I'm rooting for WoW

[Johners]

You are not a problem. There were indeed some... shall we say, surprises when the WOW players arrived. Maybe it's just my usual lack of luck, but a lot more dps that were going to pull, and some pretty bad rushes that ended in disaster (and yes, they were WOW players: I was asking in a humorous way).

In short: sometimes different playing habits, but nothing dramatic when everyone agrees to put some effort.

Otherwise, it's obvious that it's a pleasure to see the current popularity of FFXIV. So it's nice to welcome you. In the best of worlds, it will wake up Blizzard and remind them of the beautiful game they have in their hands - so they'll stop considering it as a farm cow, without any consideration for its qualities.

I made the mistake of engaging with this thread after reading the title but as much as I've been enjoying FFXIV since I started playing, and I've taken the effort to learn and understand the game, the community is just as toxic in both games. Some of it is down to play style clashes due to differences between the games and in other situations is just one portion of the FFXIV community trying to gatekeeper the game by their intended play style. Typically this groups up around the use of mods (addons in WoW terminology) like Cactbot.

For what it's worth, the overall community experience isn't any better or worse in my opinion, it's just different. The fundamental factor for me was the greater variety in things to do and those things also being enjoyable. I can filter out parts of the wider community clowning themselves was their toxic gatekeeping in the same way that I did the same in WoW.

[Theodric]

I rather suspect that at least some of the streamers were approached by representatives of Square Enix. Let's not forget, they're entertainers and the biggest have agents and contracts. That doesn't mean that they don't genuinely enjoy what they do or what they play...but to at least some degree the game's success is due to heavy marketing on many fronts.

Which means that Square Enix knew that the game would get more players but did not necessarily future proof the game accordingly. Even before Covid, server instability has been a common complaint in this game. Alas...

[Johners]

I rather suspect that at least some of the streamers were approached by representatives of Square Enix. Let's not forget, they're entertainers and the biggest have agents and contracts. That doesn't mean that they don't genuinely enjoy what they do or what they play...but to at least some degree the game's success is due to heavy marketing on many fronts.

Which means that Square Enix knew that the game would get more players but did not necessarily future proof the game accordingly. Even before Covid, server instability has been a common complaint in this game. Alas...

I'm fortunate enough to be able to queue during the day as I work from home and usually log on before any sizeable queue forms. Even so, I've only had to queue once for over an hour and while I did get a 4004 error as position 1 in the queue, I queued up again and spent like 90 minutes in total queueing twice on one afternoon. Aside from that, it's been a very smooth experience since Endwalker released and even in the months prior when I first started playing the game earlier this year. Any DC issues I've had have solely been due to issues with my connection and I've clocked just under 30 days of /playtime so far this year.

[Merrigan]

I made the mistake of engaging with this thread after reading the title but as much as I've been enjoying FFXIV since I started playing, and I've taken the effort to learn and understand the game, the community is just as toxic in both games. Some of it is down to play style clashes due to differences between the games and in other situations is just one portion of the FFXIV community trying to gatekeeper the game by their intended play style. Typically this groups up around the use of mods (addons in WoW terminology) like Cactbot.

For what it's worth, the overall community experience isn't any better or worse in my opinion, it's just different. The fundamental factor for me was the greater variety in things to do and those things also being enjoyable. I can filter out parts of the wider community clowning themselves was their toxic gatekeeping in the same way that I did the same in WoW.

I disagree.

Are there any toxicity issues on FF? Of course there are. Just yesterday I came across a dungeon where the tank and heal were spending their time trying to kick each other because of a failed first pull (sigh).

On the other hand, some common behaviors on WOW are very rare on FF. Typical example: on FF, you can do PU instances without disband at all. It usually takes 3-4 failures before people start leaving. On WOW, one wipe can be enough to make everyone leave... Condemning you to wait miserably for other players to arrive.

And I'm not even talking about the reception of new players. I have a big grudge against the WOW community for this: I tried to get some of my friends in, and they ended up leaving because of the insults they were getting in the dungeon due to their lack of experience.

Not to say that FF is a nirvana (I reserve that title for LOTRO): after playing both games for years, for me there is no doubt which one is more welcoming between the two.

(Sorry for the potential mistakes, not a native).

[TristanX]

I left WoW on 9.0.5 because it is a grindfest, forcing you to do something you dont like and not alt friendly at level cap. I highly doubt WoW will be better anytime soon due to ongoing lawsuits and unhappy staffs.

[Xaruko_Nexume]

Sorry OP, but no I don't think I will. 16 years in that game and literally nothing they can ever do to get me back, because this game is so much better. For like the first month. It was pure culture shock. Decades of WoW to find out not everyone online is horrible, and so I don't have to be either. Existing in WoW is stressful and tense all the time. Constantly on guard from daily threats and vitriol. Coming to this game from WoW, it's like being born and raised in an evil Empire or warmongering culture only to find out there is another way to live. Like, it's hard to adapt and even a little jarring. I feel like a true blood Garlean, born and raised. Come to Eorzea to find a better life. There is literally nothing WoW could do to get me back. Ion Hazzikostas could sit be down and ask me what I personally want in the game, and execute all of it tomorrow and I would still say no.

This game really is that much better.

[_Pigzig]

people complained about wow players back in 2.0
its the eternal boogeyman

[IdowhatIwant]

Because your favourite Streamer(s) try the game?
If your favourite Streamer jumps off a Cliff - will you do the same?
Just do it because YOU want to do it and not because of a Streamer.

People want a chance at there moment on the stream basically. In the end though twitch streamers are the ones that create gaming trends because people are to stupid to make decisions for themselves. Today most people live in sheltered internet cults and do span much outside of that comfort. It is really sad TBH.

[SturmChurro]

The only hope FFXIV has now is WoW getting good.