Revisiting the 10 year roadmap

[Jojoya]

Considering some of the recent discussions here regarding the design of FFXIV, I thought that some might appreciate viewing Live Letter 68 where the 10 year roadmap for the game was discussed. It took place February 2022.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2TWmsce_eg

The roadmap comments start at about 26:50 (before that was the normal introductions and a few comments about the game's development before Endwalker).

Some will find the comments starting at about 29:30 important as it discusses what type of game they intend for FFXIV to become. It's a decision they've made based on feedback from long time Final Fantasy franchise fans.

[Ath192]

Yup, this is a game that hates itself and its own category, and it's going to try its best to shed that and fit in with the rest of the single player titles in the franchise. It will ever embrace going more basic and prioritize ease of use and storytelling over actual gameplay because it has chosen to deny what it is.

As such, the game will never embrace the fact it's an MMO and use the categories strengths to provide a stellar experience and example of the genre, instead, it will hide them away the best it can so other players that don't like MMOs can play it.

Trust me, the fact the game has now become a play and quit title is well known to us.

I would like to highlight that in 6 months at 12.99 dollars we pay what you can expect to pay for an entire game with excellent graphics and complete MSQ from start to finish and full voice acting, since, well that is the cost of XVI when I purchased it at full price. And in that time we get one alliance raid and a few MSQ quests or 4 savage raids and a few MSQ quests.

FFXIV should come with a fine print: Don't stay after MSQ.

6x12.99 = $77.94 USD

XVI = $69.99 USD

What have you gotten these last 6 months for your sub?

[Aravell]

I don't think they're even catering to the Final Fantasy fans because they've stripped out so much of the RPG elements as well. If you're someone that enjoyed the older titles, you wouldn't enjoy how bland this game is in terms of RPG customisation and such.

[thevanguard]

I don't think they're even catering to the Final Fantasy fans because they've stripped out so much of the RPG elements as well. If you're someone that enjoyed the older titles, you wouldn't enjoy how bland this game is in terms of RPG customisation and such.

Well, maybe not old FF fans who have largely moved on, but new FF fans who button mashed through FF13 and enjoyed the ride.

It's kinda sad that the direction this franchise is going in is one of imitation, of trying to appeal to a "wider" basket of gamers, that end up doing nothing particularly better than anyone. The latest example is FF16 where as an action game it barely holds up against GoW or DMC.

Maybe if they stopped trying to make shit like FF7: Battle Royale edition or FF: gamba auto-clicker edition their games would actually have the same level of prestige.

FF fans may not know it because the community is absolutely insular but these days the franchise is seen as a joke. I guess, at least it's marginally better than even worse jokes like Assassin's Creed or Fallout.

[Reinhardt_Azureheim]

FFXIV should come with a fine print: Don't stay after MSQ.

6x12.99 = $77.94 USD

XVI = $69.99 USD

What have you gotten these last 6 months for your sub?

- a type of pvp that appeals to me that I don't have to switch games for
- multiple types of raiding of all difficulties that appeal to me that I don't have to switch games for
- playing my own character. no offense, FFXVI is banger, but I like my own character due to attachment
- being able to make my own choice in a wide spectrum of activities not limited to current patch, usually with other people
- human interaction with other players that I dont have to switch games for [most important]

Probably more I could name but can't remember from the top of my hat. What Im trying to say is, the overall quality may not be great, but its a huge sandbox to me. Could FFXIV need improvement? Absolutely but Im not gonna bash the game on the level like some people do because it doesn't fulfill my every desire.

I am glad to simply have a stable MMORPG that doesn't fold itself by making tanks completely useless and turn everything into a 1min fight or crush itself because Devs can't stop making actually terrible decisions that cause a mass exodus of players.

[Ath192]

- a type of pvp that appeals to me that I don't have to switch games for
- multiple types of raiding of all difficulties that appeal to me that I don't have to switch games for
- playing my own character. no offense, FFXVI is banger, but I like my own character due to attachment
- being able to make my own choice in a wide spectrum of activities not limited to current patch, usually with other people
- human interaction with other players that I dont have to switch games for [most important]

Probably more I could name but can't remember from the top of my hat. What Im trying to say is, the overall quality may not be great, but its a huge sandbox to me. Could FFXIV need improvement? Absolutely but Im not gonna bash the game on the level like some people do because it doesn't fulfill my every desire.

I am glad to simply have a stable MMORPG that doesn't fold itself by making tanks completely useless and turn everything into a 1min fight or crush itself because Devs can't stop making actually terrible decisions that cause a mass exodus of players.

Most of these including the PvP mode were designed before the stipulated 6 month mark. So those activities have already been paid for more than twice over.

Don’t get me wrong I’m glad you enjoy the game, but it doesn’t take away from the fact your are getting ripped off even if you don’t feel like you are. We all are when we compare what other games could offer for the same type of cash we are spending.

Small mini games in the form of PVP and 10 minute linear instances are not worth $150.00 dollars a year.

