To those that say FF14 is not a big dog in MMO's

[Vahlnir]

That website is clickbait with bad methodology and has been widely criticized in multiple game communities for their numbers more or less being completely made up. Not a credible source whatsoever. None of the numbers that website supposedly has access to, such as daily logins, are accessible to anyone except SE.

The best census work with a well document methodology we have to go on is via Lucky Bancho. Here's the FFXIV census as of 2/7/2021

If I'm reading it right, that's still a respectable number. FF XIV's population has never been the absolute biggest, but I'd say it's one of the most loyal fan bases.

[Dzian]

I find FF14 raids to be far more enjoyable because a MAJOR part of an mmorpg is immersion, the fights often are designed in such a way and with such animations that you feel being part of them, I still remember when Niddhog falls down on the platform and causes a mini earthquake that makes you FEEL his weight or Susano's giant sword. Plus the realistic and non cartoony graphics helps a lot with that aspect.

There's certinly a little truth to this but at the same time fight design and animations is often one of the biggest immersion breakers.

If we take Susano for example that big sword screen shaking smash. Sure it can look cool but there's this huge disconnect between whats actually happening and what you see. It's realistically possible to stand right under that sword smash and live because the animations while nice, are heavily out of sync with the rest of the gameplay. There's thousands of examples of times where you can quite literally stand in the stupid and be fine because the damage was already calculated before you stepped into it.

This leads to a huge disconnect for many people because it smahses that sense of immersion when you get hit by something you were visually a malm away from and something you're stood right in the middle of doesn't even touch you. absolute immersion breaker.

If I'm reading it right, that's still a respectable number. FF XIV's population has never been the absolute biggest, but I'd say it's one of the most loyal fan bases.

While there's some loyalty there, for many players it also does a pretty good job of showing the rate at which 14 loses players. The population you see in those censuses tends not to fluctuate very much over time but when you consider the ever increasing number of new players the game pulls in.. 4 million, 5 million, 6 million, 8 million, 10 million, 12 million.... ever increasing. Yet ths population always remains about the same which is why many people say the game struggles because for every million players it pulls in, it effectively bleeds another million right out.. Which is where the sentiment about the games lack of longevity often stems from..

Which also adds fuel to the ever growing number of people getting tired of the same old repeatable pattern of content, the boring treadmill and any number of other arguemnets. accessibility and over simplification has taken away a lot of that Final Fantasy depth and magic and a lot of players get bored very quickly because simple stuff just isn't engaging, satisfying or rewarding.. "Yay I got a new pair of gloves." but at the same time "Meh I'll just throw them away next week....." Not very satisfying gameplay is it when everything you get is ultimately just rubbish?

The longest players tend to stick around for reasons less about the game andmore about the players.. I have some great friends some I've known since playing FFXI 20 years ago andi can still have fun hanging out with those guys occassionally. The fun isnt so much the game, it's the banter and jokes we crack between ourelves.. I know a good few people with a similar mindset.

But that comes back to new players as well.. I think one of the bigger factors determining how long new players stick around is governed less by the game itself and more by any social connections they makewhile playing.

[ReynTime]

which also adds fuel to the ever growing number of people getting tired of the same old repeatable pattern of content and boring treadmill and any number of other arguemnets. accessibility and over simplification has taken away a lot of that final fantasy depth and magic and a lot of players get bored quite quickly because simple stuff isnt engaging, satisfying or rewarding.. "Yay i got a new pair of gloves". but at the same time "meh i'll just throw them away next week....." not very satisfying gameplay is it when everything you get is just rubbish.

the longest players tend to stick around for reasons less aboyt the game andmore about the players.. i have some great friends some i've known since playing ff11 20 years ago andi can still have fun hanging out with those guys occassionally. the fun isnt so much the game it's the banter and jookes we crack between ourelves.. and i know a good few people with a similar mindset.

but that comes back to new players as well.. i think one of the bigger factors determining how long new players stick around is governed less by the game and more by any social connections they make..

