Can we take action against Bard Macro Player yet?

[LianaThorne]

To be honest, performance is my content. I've stopped raiding, I've stopped trying to gear up and play alts, I don't care to explore or anything, I'm very very much invested into performance. I basically login to ffxiv, to play with the performance system. That is 90% of what I spend my time doing in-game. Probably even at unhealthy amounts for how much time I do dedicate to learning new songs. I even have friends that have stopped asking me to do roulettes, level up characters, raid, and such because I was too busy learning to play with the performance system.

I do strive to keep improving because it is important to me. It's what makes me happy at the end of the day. It's not so much as if I'm mad that third party users "exist" when it comes to performance. I get mad when someone out of random walks up to me while I perform, and they want to join in and is basically:


>Presses the play button
"You hear that? Yeah I did that mate, I'm so good!"


That is what drives me mental.


I know a lot of people in this thread is like "You can't prove they are using macros unless...", Come on... Let's be real, it's PAINFULLY obvious. And when I do mention something, I do not accuse them of using macros, even though I know they are. I just simply state "I don't use macros". and 99% of the time it's the same response of them admitting that they are using macros, and there was this 1% where someone told me they don't either, but hooked up a midi keyboard (piano), instead, which like I said, I would be more okay with.


To some, your "content" or "progression", is raiding, or getting your crafters on, and etc.


To me it's performance. I'm very much invested in it. That's my drive to play the game, so yes, It does kill my fun when someone can "cheat" to do it better.

Just gonna regurgitate what everyone else is saying:

If you love something, do it for the love of it. What other people do, should not affect your life in the slightest when it comes to something you're doing for "love" or "passion".

Here's the hard truth: Your opinion on barding WILL NOT affect anyone else or how people play their game. You should follow suit and play the content you enjoy for the enjoyment of it. If you're focusing on what other people are doing, you're turning it into something that isn't "for the love" anymore.

Perhaps have a talk with yourself and figure out whether you're barding for the love of music or so you can be considered "better" than anyone else just because you play manually and get tips and head pats.

[Arckrin]

I get it, some people aren't musically talented enough, some just want to play songs, and I feel that is fine if you are just playing for your friends and such.

But what bothers me is when you pretend you ARE playing songs and acting as if you are so great because you let a third party tool play it for you.

It's really annoying walking into towns and just hearing it sound like people just throw midi keyboards down a flight of stairs.

There are people, such as myself, who actually practice playing these songs, and we get immediately overshadowed by people who just press play on a program. There is no competition, we lose because it's impossible for us to play songs at a normal place without either conforming to third party software ourselves, or hooking up an actual midi keyboard (which I would be more okay with!).

I think the bard macro playing has gotten way out of hand. It's really annoying and off putting.


Playing songs is one of my favorite things to do in FFXIV, I practice for hours every single day, and now I have to turn off performance completely because it just isn't fun anymore trying to play music for people, but getting immediately decimated by someone who can press play, make a sandwich and come back without putting any effort into learning any song what so ever.

You lose your time here, I had the same discussion in Ul'dah the other day, I was just entered here today to see if someone besides me was interested. Unfortunately as you can see people harass other here saying “You have big EGO”, or “Self realization”, “this doesn't harm anyone”, etc. They justify their illegal tool saying, because they aren't “harass” others it is “good” and “fun” to do it…

These persons have double morality standards, and they prefer a BOT over learn how to play a song.

As you can see, we are the 1% of the server. Even if we try hard like trying to learn “twilight over Thanalan”, “Eternal wind” and some other FF songs, we will always be shadowed by the illegal stuff “because it doesn't damage others”.

[SherlottaEryut]

On my server a massive group of Bards host concerts between 7pm-12am, some of them use third party tools which is publicly known, while others play Bard music ‘honestly’. Both sides have formed a system where they take it in turns playing and it brings a very large gathering. I have a lot of respect for the players who learn how to actually play music, & I’ll always praise them because I imagine it takes a lot of time and effort.

Personally, I don’t care if someone’s using a third party tool. I attend the concerts in New Gridania to listen to music & socialise with my friends. No one is bothered about the use of a third party tool because it’s not negatively affecting anyone’s gameplay.

[Conundrum]

On my server a massive group of Bards host concerts between 7pm-12am, some of them use third party tools which is publicly known, while others play Bard music ‘honestly’. Both sides have formed a system where they take it in turns playing and it brings a very large gathering. I have a lot of respect for the players who learn how to actually play music, & I’ll always praise them because I imagine it takes a lot of time and effort.

