The ending to Stormblood...

[Kallera]

You know, I've been encouraged by everyone I know who plays to pay attention to the story, so I rewatched every cutscene and asked questions to lore I didn't know and was ready for this final sequence.

I don't think I could've watched a more disappointing and mundane lead up to ShB.

I kept waiting for that one possible moment that would have wowed me.
A garlean victory,

Seeing the purple crystal,

Elezenos making a grand entrance,

The black rose's deployment,

Someone's death...

Instead, I'm pretty convinced now that I won't be enjoying shadowbringers.

[KageTokage]

I'm pretty darn sure they said we'd be getting a lot of answers from the end of the MSQ, yet we ended up getting absolutely nothing.

We scarcely even got anything to speculate about, so it's hard for me to feel very excited for what's coming next for the time being.

[kyomaZZ]

expectaions: epic trial fight with the ascian behind zenos

reality: a boring solo duty vs zenos who use the same mechanics as in 4.0
oh and yes we can control Hien who can use 3 different skills, ... the leader of Doma
bravo SE

[Kazhim]

borinnnnng to do

i rushed all the sb part to discover the end with my rerol char

and here what i get after 5h? just 10 min of scene.

really i didnt ask a complet story but something more longer and deeper, i was just intrigued by the voice, all we know is we will go to the alternate world
maybe the only thing entertaining in sb story which was kinda boring all along.

it just killed my envy to play it for a moment.

[Kazhim]

I was really expecting to get a better picture of what exactly Shadowbringers was going to be about.

We didn't get even a slight explanation from our mysterious voice as to what was going on and just know that we're needed at the First, which was a given considering what we learned from the recent fanfest. Not so much as a word as to why we need to become the Warrior of Darkness or anything.

I felt like Heavensward got a more satisfying send-off personally, since we were left with a clear goal in mind that we were simply waiting to act on, whereas this time we're just left hanging.

Well i thought exactly,
for me hw got a full complet story, and all the plot with ascien and so on was a side, here that reversing sb story, which was really boring to be honnest, is just a side to the main story with the end of the world stuff, and also wanted to know about this voice, but here just nothing.

And i dont know for you, but me i dont trust a guy who put your mate in half death and ask you to get him an item.


zenos real is back , like no one die in this story lol;

wanted to see gaius.

anyway frustrating, while i spent time to rush the sb part story on my rerol to see this? 5h for nothing, killed my envy to play.

[Teraluna]

HW for me has been the best expansion to date. I think SE realise this and keep slotting in iconic characters/scenes from HW.
Hopefully SHB will get near those levels. Even close would be good.

[Kennar]

I, too, was a little underwhelmed. I don't think the ending was terrible, it just wasn't very impactful. Going by the trailer, with the WoL wandering an empty wasteland alone and bereft of succor, I was expecting (or, hoping for) Really Bad Things at the end of this patch, for example:

the WoL did not get to Hien and company in time, and they were killed by AsciZenos, who was finally destroyed for good when the WoL went Super Saiyan in a fit of rage and despair (yeah, very cliche, but it would be satisfying). Now the WoL has to go through Shadowbringers carrying that weight; the guilt of, for the first time, being too late.

This goes right back to what I said ages ago about the ending to HW, when Thordan looks at us and sees a profound darkness. Fordola even sees it, when her articifial Echo gives her a glimpse into all the terrible things we have seen and done, and she asks how we can stand there, unbroken. It is a side of the WoL that I have been wanting to explore for a long time, and maybe ShB will do that, but I thought the end of SB would have a been a perfect time to bring that back. We need something to turn us into the Warrior of Darkness other than the usual "it's the right thing to do and someone has to do it" reasoning that defines most of our actions. I still want to see my character as a man with doubts and fears, as someone who on occasion needs the comfort of a friend, instead of always being that comfort.

I'm still psyched about Shadowbringers. After all, none of us knows how the story will play out.

[Derio]

I feel like SHB will have the longest series of MSQ before we actually get to the new areas out of all the expansions we’ve had. HW had foreshadowing of course but it had an actual ending in the last patch.

However for many ppl myself included think that overall SB storyline was rushed.

[Andevom]

Pretty underwhelming for me as well, considering Shadowbringers' premise made it sound like we were going to be in a much more dire situation than what we're left with.

Positives:

-The solo instance was fun, with a good sense of tension since they could've easily offed someone at the end of the storyline.
-Estinien confirms DRGs are best heroes.
-No Elezen deaths.
-Making Crystal Tower relevant again, this time in the MSQ.
-My DPS is at least better than Hien's.

Negatives

-Pre-credits ending with the Emperor's face suggests...nothing other than the Emperor can make a creepy face when told about manufacturing death gas.
-We're left with "we'll look for the thing the mysterious guy told you about" instead of looking for and finding it, a process that has no reason to take long.
-The issues going on with the The First seem to be detached from the Empire. So we built up all this tension with the Ascian + Empire connection, only to be sidetracked because someone wants to make use of us out of nowhere for reasons he won't divulge. Aymeric all but says "Let the NPCs take care of the Empire while you do your thing." I'm sure it won't hold, but it sounds like there's gonna be one hell of a detour before we get to any semblance of a conclusion there.
-No Gaius anywhere to be seen.
-Zenos bodyswaps with an Elezen, so when we eventually kill him, the Elezen death count will climb yet again.
-Ultimately, whole thing felt like just another patch rather than a conclusion to a storyline.

[Tharne]

I feel like SHB will have the longest series of MSQ before we actually get to the new areas out of all the expansions we’ve had.

Maybe they did that because they decided to make a solo duty not long after/before arriving to the First. So they kept some story to dilute the flow of people going into the duty to avoid Raubahn 2.0, some people will rush without reading, some will read without waiting for voice acting, some will wait until all voice over is done, etc...

Weird but could be one of the reason.