Final Fantasy 14 Players trying WOW?

[Shurrikhan]

I think the problem is that the open world in WoW is made in such a way that people feel it is not right to allow others to unlock flying before them. The idea is that, for you to enjoy being grounded, everybody else has to be grounded as well.

So the whole flying unlock is forced upon everyone even if some of them want to fly as that's how they prefer to engage with the open world of WoW. I get that you can't please everyone. Even in FFXIV, some people think aether currents is too much of a requirement for flight unlock. But I do think pathfinder and this new system in 9.2 is a bit extreme.

I get that. I actually really like navigating topography, myself, so long as the zone is well done and makes that interesting (think gliders and grappling hooks in Stormheim and Zulda'zar or High Mountain, respectively), and I do agree that if there's an easy means of removing that element of gameplay then it makes it feel like that might as well not exist, so I tend to prefer something more like the late-Legion catchup systems.

For instance, let's say flight is unlocked at certain gradations (gliding -> stamina-based flight beyond gliding -> greater stamina and increased flight/glide speeds) over X number of weeks. I.e., by the time most non-altoholics would see noticeably diminished returns for time invested in the new zone, all flight capacities are unlocked. Players can do additional activities mostly outside the normal grind loops, such as those that tend to take you out exploring in more depth, to progress towards those unlocks earlier. And with that, the zone stays more like an actual zone, rather than just a loot chest with chore-based daily keys. (Of course, whether that area of impact matters will still depend greatly upon how engaging or barebone the zone is and how its reward loops are handled.)

The main thing is that it should feel like (A) an optional investment, rather than a necessary first step, and (B) like it doesn't detract from the feeling of a zone as a zone, insofar as that can be managed.

(In the same vein, I'd say, for instance, that no Anima ought to have been required for Covenant Teleporters, Command Tables, or the like, as their increase to later efficiency, even if you ended up too burned out after getting them to reap their rewards, made them feel obligatory. I'd rather they had simply gained tiers of access from Renown ranks themselves and any anima then be spendable on gear and cosmetics. Of course, not having those teleporters doesn't much increase immersion, as it's mostly just cutting out the generic between-zone flightpath travel, and the Command Tables are already restricted by follower acquisition and levels, so I wouldn't mind them being almost instantly unlockable, regardless of Renown, either. I just don't feel that the likes of the 9.1 and 9.2 zones, though they in particular were nothing special, especially compared to Nazjatar and Gnomeragon or the likes of Legion's bonus zones, would similarly face no costs to gameplay from immediately unlocked flight.)