So SE has officially stated their MMO profits have tanked.

[GeriTero]

Oh please. Lets stop this

Am i incorrect tho?
Video game industry is currently having studio closures and mass lay offs left and right, online influencer scene is imploding and video streaming services are declining.
Its pretty reasonable to assume there is bit more going on with the greater market than people not vibing with the Orange Cat.

[Hyperia]

I'm not sure what they can do to really bring back the story to as good as it was in ShB/early EW. They're clearly trying to return to the Ascian story, which I'm a big fan of, but how much longer can that actually work? Once we run out of Ascians, then what? It feels like they're stuck trying to come up with a story as gripping as the Hydaelyn/Zodiark/Ascian plot has been. When you've been to the edge of the universe, and defeated universe ending bosses, what's left to keep people entertained?

They have hinted that the shards are starting to move to the source. This is most likely because the huge crystal that Venat left was supposed to maintain things in her absence. With that gone, a collapse has started and will most likely end up in a big bang if they all merge at the same time. Sounds like they plan on a potential reboot in or after 10.0.

Considering how rough things were in DT and the mess it made, maybe a big boom sooner is better rather than later. Maybe we get to hear soft drifting in and out of Answers in 7.5

[Oizen]

Wuk Lamat cost Square enix 2.9 billion yen lmao

[Gwenkatsu]

Why even play if you want absolutely zero challenge?

This game primarily draws people in for the story.

Looks like you just answered your own question here. And if someone wants to treat the game like an interactive book, what's the problem with that? It's not like they would flood your ultra super hardcore PF groups after getting carried through the MSQ by a group of NPCs.

When you've been to the edge of the universe, and defeated universe ending bosses, what's left to keep people entertained?

I think this is exactly why the first half of DT was what it was - no world ending thread on the horizon for quite some time. And it could have worked if the writing hadn't been garbage tier. Wuk Lamat not being her countries best warrior - ok. Wuk Lamat being on the intellectual level of a toddler that has to be pampered 24/7 - not ok.
"Wuk, I told you not to fall into that Cenote."
"But I did only once!"
/sigh/

[Jeeqbit]

This is just the start of the year, by the way. It may be worse for them financially when the next financial results are compiled.

[Oizen]

This is just the start of the year, by the way. It may be worse for them financially when the next financial results are compiled.

Oh we have not began to see the consequences of Dawntrail. If you look at population charts, Dawntrail started out massive. But Dawntrail didn't do that, Endwalker did.

What will 8.0 look like?

[Catwho]

Am i incorrect tho?
Video game industry is currently having studio closures and mass lay offs left and right, online influencer scene is imploding and video streaming services are declining.
Its pretty reasonable to assume there is bit more going on with the greater market than people not vibing with the Orange Cat.

Yeah, there is a bigger problem in the video games industry than what we're seeing with XIV alone. The promised AI revolution isn't suddenly making game development stupid easy like the tech bros promised (and like everyone who knows anything about actual software development knew would happen) so studios who banked on being able to crank out low effort games with AI assist are dropping teams and games left and right.

The Twitch market is kind of oversaturated. New streamers are now having to cannibalize from others older streamers, and the streamers who are getting poached are blaming Dawntrail for it. When in reality, it's because the MSQ vampires would rather watch people enjoying Heavensard or Stormblood than watch someone complain about Wuk Lamat for six hours straight.

The only XIV streamers who are surviving are the ones who either rotate to other games on a regular basis (currently watching the GG guys go through all of the Final Fantasies in order), or who have a cool gimmick (Like Solo Only's 80 hour Susano trial or Cider Spider's endless achievement hunt. TEN. POINTS.)

[OliverQ]

Looks like you just answered your own question here. And if someone wants to treat the game like an interactive book, what's the problem with that? It's not like they would flood your ultra super hardcore PF groups after getting carried through the MSQ by a group of NPCs.


/sigh/

You can play mainly for the story without expecting everything to be just handed to you. Nothing in the MSQ is actually that hard. If you want just a story, and zero actual gameplay, then watch an Anime.

[Volgia]

Am i incorrect tho?
Video game industry is currently having studio closures and mass lay offs left and right, online influencer scene is imploding and video streaming services are declining.
Its pretty reasonable to assume there is bit more going on with the greater market than people not vibing with the Orange Cat.

It's probably a lot more than "DT bad" tbh. There's the industry bubble popping after 2023, the end of lockdown, Endwalker's having a popularity and hype that it probably couldn't live up to, the trend for people to wish for unending entertainment like what Shorts/TikTok offers, people being done with the MMO after 10 years of playing... IDK.

[Shinku_Tachi]

Yeah, there is a bigger problem in the video games industry than what we're seeing with XIV alone. The promised AI revolution isn't suddenly making game development stupid easy like the tech bros promised (and like everyone who knows anything about actual software development knew would happen) so studios who banked on being able to crank out low effort games with AI assist are dropping teams and games left and right.

The Twitch market is kind of oversaturated. New streamers are now having to cannibalize from others older streamers, and the streamers who are getting poached are blaming Dawntrail for it. When in reality, it's because the MSQ vampires would rather watch people enjoying Heavensard or Stormblood than watch someone complain about Wuk Lamat for six hours straight.

The only XIV streamers who are surviving are the ones who either rotate to other games on a regular basis (currently watching the GG guys go through all of the Final Fantasies in order), or who have a cool gimmick (Like Solo Only's 80 hour Susano trial or Cider Spider's endless achievement hunt. TEN. POINTS.)

All excellent points here!