Is it time to Sunset FFXIV?

[Riardon]

Let's be honest. DT was all about the graphics update and setting the modern base for the game to run another 10 years.
Now we shall see if the next expansion will focus on the things that matter.
Actual good written plot with characters that matter and gameplay.
I want to forget DT. For me it doesn't exist.

[Rinoa_353]

I think DT was meant to be a somewhat slow start to the new saga since it is suppose to be the ARR equivalent for the new saga and the next 10 years too. I'm currently working on several achievements on two characters that are my mains, so I have plenty to do. Maybe those that need something to do can create an alt and start over from ARR or take a break and play other games for now. 8.0 should see more improvements since I think PS4 support will finally end as it'll be 13 years old by then and it's holding the game back. Add ray tracing and more and this game can look modern with a 4k/UHD optional texture pack that really makes the game look modern and the story goes into higher gear like HW was after ARR.

[MaxDetroit]

I think DT was meant to be a somewhat slow start to the new saga since it is suppose to be the ARR equivalent for the new saga and the next 10 years too. I'm currently working on several achievements on two characters that are my mains, so I have plenty to do. Maybe those that need something to do can create an alt and start over from ARR or take a break and play other games for now. 8.0 should see more improvements since I think PS4 support will finally end as it'll be 13 years old by then and it's holding the game back. Add ray tracing and more and this game can look modern with a 4k/UHD optional texture pack that really makes the game look modern and the story goes into higher gear like HW was after ARR.

I think so too. Also starting with a light and fun story about exploring a "tropical paradise" and then let the story grow darker and darker over time is better then the way around, I suppose (e.g. starting on very dark tones). When does Square Enix usually anounce the bigger Addd-Ons for FF14? I bet the next Add-On will already present itself in a very different way (= darker) with the coverart and title alone.

[Supersnow845]

I think DT was meant to be a somewhat slow start to the new saga since it is suppose to be the ARR equivalent for the new saga and the next 10 years too. I'm currently working on several achievements on two characters that are my mains, so I have plenty to do. Maybe those that need something to do can create an alt and start over from ARR or take a break and play other games for now. 8.0 should see more improvements since I think PS4 support will finally end as it'll be 13 years old by then and it's holding the game back. Add ray tracing and more and this game can look modern with a 4k/UHD optional texture pack that really makes the game look modern and the story goes into higher gear like HW was after ARR.

We are TWO AND A HALF MONTHS into 7.0 and you are already bringing out the “make an alt and play again or go play other games improvements are coming in 8.0” line

Do you hear yourselves, at the current rate of exponential shrinkage of the time between an expansion launch and people pulling out the “improvements in the next expansion” line people will be telling us to wait for 9.0 about 0.4 seconds after 8.0 launches

[KernCadfan]

We are TWO AND A HALF MONTHS into 7.0 and you are already bringing out the “make an alt and play again or go play other games improvements are coming in 8.0” line

Do you hear yourselves, at the current rate of exponential shrinkage of the time between an expansion launch and people pulling out the “improvements in the next expansion” line people will be telling us to wait for 9.0 about 0.4 seconds after 8.0 launches

I don't disagree that particular phrasing is getting old and sour fast purely because it's just a little tone deaf for those without statics and dedicated and active FC's that run events and keep the community active. We don't have enough mildly grindy content, and what I mean by that is content that doesn't boil down to hunts or maps ad-nausum, fate grinds in general... I don't mind fate grinding, just like I didn't mind rift-grinds in Rift, which were basically the same thing... but I don't get to really progress my character or have complex options as far as gear is concerned, or stats for that matter...

I would like something akin to FFXI's meriting system, or something like Rift's attunement system for stat based increases... Something that allows me to really better my character and keep those betterments over time... gear is replaceable, but the merits and attunement systems felt nice because there was a true sense of longevity to them. I want that in FFXIV, desprately...

I would also consider doing a level/stat crunch for the next expansion, we're level 100, and that impacts low level play when it comes to rotations. We can't really afford to lose any more abilities due to simplification of jobs, and I do have to admit running low level duties as a level 100 feels really, really bad on some jobs. It just doesn't feel like it flows right sometimes.

[AnimaAnimus]

That's kind of disingenuous, because most FF games are not like FFXI, in terms of grindy and needing to spend months playing them to get anywhere. Also, Its an entirely different style of gameplay. A lot of XI is sitting around waiting. Its more comparable to EverQuest than modern MMOs. It reminds me a lot of Lineage II, which was also incredibly grindy.

Also, those same devs are the ones that made XIV 1.0 so...

