Lockboxes prove there is an inventory management problem with this game

[Vhailor]

No I am not. My thread got derailed because people want to white knight SE. All those sigma currencies? the items you need turn in this item or that to upgrade? i think I put 120 (at lest) currencies on my SO's retainer, why in the hell you think it took 2 hours? It was hell trying to find everything, the retainer interface is bad, item bloat is insanely bad, I am mind boggled how anyone can defend this.

Trying to sort out inventory because you can't go retainer to retainer (or have a better interface in general, one spot, just have tabs) and such? No reason to make inventory management this bad. (while lacking tools to make it easier to manage)

You're merging posts now. In response to your OP, and defending my reply:

(1) Claiming FFXIV's inventory situation gets worse by the update is ridiculous, and a clear, objective exaggeration. If you cannot see that, you're way too emotionally invested in your position right now.
(2) Claiming SE is pursuing an especially bloated approach to inventory is also ridiculous, and a clear, objective exaggeration. Since Stormblood released, we've seen a new storage tab, new Glamour-specific storage, a streamlining of the Glamour Prisms, an order of magnitude increase in stack size, and the conversion of Beast Tribe items to a new currency tab. Clearly they're making efforts, the dozen Sigmascape items notwithstanding.

In response to your other complaints...

(3) I think it's kind of hilarious to imply that I want to white knight SE. I have been, and remain, intensely critical of the development team behind FFXIV. You just happened to pick one of the very few elements of FFXIV that has tangibly improved since Stormblood released. There aren't many; this and the availability of houses are probably the only two I can think of, off the top of my head. But, you managed to find one.
(4) If you're keeping anywhere near 120 currencies, you're doing it wrong. The vast, vast majority of currencies are deprecated at this point in time. There is nowhere near 120 currently-relevant currencies in FFXIV. My SO has this problem as well, but unlike you, she isn't inclined to blame SE - she knows the problem is her, and her lack of knowledge in regards to what is or isn't relevant anymore. I certainly think SE could help make it more obvious, but that's a separate discussion.
(5) Nobody's defending the Retainer interface, to my knowledge. What I at least pointed out in your previous thread, though, which remains true in this thread, is that the Retainer interface is only problematic when you couple a large (non-standard) number of Retainers with a relatively disorganized player. Could it be improved? Sure. Is it worth the effort to spare this niche group of users a little bit of pain? Arguably not.

I'd really urge a look in the mirror at this point. You've now made two threads wherein the responses have indicated quite clearly that your complaints are very much YOUR complaints, rather than issues facing a majority of players. Everyone's got an opinion and all that, and you're entitled to yours, but I really wonder what you're hoping to achieve with your combative posts at this stage.

[Seig345]

You are twisting what was said. I stated it is not an exaggeration on the FACT it took me 2 hours to move items across retainers for my SO (since people want to derail this and reference another thread they derailed)

It is also a fact it took this person 9 hours of the topic I linked here. None of what I say is an exaggeration, those are facts. No where was I linking that to what I feel is worthless or not, how did you get that message?

my main point is I do not state exaggerations with this issue, I just like it to be addressed. [...]

I never stated anything about an exaggeration.
My point is that it's a fact that despite having played FFXIV since 2.0 with relatively few breaks and having leveled all craft/gather jobs to level 40+ (at the same time, gathering my own mats the entire way) I've never spent 9 hours to fix up my inventory, and have never even felt the desire let alone need to purchase additional retainers. Therefore, now we have your 9 hours vs my 30-45 minutes tops that I've ever spent in one session of tidying up my inventory at any given time.

I'm not sure how switching the lockboxes to a currency would help with inventory space. They only take up 1 inventory slot unless you're hoarding them beyond 999, there's no lockout forcing you to wait until you have 5 stacks of 999 to use them, it didn't even take me 30 minutes to clear out over 400 of them in one sitting, and that was while I was half distracted with a conversation and running to the npc to sell off the items I didn't need.

Between my personal inventory, chocobo saddlebag, and the 2 free retainers, I have 560 slots, never had a full-to-bursting inventory issue. I'm also not sure what kind of Dewey Decimal system you would have to use to arrange inventory that it would take you 9 straight hours to rearrange anything in this game. I have currencies stored away that aren't even used in the game anymore; old ifrit tokens from 1.0, 1 of every single Yokai Watch medal (even one of the common ones for buying the minions, judge me if you will...), and currencies from Alexander and Omega, all on top of the glamour pieces, fishing lures, craft/gathering mats, etc that I've never had trouble finding when I need it, and I've still never spent even 1/10th of the time you say you and your SO have spent rearranging your SO's inventory.

Is there room for improvement? Sure, there always is with everything in life. I'm just saying your 9 hours of inventory management isn't indicative of the experience for everyone playing this game let alone the condition of the inventory system as a whole. But you continue to make it sure sound like it is.

[ErryK]

i think I put 120 (at lest) currencies on my SO's retainer

Why is your SO holding 120 different "currencies"?

[Nestama]

snip

What you quoted pretty much tells me it's the players own fault for wanting to get things done ASAP (kudos to them for not burning out). This isn't as big of an issue as you're making it sound.

[Solarra]

At present my character has 3 inventory slots taken up due to Eureka; I assume the new area will have different crystals which will mean at least one more slot taken up, unless I throw the ones from the present area away.

