Carbuncle mounts have arrived!

[Squintina]

I suspect if they need, people would still complain because of the inevitably tedious grind. It would be something to incentivize queuing into MSQ roulette once people can't rush ahead without everyone else or an enormous amount of leveling roulette.

I did not specify how it would be grinded/farmed in-game.

It could be quests, or a new vendor, or new achievements, but those might add significant effort to the core development team (cash shop team is separate, based on my understanding) who is most likely already busy on their own development schedule. Tying it to the roulettes or something to incentivize MSQ instances would also probably fall into this category of requiring significant core dev team work, but would still be within the realm of possibility.

But it could also be the following, which would require only minimal input from the core development team, and thus not alter their development schedule too much:

It could be trial/dungeon/raid drops, or roulette rewards which would just require the core development team to add to the loot tables.
It could be an existing vendor, at a crazy currency prize, essentially another loot table.
It could be the underused new achievement currency system. Let people farm whatever achievements they feel like farming in order to earn new stuff from the "cash shop" team. If an API was given from the core development team to the cash shop team to make use of this, it would enable future additions with no core development team effort. Personally I'd prefer this option because everyone has something they grind, even if they don't realize they're grinding it because they enjoy it, and pretty much everyone has "what I'd do next" grinds that they might not be focusing on right now, almost all of which come with their own sets of achievements, but might focus on if they could redeem the new currency for more items.

Notice I said "new stuff". I do realize that adding existing cash shop items to be purchasable in-game would be unfair to people who spent the money when no such option existed. Likewise I realize that adding existing rare mounts to the cash shop would make people who farmed for them feel like their efforts are undermined. Being both in-shop and in-game would have to be a "from now on" thing.

[The_Profezzor87]

I wonder if the people complaining about this are the same ones who bought the shiva figurine.....

[CreinCrein]

TIL companies do stuff for profit.

[Darker_Midnight]

Look - here's a way to make it simple for those who disagree with paid carbuncle mounts. You've signed onto their TOS agreeing to whatever you get when you pay for it. Over the last 2 years I've played, we've got new mounts from beast tribes, alternating events, and so on. We've got outfits also from beast tribes, OTHER alternating events, and so on. We get a new glamour piece as showcased by Rowena almost every major patch. We got new mounts from the MSQ that we didn't have to get (HW gave us the Black choco + Midgardsomr, SB gives us the Yol). You get what you pay for according to their legal terms, everything else is extra on top.

Typically, complaints about an MMO's cash shop are that you are FORCED to spend money to EQUALIZE the playing field between spenders and non-spenders. With a paid sub like FFXIV, that is exactly a non-concern. Zero. Zilch. Nada. Nil.

The Carbuncle outsparkles your Starlight Bear? Both take 1 rider and can swim/fly, and the bear throws gifts. Jump potion pugs getting you down? Yes, an annoyance, but ultimately nothing that gives them an edge over you if you know what you're doing since it won't automatically let them beat Bahamut Ultimate like an undersynced Garuda and only saves them a bit of time getting to 60. They still get subjected to the same wait times and skill ceilings as the rest of us.

Everything in the Mog station is otherwise purely cosmetic - They are under NO contractual obligations to provide you with more than is provided in-game. You can already get the full experience with the sub plus seasonal exclusives that reward those who are actively playing at the time. They've even made life better over time, here's a sample list:

1) Unique dyes - Jet black, pure white, and all the unique metallic colours were previously ONLY mog station and untradeable. They've brought it to the game as 'General-Purpose' dyes you can get randomly from Quick Ventures.
2) 2-Seaters - Previously only available via paid EB ceremonies. There is the Astrope (2000 mentor roulettes) which, while daunting, goes by really fast in the normal course of play. And it looks better.
3) Lightning Returns and other tie-in events - a super controversial topic. It has come back MULTIPLE times FOR FREE. Breaking Brick Mountains (DQ) event that just ended? That too. Only NOW are they on Mogstation.
4) That Garo event is still ongoing. You can get an invisible shield from that plus some damn cool mounts, etc. You can buy the undyeable armors for MGP. It's still ongoing~ don't miss out~ how long as it been? 6 months? More?
5) Emotes - There isn't a single emote that you can buy that gives you an 'advantage' over others. The only emote with gameplay significance is /comfort and /beckon and... they're free!
6) Zidane/Cloud/Squall/WoL veteran rewards - Yes, a bit of a letdown for those veteran subs who feel like their 'achievement' for playing 4 years is cheapened, but I don't hear those benefiting complain about it.

The only possible argument I can see is that 2-seaters are typically harder to get, but in this game that pretty much means you get to your aetherial currents sooner, and that's really it.

Of course you are free to disagree, even violently or however you wish to disagree, but vanity is vanity. Nobody's asking you to buy it, nobody's MAKING you buy it, the game doesn't get any EASIER if you buy it, all you get is adulation and a cute mount/outfit/emote/etc. If you feel otherwise, do vote with your wallet as stated before. Unsub, don't buy it, whatever you want. Hell, start a petition online if you think it'll make the SE Board of Directors change their minds.

As for me, I COULD afford it, but I WON'T buy it because I don't NEED it.

tl;dr - It's not pay 2 win. It's not even pay 2 equalize. Get over it.

[Solica]

With where the cash shop is heading right now, they might as well change the name of the game to Final Tera 14.



PS. That carbuncle mount scaling though... It is horrible. Just like the Managarm.

[Aster_E]

I'd have loved it, personally, if the mounts could be bought with those achievement certificates. You know, give them a use beyond rewards that a great many of us have/had before the things were even introduced. lol

[DRKoftheAzure]

Wasted potential for getting players to play other classes... simple as that...

[LittleChickenNugget]

Wasted potential for getting players to play other classes... simple as that...

To be fair, I think we're doing okay on DPS class numbers.

[Reinha]

It would be nice to get the red, black or white carbuncles in game. I don't think game rewards should be available in the shop when they are still in the game, but recolors would allow the same mount model to be obtained in different ways. Like the Bennu/Zu mounts.

[Kyp]

I wish when you summoned/dismissed it, it would appear/disappear like a summoned 'buncle does