I don't know what can honestly be done for Final Fantasy XIV at this point.

[ZephyrMenodora]

Nothing is gained by turning this into a "my MMO is better than yours" pissing match, friend. Final Fantasy XIV is up there, alongside WoW, and I'd argue Guild Wars 2 and also possibly The Elder Scrolls Online as relatively popular and active MMORPGs. Oh, and Black Desert as well. Lord of the Rings Online is doing rather well for itself from what I've heard. No MMO is going to be for everybody, but comments like these only lead to scenarios where we all lose so maybe let's not do that?

I don't see where I did that. I honestly don't care what MMOs people play - play what's fun for you! I play actually unpopular games that I personally enjoy and don't care who else likes it or not.

But so many posts here act like the game is dead/hopeless/unpopular - I'm surprised these posters didn't turn into dynamis despair blobs by now.

[Theodric]

People act like this game isn't currently at the top of the heap for MMOs lol.

It's not. Vocal fans insist that it is and the marketing team keep referring to it as 'critically acclaimed' but it's sitting alongside WoW, ESO and GW2 which are enjoying similar amounts of success. As it stands, a significant portion of this game's community aren't playing the game - they're heavily altering the game files and using it for ERP. It'd be interesting to see what the number of active players would be if mods were to banned altogether!

They seem to only want to play this game and are upset because it's not holding them anymore. Imagine that, being so foolish as to think you can only play one MMO, one videogame your entire life.

It's been pointed out many, many times that the people raising concerns do play other games and do take breaks. They're not expecting FFXIV to keep them entertained 24/7 - they simply want more content to be added to their tastes that has some staying power.

[TowaIsBestGirl]

I don't see where I did that. I honestly don't care what MMOs people play - play what's fun for you! I play actually unpopular games that I personally enjoy and don't care who else likes it or not.

But so many posts here act like the game is dead/hopeless/unpopular - I'm surprised these posters didn't turn into dynamis despair blobs by now.

I see your point, but I personally disagree based on how I typically conduct myself. If a poster isn't being outright antagonistic, I'm usually not overly concerned about their tone. I assume all claims made therein are opinion-based to stem conflict, and ignore any I don't see any advantage in combatting. I imagine the general atmosphere around here may well improve if we all put a little effort into avoiding outright what we cannot influence.

They seem to only want to play this game and are upset because it's not holding them anymore. Imagine that, being so foolish as to think you can only play one MMO, one videogame your entire life.

Once more, I feel inclined to point out that remarks like these don't exactly diffuse the supposed tense atmosphere of these forums. I see many seeking an improvement of attitudes, but how can one expect such when words such as "foolish" (a term with an explicitly negative context) and men of straw are being tossed in the direction of other users like live grenades?

[ZephyrMenodora]

It's not. Vocal fans insist that it is and the marketing team keep referring to it as 'critically acclaimed' but it's sitting alongside WoW, ESO and GW2 which are enjoying similar amounts of success.



It's been pointed out many, many times that the people raising concerns do play other games and do take breaks. They're not expecting FFXIV to keep them entertained 24/7 - they simply want more content to be added to their tastes that has some staying power.

I play ESO and it is not at the same level of FFXIV's success. Financially it makes a middling amount of money, even when they bundle cash-shop only cosmetics into $80 USD Loot Crate bundles as the only way to get them, and mounts that can cost $300-$500 USD to get out of said loot boxes.

Moreover, reaction to the story and expansions is usally...well, not much hype. It's fine to good to many people, but that's the general sentiment these days.

[ForteNightshade]

People like you should simply be told "suck it up" by the devs. They NEED to play to the strength of effortlessly swapping between jobs and ignore people like you. You want to only play WHM? Okay you can only play 25% of the content, want the other 75%? Play the other 3 healers too. You dont want that? Thats on you.

This is almost a guaranteed way of driving players away from both content and the game as a whole. People don't like feeling forced to do something, especially if it isn't what they enjoy. Players who enjoy Dancer but loathe Bard aren't suddenly going to "suck it up" because Bard happens to be better in say, P11 but worse in P12. They'll either stick with Bard or not bother with the tier on the whole because they no longer can play the job they like consistently without constantly being asked to switch or locked out of parties entirely. Go ask any veteran player of White Mage, Monk or Samurai how much they liked being asked to play Astro, Dragoon or Ninja during the heydays of Stormblood.

