Content should be challenging to execute... Not challenging to learn

[OliviaBadger]

I don't want to have to read an entire textbook to figure out how to kill a boss.

I don't want to spend 30minutes watching a video learning how to kill a boss.

I'm not interested in a massive learning curve to kill a boss.

Crystal Tower exists for guys like you, and now, Alexander normal mode.

[Outfoxed]

Crystal Tower exists for guys like you, and now, Alexander normal mode.

Memorizing mechanics isn't a skill. If you know what a boss is going to do before he does it, how does that make you good at this game? if you dodge a mechanic that goes out before the boss does it how does that make you good? Challenging content should be content that requires the player to react and adapt. If your idea of challenging content is to dodge something before it's even thrown out then your idea of challenging content is memorizing everything.

Only an idiot would get hit by a car when they know exactly where it's going to be.

Get good buddy and hopefully they make the game actually take more skill than memorizing things so mediocre players can't just read an entire book on it

[Kallera]

Kinda selling Bismarck X short here, since there are mechanics the party has to be aware of. That they do not immediately kill you doesn't not make it a mechanic.

That said, "challenging to execute" as stated in the title doesn't always translate into a fun experience either. Pushing phases at the wrong time, latency, or just a unique combination of boss mechanics that ensure the party's death are things that can arise from making the execution more difficult.

Alexander nm was designed for a different audience than Alexander savage. If said people find friends and connect with others to get involved in Alex savage, more power to them, but an Alex NM that still had the clear rates as, say, final coil on release wouldn't be delivering on what was expected for the content.
Now more casual fcs and statics can both enjoy the story with their members and, if they feel up to it, take the steps needed for savage. Less stepping on toes for everyone.

[Higashikata]

Yes yes. I agree,

Bosses should call out ahead of time what they're going to do and how to deal with the mechanic.

Likem Nael can call out "MWAHAHAHAHA, IF THOSE TWO METEORS TOUCH, IT'S ALL OVER!" and in t13 bahamut can say "GRAAAAAAAAAAAAW, THIS SPACE LASER WILL KILL MAIN TANK IF NOBODY SHARES THE DAMAGE!"

[MisterLucie]

Yes yes. I agree,

Bosses should call out ahead of time what they're going to do and how to deal with the mechanic.

Likem Nael can call out "MWAHAHAHAHA, IF THOSE TWO METEORS TOUCH, IT'S ALL OVER!" and in t13 bahamut can say "GRAAAAAAAAAAAAW, THIS SPACE LASER WILL KILL MAIN TANK IF NOBODY SHARES THE DAMAGE!"

Well, I mean... that's how it works in anime!

[Kallera]

Yes yes. I agree,

Bosses should call out ahead of time what they're going to do and how to deal with the mechanic....

Some bosses do in fact do this.

I think tool tips or the help text usually reserved for echo could help out here.

[matteoxyz]

In spite of my enjoyment of this game, I think the design of a lot of the content leaves much to be desired. Ideally, game would teach you it's mechanics just by playing it. It shouldn't rely on studying and memorization so much. People get enough of that at school and university. Bloodborne, Demon Souls and Dark souls are good examples of a better kind of difficulty. They are hard, but you can't print out a guide and study it for 2 hours to prepare. That won't help much at all. It is only through playing it that you can master it. All that said. I love this game and think it would be unrealistic to expect it to makeover the fundamental of its combat etc. It is an great game but it is very much an MMORPG, a genre which has its drawbacks.

[Nektulos-Tuor]

I agree 100%, that is why coils and such were boring. They are more of a memory test then anything else, that is why I am glad to see things like the randomness in the new trials for example.

We need a mob that does different things each time you fight them. There should be random encounters that appear in random times.

Dark Souls type encounters would be a lot more fun, you should be able to avoid what the boss does, however you shouldn't be able to predict what he does.

[Kallera]

Memorizing mechanics isn't a skill. If you know what a boss is going to do before he does it, how does that make you good at this game? if you dodge a mechanic that goes out before the boss does it how does that make you good? Challenging content should be content that requires the player to react and adapt. If your idea of challenging content is to dodge something before it's even thrown out then your idea of challenging content is memorizing everything.

Only an idiot would get hit by a car when they know exactly where it's going to be.

Get good buddy and hopefully they make the game actually take more skill than memorizing things so mediocre players can't just read an entire book on it

Fight awareness is indeed a skill. One that I often see earning comms and boggling the minds of non mmo players that see it in action even during fates.

It certainly saves or dooms lives to know that while you are doing your perfect flawless rotation, things are happening to you and the party. Because you might be able to save someone from needless death.