Difficulty of normal content.

[CastDeath]

Thank you for this post. I feel the unforgiving nature of the mechanics is getting a bit annoying. One mistake, and you get a vulnerability stack; two mistakes, and you're KO. Why the need for so many insta-kill mechanics? Overlapping AoE attacks and the reaction time required seem more strict than ever. This raid tier feels more extreme than usual. The telegraphs are chaotic and hard to read, almost as if I have to die to learn them. This whole expansion doesn't feel casual-friendly. Yes, I have the ability to learn and memorize the mechanics, but it's getting close to crossing the line into extreme content, and that type of challenge doesn't interest me.

No it isn't, have you even done extremes lately? These fights can be cleared blind on first try. Its a raid get comfortable with dying and failing for a while before winning. That is literally how its supposed to go. if its too much for you then go do fates or the hunt and let us enjoy actually engaging fights that feel rewarding to beat.

[Elkanah]

Thank you for this post. I feel the unforgiving nature of the mechanics is getting a bit annoying. One mistake, and you get a vulnerability stack; two mistakes, and you're KO. Why the need for so many insta-kill mechanics? Overlapping AoE attacks and the reaction time required seem more strict than ever. This raid tier feels more extreme than usual. The telegraphs are chaotic and hard to read, almost as if I have to die to learn them. This whole expansion doesn't feel casual-friendly. Yes, I have the ability to learn and memorize the mechanics, but it's getting close to crossing the line into extreme content, and that type of challenge doesn't interest me.

lmao bro tell me you've never played an ex fight without telling me you never played an ex (or even savage fight). What a joke.

[AmiableApkallu]

Yes, I have the ability to learn and memorize the mechanics, but it's getting close to crossing the line into extreme content, and that type of challenge doesn't interest me.

It's nowhere close to "extreme content." An extreme looks like:

Narrator: The party queues into the instance.

DPS #4: So, does anyone have markers?

Healer #2: Yeah, hold on... wait, no, those are for the wrong fight... crap, these ones are kinda janky... fml... where are they... ah, here!

Tank #2: Finally. Clock spots and light parties?

Narrator: The party danced around a "1" and a "2" for ten minutes. It wasn't even a good dance.

Tank #1: Uh... I forget... was this party going with MRRMBBQ G1N G2SXSW or Victor's N64 Mario Kart with braindead orbs? I kinda prefer Alice's enum's, tbh.

DPS #3: *leaves the instance and party*

...

Actual Dawntrail:

Random party member: LEEEEEEEROY JENKINSSSSS!!!

Narrator: The party cleared, one wipe and twenty minutes later. The chat appeared to be stuck on the "gg" key.

[Kampfh]

Ah, I've waited a long time to be able to say this: Simply, git gud.

If you're having trouble completing simple, *normal* tier content, then it's not the game being hard, it's you that's bad.

The longer a game lives, the higher the general skill level of its player base. If you find yourself having trouble completing/doing content that is /design/ to be cleared by, not just the vast majority, but an OVERWHELMINGLY cast majority of the player base, then it really simply, is just you that's bad at the videogame.

Take 5 minutes out of your time to:

Research your job; Maybe you're doing something wrong? Pressing buttons in a wrong order, not knowing what different actions do etc. etc.
LOOK at what is happening: Unless you have a toddlers sense of Object Permanence, then everything in DT is perfectly doable after having stumbled on it once.


Maybe, just maybe, the game simply also just isn't for you. Maybe, you're so far on the left side of the bell curve, that you simply can't compete.
Then it's a matter of the game not being for you. Sucks. It really does.

"Casual content" is finally at a state where it doesn't IMMEDIATELY send anyone with a modicum of skill into a boredom induced coma. Please, for the love of whomever you believe in, git gud.

[Jinglypockets]

Thank you for this post. I feel the unforgiving nature of the mechanics is getting a bit annoying. One mistake, and you get a vulnerability stack; two mistakes, and you're KO. Why the need for so many insta-kill mechanics? Overlapping AoE attacks and the reaction time required seem more strict than ever. This raid tier feels more extreme than usual. The telegraphs are chaotic and hard to read, almost as if I have to die to learn them. This whole expansion doesn't feel casual-friendly. Yes, I have the ability to learn and memorize the mechanics, but it's getting close to crossing the line into extreme content, and that type of challenge doesn't interest me.

"Casual" is a matter of time investment -- it doesn't mean unskilled or wilting in the face of minimal adversity. Every single casual player I know -- which includes hundreds of people -- enjoys being challenged and overcoming those challenges. Some of them are very skilled, many are not, but I think they'd all be offended by the idea that casual players can't handle failing a few times while learning new things.

"Casual" is not the word you're looking for.

[PinkGummyWorm]

click the buttons.

[caffe_macchiato]

So a lot of the people love the content as-is, and that's great. It's designed well, so it should work well, right?

But Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd. decided to make a game engine that cannot deal with fast or overlapping mechanics. What they gave us instead is "snapshotting". So even if you successfully dodge an attack, the servers (aka a thousand forum posters in a trench coat) will say that you didn't, and give you a vuln stack anyway. It's one of the iconic hallmarks of Square Enix design, and because of that, it gets a ton of praise online. And you like it too, because you just need to "get gud" and "you've been playing for 100 levels anyway". What Square Enix did to "increase the difficulty" in Dawntrail content was simply add more mechanics. Think like WoW but more cool and hip. If the game was more responsive, people wouldn't complain as much about the game being hard. But that's not a good thing, it needs to be harder for the sake of it. And Square Enix found out a very smart way to do it!

