Thread: Endwalker is the lowest point of this game since 1.0

Originally Posted by fulminating

I think it’s probably HW>ARR>=SHB>STB>EW
The tonal shift around level 61-63 is something the story just didn’t recover from. It’s also not fun just showing up and almost being guaranteed a clear. The stratification of content is not particularly healthy in my eyes.

Just wanted to add a plus one to pretty much all your posts here and say I'm in total agreement, and you've managed to sum up really well why and where this game somehow managed to fall off a cliff for me. It's something I struggle to adequately explain, especially, as I've said this before, when I honestly feel like I'm being minorly gaslit sometimes with how some players view the story, particularly with regards to ARR and EW. There's only so many times I can use the words "depth" and "nuance" before they lose all meaning, but your comments about Sharlayan and Thordan reminded me why I'm not old-man-yells-at-clouding about EW and that it really!!! wasn't!!! like!!! this!!! no matter how much various sections of the community constantly try to argue otherwise. I don't want to talk about realism in a game with tonberrys, chocobos and giant talking crystals, but the world felt infinitely more relatable and realistic back then insofar as the characters, their motivations, their backgrounds, their behaviour and more notably their flaws that don't suddenly get wiped off the blackboard when confronted with the power of kindness and friendship. Do you remember Aymeric, and how the shocking twist and flaw of his character was how naively trusting and optimistic he was? ...yet here we are, with that pretty much being par for the course for the entire cast at this point.

I don't get the hate for ARR, either. Its worst crime was that it dragged, but I sure as hell enjoyed the subtle worldbuilding and care that went into making interesting and complex characters than the JRPG trope pick and mix we've been given lately.

Anyway, I'm not meant to be here I just resubbed solely to join in Savage prog and felt vindicated seeing some ARR love so ignore me