Final Fantasy XIV doesn't actually have that good of a story

[tatatatatata]

I played a lot of other Final Fantasy's and a lot of gaming sites say that FF14 has one of the best stories in the franchise so I tried it out. This is an issue of the hype killing the game. FF14 has a good story but it's not as good as the hype makes it out to be so in the end I was disappointed. I can give you 50 games that had a better story than FF14.

The first issue is that there is too much filler in the story that adds next to nothing to the lore or the story. Having to play hide and seek with children is not interesting. Having to harvest vegetables as the freaking Warrior of Light is stupid. The game suffers from being an MMO by having to give you way too much filler.

The second issue is that the game can't be as immersive as modern story-driven games. The Last of Us 2 is capable of making you feel sad, angry, and horrified because the game is designed in a very immersive manner. FF14 makes you read the dialogues which isn't as immersive as modern story games.

The third issue is that even in world-ending, cataclysmic events, there is no sense of urgency. This is partially because FF14 isn't as immersive as single player games. It's also because there are way too many Mary Sue moments in the game where you expect someone to die but they miraculously survive. After a few Mary Sue moments you just don't expect anyone to die anymore. Because of that there is not much tension to be felt in the story.

I'm not saying the story is bad, but it's definitely not one of the best stories in a video game nor is it really even one of the better stories among the Final Fantasy franchise. I enjoyed FF14 and it does have a better story than WoW but I don't think it matches up to actual single player games at all. So I really don't get the hype and IMO people have just not played enough thought-provoking story games outside of FF14. Saying it has one of the best stories in video gaming history is an exaggeration at best.

[Krotoan]

Neat. I liked it tho.

[Zanarkand-Ronso]

Well yeah, hype does that, dont come at anything because of hype, it preemptively sets you up to hold something at a high standard which easily sets you up for disappointment.
Hype should generate interest, but dont let awards or excited people give you an idea of anything, until you see and experience it yourself.

Then...everything else is just different strokes for different folks and your personal opinion. Which are all fine to have. I dont care for FF:VII despite how much EVERYONE loves it.

[Garruss]

The fact you decided to say the last of us 2 was good completely made your point invalid.

If you didn't feel anything from this games story I'd suggest you quit now and move back to those single player games you praise so much. Since it sounds like a MMO is notvyour Cup of tea

[KageTokage]

There being lots of filler is a valid point, though they've cut back on it quite a bit post-ARR (And even pruned a lot of it from ARR itself) and largely shoved the menial tasks into optional quests. It being a flaw inherent to the MMO genre is a valid point, though.

I've regularly felt emotionally invested in things regardless of there being spoken dialogue or not. Story is not the game's sole or even primary focus, so I wouldn't expect it to be as good as some others in that regard in the first place.

The whole "no sense of urgency" thing is present in virtually all of the other FF games and several others outside of the series, and is honestly almost omni-present in games that are not completely linear from beginning to end. Railroading the player into plot progression in anything other then a strictly story-driven game that has no grinding whatsoever is generally a bad idea.

Those things said, I still have personally found the story to be one of the most enjoyable in the franchise due to all the nuance and nigh-constant sense of intrigue due to all the mysteries present in the world and its cultures that have gradually unraveled as time has gone on. I'd agree it's probably not one of the best stories in gaming as a whole, though.

[Wavaryen]

I might be crazy but I like the so called filler. I think it builds world and your own personal character development.

Some of your points, eh..I still have scars from HW that make me hold my breath when things get crazy.



Mind you it is all personal taste. I dislike final fantasy 7 story, but love final fantasy 4 and 8.

[TaleraRistain]

If you're upset at doing something mundane like harvesting vegetables, methinks you haven't played many JRPGs.

[CKNovel]

Is this a troll account?
MPK second account?

When was the last time you read a book?
There's no voice acting in books, no images either, yet a good writer can immerse you in the story.

Ofc there's no sense of emergency, it's an MMO and it's limited as you need players to have access to every content unlocked at any point.
It's also a design that reach other games, FF XV and VIIR had a way to "go back in time", Dragon Quest also somewhat had a way to go back in time. An RPG cannot lock you out of previous content as there is many side quest and such.

You cannot compare those to story game such as Detroit:Become Human or The Last of Us, those aren't RPG but more interactive movies (Detroit behing much more on the story side with many paths.)
That's comparing Milk and Cheese, those are the same base but meant to be consumed in different ways.

Plus, I doubt you understand what a Mary Sue is.
A Mary Sue is a character loved by all and jealoused by its ennemies, a Mary Sue is always right and has no weakness or flaws.
Rey from Star Wars is a good example, suddenly stronger than most if not all jedi, can pilot any ship or repair it.

I don't know who you identify as a Gary/Mary sue there. A character that miraculously survive is not a Mary Sue. That's more of a plot armor.

[Vidu]

I'll take that list of your 50 games with a better story, please!

...mainly, because I'm always intrested in adding new games with good stories to my list of games to play.

Other than that... I really enjoy the story of FFXIV - I wouldnt say its my favorite FF-story (probably partly of nostalgia for some of the other FFs and partly because its gotten so long that its gotten difficult to keep all aspects in mind, while some other, shorter games tell stories that are a lot more streamlined and "packed").

I would always recommend not falling for any hypes, if you can avoid it - you'll always end up disappointed and might judge things worse than they are just because they didnt live up to your expectations, which might have been to high in the first place.

[tatatatatata]

I'll take that list of your 50 games with a better story, please!

...mainly, because I'm always intrested in adding new games with good stories to my list of games to play.

Other than that... I really enjoy the story of FFXIV - I wouldnt say its my favorite FF-story (probably partly of nostalgia for some of the other FFs and partly because its gotten so long that its gotten difficult to keep all aspects in mind, while some other, shorter games tell stories that are a lot more streamlined and "packed").

I would always recommend not falling for any hypes, if you can avoid it - you'll always end up disappointed and might judge things worse than they are just because they didnt live up to your expectations, which might have been to high in the first place.

For something recent, Nier:Replicant recently got a remake and it has a pretty good story. A lot of filler, however, but most of those are relegated to optional side-quests. There's always the Mass Effect franchise if you haven't tried it out before and the Legendary Edition is a great way to get into the trilogy. There are the classics like Chrono Trigger and FF9. All these are better than FF14's story IMO. On the indie side, Omori has a touching story, though it suffers from a bad pacing in the midgame. TLoU 2 is one of the most immersive stories last year and the vitriol it got is honestly just mostly transphobia and homophobia so I wouldn't take the TLoU 2 hate that seriously. I think FF14 shines at having a decent story while also being an MMO. But I just find it hard to see how its story is better than single player games. Games I would recommend staying away from: FF7 Remake (the last chapter is really bad) and Cyberpunk.