Personally, I don’t care if someone’s using a third party tool. I attend the concerts in New Gridania to listen to music & socialise with my friends. No one is bothered about the use of a third party tool because it’s not negatively affecting anyone’s gameplay.

Don't waste your time, there is a small group (or one guy using many accounts) on this forum currently involved in a holy crusade against anything third party.

Probably bitter Playstation players mad they can't use mods too.

[robin1112]

OP I used to feel this way too. I'm a fellow musician, I've been playin piano for over a decade and I also arrange and compose as well. I use Performance manually and play a lot of music by ear or memory, but I'm sometimes frustrated by how we can't play polyphony (more than 1 note at once), and how there's input latency, etc... like we are being handicapped because of the limited capability of Performance. And worst of all, I used to feel jealous of people who played perfect music through a automation.

But then, I felt foolish, as if I was being jealous of an automatic player piano, or feeling bitter towards a recording of a song playing on some speakers.... which is exactly what the automation bards is. How silly to feel upset over that? If i want to play a song in ff14, I dedicate hours and hours to learn and memorize it, and if I feel frustrated with it, then I turn off my game and sit on my real piano, and I play the real song to myself. The beauty of the real thing will be clear to your own self so it's no reason to be upset.

If you want to change the bard Performance scene, my wish is to ask Square Enix to let us play more than one note at a time. My live performance will be much much better! I will play songs as I learned them on piano, and it will be 100x more fun for me.

Also, sometimes i hear a bard perform a song i really love <3. and even though it may be an automation, i still love the song and i feel it's beautiful. Do you feel bitter towards a music box? We can enjoy the music and share it with others any way we can, that is why we learn our craft in the first place. <3 if you are on Crystal, and like to Perform manually, please let me know because I'd love to find more musicians to perform maybe a duet with someday.

[kiagenwa]

Probably bitter Playstation players mad they can't use mods too.

That hurts lol
I hope they add more in-game musics to the guide sheet...

It would give me more reasons to get music sheets XD

[TheMightyMollusk]

You're saying you can turn the damn thing off? I gotta find that option.

System Configuration > Sound Settings > Volume Settings > Performance. Just hit the mute button or scroll the volume slider to 0.

(Yes, I know, the post is over a month old, but someone else might appreciate it.)

[Artemiz]

Lets be honest, the only reason SE have even commented on this is because they don't want to pay the music industry 5 times more than the game makes in royalties to musicians and music publishers. They have to draw a line and say it's against the ToS otherwise a band like Metallica would sue them into bankruptcy the first time a streamer runs past someone playing one of their songs.

From my point of view, as someone with no musical talent whatsoever and someone who doesn't use this feature at all, I'm glad people can use 3rd party apps because the abominations of noise I hear when people don't use them is enough to insult my ears. It's bad enough when I go into town and some attention seeker wants to jump around all the crafters and market boards spamming AoE or some other nonsense. I really wouldn't want to listen to Timmy and the Two Notes banging out a cacophony of noise on top of that. I'm happier if he just downloads a program and plays a note perfect rendition of Nothing Else Matters instead.

I understand this prevents people with genuine musical talent from expressing it in game as everyone knows if someone is playing a song that even remotely sounds pleasant to listen to it's the app doing all the work, and the tiny minority who can actually use this feature to create anything other than ear cancer aren't getting the credit they hope for. It's a price I'm happy to pay while I do chores in town.

[Elemenz]

In a sudden ironic turn, it looks like someone stole op's thunder...

Y'all gon' make me lose my mind - Up in here, up in here
Y'all gon' make me go all out - Up in here, up in here
Y'all gon' make me act a fool - Up in here, up in here
Y'all gon' make me lose my cool - Up in here, up in here

If I gotsta bring it to you bards then it's gonna be quick, aight
All your songs up in the midi player, just one click
And all them other catgirls you run with, and dance with, dance quick
Why the frick you wanna practice playing when it's done in one click? Aight

[Ferra]

Why do you care if they're getting praise for using a macro or not? It's just a person playing music for folks. What, would you be upset if someone got a player commendation for eating dirt for an entire trial? (I did once...I'm going to assume they just liked my character)

This is such a non-issue. It's neat hearing various songs be brought into FF14 in MIDI form. Just enjoy it for what it is.