"In from the Cold" Scenario, any way to skip it?

[Lihtleita]

This was easily one of my more favorited solo duities in the entire game, and the story surrounding it really made me feel immersed. I can see why some don't like it but I'm of the side that I want more of this content.

same
the desperation and panic especially towards the end of the sequence was really impactful, my favorite taking-control-of-another section by a large margin.
while i understand others frustration this is why we have easy and very easy options. but for myself i appreciate more challenging sections being optional in the msq.

[Bright-Flower]

same
the desperation and panic especially towards the end of the sequence was really impactful, my favorite taking-control-of-another section by a large margin.
while i understand others frustration this is why we have easy and very easy options. but for myself i appreciate more challenging sections being optional in the msq.

This was honestly one of few times I really felt like the 'play as someone else' thing had a real narrative purpose and wasn't just there for the sake of itself or padding.

The gameplay elements of having to be sneaky, picking your fights, being so weak etc fit the story very well in ways that a mere cutscene alone couldn't convey as effectively. As opposed to 'we're going to make you control Alisae for a fight that could have just been a cutscene' etc.

[Dogempire]

This was honestly one of few times I really felt like the 'play as someone else' thing had a real narrative purpose and wasn't just there for the sake of itself or padding.

The gameplay elements of having to be sneaky, picking your fights, being so weak etc fit the story very well in ways that a mere cutscene alone couldn't convey as effectively. As opposed to 'we're going to make you control Alisae for a fight that could have just been a cutscene' etc.

Honestly I agree with you there, I like how they made a quest that's meant to make us feel helpless and question if it's just our abilities and innate talents that carry us, and putting us in a body that doesn't have any of the gifts that we the player character do have access to was pretty brilliant, though for me I mostly enjoyed it because it made me remember my Heaven on High solo runs and just how utterly scary those upper floors were since everything there can easily kill you if you don't pay attention and pick your fights

That being said, I really wish they could have done it without the random barriers or quest objectives, if they simply did the quest in a more defined area marked with actual visible borders then it would have saved a lot of people the frustration of "What does the game want me to do exactly?" and kicking them out of the moment when they should be focused on survival, not the invisible objectives that Square Enix set for us to pass the battle quest

[CCheshire]

I logged in after years to say I hate this quest and I hope it will be changed in the future.

[SoulEchelon]

Sorry but I absolutely loved this quest. It was frustratingly amazing. That's what I'd call it. Tough, scary, and for the first time in the whole game you feel truly powerless and weak. I personally even lost the first fight because I didn't grasp the fact that I wasn't an unstoppable force anymore. Didn't use the defense buff because I thought I wouldn't need it. Didn't use the attack buff at the right time either. It ended with us both dying at the same time, which I feel is the perfect example of what they were trying to portray: WoL is a powerhouse of biblical proportions, while any other normal soldier is most certainly not. And having to run around and scavenge made it feel all the more perilous. Then the area after that part was a cherry on top. Absolutely frustratingly amazing, and I'd love to see more of these moments of self-realization and reflection.

If you're having too much trouble, Very Easy is for you. That's what they put it there for. That said, I don't know how easier it is in that setting since I kept it on Normal, but I imagine it'd be...well, alot easier.

[ICountFrom0]

I had to try over and over, even with the practice I had at stealth from the other quests, even with the practice I had playing underpowered characters to pass through quests elsewhere in this expansion.

There was a LOT of practice we were given to do, and it was still almost not enough to see me through this.

Almost.

And then I failed the active time event... I won't say how often.

I felt it, the power less ness, the hope less ness.... the brok en stil ted shat ter ing ....

It cast you low, so that you could feel awesome latter.

Every hero's journy has that step.

[KageTokage]

Honestly, all the quest really needs is markers to show you where to go next.

Thematically, it really demonstrated that for everything we are, it's our undying willpower/determination that forms the core of what makes us strong, though at the same time it really engendered a feeling of helplessness when you're not able to save the Garleans from being killed at the end.

[Schwarzwind]

This was the most frustrating duty FF14 ever offered to me. Yet I enjoyed it immensely. Why? It was meant to trigger the player, to let the player feel the desperation of the moment, the helplessness, weakness of an average person. The duty succeeded in that. The only thing they could have done better were to give us information on to what to look out for. Even though I suspected that the Magitek machine was the key to winning the duty.

Also the duty fitted what Zenos asked us right before. What makes true strength? The body? Or the soul?

[SoulEchelon]

This was the most frustrating duty FF14 ever offered to me. Yet I enjoyed it immensely. Why? It was meant to trigger the player, to let the player feel the desperation of the moment, the helplessness, weakness of an average person. The duty succeeded in that. The only thing they could have done better were to give us information on to what to look out for. Even though I suspected that the Magitek machine was the key to winning the duty.

Also the duty fitted what Zenos asked us right before. What makes true strength? The body? Or the soul?

Exactly. This is why I welcomed that frustration and the need to think on my feet. Scavenge, run, hide, and be fearful of every potential battle. Things the WoL never really needs to do. It just made you returning to your former self all the more sweeter and gives you a perspective you didn't have until now.

It reminds me of what Quintus says when his soldiers are about to try and put a shock collar on the WoL; basically stating it won't affect him/her at all. Just that moment alone tells you just how strong the WoL is even compared to the other Scions. I feel as if this was a subtle hint of what was to come.

[Schwarzwind]

Exactly. This is why I welcomed that frustration and the need to think on my feet. Scavenge, run, hide, and be fearful of every potential battle. Things the WoL never really needs to do. It just made you returning to your former self all the more sweeter and gives you a perspective you didn't have until now.

It reminds me of what Quintus says when his soldiers are about to try and put a shock collar on the WoL; basically stating it won't affect him/her at all. Just that moment alone tells you just how strong the WoL is even compared to the other Scions. I feel as if this was a subtle hint of what was to come.

I agree with that! The duty gave the WoL the perspective of a normal person and sort of kicks him from his untouchableness, which was really in order after we became that great hero battling one god after another without breaking a sweat.

The duty showed that even the weakest can do great things and be truly strong. Which counters Emet-Selchs point that only the Ancients are worthy of life. The WoL proved, weak and helpless, that his undying will to live and protect what is precious to him overcomes every obstacle in his way. Even when the WoL is at his lowest he never gives up. Just like so many other normal people fighting for what they love and live for. This was also a good foreshadowing of what is to come in Ultima Thule.