New Player Experience Sucks! - Impending Expansion Problems

[Rokke]

However after playing through the main story line and completing it for ARR. hitting 54, and finding after much research and confusion(couldn't find npcs as example) that I can't yet get to ishgard(even though NPC gate keeper to ishgard zone says "get heavensword expansion and do the before dawn quest and you are golden") to do the Heavensword expansion because I have 100 quests I have to do first, was demoralizing. As mentioned I can't get my new class spells (I'm already 54 now) because I Can't see the NPC that gives em. AND I have about 70 quests still to run before I can access "Before the dawn" quest is available to me. Its a bummer really. it wont stop me playing but IMO this should be fixed (or made more clear) for new players.

While I enjoy MSQ I remember the frustration of the preHW crawl: I bough HW because I wanted to fight dragons in the big elf castle like the pretty CGI trailer. ARR has some lulls every here and there, but those last 100 quests keeping me from the expansion (that I literally bought the game for for!) felt awful, especially when quite a few of them seemed especially menial (objective: sniff the chocobo). When I invite new friends to play the game 2.x is always the morale breaker. If they can make it to Ishgard its usually smooth sailing as around 3.0 devs realized quest quality > quest quantity.



Personally I wouldn't mind if they made MSQ optional. We're already getting NPC parties in dungeons for the people who don't want to play an MMO lol

[Paladinleeds]

Having had chance to gather my thoughts a bit more, perhaps some of the main duties could be made into side quests, so they still have a purpose (which would satisfy myself having a "reason behind each duty", but not sure how others feel about it)? Of course, there are some that are crucial to the development of the main story arc, and those would have to remain in the mandatory MSQ unfortunately, such as:

Ifrit/Titan/Garuda - these are important plot points which build up our character as an "Eikon Slayer", and thus are a major part of our character development
The Praetorium - this is the coup de grace of A Realm Reborn, and is the climax of a major plot point built up throughout the levelling experience
Keeper of the Lake - this is a crucial plot point that is expanded upon further in Heavensward
Chrysalis - one of your main Scions is captured and you're having to free her
Steps of Faith - this is what allows you to be considered to be entrusted to enter Ishgard
The Aery - this is where you first defeat Nidhogg who is a major plot point throughout Heavensward
The Final Steps of Faith - defeating Nidhogg again after a major NPC became him
Ala Mhigo - important dungeon where you take down an important NPC throughout Stormblood
Castrum Fluminis - the primal associated here is a very import

There may be more, but these were the first examples I could think of off the top of my head. Those that are removed from the main story would still remain as side quests, for the dungeons/trials that have a lesser impact on our story development. That way, there's still a reason to go through the duties if you still wish to explore them, but would also allow for a reduction in the amount of mandatory story quests you would have to go through. I'm trying to come up with ways to please as many parties as possible, which I'm sure you can understand is a LOT easier said than done!

[Lumadurin]

I think future expansions should come with a free story skip and level boost.
The level boost can be to the current cap -10, but the story skip could be up to the player. They could skip just ARR, or skip all the way up to the start of the previous expansion, and everything in between.
WoW eventually started bundling boosts with their expansions because the prospect of working through multiple years of content and levels was extremely daunting to newer players.

[MrKusakabe]

I am basically kinda stuck inbetween both fractions - and my cousin, too. We both started in September 2013, and we both stopped at a point. Mine was early 2015, he quitted in 2014.
The problem now is that the game, of course, developed a lot further. While this all is absolutely fine - more "game" for my money! - I have one problem that might sound a bit "entitled", but...

...I hate that my profession's progression is connected to my Main Story progess!

Look, I am absolutely for grinding as I played MapleStory and that game was an absolute grindfest, even when you spent cash shop 2x EXP cards. But it was pretty fun.
Right now, I level up my Red Mage and Scholar, getting my iLevel up slowly, my health and MP go up, my damage numbers go up. This is an absolute joy and so much fun (after the stuck "endgame" of GW2!)!
But my cousin now can't progress because apparently his Black Mage guy is in a yet unaccessable area. I think it should happen to me soon as well.

Now why does that pose such a problem to let us do that independently? We are getting synched anyways. And Roulettes really force us to go into Sastasha despite we saved the universe 126 times before.
But letting me finish and graduate my profession: Nope, sorry. You gotta wait and play several weeks of content first.

