Frontlines queue is broken.

[DefendPopPunk]

Is the popularity going down? Are people just getting their mounts and bailing? I enjoy frontlines but the queues as of late have been a lot longer than they've been before.

[Akie]

3 Friends we all Q at the same time, all solo

They both get in, do their game and they re Q, I didn't get in with them.

They both get in again, I didn't.

Why does DF hates me so much... I had in progress checked just like they did.

Just think DF dislike the Miqo'te Master race !

[Buff_Archer]

But he complained about not be able to be in a hunt party while waiting for the frontline queue.

That was more an example of how when we're waiting for one thing such as this in DF, it limits our other options for anything that requires being in a separate nonqueued party. Which makes the experience of waiting a long time for each Frontlines match that much worse as it excludes us from being able to fully engage in other things.

[Altena]

Nah, that is called duty finder being bugged

Hence the whole damn point of this thread . . . . . . . . .

[MageBlack]

First off, I apologize for the "Raise Thread" spell I just cast but I wanted to add on to my previous position.

If you go back you can see me arguing about queues being very broken. Now I do still think they need some attention and priority fixes and maybe even make them cross data center populations to speed up queue pops.

A little bit about where I'm coming from; I was initially in the Maelstrom GC and was having queue pops between 2 or 6 hours and then I switched GC to Gridania (mostly for aesthetic purposes and housing, this was before reading this thread) and then I noticed my queues were going between an hour and 3 or more hours. Better but still much longer than they should be.

A few things I discovered was Regardless of the times I was playing (usually 7-midnight PST or any time of day on the weekend) I would have crazy long queues, weekends were a little better but still long enough I would set my son up to watch for the queue to pop while I did housework or made dinner or whatever. I was on the fence about changing servers (I was on Ragnarok) and then found out some of the information I thought was correct, was in fact incorrect. I thought that all data centers had a mixture of JP/NA/EU servers but in fact each data center was a collection of servers all from a particular region. Hence the reason I could not get a party for Frontlines since it was like 3-5 am in the EU.

I have since switched (back) to Balmung and I have noticed a huge difference in queue times, the max I've waited was 32 min. GC really does make a difference but only because of the crappy mentality your average "MMO Vet/Hardcore" player has about always taking the path of least resistance for the greatest reward.

Here is the summary I took from this experience:

1) Players are flocking more towards Maelstrom, for the wins
2) The Frontlines are set up so the GC's are separate and you can only queue as your GC
3) More players are waiting for Maelstrom queues. (This is like queuing for a Dungeon run as DPS)
4) Lines are shorter for Twin (B)Adders so we rotate through the queues faster (This is like queuing for a dungeon as a Tank)

So, If I can lose 10 games in the time it takes for (a poster on the previous page waited 10 hours for one queue) then I'm gaining more rewards then someone waiting on a Maelstrom win. This does lead me to believe that GC really does matter (as well as what server you are on respective of your real world location, but this was my own mistake which is a long story in and of itself). The only downside is I havent won a match since I switched (servers) but it has only been two days. There is definite lack of organization compared to when I was in Maelstrom but I still get rewards for participating.

TL;DR If you are in the Maelstrom and don't like long queues for Frontlines, try switching to one of the other two GC's (Twin Adders is probably the shortest). If you arent interested in switching for whatever your reason then you will probably be stuck with long wait times. Unfortunately it is the way they have this PvP queue system set up so unless SE decides to remove the GC restrictions, it will always be this way.

It could be fixed, at least a little, by opening up the queuing to cross data centers but I dont think this will be something they will explore. They separated data centers to fix queuing for other DF things and I dont think they can separate just the PvP from it.

PS: It would be nice if they expanded on the PvP area and added in things to draw players waiting on queues to gather there. Might help to grow a PvP community or at least let you see who else is waiting.

[Shake0615]

3) More players are waiting for Maelstrom queues. (This is like queuing for a Dungeon run as DPS)
4) Lines are shorter for Twin (B)Adders so we rotate through the queues faster (This is like queuing for a dungeon as a Tank)

While I'm almost convinced that there is a bug or unintended issue behind the DF in general, I do think this is also a major contributing factor. Flames on Primal have reported max 10-15 minute queue times while mine (as Maelstrom) are anywhere from 45-1.5 hours. I've taken to reading while waiting on the DF and I'm halfway through Les Miserables as of this week lol. So I suppose these horrible queue times have positive consequences in my real life, though I doubt this was SE's intention :P

[Lovescake]

Just think DF dislike the Miqo'te Master race !

Lol Keep Dreaming... Lalafell Master Race


Also the issue i have with this is the simple concept of if the Queues are so bad, why dont SE just open up the server restrictions to again populate the queue, ive sat there once for 215 mins for a queue, what did i do you ask? i fished.. Alot..

the queues arent as big of the issue when the game itself is peering out to get a 24,48 or a 72 man, why not give it an X amount of time, if nothing changes withing a specific span such as 28 players are queued, then drop 4, make a 24 man match, then requeue the other 4 and put them in the other match which is next to pop?

Sure itll suck a lil but itll be faster pops.

[Cian]

if it is in fact based on GC demand i would like to see a GC swapping "penalty" for Frontlines. something like a few weeks or a month cooldown for frontlines if you change GC's. You can still do all other GC related activities but you cannot pvp in frontlines for one month. call it new recruit training. yes harsh but i think it should be. i think swapping GC loyalties should not be a thing taken lightly as far as Frontlines is concerned. i think there should be a significant time(or missions where you gain no gil or exp) to prove your "loyalty" to your new GC. . .since this is a lore thing.