Cross-Class - System = Is it Cancer?

[Claymore65]

The reason this game lacks permanent passive bonuses for leveling classes is simple: Accessibility. Most players don't have the time to level more than a few classes to Max. Most players aren't even interested in doing so, hence why each player has a "main". If the bonuses are significant, then it will likely be seen as a "requirement" to level all the other classes, which is a huge turn off to a lot of players. Try telling someone who wants to play a Black Mage to max out 13 (until Stormblood, in which case it will be at least 14) other unrelated classes to stay relevant. Many players would just quit at that point. Alternatively, the bonuses could be entirely minor, but then people would complain about their bonuses not mattering enough. I think the current system is fine for now. It allows people to focus on the Job they most enjoy, while forcing them to dip their feet into other classes a little bit. For example, I had to get Conjurer to level 15 for Paladin, but I actually found I enjoyed playing it. However, if I didn't enjoy it, I wouldn't have to max it out to get all the benefits out of it. Under the OPs suggestion, that might not be a viable option anymore. Plus, it would take insane amounts of work to rebalance the game around full cross-classing of abilities or traits. It would almost have to be built from the ground up (which isn't impossible, but is expansion territory).

That said, the current Cross Class system is going away with 4.0. It's going to be replaced with "role based skills" that you get automatically. I hope Frankfurt's Fan Fest will give us a more detailed overview of it, since it could be a massive, or a relatively, minor change.