Review of 6.3 Story Content

[RobynDaBank]

Yes, the little Lala made a dumb point. Yes, the little Lala's accusation was pathetic. But please, leave him alone, he just ran head first into a wall and clearly didn't know any better. He's probably very fresh and feels like a pimp.

Keeping my Lalafell avatar aside - this really isn't about virtual races - this is easily the most grating way I've seen someone speak.

[Kazhar]

Don't forget Anima. The fact that they showed it off should've been a clue it wasn't going to be a trial. They tend to keep those things to themselves.

How the hell should have it been a clue it wasn't going to be a trial? This was literally the only time they didn't spoil the first two trials before release. They even had to change their wording in the EN website because it originally said "New trials".
You could predict that it was all a red herring, but it's hard to blame the community for it because Square Enix were being intentionally misleading. (They revealed Anima at the same schedule they revealed Titania and they never hyped dungeon bosses with Fanfest artworks before EW.)

[Zanarkand-Ronso]

How the hell should have it been a clue it wasn't going to be a trial? This was literally the only time they didn't spoil the first two trials before release. They even had to change their wording in the EN website because it originally said "New trials".
You could predict that it was all a red herring, but it's hard to blame the community for it because Square Enix were being intentionally misleading. (They revealed Anima at the same schedule they revealed Titania and they never hyped dungeons bosses with fanfest artworks before EW.)

Im still mad Anima was a Dungeon Boss.
I was SO HYPED for Anima to being an FFX fanboy (its literally in my stupid name!) and my hopes for a cool trial..were met with disappointment T_T

[Alleo]

I didn't look any of them up. You have to be completely disjointed from the story to not know what an x.3 patch has been in the past. They are big finale patches except 2.3 which is more out of the norm for just being a build up and not a finale. Not the ops alt but just proving a point that the patch cycle has been well structured and we are in a giant filler phase.

Well unlike other expansions which used their patches as a way to end the story of that expansion, Endwalker was done with 6.0. Now the patches are there to work towards 7.0. Of course it would feel different thanks to that. On top of that the first huge plot is finally resolved.

Did you guys really think that they would get us to the next story in a blink of the eye?

I love that they take their time for this but I am also one that enjoys smaller adventures too.

Also why would this be filler? We have absolutely no idea how the stuff that is happening right now will affect the world and thus 7.0. And even if it was completely self contained, I am sad that smaller complete adventures seems to count as filler..even when it builds the world the characters live in even more.

[aveyond-dreams]

If all you can say is "Be Patient! IT WILL GET BETTER IN SEVEN POINT OH!" then the complaints still stand.

A lot has happened in this thread but this in particular did stand out to me. At this point 7.0 is not a definite purchase for me anymore given all we've seen in terms of writing this expansion and there's no excuse for the complete and total destruction of my goodwill over the past year due to the constant mismanagement of the world and its lore, not to mention the backstabbing and backwards development of the characters I enjoyed.

Pandaemonium's end is this game's last chance to demonstrate that it's still worth taking seriously. Hiroi will either prove himself capable of delivering on a satisfying conclusion to the likeable and more relatable characters he has already created but if he does not, there's no point in hoping for much else. Mind you, this is based on the assumption he isn't involved with the Zero arc/patch MSQ which all evidence points to being still in the hands of "junior writers" that have yet to impress. I enjoyed Void Ark which was written by him but given how many years ago that was, I am choosing to proceed with caution and judge him based off this which is his more recent work.

How he will go about fixing the wreck his predecessor made of FFXIV universe lore will be something to see. Hopefully he shoves the catboy back in a locker where he belongs and completely sidesteps any of the sort of grandiose philosophical babbling that EW has suffered from persistently. Who knows, maybe we'll be surprised by a party of charismatic sky pirates having a go at each other in 7.0, some of that and some decent antagonists/zones with the scions dead and buried and I think I'll have very little to find fault with.

