So is there anything good about Dawntrail at all?

[HeyMcFly]

almost all of the zones were beautiful (except the cyberpunk one- it was big, boring and empty)
The trials & dungeons are great
The artifact gear is great imo- it looks so much better in game than I expected
AST card changes are tonedeaf (except the card descriptions)

I stayed off of the forums until now bc I knew the forums would be a circle jerk of hate.
So this is just my opinion Minor spoilers-

The pacing of the MSQ feels odd & I felt like I was rushed through each zone, given very little catching up with others to do & at the end, suddenly during a very serious conflict NOW we're taking our time to stop & enjoy the scenery & goof off? At the end, It was incredibly disjointed, as if now we're pumping the breaks. There were some good moments in the MSQ that I very much enjoyed- At times I enjoyed wuk lamat's character but I found myself more & more wanting her to be quiet. I lost interest by the final zone & zoned out for the remainder (except the milala area, that was interesting!)

[CuteBucket]

So is there anything good to look forward to from DT?

I greatly disliked the story this time around, but I'm not going to say that it's literally all bad. There's a lot of hyperbole going around on both sides of "IT SUCKS IT'S THE WORST EVER" or "IT'S GREAT I LOVE IT HOW DARE YOU BE SO NEGATIVE." Typical black and white internet mob thinking. There are some good character moments in here...on occasion...if you're willing to sift through to get to them. The zones themselves are (mostly) beautiful and I enjoyed the music and game play. I liked exploring the new zones and learning about the new cultures. If you like Erenville, there's some really nice moments with him in the second half. Your enjoyment is going to vary somewhat by what common anime character tropes you find enjoyable or intolerable. But if anyone here hasn't finished the MSQ, PLEASE I BEG OF YOU, stop looking at the forums, and don't let other people influence your perspective of the MSQ. I purposely stayed off social media and here before I finished it. Turns out, I didn't like it. But decide how much you like or dislike it for yourself, at your own pace.

[Reinha]

Solution 9 is so gorgeous! I can see myself chilling here vibing to the music for the next two years. Wish we could fly outside the market area though.

The music as a whole was very good this expansion. There was the one Disney song I didn't like, but that was the only one.

I'm also really happy about the two dye system and some hairstyles that got updated graphics. Can't wait to get more of those! Hrothgals were a nice addition too and I love seeing so many of them in cities.

The highlight for me has been viper. Such a fun job to play and twin swords is one of the coolest weapon types.

[TaleraRistain]

The mechanics in the dungeons and trials are fun as heck. And the world-building in Tural was fantastic.

[BunnyQueen]

I loved the first half of it. 2nd half not so much.

[NovaStella]

Things I've enjoyed:
Learning how new skills fit into the existing job kit.
The graphics update! It's gorgeous!
All of the new zones have been really interesting.
The encounter designs have been engaging and quite fun!
The story has been a fun change of pace from "world is in danger". You get to learn about a new area with new people and new lore. A lot of the side quests also add information about the areas, they're worth doing!
Glasses! We have a glasses slot!

Honestly it's been a lot of fun. Don't worry about people wanting to hate everything and just enjoy the game.
And honestly, so far Wuk Lamat has been a cute character. A bit naive and arrogant at first, but so were Alphinaud and Estinien and no one is complaining that they're ruining the expansion.

[Gilihere]

I mean combat feels great in general, in pve some of the revised mechanics are very interesting (looking at you ex1 tankbuster, you are cool) and some QoL stuff within the combat system feels pretty great even if you get lag spikes.
Graphical update is pretty great, old surfaces look amazing, for instance crystal tower looks superb, open world zones look great as well.
I guess thats it, hopefully this is a sort of an ARR style reboot

[Nabril]

Never read the forums unless you're prepared for negativity. I found all sorts of haters on the forums saying that the mount tilt is giving everyone motion sickness, the expansion sucks, the main NPC sucks, graphics update sucks, etc. I go look up all of that stuff on YouTube and the comments were all positive with people that love everything- including the mount tilt. The forums have become a dumping ground for negativity.

[Eloah]

People just want to complain for the "thrill" it seems. The story was good, disjointed in some instances, but what story isn't. I mean, as cute as the Loporrits are most people would say that part dragged in Endwalker, yet no one hates them. Plus, this was all new information, being given to us, to lay the groundwork for the next 10 years. Of course some of it might feel boring.

I think what most people are butt-hurt over, is that they are no longer the star of the show. Which is something we knew going into the expansion. I'm not going to say I loved every moment, but the way you see others talk, you'd think this expansion gave them cancer or something.

It's the age old adage of, "it's different, so it sucks". Until something even more different comes along, than it's perfect. People can be so confusing.

[Nabril]

It's the age old adage of, "it's different, so it sucks". Until something even more different comes along, than it's perfect. People can be so confusing.

That is exactly what the complaints about the graphics update are all about. It changed faces so subtly that you need a before and after shot with a magnifying glass and a pixel by pixel comparison to find them, but that's enough to spark a megathread and other smaller threads of hate for the update.

Try as I might, I can't find anything to hate about my own character. His eyebrows look slightly different. There might be a pixel or two that are different now. Honestly, he looks great!