Why do you play Final Fantasy XIV?

[Xlantaa]

There are a lot of reasons. But, what makes this MMO better then others I played before, is the fact that you don't need to make a social circle to play. Most MMO deman to have a premade party to do content. This game allows you to play alone. For a unsocial being like me with difficulties to make friends (I still have friends in game, but don't like depend on them) it is good do most of the content without depend on others. Duty Finder is one of the greatest things. I used similar tools before of course (like the one in SWTOR), but in this game is jsut perfect. That's one of the things that liked me form the beggining. FFXI who everyone idolize in this forum is not what I want. YOu NEED to have party. That's why I don't like the ideas a lot of player insisted on put into FFXIV from this game.Yes of course the companion system of FFXI allows you to solo things, but is just a shortcut. THis one of the thing makes me stop play FFXI very soon (I don't know how is now, I have no intention to return anyway).

And of course, the natural reasons. This game is wonderful in gameplay, environment, comunity and content. It is easy to learn (But hard to master) and there are contens of all types. Also the most beautiful graphics I've ever seen on a MMO, who usually lack a lot in this aspect. And, the music. Is just the best OST I heard in a MMO. And One important things should be mention. The Capabilty of use any class without need make another character. This gives the final strike to others MMO.

[Atoli]

Why do you prefer the long term playstyle of MMOG to other kind of games like single player's instant gratification?

What kind of question is that anyway..regardless of if single player games are instant gratification (hint: they aren't),
why are you posing the question as if everyone who chooses to play an MMO, at the same time decides to never touch a single player game again? o_Ô
I'm pretty sure that except for extremely rare cases, we all keep playing single player games too!
Both have their own charms and I wouldn't want to miss out on either of them and I'm pretty sure that's the case for most players

For me personally, the main attraction to MMOs comes from them never "ending".
With single player, even if I put in 200, 300 hours of playtime and do every single hidden quest and easteregg, at some point, I will be finished.
That's it. That's what got released, at most there were a few DLCs, but it's done now.
With an MMORPG, that never happens. Sure, I might run out of stuff to do in patch A, but patch B will expand on the story, and it will continue in C, D and E and so on.
Unless the MMO gets shut down, I never have to worry about the story coming to an end.
This is 100% me:



Because of that, I can't remember when I last actually completely finished a game (or book/TV series, for that matter),
because it never leaves me with a feeling of accomplishment and closure, only sadness and a feeling of lacking a purpose.
With an MMO, I don't have to worry about that, I know it won't end anytime soon. Maybe it will, 8 or 10 years down the line,
when I long have lost interest and won't even care about it anymore. But at least it won't while I am still havily invested in it.


The other big draw is the social aspect. Humans are social by nature, so of course doing something I enjoy together with others is more enjoyable than just doing it by myself.
So much more, in fact, that I willingly put up with the less enjoyable parts this brings with it (trolls, socially inept people, cheaters, and so on).
Also, no matter how amazing the AI is programmed in a single-player game, it is completely unable to be as versatile as humans.
You say "there can be different difficulty levels" in single player, but with humans, every single run is completely different from the one before because of different people.
Harder, easier, troubles at different parts, etc. Even if you always run with the same people, they might do something right one time and wrong another time. An AI can't recreate that.
There is also much more reason to work on long-term goals when there is someone to compare that progress with.


But yeah, that does not mean that I "prefer" MMOs
I prefer FFXIV over other MMOs though, because of it's story focus and how generally well-polished everything is.

[Lambdafish]

It distracts me from my miserable life

[Powe]

I play it because it's a final fantasy game lol, I played every one of them besides 11 and 12

[JunseiKei]

I somewhat disagree.

Content in a MMOG will always be limited. Rewards are spread on a longer period through dailies and other RNG methods which are all calibrated to make sure the company makes money. In a single player, the rewards are skill based. It's not a matter of getting that 0.5% drop chance item like a green fish because you want to make a swimsuit. It's a matter of standing your ground and learning to overcome the difficulties.

Apples and oranges though, MMOG and Single Player.

Pink tails in FFIV. (1%; BTW, this gives you the strongest armor in the game.)
Shiny Pokémon. (1 in 4,000 chance Sun and Moon if using SOS battles, it's about 1/500 chance)

Tons more that I probably can't even think of or games I've not even touched. Rare item drops have never been limited to MMOs.

[Khalithar]

I feel it's the only MMO worth paying for right now. That of course changes based on new games, new expansions, new content, etc. I constantly re-assess my financial situation and what my thoughts are on any new games/content that comes out in gaming as a whole.

[Tracewood]

I'm at the point where after I finish a single player game, I never touch it again... so I tend to gravitate towards open world games like Saints Row, Infamous, Arkham games, and Elder Scrolls/Fallout and while Fallout 4 left me unsatisfied, it was a good game. Haven't yet played XV since I plan to get it by Christmas. If I get the Nintendo Switch you better believe Zelda and the rumored Xenoblade X port will be the first in my collection. (Square, please consider XIV for Switch)

XIV, like XI is just a nice never ending game that constantly updates. I like interacting with the people and the lore in this game is incredible. in XI, I didn't care much for it but for some reason I became heavily invested in XIV's world and it's people. The storyline for what it's worth has me hooked. Destiny is okay, but the game is already wrapping up for it's sequel so it's just going to be lacking content for the time being.

[Porkchop]

Real life sux

[Riardon]

Because once I finish a single player game I come back to XIV or play both. Single player games have an end XIV has not. XIV managed to rekindle the fire of excitement over the FF franchise. Something that I thought it was lost years ago. Also there is something about XIV that other MMORPGs have not. It's not only the FF sticker on it. It has a different feeling and a lvl of quality you don't see in many games.

[Yasuhiro]

Why do you prefer the long term playstyle of MMOG to other kind of games like single player's instant gratification?

I don't really care that it's a MMORPG, it's just an added bonus to play the XIV entry with other fans of the series. I'm not even a MMO fan.
I just play it because it's a numbered Final Fantasy title and as a fan of the franchise I felt the need to play it, this game plays like a single player FF game most of the time anyway so I feel like I'm right at home.