This is rather frustrating...

[Answa]

Nope, there's no downgrade. People complain about every single screenshot in our current version, too. They just use standard settings in their screenshots.

[AlphaDragoon]

Nope, there's no downgrade. People complain about every single screenshot in our current version, too. They just use standard settings in their screenshots.

Yeah, there is a downgrade in textures. I play current XIV on standard and textures look better. However, the overall direction of the art as well as the real-time lighting make 2.0 > current version visually IMO.

I actually began to notice the downgrade in texture quality a long time ago, starting with the AF gear. Tanaka-era gear is typically highly detailed with clearly defined textures. Whereas with the AF gear and even retextures of the old gear to make new gear (like Explorer's Tunic, new GC Tabard, Crimson Sash, etc.) there's a lot less detail on the cloth itself, it's more flat color than texture.

Guessing they've been transitioning to make it easier on the new engine this whole time. Smart.