The Content Cycle needs to break.

[Heavenchild]

Meanwhile repeating always the same stuff (leveling, gearing, same patch formula, and so on) got so boring that I don't care to complete stuff anymore. It's just too much of the same in semi different colors.

I mean..., it's obvious that you can't repeat the same thing so long and hold people in an exited state. There is nothing exciting anymore. And to be honest, the new chaotic is also again just a trial styled arena with boss, isn't it? I am so tiered of this.

It's always the same, with a different name. Trial, ex trial, unreal trial, raid, savage raid, ultimate, chaotic..., even alliance raid und dungeons, just arena with kill boss(+some trash mobs).

The old dungeons had some little things to do. But all is gone for the Trusts. I didn't get why there aren't 2 versions of that dungeons. One that works with Trusts and one for actual players with some interaction.

Long story short. Game became really boring. Sadly.

[Raraka]

Bless the indie scene, though. Sure, there’s a ton of garbage, but every now and then, you find a gem that shines brighter than anything from the big studios.

Speaking of, try Atlyss if you havent given it a chance yet, a single dev nailed the combat and moment to moment gameplay

When they tried to hire other people and they were pushing against his design choises, they just fired them all and continued as a solo dev

Behold, now the game is Overwhelmingly positive in steam, because they didnt let others influence their vision of a fun game

[Rinoa_353]

Yoshi-P needs to focus only on FFXIV, being pulled away for FFXVI has affected the quality of this game. SE needs to stop taking so much money out of this game for their other projects and invest that money instead into this game.

[EusisLandale]

- Outdated Reward Systems(Alliance Raid, Dungeons)

One of the simplest things they could do for non leveling dungeons, they absolutely refuse to; Just add weapons, even if they're just recolors of old crap.
Getting two, maybe three, raid weapons is fairly simple, but beyond that it's just becomes an absolutely soul numbing job in and of itself. Having quick access to some fourth rate weapon that doesn't require weeks, nearly months, of grinding or massive gil sinks would do wonders to just casually trying out a job outside of what you'd usually play.

[Raraka]

It’s honestly frustrating how some companies—Square Enix included—seem to operate. They’ll try something new, but if it doesn’t work, they give up on trying altogether. And if it does work, they keep changing it until it flops. Look at the Manderville relic weapons—they called it the “most successful relic ever” just because so many people did it, not because it was creative or fun. Same with the current Savage tier. They’re calling it the “most successful” because clear rates are way higher, even though it’s easier. It feels like they’re chasing numbers instead of focusing on what actually makes the game special.

To investors the only success metrics are numbers, thats the horribe situation we are currently in

[Merrigan]

"Oh no, people disliked when we tried something, better to never try anything new ever again" is definitely not a way to innovate and possibly find new exciting things.

I'd just like to come back to that: I don't disagree with the content, but I also think that the community has some responsibility. And it's not just on ff: a lot of mmorpg players want new things, but aren't happy with them when they appear. And it's always the unhappy ones who speak out.

Complaining about a new quest design, when it's the first time in a while that there's been an attempt at innovation, wasn't very wise indeed. Or at least complaining about it the way the internet usually does, i.e. on the assumption that our version is always the right one, in an unqualified and vehement way.

Sometimes just appreciating the effort, even if the result isn't perfect, is a good thing. And there has been a failure on this front. The result? Most of the moments at DT where the gameplay could have been innovative... Are put in the form of cutscenes. Most of Endwalker's ideas were never taken up again; they kept tailing quests, but added a visual effect so ugly that it completely destroys immersion (I never understood what bothered players about these quests btw : why did we need this aoe ? Did some people not understand the "don't be too close" part ?).

Failure shouldn't deter innovation, but it often does when the feedback is so vindictive. Especially when you're talking about a company whose main objective is still to make money, and which finds that its community, like many others, seems to claim novelty more than it really wants it.

[Daralii]

Sometimes just appreciating the effort, even if the result isn't perfect, is a good thing. And there has been a failure on this front. The result? Most of the moments at DT where the gameplay could have been innovative... Are put in the form of cutscenes. Most of Endwalker's ideas were never taken up again; they kept tailing quests, but added a visual effect so ugly that it completely destroys immersion (I never understood what bothered players about these quests btw : why did we need this aoe ? Did some people not understand the "don't be too close" part ?).

The main problem with them was that the targets would do instant 180s without any telegraph, but the ugly marker obviously doesn't do anything to address that.

[Merrigan]

The main problem with them was that the targets would do instant 180s without any telegraph, but the ugly marker obviously doesn't do anything to address that.

But... The target indicated this. There was always a pause before the NPC turned around. As far as I can remember, there was only one exception, which required the player to be hidden for a while by chance.

[Bonoki]

Complaining about a new quest design, when it's the first time in a while that there's been an attempt at innovation, wasn't very wise indeed.

In From the Cold was the peak solo duty design, but because people complained, we now have "Very Easy" mode, and some players use it to skip the challenge in all solo duties entirely. It’s the same with Role-Play quests where you control NPCs—they're a great way to make the story more immersive, but they’re not popular. Even little things like NPC escort missions or interactive zoom-ins get brushed off as tedious.

The broader issue seems to be that quest design in FFXIV is underappreciated. Whenever SE attempts to innovate or break the mold of traditional questing, the feedback tends to lean negative. This resistance stifles creativity and risks making the game a bland, formulaic experience. If we want the game to continue growing and evolving, players must embrace these attempts to make the journey more engaging and immersive rather than dismissing them for convenience.

Edit: I think quest design is underappreciated, largely because it can feel tedious when playing multiple alts. What’s exciting the first time often becomes a chore on subsequent playthroughs.

[Merrigan]

In From the Cold was the peak solo duty design, but because people complained, we now have "Very Easy" mode, and some players use it to skip the challenge in all solo duties entirely. It’s the same with Role-Play quests where you control NPCs—they're a great way to make the story more immersive, but they’re not popular. Even little things like NPC escort missions or interactive zoom-ins get brushed off as tedious.

The broader issue seems to be that quest design in FFXIV is underappreciated. Whenever SE attempts to innovate or break the mold of traditional questing, the feedback tends to lean negative. This resistance stifles creativity and risks making the game a bland, formulaic experience. If we want the game to continue growing and evolving, players must embrace these attempts to make the journey more engaging and immersive rather than dismissing them for convenience.

You've captured my thoughts very well. Well, satisfied people like you and me have some responsibility: I don't see many of us creating posts saying ‘oooh, that was a great quest!" But in practical terms, complaining about a lack of innovation when the slightest attempt is met with pitchforks, stones and jeers... Well.

Another thing that made me roll my eyes about the criticisms levelled at ‘From the Cold’ was that people on this forum often ask for difficulty. ‘From the Cold’ explores an old difficulty mod : removing clear quest objectives. To say that it was not appreciated would be an understatement. It's paradoxical to demand difficulty but only expect difficulty that is comfortable for us.