Why is the FFXIV fanbase so stubborn and resistant to change?

[Jinko]

If anything I think the devs are still making their own choices, there has been a massive outcry about the aggro icon and level icons and they are still going ahead with it (middle finger to the haters :P) same can be said about the death penalty as well.

Personally I would sooner see the game become a WoW clone than FF11-2, thats not to say I'm a WoW fan-boy I just think that accessibility is important for any game in this generation.

[SirEdeonX]

Because let's be honest here - no one left because there was no auto-attack and no one leftt the game because the battle system was bad. There's just no reason to battle for. No content.

If there were chocobos, and airships, and quests, and unlockable things, conquests and other activities like dungeons, no one would give a crap about the battle system.

I'm not saying it doesn't need work. It does, mainly the classes abilities, but I don't think it should be the focus.

[darkstarpoet1]

i don't know about everyone else here, but i did vote on wanting major changes also. the thing is if you want to get a feel of what people want do not ask such a vague question. just because we want changes does not mean we all want the same type of changes. instead of that type of vague thing ask more simple questions to see where people feel the changes should be made as a followup survey.

would have been easy to say i see the majority of people have voted for change and want to get further imput.

do you want removal of armory system and replaced with another form of battle system? no
do you want the armory system tweaked to be more efficient? yes
do you want an addition of an auto attack system? no
do you want the addition of more diversity in mobs? yes
do you want the battle regimen system removed? no
do you want the battle regimens to be more streamlined? yes
do you want pvp type content added? no
do you want more storyline content added? yes
do you want chocobo/airship added? yes
do you want larger animations to spells? no
do you want larger mobs? no
do you want new animations that show the diversity between spells ws's? yes
do i want more new mobs not 20 different types of dodo? yes

i just feel a set of followup questions would have allowed them to see what kind of changes people wanted instead of just seeing yes we want changes then making decisions based off what they had in mind and what the players actually wanted with major change. to me major change is not always about completely removing something, but can just as easily be making adjustments that would make the system much easier to use.

i'll just use battle regimens for an example. most complaints come from the fact it is slow and you get locked out of battle while waiting on others to stack in.

1. make it to where when you stack in a spell/ws they remove the mp/tp from being usable like you store it in the regimen, but can continue to fight/heal while others are joining in.
2. allow for combo's to be used within regimens and give an animation of the combination when done within a regimen. ie. archer loads up to shoot an arrow and con turns and throws fire on the arrow. when the arrow hits the mob it kicks up an animation of the name of the combined skill so you know what happened.
3. make the battle regimens feel more unique when the attacks take place. when the regimen gets set off it is just everyone that has been waiting mauls it at once. would be easy to give just a small delay between abilities so you could see each attack hit.
4. during regimens as you get farther into it the attacks get stronger. show how much stronger each attack was over the basic attack by yourself. show people that by being in the regimen their effort payed off.

anyways sorry for the long post, but i was just trying to say that just because most of us voted for change does not mean that we all had the same idea of what changes and that survey did not do a good job of seeing what people actually wanted.

[Dreamer]

I don't have any problem with change, rather I simply don't like some of the changes they're making.

Example: The Battle System
Yes, the battle system has some problems, though to be honest a large part of it is the way the players are approaching it. But rather than recalibrating TP and Stamina cost and streamlining other mechanics, which is all it really needs to be fixed, the developers have decided to gut the entire system and add autoattack to give players their 'I want to watch TV while playing' crutch. They're tearing down the entire house to add a shower stall, and then shouting "Look! The water autoadjusts its temperature for you!"

Example: Auction Houses
The playerbase wants them solely because that's what they're used to from other games. The devs have said that they're investigating an AH implementation, but a few changes to market wards are all that's needed, really. Adding an AH at this point would just be redundant. The market ward system is fine, it just needs functionality. Enlarge the ward area by a factor of 3x, and require retainers to be at a stall instead of cluttering up the floor. Add a price history. Add separate entries for HQ items. Allow us to view the prices of a given item at other cities.

Example: Questing
I don't mind the subquests at all. What I didn't like was the way it was implemented. We spot the convenient ! over the NPC's head. We talk to them, they give us some meaningless task, we go do it. So boring. Let's start with the ! over their heads. Why is that necessary? Are players unable to pick up on points of interest without being beaten over the head with it? A simple message that only the player can see of "Hey <First Name>, can I request your assist with a personal matter? It will only take a moment." is just as easy to spot an more immersive than being bludgeoned with a giant exclamation mark.

