What do you think about the current copy/paste maps?

[trinta]

I'm sure we all appreciate the summary!

And it's "peiste", since you asked!

[Niyariko]

Well lots of posts on the JP side are complaining about the forest for sure lol, but other than that good posts I saw in there are like how the camps are also copy/paste. They would like to see changes to camps like say for Morduna area since it's supposed to be area with a lot harder mobs they wanted the camp to look like a mini fortress where they are actually guarding the camp from the large Paiste (that how you spell it in EN version?)...

Is interesting that you brought up the copy/paste of camps, SE DO know that different community and cultural backgrounds, different regions of the world, designs building differently; It shows in Gridanian's architectures where situated in the woods, uses mainly lumber, and the roof of these buildings are design to shed a great amount of rain water and iconic giant windows to bring in lights from the tightly knitted forest trees. Ul'dah uses a lot of bricks, a natural material from it's surrounding, made from carved rocks, reinforced with buttresses to withstand open sand storms. LL's architectures are mainly from wood and metals for passage connections, this made sense by gathering from the abundance of different minerals and lumbers in its surroundings, not to mention wood with metal is a good combination for building bridges that can expand and contract in linking all those small islands in La Noscea. Caves with reinforced man-made structures carved from existing landscape and the landmark lighthouse by the shore wraps up the idea of the pirate neighborhood.

Yet, all the camps by the Aetheryte looks the same regardless of their location. SE knows how to create an immersing experience through mapping environment as one can see from the town design, but it seems they didn't go all the way. It will be impossible for SE to remake all the maps, just hope none of them are copy/paste when they introduce new areas. If a larger zone mean they will be copy/paste thru out the world, then I rather have smaller zone with loading boarders in between.

[Moth]

I think that just as much love and detail went into creating the zones as it was in XI :c I think simply because the zones are SOOOOO BIG, it feels copy/pasted because they had to cover so much land. You have to believe that if the zones were the same size as they were in XI and if there were more of them then no one would be complaining at all. With new expansions and updates, i am positive new zones will come along with it. Then the world will feel much better.. maybe even too big.

[Statham]

It is true that the copy / past is obvious and lack of real innovation. This may seem to some a botched job. For gridania is a bit abused the composition of the map is a maze ... Others spend more. It's FFXIV and not a FFXI-2!

[Fensfield]

Honestly? They don't bother me.

The sheer resultant scale is something I really enjoy, the map content is itself beautiful despite repetition and, for me, they're just shy of the point where I actually notice easily and it bothers me.

If they opted to remodel the environments to be completely unique across the board, then I would only be happy if this were achieved with the degree of modelling effort they already put into the individual elements. A global procedural height-map, ala WoW and its ilk, with only instances of deliberately modelled terrain poking out of a general, undulating sheet of polygons, would be pretty offensive to me after the detail was put into the terrain models themselves, re-used or no.

That said, though, the blunt transition between the Twelveswood and Thanalan is kind of whiplash inducing, yes ..

[Abriael]

I think what I always thought. Assets recycling is part of the development of ANY game, even more MMORPGs.

If some troll woth an agenda on youtube didn't make a big deal about it, 99% of people would have never noticed, as they don't notice in other games in which the same technique are used, to the same extent.

I also believe that opening just another thread about this dead horse because some silly 2channers on the Japanese forums don't know how videogames are made, is rather trollish and not exactly the smartest thing to do.

[Draven]

What do I think? I think this issue has been beaten to death and raised again for further chocobo stomping.

I personally am busy enough I'm not examining the exact location of copy pasted areas and so it doesn't really bother me much.

If it's a big enough problem for people they need to keep discussing it, then I guess that's cool as long as it doesn't turn into SE bashing. There's been enough of that I think lately huh?

[RodimusPrime]

I didn't notice the copy/pasting until I read it on some forum. So no, I don't care. As long as SE adds some points of interest around the map, it should be sufficient. Like the towers around in Noscea. With sidequest they can add quest NPCs there, maybe some vendors ... The maps can be tiled for all I care, as long as they manage to fool me.

[Climm]

what would you guys say if the entire realm was changed?... i oppose a complete change since it would take far too much time. however, there are some things that can be "deleted". Im just talking about those really anoying small obstacles in the way. I like to feel like im able to breath deeply and look at an endless horizon... but its blocked by small hills and rocks...

I really liked the way Xi and other games have this really open realm. Sure FFXIV looks a bit more natural and "realistic" this way, but this is a fantasy game...i dont care about realism..


Bottom Line, i would like more open and vast maps. just by removing some small objects and obstacles would make it for me. However, i do have to point out that i still like the non-flat land in the game, and that they should keep it that way.

Also... what do you guys think about weather seasons?...not necessarily the ones on the real world...but how about a rainy season for ul'dah that grows flowers and grass? or a hot summer in la norcea?... if we want this, we better ask for it soon...

[Abriael]

Also... what do you guys think about weather seasons?...not necessarily the ones on the real world...but how about a rainy season for ul'dah that grows flowers and grass? or a hot summer in la norcea?... if we want this, we better ask for it soon...

Something like that would multiply the size of the client by 1.5, counting just two seasons. Adding four seasons would multiply the size by 2.5 or so.

This without even counting, of course, the development and artistic resources that would be needed to redraw 80% of the world's textures.

Nice on paper, but it's not really what this game needs. We're honestly all set with eyecandy. What we need is content.