Aw, crap. I look away for a few hours and more people actually started responding to this thread. >_>

Now it's the next day since I had to wait to get to post again. But, I'm gonna try and put my money where my mouth is...

Quote Originally Posted by redisdrunk View Post
I said this in an earlier post(s), but this seems like an appropriate place to reiterate the sentiments I have.
...and your post, Redisdrunk, seems to encapsulate many of the biggest issues, save for misc. job nerfs/buffs which are rustling a whole different set of jimmies. I'm no pro, but I'll give this a shot. So! Here is why these things might all be okay.

Quote Originally Posted by redisdrunk View Post
Why should I be excited about the addition of Crystal Tower, when I'm already being told I won't have any incentive to play it more than once a week?
If you're a newcomer to MMOs (not saying you are, yourself) this one probably seems really bizarre. This, however, is a very standard way of pacing out raid progress. WoW (the most common comparison) has been doing this for years. The truth is, you seriously aren't meant to run this more than once a week, at least as it's currently designed. The intent is that a raid group gets together once weekly (or more, depending on how long it takes to clear) and gives it a solid shot, and loot rewards may ensue -- but never a full set of gear, and you only get your one chance.

The purpose of this is literally to keep crazier players from just hammering it, maxing out everyone's gear in a day, and then having absolutely no further content to try for however many months until the next patch. This would be really bad for the longevity of MMOs, and would only encourage hardcore raiders to leave. They're not a huge percentage of the playerbase, but anyone who designs these things wants to keep them around, as they often generate some fairly important feedback. Lockouts aren't the most graceful solution, but so far, no one has really found anything better.

My prediction: Once Crystal Tower is no longer "current" content, they're either going to change the loot lockout to per-job rather than per-character (which honestly wouldn't hurt if they just did that now, since with the existence of Binding Coil and Extreme Primals it's debatably not going to be "current"), or even get rid of them entirely. This would make it easier for anyone just starting to raid to gear up fast.

Quote Originally Posted by redisdrunk View Post
Edit; Why should I be excited about two remixed lower level dungeons?
When you say "remixed", you may not quite realize what it implies, and how this is actually a positive thing. The environment is recycled, but they're putting in an entirely new story and series of encounters. This is actually much different from, say, WoW's "heroic" dungeons, which are almost entirely identical to their lower-level counterparts, but with bigger HP. If that sounds dull, that's because it is. The ones we're getting here do not sound dull.

Also, if the fact that the Ultima Weapon redux is presented in-universe as some chucklehead's hilariously exaggerated retelling of your own deeds isn't enough to completely justify its existence, I dunno what to tell ya. That's the funniest story explanation for a common MMO contrivance I've ever heard.

Quote Originally Posted by redisdrunk View Post
Why should I be excited about three recycled primal fights, which are already recycled once before?
Maybe these aren't your thing, but the extreme-mode Primals were planned from the start and very clearly aimed at the craziest people who play. 90% of the audience isn't gonna touch these, but they'll give the top-end raiders something to chew on. Everyone else may safely ignore them.

Quote Originally Posted by redisdrunk View Post
Why should I be excited about PvP, when your PvE content is so unbalanced that you rely on 'step out of the circle or you'll die' for every major encounter in lieu of interesting mechanics?
If you are worried that PvP is going to be imbalanced, guess what, you are absolutely 100% correct. It's going to be ridiculous. It's going to be broken. It's going to be ludicrously lopsided and unfair.

But, that's okay!

Because it's PvP in a PvE game. Unless an MMO has been designed with it as a core component (and that does not include World of Warcraft, however the arena enthusiasts and gankers might insist upon it), it's never going to be quite right...but, most of the major problems will probably be ironed out relatively quickly.

No one should go into the Wolves' Den expecting a remotely fair fight at first. It's probably going to take months of very careful observation by the devs and tons of feedback from players before it's on somewhat level ground.

PvP can be tons of fun, but in a game not fully designed for it out the gate, it should be taken with a grain of salt. Do not waste your anger on it. Embrace the nonsense and be at peace as you own/get owned.

Quote Originally Posted by redisdrunk View Post
Why should I be excited about FC housing, the thing you've been babbling about since you took over 1.0, when even with price cuts it'll still be a pipe dream for most groups?
So, my FC, which is sorta modest-sized but generally cohesive, has about...700k saved up. >_> We're a little disappointed, but strangely none of us seem to have been too surprised by the high price point for company housing (But Square, if you are reading this: We will gladly settle for a beach umbrella, a few towels, and moogles serving margaritas.)

It's gonna take a while for the housing market to settle, and the first buyers are inevitably going to be paying the most. Anyone familiar with these kinds of economics probably saw it coming, and were probably as mystified as I was that Square-Enix chose to really hype this up, as it will be out of reach for most people at first.

I'm not an expert on virtual economies, so I can't predict how this will pan out, but I have a gut feeling it's not going to be as bad as it looks, at least after some time has passed. If nothing else, remember that right now this is company housing. Individual player housing is probably going to have far smaller prices. It's probably safe to say that anyone playing right now will have a great deal extra gil once that actually comes out, assuming they're playing steadily, but that's just speculation.

Quote Originally Posted by redisdrunk View Post
I understand you're adding new story content. And that is exciting, in various ways. But I'm already level 50 and your story isn't that compelling, by my own standards of course. So where will my sense of forward progression come from? An achievement? A title?
I disagree that the story isn't compelling, but not everyone views it from the same angle. What I've seen of it so far has exceeded expectations, and I personally am stoked that they're going to just keep rolling out more of it.

Much like things like airships, chocobos, retainers, special mounts, etc. have come along as story rewards, they'll probably have more of these to encourage less story-focused people to keep up with it. Hell, this might actually be the way they introduce individual housing for players.

Far, far different than most MMOs, the story here is obviously meant to be a centerpiece, if not the centerpiece, and the benefits to players for following it should be accordingly extravagant. Will they be? Hell if I know. I hope so, and they probably won't please everyone no matter how amazing, but eh. Some people are gonna get upset -- like, truly and honestly teeth-grindingly angry -- by things no matter what.

But they shouldn't, 'cause you shouldn't get mad at video games.

If there is one absolute promise I can give, it's that half a year from now, all of this will be taken for granted as just another part of the game. FFXIV isn't going away for a very long time.