Live letters have lost their magic - Zepla

[Veritas-Ancora]

Still waiting for the promise of free company primal summons

Oh wow, THAT'S a flashback.

They quasi-delivered with this in Heaven-on-High, but I think back then there was a totally different direction for how the game would go. I don't think Yoshi P really thought this one all the way through, or at least didn't consult his lore people to understand how this would even work.

I'm glad they didn't institute it, though. Can you imagine Ultimate parties fighting each other in Free Companies for the summon? The original plan was to allow the summon to only be used once a week. Imagine a newbie in your FC firing it off in a 4-player dungeon and everyone getting infuriated at them.

I WOULD like to see this idea sharing the same bar as the Limit Break bar, though. We don't use enough thought on elemental-based strategies and they're almost non-existent in this game if you exclude Eureka.

[Mondschnee]

Just because you can do it solo, why would you then assume most players would?
I know you can solo deep dungeons, I even said so in my post because I found it very dismissive as if it's an easy thing to do and that your average player would just happen to do it
It's something I'm personally working toward because I find the prospect of the challenge fun

I know Variants can also be done solo, as I did them that way myself
Again, it's likely not the standard way players are going to approach it

that's why I then asked if the fact the option is there is the problem and how the game encourages people to play solo

Me saying that Deep Dungeon can be soloed wasn't even a big part of my argument, but the fact that it can be soloed is simply true so I mentioned it. Not at one point did I claim that most players would do that, I even put that in brackets because I considered it a minor addition. I'm confused why you would focus on this one comment so much when I've mentioned other, stronger examples.

Fact aside that it's merely speculation on your part how other people would approach Variant Dungeon, the point still stands. Endwalker did encourage solo play, and that was part of the confirmed strategy. Yoshi-P himself said that they wanted to lure people in who didn't want to do group content.

Which is fine, I get it, they want the game to grow and attract a wide variety of players, but you can't tell me that this helped FCs stay active, in fact quite a few FC leaders told me the opposite as I've mentioned before.

[Kazuke_Miso]

Oh wow, THAT'S a flashback.

They quasi-delivered with this in Heaven-on-High, but I think back then there was a totally different direction for how the game would go. I don't think Yoshi P really thought this one all the way through, or at least didn't consult his lore people to understand how this would even work.

I'm glad they didn't institute it, though. Can you imagine Ultimate parties fighting each other in Free Companies for the summon? The original plan was to allow the summon to only be used once a week. Imagine a newbie in your FC firing it off in a 4-player dungeon and everyone getting infuriated at them.

I WOULD like to see this idea sharing the same bar as the Limit Break bar, though. We don't use enough thought on elemental-based strategies and they're almost non-existent in this game if you exclude Eureka.

They probably could've restricted it to the open world and made it as a cool Odin-like FATE, or maybe just something like an SSS rank. Make it a huge pinata in the form of a primal, where people fight some SSS rank boss and just get tons of tomestones, 500k gil, some hard to get glamour, something like that. Then a random FC fighting it gets to summon it next week, anywhere on the open world. I feel like this would really make it fun for the community. Yes, there will be drama (gonna summon it on top of a newbie LOL), but that's part of the charm of MMOs.

[Nadda]

Brother, when people call them the Cult of Yoshida, they mean it. They absolutely engage in cult-like behavior. I actually used to think it was hyperbole, but after some of the behavior I have seen on the forums since I actually started posting here, I now fully believe it.

They act like a cult.

It’s a crisis of confidence.

I don’t believe there’s a Yoshida Cult. What I do see are a lot of folks who are tired and worn down. But what I won’t tolerate is the dragging down of people who still believe things can get better.

That’s never going to be healthy—for FFXIV or for life in general.

And it’s not something the devs can fix with the flick of a switch. Disillusionment, pessimism, and apathy are coercive. They’re demoralizing, not just for yourself, but for the entire community. It’s self-harming.

The public lynching of positive thinking—bringing others down for showing optimism, as if misery is the only appropriate response to critique that isn’t productive. It never will be.

It’s NOT gaslighting to offer encouragement when there’s reason for it. Gaslighting is manipulation that distorts someone’s perception of reality, often to their harm. That’s not what’s happening here.

