sure I would never use this option, it could be that I'd enjoy MSQ less because I'm seeing it as something redundant instead of a mandatory/crucial part of the game.

The story of previous content will also get spoiled (same when you unlock the instances without MSQ I guess, but likely to lesser extend).

I would definitely not want instances to be spoiler free, I personally like the fact that they are (crucial) parts of the story a lot. I just think that there's a difference between spoiling a whole narrative and spoiling by showing an enemy that is part of the story. Except for Castrum Meridianum there aren't any instances that will explain the narrative and context for the fight, you will just see the enemy you are fighting.

It is indeed still a spoiler, but imo not a deal breaker if you were to start MSQ at later time. While if you had to forcefully start with Shadowbringers MSQ narrative without having done any of the previous stuff, I feel like that would spoil too much and make it much less appealing to go through the old MSQ. I could be wrong though since it's very subjective.

[Elladie]

I have no issue with anyone skipping the story or skipping the grind to level their chosen job or skipping both. They can already do all of those things.

I do have an issue with changing the way the story progresses through the expansions to accommodate that. Elai is who she is because she experienced Sastasha as a scrub, saw the people in the Waking Sands murdered by the Garleans, killed Nabriales with hatred in her heart because of Moenbryda, wept over Haurchefant, pitied Yotsuyo, and empathised with Emet-Selch even though she knew she had to kill him. The progression through the MSQ is the core of this game, your character's relationships with the NPCs is the core of this game, your emotional investment in this game is a consequence of that. The whole reason Shadowbringers was so highly acclaimed is BECAUSE OF THE STORY.

You may not play for the story, and that's fine. But the vast majority do play for the story even if they aren't articulating that as specifically as I have done. Their progression through the story is why they are invested in the game. Take that away and all you have is another WOW or TESO. I play both of those, but only for a few days a couple of times a year, because I have no connection with them, they're just a bit of fun once in a while.

I am also very sure SE knows all this and has no intention of changing things. The MSQ in ARR had a lot of bloat because the game was new then, and there was nothing else for people to do then. They haven't repeated that bloat in later expansions, and they are sensibly cutting most of the bloat in ARR in a couple of months time.

I don't like telling people to go play another game if they don't like this one, so I won't. But please stop asking SE to change the game most of us do love into something else entirely. If the story became something you could go back and do later - especially if side content such as raids had to NOT spoil that MSQ content - the game would lose its entire heart.