See, the unique thing about "video" games is that the video is supposed to be important. So when you press a button, it shows up on the screen. But the "new" style of video games (pioneered by Dark Souls, mastered by FFXIV) is where your actions do not correspond with the video. And the key to beating the game is to do exactly what you shouldn't do. So in these new raids, you move in the "bad" zone when it's still bad but a second before not being bad. And if you can't do it? Get gud! 100 levels! The old masters of video games (1970s-2010s) couldn't handle the sheer power of "shapshotting". Only a company as rich and prestigious--excuse me, a small indie company--can come up with this ingenious system.

[Akonyl]

So a lot of the people love the content as-is, and that's great. It's designed well, so it should work well, right?

But Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd. decided to make a game engine that cannot deal with fast or overlapping mechanics. What they gave us instead is "snapshotting". So even if you successfully dodge an attack, the servers (aka a thousand forum posters in a trench coat) will say that you didn't, and give you a vuln stack anyway. It's one of the iconic hallmarks of Square Enix design, and because of that, it gets a ton of praise online. And you like it too, because you just need to "get gud" and "you've been playing for 100 levels anyway". What Square Enix did to "increase the difficulty" in Dawntrail content was simply add more mechanics. Think like WoW but more cool and hip. If the game was more responsive, people wouldn't complain as much about the game being hard. But that's not a good thing, it needs to be harder for the sake of it. And Square Enix found out a very smart way to do it!

See, the unique thing about "video" games is that the video is supposed to be important. So when you press a button, it shows up on the screen. But the "new" style of video games (pioneered by Dark Souls, mastered by FFXIV) is where your actions do not correspond with the video. And the key to beating the game is to do exactly what you shouldn't do. So in these new raids, you move in the "bad" zone when it's still bad but a second before not being bad. And if you can't do it? Get gud! 100 levels! The old masters of video games (1970s-2010s) couldn't handle the sheer power of "shapshotting". Only a company as rich and prestigious--excuse me, a small indie company--can come up with this ingenious system.

Oh my goodness. I love everything about this post, but probably not for the reasons you were hoping I would.

[DanielleFarlow]

See, the unique thing about "video" games is that the video is supposed to be important. So when you press a button, it shows up on the screen. But the "new" style of video games (pioneered by Dark Souls, mastered by FFXIV) is where your actions do not correspond with the video. And the key to beating the game is to do exactly what you shouldn't do. So in these new raids, you move in the "bad" zone when it's still bad but a second before not being bad. And if you can't do it? Get gud! 100 levels! The old masters of video games (1970s-2010s) couldn't handle the sheer power of "shapshotting". Only a company as rich and prestigious--excuse me, a small indie company--can come up with this ingenious system.

You can literally leave earlier, or enter a bit later. Or try to discern the pattern of a mechanic before it is resolved. Or die, learn, and try again. It is that simple, and it is the "game" part of a video game. Snapshotting is an issue for high ping players, but what you're describing is just delusional.

[caffe_macchiato]

You can literally leave earlier, or enter a bit later. Or try to discern the pattern of a mechanic before it is resolved. Or die, learn, and try again. It is that simple, and it is the "game" part of a video game. Snapshotting is an issue for high ping players, but what you're describing is just delusional.

And what will happen when Square Enix finally resolves "snapshotting"? Will people complain about the lack of difficulty? Because Yoshida just had an interview where he admitted that the delay is too long and causes limitations of mechanics like what we're seeing in raids:

That is what's so difficult about FFXIV. Every time you take an action in the game, the game will communicate with the server, check for cheating and come back afterwards. This creates a delay that an offline game doesn't have, since there's no need to check on the Internet. This limitation is something we've had to deal with for years, and it does limit us somewhat in what we can manage to implement in the game.

https://www.finaland.com/?rub=site&page=news&id=6801

I mean, I don't think people should want to defend a system that the director himself says is an issue.

My only stance is that Square Enix should not add overlapping or excessive mechanics without mitigating this issue that they know is real. The new raids push the engine to its limits and probably past that, which isn't a good thing. Square Enix should invest money in fixing the root of the issue. But people will jump over hoops to defend the current system as if it's god's gift to gaming.

Someday snapshotting won't exist. What will people do then? Will they riot?

How independable can you be for not figuring out mechanics on a game you played for hundreds or thousands of hours.

I think this expansion is going to be a turning point in FFXIV history. Only the people who've put in hundreds or thousands of hours can access the new content. Which means that the community will shift from being "toxic casual" (friendliest online community!) to being edgier and more like WoW Classic. And a lot of people will love that because it means more orange circles on the ground to dodge. But it also means there's a bottleneck for FFXIV's potential. It will not get new players from here on out. The player base will stagnate and the only people who stick around are the hardcore players who, like WoW Classic, are very negative. And a lot of people LOVE this! But their game will die. With less players, the game will receive less funding and you will have worse content. You will complain. And then FFXIV will hit "maintenance mode". No new players play FFXI. Do people love that? Of course they do--for the few hundred that remain.

To be clear: the content isn't the issue. But the community will wall off new players until they don't want to play anymore because they will see FFXIV as just another "toxic MMO" like WoW. You'll love that! And your queues will take an hour to fill. It's sad that the FFXIV community has finally gotten worse than the game that Square Enix is making. We've hit the turning point.