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

[Wolven_Essence]

I have only made it to the end of ARR so far, and I have to say, if this is the worst part of this games story, then I can’t wait for the rest of it because I thought it was pretty danged good. It’s a little easy to predict at times, but that doesn’t inherently make something bad.

I absolutely think FF14 holds up at against some of the good single player stories out there. Not against the very best no, but against some of the good ones.

Also, feel the need to say that TLOU2 is not one of the better stories. Only thing that game made me feel was horrified. At how bad the story was and how badly they handled the characters.

[Wolven_Essence]

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.

Honestly the only games where there is any sense of urgency at all are completely linear games with little to no exploration. The only times I have ever felt any urgency is at the very end of a game when it is going into that very last part leading up to that final confrontation.

[MilkieTea]

I have only made it to the end of ARR so far, and I have to say, if this is the worst part of this games story, then I can’t wait for the rest of it because I thought it was pretty danged good. It’s a little easy to predict at times, but that doesn’t inherently make something bad.

I absolutely think FF14 holds up at against some of the good single player stories out there. Not against the very best no, but against some of the good ones.

Also, feel the need to say that TLOU2 is not one of the better stories. Only thing that game made me feel was horrified. At how bad the story was and how badly they handled the characters.

It gets much better as it progresses!

Heavensward and ShB stand on their own as some of the best FF stories, period.

[WanderingMist]

But she isn't able to teleport freely is the point. She has such finetuned control over the small amount of aether that she can manipulate safely, that she was able to teleport herself and Thancred out of harms way - which lead to her near death. This just proves to me that you weren't paying nearly as much attention as you say you were. You are the ONLY OTHER PERSON able to teleport at will, and for you it's a piece of cake because of the sheer amount of aether in your possession. The game literally both tells you, and SHOWS you, this.

You're so obsessed with "show don't tell" that I think you've forgotten what that actually means. Exposition is necessary in certain circumstances, yet we are SHOWN Thancred's wit and personality, no one sits there saying "Yeah Thancred's a flirt!" We see and experience it. We are SHOWN Y'shtola's quick thinking under pressure, her sass, and her willingness to stand her ground. No one says that. We are SHOWN Yda and Papalymo's undying friendship and loyalty to each other in the face of uncertain futures. We are SHOWN Alphinaud's uncertainty and his naivety. We are shown that the Scions of the Seventh Dawn are a group filled with intelligent people, and ALSO told that.

Show, don't tell, doesn't mean characters can't talk. Show, don't tell means "Don't just say this character is quick witted. Show them BEING quick witted." Which is what the game does.

Thancred is a flirt - he flirts. Y'shtola is smart and able to finetunely control aether - she does JUST THAT. Alphinaud is naive - he literally gathers together a group of Sellswords and doesn't expect them to still be sellswords. Yda and Papalymo are friends to the literal end - these aren't things the game tells us, these are things you're SHOWN.

See, in my opinion the game does a very poor job of showing any of the traits you are explaining. You know what I'd love to see? The Scions actually fighting alongside you. That alone would drastically increase my feelings towards them. Also on a final point about Y'shtola's abilities, this is actually a trope you see a lot in games. You have some kind of ability that you (as the player) can do at the drop of a hat, like teleporting, and you're the only one who can do this. I had no idea until you told me just now that the player character had so much power when teleporting around the world is so simple and easy.

Here, this video does a much better job of explaining it: https://youtu.be/qxwy8kpFwZ0

[Rezef]

I wanted to read your opinion honestly but as soon as I saw you called TLOU2 good just stopped. The story is good and honestly it follows the basic FF formula. As for the fillers and such, well it's an MMO so having this waste of time quests is part of the genre. As for the immersion, well in an MMO is much harder to achieve cause you have so many things running at the same time so it's all about priorities.

[Wolven_Essence]

It gets much better as it progresses!

Heavensward and ShB stand on their own as some of the best FF stories, period.

So everyone says, LOL. I really think ARR is fairly good though. There is some decent foreshadowing of the end with how the story tells you about the struggles of the poor vs the wealthy a few times. And again yeah it is a little predictable. Once the Lala queen, can’t remember her name, sorry, says she is stepping down I knew she was toast, and a couple other things. But again predictable doesn’t mean bad. There are no new stories after all, just old stories told in new ways.

[Jadedsins]

Why is your thread title acting like it is a statement of fact? Just say I think it is not good.


If most people think it is one of the best final fantasy stories, and the numbers of people saying it is good. It is hard to argue that it is not. That is like people hating on Kpop, or just anything that is trending because most people like it and you don't. You not liking something does not mean it is not good.

[Harlot]

I questioned the same thing when Gosetsu stood under that roof top for almost like 5 minute with a pierced body. He was shot by Yotsuyu so many times but somehow he still managed to stay and talk until every character said what they had to say. And afterwords he didn't even die. He survived with that piereced body, where a roof top crashed on top of him, and almost drowned in the river wtih yotsuyu. That was the point that i questioned the story in a very bad way. And the other thing that i have to agree with you is how they are bringing almost every dead character right after it hasn't been 1 week they were killed. I mean take Zenos as an example. We killed him and he returned as not one, but two person, one who used his body and the one who actually came back from the dead. And they did the same thing with gosetsu and yotsuyu like i just said. And now i feel the same about dying characters. I don't care anymore, whenever i see a dying character i always think like they are gonna come back and end up not caring about it, like at all

[Darthgummibear]

This is the first MMO where I've genuinely cared about the story and its characters. Presenting personal opinions as absolute truth will garner you no support whatsoever.

[Herebedragons]

This is the first MMO where I've genuinely cared about the story and its characters. Presenting personal opinions as absolute truth will garner you no support whatsoever.

And yet, it seems to be a common practice here on the OF.