Dawntrail Graphics Update - Eye Strain

[Vesplume]

Live Letter tomorrow... Will they address is this time?

[Daralii]

Live Letter tomorrow... Will they address is this time?

[Vesplume]

Sounds about right!

[Anarnee]

Back to the top, thanks.

[mightyfineincredible]

Game looks great after introducing sharpening in Dawntrail. Now it doesn't look like a blurry or badly aliased mess stuck on PS3 rendering anymore.
I don't think some people understand that reality is meant to look as naturally sharp as your eyes are able to perceive (without visual noise), and games used to look sharp until forced TAA and FXAA ruined everything.

[Vesplume]

The problem is that with the graphics update, the devs have made an intentional focus on visual noise as part of new content design to show off the improvements of their new graphical capabilities. Visual noise is part of the encounter design, like in Vanguard (the entire environment with its flickering warning lights), Recollection (complicated visual tells that spawned multiple new threads about this problem when 7.2 dropped), and the new raids (especially Arcadion). It's also amplified problems with content that had similar issues before (like the Nier raids). The sharpness of the game usually isn't part of the problem unless its folks having issues with AA causing weird flicker effects, but that's been recorded here too.

This has made people who had few to no issues playing the game before DT experience severe eye strain leading to headaches, migraines, and seizures with side effects like dizziness, nausea and vomiting. Plenty of players who've reported to this thread have also mentioned this is an issue mostly exclusive to FFXIV and are able to play other games just fine.

[Vanfrano]

I came back to the game after several years break and I am having a lot of trouble playing, I don't have any sight issue and I only have this problem with FFXIV. I tried fiddling with the options but I couldn't find anything, it's to the point where I have to stop playing.
Also, the amount of visual clutter, which was already over the top in this game, has reached all new levels of ridiculousness. Note that I always have all effects off except my own.

[Catwho]

There is a video floating around from the final Nier raid where a RDM used limit break (good ol' Verflashbang) right at the same time that the red light / green light train mechanic was coming, and no one could see what the safe track was. Half the raid wiped.

Some QOL features I think could improve the visual effects:

* Being able to manually choose the colors for the visual effects from the boss. Right now, hostile ground AOEs are always orange, and friendly ground AOEs are always blue.
* Being able to change these settings via macros on the fly, allowing you to have a fight specific color profile that you can slap on. /aoe hostile red or /aoe friendly green
* Being able to set the transparency of the ground AOEs and other attacks. Some fights I need them really REALLY visible, other fights it gets in the way. Again, macro commands to set them - /trans 0-100 - the way I can type in /bgm 100 when a track comes on that I want to jam to in duty roulette
* Being able to control the total luminosity of visual effects. My friend with a high nits monitor jokingly calls out "ah my eyes" during any super bright attack. /lum 0-100
* Utilize fade down to black or a cooler color instead of fade up to white whenever possible. It made sense to fade to white in Shadowbringers, but that was two expansions ago. And as always, a choice! /fadeout set dark or /fadeout set light

[DynnDiablos]

I think the issue is they are over-designing these fights to be way more flashy and fast-paced than they need to be, with all sorts of spell effects shooting out everywhere, and there just isn't a need for it at all. I struggled focusing on anything going on for the new alliance raid last night because it was such visual vomit. Pretty much hoped no one would raise me and let me stay dead just to get through it. The airship fight about gave me a seizure.