The current state of the "MMORPG" FFXIV is unsustainable. Here's why

[Zanarkand-Ronso]

Remember...CASUALs, are what make a game thrive. They will still be around playing and paying so long as they are entertained Well before the Hardcore crowd is gone. Plus there are more Casuals in the gamer Space then hardcores.
But A nice Balance is needed, for the Hardcore who want challenges, and for the Casuals who just want a fun game to play but might become hardcore as they stick with the game.
A grind here or there.

Honestly, the more people talk and harp about Explore Zones, the more Happy I am that they arnt a thing this time. Mainly because as I grow older, I have more responsibilities and dont have as much time or Energy to game. So the current way I can casually enjoy the game and work towards the next Relic step.
But ALSO, we are only on step 2. The Resistance Relic in ShB started out crap easy, and then that got its grindy steps.
Who is to say that wont happen later?

[KageTokage]

Honestly, the more people talk and harp about Explore Zones, the more Happy I am that they arnt a thing this time. Mainly because as I grow older, I have more responsibilities and dont have as much time or Energy to game. So the current way I can casually enjoy the game and work towards the next Relic step.
But ALSO, we are only on step 2. The Resistance Relic in ShB started out crap easy, and then that got its grindy steps.
Who is to say that wont happen later?

The thing is that even if it's more grindy, it's likely just going to boil down to spamming some manner of underutilized content SE wants to liven up again.

I wanted a grind in new content, not stuff I've likely already spent hours farming in previous expansions or the current one.

[Zanarkand-Ronso]

The thing is that even if it's more grindy, it's likely just going to boil down to spamming some manner of underutilized content SE wants to liven up again.

I wanted a grind in new content, not stuff I've likely already spent hours farming in previous expansions or the current one.

Sure, and I agree!
But I forgot to mention that also making such content is a pretty big undertaking, and I figure just like Hildibrand & Deep Dungeons in ShB, they took a break from doing yet another, possibly to return in the next expansion.
Personally im not against the new stuff they are trying, and I think they said they plan to improve it.

[KhudusQestir]

Remember...CASUALs, are what make a game thrive. They will still be around playing and paying so long as they are entertained Well before the Hardcore crowd is gone. Plus there are more Casuals in the gamer Space then hardcores.
But A nice Balance is needed, for the Hardcore who want challenges, and for the Casuals who just want a fun game to play but might become hardcore as they stick with the game.
A grind here or there.

This is a great post. Literally explains that casual players are great and appreciated in the game but as I pointed out, SE is feeding too much attention to the casuals only. That's also the whole point to this thread. No one is calling casuals retarded, blaming casuals or attacking casuals. Sometimes I want to play something casual when I'm more of a competitive gamer. We need relaxing gameplay and that's fine and nothing wrong with that. Yet the point is that there are players who feel this game is losing fun and excitement.

I'm also failing to see why people arguing against this so much? It's not like anyone is asking to take anything away. Just players asking for new and challenging content.

[Tehmon]

This is a great post. Literally explains that casual players are great and appreciated in the game but as I pointed out, SE is feeding too much attention to the casuals only. That's also the whole point to this thread. No one is calling casuals retarded, blaming casuals or attacking casuals. Sometimes I want to play something casual when I'm more of a competitive gamer. We need relaxing gameplay and that's fine and nothing wrong with that. Yet the point is that there are players who feel this game is losing fun and excitement.

I'm also failing to see why people arguing against this so much? It's not like anyone is asking to take anything away. Just players asking for new and challenging content.

This is such a weird post when the general consensus I've run into on different social media platforms seems to be that the devs have completely forgotten about casuals and only cater to raiders.

[True-to-Caesar]

This is such a weird post when the general consensus I've run into on different social media platforms seems to be that the devs have completely forgotten about casuals and only cater to raiders.

Yup :
- « there’s nothing meaningful to do »
- « go do savage or ultimate »

[caffe_macchiato]

Remember...CASUALs, are what make a game thrive. They will still be around playing and paying so long as they are entertained Well before the Hardcore crowd is gone. Plus there are more Casuals in the gamer Space then hardcores.

