Built-in Parsers

[Kacho_Nacho]

Solution...make healing part of the parser that shows effective healing and overhealing done...

There is one issue with this solution, effective healing is dependent on the performance of the rest of the group. If a party makes a lot of mistakes, more healing is required. The heals per second go up. If the party does things perfectly, little or no heals are needed. Now, you could compare the effective healing and the damage per second and the total activity to get an informed decision on the performance of your healer(s). But, let's face it, that's a lot to expect from your average player. They'll just treat HPS like DPS and go from there.

You see, the problem is not the parser. The problem is people want a single number to measure performance, just like the Olympics, and MMO's aren't like that. Raids (and dungeons) are complex puzzles to solve involving multiple skills. Things like situational awareness, decision making, and knowledge of your role, and knowledge of all your abilities are all important but hard to measure. They certainly don't meld together into one all pervasive number. Yet, things like parsers give the illusion that it can.

[Aomine1992]

As a PS4 player I do feel disadvantaged lol I always have to get my friend to parse me before I go into some high end content because being that dps that's not performing is embarrassing....I'm always self conscious about sucking lol also telling people that they are under performing is sometimes what they need to actually get better instead of sliding through content

I'm not the best player by no means but it took a very rude person back in 3.0 to tell me I sucked for me to stop and take a look at how I was playing lol so I am for parsers for my own personal dps or what ever

[Zarabeth]

*snip*

The best suggestion I've seen is a personal parser. Since there's really no need to see what everyone else is doing, that would work perfectly for everyone.

Here's another suggestion, worry about what you do and not everyone else. If you are that worried that someone will mess up your perfection, make a static of other people as good as you are and go.

Also, by attacking Lazruz you are proving the point that this topic makes people act like jerks.

[Vahlnir]

The best suggestion I've seen is a personal parser. Since there's really no need to see what everyone else is doing, that would work perfectly for everyone.

Yeah, pretty much this. A parser is an excellent tool in the right hands, but I've seen enough of this community to know that it would be abused if there was an official parser. I also agree that people should worry about themselves more than others. Tried running a parser in WoW for a time and it actually made me do worse because I was constantly watching the numbers. Since then I've relied on my own ability to play my class/job well in any game. I know for a fact I do fairly well, both in WoW in XIV because I know my stuff. Am I the best of the best? No, of course not. But I've never once had anyone complain about my dps and this is because I DON'T use a parser.

[kikix12]

Allow me to step in on the PvP bit (...)

I think you misunderstood me there. I have absolutely nothing against PvP. I just made an example out of it, because many people are either strong PvP or strong PvE players, so it would be understandable to the most people at once. I then said that the same blanket statement can be done about PvE and pretty much anything.

The fact that it is a ridiculous statement and should never be used for anything is the exact point I was trying to make with that.

There is one issue with this solution, effective healing is dependent on the performance of the rest of the group.

I know that. However, it was a "solution" to a specific problem, where players supposedly kicked the good healer for lack of their DPS, just because they didn't see that healer did their fair share, but in healing. If there is effective healing, then clearly there were people wounded. If a healer healed, let's say, 100 000HP in a fight where the tank have 25 000HP, then the tank would have died four times over if that healer wasn't there, and no one with a level of intelligence higher than a 1st grader would think they were kick-worthy just cause their DPS was 50% of the healer that healed 5 000HP.

Parser is just an advanced calculator and there is no going around the fact that as an advanced calculator, one needs to have basic level of awareness as to how it works. A poorly used tool is the users fault, not the tools. Hence the tool cannot be blamed for that.

The best suggestion I've seen is a personal parser. Since there's really no need to see what everyone else is doing, that would work perfectly for everyone.

It wouldn't for reasons that were stated no later than the second page. That being said, I never said whether the built-in parser would need to be party or personal. I couldn't care less, since the reason I want a parser to begin with is for me to get better at what I play. I could see other people?! Nice. I couldn't?! No loss there, really.

Here's another suggestion, worry about what you do and not everyone else. If you are that worried that someone will mess up your perfection, make a static of other people as good as you are and go.

Perfection doesn't exist hence I cannot be worried about it being messed up. Besides, I am too worried about not playing effectively enough and not having the time or patience anymore to do the time-consuming, boring work of calculating stuff as I did in the past in different games, hence I cannot really play as well as I'd like to make it easier on those others, to worry about their performance.

Also, by attacking Lazruz you are proving the point that this topic makes people act like jerks.

"Attacking" and "act like jerks". Sorry, but what am I supposed to say?! It was the ninth page and I had 11 posts before her (including the original one), clearly, quite exhaustively, explaining how I am making an attempt to deal with the issues of parsers, only for her to come out and imply that I'm an egoistical jerk for suggesting parsers implementation without caring about their negatives.

That is an extremely disrespectable thing to do in my eyes. And despite that, I provided arguments as to why his/her post is wrong. Something that person failed to provide to begin with.

Rather than grade people into "good" or "bad" based on whether they want something or not, consider their individual methods of making those points (or not, just writing whatever). As some people on both sides here have proven, disagreeing most certainly does not need to be offered in a disrespectable manner.

[Niwashi]

They need to implement an in-game personal parser that gives all the details on your own performance and nothing about anybody else's. Along with that, they should remove enough of the details from the combat log so that the third-party parsers we're not even supposed to use won't work anymore.

That combination would give everyone the part that's actually useful to them, without giving them data that isn't useful but which can be abused for harassing others. Both aspects of that would be far better than the current pattern where those who follow the rules get neither while those who break the rules get both. Let's even the playing field while also providing everyone better data for improving their game.

[akaneakki]

Last time someone asked him Yoshi P literally walked off stage. So no, it will never be implemented in any way.

You mean when someone asked him for PERSONAL parser? :')

On a serious note, people can't expect to be in a group of 7 others or even in pugs where dps check is clearly not happening because their own dps is low. A parser would help them improve but they don't want to so dont expect yourself to be in a group.

[Silica-chan]

SE should just ban this topic off their forums, this is getting old

[Baingoleth]

I've only been playing FFXIV for about a month but I would like to add my thoughts coming from an MMORPG that has a very good parser.

Lord of the Rings Online doesn't have a built in parser but it does have a robust plug-in API. Of course, someone made a parser with it. The parser was built to be part of the UI and is very accurate showing all sorts of statistics in real time. It used to show numbers for the whole party and there were problems with some people making hurtful comments about other player's numbers.

Eventually, Turbine decided to make impossible for the game client to get other people's combat statistics in an effort to stop the fighting over statistics. It worked. The problem went away completely. They way it is now, players can get pretty much any information about their numbers that they would ever need and that's all. No one asks for anyone else's numbers. Sometimes people volunteer that information but usually it just inspires people to friendly competition .

[Baingoleth]

Having access to a parser can help players get better at learning skill rotations and can help them know what gear sets are more effective than other gear sets.

They way FFXIV is now, most people who want statistics use ACT and get to see the whole party's numbers. Within the first few weeks of playing, I saw too many disparaging comments in the novice network about other players numbers and I ended up leaving that chatroom because I don't want to hear that negative chatter.

It doesn't seem like it would make much of a difference if an in-game parser was added or not to stop the hurtful comments made about other player's statistics. There is a parser and it shows you your whole party's statics already. I would rather see SE do like Turbine did and prevent the game client from seeing other player's numbers. Then if SE added an in-game parser PS4 players could see their statistics also and no one would have any ammunition to give other people grief over their numbers.