Trends in content types and faux difficulty

[Zantetsuken]

I look at Darklight gear as being hardcore content.

You have to draw a line somewhere between hardcore and casual content, or you'll end up pissing everyone off.

Make Darklight too easy to obtain = hardcores whining that there's nothing to do.
Make Artifact armor too difficult = casuals quitting because they can't make progress.

I think the game is set up fine as is. If Darklight was any easier to obtain, hardcores wouldn't be able to epeen with it. (personally, I think the heavy darklight body looks ridiculous btw)

I think things will settle down a bit after 2.0 is underway and we have more content being developed.

[TerahValeth]

It seems we have two differant situations at hand.

Situation1: Low drop rate but spamable dungeon.
Situation2: High drop rate but cooldown. <--- (should be more like moderate drop rate)

Most of us know Situation 2 was the system in FFXI. A great game that was successful for many many years.

When looking at situation 1 you can see right away that the ability to pick up the game and grab a party for Endgame at anytime you want is more focused for Casual players. Which is what SE wanted with FFXIV.

When looking at Situation 2 you see that it would have to be more of a planned scheduled event that has to take presence over RL if you want to atend the event. Not for the Casual players.

It's not that cut and dry, there are other factors to consider.

Situation 1:
Some casual players may get lucky and get a piece or 2 in short order. The large majority of players however will need hundreds of runs under their belt to obtain one. For hardcore players this causes them to get exhausted from over playing the dungeon, and for casual players it will cause loss of interest when it becomes apparent how many months it will likely take them to run the dungeon the hundreds of times it will likely take for them to get a drop. If the hardcore players are frustrated w/ having to run through these hundreds of times, how must the casual player who gets in 1/4 or less of the playtime feel?

Situation 2:
Cooldowns will encourage people to spread out what they do while in game which will help keep the content fresh. it won't hurt the casual players who only get on a few times a week because they really won't have to worry about the cooldowns, or those that can only play for a couple hours a day because when they do, they will always have something they can go do. Creating PUGs won't be any harder than it is now, you will lose the few hardcore players that aren't burnt out yet, and a few casuals that are on cool down for whatever you are shouting for, but you gain the casual players who would normally not respond in situation #1 because they already ran that dungeon a a few times this week, and they feel like doing something else now. Since the casual player can/will only be on for a limited amount of time each week, the increased chances at a drop will encourage them to join more parties while they are on, and they may find people that have the same schedule and build informal-statics. People in hardcore shells will be more likely to stick together too, but since they won't be as burnt out on the game, they'll be more likely to join PUGs for things their ls/group doesn't run on a regular schedule.

Situation 2 is better for both player-types, it helps create community, and it extends content without draining the fun from the game.

[Okipuit]

Hey everyone,

We understand that the topic of drop rates and needing to challenge specific content repeatedly is a major discussion within the community. Moving forward, our plan is to introduce a wide variety of content and means of obtaining rewards (drops, gear, items, etc.) rather than relying solely on the style of rewards from content like primal battles and instanced raids. As always, your feedback and comments will be invaluable on the march to 2.0 and beyond, so we want you all to keep sharing your thoughts with us.

[Sigmakan]

Thanks Okipuit. Im assuming this future content is slated for 2.0? When will we get a better idea of these reward mechanisms. I know a lot of us are really curious how 2.0 will reward us, and if its similar to how it is now I really cant see 2.0 succeeding. I think this sort of info would be really good to put out there (when the rest of the 2.0 info comes out).

[Ryuko]

I'm going to have to agree with the OP. In other MMO's, I would see someone with one of the 'best' pieces of gear and think, "Wow, they are either talented/dedicated for getting this item." Does anyone remember in FFXI when people would literally 'buy' gear off of talented linkshells that no longer needed them? They'd sit in the zone where the NM would pop and PAY the linkshell to invite them and 'pass' the item to them. Most dedicated players looked down on these people.

Today, it REALLY is about luck. Even people who spam these dungeons can't say much about what they've earned. I remember seeing a thread by someone whose LS ran CC several times a day, doing a speed run each time, for weeks... and they had next to NOTHING to show for it.

