Thread: Anyone not so excited for 2.2 and the future of this game?

Originally Posted by NefGP

Content didn't last in XI because of "Super low drop rates" (though some gear was notoriously awful I won't deny) it lasted because up until Abyssea and the level cap increases past 75, Tanaka maintained a mantra of never obsoleting old content but instead adding new content with new rewards that were comparable with older ones.

Didn't feel like grinding Sky? Go do Limbus/Sea/Salvage/Assault/Dynamis/whatever for your endgame gear. They were always adding more things to do without ever negating older stuff and it's what led to the thing I adored most about XI (after the presentation and job system) - endless stuff to do, and all of it meaningful. Even if you had everything you wanted it was fun helping out friends too. XI was not only the epitome of the series, but it just seemed to have one of if not the best MMO communities out there....

I played XI for about 6 years, and it was a great game, and will always to me be the best MMO I have ever played. But, lets be honest if another game came out like XI, I'd stay as far away from it as possible because it wouldn't fit into my life as an adult.

The community was as good as it was because only the subset of MMO players who liked that style of game would actually stick it out for the long run. Most of the players I knew in XI ranged from 16-25, mainly students (HS or college) and those without families or numerous life commitments. Most of these players are now adults, have families, real jobs, and would not have the time to commit to a game like XI again.

a new MMO in todays world tried to focus that same group of people (16-25yr olds with time and money to spend), and guess what, work for it = quit; no progression for killing this boss = bad design; low drop rate = something is broken, please fix it; no new things ever month or two = too slow content and quit.

Point is, the MMO market has changed as the younger gamers dictate the markets, and they do not like the same thing that the same group liked 10yrs ago. most MMO's have investors = need big numbers or f2p; and those who shell out their own money will not risk it for a small subset of gamers.

Originally Posted by KogaDrake

I played XI for about 6 years, and it was a great game, and will always to me be the best MMO I have ever played. But, lets be honest if another game came out like XI, I'd stay as far away from it as possible because it wouldn't fit into my life as an adult.

The community was as good as it was because only the subset of MMO players who liked that style of game would actually stick it out for the long run. Most of the players I knew in XI ranged from 16-25, mainly students (HS or college) and those without families or numerous life commitments. Most of these players are now adults, have families, real jobs, and would not have the time to commit to a game like XI again.

a new MMO in todays world tried to focus that same group of people (16-25yr olds with time and money to spend), and guess what, work for it = quit; no progression for killing this boss = bad design; low drop rate = something is broken, please fix it; no new things ever month or two = too slow content and quit.

Point is, the MMO market has changed as the younger gamers dictate the markets, and they do not like the same thing that the same group liked 10yrs ago. most MMO's have investors = need big numbers or f2p; and those who shell out their own money will not risk it for a small subset of gamers.

But this is a false assessment and why ARR is in the sorry state it is. There's no reason we couldn't have a game like XI was again but with the refinements of ARR - in other words it doesn't have to be a tedious time sink in every regard. Just before Abyssea XI was actually striking a pretty good balance between hardcore and casual play with stuff like Fields of Valor that should have been in the game from the start. If you factor in things like XIV removing the need to skill up, more fast travel etc. I'm confident we could still have a game modeled after XI but with modern influences that smoothen out the overall experience.

I can't wrap my head around why SE didn't try that. Maybe they just did ARR this way on purpose because they felt it was a safe bet to get back the money they'd blown.

EDIT: Crap double-post, shoulda condensed this into my other one. I really wish they'd fix the stupid 1000 character limit.