How would you improve Dawntrail's writing?

[SXTC]

I honestly think the main story quests feel like side quests most of the time till you eventually get an important one that triggers a dungeon and a cutscene with actual voices... though it's sad that you never hear the voice of your own character xD
Most main story quests feel like regular boring quests... I would enjoy the game more if every main quest was voiced and sounded important... so less quests but perfectly made.

Afterall the game doesn't need more quests, it needs more "not so boring" options to spend your time without constantly having to grind for it. I have several idea's and I voiced a few on this forum already but at this point I feel that making opinions is a waste of time sincE I heard the dev's don't even read this forum...

[Kanehon]

2. What are some suggestions you have for how the MSQ could go in the future?

Give us more Gameplay.

The Invasion being one cutscene with not even a single Solo Duty running through the city to defend it because we're standing back watching someone get murdered is, I'm sorry, stupid. Oh but we got to do it in Solution 9. Another reason I don't think Solution 9 belongs in Dawntrail, but should have been later.

If you're not at least giving us an Air Force One inspired Train Duty, which would be a great change of pace and way to do some variety with MSQ gameplay, AT LEAST give us a Solo Duty of fighting off melee fighters on top of it to defend the people using the Canons.


3. What are some parts of the writing that you actually think are good and would like to see more of?

I love exploring Tural. There are so many places that gave me vibes from my home. It really hit different, and it was such a nice feeling.

I like the characters. Wuk Lamat is fun and hanging out with her is fun. Koana is interesting and I like his growth. Gulool Ja Ja is interesting too, a constant presence hanging over Tural and the characters, both in life and after his death. Many characters, places, ideas, have potential and I would like to see them explored more. I don't want this place gone and forgotten, I want it moving forward with us just like Kugane or Thavnair stayed with us.

[Kanehon]

This is from someone who, as a whole, enjoyed Dawntrail and the change of pace, while still having issues and reservations about certain points.

1. What would you have done differently with Dawntrail's writing and how would you have done it?

Overall, I feel like Dawntrail lacked commitment. It wanted to do something different, but I feel like there were points where the story was afraid of committing to it and half-hearted doing it instead of going all in.

I would have leaned more into the "divide" between the Scions. They don't have to hate each other, but a friendly competition would have been fun. I'd have enjoyed if the first boss of Ihuykatumu were a fight against Thancred + Urianger + Koana all together instead. Could still end with Thancred dropping rocks on us as they run away before the Warrior Of Light overwhelms them or something.

I do like Wuk Lamat, but I would have leaned more into the person we met in the Endwalker Patches. A hunter who has traveled the land. She doesn't have to be completely clueless to still learn more about the cultures in her land. Could still give us a brief idea and then reach the place and learn more (For example "Pelupelu are traders, it's very important to them" and get there and she learns where that aspect comes from, etc)

Also speaking of the cultures. I would have spent more time developing them, as well as the myriad issues surrounding the people there. Give us more time really exploring all these new lands, fill them with more things. Get in depth into it. Commit to learning about a new continent.

I still would have let Wuk Lamat stand back sometimes. Even liking her. I don't think the issue is on her, but rather that she is a victim of the issues. Given Erenville and Krile more time and more to do.

Honestly. I would not have had Solution 9 in Dawntrail. Sure, I don't like the place and it does nothing for me. But more importantly, I think trying to introduce that whole plot meant we had to learn about TWO whole new worlds instead of one, leaving one as rushed exposition and feeling like the first half is "go here listen to this move on" instead. I would have had Dawntrail be both Yok Tural and Xak Tural. Go through South AND North. Involve the North in the trials, and learn about it BEFORE the bubble. Make us really be invested in the pain of the bubble when it happens maybe in the patches. People we knew and areas we'd been to are now gone, children NPCs we helped are now adults. Make it more personal for the player too.

[Zakuyia]

Easy

Remove wuk lamat, spene, zoral ja

Focus on our arr roots, let us explore and see tural through adventuers eyes, remove the boring cultural crap, put much more exciting cultural experience. Remove the boring stealth missions, save solution 9 reveal for another expansion, remove alexandrea golden city and put a literal golden city that is cursed abd spirits of the dead walk the city, save azem gate key for 8.0 to give us means to go to solution 9. Those just some of the smaller things I would change. The stakes don't need to be world ending either.

[TakoyakiLala]

1. Even handed focus between Wuk Lamat, Erenville and Krile.

2. Competitive events that force each team viewing for the Dawn Throne to actually fight or compete in something that would inevitably cause teams to clash with one another.

3. Allow us to actually peer into Krile's mind and see/hear what she is experiencing when her powe of the Echo activates around Zoraal Ja.

4. Allow players to have a more hands-on approach when mentoring Wuk Lamat and give us the option of personally training her in various things we as veteran adventurers could only teach her. Same goes with Erenville, Krile and the Levi twins. Allow each character to spend personal time with Wuk Lamat and train/teach something that helps her become a more competent and reliable person and a better candidate for the Dawn Throne.

5. Allow us to properly peer into Bukool Ja Ja's past with our own Echo so as to allow us as the player to understand ore as the game's story moves forward so it doesn't come off as so jarring when he decides to change his ways for the better.

6. Let us meet Cahciua earlier in the game. She's the energetic and adventurous type that can't stand to just stay in one place. It would have made more sense if we randomly ran into her throughout the first half of the game and then during the second half of the game, she could have been on the train that winds up getting cut off by the interdimensional rift that opens up in Xuk Tural.

7. Punishment for what Bakool Ja Ja for purposely releasing Valigarmanda. While to some degree I can sort of understand why Koana and Wuk Lamat let things slide (Bakool having been put under immense pressure by his father and their people to become the next Dawn Servant by any means necessary to restore his people back glory), Bakool Ja ha still should have been made to do some sort of harsh community service or something. Like being forced to work under the watchful gaze of the Yok Huy until they felt satisfied he payed his dues. In doing this, this could have also lead into a set of Beast Tribe quests that has our character work alongside Bakool Ja Ja in repairing the damages he had caused to the Yok Huy's land when he released Valigarmanda.

[RinaB]

Not sure how I would have written it differently but I really wanted to be done with with scions and truly be on a new adventure. We basically get thrown into dawntrail with no choice after meeting a very....undesirable character. It would have been more impactful if the finale of EW was a big tear filled farewell and reminiscence and as our WoL is on their way to Tulyolal or wherever in the world they have visions guiding them to somewhere or something of obvious great importance. This would have given us a much better feeling of a new adventure, closing the old story and opened the door for a much more WoL oriented story. I honestly didn't even want to be apart of what was happening in DT and frequently found myself asking "why am I doing this? Why am I even here?"

[Zakuyia]

Not sure how I would have written it differently but I really wanted to be done with with scions and truly be on a new adventure. We basically get thrown into dawntrail with no choice after meeting a very....undesirable character. It would have been more impactful if the finale of EW was a big tear filled farewell and reminiscence and as our WoL is on their way to Tulyolal or wherever in the world they have visions guiding them to somewhere or something of obvious great importance. This would have given us a much better feeling of a new adventure, closing the old story and opened the door for a much more WoL oriented story. I honestly didn't even want to be apart of what was happening in DT and frequently found myself asking "why am I doing this? Why am I even here?"

To behonest i really wish it would have been us pulling gra ha over and telling him. Yo we need to get you signed up as a sell sword. From there could've been montage of moments and promises we kept to him at the part with omnicron, make it a time skip to give the final days actual time to breath. Towards Dawn trail it could've been use about to head out to the new world as graha fist bumps us as we say our farewell to him.