More Story like 7.2 Please!

[Vallavia]

I think it's worth remembering in conversations like these that this game is still a live service RPG, and the story will always reflect the fact that it's perpetually a work-in-progress; this seems to have been kind of broadly forgotten since Endwalker, which was an exceptional circumstance. 7.0's story was only 2/3 finished by design, because they need to keep us on the hook for another two years until 8.0; this has been true of every expansion except A Realm Reborn (because they weren't necessarily betting on the game staying online) and Endwalker (because they felt it better served the story to put a bow on that arc right away). Similarly, 7.2 (and all the .2 patches since Heavensward) functions as a springboard of momentum for the conclusion of 7.0's story, so naturally it feels a lot more exciting than the set-ups and clean-ups going on in 7.1. It's a balancing act endemic to any kind of serial media: each installment must have its own distinct narrative arc while also fitting in to the arc of the broader story, which of course leaves a certain margin of error (see the 6.x patches simultaneously being world-ending levels of terror while also feeling like there are no stakes whatsoever).

That said, I will concede that 7.2 felt noticeably more cinematic than FFXIV has felt in a long time, from the scene direction to the dialogue to the actual plot itself. I imagine this is a symptom of a broader pivot that they're trying to pull off with 8.0 on both a narrative and systemic level.