In Search and Rescue, when someone’s drowning, they may panic. They’ll thrash violently, even hurt the person trying to save them. In those moments, you’re taught to leave them. You can’t let yourself be pulled under, because then nobody gets saved.

From my perspective, I’m not telling anyone things are sunshine and roses. I’m not asking anyone to accept slop. But you want to call me a cultist for trying to keep your heads above water? Where exactly am I harming you by encouraging hope?

We’re customers, sure. But we’re also investors in this game. Blind overconfidence isn’t helpful—you’ll miss red flags that way. But fear and uncertainty? That can make even the most rational investor pull out prematurely.

Confidence and clear thinking are what make a successful investor.

If you want to pull out, do it. If you want to drown, drown. But you can’t drag others down with you.
You're not going to convince me this is the rational appropriate response for fixing the state of the game.

[yesnt]

But what I won’t tolerate is the dragging down of people who still believe things can get better.

That’s never going to be healthy—for FFXIV or for life in general.

You know what's also not healthy? Chiming into threads that are clearly addressed at the company with valid complaints about the game and then dismissing other player's issues. Look, you can be happy and healthy--but do it in other threads. Go to the housing forum and share the cool apartment you built or talk about your favorite mechanics in dungeon forum. But don't go to a complain thread and then pikachu-face when people complain.

[Wilford111]

I've completely fallen out of love with the story, but I still love the actual game. I think it's wild that the only thing keeping people playing was their investment in the story. Did they even like the actual game to begin with?

[Teno]

The baits used to be more subtle that's for sure. This one is just low effort. The girl is disconnected from the game anyway, and I wouldn't be surprised and if she tried to bait too. This live letter is the same as any other before, the literal same...

[yesnt]

I've completely fallen out of love with the story, but I still love the actual game. I think it's wild that the only thing keeping people playing was their investment in the story. Did they even like the actual game to begin with?

I find it funny that you don't include the MSQ in the 'the actual game'. I don't think that most people quit because of DT story. They quit because of the bad DT story and the lack of 'the actual game'.

[Veritas-Ancora]

We’re customers, sure. But we’re also investors in this game. Blind overconfidence isn’t helpful—you’ll miss red flags that way. But fear and uncertainty? That can make even the most rational investor pull out prematurely.

Confidence and clear thinking are what make a successful investor.

Again, you're using language that you do not seem to understand.

An investor makes money off of a game. We are not investors. We are customers. Investors have a monetary return on investment (ROI). If you own stock in Square-Enix, you are an investor.

Consumers benefit by exchanging money for service (again, not an investor). We pay for service, we are unhappy with the current service, we use capitalism to participate in the service, or end the service.

[Auro_Seldaris]

They were saying FCs being inactive and players getting lethargic is normal. If you must respond, respond by asking for evidence or providing counter-evidence. Keep it a conversation instead of turning it into a fight. So many people here (not you specifically) are so quick to insults, it creates a real bad atmosphere.



Have you found any examples of "laser-focused, good-faith critique" of Dawntrail getting buried in an avalanche of simplistic "I LIKED IT!" or "YOU'RE JUST A HATER, A DOOMPOSTER, A TROLL." You said there were loads in the forums and you just needed time to find one. No luck?

You could search this forum yourself. There's a feature for that. You could search Reddit yourself. You know it exists, you're just being pedantic with your "Citation Needed."

Look, I'm going to be real with you, Exmo.... I really don't have time for this. I have a job, and a family (including aging, ailing parents), and other hobbies than arguing with people on the internet all day and night about a video game. I spent most of my evening last night painting Warhammer models and ignoring that FF, and by extension this forum, even exists. I'm starting to realize that arguing with people on the forums is nothing but a huge waste of my valuable time, and I regret I even started doing it. So look, I'm not going to bend over backwards to go find that shit, but you and I both know that criticism gets handwaved away with boring simple platitudes or dismissive namecalling.

Go find any thread that is a lengthy, reasonable critique/discussion of Dawntrail, and you'll find the attitude in question.

I'm not even sure what exactly is so wrong with expecting more from the devs who have already proven to us they CAN do better and give us more, but here we are.

As for me, I think I'm basically done here. I have better things to do with my life than talk about a game sinking into mediocrity, arguing with players who don't WANT it to be anything but dumbed-down mediocrity.