But casuals like playing a video game first and foremost. 90% of this game's casual content consists of watching cutscenes and walking to the next one. So many non-raiders have simply stopped playing this patch cycle due to the lack of engaging video game-style content. It's a shame that we can only choose between a really hard raiding game and a visual novel. The vast majority of games do not have this problem. The majority of MMOs do not have this problem, because they are video games. In his arrogance, Yoshida sought to put FFXIV above the very concept of a game. It's not sustainable at all.

Mainly because as I grow older, I have more responsibilities and dont have as much time or Energy to game.

Then only play as much as you want. No one's forcing you to play Final Fantasy XIV. Why are you asking Square Enix to shorten the amount of gameplay just so that you can get to the "ending" faster? Are you only here for a sense of accomplishment and not because you actually enjoy the gameplay?

[Zanarkand-Ronso]

No one's forcing you to play Final Fantasy XIV. Why are you asking Square Enix to shorten the amount of gameplay just so that you can get to the "ending" faster? Are you only here for a sense of accomplishment and not because you actually enjoy the gameplay?

I wish ya'll would stop doing that...putting words in my mouth and saying things I never even said.
Im not asking for SE to Shorten my gametime, Im not rushing to the end, and I dont recall ever complaining about feeling forced to play. I love this game, I log on and play everyday, not very long, but I still play.

But casuals like playing a video game first and foremost. 90% of this game's casual content consists of watching cutscenes and walking to the next one. So many non-raiders have simply stopped playing this patch cycle due to the lack of engaging video game-style content. It's a shame that we can only choose between a really hard raiding game and a visual novel. The vast majority of games do not have this problem. The majority of MMOs do not have this problem, because they are video games. In his arrogance, Yoshida sought to put FFXIV above the very concept of a game. It's not sustainable at all.

Well yeah, because if you have forgotten, FFXIV is Narrative Driven and puts lots of focus on its story. Other Games dont have this problem, because story is Secondary, or practically non-existent. FFXIV has always been this way, and its what most people LIKE about FFXIV compared to the Competition, its been sustainable for quite a long time....
And come on now, its still a videogame, there is still Plenty of Playable content, the Story may be a big driving force in this game, but its far from the only thing in this game, its far from a Visual Novel.
If you have read my post, you'd see I feel for the Raiders and think FFXIV needs a Balance for the Casuals AND the Hardcore.

[ForteNightshade]

Remember...CASUALs, are what make a game thrive. They will still be around playing and paying so long as they are entertained Well before the Hardcore crowd is gone. Plus there are more Casuals in the gamer Space then hardcores.
But A nice Balance is needed, for the Hardcore who want challenges, and for the Casuals who just want a fun game to play but might become hardcore as they stick with the game.
A grind here or there.

Honestly, the more people talk and harp about Explore Zones, the more Happy I am that they arnt a thing this time. Mainly because as I grow older, I have more responsibilities and dont have as much time or Energy to game. So the current way I can casually enjoy the game and work towards the next Relic step.
But ALSO, we are only on step 2. The Resistance Relic in ShB started out crap easy, and then that got its grindy steps.
Who is to say that wont happen later?

To be fair, this isn't inherently a "casual" vs. "hardcore" argument because content like Eureka and Bozja are not even remotely close to hardcore. In fact, both are distinctly casual. Yes, even the grind. It may be time consuming but it certainly isn't demanding anything from you. NMs and Critical Engagements are little more than FATE and dungeon bosses, respectively. The raids in Bozja and Baladesion are slightly closer to midcore on the difficulty scale but still aren't that much of a demand. It's more the sheer number of players who refused to use buffs that turned many of those bosses into damage sponges.

The real complaint isn't "omg game too casual" so much as they've made everything extremely easy to the point there's almost no possibility of failure nor is there much long term objective. Take the relic step, for example. Instead of new content, we're essentially running two days worth of roulettes. They're not far off just gifting people a free i630 weapon. Island Sanctuary is content even casual players are frustrated with because they can't engage with it for longer than five minutes after the initial novelty. "Casual" is getting thrown around here a fair bit but it would be more accurate to say the players satisfied with content right now are the extremely casual who only play a few hours a week if that or use FFXIV more as a social hub than a game because casual players who still have time to play the game have also been complaining a fair bit there isn't much to do.