Time to end the theft of home and bots - GIVE MORE WARDS-!

[Stepjam]

It's not quite so simple as just adding more wards. Wards are generally a strain on server resources, because as long as a single person is in a ward, the game has to keep up an instance for that ward with like 30+ uniquely designed houses with lawns. They can only close the instance whenever it's completely empty, which in many cases isn't often, especially with FC houses. I know my FC's house almost always has at least one person idling in front of it.
Not to mention they are no doubt gearing to add a LOT of wards whenever Ishgard housing drops, assuming they plan to have equal amounts of Ishgard wards as every other ward.

I really do wish they had just gone for instanced houses instead of wards, they'd no doubt be able to have a much bigger allowance of houses, since it's much more likely for an individual house to be empty than an entire ward, so they can close instances more often.

And the instances thing really is the issue. For a non-housing example, look at Raubahn extreme. Tons of players trying to get into the same instance overloaded the server, making it impossible for anyone to.

[Eldevern]

...

I forgot the first range prices but it makes me remember my first tought at housing release : FFXIV housing looks to be Aion inspired (both the Ward idea and the range price similar to the rumored auctions).

It is were we can see how outdated the design of housing is. It is all designed before big data and no-sql concepts.

The market really need a brand new and up-to-date MMO (housing, gameplay, design).

[ctcc42]

My experience of ffxiv housing has been very different from every one else's.

I started playing in January of 2019. It was probably not until April of 2019 that I became interested enough to look into housing. At that time there always seemed to be a few plots available.

I picked up a rather rubbish little plot in mist. Shortly afterwards a friend picked one up in the goblet. Then we both moved to different plots in a different subdivision of mist so that we could have houses in the same one.

Then another plot opened up so we got a third friend to buy a goblet plot, and immediately transfer to the mist plot rather then waiting on timers. Then another plot opened up and we took it for our free company. Then two more friends acquired housing... Then shadowbringers hit.

Next they opened up new wards so we all stayed up together watching anime until the servers came up, at which point we transferred or houses. Acquired two mediums and four smalls in a new district so that we could all be direct neighbors.

The next day, and for some time afterwards all but the remaining large and medium houses in our subdivision were left open.

So after all that. It seems to me that the current lack of housing is really just because of the demolition timers being halted. Once we get them back I expect there will be housing again. There always was before. Neither I nor my friends had to be constantly on the lookout for plots, and none of us ever had to play the placard board click game. I think that's just a thing on congested worlds.

[Vespar]

I still think they should just add single player instanced housing, and if the folks who are adamant about having a home in a "ward" want to fight for one in there then so be it, but atleast then everyone gets a house of some kind.
I'm all for more wards but I can tell you I would jump ship instantly for a single player lot w/ a house on it. It could be a small island, or a hidden plot of land set in any of the regions, or even just a simple virtual space of any kind that is only accessible by the player and those they choose to allow in.

Wards are cool and all, but I honestly don't care about "neighbors". Think of this idea as living on a farm/acreage/cabin in the woods or something as opposed to living in the suburbs.

[TeraRamis]

I still think they should just add single player instanced housing, and if the folks who are adamant about having a home in a "ward" want to fight for one in there then so be it, but atleast then everyone gets a house of some kind.
I'm all for more wards but I can tell you I would jump ship instantly for a single player lot w/ a house on it. It could be a small island, or a hidden plot of land set in any of the regions, or even just a simple virtual space of any kind that is only accessible by the player and those they choose to allow in.

Wards are cool and all, but I honestly don't care about "neighbors". Think of this idea as living on a farm/acreage/cabin in the woods or something as opposed to living in the suburbs.

I do think you're often alone in your ward, which totally defeats the purpose of having neighbors. Moreover, people are tasteless - it must be very hard on folks who put in the work on a nicely decorated little house only for their neighbor to put up some garbage heap.

[Doki]

Most MMOs with player housing have taxes on housing, but given how easily you can make millions of gil in this game, adding housing upkeep taxes will do nothing

[AngeliouxRein]

Hmmm.. for my background, I don’t think I have ever seen housing done the same across MMORPGs. This game is certainly not the worst that I have seen. For me I think I would rank it somewhere in the middle.

But...

From old 2d games that would allow the inside of our “tent” like houses to be expanded into a never ending place to current mobile mmorpgs that manage to recreate the Sims style of housing (like the literal sims: acres of land, tear down/add walls, character interaction with furniture like showers/tubs ,etc)...it does make this form of housing look ridiculous. But at the same time, each time I gave up a house or lost a house I was always able to get another. It only took one 10hr moment of clicking a placard and seeing someone just relocate for me to understand the true game of housing here. There’s definitely room for improvement. And I am one of those who likes the neighborhood but I think a lot of forms of QoL can be done to housing if SE is up for it.

[Edax]

Hmmm.. for my background, I don’t think I have ever seen housing done the same across MMORPGs. This game is certainly not the worst that I have seen. For me I think I would rank it somewhere in the middle.

But...

From old 2d games that would allow the inside of our “tent” like houses to be expanded into a never ending place to current mobile mmorpgs that manage to recreate the Sims style of housing (like the literal sims: acres of land, tear down/add walls, character interaction with furniture like showers/tubs ,etc)...it does make this form of housing look ridiculous. But at the same time, each time I gave up a house or lost a house I was always able to get another. It only took one 10hr moment of clicking a placard and seeing someone just relocate for me to understand the true game of housing here. There’s definitely room for improvement. And I am one of those who likes the neighborhood but I think a lot of forms of QoL can be done to housing if SE is up for it.

I like the neighborhoods too and I argue against instanced wards. We already have apartments which is instanced housing and those could certainly use an expansion but we don't need fake instanced wards nor do we need to tear down the neighborhoods either. I like my house where it is and I don't want other players demanding to take it away from me because they personally do not like their neighborhoods.

[Katie_Kitty]

I do think you're often alone in your ward, which totally defeats the purpose of having neighbors. Moreover, people are tasteless - it must be very hard on folks who put in the work on a nicely decorated little house only for their neighbor to put up some garbage heap.

Hmm no idea where you're getting this idea from. I see other people in my ward all the time. In fact I got followed around once by a mob for like 10 minutes when they spotted me idly cruising through the neighborhood while waiting for my raid group to all show up. And that's just one example. I've seen my closest neighbors up and about or idling many times and I'm sure there's plenty of activity in other portions of the ward at the same time.

Also how does someone else's house impact you? It doesn't. Mind ya business.

[AngeliouxRein]

I like the neighborhoods too and I argue against instanced wards. We already have apartments which is instanced housing and those could certainly use an expansion but we don't need fake instanced wards nor do we need to tear down the neighborhoods either. I like my house where it is and I don't want other players demanding to take it away from me because they personally do not like their neighborhoods.

Yeah fake ward thing bothers me too. I’ve seen enough of that. One of the mobile game I been playing has impressive housing features and acres of land to work with. Even though my house is surrounded by a city (Tokyo, the game is heavily influenced by Japan) it still bugs me that the cars and trucks are just idle. No NPCs are walking by and it just feels like I am surrounded by a colorful and detailed back drop. I don’t need to see other players constantly in a ward but I do like to see their homes, something about it that Just gives it a charm for me. Apartments, in my opinion, are the answer and they should just be expanded like you mentioned. Adding some sort of gardening area to apartments can help a lot too for those who like to garden.