Better yet, while not simply add a third type of levequest giver at the inns that handle intra-city request? The quest gives a short blurb about what the quest entails, you go to the NPC who gives you more background and detail. Then you go complete the quest. The guidleve system is a good idea, it simply needs more variety and quantity.

[Malakhim]

"11. Would you welcome changes to FINAL FANTASY XIV that would drastically alter the rules already set in Eorzea?
85.2% - Yes"

6. What is your biggest expectation for the newly restructured development team?
72.4% - An Overhaul to fundamental gameplay aspects

85.2%; 72.4%

You conveniently left out question 7, which was the one pertaining to his original point. Good show.

Not that I like to use those polls for anything.

[Chezen]

I agree with the majority of Abriael's statements.

The Op said:

There are systems that exist in other MMOs that are tried and true systems that millions and millions of people have vetted and refined over the last 10 years. Many of these systems would benefit FFXIV, but you stand against them for no other reason than you fear FFXIV turning "into wow 2.0" or other such nonsense.

That makes it sound like the one resistant to change is yourself. For all it's shortcomings, FFXIV has been different, and I do want it to stay that way. The approach they took was less broken than it was incomplete.

This is not to say that I am against the changes they are making. The Japanese have a tendancy to take something, even tried and true, and make it unique and better. That's what I look for here.

[Lamhirh]

it was still nt majoprity of players. it was majority of people who cared about filling the questonary. Whioch was minority of players.

[BelgianRofl]

Exactly. The majority of the ones that responded to the polls asked for more *content* to be implemented first. Most flaws in the systems (besides the most glaring ones, and in many cases not even those) aren't even noticed by the average player that just comes in to have a good time. What the average player notices is that the game doesn't give him stuff to occupy his time with.

"11. Would you welcome changes to FINAL FANTASY XIV that would drastically alter the rules already set in Eorzea?
85.2% - Yes"

6. What is your biggest expectation for the newly restructured development team?
72.4% - An Overhaul to fundamental gameplay aspects

85.2%; 72.4%

ma·jor·i·ty   
[muh-jawr-i-tee, -jor-] Show IPA
–noun, plural -ties.
1. the greater part or number; the number larger than half the total ( opposed to minority): the majority of the population.

People hate the battle system in this game. There's like 5 people opposed to altering the battle and class systems... The whole mix 'n match thing drives people away.


http://static.finalfantasyxiv.com/to...2/68/620_0.jpg

1. What do you feel are currently the most significant issues with the battle system?
21.9% - Lack of class uniqueness.

6. In addition to enhancing class differentiation with essential attributes and distinct appearances, we are also looking into introducing class and rank requirements for equipping gear. How do you feel about the implementation of such a system?
70.8% - Yes

8. Would you prefer option 1, option 2, or the current system?
56.0% - Removal of physical levels, and the addition of class-specific allotment of attribute points for each class based on rank.


The majority of american players think content should be added first. The majority of japanese players think the battle system should be changed first. - American's just didn't think this option through, and it is apparent because of THIS: http://static.finalfantasyxiv.com/to...5f3c6910b43377 If we americans really wanted more content first, we would have selected "an accelerated update schedule for our biggest expectation for the newly restructured development team"

Yoshi-P said himself that it makes no sense to add all sorts of battle related content when the battle system is going to be changed. Battle content should and will be added afterwards.

[Winterclaw]

Plenty. Just to bring in a few examples:
1: The armoury system and the ability to mix and match ability between classes
2: crafting/gathering brought to the same level of importance of adventuring and a crafting system that isn't just based on pressing a single button and praying it works.
3: class-generic equipment that allows for a reduction of the "army of clones" effect that plagues other newly-released MMORPG (everyone of the same class/level dressed exactly the same way).
4: Market system that joins the search-friendly features of an AH with the ability to windows-shop and encouraging impulse purchases.

1. GW has this to a degree (job/subjob) as did FF11. Games like UO and EVE don't even have classes.
2. I hate doing both of these things.
3. It's a good feature, but not exactly important gameplay-wise.
4. Making the markets more search friendly were a step in the right direction, but this game still needs a true AH instead of this.

[Lamhirh]

lol that was funny, deleting post and reposting it under other post, including replies.