Some additional thoughts/feelings after me playinbg some other mmos on this break...

[Elexia]

incoming elexia with her "since they're making this a steamlined game..."

Too bad SE said it first and recently stated they want it to compete and capture audiences or there's no real point.

For starters I don't know many games where all classes can be obtained on one character. With the exception of a few, the Jobs are very unique to the FF genre.

While true, more MMOs are going down this path so one strength the FF MMOs had in originality is starting to slip away, especially since with XIV they're still going the 'open ended' route in a sense that most MMOs have. XI for example a good strength was the fact it played like a FF game, throughout the story you end up opening more options to yourself (like almost all FF game) and eventually unlock the "final area", again like almost every FF game. You unlocked Sky and Sea through progressing the storyline which unlocks a bit more content for you to do as well as additional leveling places.

Most MMOs push you out of zones through quest chaining so you don't really get a real "attachment" to areas since once you wear out quests you'll want to go to the next zone and rinse and repeat. FF games generally give you an attachment to many areas usually through backtracking but mostly through sidequests outside of the main path. So all they really have to do is make it more of a FF game in setup and execution, much like they did with XI, it was based on EQ baseline but they made it their own.

The one mistake they're likely going to make is unlike other MMOs, FF games being turned into an MMO needs to follow the one principle that the game starts when you start, not start at end-game like so many MMOs the past decade. in XI you had quite a lot to do as you're leveling especially in terms of storyline content and misc activities like Assault and the like (it's why there's level cap options, to let people not at end-game partake in it) and why end-game was the ultimate goal but not only goal where the devs will want to rocket you to end-game asap. They need to balance the beginning, middle and ending. XI in late years was top heavy due to them focusing on end-game, with ARR if they do that they're just making the same mistake so many others have been making lately with their game and we seen the outcome.

[yukikaze_yanagi]

Too bad SE said it first and recently stated they want it to compete and capture audiences or there's no real point.

My point isn't related to the game, but towards you. Every single post you made lately have a similar sentence, it's starting to be a meme and it's quite annoying.
The game got a direction, a direction you don't like. Ok ? Why you're still here then ? i can't understand why a product you really don't like still require your presence. IF you really hate it so much it's time to move on something more similar to your tastes don't ?

[Allesasi]

My point isn't related to the game, but towards you. Every single post you made lately have a similar sentence, it's starting to be a meme and it's quite annoying.
The game got a direction, a direction you don't like. Ok ? Why you're still here then ? i can't understand why a product you really don't still require your presence. IF you really hate it so much it's time to move on something more similar to your tastes don't ?

I guess it must be the insatiable desire to correct everyone here all the time is impossible to resist!

[Biggs]

My point isn't related to the game, but towards you. Every single post you made lately have a similar sentence, it's starting to be a meme and it's quite annoying.
The game got a direction, a direction you don't like. Ok ? Why you're still here then ? i can't understand why a product you really don't like still require your presence. IF you really hate it so much it's time to move on something more similar to your tastes don't ?

I have been barking up that tree for some time now. You may as well be asking why the skies blue. Some people just enjoy pooping in other folks cheerios.

[faris]

in XI you had quite a lot to do as you're leveling especially in terms of storyline content and misc activities like Assault and the like (it's why there's level cap options, to let people not at end-game partake in it) and why end-game was the ultimate goal but not only goal where the devs will want to rocket you to end-game asap. They need to balance the beginning, middle and ending. XI in late years was top heavy due to them focusing on end-game, with ARR if they do that they're just making the same mistake so many others have been making lately with their game and we seen the outcome.

That's one of the reasons I wish they'd consider re-adding the level caps to Promathia missions. It'd be nice to give nubs something to do with their low-mid level times rather than just spam FoV pages to "get to the endgame"

[Yrusama]

Too bad SE said it first and recently stated they want it to compete and capture audiences or there's no real point.

