Why this Live Letter Matters

[Avoidy]

I think I'm just surprised as this poster has stated that they haven't enjoyed the game since Shadowbringers. My dude, that was a year and a half ago...

I think closing one's ears to all criticism is equally unhelpful, but there are ways to discuss this without risking drowning out your own voice.

Yeah again, not trying to speak for him or anything, idk why he still plays or if he still does even. Personally I'm not thrilled with the current state of things either, but I stay because I enjoy logging in and running 24mans (sb and shb) every so often, I like taking pictures, I enjoy building glams, certain player-driven content keeps me occupied, and I high-key don't want to lose my house. Note that none of those things are related to EW at all, lmao. Like... it could be better, but I've found other reasons to play. Maybe op has, too. idk.

[ZephyrMenodora]

Yeah again, not trying to speak for him or anything, idk why he still plays or if he still does even. Personally I'm not thrilled with the current state of things either, but I stay because I enjoy logging in and running 24mans (sb and shb) every so often, I like taking pictures, I enjoy building glams, certain player-driven content keeps me occupied, and I high-key don't want to lose my house. Note that none of those things are related to EW at all, lmao. Like... it could be better, but I've found other reasons to play. Maybe op has, too. idk.

I'm glad you are still getting *something* out of the game, but I can see if those are the only activities it not being the most interesting game and could desire a lot of improvement to keep your interest. While those things are nice, they do only go so far.

Since I took long breaks, I still have plenty to do. But give me another year when I have everything levelled and nothing to do - I'll be joining you in the chorus haha.

[RyuDragnier]

Like... it could be better, but I've found other reasons to play. Maybe op has, too. idk.

I would like to believe so, but considering he only came back for the free login week (there was a long posting lull from him before that), I don't think he has.

[Avoidy]

I would like to believe so, but considering he only came back for the free login week (there was a long posting lull from him before that), I don't think he has.

If that history is accurate, then it seems weird for others to tell him to quit the game if he hates it, since it sounds like he does just that. That pattern sounds like someone who enjoyed the game at one point, probably a long time ago, and returns to it every so often in hopes that it's restored to its "former glory." He probably vibed with Emet, who sought a return to better times in the past and had trouble relating to people who thought the present was acceptable, haha. As someone who returns to maplestory every couple of years or so in hopes of recapturing lost nostalgia, I get it. Wish I couldn't relate though, because maplestory sucks.

[ZephyrMenodora]

If that history is accurate, then it seems weird for others to tell him to quit the game if he hates it, since it sounds like he does just that. That pattern sounds like someone who enjoyed the game at one point, probably a long time ago, and returns to it every so often in hopes that it's restored to its "former glory." He probably vibed with Emet, who sought a return to better times in the past and had trouble relating to people who thought the present was acceptable, haha. As someone who returns to maplestory every couple of years or so in hopes of recapturing lost nostalgia, I get it. Wish I couldn't relate though, because maplestory sucks.

As far as the post history allows us to see, he took 1 1.5 month break from February through April. Before then, regular posting back until September 2022, after which the history ends.

[Kes13a]

As far as the post history allows us to see, he took 1 1.5 month break from February through April. Before then, regular posting back until September 2022, after which the history ends.

if memory serves me correctly, they said they renewed their sub to check a patch.. or so they could renew their complaints, take your pick. basically money thrown away since they complain about how SE does advertising, probably would on what they wear to the office if that was available... the stream is truly endless. if I hated a game that much, I would not continue to throw money at them expecting it to change to my liking, that horse has already left the barn

[Aelin_Ashryver]

I hope they make savage dungeons rewards better, let me get savage gear from it please. The new deep dungeon would be nice if they added some more things to it as well that we can grind for ^^
I am happy with the relic as is, I don't want to grind my ass off for a weapon that is not even BiS until it is no longer relevant since the next expac is around the corner to make it redundant.
Further expansion of the island sanctuary to make it more like the farming sims it is imitating would also be nice.

I would say I hope for more content in future patches for next expansion once they are done with FFXVI but I expect they will still be working on DLC for a while and then probably idk.. the next mainline title already?

[Ivtrix]

Posting in a Aveyond thread

[Renathras]

The problem is that island sanctuaries, which could have been quite some extensive content, simply wasnt that, its extremely dull and repetetive, and features barely anything to do. Even for those who like gathering, the rewards arent even nearly worth it (effort to value conversion rate is absolutely horrible). If they involved content that required for example combat, and other special events, it could have worked. But it simply wasnt that.

