Just played Final Fantasy XI

[Aryalandi]

I'm going to be one of those people for a moment.. it has been.. a year perhaps? Since I set foot in Vana'diel. And nearly as long since I seriously played Final Fantasy XIV for that matter.

The recent repeat of the rhapsody event put it in my head how much I missed FFXI but it wasn't until today.. logging in that it occurred to me even moreso /why/ my memories make me emotional. I got a bit misty eyed just walking around looking at things so here I am ranting because I feel things..

The music.. the immersion.. every area has music that sets the tone for where you are, and you can find random things to just stand and read, bits of lore that don't even have to do with quests.. random amusing things like the books in wondursts library, the flower gardens in Chateau d'Oraguille leading to the late queens tombstone..

The way that when you complete a quest for an npc they remember you and greet you fondly from that point on.. the dungeons that you can just casually explore because they are their own areas rather than an instance that you can only enter through dutyfinder..

The fact that even regular npcs get cutscenes sometimes, have conversations amongst themselves and paths that they walk at times, the way they actually seem to have lives even when some of the ones that net you a cutscene when you talk to them don't even have a quest..

I've quite possibly never just /explored/ a world the way I did XI, everything feels so alive. I suppose I have missed that in ffxiv, it has gotten a bit better with heavenward and stormblood but still.. it may be the nostalgia talking but even now Eorzea just doesn't feel like "home" the way Vana'diel always did, the connection isn't there the same way

I suppose what I miss is caring about the world I'm in and the people in it the way I did every time I met a new npc for the first time.

I remember one of the first quests I ever did in XI the very first time I played it.. it was between a mithra (miqo'te) mother and her daughter, you deliver a ring to the little girl, and there is also a letter to deliver (i didn't read it.... the first... few times.. lol but you can so i broke down, and got called out for opening it XD oops..)

this is almost a decade and a half later and i still remember it fondly.. it's difficult for me to find nearly as much of that though I suppose it makes me more grateful when I do. Possibly one of my favorite things in heavenward are moments like the random npc storylines that you don't even interact with like the Romeo and Juliet-esque story in Ishgard, or the way that if you look around during a storyline you can find npcs related to it in far out of the way places where you really have no reason to look since your objective is the other way like Lucia explaining her favorite food (dodo egg omelettes) to a baby dragon in one part

I crave more if that sort of thing, I am honestly hoping that the trend continues to get more and more immersion like that x.x it would kind of be nice admittedly if I could do a quest for an npc and not be treated like literally nothing changed afterwards for example.

[BCRD]

Yes, FFXI is still a far better game. Too bad any reflection on that will get crucified here.

[Ferth]

FFXI was definitely a game with more depth. Not without flaws, but a richer experience IMO.

[SilverObi]

As a longtime XI player I know exactly what you mean. Vana'diel remains a far more immersive world to me than Eorzea though both are enjoyable. You had to learn everything you could about the zone/dungeon/city you were in if you wanted to accomplish anything, you had to know every monster you planned on exping on, the list goes on and on. But a major part of it (for me at least) was that XI was the first MMO I played and everything felt so big and unknown and I slowly conquered and understood the world as the years went on. It's very difficult to capture that same feeling in XIV because it's not an unknown to me anymore, it's just another (gorgeous) MMO.

[Aryalandi]

Maybe that is part of it, FFXI was my first MMO as well, and admittedly back then as someone who didn't really have many friends it is where I ended up getting /a lot/ of interaction with people since the sense of community at the time was quite honestly amazing, I couldn't go a day without having a random memorable moment with someone I just met for a pretty long time lol..

Oh! Or there was unlocking Summoner after traveling the world exposing Carbuncles Ruby to the elements and getting my own server-wide rainbow in the area! T^T i swear it's like they were determined to make as much feel special as they possibly could.

FFXI wasn't perfect, not by any means. And I do enjoy FFXIV
I think I am just kind of thinking back and realizing what has been missing for me as I have kind of moved away from playing XIV lately even though I still have more to do in stormblood

[Talraen]

FFXI was the first MMO I played for any length of time (after a brief stint during the launch of Ultima Online), and I loved it for years. I've finished every storyline, gotten a Maat's Cap, and have basically nothing but good memories of the game itself.

FFXIV is a better game in essentially every respect, full stop.

[Lilseph]

I started to play XI since the past December for the first time. The reason why it's because my friends wanted to introduce me to Vana'diel.

The game is obviously outdated and the UI is atrocious, but omg, it truly feels like an MMO and a true Final Fantasy game. The exploration is real, the danger and fear in the overworld map is real, you see people running around all the time. It has so much content and variety, gimmicks hidden everywhere (Weather conditions, time conditions/mobs, NMs everywhere). Even gear seems interesting, as you can swap back and forth between pieces of gear depending on what you're doing (I am playing WHM/SCH) It's fun, it's engaging. It's a delight to play. Most of them were also surprised with the amount of QoL changes implemented (like glamour). I'm loving it so far, we're on Asura.

[MistyMew]

Imho I do not think ffxiv is better overall, no way, except for graphics perhaps.

I still sub to ffxi, never stopped for over a decade O.o

I am capable of enjoying both however, ffxi and ffxiv , as well as wow and rift ^^ All are different, ALL are awesome to ME in many ways, that's all that matters.

Individual preference is all that counts at the end of the day...full stop.

My search comment in ffxiv usually is hyping ffxi....sorry se, I just think it was better overall even though I do enjoy a few aspects of ffxiv too.
Grateful for both tbh.

My opinion is my own, I fully understand the nostalgia the op has felt, I feel it with most games at varying degrees.

[Driven]

You stirred up some deep almost forgotten feels with this post!
My best memory was joining an LS when I hit level 6. almost everyone in my new LS was hanging out in Jueno. I really wanted to meet my super elite LS friends (lvl 45-50 at the time). I looked up the paths to get there but kept getting agro and dying. After 4 attempts, one of LS friends came and escorted me. He didn’t have to do that, and didn’t complain, cause he saw how important it was for me.

I get why XIV didn’t follow the same formula as XI with much of its content, especially for lower levels. But at the same time I remember having to go through the Riverne, fighting my way to confront Bahaman with a group.. man those were awesome times!
I guess I wish FFXIV would incorporate some of those non-instance battles for higher level players. For veterans in XIV, I believe it would only add depth to Eorzea.
Either way, like you guys, I cherish those XI memories.

[Final-Fantasy]

Final Fantasy 11 is great even today, just looks very dated, and could do with a visual make over.