Targeting: Lingering Issues

[Rutelor]

For a game in which hitting the active party-target is so important (as opposed to any other attacking foes,) and where enemies usually attack in groups of identical mobs, the red-color name,which distinguishes a target as the active one, does not carry over to the Target Frame. Neither does the Enemy Sign which the game developers included in hopes to allow players distinguish a mob from its brethren. (Nor do Ally Signs, for that matter.)

Targeting has been one of the egregiously faulty areas in the design of this game's UI, and the new development team has dedicated quite a bit of energy to its re-hauling. But for a game in which, by design as well, combat can be such a confusing melée, the lack of a clear designation for the party target (or of an assist command, or a <bt> marker for macros or text commands) truly makes no sense at all.

Right before the end of last year, we were promised an /assist command by the next update planned by that development team. After all the changes that came shortly afterwards, the promise was neither reiterated nor kept by the new team.

As of the latest timetable included in the 10th Letter from the Producer, the display on a target's frames is greyed-out as completed with patch 1.17.

Improvements to targeting mechanics >> Examination of additional information display on unit frames (complete as of 1.17)

"Examination of target indicator customization, and addition of an 'attacking enemies only' type to targeting system" seem to be under consideration but, to my mind, this would not solve the issue. So often, by the time I manage to target (and double check it is indeed the right mob) in a busy party fight, said target is too close to death for me to be able to cast anything on it.

R