Is Crystal Data Center bad?

[Ayuhra]

I don't think my experience of PF in EX would have been too different on another DC.

It wouldn't have been. All joking aside, people think of Crystal as non-raiders when the more accurate way of thinking about it is that people who are MOSTLY interested in raiding congregated around Gilgamesh to find each other. Crystal raids, we just RP as well and thus congregated around Balmung to find each other.

I used to be on Gilgamesh and now I'm on Balmung.

The difference is people being slightly less hardcore and sometimes in character when hanging around the overworld.