Why are some people "disappointed" by the 6.X patch story?

[Hanayumi]

Beyond the base story everything else has just felt like filler, and I assume to a degree it is. They prolly just needed something quick for for the patches while our big new adventure likely wont start till 7.0. Wouldnt be surprised if this all wraps up 6.5 and we get something out of the blue for 7.0.

[Duskane]

I've expected a fairly slow start or not anything really mind blowing since post EW is just the start of an Arc really cant compete with ShB/Main EW
i still enjoy it though

[Lyzidas]

This is how I feel about the current story/storyline: I did not expect any epic actions or the like. What I wished for though was for new characters and new worldbuilding. We are adventuring again for the first time in a long while instead of world saving. Wet our appetites with new horizons. New people.

Since it was told they had already planned the next 10 years in a broader way, I expected some setup. Some new threats and mysteries that will be resolved in later expansions. While I do like Zero, the story itself plays a lot of the plot beats of Final Fantasy 4, and I know this game by heart. FF14 never used plots of other games directly, but just some references or themes. This feels almost like copy and paste with the slightes adjustment.

To me right the story feels like the usual trial story took over MSQ. And it does not seem to lead into future plot developments, but is done presumably with 6.55 latest and then we move on with Dawntrail. So there is nothing connecting the current story with some meta story or threats and also not Dawntrail. Also characters who would be interested in saving the Void are also not here (why?) like Unukalhai. I do not even know if our actions are even changing the void. And even if, the void was also just a means. Yshtola wanted to travel to the First and shard travel in general. So the void was just a street to that goal. But I do not see that desire of hers allign with Dawntrail. Why go to the New World when you can go to the Void in with that maybe to the First?
I do not understand it.

[NekoMataMata]

Mostly just disappointed with the pacing. The ideas are really good.

The Lunar Subterrane felt like a less invested Amaurot. It was nice graphically, and the story was touching, but I simply wasn't nearly as emotional invested as I feel I should have been. I didn't feel anything from The Abyssal Fracture. Just another world ending threat, but without proper build up it just felt like one of those times. The music was good though.

[HyperiusUltima]

To put things into perspective, I think 6.1 and 6.2 were exciting and very welcome - we’re starting a new story, then suddenly throws in the 13th - what people have been slavering over for lore about since time immemorial. We got that in 6.2 and got hit with Scarmi and Barbie, along with Trollbez hiding his motives.

I appreciate what they were trying to do here, but I think they made an error by throwing in just a sprinkle of Garlemald…While I don’t mind more of it, could’ve easily been a Restoration type side quest chain to help them rebuild - but with getting them to work on their own two feet. That was what we got with the trade deal for Garlemald - Magitek for Necessary Goods. I would have enjoyed to get into the politics more because they started getting into it…then went back to geopolitics instead of Garlemald’s.

6.4 wasn’t any better. Cool Moon by the way, love the music and recreation of that theme - but yeah, let’s just look down at our villain’s lair, then visit a grave where we find a CONVENIENT PLOT DEVICE to fight Golbez and his bad dragon he corrupted directly. Throw hands, beat Golbez, but then whoop de do we wind up with a world-ending situation because SOMEBODY DECIDED TO FEED AN ELDER DRAGON TO A VOIDSENT DIRECTLY.

And here we are now. I was expecting a mini-venture through the void into a Trial Set that would be optional - not mandatory. Would’ve made a great side, tbh, like how we had the Warring Triad, but noooooo. We had to throw it into MSQ! What they should’ve done is focus on Garlemald and prep towards Dawntrail since a hero needs downtime after saving the world the umpteenth time. GIVE THE MAIN CHARACTER A BREAK. That’s what 6.1/6.2 felt like. A breath of fresh air for 6.1 especially. Please, for future post-patch Dawntrail, consider this.

[CNitsah]

SPOILER

6.5 was ok. Except for the fact we didn't interact with Azdaja after she was saved. WTF? we spent one year and and half on that storyline, and we didn't even get to interact with her. It feels like that storyline lacks a closure on that aspect, like if they just wanted to dump that part.

Truth to be told, I wondered if she was able to talk in her new body, until at the very last quest, she is a npc with optional dialogue.

[NekoMataMata]

SPOILER

6.5 was ok. Except for the fact we didn't interact with Azdaja after she was saved. WTF? we spent one year and and half on that storyline, and we didn't even get to interact with her. It feels like that storyline lacks a closure on that aspect, like if they just wanted to dump that part.

Truth to be told, I wondered if she was able to talk in her new body, until at the very last quest, she is a npc with optional dialogue.

I don't really see that as an issue. You can already imagine the dialogue being something along the lines of "Thank you for saving me," and just being generic fluff.

[KageTokage]

I'm kind of impressed at how badly the miserable pacing of 6.4/5 killed what little interest in the story I had because basically nothing significant actually happens outside of the 13th and you spend 90% of those respective MSQs just reacquainting yourself with people.

At the end of the day it really did just feel like a trial storyline that was given MSQ treatment for whatever reason.

[OgruMogru]

I didn't mind the story but because the stakes were so low, no new threads or worldbuilding introduced to set future mysteries up so every single patch has just been reiterating that Zero needs to rely on others as if it's the first time we're meeting her. Sure that's because she's meeting lots of people for the first time but it just kept happening right the way up to the final confrontation and it just felt a little 1-dimensional.

[Oizen]

The thing that scares me is the post story of an expansion usually always sets up the next two expacs.

ARR set up HW directly, and Stormblood with the apperance of Yugiri and introducing Doma as a concept
HW set up Stormblood directly, and ShB with the Warrior of Darkness plotline
and so on

That is to say if 8.0 ends up being "Lightbringers" or something similar thats going to suck.