See this is probably the best way you could have said what you normally say. When you say "it's going to be mainstream", you normally sound like you're saying "it's going to fail for lack of originality". It's very annoying, and your character's condescending expression makes it even worse. However:

While true, more MMOs are going down this path so one strength the FF MMOs had in originality is starting to slip away, especially since with XIV they're still going the 'open ended' route in a sense that most MMOs have. XI for example a good strength was the fact it played like a FF game, throughout the story you end up opening more options to yourself (like almost all FF game) and eventually unlock the "final area", again like almost every FF game. You unlocked Sky and Sea through progressing the storyline which unlocks a bit more content for you to do as well as additional leveling places.

Most MMOs push you out of zones through quest chaining so you don't really get a real "attachment" to areas since once you wear out quests you'll want to go to the next zone and rinse and repeat. FF games generally give you an attachment to many areas usually through backtracking but mostly through sidequests outside of the main path. So all they really have to do is make it more of a FF game in setup and execution, much like they did with XI, it was based on EQ baseline but they made it their own.

This I'll agree with, for the most part. Fortunately all of the lower level content in XI is still there for players to enjoy, even though their more recent focus is on endgame since they don't expect many new players to an old game. But what you've said about the progression of area accessibility is absolutely true. The Tavnazian Archipelago is an excellent early-game example. After 3 fairly difficult dungeons (recently made easier), you stumble on this beautiful and inspiring new land. It feels just as remote and abandoned as is appropriate for the plot. The same is even more true of Al'Taieu or Ru'Aun Gardens: abandoned, devoid of any NPCs except those who travel there during the plot. I should hope that we have similarly mystifying endgame areas in XIV.

This also reminds me that I prefer XI's setup to questing. I don't want to be told "go kill 6 mobs" over and over again. I want to have to get a random drop. This ensures people are less likely to have the exact same experience with each quest. "I got it in 1 kill" vs. "I got it in 5." No matter how much you all hate RNG, the luck (good or bad) and how we handle it builds character. It's probably too late for them to redesign this system, though, and in the end it's not really that big a deal. (I still play XI, intending to play both.)

[-S-a-g-e]

Most MMOs push you out of zones through quest chaining so you don't really get a real "attachment" to areas since once you wear out quests you'll want to go to the next zone and rinse and repeat. FF games generally give you an attachment to many areas usually through backtracking but mostly through sidequests outside of the main path.

As for this statement alone it is totally a matter of opinion. Majority of my favorites zones from MMOs comes from WoW where the quests take you all over the zone and you get to explore it while questing instead of never seeing said corner of any given map like in XI. Though I will have to say my favorite bit of exploring and attachment would belong to Everquest where areas were rich and worth branching out off the beaten path.

[strallaalaa]

As for this statement alone it is totally a matter of opinion. Majority of my favorites zones from MMOs comes from WoW where the quests take you all over the zone and you get to explore it while questing instead of never seeing said corner of any given map like in XI. Though I will have to say my favorite bit of exploring and attachment would belong to Everquest where areas were rich and worth branching out off the beaten path.

there isn't a inch of the game that ffxi doesn't take you too. between quests, missions, nm's, and everything else. fact just nm's themselves would of been good enough reason to see many zones. least for people who played the game and didn't just buy gil and played the same few endgames over and over again. there were tons of awesome looking places in ffxi to see that you would be exploring or trying to find a spot for something you need. even if you looked up the position on the web for the quest it probably still took you threw most of that zone. i'll agree quests weren't rewarding in ffxi, but they were quality in my opinion. i enjoyed all of them. majority of them had mini bosses. and they didn't have to be fast kill quests like other mmo's. and i've said it a million times but you can actually take your time and read them and watch the cs's this way. hopefully everquest3 will be like ffxi and eq1, never played any eq mmo but if everyone is saying they are what ffxi took some of itself from so ...here is to hoping it's great. probably be my last mmo i try to play.