@Casuals , do you think the message has gotten through?

[Volgia]

I completely disagree, as apparently does SE.

"Social" means different things to different people, and the only meaningful measure of "success" in any game is that you are enjoying the game.

If all FFXIV means to you is a source of raiding content that has to be cleared, then yes, you need to coordinate with other people. But there needn't be anything remotely "social" about it; it's purely transactional.

In a story-based MMO, you can watch the movie on your own or in a theatre with others. Anyone who uses the Market Board is participating in the multiplayer aspect.

Social as in I need to interact with you in order to play the game. In non-raiding content I don't need to talk to you to play the game, some content even disables your ability to communicate when you play (Crystalline Conflict).

[Mawlzy]

Social as in I need to interact with you in order to play the game. In non-raiding content I don't need to talk to you to play the game, some content even disables your ability to communicate when you play (Crystalline Conflict).

Right. I doubt I would've tolerated SE's slip-ups as long as I did if I didn't have an FC with friends (all of whom have now unsubbed). Our social interaction would include taking a multi-seater mount to watch the sunset at Costa del Sol, discussing if Mikel Arteta was a human being or a Thunderbird Puppet.

Again, you've just shifted the vagaries of "social" to "interaction." Am I not interacting with 71 other players when I play a Frontline match? Certainly not something I can do in a single-player game.

A few years ago, Josh Strife Hayes (who has probably played more MMOs than anyone) put out a fascinating video on how "solo players" are required for MMOs to survive. It's a pity more people haven't watched it.

And you can communicate in CC. There is a lot more to communication than someone yelling "cleave right" on vc.