The Image of FFXIV

[DPZ2]

As has been pointed out over the numerous past occasions where the 'tHiS iS nOt GaMe Of ThRoNeS' line has been spouted, many of us aren't asking for mass death for the sake of mass death and are instead asking for death to occur where and when it makes sense. Cladding the bulk of the cast in extensive plot armour simply sends things in the opposite direction.

I would humbly suggest bookmarking this post if you're able to. It might help refresh your memory next time this same point is raised.

I saw no reason in this expansion for the deaths of Scions to take place. We didn't start seeing the primary cause for "doom, disaster and despair" until half-way through the expansion. The good guys were helping out the rest of the world but were never in any great life-threatening situation worse than the ones they handled in previous expansions.

You may choose to call it plot armour. I choose to call it experience.

[Theodric]

I saw no reason in this expansion for the deaths of Scions to take place. We didn't start seeing the primary cause for "doom, disaster and despair" until half-way through the expansion. The good guys were helping out the rest of the world but were never in any great life-threatening situation worse than the ones they handled in previous expansions.

You may choose to call it plot armour. I choose to call it experience.

Each to their own, self proclaimed heroes who are handed every possible plot device in order to succeed without barely breaking a sweat does not make them either relatable, interesting or inspirational to me. I also rather suspect quite a few people like the characters in question so much that their enthusiasts will say anything to justify their continued presence and the lack of meaningful, permanent harm being inflicted upon them.

It's pretty easy to have the characters preach about overcoming suffering and despair when they - and their fans - are sheltered from it on almost every front.

[Zanarkand-Ronso]

I saw no reason in this expansion for the deaths of Scions to take place. We didn't start seeing the primary cause for "doom, disaster and despair" until half-way through the expansion. The good guys were helping out the rest of the world but were never in any great life-threatening situation worse than the ones they handled in previous expansions.

You may choose to call it plot armour. I choose to call it experience.

To be fair, the Promotional Trailer had a Deathflag at the end with Alphi giving a speech to his Friends
If there was any time to think a Scion WOULD have died, it was then. There was no hint or idea that anyone WOULD die, except for Alphi at the end of the final Trailer.

I wont advocate for his death or say he should have died, but that did give the idea he would possibly die.

[AwesomeJr44]

The good guys were helping out the rest of the world but were never in any great life-threatening situation worse than the ones they handled in previous expansions.

This is the problem. These are supposed to be THE final days. THE apocalypse that brought the incredibly powerful and intelligent Ancients to their knees. Meanwhile, the Scions shrug it off like its no big deal. The final days SHOULD be a more threatening situation than anything we've faced before. But that itself is the issue, it's not. The very end of the world that was built up to be this unthinkable disaster is nothing worse than anything we've faced before. It's just another little problem for the scions to forge ahead through. The second coming of the final days was a joke.

'tHiS iS nOt GaMe Of ThRoNeS'

True, but if it was, Endwalker would be season 8 lol

[Lauront]

As has been pointed out over the numerous past occasions where the 'tHiS iS nOt GaMe Of ThRoNeS' line has been spouted, many of us aren't asking for mass death for the sake of mass death and are instead asking for death to occur where and when it makes sense. Cladding the bulk of the cast in extensive plot armour simply sends things in the opposite direction.

I would humbly suggest bookmarking this post if you're able to. It might help refresh your memory next time this same point is raised.

Dark Souls difficulty and GOT level of deaths in the story. This community's two most beloved strawmen.

[Valkyrie_Lenneth]

Dark Souls difficulty and GOT level of deaths in the story. This community's two most beloved strawmen.

I suck at action games and I've beaten every souls game except bloodborne.

Souls games aren't hard.

[Deveryn]

Dark Souls difficulty and GOT level of deaths in the story. This community's two most beloved strawmen.

Should people be making more obscure references?

[Jojoya]

Bro, they spent nearly an entire video on creating a character. It's clear that the western division thinks it's playerbase isn't that bright and these videos really do showcase it, lol. If this keeps up I really will be forging ahead, to single player games while doubling down on my feeling that modern online games really were a mistake, lol.

I don't think the point of that was to teach how to create a character. The point was to demonstrate all the options available in character creation.

I don't know what it's like over in WoW now but when I was playing, character creation was pick race, pick face, pick skin tone, pick hair, pick hair color and that's it. Going through every option there would take about 5 minutes Going through every option here is about 20. Huge difference and one that's a way to sell a game to players who value character customization.

He is not the only one that has had their confidence shaken in FFXIV and is considering single player alternatives. The standards I have for this game in terms of story, tone, and aesthetics were not adequately reached in Endwalker, which was very different compared to the reception of Shadowbringers. To that end I am looking forward to Diofield Chronicle, whose demo just released today. FFXIV is now in a position where it now has to compete with other games that are higher in my list of priorities, when there was a time when it took the top spot in terms of video games I play.

In all seriousness, if you're considering single player games go for it. You can always come back to play this game or other MMOs if you get back in the mood for a MMO experience.

A MMO will never offer the same experience you'll get from a single player game. The main attractions to a MMO are the ongoing content additions (single player games might get a couple before the game developer is working on a completely new game) and the social opportunities.

Compare that to single player games where branching story paths are possible because they don't need to keep your experience compatible with other players who choose different paths. Single player RPGs also tend to offer far more exploration opportunities because the player isn't under pressure to keep up with other players. They can do whatever they want and no one is going to care. With the entire game being installed client side, developers have more freedom because they don't have to worry about server communications causing latency problems.

Single player games also have no problem creating story situations that will legitimately kill your character. In a MMO, your character will always have plot armor.

[Amenara]

Well I skipped most of the thread when it became a back and forth, but I felt like the videos were a little cringe but they weren't made for me. That being said when I got to the end my final impression was the whole thing was a long-winded advertisement for recruit a friend.

[aveyond-dreams]

The comparisons invoked of Dark Souls or Game of Thrones (the latter of which I wouldn't even consider extreme in terms of how it handles consequences and loss) in arguments against positive changes to both story and gameplay aren't helpful. Both stand to improve.

Fundamentally I want a video game with a captivating fantasy story. I do not want a main campaign that provides little to no substantial challenges or a story that errs on the side of safety or "feels" with an unchanging cast.