The skill progression is atrocious

[Lumberfoot]

You do realize ffxiv is at its highest sub #'s ever right? I think Yoshi P is doing a fine job of directing the game. You can go play without that burden.

Yeah I wonder why that is, couldn't have anything to do with people being home because of a certain global event could it?

[LaylaTsarra]

Yeah I wonder why that is, couldn't have anything to do with people being home because of a certain global event could it?

Not really. Sub numbers have been increasing and the player base is growing significantly since xpac. I think that is a pretty well accepted fact. That's not to say that log in queues on many servers are due in part to people being home.

[Lumberfoot]

Not really. Sub numbers have been increasing and the player base is growing significantly since xpac. I think that is a pretty well accepted fact. That's not to say that log in queues on many servers are due in part to people being home.

That may well be the case. But its also a fact that the gaming industry in general have been booming since this whole thing started. But whatever the case is, a big player base does not mean that the game is perfect and cant be improved.

[LaylaTsarra]

That may well be the case. But its also a fact that the gaming industry in general have been booming since this whole thing started. But whatever the case is, a big player base does not mean that the game is perfect and cant be improved.

No one says it's perfect but there is nothing wrong with the skill sets other than some miner tweeking of when skills become available given some roles have no aoe's at really low levels for example. if you think the development team is going to redo the skill sets and rebalance them to work for lower level content I would suggest you don't hold your breath.

That's not to say you can't ask for changes but it's pretty obvious the team has lots on their plate and this isn't something in my view that would be anywhere on their radar.

[Lumberfoot]

No one says it's perfect but there is nothing wrong with the skill sets other than some miner tweeking of when skills become available given some roles have no aoe's at really low levels for example. if you think the development team is going to redo the skill sets and rebalance them to work for lower level content I would suggest you don't hold your breath.

That's not to say you can't ask for changes but it's pretty obvious the team has lots on their plate and this isn't something in my view that would be anywhere on their radar.

Oh I don't have any expectations. I'd be surprised if anyone even remotely close to the development team even glanced at this threads title. I am simply voicing my concerns and suggestions. As for how much work it would take, I have no idea. But since they are reworking the jobs from time to time, this could potentially be a part of that process.

[LaylaTsarra]

Oh I don't have any expectations. I'd be surprised if anyone even remotely close to the development team even glanced at this threads title. I am simply voicing my concerns and suggestions. As for how much work it would take, I have no idea. But since they are reworking the jobs from time to time, this could potentially be a part of that process.

Well for what it's worth they did adjust some lower level skills and how they are placed with the 5.0 xpac. That's not to say they won't further adjust them and some are in need of tweaking so specific suggestions might be worth mentioning.

[Absurdity]

Not really. Sub numbers have been increasing and the player base is growing significantly since xpac. I think that is a pretty well accepted fact. That's not to say that log in queues on many servers are due in part to people being home.

Are we talking active sub numbers or account numbers? Because I've heard SE only ever mention account numbers. Mind you, not even active accounts, just total accounts which is the most useless measurement for success I've ever seen.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not outright doubting it, the sub numbers have been steadily growing since Stormblood but ShB does suffer from a bit of a content drought for a while now.

[linayar]

Are we talking active sub numbers or account numbers? Because I've heard SE only ever mention account numbers. Mind you, not even active accounts, just total accounts which is the most useless measurement for success I've ever seen.

Not really. Number of active accounts is useless because, other than housing, there is nothing in the game that actively tries to keep you subbed, and housing is limited. Increasing total accounts means the interest for the game is still there. So as long as they keep making profit (preferably increasing profit) and interest is there (preferably high and/or rising), then that's what matters more for an ongoing service, regardless of the ups and downs of active accounts.

And I believe they don't count free trial accounts, so people have always had means to try FFXIV and see if it's a game for them, and even more so with the recent expanded trial feature.

[Absurdity]

Not really. Number of active accounts is useless because, other than housing, there is nothing in the game that actively tries to keep you subbed, and housing is limited. Increasing total accounts means the interest for the game is still there. So as long as they keep making profit (preferably increasing profit) and interest is there (preferably high and/or rising), then that's what matters more for an ongoing service, regardless of the ups and downs of active accounts.

And I believe they don't count free trial accounts, so people have always had means to try FFXIV and see if it's a game for them, and even more so with the recent expanded trial feature.

You see it yourself, don't you? I'd argue player retention plays a not insignificant part in making profit. Interest doesn't mean anything if all they do is buy the game, make an account, play the 30 free days (at most) that probably came with the purchase and then quit.
They're not paying their monthly sub and they're not buying mogstation items, a.i. they're not making SE any more money.
And sure, SE might not do much to incentivize you to stay subbed and they might even tell you to take a break from the game but they still want you to keep paying monthly.

[linayar]

You see it yourself, don't you? I'd argue player retention plays a not insignificant part in making profit. Interest doesn't mean anything if all they do is buy the game, make an account, play the 30 free days (at most) that probably came with the purchase and then quit.
They're not paying their monthly sub and they're not buying mogstation items, a.i. they're not making SE any more money.

That's why I said I don't think they count free trial accounts.

And sure, SE might not do much to incentivize you to stay subbed and they might even tell you to take a break from the game but they still want you to keep paying monthly.

Of course they want people to pay monthly, and there are people (like me) who do pay every month (or whatever subscription cycle people choose). If SE is not happy with FFXIV's financial performance, then they would need to do something about it. Otherwise, it doesn't really matter.

As to the topic of this thread:

I don't see it as an issue personally and actually appreciate when I can use less buttons in lower dungeons. So, while I'm not really against putting more buttons at lower level, I would prefer they space them more or less equally throughout the leveling experience (and adjust the duties accordingly).

That said, I do think different jobs in the same role should more or less gain similar types of abilities at around the same level range.