Now here is the point where I am bouncing back and forth: I like that! This gating. But then: I hate it! Whyyyyy??
I don't see any reason why this detached story of this awesome catguy of a Red Mage instructor (as hardcore Lalafreak this is an achievment to hear that from my mouth!) has to interfer with the rest.
That's like having to get the mandatory first aid training and then being accepted to the drivers tests (at least this is how it works in good ol' Germany) - but then you are supposed to visit a far away city without the car first just to show you are worth to drive there yourself later.

This is the only gripe I have. I'd love to get my professions up and then trough the story with him fully trained. Since my skills are also getting unlocked peu à peu as the dungeon levels go up, this would be exactly the same as if I get those skills step by step due to levelling or profession quests.

That is the only problem I have and can imagine new players have.

EDIT: Oh, I just realized a flaw in my reasoning due to a lack of detail! Why would I want to be 70 as soon as possible at all if everything is getting unlocked itself by just playing and progression? The outfit and the feel that I "Have done it"..... It got me back to the game initially until I tasted the awesomeness of it entirely again..

Sincerely,

[uvuvwevwevweonyetenyevweugwemu]

~snip

I have no solution for returning players, just the jump/skip potions will have to do. The OP spells for new player tho, that I don't get. The free trial basically covers half of ARR and you can finish in 3-4 days. If expansions keep coming that is the reason for the slow down then simple, just make the base game free-to-play. No need to cut or convert anything. New players is just that, new. If they can't measure their pace properly, do it before they buy expansions and judge/adjust for themselves. If they can't handle base game quests, they definitely won't be able to do the rest.

[Skivvy]

If they can't handle base game quests, they definitely won't be able to do the rest.

Isn't this the opposite of what people have been saying? ARR quests were tedious and often completely unrelated to the actual story while they streamlined a bit with HW/SB release?

[uvuvwevwevweonyetenyevweugwemu]

Isn't this the opposite of what people have been saying? ARR quests were tedious and often completely unrelated to the actual story while they streamlined a bit with HW/SB release?

Not really , total quests of ARR + HW is exactly that 2x of SB. They have average it down and pad it, that's why they spread patches more now. If they managed to finish up to HW then that it would equal to SB + SHBR.

[Anselmet]

Not really , total quests of ARR + HW is exactly that 2x of SB. They have average it down and pad it, that's why they spread patches more now. If they managed to finish up to HW then that it would equal to SB + SHBR.

You're actually really incorrect here. I decided to be masochist and count how many quests there are in each expansion and it is with a heavy heart I have to inform this community that ARR is a total of 287 quests if I follow the Limsa Lominsa quest line as a newbie. If I start in Uldah add another 5ish quests. The base game is 188 while 2.1 -2.55 is 99 quests. Together HW and SB only beat ARR in amount of quests barely sitting at 291 quests. HW base game has only 92 quests and its post content only has 36 ending with a total of 128. Sb has slightly more with a total of 123 with post game quests coming in at 40 and ending with a total of 163.

As someone who is pro-msq I will fully admit its ARR that needs work. HW and SB are fine and I imagine that ShB will follow in their steps. ARR is a bloated monster. If they can reduce its bloat then it needs to be done. If not, then its gonna be a thorn in ffxiv side. And that is coming from a pro-msq person.

[NanaWiloh]

Cutting the fat and removing some of the gating from MSQ would not hurt. But a complete removal and allowing people to just go where they please for nothing in exchange is a middle finger to those who have spent time dredging through it all. Skip potions are a good middle ground you can skip if you choose but at a cost, no free ride as they would say. Some changes need to be made to ease the new player experience just no free ride to end game though.

[Physic]

Cutting the fat and removing some of the gating from MSQ would not hurt. But a complete removal and allowing people to just go where they please for nothing in exchange is a middle finger to those who have spent time dredging through it all. Skip potions are a good middle ground you can skip if you choose but at a cost, no free ride as they would say. Some changes need to be made to ease the new player experience just no free ride to end game though.

why would i care if other people dont have to do story, i gain nothing from people who hate story spending weeks skipping and teleporting