The story is great, but it blatantly gets in the way of the rest of the game

[Faafetai]

We must be reading completely different posts then, because reality is at odds with your view. Are there weirdly obsessed people? Of course there are, but they're a small group, relatively speaking, they exist in every fandom, not just here, and it's disingenuous to imply otherwise. If you think that the majority of people want to drive those who don't love everything about the game away, then that is a personal failing on your part. Many people, such as myself, have expressed our own problems with the game on these forums multiple times, so we clearly don't blindly support everything about it, not to mention more new players--->new players enjoy game--->more money--->game continues on for years to come. It's a win-win situation.

Further, I've also expressed my annoyance in the past regarding those who don't treat Sprouts decently, because I can't stand that sort of elitism. If what you were saying were true, I and others would be doing the exact opposite. I only take issue with those who come to a game that is heavily story based and insist it shouldn't be. That is lit "expecting the game to cater to you", and I don't know how you can argue otherwise in any sort of good faith.

It wasn't you who were being weird about this, there were a few posts that were not constructive, and just one sentence. Go play something else. It has been happening possibly for while now, in many threads where someone doesn't like for example the summoner changes and were sad to see their dots be taken they mentioned that it was what they enjoyed about the class. Of course there were similar people saying go play something else if you don't like it. There was nothing else said. Just that and the people disperse like a cloud after their contribution of just don't play this game it isn't for you. That did help the op who was expressing they would be sad to see their class changed in such a massive way and that they would have to get use to the new one, but they were worried what other classes they enjoy playing may also be changed in such a way. Sure telling someone maybe this game isn't for you may need to be said to some who may have sunk cost because god its hard to leave things and not realize their as bad as they were. It is like a friend who wont get out an abusive relationship, so it isn't bad to tell people if they legitimately hate everything about the game don't force it on yourself, but this is not where these people are coming from they just pump and dump the edgy one liners and never return.

Haukke Manor was meant to be another display of the Ascians' nefarious manipulations - the only reason that women ended up a murderous voidsent was because they sent her down that path. It was never meant to be a mustache-twirling, "I burned down an orphanage and drowned a sack of puppies, and now I'll blow up Ul'Dah, I'm so eeeevil" situation. If that's what you think it should have been for it to be "important", we'll just have to disagree.

It was really a bad example, I know it would be something hard to remove. I am just a bit sad because I wanted it to be given more time. I kind of liked the spooky atmosphere and the lead up besides the flaky individuals who thought they knew something, but 'ooops' I was mistaken thing that happens alot. Until finally you get the third person to speak up who knew the exact place where to find the evidence and the eyeball that would inevitably lead you to where you wished to go. It wasn't just that one instance. It is when that happens constantly. I was feeling like I was being misled at every turn on purpose just to have to extra quests. Go to this guy he knows where you need to go. No he doesn't he tells me the wrong things possibly on purpose. Sure later some fetch quests become very important later.

But I honestly did not like going to someone being told "I don't know anything, buuuut I do know someone who might. Please get me 7 flowers and I'll tell you heh heh" I think the worst was the women lying about the 'elementals' tell her she couldn't speak to the ala mihgans in quarrymill. Just so you have to go back and forth like playing telephone. If only I could use this excuse to not help everyone in Eorzea. They took many quests out and wish to find a list because it was so much longer. Part of me is sad to see them go, because there were some silly world building. I am a bit torn because I like the story, and enjoy learning more about it. I think I was just getting very overwelmed.

I will still never enjoy getting grandma her millions of flowers but the story around it is not what I have a problem with. Handing out pretzels, handing out uniforms, handing out cookies, handing out tea to little ala mihgo so they can spit on you and than later the young kid tries to kill you. I know he has a redemption arc, but I would have been more happy with a little less doing everything. Post stormblood does this well. You actually see people doing things, you play them through the echo visions. It is amazing. It isn't just someone telling you "yeah the scions are helping I sware, now go do exactly what we were suppose to be doing."