Putting aside player enjoyment, the loot system doesn't actually allow for job swapping to this extent either. You aren't going to play Ninja over Dragoon if the former has crafted i610 while the other is BiS. And yet, you can't gear both in a timely matter where it would ever be a factor. Getting the weapon and body alone takes weeks, and that's if you're in a static. PF? Good luck. They'd have to completely overhaul both the loot system and gear progression, which we all know SE is loathe to even consider.

[RyuDragnier]

Once more, I feel inclined to point out that remarks like these don't exactly diffuse the supposed tense atmosphere of these forums. I see many seeking an improvement of attitudes, but how can one expect such when words such as "foolish" (a term with an explicitly negative context) and men of straw are being tossed in the direction of other users like live grenades?

Because any reasonable person would just take a break and not continually sub to a game that they just don't feel holds their interest anymore. I understand wanting them to make changes, but still subbing to a game you don't like playing because "I want them to make changes" is not only ridiculous because money talks more than anything in this day and age, but also because it means you're spending money that could be spent on something else that gives you enjoyment. Do you still have a subscription to magazines or streaming services you don't use or like anymore?

[ZephyrMenodora]

Because any reasonable person would just take a break and not continually sub to a game that they just don't feel holds their interest anymore. I understand wanting them to make changes, but still subbing to a game you don't like playing because "I want them to make changes" is not only ridiculous because money talks more than anything in this day and age, but also because it means you're spending money that could be spent on something else that gives you enjoyment. Do you still have a subscription to magazines or streaming services you don't use or like anymore?

I think for some on this sub, based on my observations - being upset and complaining is worth the monthly sub fee for them. Some spend an inordinate amount of their precious lifespan on finding new ways to be upset here.

[RyuDragnier]

I think for some on this sub, based on my observations - being upset and complaining is worth the monthly sub fee for them. Some spend an inordinate amount of their precious lifespan on finding new ways to be upset here.

It's not mentally healthy for them to be doing that, and just makes them look like they need a therapist. They need to find something to do that they enjoy doing instead of living in their negativity all the time.

[Absimiliard]

People act like this game isn't currently at the top of the heap for MMOs lol.

World of Warcraft took back its crown (and most of its players) a while ago, my dude.

[ZephyrMenodora]

World of Warcraft took back its crown (and most of its players) a while ago, my dude.

Source? Recent articles on MassivelyOP about Blizzard's financials are that it's player counts are rapidly falling from it's recent peak.

Either way, even if XIV is #2, it's still generally at the top of the pile.

https://massivelyop.com/2023/04/26/a...zzard-q1-2023/

I am not convinced that Massively OP can be trusted as a valid source, they are a known malefactor of World of Warcraft. Besides, Dragonflight didn't truly need to become a smash hit to keep pace it just needed to hold people's attention which so far it has. Even if Blizzard is far from it's glory days, and it has been for a while, with Square refusing to release the concurrent subscription statistics for Final Fantasy XIV as Blizzard has in the past we'll never be able to accurately make the supposition that Final Fantasy XIV has surpassed it in playercount.

MassivelyOP provided images of Blizzard's official financials that are showing the number drop. They do seem to generally dislike Blizzard, there is a hefty drop in their monthly active users.

Did you not just say that you weren't being denigrative towards others? Why the sudden change? What evidence do you proffer that this is what people are doing, and if you have none to offer why make a baseless and inflammatory insinuation to begin with? I wonder if maybe I ought to just stop making the attempt at reconciliation like another poster suggested, the nice approach isn't really getting me anywhere.

1. I didn't name and shame anyone in particular. I'm sure if my comment applies tot hem that is for them to decide. My "evidence" is people who have hundreds or even thousands of posts without a single nice thing to say about the game. You only have 50 posts and recently joined the forums, but you'll probably see trends among posters over time and can draw your own conclusions. So unlike some posts about me where people just say random things to lots of upvotes simply because I enjoy FFXIV, here you can actually see documented trends on some poster habits. Also telling that it only took a few weeks that you are considering not being nice to others - I guess it just goes with the territory.