Well of course its not going to be 1:1 with VI or VII, it is an mmo after all and not a single player game, so the grind needs to be there. And it makes sense that it was like EQ since XI is literally an EQ clone, even SE will tell you that. But it's heart is FF through and through and they just added the veneer of an mmo over it. But at it's heart it was a FF game. It was full of tragedy, stakes and flawed characters. They showed us things instead of telling us everything. It had moments of levity, but they expected their audience to be emotionally mature enough to accept what happened instead of making huge moments small and followed by hours of happy bunnies doing silly things. Yes we had to farm 30k alexandrite instead of just beating a single boss for our bis weapon, but thats the mmo veneer. Things have to take time in a game designed for you play for thousands of hours intstead of 30. That doesn't take away from it's world and it's characters being carefully thought out. That content was designed to be engaging and fun and not hindered by the incessant need to do the same thing they did before. Do you think XI would have been successful with every expansion bringing dynamis clones as content while making the old ones obsolete? Or Temple of Uggalepih, Garlaige Citadel, Beadeaux and Quicksand Caves being clones of each other? No, instead they went into it with the same mentality as other FF games and made each location it's own thing. Because it was about creating a story and a world, not following a formula.

As for the same devs that made 1.0, yeah it was. And you know how FF games often tell us that hubris and apathy is always the downfall of the once greats? 1.0 was a real life example of that. XI was an amazing game that was extremely loved by it's community, even today. And most of us that tested it were XI vets and we took time away from that game to test 1.0 for months and were screaming for changes. Internally at SE ppl were screaming for changes. But hubris won out in the end, and we know how that goes. Now history is repeating. A small success caused SE to believe they know better. They ignore everything we tell them, everything we are screaming for them to change or add. Their hubris, apathy and their idea that they can simply rest on their laurels is again the actual big bad of the game.

[ElevatedCosmonaut]

I'm sorry but you guys are being incredibly hyperbolic. I agree, FF does have some issues. Some of the jobs arent as fun as others, gearing other jobs can feel really slow, the netcode sucks, the glamour system sucks too! But holy moly, sunsetting the game? You guys have to be the most jaded and bitter portion of the playerbase by a wide margin. a few months out from a very successful release, and an albiet mixed reception to the story, but an overwhelmingly positive reception to the difficulty of the content. You guys are just burnt out honestly. I get wanting to grind more, but this isn't a grindy MMO by nature, for side stuff sure, and I would like that stuff to come sooner, but to want it in the base game is a foolish thing to do.

[ZephyrMenodora]

I'm sorry but you guys are being incredibly hyperbolic. I agree, FF does have some issues.

Pretty much this. Being this melodramatic as the OP is counterproductive.

No one will take feedback to sunset the company's most profitable product seriously. It's absurd people think like this.

[Rinoa_353]

We are TWO AND A HALF MONTHS into 7.0 and you are already bringing out the “make an alt and play again or go play other games improvements are coming in 8.0” line

Do you hear yourselves, at the current rate of exponential shrinkage of the time between an expansion launch and people pulling out the “improvements in the next expansion” line people will be telling us to wait for 9.0 about 0.4 seconds after 8.0 launches

I dunno your playstyle but maybe try slowing down a bit? I know many people who rushed through the story and then complain they have nothing to do. I took my time and did all side quest before moving onto the next zone and it allowed me to enjoy the story more and also explore the zones more too. The improvements I talk about are more hardware related such as better graphics and more once PS4 support is dropped that is holding back the game. Maybe get into decorating your home and invite friends over or you don't have friends in the first place?

[AnimaAnimus]

I dunno your playstyle but maybe try slowing down a bit? I know many people who rushed through the story and then complain they have nothing to do. I took my time and did all side quest before moving onto the next zone and it allowed me to enjoy the story more and also explore the zones more too. The improvements I talk about are more hardware related such as better graphics and more once PS4 support is dropped that is holding back the game. Maybe get into decorating your home and invite friends over or you don't have friends in the first place?

I don't think slowing down on the story is the answer when all we are getting for 4 and a half months is 4 bosses in square arenas. There was, at the very least a couple weeks worth of story, and a story that was so incredibly, horribly written and presented, that a whole lot of ppl who have been invested in this game's narrative since 2010, myself included, found themselves cutscene skipping for the first time. And then telling ppl to use a purposefully limited resource that only a small number of ppl have to fill the gaps and then resorting to an underhanded insult to cap it off speaks volumes on your own attitude.

It's really shady when you try to shift the blame away from the company who made a subpar product and onto the paying customers. It feels on the same level of critical thinking that we got with "Don't you guys have phones?".