So that 7.1 msq...

[Daralii]

Maybe in the coming patches when Wuk Lamat meets what I'm guessing is the real Sphene (not the AI or the imposter), we'll get to see her feel awkward around her because of the things AI Sphene did, but IDK if they'll go that route.

I'm sure Ghost Sphene will somehow remember everything that happened with AI Sphene, there'll be a scene of her crying and apologizing, and Wuk will hug her and say that they've always been friends and always will be. You shouldn't be thinking about what would happen logically or how anyone with a modicum of intelligence would act, because this isn't that kind of story anymore.

[MediocreIndigo]

I'm sure Ghost Sphene will somehow remember everything that happened with AI Sphene, there'll be a scene of her crying and apologizing, and Wuk will hug her and say that they've always been friends and always will be. You shouldn't be thinking about what would happen logically or how anyone with a modicum of intelligence would act, because this isn't that kind of story anymore.

I can't say my expectations are very high, but they're not that low.

[Pricia]

I didn't mind 7.1 actually but... FOUR abandoned/adopted kids stories in one expansion? That *might* be a bit much.

[LisseyCrowe]

I didn't mind 7.1 actually but... FOUR abandoned/adopted kids stories in one expansion? That *might* be a bit much.

Now that you point it out, it is weird, isn't it? Is there even a single happy family in Dawntrail? It's all either both parents dead, one parent dead/missing, one adopted parent, and I guess evil parent(s) for Bakool Ja Ja? I don't think there's any meaning to it, but ... I dunno, I guess like you said, it's a much at some point.

Anyone wanna bet if the raid series is going to teach us how the comic book villain wizard lizard had mommy issues all along?

[Pip_Chick]

I'm not even sure what I played through and what the point was....whatever at least I got a new dungeon.

Coming from someone who actually liked the 7.0 story. 7.1 was... ok, nothing bad, but nothing special. I liked the new dungeon, the last boss was very fun! I thought Koana was just dumb and very out of character. I like Goolol Ja and Erenville, they were the highlight of the patch. Beside that, nothing very interesting.

I do see it as a nice start to building on the characters' stories and making their personalitie more deep, but at the same time, they are very weird about it. As seen with Koana.

[MediocreIndigo]

Coming from someone who actually liked the 7.0 story. 7.1 was... ok, nothing bad, but nothing special. I liked the new dungeon, the last boss was very fun! I thought Koana was just dumb and very out of character. I like Goolol Ja and Erenville, they were the highlight of the patch. Beside that, nothing very interesting.

I do see it as a nice start to building on the characters' stories and making their personalitie more deep, but at the same time, they are very weird about it. As seen with Koana.

I think it was funny how quickly Koana became attached to the rroneek.

[GartredZW]

I think it was funny how quickly Koana became attached to the rroneek.

Koana: "I'm a leader, and leaders are supposed to let themselves die to save an animal even when it's obvious that we're both going to die if I just stand there in between the two beasts."

[Mondschnee]

In my opinion, the only reason why the 7.1 MSQ was better than the 7.0 MSQ is because of 2 things:
1) It's shorter, therefore the flaws in the writing are not as evident.
2) Since it's shorter, the pacing was a bit better.

Wuk Lamat is less "annoying" because she's not the one suffering from the writing's flaws the most this time around.
BUT... the flaws are still there, just as much as they were there in 7.0.

The story structure is all over the place, the script quality is low, characters make illogical decisions, the writing is cheesy and contrived, and plot points are solved within minutes.

Story structure:
The entire segment about Zoraal Ja, Gulool Ja and his mother seemed so backwards to me. This felt like something that should have been a theme in 7.0. From what I've heard, 7.1 was supposed to give Zoraal Ja a little more depth retroactively, but in my opinion he as a character still feels as shallow as he did before. Zoraal Ja is a character with lots of interesting concepts, but the execution leaves lots to be desired.

Again, story structure and cheesy, illogical, contrived writing:
Then we have a shift and Koana is supposed to get his arc. They do this by... having him, a leader carrying the responsibility for an entire nation on his back, throw himself in front of a rroneek without anyone ever calling him out for how stupid and reckless this was. Isn't he supposed to be the smart guy?
Soon after, we find out that once upon a time there was a baby that was left behind because his parents went to fight off a big beast, and of course Koana immediately knew it was him. That's it. Arc done.

I could say more about the story structure and how they treated the Wuk Lamat/Zoraal Ja thing but lots of it goes back to 7.0 and I don't have it in me.

If these are the standards we're having to get used to now, I extremely worried about what this means for 8.0.

[Mainasu]

The thing I hate most about the current MSQ is the fact that it's so juvenile, or stupidly written and simplistic at points, but then they'll throw in some dark element or plot point as if to cover their asses. This is why you have people say, "SEE?! The story still has dark moments!! EUGENICS DEAD BABY CAVE!". It feels like a quota now, rather than anything that lends itself to the setting as a whole. It's clumsy and mismatched, and it feels completely cynical.

I guess this is what happens when someone who wrote beast tribes gets put in charge of the main scenario. This needs to change, I have no faith in the current direction the story is going and it's affecting my ability to enjoy the rest of the game. There are options for why you cancelled your sub, and I want there to be an option for "The quality is not up to standard", or a way to communicate specific points.. because I would absolutely pin this all on the MSQ's writing for me.

When you bank so hard on being THE story MMO, and have roleplayers making their own fun in your world, ruining the story affects things more than people may think.

[Maltothoris]

One thing I find hilarious is that talking to Wuk Lamat after that scene where Zoraal Ja is told that Gulool Ja is his child and she tells you that he always treated her so well before the rite of succession.

Wuk Lamat: ...You may find it hard to believe, but until the rite of succession, Zoraal Ja was a good brother to me. Always. And I thought that Papa was the best father anyone could ask for.
Wuk Lamat: I don't want to think the time we spent together as a family was a lie. But by the same token, the bitterness my brother harbored was all too real...

There was hardly anything that happened over the course of the msq that ever suggested that. Especially from Zoraal Ja.

Edit: Admittedly, my frustrations come from the fact they are still trying to give him something after his death. The time to try and give him any outstanding characteristic is gone now with this death.