FFXIV expansion (marketing strategy) at E3?

[Zantetsuken]

I have a hunch that SE will announce the first expansion to FFXIV at E3 along with some footage of new job system, and zones (some of it will be really cool looking). The expansion will be also included with the PS3 release and offered free of charge to current players.

I also predict whining on the forums on about how much of the 'expansion' content is really just stuff that was essential to making the game work and how it shouldn't be called an expansion at all.

If this does happen, keep in mind that it will be more of a marketing decision. SE will need to do this to generate some new hype in the game so we should go with it.

Does anyone think this won't happen, or if it does, that it is a bad idea?

[Betelgeuzah]

Working on an expansion with the game in it's current state would be a massive insult to anyone. Everyone not working on the current game is a dead weight.

An expansion tackled on top of the main game has little impact and feels superficial as opposed to remaking the vanilla from the ground up. We don't even have half the regions of the vanilla available to us yet, Ishgard included.

E3 is for unreleased games. FFXIV was released in September last year. E3 is not for hyping ported versions of old games.

[Corrderio]

Working on an expansion with the game in it's current state would be a massive insult to anyone. Everyone not working on the current game is a dead weight.

An expansion tackled on top of the main game has little impact and feels superficial as opposed to remaking the vanilla from the ground up. We don't even have half the regions of the vanilla available to us yet, Ishgard included.

E3 is for unreleased games. FFXIV was released in September last year. E3 is not for hyping ported versions of old games.

QFT

/lol10char

[Zantetsuken]

As I said, I figured SE would get some grief for it among current players,. But lets face it, they need to do something to overcome the bad press they have over this game.

If they give it away to us for free (and they would if it's packaged with the PS3 version), why should we complain?

Once the battle/job system is fixed and the companies and dungeons are in place, this game is practically where FFXI was without Zilart.

[DeadlySwordz]

i really doubt they will announce any types of expansion for this game at E3 due to the games current state. the game hasn't even been out a yr yet and in the eyes of many players it currently has, the game is still in beta. The game has been in beta for a yr and almost 2 months now. i would find it hard to believe how they would even have time to be working on an expansion when they have so many other things to fix right now. also the ps3 version of the game isn't even out yet and there is no release date on it yet either.

[Zantetsuken]

An announcement of an expansion would be part of a larger overall presentation or behind the scenes theater. Nothing would be playable, but SE would show off a trailer with some early models, CG and concept art of new zones, jobs, etc..

To not do so at this point would be to waste a key opportunity to restore interest in the game.

SE really has nothing to lose, and everything to gain from doing this.

[Victor]

According to this list, FFXIV will not be there at all.

https://member.eu.square-enix.com/en...e3-2011-lineup

[InuraBera]

I doubt it would happen, not least because they haven't finished the main game yet. I'm as much looking forward to the future of Final Fantasy XIV as anyone else but I wouldn't want an expansion when we haven't even seen the current version of the world/game with the changes having been made to it. Even if they did originally have plans for an expansion at the release of the game I really wouldn't expect to see anything of it until much, much later.

We may get what would have been the expansion slowly but surely as they improve the game, but even I would baulk at an expansion at the moment. Since it is only about six months since the new development team has truly started, that would mean that anything outside of graphical work would also have been wasted!

To be honest, I don't expect to recognise this game come the one year mark, outside of the general graphics, I mention this to back-up my reasoning of why it is unlikely to have any expansion currently being worked on. We are currently at the level where Patches even include changes to the Controller targetting method as well as changes to the UI in the reign of adding messages for "Light/Full Party" and the size of the various HP/MP/TP bars. That is how serious this overhaul is. These aren't being touched up to look pretty and fix slight flaws, everything is being changed to fill that 'Final Fantasy' feel and be more accessible in general.

That comment above is the biggest to me. We have patches *changing the size of bars* and the size of creatures, spell effects and even the way the combat text looked (Even these changes improved the feeling of combat to me). These seem small, but together with the larger changes it will all hopefully add up to something good. Even in the latest producers letter, basically everything in that is what could be considered standard MMO fare - Tutorial Pop-ups, slash commands also being available in the config menu and so on. One of the ones that sticks out most is that they are changing it so that the targetting cursor appears *above* the target.

None of this says they have any reason, or any need, to be working on an expansion just yet. Phew!

[Brightshadow]

Well in my opinion this is what SE should do.

