The game should have alcohol

[TeraRamis]

• It's a prominent aspect of most cultures, including Japan (getting hammered is such a huge element to most anime, both in terms of a right of passage, and as a humorous trope).
  
• An enormous amount of the RP in the game is bar-centric - either in terms of player-run establishments, or just milling around in the watering holes in the cities.
  
• Being drunk in MMORPGs is not a negative experience, nor is it a gateway to bad behavior out of game. I mean, first of all, we're doing much worse things to people, animals, etc. with our weapons. Second, most adults consume alcohol IRL, so I'm not sure how it could 'lead anyone down a dark path.' Third, it can produce hilarious results when handled correctly (screen going fuzzy/blurred/wavy; slurred speech; difficulty in character movement, etc.).
  
• It can actually have in-game mechanical uses - such as a boss that blows up a keg mid-fight, suddenly rendering your character inebriated and in need of a quick cleanse.
  
• It's immersive for the kind of experience that SE is clearly attempting to otherwise push - high-end, player-driven socialization.

[Biggle]

You can just say "XIV should have an alcohol system like WoW," because that's just what you described.

Also, I agree. It would be funny.

[Theodric]

Firmly agreed.

It's a classic fantasy trope for a bunch of adventurers to sit down and have a drink together after a successful quest. We see plenty of NPC's do just that, we can acquire alcohol based furniture for our house and the 'toast' emote can quite readily be taken as being a mug of mead or ale.

I'd like some more direct opportunities to, for example, have my character sit down and share a cup of sake with Hien only for for both of them to drink a little too much and find themselves captured by the Buduga!

[Wilford111]

How about noooooooo

[Theodric]

How about noooooooo

Why do you think it should not be the case?

[ForctyusGold]

definetely no. im done with alcohol accepting culture around me , commercials everywhere . its nice idea, but no, just pls no

[Wilford111]

Why get drunk in-game when you can just get drunk irl and have the same in-game results?

Definitely should not incorporate it into raid mechanics either. Forcing something like intoxicity onto players would be a bad thing since a fair amount of people try to stay away from alcohol or know someone who is an alcoholic. Or just plain consider it immoral.

[Theodric]

I grew up with an alcoholic as a father. I survived getting stabbed by him during a drunken rage back when I was a teenager. Some people have issues with the substance, sure, but I do not believe that those who do act responsibly should miss out as a result.

I don't drink much of the stuff myself in the real world but I value immersion in the settings I invest in and can easily envision my character drinking alcohol from time to time. I'd like for that to be something more visible within the game itself.

Those who do not want their character to consume any alcohol...need not have them do so.

[Shougun]

Maybe it's becuase of WoW, I'm not sure, but I really felt the tavern vibe, and drinking, is underplayed in this game. Walking into a tavern, the music changing to this drinking jolly jig music (or whatever), crackling fire, voice / ambient music (hearing cups, chatter, etc), and of course it was a home point system. Honestly was a -joy- to find new taverns and mark your home for a while.

When I'm playing board games with my wife we play WoW tavern music by everness or one of those people who post ambient music videos on youtube, I've not played WoW in /years/ (though I pay attention just in case there are good ideas I think FFXIV should poach and do better, like WoW did to everquest), and my wife gives no care for most games in general but we both really enjoy that aspect for atmosphere.

To be fair the vibe, I feel, has some presence in some parts of Witcher as well (I also have witcher inn/tavern/gwent ambient music video lol).

The fact you could drink with friends, or that you could drink at all and it was just silly, was added fun. Of course, imo, one of the things FFXIV could improve quite a bit and take notes of from WoW is that sense of existence and actions that have little but 'fun' to do with the game- like drinking, or the nifty gadgets, action-able role play aspects, and other items that just exist because 'they can'. One of the few, very few, things I think WoW still has some edge on FFXIV. I would still sell FFXIV to players as the better MMO in a heartbeat, but that is one of the ones I'm like ... "aw, kind of miss that".

[SturmChurro]

I'm sure the people who run/participate in club or bar venues would love this addition.