Honestly, What's the verdict for you?

[DynnDiablos]

That's fair, but FFXIV right now has everything it has always had: regular Beast Tribes, Custom Deliveries, Normal Raids, Savage Raids, Trials, Extreme trials, MSQ, Dungeons, Ultimates

Plus the return of Field Operation, Exploration Content

Plus more recent additions to the content cycle such as Variant/Criterion, Chaotic

This has not changed since Heavensward other than things having been added to the content cycle as mentioned above. So either the game has never had anything for you to do, or it is you that changed.
You're not alone since clearly most people who post on these forums express similar sentiments and experiences.

But when I gauge sentiment in the game itself people are largely positive and defend the game, whether in OC or in High-End pugs when I have chill chats about the game in party chat. Although not everyone is happy with the game in NN or FC chat, most people are happy with the game in NN or FC chat.

Of course, you mentioned most of your FC aren't even playing, so it's possible people in the game are positive because, well, the ones that aren't positive stopped playing much.

If there's one piece of advice I can give though: every MMO I've played has had positive aspects and negative aspects. You can focus on what you like or what you dislike; the amount of effort is the same, but one of those things makes you happy.

Moreover, two people can view the same thing in a completely different way depending purely on their mood and how depressed they are generally. Take a glass that is filled half way with water. Is the glass half-full (optimist), or is it half-empty (pessimist)? Often whether people are happy with the game comes down to just whether they are predisposed to view things positively or negatively in general.

But ultimately, if you can't find thing(s) to enjoy, or a way to think of it positively no matter what you do, then maybe the game just isn't for you anymore. No point playing something if there isn't even a small slither of enjoyment, happiness or excitement that you can find, or potentially find, in it.

A lot of people say they want everything to be different and not "a different coat of paint", but personally, I'm content with that and the consistency.

The problem is the writing has taken a total nosedive. DT is so juvenile and horribly written compared to the previous expansions. There is nothing keeping intrigued or entertained. In fact, I don't give a f--k what happens to anyone at this point.

[Daralii]

The problem is the writing has taken a total nosedive. DT is so juvenile and horribly written compared to the previous expansions. There is nothing keeping intrigued or entertained. In fact, I don't give a f--k what happens to anyone at this point.

Some people try to rationalize it with "Clearly all the 1.X and ARR boomers moved on after EW, so they pivoted to the Shounen Jump audience", but I don't see how people in their teens would put up with the long stretches of absolutely nothing happening in DT's MSQ.

[PercibelTheren]

Some people try to rationalize it with "Clearly all the 1.X and ARR boomers moved on after EW, so they pivoted to the Shounen Jump audience", but I don't see how people in their teens would put up with the long stretches of absolutely nothing happening in DT's MSQ.

Also, what teenagers? MMO in general is not a teenager genre and a sub based one? Most people I know who play XIV are in their twenties and thirties, if not older.

[OlafQuintessa]

The problem is the writing has taken a total nosedive. DT is so juvenile and horribly written compared to the previous expansions. There is nothing keeping intrigued or entertained. In fact, I don't give a f--k what happens to anyone at this point.

This is exactly it. Fine, there's all this stuff to do just like before but instead of inhabiting a world with rich characters and an engrossing story it's now hard to care about anyone or anything that's happening. The msq and the characters, as other people have said lots of times before, is the glue that holds everything together (ok I guess for some people it's job design, but there's a glue missing now nonetheless). When you don't have that the game just seems barren and falls apart. The new content would have to be really really good to make up for it, but it appears to be just.. average.

Honestly, I think what would make things better is an apology from Yoshi and an explanation: I want to retire so I'm trying to hand over to someone else, or, we only have half a team because we're working on FF 17, or whatever. Given a bit of honesty I think most people would be happy again and would be right behind the new developers. There's an enormous amount of passion and love for the game in this community - that's why it hurts to be told oh the games just not for you any more. Why not? We had a busy, growing, excited FC during Shadowbringers and Endwalker, but since then loads of people have left and not come back. What's so good about that?

As for where I'm at - I was so sick of DT I handed over my FC and took a few months break, then decided to start again on a new server for a fresh experience (third playthrough - last time was 5 years ago). Now I'm in love with ARR again and going slow in the run up to HW. I'm doing the ARR crafter relics from scratch, beast tribes, collecting TT cards, fishing, levelling etc. I've realised that endgame is the worst place to be unless you do savage and basically everything endgame is savage now (yes, to a casual, extremes, chaotic, savage are all the same thing). ARR has obviously been polished since it released and it's a great time - much better than DT! I really enjoy the feeling of building things up. So I guess I'm happy with ffxiv again, but not exactly for the reasons I should be.

[CCheshire]

As for where I'm at - I was so sick of DT I handed over my FC and took a few months break, then decided to start again on a new server for a fresh experience (third playthrough - last time was 5 years ago). Now I'm in love with ARR again and going slow in the run up to HW. I'm doing the ARR crafter relics from scratch, beast tribes, collecting TT cards, fishing, levelling etc. I've realised that endgame is the worst place to be unless you do savage and basically everything endgame is savage now (yes, to a casual, extremes, chaotic, savage are all the same thing). ARR has obviously been polished since it released and it's a great time - much better than DT! I really enjoy the feeling of building things up. So I guess I'm happy with ffxiv again, but not exactly for the reasons I should be.

Honestly, the idea of re-playing ARR all over again w/o all my paid and event items is too harsh for my imagination, so I've never focused on an alt. I do like hanging out in DT, knowing that I don't need to worry about leveling alt jobs or having to wait for new content like OC since I'm maxed and I don't need to worry about like struggling to farm old extreme mounts, which is my main goal atm.

Also, I started doing old DT Ex, and it's not too bad, really like I can't bring myself to do FT or Savage, but Extreme, I can do it as long as it's not Ex4.

Finally, eh, wouldn't all roads eventually lead back to DT, tho? I mean, even if it takes much longer, you're still going to have to do DT all over again if you unlock everything else too.

[PercibelTheren]

This is exactly it. Fine, there's all this stuff to do just like before but instead of inhabiting a world with rich characters and an engrossing story it's now hard to care about anyone or anything that's happening.

This is a big pain point for me also. The entirety of the DT MSQ, all I could think was "man,I just don't care about any of this". I tried. I really wanted to get invested but the characters were shallower than a puddle. The Scions were cardboard cutouts of themselves.