2011 Additions

Patch 1.18 (June)
-Finish Remaking the battle system + Balancing of classes
-Adjust Behest and Guildleves to be equal in all regions + put a solution for the things players do like fail leves on purpose.
-Introduce the first set of unlockable jobs.
-Introduce the Materia system.
-Adjustments to existing maps like Black shroud
-Encampments

Patch 1.18b (July)
-Fix bugs
-More balancing
-Introduce new side quests
-New NMs
-Expansion of companies

Patch 1.19 (August)
-Introduce Chocobos
-Introduce Ishgard
-New Dungeons
-Expansion of materia system.

________________________________________________________________________
~Start of monthly fee~
after patch 1.19 I hope all the work the developers have been working on would be ready, that way the game would be at a good state to start charging the monthly fee. and patches should be more bigger since they have to worry less about revamping the game.

Patch 1.20 (September)
-Addons to the whole game. (Leves,Behest,Dungeons,Materia,etc)
-Final set of planned jobs.
-First stage of missing Classes. (Musketeer + Arcanist)
-New endgame activity (Rank40+)
-Lots of new Monsters like tonberries
-Monster Encampments
-A lot of new Quests and Missions
-First rank increase (Rank 60)
-Expansion of companies & city-state tasks.
-Bugs,fixes,adjustments.

Patch 2.0 (December)
-Adjustments + Fixes
-Addition of Missing Classes (Shepherd,Mystic,Bard) (To balance out DOM with DOW)
-Addition to events
-New areas (Paglth'an + O'Ghomoro)
________________________________________________________________________
2012 Additions
~Announcement of first expansion for the end of 2012~2013 that introduce us to the region of the Garlean empire. Plus PS3 release with it and maybe the new Wii or whatever its called.

Patch 2.1 (Feb)
-Adjustments + Fixes
-Addition of Missing Classes (Flayer,Enforcer,Samurai)
-Additions to the game
-New areas (Xelphatol + Gyr Abania)

Patch 2.2 (May)
-Adjustments + Fixes
-Additions to the game
-Airships
-New Activity
-New areas (Dravania + Sharlayan)

Patch 2.3(July)
-Adjustments + Fixes
-Conclusion of main story line of eorzea.
-New areas (Ala Mhigo)
________________________________________________________________________
Then afterwards I expect low content till the release of the expansion around (NOV2012~May2013)

[Cairdeas]

Well in my opinion this is what SE should do.

2011 Additions

Patch 1.18 (June)
-Finish Remaking the battle system + Balancing of classes
-Adjust Behest and Guildleves to be equal in all regions + put a solution for the things players do like fail leves on purpose.
-Introduce the first set of unlockable jobs.
-Introduce the Materia system.
-Adjustments to existing maps like Black shroud
-Encampments

Patch 1.18b (July)
-Fix bugs
-More balancing
-Introduce new side quests
-New NMs
-Expansion of companies

Patch 1.19 (August)
-Introduce Chocobos
-Introduce Ishgard
-New Dungeons
-Expansion of materia system.

________________________________________________________________________
~Start of monthly fee~
after patch 1.19 I hope all the work the developers have been working on would be ready, that way the game would be at a good state to start charging the monthly fee. and patches should be more bigger since they have to worry less about revamping the game.

Patch 1.20 (September)
-Addons to the whole game. (Leves,Behest,Dungeons,Materia,etc)
-Final set of planned jobs.
-First stage of missing Classes. (Musketeer + Arcanist)
-New endgame activity (Rank40+)
-Lots of new Monsters like tonberries
-Monster Encampments
-A lot of new Quests and Missions
-First rank increase (Rank 60)
-Expansion of companies & city-state tasks.
-Bugs,fixes,adjustments.

Patch 2.0 (December)
-Adjustments + Fixes
-Addition of Missing Classes (Shepherd,Mystic,Bard) (To balance out DOM with DOW)
-Addition to events
-New areas (Paglth'an + O'Ghomoro)
________________________________________________________________________
2012 Additions
~Announcement of first expansion for the end of 2012~2013 that introduce us to the region of the Garlean empire. Plus PS3 release with it and maybe the new Wii or whatever its called.

Patch 2.1 (Feb)
-Adjustments + Fixes
-Addition of Missing Classes (Flayer,Enforcer,Samurai)
-Additions to the game
-New areas (Xelphatol + Gyr Abania)

Patch 2.2 (May)
-Adjustments + Fixes
-Additions to the game
-Airships
-New Activity
-New areas (Dravania + Sharlayan)

Patch 2.3(July)
-Adjustments + Fixes
-Conclusion of main story line of eorzea.
-New areas (Ala Mhigo)
________________________________________________________________________
Then afterwards I expect low content till the release of the expansion around (NOV2012~May2013)

It wont jump to 2.0 until the expansion Just saying