[Reinhardt_Azureheim]

Most of these including the PvP mode were designed before the stipulated 6 month mark. So those activities have already been paid for more than twice over.

Don’t get me wrong I’m glad you enjoy the game, but it doesn’t take away from the fact your are getting ripped off even if you don’t feel like you are. We all are when we compare what other games could offer for the same type of cash we are spending.

Small mini games in the form of PVP and 10 minute linear instances are not worth $150.00 dollars a year.

Im paying for an online service that doesn't have to put character progression into micro transactions to sustain itself because of this. How much I get out of it each month is my own choice and not exactly easy to quantify number - someone who is new and blasts off crazy in month 1 will have the value of his lifetime, someone who logs for raiding, pvp and social interaction will obviously get less.

For me it is worth that money, and no matter how much people seem to shit on that mode, PvP is a massive factor for why Im staying. It also helps that the overall game's setting suits me.

The Riot MMO or the Tera PS may be diversions that may be well worth my time, but I will continue supporting FFXIV until it either shuts down or turns into something I cannot put money into with good conscience.

[Dzian]

I don't think they're even catering to the Final Fantasy fans because they've stripped out so much of the RPG elements as well. If you're someone that enjoyed the older titles, you wouldn't enjoy how bland this game is in terms of RPG customisation and such.

They haven't catered to final fantasy fans for a long time. Some might say even when they uturned and went the wow direction for ARR.

Even back then there were tons of comments and criticisms about staple elements of the final fantasy franchise being totally scrapped and gutted. Diverse bosses. Elemental wheels. Status effects. The list goes on and on.

Xiv is just face roll keyboard and you win. No thoughts no brains.. and yes the game is incredibly bland and dull as a result..

[CStrife912]

Outside of the unknown for 6.5/6.55 they’ve been pretty forward about what to expect and they delivered that when they announced that roadmap early last year. I think they’ve got their hands full on the visual update among other things and yeah I know time and time again people say graphics don’t make a game however more people can be put off by dated visuals that if at least improved can bring more people in.

In regards to the single player focus I don’t entirely see it that way. I think they don’t intend to have a new starting point so if you have to play everything else to get to the new stuff then more and more players will hit walls with long queue times for old content that doesn’t reward us end game players. Yes some people like to help out etc but doing dungeons with trusts etc seems to be an ok approach it allows them to continue o. And learn the game and then when they hit trials then they can go into the social aspects of it. Granted not everyone is social and yeah we have no global chat but I don’t really want to see it spammed like Limsa chat or any city chat anyway.

What the roadmap didn’t show was a lot of QoL and foundational work being done to the game… a lot of it needed doing because if they intend to keep it running for another 10 years then the game needs a lot of QoL there are still too many instances of menus in menus that could be trimmed and they are slowly getting there. Until 7.0 is shown or we see what direction they want to take it in post EW, I’m treating this expansion and post as a sort of ARR again like visual update, QoL, server hardware improvement and data center additions like these aren’t small things so they’re planning something.

Base difficulty needs buffing, healers to heal more due to tank busters and vuln stacks meaning something. Get rid of the 2 min meta, you wouldn’t have to change much to bring some job identity back honestly. I just hope they take the right feedback because 7.X patches will be indicative of that and a lot of people here just have passionate hatred and bias then actual middle ground critique. The game can be better it’s just a matter of when or if it’s too late. (The lucky bancho numbers prove the game is doing something right if you exclude the wow exodus the game is still getting consistent growth)

[Tsumdere]

I agree that 7.0 is going to be the make or break regarding the battle system. 2 Min meta is unpopular everywhere and has been the spawn of more balance issues than I've personally seen since starting this game. Crits, buff drift, DH, downtime, certain jobs being so genuinely bad at a fight that they are all but excluded, MELEEWALKER... They must know it's completely out of control or they wouldn't have nerfed the DPS check of Anabaesios into the ground.

Not only that, but none of the game has any difficulty while leveling. Then you join an EX fight and get your shit pushed in because you've been on easy mode for 100+ hours at this point.
The difficulty curve is bad. By Stormblood, dungeons should be asking more of people. By Endwalker, dungeon bosses should have enrages (still loose ones), insta kill abilities (make them slow casted), and mechanics that use at least two brain cells instead of one. Think of the Vault before we greatly outgeared it.

This is one and only area of CBU3 that I genuinely hope they just flat out fire everyone (job team) because they are incredibly incompetent.

FFXIV should come with a fine print: Don't stay after MSQ.

6x12.99 = $77.94 USD

XVI = $69.99 USD

What have you gotten these last 6 months for your sub?

- ultimate
- raid tier
- tons of fishing (please save me)
- housing
- place to hang out/RP with my friends
- too many hours collecting stuff
- leveling more jobs on my raid alt so i'm not locked into a certain role
- making gil for the ugly gold mounts and prep for ex shiny weapons I like.
- pvp

I'm having fun. I personally get my money's worth. Could it be better? Absolutely. See above.