Anyone else just feeling really disapointed this expansion?*vent*

[OdinelStarrei]

I wouldn't be negative if I didn't start in mid-Heavensward and see what the developers were capable of, and how they were improving the gameplay each patch/expansion instead of regressing it.

I wouldn't be negative if Square Enix hadn't deliberately ignored years of feedback for the West regarding community conflicts (BA), ping issues that makes jobs unplayable, or haphazard bandaids with overhauls to jobs or systems that no one asked for. (Housing/almost every rework since 4.1)

I wouldn't be negative if there was more upfront transparency in how the game systems work, so I wouldn't be forced too ask around in discord servers and third party websites just to determine what substat tiering is, or what damage type basic attacks are in this game.

I wouldn't be negative if my trust in Square Enix to deliver a compelling gameplay experience(I am playing a video game, after all) wasn't constantly being undermined by absolutely pathetic, braindead normal content, and excruciating savage (door bosses) and ultimate content with zero middle ground or due to the 2 minute burst windows, no room for skill expression outside of rote memorization. With an occasional unreasonable, and frankly, unhealthy grind layered in there somewhere. (Hunt mounts/Pternadon).

I wouldn't be negative if the plot threads that I was a huge fan of in SB and ShB have essentially been written off or totally discarded in Endwalker lieu of void adventures that honestly, should involve Unukalhai, Cylva, and the role quest team on the First, and not the Scions. That is their world to save, and I think Uunukalhai and especially Cylva would do well with a true redemption arc to pull their world back from total destruction. I would've waited until like, 8.0 to see that pan out. Come in as the seasoned veteran and mentor to a new team trying to salvage a shard, in contrast to ARR - SB adventure turning into hero arc that we were used to. I always imagined of the day where I'd be storming the Emperor's throne room with Maxima and the Proletariat, forcing another confrontation with those dual bosses from Ghimlyt, but that room is just a side piece to an elevator that brings you to Anima. I will never get these moments, and it was my folly to even think like that.

I wouldn't be negative if Square Enix's job philosophy did not become "Remove to Improve" and "literally destroy all the skill ceilings" for whatever reason. I played non-meta jobs at points in this games lifetime that have had more originality, more meaningful gameplay choices, and more opportunities to demonstrate class understanding. That is mostly removed now. PLDs, DRGs, and ASTs (again), get comfortable. You're the next jobs to be butchered.

I wouldn't be negative if my preferred side-content, Exploration content, hadn't been removed come Endwalker, with some of those gameplay environments being entirely riddled with bots, something Square Enix also refuses to even try to mitigate by altering the reward structures or introducing methods into the game to stem the flow of the bot apocalypse that is underpinning the game, delegitimizing the economy and ruining Eureka in particular for newer players. The STF is worthless. Island Sanctuary is not battle content, does not allow me to experiment, and therefore I do not find it interesting or engaging even with the limited attention I give it.

I wouldn't be negative if Endwalker's failure to expand on Shadowbringers gameplay and systems like how Stormblood tried to expand on Heavensward didn't happen, and instead extended and doubled down on things a lot of people disagreed with and added more jenga blocks to an already unstable tower. This is not refinement, this is regurgitation. This has lead to my entire old FC pretty much quitting the game, much of my CWLS going dark, and losing connections with people who I have played with, argued with, laughed with, for years, citing that they are no longer happy with the direction of the jobs, or the game itself. My most recent one said " I cannot watch them butcher PLD with the rework like they did with the others. That's not the game I signed up for. This game isn't for me anymore." Smart guy.

Had Dark Knight not get absolutely lobotomized the way that it did, I probably would not find myself on this path of hating the game that has essentially been my home in a world and a life that is destroying itself day after day. Because I'd still be having fun at a fundamental level, instead of logging in and being absolutely dismayed at the state of the game currently, and of it's trajectory.

People will not agree with me, and that's a good thing. They are able to take the game at face value, not integrate themselves too deeply, and enjoy it for what it is, whatever that may be, and not what it was. I cannot see what they see, I am incapable of it now. My memories of late Heavensward through late Stormblood are too bright. Seeing people enjoy FFXIV in it's current state is physically repulsive, and it disgusts me. It is not their fault, it is because I remember when I was also enjoying things, and when I trusted Square Enix to deliver me a compelling gameplay experience. But after years of my hopes being dashed, I can no longer bring myself to trust them. I do not hate CBIII, they do good work mostly, except for the people in the job design team. I do not like them after what they have done to the combat systems.

For those who can remain blissful, I envy them, for I can very rarely harness true enjoyment from this game anymore.

For those who are able to leave, or already have, I envy them. For I cannot. Sunk cost, mental hangups, the works. I put too much investment in trying to get Blood Weapon and Living Dead working properly and clearing content.

I'm tired of seeing people tear each other apart over differing opinions. It doesn't matter. No one is going to change their mind, because people aren't wired to do that once they've been conditioned in their subjective, personal experiences. People are not that self-reflective on average. If someone tells me, "Well, I'm having fun, and so are millions of other people" I just don't get it, because I don't know millions of people. I just know me, and my friends who aren't here anymore. This is not a "wow im so much better than the sheeple" opinion. This is a "My perspective is outright irreconcilable to a sizable portion of people, and it probably works the other way around as well." opinion. "Get some perspective", real interesting hearing that from a forum that constantly refuses to engage in simple empathy for anyone but their own side and sling frequent one-liner gotchas designed to hurt others. "Screw the other side, they're my enemy, hope they are miserable." I myself am guilty of this. The lines in the sand have been drawn for a long time.

Yes, I am disappointed in Endwalker.
No, I don't think there's anything I can ever do about it.
We can never go home.