First and fore most... THANK YOU ありがとう!
1.23 has brought something that has been lacking for a while in FFXIV and that is pure enjoyment and fun!
Skirmish and the 'final fight' as I see most calling it. Are both examples of what I think is a real Final Fantasy feeling.
The end fight is not too hard, nor too easy. It resembles a style that is very final fantasy feeling and plays like a console game. It has little elements that make themselves known only once you throw yourself in and I can notice familiar mechanics in this fight that are used in other places (Ifrit for example)
The cut scenes are both gorgeous and entertaining, it is always awesome to see the whole party interacting in them and the showdown location is just fantastic, try running around up top of the stairs for a better look if you are waiting for people who are watching the cut scenes.. the view is great!
The music is just perfect... all that was missing was some voice acting and it would have been a perfect 10 for audio ^^
Skirmish is just a cherry on the cake, not only are the drop rates generous, but we get gorgeous beach settings (Hooray for a new environment~!)
The fights are just a bucket of fun that we can mess around with at will and perfect for training people that don't yet have the hang of dungeons or measuring your own DPS ranks for self improvement.
The new 'Sexy gear' ? ... haha very surprising to find them in new faction leves... I think there are a few blushing cheeks in Eorzea today and I can't wait to get my hands on the set~!
My only complaint... is that some person managed to make what could have been a awesome set of headgear (weavers hat on a hat anyone?) look totally ridiculous! I mean come on guys... who thought it was a good idea for Goldsmiths to paint their heads with glue and dunk them into the scrap gem and fabrics bin? Or the poor weaver hat that for some reason is bolted onto a pot helm... wha???
But I digress...
This may be the most fun to come out of a patch in FFXIV to date and I just want to say ... Thank you!!! I really look forward to seeing more fun content in the many months to come.