Why is SE promoting Solo-Players so much??

[Kaedan]

I guess people are completely ignoring the fact that you get bonus SP from being in a party. And you can get hella SP from doing leve-linking and behests.

Afterall, those aren't incentives to party at all. >.>

[Fabijansven]

You can't cater to a group dynamic without first understanding the individual. Shortcuts in this regard produce bad results. This goes both ways.

Also, I don't know if you get out in the virtual social scene much, but the layout of the world lends itself to group play. Its difficult to see if you're used to every other mmo out there, but the game only seems to focus on solo players, but in actuality, it is story based content that you are likely misjudging as 'solo' candy. And yet, in a way it really is solo appeasement... but, if you didn't like playing the game alone by your computer (aka solo) then you wouldn't like the game.

hmmm my english aint that good so i needed like 5 times reading this lol,
but first: i didnt judge any content (at least i think so :P ) i more likely said what content i miss and we all look forward to the next patches beeing this content ,
second: this is my 3rd mmo (first ffxi, later till now eve online)
and third: maybe i have 5 other ppl at my home playing ffxiv with me and thats the only reason i still play it? hahaha just kidding but seriously i would love (not only like) the game if there would be more motivation to play with other ppl, my opinion (thanks for respecting it )

@ Vesper: hmmm well with "if u make it right" i ment even please the ones that dont have that much time and still dont have solo play (thats why i wrote "sounds weird" infront ) fun idea isnt it? thats surely hardcore to accomplish but its success would only depend on how its carried out and how ppl like it not existing of the option in itself.

[PandaTaru]

hmmm my english aint that good so i needed like 5 times reading this lol,
but first: i didnt judge any content (at least i think so :P ) i more likely said what content i miss and we all look forward to the next patches beeing this content ,
second: this is my 3rd mmo (first ffxi, later till now eve online)
and third: maybe i have 5 other ppl at my home playing ffxiv with me and thats the only reason i still play it? hahaha just kidding but seriously i would love (not only like) the game if there would be more motivation to play with other ppl, my opinion (thanks for respecting it )

What you failed to understand is that, there is a need of content for players like you that enjoy party play, and there is also a need for players who don't have the time, or will, to seek up for parties and would prefer soloing most part of the game. If both type of players can play along in the same game, the company that make such a game gets more money and it (could) also means more potential people for players that like to party to team up with.

[Fleur]

Personally I do not find this game to be "too" solo friendly when it comes to battle classes. While you can solo grind or do leves by yourself, it is simply more efficient to gain SP in a leve/grind party, which makes a big difference at higher ranks. Heck, I'm R40+ and I can't make progress at a decent rate except in parties! Which, I might add, don't just magically appear whenever I feel like playing. >.<

Personally, I find the disparity between "solo-friendly-ness" at lower/mid ranks vs. higher ranks to be a bit much. Players might start out in the game and get used to not needing to party, then at higher ranks when they kinda need to they aren't used to it.

As for why solo players still like MMO's . . . maybe due to RL they just can't often do activities with other players, but still enjoy the less scheduled and time-intensive social aspects such as chatting? And I don't remember where I saw this said, but I agree that in an MMO, "other players are content"!

[Verecund]

They need to focus on making content interesting, fun, and dynamic enough to play. Nerfing party SP wouldn't be so bad if the game was actually 'continuously fun' to play, solo or party.

Do not be confused: them nerfing party SP had nothing to do with favoring solo play over party play, and it sure didn't improve the experience of playing the game. (Hell, they probably did it to add a thicker gate for keeping people from too quickly hitting the level cap... but honestly, I wouldn't care about that at all if the content was fun enough and had a high replay value... and yes, I am using more than just 'WoW' as a benchmark for what is fun in a game)

[Iggy]

Personally I do not find this game to be "too" solo friendly when it comes to battle classes. While you can solo grind or do leves by yourself, it is simply more efficient to gain SP in a leve/grind party, which makes a big difference at higher ranks. Heck, I'm R40+ and I can't make progress at a decent rate except in parties! Which, I might add, don't just magically appear whenever I feel like playing. >.<

Personally, I find the disparity between "solo-friendly-ness" at lower/mid ranks vs. higher ranks to be a bit much. Players might start out in the game and get used to not needing to party, then at higher ranks when they kinda need to they aren't used to it.

As for why solo players still like MMO's . . . maybe due to RL they just can't often do activities with other players, but still enjoy the less scheduled and time-intensive social aspects such as chatting? And I don't remember where I saw this said, but I agree that in an MMO, "other players are content"!

I know a few months ago before the sp adjustment, it was more efficient to solo grind on c/doblyns than it was to party, but then they upped party SP and nerfed coblyn HP. What do people solo grind on now? No one really talks about grinding on anything else except coblyns, and I assume they aren't doing that now.

Except for leves, I don't see a solo option for DoW/DoM (and really leves are better linked anyway). So even though solo is an option right now, it isn't really a good one.

[Fabijansven]

lol guess ure right Fleur and like Vesper said theres much balancing to do...

@ PandaTaru well i understand what ure saying, but u have to understand that i never said delete all solo content. i ment more like please fokus on party a little more... (like they are obviously about to do)

anyways, im off to work... thanks for the fun guys, being bored at 2am often leads to weird threads, lol sry

[Warp]

The crafting classes put the final nail in the party-play coffin. Content needs to be accessible to people who play crafting classes.

[PandaTaru]

Dobs nerf was needed.. it was a huge loophole in the sp/party system. Leves are a good solo content. Anything else past that shouldn't be as easy as Dobs were before they get nerfed as it open loopholes.

Don't forget that if you solo, you play the game with the some facts in mind. Like the one that you're not aiming for end-game anytime soon or you're out to get huge SP gain in a short time...

[Fleur]

Indeed, crafting and gathering are solo activities. I was kind of disappointed that you can't form a gathering party and get some sort of bonus. ;_;

I know a few months ago before the sp adjustment, it was more efficient to solo grind on c/doblyns than it was to party, but then they upped party SP and nerfed coblyn HP. What do people solo grind on now? No one really talks about grinding on anything else except coblyns, and I assume they aren't doing that now.

Except for leves, I don't see a solo option for DoW/DoM (and really leves are better linked anyway). So even though solo is an option right now, it isn't really a good one.

I also find solo grinding to be pretty lousy. Kill yellow mob solo = 250 sp vs Kill raptor in party = 350 sp (with less time/effort). I've found that diremites, sphene doblyns, etc near the entrance to the ferries and around the Footfalls in Thanalan are ok, and the areas near Widow Cliffs in La Noscea looks like a nice spot for late R40's. But still, nowhere near as good as partying, and I have no idea what others grind on alone.