It was sitting there picking up rocks that each took a while, and that the game spawns fates and high level hunt targets next to the locations you need to go. It wasn't just getting grandma flowers it was piling frustrations of being treated poorly by the many character in the game. I may feel differently when playing through in japanese. My partner really loved the whole thing. After hearing the difference in personality for minfilia and y'shtola between the two some of my frustration may have been a lost in translation kind of thing. Maybe everyone really weren't talking down to you in old english.

I'm a little miffed that I need to repeat myself here, but the devs only put the story skip (very reluctantly) on the store because they know there would be some people who don't care about the story and just want to play with friends. I'm sure higher ups in SE also pushed for it because they want money, but the FFXIV devs genuinely are proud of what they made and want people to experience it as intended. Why wouldn't they? A few issues I have with story beats here and there aside, they've made something good, and they should be proud of it. It isn't some tinfoil hat conspiracy as you claim, and I say that as someone who most certainly isn't an optimist - realist, more like.

If the devs "disrespected their story" as you say, they would just toss it all, focus less on it, make it so you can do it in any disjointed order, not make call backs to older content ("hey, remember when such and such happened?"), etc. So, in other words... the exact opposite of your assertions.

This is fair. It was just one line of thought that may or may not have been true. I know square doesn't care about it. They just care about the money making. As seen with FF15 they will quickly abandon and jump ship whenever they could. Also taking the poor lead writer and throwing him on a separate project. I do also know yoshi-p was against the mogstation in the first place, so it wasn't entirely a fair assertion. It could be seen like that for someone who doesn't know the information, which a new person coming in to the game will not look up every bit of news surrounding many things they will just see the skip potion and wonder why its there if it isn't because they have lack of faith in their story.

I've already addressed the catering thing (again...) but here we go.
The problem is you went into the game with the wrong mindset as others like the OP have done, and saw the story as an obstacle (addressed this before too... but w/e) to be overcome, rather than a major part of the game. Your experience was soured from the get go, and as I've said before, there are players with your exact opposite result - they regretted skipping because they had no idea what was going on, why it mattered, thus had no investment in anything, and only realised what they had been missing upon doing New Game +.

If you still enjoy the game, good! I've said before and will scream it til the cows come home that I have no issue with people who find things they enjoy enough to stick around. None. However, when they start insisting that the game would be better by stripping what made the game endure and grow for years from it... that's when I take issue.

EDIT: It bears further mentioning that an investment in "seeing what happens next" in a story is more likely to retain players these days than an MMO with no/little/poor story, so... there's that. The fact the devs encourage players to take breaks as well to prevent burnout, and to come back later is a good thing, despite what others have argued in the past. Burnout jades players and makes them less likely to ever return, or they'll return at a much later date than they would otherwise.

I never did. I never came in with any sort of mindset, other than being excited to explore the world. My parents love final fantasy and got me into it, and they suggested I try the mmo so we could all play together. I made my character and was only on the free trial. That soon changed when I seen how pretty gridania was, the music, went to make a party. Oh whelp, I am just going to buy the game. That way we can play together. I went through the story with no pre conceived notions only that I was excited to explore and learn the lore of this world, but after the fifth time I felt like I was being extorted by some of the characters, talked down to even after killing multiple primals. I was learning that this entire world everyone was untrustworthy and they needed me to constantly prove myself even to people who should know who I was. It was like playing in someone elses roleplay and the GM was just starting to make stuff up just to make the plot longer.

It is much different now, when watching my brother go through the story I am seeing many many things have been removed. I think I would have been less upset going through the story as it is now. I also have personal issues with being forced to do something, but that is on me. I wasn't feeling that the story was in the way of the game it was the bulk of the game, and I had plenty of time to take breaks and go through it. I wasn't in a rush to get to end game. I still am not. There is just a huge difference in much of the story quality. In one aspect one writer respects you and has faith you will make the necessary connections with subtle hints, character depth like the entire ninja story line and rogue story line. Than there is one writer that thinks I am big dumb and need paragraphs of information because I am big dumb and need even the simplest of plot threads need to be explained and by golly they will explain them even if you don't want them too. This is just my personal feelings. It is the reason being forced to do the titan grind a second time in ivalice and again to unlock the new game plus will never be done. I am not a monkey and I will not dance. Sorry. Some of it is not good.