My first time doing Moogle, I was given a sword, something I would never use (I'm a mage at heart). The gladiator wanted it really bad, and had been trying for it for a LONG time, but I could not pass to him... =/

I wish the content was a bit more challenging or had a cooldown. I am all for helping linkshell members out. Making the weapons passable to other people is a step in the right direction. Of course, with the whole spammable BLM burn method, many people now have 7/7 Garuda weapons and seeing people with them isn't a rare sight. I don't get that "Oh wow, they must be a great player" feeling that I get when I see people with rare items in XI.

[Hiruke]

I agree with the OP. I think it's safe to say that if the terribad drop rate isn't fixed, at the very least, by 2.0, that folks will just quite en masse, and new players will give this MMO a miss. Which I think would be sad, since it could be really amazing.

Dev team, please realize that players are people, too. And that they are paying money to enjoy your game. If it's not fun (and, as OP states, terribad drop rate is not fun), then people just aren't going to play your game. Which means they won't pay money for your game. Which means no money, and no game. You're lucky there are so many of us who care so much, and believe so much, that we keep pleading with you on topics like this. It's in your best interest to make this game as awesome as it can be, not just ours. Let's work together toward that dream, please.

[BruceyBruceyBangBang]

Sol, I like you. You are my friend and I respect you, but I have to disagree with you on one thing. I think this post was written too close after Hamlet was released and you are or were under the impression that seals are a low drop rate. This is far from the case. Although the hamlets do get old after a while, you can go in with different types of set ups and achieve enough points for a gold chest. Which yields a viable seal drop rate.

However, this then goes to your main point that I find to be a good one. The fact that it's another spammable system. I am not a developer so I don't know how difficult or easy it is to create an innovative loot system, but is a spammable RNG loot system easier to develop than other options? I wonder if this is just taking the route that is easier to manage rather than being mindful about other factors. One major one that I can think of is allowing the content to last. Other games had large cool downs timers on their content and held higher drop rates that still looks to be the same progression to what we have in spam content. The difference is that in which you've pointed out that we get burnt out on these things pretty quickly.

This is something that really needs to change in the future. You can't keep people online and prolong player's interests with spammable content. Of course, we can think back to prior games we've played and remember getting sick of content that held those systems that had long cool down timers, but we still took part in them because the burn wasn't as severe. We can expand on that and suggest old content to be updated once in a while to keep it interesting. Change the objectives or have them randomized from the beginning. There is so much potential and this filler content for FFXIV pre 2.0 falls flat.

I cannot blame anyone for holding any amount of skepticism in FFXIV's future based on what is being developed in the present. What we can hope for, if there is any hope in you yet, is that this is only temporary and this is the way it is because it's the easy way to get this filler content out in a timely fashion.

[Gukie]

I would like them to add a content that Relates to 2.0 Plans-- Not spam able content that won't relate to 2.0

If they plan on doing something like this on 2.0 I'am out- so having stuff similar to 2.0 would be great.
I hope that they don't add stuff similar to these content by 2.0

although I do understand that they are working on 2.0.... I hope that this current game isnt the future of 2.0 like what you said

[Gukie]

Hey everyone,

We understand that the topic of drop rates and needing to challenge specific content repeatedly is a major discussion within the community. Moving forward, our plan is to introduce a wide variety of content and means of obtaining rewards (drops, gear, items, etc.) rather than relying solely on the style of rewards from content like primal battles and instanced raids. As always, your feedback and comments will be invaluable on the march to 2.0 and beyond, so we want you all to keep sharing your thoughts with us.

does that mean -------> It means they're going to add a lot of thigns to do so people don't feel they need to spam one dungeon until their eyes bleed?

[Fletch]

I rarely post in the forms but I do need to add to this one. I cannot stand these 15 minute wait periods after clearing an instance. The LS spends hours standing around doing nothing every night waiting for that stupid timer. It really makes you lose interest in the game. Where is the enjoyment/excitement in playing for 20 minutes then standing for 15....