2024 is going to be FF14's last chance to tackle its stagnating formula (PC Gamer)

[Rolder50]

As others have stated, the game is fine IF you are a new player and still have a huge backlog of things to do. But for anyone that has been playing at least somewhat consistently and is more or less caught up, you really start to notice how pitiful the drip feed really is.

[reginleif-]

Usually what they want is their game experience to be what they remember from the past - filled with the excitement that comes from playing something new, and having unknowns to tackle and learn. There's a special magic that happens when a game new to us captures our attention and it's hard to resist wanting to feel that magic again.

What they still haven't figured out is they can't bring back those original feelings about a game once they've been playing it a few years. […]

That's a sore truth.

I would add that this desire can be exploited and do harm. There are two MMORPGs, Ragnarok Online and Tree of Savior. They are made by different developers, but by the same designer. At the time of the ToS release, people had been playing RO for 10 and more years and naturally grew tired of it. The same sentiments were voiced as with FFXIV now: update the graphics, renovate the mechanics, shake the formula. Tree of Savior was promoted as “the next Ragnarok Online from the author of Ragnarok Online” to pick up the audience. People came having high hopes… got bored, scolded the game, quit with a trail of grudge. It is impossible to relive the first experience twice. Cherish your memories, move forward. (Easier said than done, I admit.)

I wouldn't be surprised if some upcoming MMO gets a promotion as “a better FFXIV.”

As for the PC Gamer article, it is a hollow noise to get traffic. Note the language: many players, a portion of players, perhaps, maybe, things feel, I feel. Such vague words can be rotated safely for any agenda. Swap the tone, and the same text will be praising the game:

[…] it has been "two years of joy" for many players. Post-Endwalker patches have been subject to a hefty amount of praise, more than I ever remember during my nine years of on-and-off playing. The features Harvey outlines—emotional story, tons of casual content and an accessible relic grind—have been shared across the wider community.

[RitsukoSonoda]

That's a sore truth.

I would add that this desire can be exploited and do harm. There are two MMORPGs, Ragnarok Online and Tree of Savior. They are made by different developers, but by the same designer. At the time of the ToS release, people had been playing RO for 10 and more years and naturally grew tired of it. The same sentiments were voiced as with FFXIV now: update the graphics, renovate the mechanics, shake the formula. Tree of Savior was promoted as “the next Ragnarok Online from the author of Ragnarok Online” to pick up the audience. People came having high hopes… got bored, scolded the game, quit with a trail of grudge. It is impossible to relive the first experience twice. Cherish your memories, move forward. (Easier said than done, I admit.)

I wouldn't be surprised if some upcoming MMO gets a promotion as “a better FFXIV.”

As for the PC Gamer article, it is a hollow noise to get traffic. Note the language: many players, a portion of players, perhaps, maybe, things feel, I feel. Such vague words can be rotated safely for any agenda. Swap the tone, and the same text will be praising the game:

In FFXIV's case I feel as if the actual issue is more people are going back to wanting to actually play a game for the story like we did in the past. Where you needed to learn the systems, mechanics, and tricks to progress and see where it goes. Actually work your brain functions during gameplay instead of allowing your brain to become atrophied due to lack of use. For more and more people the game has felt as if it's been turning into a visual novel disguised as a game in the latest expansions.

[Striker44]

As others have stated, the game is fine IF you are a new player and still have a huge backlog of things to do. But for anyone that has been playing at least somewhat consistently and is more or less caught up, you really start to notice how pitiful the drip feed really is.

Except I've been playing on-and-off since 2015, and as my primary MMO for about 2.5 years now, and yet I still have a whole "backlog" of things to do, because there really is an enormous amount of content available that has been created. Of course, I also tend to only play about 1-2 hours a day, a few days a week, and rotate my time between several games (right now, Warcraft 2 user-made maps, Destiny 2, and Nier:Automata). I would easily describe my playing experience as "at least somewhat consistently" for a few years, which isn't nearly enough time for me to be anywhere close to caught up. Of course, if you're still no-lifing the game like it's 2010 when MMO's were designed to be your second "home", then yes, you're probably feeling bored. But that's because times change.