My friends and I are thoroughly disappointed with Heavensward. Three of them actually quit already, because that's how important first impressions are. We thought Heavensward was going to be another step into freedom and innovation. Instead, we get more of Square Enix's old ways dating all the way back to Final Fantasy 11, content gating.

1. In order to fly on mounts, you have to do main scenerio quests, a lot of side quests to get more "aethers" unlocked, then explore the entire map to discover "aethers". That defeats the whole purpose of being able to fly because once we're done with all the quests, there's no reason to fly on that map anymore.

2. Almost every single quests so far, after playing 10 hours of Heavensward, consists of getting quest from point A, go all the way to other side of map at Point B, then teleport back to point A. After that, run all the way back to other side of map at Point C, then teleport back to point A. Almost every quest feels meaningless and another one of Square Enix's ploy to extend the game without putting any real content in the game.

3. You left us off with quite an amazing story at the end of A Realm Reborn. I even watched the trailer for Heavensward because I was so excited for the new chapter. Imagine my disappointment when I find out that I have to run "errands" for my new host. Yes, it gets a lot better, but first impressions are the most important. Overall, it was a very poor "grand opening" for Heavensward.

4. Many people already have issues with having to do main scenerio quests to unlock content and progression. It wouldn't be an issue at all if the main scenerio didn't feel like fillers and running delivery errands between point a, b, or c.

5. What happened to what made the Final Fantasy franchise so great? Where is the "HOLY CRAP, THAT WAS EPIC!" part of the game? Final Fantasy 11 did a much better job with the main scenerio in that regards.

Even though I'm disappointed, I will stick it out because I am a fan and will always have faith in Square Enix to get it right. I'm sure many disagrees with me, but I really feel like the game is not as immersive as it should be. I don't feel like the world is a fantasy world I am part of because of the zones, the content gating, and the invisible walls.

This game has so much potential; I hope it's fully realized before it's too late.