I think I'm done SQUARE (Online Store)

[Kirutsuki]

Whatever happened to "reward the player for playing the game?"
Wasn't this like an actual thing that was advertised FF14 to be?

Yet recently we have seen MULTIPLE amazing mounts added to the online store which 100% should have been obtainable within the game.

As much as I love FF14 and what the devs have done with the game. I cannot support this, at all and neither should you. If you have any sensical bone in your body, please stop buying these things from the store.

And no, it's not about "supporting the devs" either when you buy something from the store. This has never been the truth and never will be. Simply put this is just a cash grab, nothing else.

Today they released the Mount: Garlond GL-IS mount, which has Alpha riding with you on the bike. As much as I love Alpha and they are literally written in my in-game characters lore... I cannot justify buying this, when I know they could have just added this AND Shadow Wolf as a reward for ACTUALLY PLAYING THE GOD DAMN GAME.

I would literally walk to hell and back inside the game to get this mount, but I will NOT SPEND ANY REAL MONEY FOR THIS BS.

I already spend almost 20€ a month for your retainer bs Yoshi-P, you should be happy.

[DrWho2010]

[Straticus]

The most ridiculous thing is how poorly they've communicated about the "fanfest" items. They say they'll be available at fanfest, but the fanfest ticket specifically says no ingame items are included with the ticket. The fenrir mount was also a fanfest mount and that came in the mail months before the fanfest. So is it you get a note with a code on it upon registering at fanfest? can you win the mount in games there? is it a lottery? How hard is it to communicate such things, honestly.

[Luamche]

Agree 100%. Especially given the obtuse way in which the quest and requests are designed.

[Hurlstone]

I do not really buy anything off the store (Outside the bike mount a few year back, and a sheep minion because it was TOO CUTE) but it is a shame how often that gets updated with items that really should be available in-game, plus it still boggles my mind that past event items are there and no farmable in newer events. At least its not hidden in loot boxes, thats a small mercy. I would not be one to tar and feather those who do buy such items regularly either. What people choice to spend their money on is not my business, and at least SE has yet to infect FFXIV with NFTS…

[Kirutsuki]

Yea, all this to really say I'm not against the store. Too often it just feels the additions would have been better in-game to give players more things to do.
And to top it all off the mount is almost as expensive as the entire Endwalker expansion so there's really no justifying it no matter how you look at it.

Someone did say that it's part of the +100€ Fanfest ticket, but there seems to be confusion on that front as well.

[LilimoLimomo]

Yet recently we have seen MULTIPLE amazing mounts added to the online store which 100% should have been obtainable within the game.

With respect, "should" is a pretty extreme word to use. "Could"? Sure. But "should"? I feel like none of us have enough information to make that determination.

Like, if Yoshi-P said:

"We're creating a special team to make this mount, and we're going to pay them with subscription money. And then we're going to sell the mount as a premium item, mwa-ha-ha!"

then in that case, yeah, I'd agree with you, it seems a bit improper to double-dip. But conversely, if Yoshi-P was like:

"As usual, 80% of Mogstation profits go towards further Mogstation offerings and 20% go towards FF14 development. Here's the Mogstation budget for this quarter, and one of the items we're going to make is this mount."

then in that case, I'd say everything seems above board and reasonable.

Without knowing more of the details, it's hard to say for sure, but personally I'd be surprised if Mogstation sales weren't being used to supplement the budget for the development of FF14; the other way around doesn't seem like a sustainable business plan, because Mogstation sales can't exist without the FF14 platform.