[dev1001] The Ease of the Game

[AlexiaKidd]

I just did those archer missions and they were so easy. This is a big problem with the game so much of the story involves running from one place to another reading some text and then running back maybe 1 shot some mobs at some point inbetween. I know SE want to make the game solo friendly and the story to be done on any class, but are we expected to believe an R50 Weaver is going to topple the Garlean Empire?

Come on SE give us a challenge I get no sense of achievement from accomplishing anything in the game at the minute because it's on easy mode.

[Seif]

I know the quests are easy but I think the auto marked locations are even worse. Because the map tells me exactly where to go and what to kill the result is that all of the quest dialogue becomes unimportant. I have as much motivation to read the dialogue as I have regarding the leve-text. For the record I ALWAYS read through every interesting bit f dialogue the characters in Vana'diel speak.

Isn't there any middle-ground between making quests impossible to complete without a walktrough and so streamlined and spoon-fed that I literally feel like a retard when pretending to "play" the game?

[Payadopa]

Isn't there any middle-ground between making quests impossible to complete without a walktrough and so streamlined and spoon-fed that I literally feel like a retard when pretending to "play" the game?

Yes, please!

Even the supposed to be awesome quests are boring as all you do is follow a yellow circle.
Did the r26 quest a few days ago which told me to sneak past a few mobs. I walked like from A to B and back in about 20min and found like 2 mobs. Two! And I wasn't even allowed to kill them.. AND that was a quest I had to undertake with my path companion.. The way these quests are designed is so beyond me...

[Vanguard319]

Yes, please!

Even the supposed to be awesome quests are boring as all you do is follow a yellow circle.
Did the r26 quest a few days ago which told me to sneak past a few mobs. I walked like from A to B and back in about 20min and found like 2 mobs. Two! And I wasn't even allowed to kill them.. AND that was a quest I had to undertake with my path companion.. The way these quests are designed is so beyond me...

if you're referring to the one where you sneak by imperial troops, I actually killed every soldier I came across on the way to the pickup point, mostly to enusure that I wouldn't have to deal with them on the return trip. I would have apprecieated it if they were somewhat tougher though, they died somewhat quick, even without the help of my big, burly, boozin, whorin highlander bud.

[Riposte]

The best way to increase difficulty is to add level caps to missions, where players are reduced to a certain level if they are above it. This allowed SE to design encounters better and it is why CoP is was the most mechanically interesting set of missions in FFXI. However people complained and they stopped adding level caps to missions and eventually removed them from the game altogether. End result is that FFXI's missions were very boring and easy outside the storyline. FFXIV took the feedback from FFXI and made more boring/easy missions.

Now adding level caps might not be a good idea, since apparently the majority hates the idea. However the majority also hated difficult missions as well(and right now we are only hearing a vocal minority). So maybe the best idea is make difficulty optional for bonus rewards or something. Optional level caps or optional level scaling for monsters. We have a similar system already in place for guidleves(though not very precise or rewarding), but the game doesn't feature a lot of tactical decisions or monsters/encounters who you have to "learn". One would need both strong encounter design and player limitations to base those designs around to make a fun game. (Well, people find mindlessly grinding fun, so fun for certain people.)

[Alexandrious]

I just did those archer missions and they were so easy. This is a big problem with the game so much of the story involves running from one place to another reading some text and then running back maybe 1 shot some mobs at some point inbetween. I know SE want to make the game solo friendly and the story to be done on any class, but are we expected to believe an R50 Weaver is going to topple the Garlean Empire?

Come on SE give us a challenge I get no sense of achievement from accomplishing anything in the game at the minute because it's on easy mode.

I sometimes feel like with how easy the game is, all my hard work is for nothing. Games down to 16k active subscribers now while Rift is reaching 3 million. Again that's what I was told, by a few people. Dunno if its really fact.