Gamerescape Interview: Summons, Chocobos, Train Tracks and Rocks

[Riaayo]

Greetings,

We would like to gather your thoughts about jump and how you would like it to be used (In combat? Getting around obstacles?) so we can pass them along to development team. Please let us know what you think. Thanks!

I can tell you right now, first off, that movement during combat changes a very bland, removed feeling fight into something that actually feels dynamic and like real battle. This includes abilities that cause movement, jumping, or dodges (Tera did this very well recently).

So that said, I would say that I personally believe jumping should be useful in combat. I should be able to jump out of the way of directional attacks, as quite honestly just trotting out of the way feels extremely boring and almost defeats the purpose of even having the mechanic around. Utilizing interesting terrain in a fight, such as having a small chasm a player or group would need to jump across to avoid an enemy attack (such as a flood of water that might either damage or wash them away, but flows into that chasm and doesn't reach the other side) would also be an enjoyable experience.

I absolutely love jumping around terrain, so any sort of platforming-like exploration that might be possible I think would be extremely fun. I saw someone mention fall damage, and quite honestly I think dieing from falling is exceedingly stupid. While it's certainly realistic at large heights, I found myself enjoying a game where I wouldn't drop below 1 hp from a fall more fun to explore in than a game where I risked death if I took a wrong step on a mountain. That is unless you're trying to utilize the risk of falling off high things as a difficulty mechanic in a zone. If that is the case, I can understand death from a fall, but at the same time potentially having to go through an entire area again because you fell off at the end is pretty punishing as far as I'm concerned, and more importantly at least someone in your group doesn't have to potentially come raise you (furthermore if you fell off, hit 1hp, and landed on aggro, you'd be dead anyway).

Jumping could be utilized in fun ways for quests or events as well, if the 2.0 engine is capable of detecting a player jumping into moving objects (such as trying to jump and "catch" balloons or some such floating item, or items hanging from a tree like a fruit, etc). Even diving off something high into a river, pond, lake, etc for a random achievement, quest or event (cannonbaaaall). Being able to leap off of your chocobo to dismount rather than stop and just kind of... drop and be stupid for a second would be pretty cool as well.

I know this is a bit of a wall of text, so thank you for taking the time to look at it if you do!

[KraggyKor]

Traversing the environment is the only thing I'd like to see jump used for

This! More importantly BLOCK IT IN TOWNS!

Just look at games like WOW, Rift, LOTRO etc. Towns that are popular are filled with retards jumping about on their oh-so-kewl mounts like demented 5-year-olds on beany-bags.

We don't need that idiocy in FFXIV thank you.

[indira]

Up to one month to transfer data from 1.xx to 2.0 X.X, and we can't play while it's being done.

If it's taking that long they must of made some serious database structure changes

well 2.0 is a new game not just a patch so there gonna have everything different. that means mass data conversion.

[Diyne]

I'd like it for an aesthetic, and for the ability to jump over or onto small obstacles such as fences or small parts of terrain that are...well, short. I can't count the number of times I've been stuck or had to 'go around' an extremely low fence or ledge in the landscape that was shorter than my character. (A lalafell at that)

I would not prefer to see it used as a combat mechanic.

I hope it would be a fluid animation, and just a simple jump. No fancy flipping or what not. Like a jump where the character pushes of the ground, does their animation in air, and then lands on the ground, perhaps with some kind of bracing or what not. Much like how when we stop moving, we actually see the character have to stop their momentum. I like these small aesthetics.

[TenraiNagi]

I would like jump to be used for the following:

• Jump around obstacles. [An obstacle course mini-game could even be implemented!]
• Reach previously inaccessible places (climbing: jump on a railing, then on crates, then on a tree branch and finally on the roof of a house.) [use these places to hide chests, NPCs, beautiful scenery and other fun things]
• Definitely make jumping mandatory for thorough exploration! [Players should have to use jump more as they move away from the main path. At even have to jump to reach new places to explore, otherwise inaccessible.]
  
• Evade some attacks (attacks on the ground, attacks coming out of the ground, performed around the legs, etc.) [FF6 had a "float" spell to avoid ground-abilities, why not jumping?]
• Monsters should jump to try to reach players above or below them.

I think jumping should be used for more than just avoid random obstacles on the ground. It has to be used to explore otherwise inaccessible parts of the world, town and dungeons. Jumping is an exploration feature and could be used for some special mini-games.
As for combat, the influence of jumping shouldn't be great. Only reduce damage from certain weapon skills, abilities and spells. In combat, the main purpose of jumping should be strategic placement.

^ This a million times!

I would like to see jumping used in dynamic boss battles as well, where maybe the terrain changes during the fight.

And please don't restrict it. No invisible walls anywhere please. If I want to jump from a mountain, that's my choice. (Damage from falling should apply though, and death if jumping from a very high place)

This! More importantly BLOCK IT IN TOWNS!

Just look at games like WOW, Rift, LOTRO etc. Towns that are popular are filled with retards jumping about on their oh-so-kewl mounts like demented 5-year-olds on beany-bags.

We don't need that idiocy in FFXIV thank you.

No mounts in cities, so you shouldn't face that here.

[AmyNeudaiz]

Greetings,

We would like to gather your thoughts about jump and how you would like it to be used (In combat? Getting around obstacles?) so we can pass them along to development team. Please let us know what you think. Thanks!

I'm saying this just so the Dev team doesn't overlook it, but I think people shouldn't be able to change direction mid-air. There are a lot of games that do this and it almost always looks bad. Don't let it happen in FFXIV.

[Soulfire]

I hope it would be a fluid animation, and just a simple jump. No fancy flipping or what not. Like a jump where the character pushes of the ground, does their animation in air, and then lands on the ground, perhaps with some kind of bracing or what not. Much like how when we stop moving, we actually see the character have to stop their momentum. I like these small aesthetics.

I miss that animation's glory days. They went and screwed it up by keeping it in after adding instant stopping! Crafting and the switch between active and passive also had the life sucked out of them. *Sigh*

[viion]

I dont want Jump as part of Combat, but I wouldnt mind it as part of the "Event", you fight a boss on ground floor, and then when it goes into its "Second Phase" it rises up, and you have to "Jump" up the building across rocks, ledges or what have you to get to him again, so its not combat related to the mob but environment event related, i think be kind of cool.

I dont think falling damage is needed because you shouldnt be able to jump off high enough places that we cant already fall off now. I dont want people jumping down cliffs, even if they die lol.

Environment exploration is great idea!

[Alhanelem]

Just look at games like WOW, Rift, LOTRO etc. Towns that are popular are filled with retards jumping about on their oh-so-kewl mounts like demented 5-year-olds on beany-bags.

I played WoW for a couple years and I honestly never saw this. There was the occasional silly person, but it was far from a regular occurance. I'm really sick of people using "oh, people will bounce up and down and ruin my immersion!" as an argument against jumping. Anyway, Jumping is in, that's the final word. The issue in this threads is what to do with it, not whether or not jump should be implemented. That train has left the station and it's not coming back.

[Anonymoose]

While it would be interesting to see the Z-Axis added to battle mechanics (so that you would be capable of delivering attacks from the front, side, read, AND above (from below!?) I'm a bit concerned about latency issues when using them.

If the server tracking of user position in real-time maintained a reputation for latency, then, combined with animation lag between skills in general, trying to use the mechanic could often lead to frustrating (or deadly) mistakes.

Ideally, I'd be happy with jump purely as a combination aesthetic / traversing feature; anything to eliminate that "OH, NO; A TWO FOOT LEDGE?! I BETTER GO AROUND." world we live in today.