I kind of agree with this.
I try to do everything I can in the game, but that's mostly to be helpful to friends I play with. I noticed I have a lot more fun replaying the ARR and Heavensward content than anything of the endgame, and that's because I just don't connect with the hyperfocus on accessibility the game had since 2019. I would have unsubbed and just wait for Endwalker if I wasn't hanging with friends in the game.

[VelKallor]

I noticed I have a lot more fun replaying the ARR and Heavensward content than anything of the endgame, and that's because I just don't connect with the hyperfocus on accessibility the game had since 2019.

You'd have content and gameplay LESS accessible?

Why?

[Dzian]

You'd have content and gameplay LESS accessible?

Why?

The issue lies less with the accessibility itself and more this idea people have that accessibility must mean ultra simplistic or easy.
Accessible can be hard as nails. The definition means being able to access content.
Whether or not you can actually clear it has nothing to do with it's accessiblity.

Savage raiding for example is accessible content for anyone its designed to be that way.
It's designed in such a way that even if you only have 60-90 minutes you can jump in the raid finder and get ya weekly clear or even just a decent bit of practice.. It's been that way since late heavensward at least. It doesn't require massive time investments of 4-6 hours a night. It is quite possible to log on for just an hour and get a couple of fights done or a bit of practice. The JP side demonstrates this with great success. (the NA side would to if they used raid finder properly and didnt expect carries)

Yet despite being super accessible the raid teirs get easier and easier, and arguably so does all other content.. right down to dungeons..

This doesnt make content more accessible. It just makes it less rewarding and less satisfying which is why many players get bored.
Hence why its a pretty common opinion that 5.0 content has been pretty bland in comparison to previous expansions.

Accessibility is fine. Its when they over simplify and tone things down as much as they do that it becomes a problem for many players. because thats not making it accessible it's making it braindead boring..

[Theodric]

You'd have content and gameplay LESS accessible?

Why?

I enjoy hiking as a hobby. It's fun. I like a challenge, so I'll tackle all sorts of different slopes and trails.

You could make them more accessible, yet after a certain point those slopes become a flat line which ceases to be hiking at all.

By making the game accessible to every possible person ever, a similar issue arises. There's no grit or challenge after a certain point. I find dungeons in their current state to be mind numbingly boring. They're so easy and it's a crying shame they aren't designed more along the lines of the original Pharos Sirius. With adjusted rewards to make the extra challenge pay off.

[Ayuhra]

I enjoy hiking as a hobby. It's fun. I like a challenge, so I'll tackle all sorts of different slopes and trails.

You could make them more accessible, yet after a certain point those slopes become a flat line which ceases to be hiking at all.

By making the game accessible to every possible person ever, a similar issue arises. There's no grit or challenge after a certain point. I find dungeons in their current state to be mind numbingly boring. They're so easy and it's a crying shame they aren't designed more along the lines of the original Pharos Sirius. With adjusted rewards to make the extra challenge pay off.

It's a weird problem that this game has.

The skill floor is higher than in other games. To get by you need to know what you're doing after a certain point. There is a lot to learn from long and fairly complex rotations to encounter design to things as simple as customizing your HUD.

The skill ceiling, however, is a lot LOWER so when you learn the ropes and get comfortable you might feel like the game has no challenge outside Savage.

[VelKallor]

There's no grit or challenge after a certain point.

Extreme, Faux Hollows, Unreal.

[Axxion]

Extreme, Faux Hollows, Unreal.

Then what next after those two ? There is nothing else. Extreme can be done during a current expansion if you want or you can wait until the next expansion and do it unscync with no challenge at all. Unreal (someone correct me if im wrong) are just old extreme fights that are scaled to our current level, that sit on limited time. By which i mean that they do not keep them in game when they release the next one.

You can also say ultimate as well. But once you get all the weapons and/or the weapons you care for there is nothing else.

Savage as well. Same thing once you have the BIS what is next? Wait until next expansion do it unsync to do glamour/mount runs.

[ZedxKayn]

Extreme, Faux Hollows, Unreal.

They're literally the same thing.