The lockboxes are not fun for me. It's a waste of time opening them. I'm one of the rare people who does use fireworks but I'd rather see a firework vendor in Kugane than get 6 different types of them from the lockboxes. The prisms I have no use for and I suspect nobody else does either and again we have 6(?) types of them.

A currency similar to Diadem spoils would have been so much better but I'd definitely vote for one that went in the currency tab.
Things are getting better but the crystals, lockboxes, totems, tokens from raids and fates, Diadem spoils (yes I still have some) etc. all chip away at our inventory space which is very limited compared to other games.

[Krokov]

You do know there's an NPC outside of Eureka who does lockbox hand-ins, right? Why not hand them in while waiting for a duty to pop, or a party to fill up?

Simple like I said I post I'm saving them up then when I feel I have enough I will go have them opened.

[Fynlar]

As for the lockboxes themselves, the question is: Was this massive lockbox acquisition, consequence of the NM train, really intended from a dev. standpoint?

For the umpteen gazillionth time, yes it was. They wouldn't have made not going after NMs so worthless and made going after NMs the only worthwhile thing to do with your time in Eureka if this was not their "intention" from the start.

[Nestama]

Simple like I said I post I'm saving them up then when I feel I have enough I will go have them opened.

I don't really see a point to doing that (RNG is RNG), but different strokes for different folks, I guess.

[Bourne_Endeavor]

As for the lockboxes themselves, the question is: Was this massive lockbox acquisition, consequence of the NM train, really intended from a dev. standpoint? They had to tweak the crystal convertion rate options for a reason. They probably didn't expect this to happen.

I suspect they assumed people would spawn their own NMs while grinding mobs, similar to how they thought Hunts would be treated. It's incredibly naive on their part, especially given they know how we treat Hunts. Alas, they tend not to focus on how the playerbase plays.

[Vstarstruck]

I never stated anything about an exaggeration.
My point is that it's a fact that despite having played FFXIV since 2.0 with relatively few breaks and having leveled all craft/gather jobs to level 40+

You do realize that is not a big deal yes? It is obvious you will not have inventory problems when you do not craft and gather a lot? It does not take much to be 40+, for both inventory space for the materials to get there, and the time it takes. You an get 1-50 in a few hours spending leves, it is not a big deal.

This is still off the point though, it does not matter if you did not say anything about exaggeration, keep in mind what you did say:

Your viewpoints on the matter are not fact, it is only a fact that they are your viewpoint.

Maybe the gil is worthless to you, but the same doesn’t objectively hold true for everyone else.

I was only stating what I was claiming what was fact. I was not trying to suggest gil is worthless for everyone, that was not the "facts" I was talking about. I was simply stating everything I said is not an exaggeration, thus fact.

You're merging posts now. In response to your OP, and defending my reply:

(1) Claiming FFXIV's inventory situation gets worse by the update is ridiculous, and a clear, objective exaggeration.

No it is not, it has been happening since HW. What I said is a fact and not an exaggeration. What is ridiculous is you refusing to admit that.

In HW they did not increase the armory in accordance to how many jobs they added.
They keep adding glams and gear without adding enough space to cover for it
they keep adding and bloating us with currency without adding space for it
Sorry I was stating fact here, not exaggeration.

Ever since HW it has been 1 step forward and 2 steps back (999 stack, glam dresser, etc) They keep making the situation worse while making it appear they are "trying"

(4) If you're keeping anywhere near 120 currencies, you're doing it wrong. The vast, vast majority of currencies are deprecated at this point in time. There is nowhere near 120 currently-relevant currencies in FFXIV. My SO has this problem as well, but unlike you, she isn't inclined to blame SE - she knows the problem is her, and her lack of knowledge in regards to what is or isn't relevant anymore. I certainly think SE could help make it more obvious, but that's a separate discussion.

So I guess you do not know runescape? Yes it is SE's fault. Trying to put so much burden on the player for major shortcomings in your words is "ridiculous" I am sure there is even more then 120 currency related items in this game. I wonder how many there are though.. too many to count that is for sure.

I shouldn't of spent 2 hours moving currencies to 1 retainer, that is SE's bad design fault, because they never plan ahead in designs and keep overlooking inventory issues, and seeing this lockbox situation is further proof on such a statement. If the game was designed better, people wouldn't be having these problems. I think it is a ridiculous idea you expect people to put up with glaring problems and not talk about it.

Is it worth the effort to spare this niche group of users a little bit of pain? Arguably not.

So are you implying SE shouldn't be making savage and super savage content because it appeals to an even smaller group of niche users?

I'd really urge a look in the mirror at this point. You've now made two threads wherein the responses have indicated quite clearly that your complaints are very much YOUR complaints, rather than issues facing a majority of players. Everyone's got an opinion and all that, and you're entitled to yours, but I really wonder what you're hoping to achieve with your combative posts at this stage.

To fix the game? stop ignoring 2-4 + year problems? the stop giving SE a pass for x,y, z problems on the base of refusal to fix the core coding of this game? basically, i think it is time the "1.0 limitations" are put to an ends. You do realize, I see your posts as combative? I am not combative, I am simply replying to people who start the combative, if you want to go there. (so I guess the take a look in the mirror thing can apply to you as well?)