What did you like more in Final Fantasy XI Online oder Final Fantasy XIV (vanilla)?

[Tonkra]

Simply as the titles says for those who have played Final Fantasy XI online oder the version of FFXIV before the reboot.

What did you liked more in these two games?


For me it's one of these things:

1. Summoner pets in Final Fantasy XI online

What i liked more about FFXI that the summoner job had real summons (like in the offline titles). Practically that what we received with Demi-Bahamut or Phoenix in FFXIV now.. but not as oversized huge as in FFXIV.

Summons in FFXI had a huge set of skills in the endgame. Such as supportive spells (Shiva for example had an ice spike shield buff for party members, Ramuh enthunder Weapon spells, Carbuncle had Shining Ruby (Group Heal) and a Shell/Protect Spell




in FFXIV ARR:


2. Elemental Weakness Wheel in Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy XIV vanilla

What practically is typical for every Final Fantasy game (except for FFXIV ARR and after) is, that each monster type has weaknesses against specific elements which ads an extra layer to the combat strategy (just like in Pokemon and many JRPG)
Nowdays we only have to go through our "skill routine" and evading ground markers in combat - that being about it.


3. Third Person Player perspective (instead of top-down view)

Since you are able to zoom out endlessly you tend to play Final Fantasy XIV more like a strategy game (top-down view) or like WoW, than from a more immersive third person rpg view like you were used to in the offline Final Fantasys.
Which in my opinion leads to much less immerson and roleplay feeling - you get dragged out of the world:




how people play nowdays in FFXIV:


(ok, sorry the last one is a wrong picture...)


4. Better weather effects:

Final Fantasy XIV vanilla (1.0.)




FFXIV ARR - non-voluminous static artificial stars wallpaper:

In my opinion in FFXIV vanilla, and even in FFXI the weather and environment feels much more organic and realistic than the flat star sky-wallpapers in FFXIV nowdays after ARR. It's much more "artificial" i guess.

4. Overworld monsters are NO trash mobs



In the Final Fantasy series every monster on the world matters and can be a potential threat to the player.
Like the very known enemy Morbol / Malboro or a cacutar). In FFXIV ARR these are just pure trash monsters and dont matter. it doesnt even make fun when you beat one.

4. Lack of debuff / utillity spells / abillities

I am missing utillity / debuff and support spells in FFXIV. For example my Red mage doesnt have the abillity to cast blind, paralyze, slow or refresh (MP). Just because every group setup needs to work in the world of "party roulette"


Well in the end what i overall dislike seems to be the "WoW"-fication and having less FF feeling in the end.


What do you liked more in FFXI or vanilla FFXIV?

[Valkyrie_Lenneth]

I liked that the leveling system was so terrible in XI it kept me from sinking more than 2 weeks into the game.

The game actively tried to keep you from playing.


Also, you picked screenshot with weather for 1.0, and a single one with clear skies for current. That's a bit biased lol. The weather in this game is phenomenal.

[Tonkra]

I liked that the leveling system was so terrible in XI it kept me from sinking more than 2 weeks into the game.

You arent a FF player that is used to play ATB based are you? But nice "whataboutism" btw. seems like ;D
With Trust NPC nowdays it actually is no problem i guess. It plays more like a turn based FF game rather than a WoW copy. But yes, it is very old.. about 18 years now at the early days / first steps of MMORPGs.

So you wonder it doesnt have the most modern leveling system? its a retro MMORPG practically.

Also, you picked screenshot with weather for 1.0, and a single one with clear skies for current. That's a bit biased lol. The weather in this game is phenomenal.

Actually i talked about the sky box. the stars wallpaper at night is a good example how extremely terrible, unrealistic, artificial und unbelievable the weather system is in FFXIV ARR.
The thing is, whereass FFXIV vanilla was more believable and realistic. The static stars wallpaper at night looks like an unrealistic painting in FFXIV ARR which is pretty awful. Same for the clouds.

The sound combination in vanilla was also much more far superior to ARR, which is a extreme downgrade - you could always hear the slight sound of wind etc.:
Thanalan Region FFXIV 1.0.:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPLQceU-RBo
(and watch even the ground textures btw.)
Thunder on the sea:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nSWar1YSxU
Sandstrom Thanalan 1.0.:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STToZ4InTZc

ARR - which looks more like a painting:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrBVffQo1iA

1.0. (look at the ground textures / stones btw.)

ARR


Didnt find a picture of Uldah ARR with clouds .. but that really wouldnt make it any better.
FFXIV 1.0. also had about 2 layers of clouds which ARR doesnt have at all.

[Vahlnir]

With Trust NPC nowdays it actually is no problem i guess. It plays more like a turn based FF game rather than a WoW copy. But yes, it is very old.. about 18 years now. So you wonder?




