FFXIV forced me to be better

[ddwarbird]

With all this negativity floating around the forums, I thought I'd share something a little wholesome with the community.

So I live in the UK, I have Asperger's Syndrome, Dyspraxia, Genralized Anxiety Disorder and Bi-Polar Depression.

When I first started playing this game was shortly after FFXIV ARR launched, my best friend was into it at the time and kept telling me to try it out. I had played FFVII up to FFX (FFIX is my absolutely favourite)

So I got an account and logged into play a Summoner originally before I fell in love with the White Mage class. However I almost quit as I saw how PUNISHINGLY hard this game was compared to what I had come from in the past (WoW, was never a raider etc). I found even the solo content ridiculously difficult for me and got very mad at my friend for introducing me to such a crushingly hard game.

I would be envious of people who could dodge AOE's so easily as I was constantly dying and my tank would die because I was too busy dodging stuff to heal him. Ifrit normal was so difficult for me at the start.

I really wanted to quit at that time as I felt the game was too difficult and I felt ashamed that other people could master this so easily and breeze through things while I'd get confused with what buttons to press on the keyboard.

My friend put up with my endless complained about how this game was terrible when actually it was me that was bad and my failure to admit my failings.

However, this community has been amazing, most of my dungeon parties have been so accepting of my failings and death after death they would be like "No worries, will get him this time".

The last boss of the Burn was so hard for me, I had never really gotten into the habit of DPS'ing in a fight because in WoW, I never had to do that. FFXIV forced me to weave my spells and as I got more familiar with the game, my knowledge grew.

I remember when I did Innocence and saved the entire raid when only the tank and me was left by using Limit Break 3, I came off that fight shaking and so proud of myself for sticking with this game.

Just cleared the first dungeon today and when I look at myself today, from when I started with FFXIV, I can see a massive improvement in my movement, coordination and spell weaving, I was dodging skillshots on the last boss and wasn't hit once, that never would have happened all those years ago.

So the point of this story is, I really want to thank such an amazing community and the dev team for forcing me to get better at this game, showing me that I could rise to the challenge and although I'll never be extreme raid tier good at this game, I feel like I make a difference and matter in a way no game has made me feel before.

So thank you.

[Rookie1]

good media is the one that affects you some how. be it for weal or for woe. the worst thing would be to say goto a movie and walk out indifferent. feeling like all you did was pass some time without having an impression

[ddwarbird]

Yeah, this game was a real struggle to begin with but I'm glad I stuck with it. I missed the original launch of Stormblood but I levelled my Astrologian through Stormblood first before doing Shadowbringers and it really feels like quite an adventure. That's what's so good about this game, the music, the story and the stories you make like having close calls with stuff with hard bosses really makes it worth it.

[GunslingerB]

I really like your story, it proves that a positive community can have a better effect than a negative one. There are so many games where I have quit because I don't want to be yelled at or deal with toxicity after I do it already at my job. A good positive environment helps people flourish. 95% of the time I deal with very friendly people who are patient and understanding. I'm not the best player in this game far from it. I have the nickname "dungeon carpet" for a reason. Yet with the kind words and encouragement I actually want to improve, and do better. Mainly because I begin to care about the people I am playing with, and show them the merit of their words. Positive behavior is rewarded, while negative ones just makes everyone miserable. It's like peeing in a clean pool.

[ddwarbird]

Yeah, I have a friend who also plays the game that is autistic (like me) and has other difficulties and he swears by this game and its community. This community is absolutely fantastic at making people with disabilities feel valued and welcome, I honestly have never met a more accepting and mature community. I just wanted to share my story with people so that it would give them a little wholesomeness to fill their day and remind them that they are not alone in this Endwalker Launch issue and we'll get it fixed eventually.

[ddwarbird]

Also I forgot to mention, Final Fantasy IX literally saved my life, when I was a kid, I was like Vivi as a kid, gullible and naïve and was bullied at school a lot. I was considering ending it all and then played FFIX and the part where Zidane gets up after finding out what he is and "You're Not Alone" starts playing and all his friends come to fight by his side made me come forward to my friends at school about how I feeling and the abuse I got at home from my grandparents (I lived with them at the time as my mother had sent me there and they did horrible stuff to me that I won't go into).

So yes, Final Fantasy saved my life.