It's about time the DEV team does something about the play/party system too, a lack of incentive to group up will also deter players from logging in again. Abolishing a system without replacing it with something better shows poor management and something needs to be done.
There's nothing fun about just whacking at a mob, using the same old abilities when there's a possibility of added damage at a variable rate. I think it's basic, its simple and it could've came out the gate along with the launch of my Collectors Edition. Please SE, return to the fundamentals.
Good job in bringing this up Relm, this is something that will boost the core element of FF14, which is battles.