Actually i talked about the sky box. the stars wallpaper at night is a good example how extremely terrible, unrealistic, artificial und unbelievable the weather system is in FFXIV ARR.
The thing is, whereass FFXIV vanilla was more believable and realistic. The static stars wallpaper at night looks like an unrealistic painting in FFXIV ARR which is pretty awful. Same for the clouds.

The sound combination in vanilla was also much more far superior to ARR, which is a extreme downgrade:
Thanalan Region FFXIV 1.0.:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPLQceU-RBo
(and watch even the ground textures btw.)
Thunder on the sea:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nSWar1YSxU
Sandstrom Thanalan 1.0.:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STToZ4InTZc

ARR - which looks more like a painting:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrBVffQo1iA

The night sky is probably the sky box's best quality currently. It's a bit jarring watching weather changes happen though, night or day. The background fades in the lowest quality way possible, then the weather sets in and the sky itself isn't too lively. It's just...there, with PS2 textured clouds. Rain and thunder effects aren't bad so long as you don't look up. lol

[OranKells]

I get nostalgia pangs for the olds days of XI occasionally but I simply do not understand the constant need to compare a this to a 20 year old game built for a 56k modem and a ps2 engine.

Both games are a product of their times, of the environments they found themselves in.

XI had a more old school RPG elements. It feels more like a table top D&D game or Everquest. The game was grindier, more RNG. More time sinks and this was expected. Endgame was more horizontal. People who played these games were enthusiasts and I don't think the casual/hardcore endgame dichotomy existed in XI the way it does in XIV. combat speed was slower and more deliberate simply because that's what average internet speeds could handle.

I'm not gonna beat the dead horse of what did and didn't work in 1.0. But XIV plays more like WoW on the surface because, like it or hate it, is(was) a successful and popular game. Things are faster because they can be. Things are brighter and colorful because technology has improved to allow it to be. There is a greater desire to appeal to the average consumer. A lot of things are streamlined to remove the illusion of choice you'd have in 11. This is the natural evolution of the medium; influenced by whatever came before it, but comparing the two is apples and oranges.

[StormyFae]

I like that ffxi feels like a REAL FINAL FANTASY with how the ff jobs are suppose to work..

I like its open world...

I like the fact gil was worth a damn

I like the fact you had to Earn your abilitys.. Without hand outs..

I like how things were actrually worth doing, and not for some stupid glow weapon or mount..

I like that elements mattered
I liked how weapons had effects built on and elements

Overall i like that ffxi was a REAL FINAL FANTASY GAME

And the reason why in my eyes its better than xiv.. Is it Feels like Final fantasy.. Not some wow fanboy take on ff, which is what xiv feels like

Xiv only notes above xi, is customization and graphics...

Fxi remake happans im out for sure if its not mobile bs

[Tonkra]

I get nostalgia pangs for the olds days of XI occasionally but I simply do not understand the constant need to compare a this to a 20 year old game built for a 56k modem and a ps2 engine.

Both games are a product of their times, of the environments they found themselves in XI had a more old school RPG elements. It feels more like a table top D&D game or Everquest. The game was grindier, more RNG. More time sinks and this was expected. Endgame was more horizontal. People who played these games were enthusiasts, I don't think the casual/hardcore endgame dichotomy existed in XI the way it does in XIV. combat speed was slower and more deliberate simply because that's what average internet speeds could handle.

I'm not gonna beat the dead horse of what did and didn't work in 1.0. But XIV plays more like WoW on the surface because, like it or hate it, is(was) a successful and popular game. Things are faster because they can be. Things are brighter and colorful because technology has improved to allow it to be. There is a greater desire to appeal to the average consumer. A lot of things are streamlined to remove the illusion of choice you'd have in 11. This is the natural evolution of the medium; influenced by whatever came before it, but comparing the two is apples and oranges.

True things, i wont disagree that FFXI grind and else would work nowdays. Thats not what i say is better in FFXI, did i?

But still i disliked that many core Final Fantasy elements of the whole series were canceled out of the game such as the elemental wheel or summoner eidolons/summons which makes Final Fantasy.... Final Fantasy?

And iconic. Because its like Pokemon to some sort of. You meet plant based monsters and you know you better should go for fire elemental attacks... or that cure spells inflict damage to the undead.
This way it feels like a WoW game with FF skin on it to some extend. You dont play Final Fantasy mechanics or the jobs, in the end you play skill rotations that being about it.

Red mage doesnt feel like red mage, because it doesnt matter if he cast aero or thunder.. its just a skill routine, like for each job.
Monsters on the overworld in ARR are complete trash mobs (because Yoshi P. wanted so) which is also not how it is supposed to be in a FF. Every monster in FF counts and can be a threat to the player.

