DT writing is not even the biggest problem XIV has right now.

[Raven2014]

JP Raiders. Big difference. There is a reason JP savage clear rates are about 2x as big as NA/EU.

You're been throwing A LOT of accusation so far in this thread. Mind providing some proof? Otherwise I don't want some people may just take what you say for grant and spread unnecessarily missinformation.

And when I say proof, I meant "proof", not hearsay.

[WaxSw]

JP Raiders. Big difference. There is a reason JP savage clear rates are about 2x as big as NA/EU.

Because they precisely engage with all the content.
It is widely known that if there is a region with people willing to try everything is JP. They have more clear rates of literally everything so I fail to see why the logic behind the accusation

[Miki_L]

And during EW some JP said there was TOO much stuff to do. Because when a patch release they felt obligated to do all of it at once. Whereas in NA and EU, we have a pretty defeatist attitude where we won't even engage in a piece of content if we think it might be too difficult or boring. It's why people play for years without tackling even an Extreme, even though Extremes are really not that much of a challenge. Just the idea that it is "harder" content is enough to dissuade people. Happens even on the higher end, where people woujld grind the boring Pandaemonium raids and not even step a foot into the legitimately fun Criterions because a bunch of influencers said Criterion was pointless.

But it's still an international game and the developers need to design it for Westerners in mind. So releasing more content with the idea that not everybody will touch it, and the people who are afraid of burning out because they want to do everything just need to learn to chill out.

[TDawnstar]

They have more clear rates of literally everything so I fail to see why the logic behind the accusation

Well, for starters, they objectively have more outreach than non-JP players. And some of them are extremely vocal on JP social media, posting stuff that is apparently not always nice. (this is from a documentary aired in Japan, it talks about FFXVI release, but the same reportedly happens for FFXIV as well).

Now, about the raiders in particular, let's do a little thought experiment: imagine that you have to do some kind of additional activity besides MSQ to unlock savage. An attunement quest, a gearing-up effort that involves more than crafting a 710 set and run normal for 710 blue gear, some reputations to unlock etc. That kind of measures would not be popular with some raiders, because for them, it would take time from raiding to do these "chores". How would they react? Well, essentially, see above.

These people love raiding (and there is nothing wrong with that), but the thing is, the raids are developed at the expense of other types of content. And that's where the twist comes: since JP players run Savage much more than EU/NA players, SE sees no qualms about persisting in this logic. The problem is that they turn off a lot of players in EU/NA in the process.

[TDawnstar]

Whereas in NA and EU, we have a pretty defeatist attitude where we won't even engage in a piece of content if we think it might be too difficult or boring.

I'd like to nuance that a bit, being an EU defeatist :P

First, IMHO, it's okay to do or not do a certain type of content in game. I personally believe that a good MMORPG must be open to everybody and offer content for hardcore and casual players, who then can choose the content they wish to experience.

Second, I think there is a huge issue with how gear and rewards are tuned in FFXIV. Some players (I don't know if they are a majority or not) like playing to improve their character's power. The success of a lot of recent gachas, for example, rests a lot upon that fact (except that you can P2W your way in). FFXIV does an abysmal job at that. Cosmetics alone aren't enough after a while. (GW2, for example, attempted to solve the issue with the Mastery system to keep players going).

[TDawnstar]

You're been throwing A LOT of accusation so far in this thread.

WDYM by a lot? I have been saying essentially one thing: that JP raiders is the population that is the most catered to by Square Enix and that they are unwilling to make changes that would upset them too much.

The problem is: the Savage clearing rates between JP and non-JP are about 2x as big (see for example, here - there should be a more recent set but I doubt it will change the situation substantially). So, we have a huge disparity between JP and non-JP in terms of content they do. JP raiders may be excited about better encounter mechanics announced by YoshiP for 7.2+ (whatever that means) and 2 new ultimates, but most non-JP players will never run them.

At the same time, the non-raiding content designed to keep casual players busy has been consistently skimped on. Island sanctuary received mixed feedback, and roulettes can only get you so far before players turn their attention on something else.

Now, why doesn't SE develop more non-raiding casual content? Well, for starters, because they are clearly extremely undermanned, as SE considers FFXIV as their cash cow which is used to bring money but not investing back into it. And second: because the moment they will touch raid content, they will brush the JP raiders the wrong way, and they are a significant part of JP players (see above).

[Raven2014]

WDYM by a lot? I have been saying essentially one thing: that JP raiders is the population that is the most catered to by Square Enix and that they are unwilling to make changes that would upset them too much.

Because what you claim here go way beyond just a mere claim.

We are talking actual death threats to developers (and I'm talking about SHB/EW times, not the DT release).
Essentially, these people consider that if they only have X hours per week to play because of work and other obligations, then the others should do the same. Worse, they assume that these "others" should also be raiding savage and ulti.

Because:

The problem is: the Savage clearing rates between JP and non-JP are about 2x as big (see for example, here - there should be a more recent set but I doubt it will change the situation substantially). So, we have a huge disparity between JP and non-JP in terms of content they do. JP raiders may be excited about better encounter mechanics announced by YoshiP for 7.2+ (whatever that means) and 2 new ultimates, but most non-JP players will never run them.

At the same time, the non-raiding content designed to keep casual players busy has been consistently skimped on. Island sanctuary received mixed feedback, and roulettes can only get you so far before players turn their attention on something else.

Now, why doesn't SE develop more non-raiding casual content? Well, for starters, because they are clearly extremely undermanned, as SE considers FFXIV as their cash cow which is used to bring money but not investing back into it. And second: because the moment they will touch raid content, they will brush the JP raiders the wrong way, and they are a significant part of JP players (see above).

Is a fantastic example of what I meant by conjecture and heresay.

[TDawnstar]

Is a fantastic example of what I meant by conjecture and heresay.

You DO realize that in order for it to not be hearsay, one would have to have access to SE's internal documents and databases, right? So we can only deduce stuff from what transpires into the public.

[Raven2014]

You DO realize that in order for it to not be hearsay, one would have to have access to SE's internal documents and databases, right? So we can only deduce stuff from what transpires into the public.

So you admit it's just hearsay?

Alright that's the answer I need. That's what I already suspect at the start.

I just want you to admit so other read your post don't take it as fact and fall into the same vitriol. It's not healthy.

[TDawnstar]

So you admit it's just hearsay?

It's not hearsay, it's a hypothesis formulated using publicly available information. And even if I somehow had access to SE's internal info, I sure as heck wouldn't post it on SE's forums.

I just want you to admit so other read your post don't take it as fact and fall into the same vitriol. It's not healthy.

I already saw two MMORPGs I was playing almost ran into the ground by devs who thought they knew everything better. I'd rather not see a third.