What's the point with that quite lackluster story in Endwalker?

[Teraq]

If only Hermes had done the sensible thing and deleted his Twitter to go out and touch some grass and actually speak to people

Speaking of dialogue choices, it reminded me of an anecdote with friends (who share my opinion of Endwalker): when given the choice, did you call her "Venat" or "Hydaelyn"? Two of us went with "Venat" because we wanted to bring her down to her human self who deleted her entire humanity and refused to use her "goddess" name, but the other went with "Hydaelyn" precisely because he refused to humanize her.

[Theodric]

They really can't keep their story straight, can they? The Ancient world wasn't 'closed off'. There's even a whole scene that dismantles Venat's manipulative attempt to portray herself as uniquely well travelled and 'free of prejudice' by having Hythlodaeus outline that Emet-Selch works tirelessly to serve his people and is well travelled himself, helping those in need without ever expecting or demanding gratitude or profit in exchange.

[PawPaw]

They really can't keep their story straight, can they? The Ancient world wasn't 'closed off'. There's even a whole scene that dismantles Venat's manipulative attempt to portray herself as uniquely well travelled and 'free of prejudice' by having Hythlodaeus outline that Emet-Selch works tirelessly to serve his people and is well travelled himself, helping those in need without ever expecting or demanding gratitude or profit in exchange.

Shhh, you're doing that thing they didn't want you to do and actually paying attention and looking too much at the story. This writing team can't remember what they wrote two scenes previously, so you're supposed to just wave away the constant contradictions and nod and smile.

[Lauront]

Shhh, you're doing that thing they didn't want you to do and actually paying attention and looking too much at the story. This writing team can't remember what they wrote two scenes previously, so you're supposed to just wave away the constant contradictions and nod and smile.

At least they're forced to admit that part of why Hermes went researching other worlds with a positive outcome in mind is because the ancient world itself was a paradise and that shaped his outlook of what to expect. So much for the "um it's a dystopia ackshually, sweetie" copium I keep seeing people try to force as an interpretation of their world. Although they also make it clear that they're not naively so, since Emet-Selch himself sees the issues with Meteion as a construct, and a lot of their social traditions appear to be born out of a desire to avoid a repeat of a darker past... almost all of the writers' answers seem to be bending over backwards and arm-twisting existing lore to vindicate Venat and, to a lesser degree, Hermes. It has made me lose some respect for them.

[anhaato]

They really can't keep their story straight, can they? The Ancient world wasn't 'closed off'. There's even a whole scene that dismantles Venat's manipulative attempt to portray herself as uniquely well travelled and 'free of prejudice' by having Hythlodaeus outline that Emet-Selch works tirelessly to serve his people and is well travelled himself, helping those in need without ever expecting or demanding gratitude or profit in exchange.

I think they're speaking of the entire world, not just Amaurot. The planet of Etheirys had no knowledge of other planets so they were "closed off" in that sense. But that's a weird thing to shame them for.

[Lauront]

I think they're speaking of the entire world, not just Amaurot. The planet of Etheirys had no knowledge of other planets so they were "closed off" in that sense. But that's a weird thing to shame them for.

Indeed - the sundered world too would be closed off, but for some dragons and their pursuer ending up stranded on it. Amon sought to relieve his own existential angst through interstellar travel but mankind as a whole is content with the star.

[Rulakir]

Even people who didnt notice the venat stuff were also a bit taken aback by the familiar stuff I've noticed

The familiar thing seemed unnecessarily cruel and I don't recall seeing anything similar in "scary" Elpis. Y'shtola sends these cute creatures as guinea pigs into the void, one of which comes back twitching and writhing on the floor which she proclaims is beyond salvation. I'm just baffled at the disconnect.

But that's the lesson of the day, folks. Seeking contentment and happiness in your post-scarcity world is just silly and weak and you don't deserve it. Suffering is the only thing that makes you strong and human.

I feel like the goal was to provide a coping mechanism after the pandemic when instead I wanted escapism. I don't need a self-help course in a video game about how suffering is a part of life and I should find the value in it. Spare me. The whole reason I love the fantasy genre is because it's not real life, because for the most part I can be someone else somewhere else for a little while. "Let me relieve you of your burdens. You've suffered enough." :P

Speaking of dialogue choices, it reminded me of an anecdote with friends (who share my opinion of Endwalker): when given the choice, did you call her "Venat" or "Hydaelyn"? Two of us went with "Venat" because we wanted to bring her down to her human self who deleted her entire humanity and refused to use her "goddess" name, but the other went with "Hydaelyn" precisely because he refused to humanize her.

I chose Venat because 1) I wasn't about to thank Hydaelyn and 2) in my mind I was seeing straight through her. None of this "supreme deity" nonsense, she's just a woman. Imagine my reaction when that turned out to be the emotional response. -_- There's no winning. Just like I chose "..." options for Minfilia wherever I could for all the good it did.

[Teraq]

There's no winning.

Final Fantasy Fourteen Online: Endwalker: Ancient POV

[weebtext]

At this point the only thing I want from the whole shard-hopping plotline is for the WoL to just say "fuck it" and just piss off to some other shard where everything is fine and nothing needs saving. No Scions, no city-states, no abusive mommy dearest callbacks, nothing. Just sweet vacay.

[KizuyaKatogami]

These forums will make you want to hate anything about this game that you once thought was ok.
Aside from the bunny filler arc and the Scions doing their weird things on ultima thule, I thought it was a decent/acceptable ending.
No sense STILL being upset about it 4 months after release.

We all paid for the story. Many of us don’t see it as a story that was worth what we spent. This is a story people were invested 10 years into. The disappointment isn’t going to just go away in 4 months.