I mean.. if you meet a cactuar or morbol in Final Fantasy you should be careful and watch out. in FFXIV you practically cant die of monsters in the openworld, which is pretty sad. A cactuar is simply a trash mob,.

[OranKells]

You barely did that in XI. This was the illusion of choice. for the longest time Thunder IV was the highest level black magic spell. Unless you were fighting something with an exceptionally high weakness to an element or a resistance to thunder, 9/10 times the math would bear out that Thunder IV Magic burst with a light skillchain was the better option. And that is the problem with older MMOs, it can be very hard to balance horizontal progression and elemental wheels. Despite thinking there are options, there is usually one or two moves that turn out to be better most of the time.

XIV for better or worse doesn't have that issue. Maybe it lacks that Je ne sais quoi of the old games, but the design is sound.

[Tonkra]

You barely did that in XI. This was the illusion of choice. for the longest time Thunder IV was the highest level black magic spell. Unless you were fighting something with an exceptionally high weakness to an element or a resistance to thunder, 9/10 times the math would bear out that Thunder IV Magic burst with a light skillchain was the better option. And that is the problem with older MMOs, it can be very hard to balance horizontal progression and elemental wheels. Despite thinking there are options, there is usually one or two moves that turn out to be better most of the time.

That may have been an issue in FFXI online alone (because of spell levels). And except that you could even heal opponents if you casted an ice spell on shiva for example.

In Vanilla FFXIV this actually wasnt the case and it was, like in all offline Final Fantasys, the best to cast the element which the opponent was weak against.
And still i think elemental wheels of FF add an extra layer to the strategic combat. A good player knows which of the hundreds or thousands of enemies are weak against which elements.
Rather than just spamming your skill rotation that being about it.

I mean for what do we need elements then anyways? Its just a design thing then.
And its also not just about the combat and spells. It added also an extra layer to your equipment (+resistence fire, + resistence water etc.)
And which enemy you fought it of course would be the best to equip armor and else which would be optimal for the specific fight as well (e.g. you better equip stuff with +fire resistance against a dragon with fire attacks and else)

[Dzian]

To try and keep it relatively short.

1:- World.
Vanadiel blows Eorzea away in so many ways. Significantly more diversity in enviroments and zones. indoor zones, outdoor zones. underground zones, volacanoes, castles, sky, sea, mines you can actually go in and even mine.... all of which vastly different with their own little gimmicks to explore them. (using ice clusters to douse the fires in Ifrits Cauldren, The 3 mage gate in Toramia Tanal, or the Sacririum with a living maze that changed every hour) Vanadiel was a living breathing world Eorzea is dead and lifeless.

2:- Jobs.
Diversity is gooodddd. Not this rubbish we have now where every job is the exact same as every other. but actuall different jobs with varied strengths and weaknesses. While I admit some of XIs jobs did have problems it often wasnt as bad as players made it out to be. You could make some amazingly strong parties if you were just a bit creative. Why YES I will tank Byakko on my monk with Counter-Stance.... Bring it onnnnnn!!! Who needs a Paladin or Ninja anyway?.

3:- Gear. / stats
XI again blows XIV out of the water. Stats and gear in 14 are soooo bland , boring and generally uninteresting. Gear is also short lived nothing ever feels powerfull because everyting feels like junk. In Xi Not only were stats much more interesting but gear lasted ages and felt good as a result. That Rajas Ring from beating COP.. Awesome ring. or the Evokenrs' Ring for your Summoner after defeating all the primals... Another awesome piece of gear with interesting stats.

4:- Depth and complexity..
Ok its not that I think accessibility is a bad thing but in XIV they honestly take it to far.
Everything gets dumbed down and dumbed down more and more and it really doesnt need to be. Players then ultimately find it incredibly stale and boring as a result. *coughs* Healers are a prime example, Gear treadmil is another, Materia another, the list goes on.
Simple and shallow is ultimately dull and boring. Combat is dull and boring as resource management, crowd control, utility in general are all basically non existant at this point because apparantly its too complex.... XI Was way better in this regard with varying damage types, the elemental wheel, actual debuffs that worked such as paralyzing or blinding Byakko which made his triple attacks easier to deal with. Or even silencing Suzakus chainspell. Was way more fun and satisfying than oh here a utility that literally just inflates your numbers for a few seconds..

5:- The community.
In FFXI the communitiy was very group centric it was all about team work.. In XIV everyones pretty much self centred it's all about them. Especially on the NA side where People often can't do content because static groups never survive long enough and the raid finder has been basically killed by masses of self entitled people expecting everyone else to carry them to victory wirthout any effort. Then they complain they cant do content because its " too inaccessible".. but on the JP side the exact same systems prove just how accessible all content in this game really is..

Want more? You can probably search my posts and find some pretty detailed stuff on most of the above topics.