The Content Cycle needs to break.

[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.