Live Letter XIV Discussion Thread

[Camate]

Greetings,

Below is a message from lead designed Takeo Suzuki in regards to a comment that was mentioned during Letter from the Producer LIVE XIV.

Lead designer Takeo Suzuki here.

Thank you all for watching the Letter from the Producer LIVE.

If you’re saying it’s your intent to make it so equipment dyeing is meant for crafted items, I don’t get how this is connected to the reason for reusing designs for crafted equipment.

As I was unable to explain about this well during the show, I’d like to make a follow-up on this.

I personally wanted to make dyeing equipment one of the special perks for crafters, but the reason for reusing designs for crafted equipment is more related to resource management.

Specifically, I’d like to use resources to add more cosmetic equipment than battle equipment, and we’ve been able to use our resources to add the sailor outfits, spring dresses, and other equipment in 2.2, and the nightwear for patch 2.3. In exchange for spending resources on these new outfits, we’ve made the crafted battle equipment we add in even numbered patches with similar looks to previous equipment, but with an enhanced item level.

On the other hand, while we spend the most resources on rewards for raids and primal battles, we’d also like to keep providing equipment with new graphics for the new dungeons we add.

Fundamentally I had wanted to use the same balance of resources moving forward, but with the introduction of the Glamours system in patch 2.2 and the fact that the position of dungeons has been changing from 2.0 to 2.2, I’d like to make adjustments to our resource management.

It’s a difficult issue to balance what we can do, but please keep on submitting your feedback!

[Meier]

Hmmm Really? Why do you guys make lousy excuses instead of doing a more thorough job at gear design and graphics?

Could you please explain this then? I am confused

http://www.gdcvault.com/play/1020797/Behind-the-Realm

For one you claim the graphics is better in 2.0 than 1.0 but clearly yoshida actually points out how 1.0 graphics was much superior.

Why not put both effort into making, both glamour gear looks nice, along with actual useable gear?

It seems to me that the glamour system was introduce so that you guys can be more lazy and not actually come up with original designs for high level gear, leaving people to use low lvl already in game items to use on their high level equipment...

[Gilraen]

Hmmm Really? How about brain management? Why do you guys make lousy excuses for you’re a better job at gear design and graphics?

I for one think you sir is full of it, and you need to stop lying to us.

http://www.gdcvault.com/play/1020797/Behind-the-Realm

For one you claim the graphics is better in 2.0 than 1.0 but clearly yoshida actually points out how 1.0 graphics was much superior.

Why not put both effort into making, both glamour gear looks nice, along with actual useable gear?

It’s clear that the glamour system was introduce so that you guys can be more lazy and not actually come up with original designs for high level gear, leaving people to use low lvl already in game items to use on their high level equipment.

Better isn't always 'better'. 1.0 did have far better graphics but they required bleeding edge computers (for the time) to actually LOOK better. Seriously, Crysis had nothing on 1.0. That said, their focus has always been to make the raid gear better than tome and crafted gear. It's part of what drove some players away. The Glamour system is just a means of customization that alot of gear simply does not have.

[Nova_Dresden]

For one you claim the graphics is better in 2.0 than 1.0 but clearly yoshida actually points out how 1.0 graphics was much superior.

Anyone who played any of 1.0 (beta included) knows that 1.0 was absolutely gorgeous. It really was. I never saw a game look more gorgeous than that game.

The trade-off came that in order to be gorgeous it required a MASSIVE amount of system resources and very good hardware. My friend had to replace his 6-month old video card just to meet the minimums to play the beta trial. And it lagged. Sweet baby Jesus, did it lag. It truly was awful. Any reviews of the initial launch of 1.0 basically amounted to, "This is the worst MMO I've ever played, but MY GOD is it beautiful!" The graphics had to be retuned but are still much better than they were because it doesn't require a high-end rig just play the game at minimums.

[Larin]

I personally wanted to make dyeing equipment one of the special perks for crafters, but the reason for reusing designs for crafted equipment is more related to resource management.

There is something I don't understand. I was happy to be able dyeing items until I realized it's completely useless, sad there are 94 different colors. There are so many nice looking items and NONE of them is dyeable. Here I want to say thank you.
But hey! There is the glamour system. Crafted gear as vanity items? Of course I'll spend my Gil to get the Battlemage set for my BLM just to dye it yellow and put it on a useful item? This is a very nice idea. I would like the Sailor set, but there are no gloves. You also didn't have enough resources for a pair of gloves?

[Coldbrand]

Greetings,

Below is a message from lead designed Takeo Suzuki in regards to a comment that was mentioned during Letter from the Producer LIVE XIV.

My feedback is hire more artists so you can have a truly distinguished game that doesn't constantly reuse assets like a certain other MMO that became exponentially more lazy with recycling assets. Put all these subs you love to brag about to good use.

[Gesser]

Make what adjustments to your resource management? That was so confusing & didn't really speak well to the inquiry.

My feedback is: put much more of your emphasis into combat gear diversity, invest less resources in Spring Dresses (while nice, we don't need them frequently & the combat equipment homogeny is getting out of hand already).

Also more emphasis on better standards/QA with regards to clipping for the future, where viable so as not to eliminate artistic freedom.

[MGunns]

What resources? My Monk looks like a purple Bard. You guys took the same armor models for i100 gear for Monk and Bard and just added a color difference. This is totally bogus. I know I can glamour the gear, but what's the point of getting "new" gear if all I can do is glamour an old model onto it so I don't look like a purple Bard?

[Ghastly]

What resources? My Monk looks like a purple Bard. You guys took the same armor models for i100 gear for Monk and Bard and just added a color difference. This is totally bogus. I know I can glamour the gear, but what's the point of getting "new" gear if all I can do is glamour an old model onto it so I don't look like a purple Bard?

The point of new gear is stats.

[MGunns]

The point of new gear is stats.

Really???? Thanks for chiming in with that brilliant response. Of course higher ilvl armor is going to have better stats, that's a given. MMO's also update armor models in one way or another when they release "new" content.