Honestly, it's not even that: It's that it didn't involve gathering or crafting at all, almost. You had the SIDE version of gathering and crafting (completely disconnected with your regular DoH/L classes), AND you can't even craft or gather THE GOOD STUFF. You have to send the Granary expedition out to get the good rare items you can actually sell for the better of the Coweries (the ones that all the items people want have to be bought with), and you can't craft handicrafts to sell even if you want to spend hours doing it - neither as a DoH NOR with the "press one button and wait 2-3 seconds as your character pounds on the sand - literally" crafting. No, you get to be a middle manager of a sweatshop organization and WAIT for your minions to do the work for you over a 24 hour period.

Not only does it not involve combat, it doesn't even involve crafting and barely involves gathering after you've built things. Up until that point, I actually DID enjoy it. But when it became "Office Space: The Game, without the humor or stapler", I was like "Wait, this is what this is?" I generally don't play games to be Thomas Anderson at the beginning of the Matrix working a desk job at a cubicle in some kind of business world middle-management hell. At least the island hub has better views than a corner office, but you can't even log out there, you have to go stay in your hotel room if you want a bed!

I get they didn't want people to grind and burnout, but whose video game fantasy is being a middle manager??

.

Yes, I'm a bit jaded over that.

ANYway, that aside, this:

The thing is if they dont respond to anything then their metrics indicate that the problem isn't as big as people make it out to be. They have the tools to track player engagement/retention and if they are seeing decline in aspects they would of looked to the forums or discord or reddit with their teams that are purely there to gather feedback or research the market for what others are doing in the genre. I just can't imagine this Live Letter really doing much to what Aveyond wants and I don't think at the same time they should. Peoples likes or dislikes have shown to be wildly on either side of the fence. It is pretty much the same 3-4 negative posts fighting the same 3-4 positive posters and just butting heads with the odd user here and there.

7.0 matters....6.4/6.5 do not...their content and roadmap was done well over a year ago...whatever is here is set in stone. No wild last minute changes would be happening here is my best bet.

And this:

Aveyond, I really doubt a single LL is going to satisfy what youre looking for at this point.

All the information we already know thats coming in 6.4 from pre-LL interviews and the roadmap they shared a while back isnt going to be the grand overhaul that youd expect within a single patch.

Im gonna be realistic with my expectations and just expect the usual stuff with perhaps maybe some improvements in variant/criterion rewards.

Just like how anyone should take their expectations with anything in life rather than trying to find hype in things.

Are likely correct.

Fanfest is what you're looking for. Even the "acknowledging some people are upset" happens in Yoshi P interviews, not Liveletters.

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Oh, but I don't know what you've been smoking, these 24 mans are fun and most people seemed to enjoy them. A lot of people DIDN'T like NeiR (I started out liking them, but by the end, I kind of didn't like them) since the story had literally NOTHING to do with FFXIV and they didn't even try to give it a tie. It was a NeiR infomercial, not a raid. And so far, I've enjoyed all the raid fights of EW 24 mans. They're just fun to run in and do and that's the point.

I didn't HATE NieR, I hated how it was put into the game. The fights were generally interesting and the first and last raid I liked the environments of (the second was kinda meh), but the story made no sense, had no connection to anything, and I still don't see the point of it. The NieR raids are my least favorite in the game of all raids at this time. I'm sure NeiR fans loved them, but lots of people play FFXIV that have never played a NeiR game. Keep your game in your game unless you're actually giving it lore ties to ours. At least other FF game references make sense as its the same series and many people who play FFXIV have played at least one other FF game, and probably several.

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I agree with you, OP, on some things - not having an Exploration Zone was a mistake, and not having AT LEAST an HW/ARR Relic grind ON TOP of that ALONG WITH patches being 2 weeks longer was a big mistake. The only "grindy" content we have are Criterion and Orthos, both of which require PF premades so aren't "pick up group" in the sense that Eureka/Bozja or even ARR/HW (FATEs) were. You can't just run across people and join them, and you can't DF que them. You HAVE to make a party before you can even access the content passed the base level. That was also a mistake since it's the ONLY girndy content they put in.

As it is, in content lulls, I'm finding things to do...but they're old things that are only so repeatable, like finishing up every sidequest in the game (just 3 zones left...) that can only be done one time on a given Character, so they aren't repeatable content or grindable content once run through.

[hunkygladiator]

Yoshi P interviews

"omg yoshi p sama what is your daily spa routine and which brand of soap and cologne do you use"

"the unnamed au ra from the gegatekj tribe at (X:35.2, Y:17.9, Z:3.2) has a mole that's slightly red in color does this foreshadow anything about Dalamud"

"will there be MSQ in 7.0????"

those interviews are close to useless for actually getting any feedback to him or getting any relevant information out since 80% of it is filled with clueless journalists, who by the way waste 80% of their questions asking the same questions someone asked literally 3 minutes ago

and of the remaining 20%, half of the answers are just

"we cannot tell you yet please look forward to it"

lol honestly the lodestone notices have acknowledged way more issues since ShB than any live letter or interview, mostly when 2ch or jp forums spaz out and erupt and pour lava everywhere