If his goal is to make me "feel" something then I hope he relies on things actually happening in the story as opposed to EW being carried by music cues and the false assumption that I would simply accept a bunch of stagnant characters as my alleged "friends" when the Convocation was objectively better and more the types I'd like to hang out with. No one in the right mind would choose a Y'shtola over a Loghrif, or at least one that actually chose the correct ending to her tragic love story as opposed to coffee biscuits. Or an Alphinaud over an Emet-Selch, for that matter. If I'm going to be plowing through countries left and right better to do it with the more engaging character than the preachy one.

[BaconBits]

I have no real thoughts other than this being a massive missed opportunity to give Cyella and Unukalhai a moment to shine.

Sucks that their only real involvement in the story is locked behind optional content :/.

[Deveryn]

Well unlike other expansions which used their patches as a way to end the story of that expansion, Endwalker was done with 6.0. Now the patches are there to work towards 7.0. Of course it would feel different thanks to that. On top of that the first huge plot is finally resolved.

Did you guys really think that they would get us to the next story in a blink of the eye?

I love that they take their time for this but I am also one that enjoys smaller adventures too.

Also why would this be filler? We have absolutely no idea how the stuff that is happening right now will affect the world and thus 7.0. And even if it was completely self contained, I am sad that smaller complete adventures seems to count as filler..even when it builds the world the characters live in even more.

This. ^

They told us we would have the main conclusion to the H/Z saga with 6.0. Now we're in an epilogue and 7.0 sounds like it will be a proper new beginning. The 13th has been a loose end that's needed tying up for some time now and they made it clear in Shadowbringers that it would be a destination.

[CStrife912]

I find it interesting how the OP keeps hammering the same points on and on and using words like philosophical without really going into much depth about what about was said is deemed that way. If you tell me I have to look at other threads to get your opinion then no thanks just explain it in this one. I actually want the story to bomb now so you can leave but then I doubt we will even get that courtesy. The thing is the story will have to hit a low point again its inevitable, you can't keep one upping yourself every time. Having a soft reset and something more grounded will likely mean less stakes, less drama (depending on circumstance) I deem Stormblood the weakest story wise but gameplay and like content types some of the best. I love jrpgs as a whole so I will be here playing till I find it no longer enjoyable. I can't see that happening anytime soon as I plan to New Game+ when 7.0 comes out to re-experience the past in somewhat improved visuals.

[IkaraGreydancer]

I find it interesting how the OP keeps hammering the same points on and on and using words like philosophical without really going into much depth about what about was said is deemed that way. If you tell me I have to look at other threads to get your opinion then no thanks just explain it in this one. I actually want the story to bomb now so you can leave but then I doubt we will even get that courtesy. The thing is the story will have to hit a low point again its inevitable, you can't keep one upping yourself every time. Having a soft reset and something more grounded will likely mean less stakes, less drama (depending on circumstance) I deem Stormblood the weakest story wise but gameplay and like content types some of the best. I love jrpgs as a whole so I will be here playing till I find it no longer enjoyable. I can't see that happening anytime soon as I plan to New Game+ when 7.0 comes out to re-experience the past in somewhat improved visuals.

It's hilarious that the one complaining about preachy characters actually likes particular preachy characters and....get this...is one of the most preachy people who's ever posted in these forums.

[Jojoya]

Considering the entirety of this expansion ended technically at 6.0 the build up is super super slow. This patch does feel very underwhelming compared to the other x.3 patches. And I understand why people feel that its not up to snuff because of it. Its different than what we are used to. We aren't getting sidequest trials anymore. This is the main story. Nothing of this is a side quest. But it feels like one to alot of us. I'm hoping it builds up. I want it to be explosive.

This is supposed to be the wind down and relax after saving the Source and Reflections period. It's not supposed to be explosive.

I think people missed where YoshiP talked about using shorter story arcs for the MSQ for a while. They're intended to be shorter so there's not going to be the massive build up that the Hydaelyn/Zodiark arc had.

I also wouldn't be surprised if the "major event" promised to happen in 6.55 has nothing to do with the current story arc at all.

Personally, I'd recommend relaxing and just enjoying the MSQ ride while it's set to Adventurer mode instead of World Savior mode. If anything is going to be exploding, it will be Pandemonium. The end of Abyssos did leave us with a big "wtf just happened?" that we need explained.