Lore Timeline?

[Anonymoose]

I think they could meet the vast majority of total complaints/grievances (from players and devs alike) by officially and firmly committing to a hierarchy:

Level 1
The in-game world is and will always be acting as if the present day is in 5 7UE into/also known as 1 7AE.
If you can prove that 100 days have passed, it will still act as if it's 1 7AE.
If you can prove that 1,000 days have passed, it will still act as if it's 1 7AE.


Level 2
This is merely a baseline date. This allows...

...all players to suspend disbelief about co-existing regardless of join date or story progress.

...time to pass without moving, precluding the necessary updating of thousands of lines of in-game, PR, website, etc. text.

...devs to avoid constantly re-calculating when making references to time (and thus avoid likely mistakes and fan confusion).

Level 3
All content that came out in a patch "happened" in that patch, even if you didn't do it. All patches are in chronological order.

e.g. All job quests up to LV50 happened before the Praetorium. The Binding Coil of Bahamut was explored after the Praetorium and before the arrival of Elidibus. The Labyrinth of the Ancients was explored between the arrival of Elidibus and the summoning of Leviathan. The Second Coil of Bahamut was explored around the same time as Leviathan appeared, but before the Ramuh debacle, which itself happened around the same time Syrcus Tower was explored. Etc. Etc. Etc.

Level 4
Every individual player has a blank check to decide for themselves how much time has been added to the baseline between any two patches.
No one can tell them they're wrong.