Something I would genuinely LOVE is if I could "combine" characters...

[Amnmaat]

The game already allows you to be any job on one character.
I know people want access to everything at a fingertip but something as critical as your main character, in my opinion, should not be something you can just change out for an alt.

[Jojoya]

So, I'm going to be honest for a second:

I actually don't think FFXIV is very enjoyable if you have multiple characters.

The reason is simply that because so much of the game requires you to run around "unlocking" content, and even basic game features, it can be sort of a drag.

I'm the opposite. I still think it's enjoyable with multiple characters. I love re-experiencing the story, including the growth of my characters from the fresh off the boat/chocobo cart (sometimes)innocent adventurer to experienced warrior. Some of my alts I've later deleted, others I've kept because some quality about them appealed to me.

There's really no need to be combining anything when one character can do it all. It's not like you can play multiple characters simultaneously short of having multiple service accounts. The players just needs to decide what should be on their main and focus on getting that first before playing through the same content to get it on their alts.

[StriderShinryu]

I love how FF14 lets you play all jobs and roles on a single character, but I would definitely enjoy if Alts were a little more encouraged regardless. It would be great if characters were at least a little less locked off from each other.

[Terin]

I'm the opposite. I still think it's enjoyable with multiple characters. I love re-experiencing the story, including the growth of my characters from the fresh off the boat/chocobo cart (sometimes)innocent adventurer to experienced warrior. Some of my alts I've later deleted, others I've kept because some quality about them appealed to me.

There's really no need to be combining anything when one character can do it all. It's not like you can play multiple characters simultaneously short of having multiple service accounts. The players just needs to decide what should be on their main and focus on getting that first before playing through the same content to get it on their alts.

There is, unfortunately, one flaw with that logic;

NEW characters can't do EVERYTHING in the game, because FFXIV has a lot of limited-time events and rewards.

That's not necessarily a bad thing -- in fact, one of the reasons I LOVE FFXIV so much is because it has so many events! The problem is, often times those rewards might be one-time only, and so new characters miss out on things you've already earned.

And just look at the earlier poster, who has those cool "Legacy"/1.0 Player rewards, but are ultimately confined to older characters? It's not as though *those* items are ever going to come back.

I definitely see the appeal of a "clean-slate, fresh start". But while I'm clearly very biased about this, I would argue that a lot more players would be happier having those rewards available on other characters.

Like I said, though, I don't necessarily know the "best" way to handle it. Maybe when you reach the Crystarium, the Exarch (or someone) offers to "link" you with your "reflections" (other characters), or something like that? That way, it's A) optional, and B) only accessible once you've invested some real time into your other characters? Heck, you could even argue the Devs might be more likely to consider it, as it might sell additional Job/Story boosts!

[Anarnee]

As a rampant Alt-o-holic I would love some more QoL for those of us that like to play multiple characters.

I don't want to combine characters, but access to some of the things that I've unlocked, like emotes, mounts, and SEASONAL ITEMS would be really nice.

[Terin]

As a rampant Alt-o-holic I would love some more QoL for those of us that like to play multiple characters.

I don't want to combine characters, but access to some of the things that I've unlocked, like emotes, mounts, and SEASONAL ITEMS would be really nice.

That would honestly be a fine compromise. Like I said, maybe even tie it to reaching the Crystarium, which might make Story/Job boost sales go up to compensate?

I know that at least for myself, I could absolutely see myself playing multiple characters if those limited-time rewards weren't locked. The Hrothgar, for example, I think look really cool as melee characters, but because I think they look goofy wearing robes, I don't see myself ever using a Fantasia to play as one. But I'd be a lot more open to having one as an "alt". Currently, FFXIV just isn't very alt-friendly.

[MsQi]

This is a big ask. Bad, unexpected, unpredictable things can happen when you start messing with state flags in the ways they would need to be messed with to combine two characters' quest journals into one, and it would require lots of testing. It took them at least two years of work to give us a New Game+ system that didn't involve just resetting every quest flag and making you start fresh.

Yeah, the sheer number of possible errors would keep this from happening. I assume this also means permanently deleting a character in the process. No matter how clear the instructions and number of notifications people manage to make mistakes on such things.

Account wide things would be nice, but that could eat up cash shop profits unless those items were excluded.

[Terin]

Yeah, the sheer number of possible errors would keep this from happening. I assume this also means permanently deleting a character a process. No matter how clear the instructions and number of notifications people manage to make mistakes on such things.

Account wide things would be nice, but that could eat up cash shop profits unless those items were excluded.

I mean, coding is coding. Any sort of new feature is as likely to introduce bugs as anything else is.

As far as deleting characters, I can't imagine that being the route they go, although it's certainly an option. If so, it would need to be an out-of-game option, something with several prompts stressing as much. But really, I think going "Account-wide" with stuff just makes a lot more sense, all things considered. But I'm certainly not glued to the idea, though!

[Rongway]

I mean, coding is coding. Any sort of new feature is as likely to introduce bugs as anything else is.

But we're talking about state flags. Even in a much smaller game I would advise against messing with flags if it can be avoided. And XIV hasn't been immune to unexpected flag side-effects. A year or two ago one of the patches had an unintended interaction with a state flag that caused people to see a dragon from an old cutscene in an unrelated new cutscene (or something like that--I'd need to check the patch notes for the details).

All coding can introduce bugs, but not all coding involves 2^n test cases that potentially need to be checked.