FF14 player count reached the lowest point in 4 years. We lost 75% of the playerbase.

[Exmo]

At the rate things are going, it might not be an exaggeration soon. The forum is starting to look like a ghost town now, and when people stop complaining...

"Starting to look like a ghost town now" when the forums were manic for the past few weeks excepting this one feels like doomsaying.

[Masha_Awandah]

"Starting to look like a ghost town now" when the forums were manic for the past few weeks excepting this one feels like doomsaying.

Well, all the usual doomsayers unsubscribed, so someone has to fill the void.

Jokes aside, the past few weeks mania was due to several news that left a bad taste in a lot of people's mouth, so the eerie silence of the last couple days does not inspire confidence.

[Exmo]

Well, all the usual doomsayers unsubscribed, so someone has to fill the void.

Jokes aside, the past few weeks mania was due to several news that left a bad taste in a lot of people's mouth, so the eerie silence of the last couple days does not inspire confidence.

As soon as there's more news or another interview, the whingers will be back in full force, don't worry.

[All_Nonsense]

whingers [sic]

People like you are intriguing to me. If we have an issue with the game then the dev's tell us to say so on the forum because they're stuck in 2001 and forget that other forms of social media are where most players express their opinions of the game. Then we come to the forum and say we have an issue with the game. Then the dev's ignore us and people on the forums tell us that if we're not here to glaze Lordgod Yoshi P then we should unsub and play other games. And then we do. And then it gets quiet on the forums and they start to lower the production quality of FF14 because it's bleeding players and the income flow is disappearing at a rate so alarming that SE investors are speaking out. Are you going to call them whingers [sic] too (I'm assuming you were trying to call valid complaints "whining" in an effort to minimalize the validity of the complaint and shift the focus from the billion dollar company who actually has a responsibility in the matter back to the player. For what reason I simply cannot intelligently reason)?

It's such bizarre behavior. Trying to invalidate the legitimacy of a complaint by painting the individual who's making the complaint as emotional or irrational. To what end? I simply have to know. The forum was designed for feedback and discussion. If you don't like the feedback and discussion, may I recommend Reddit or Bluesky? Twitter lets people who have legitimate complaints speak their minds though so you might wanna avoid that place.

Remember, most players have left the game full stop. And most of those didn't even say a word when they left, they just left. It should be seen as a blessing to the dev's that some of us are willing to give some insight into why their flagship game is in decline, and will eventually begin to enter a state of failure at this rate. Obstructing legitimate criticism and valid feedback is not a boon for the game's health, it is a detriment. The forum goalies need to realize this.

[Elephantality]

Then the dev's ignore us and people on the forums tell us that if we're not here to glaze Lordgod Yoshi P then we should unsub and play other games.

I definitely agree with you that we should post our feedback here. Even if we may or may not agree on the feedback. I agree that the numbers are what they should be looking at.

[brinn12]

"Starting to look like a ghost town now" when the forums were manic for the past few weeks excepting this one feels like doomsaying.

"Manic" = a few dozen people posting. In a game that has reached 1 million+ active players.

[Supersnow845]

I’m amazed that people don’t see how “forums only seem to have energy when stupid controversy borne of squares awful decision making comes around” isn’t just a massive red flag in it of itself

And I’m one of the “manic” poster exmo would be describing, even I barely care anymore

[BlisteringFrost]

People like you are intriguing to me. If we have an issue with the game then the dev's tell us to say so on the forum because they're stuck in 2001 and forget that other forms of social media are where most players express their opinions of the game. Then we come to the forum and say we have an issue with the game. Then the dev's ignore us and people on the forums tell us that if we're not here to glaze Lordgod Yoshi P then we should unsub and play other games. And then we do. And then it gets quiet on the forums and they start to lower the production quality of FF14 because it's bleeding players and the income flow is disappearing at a rate so alarming that SE investors are speaking out. Are you going to call them whingers [sic] too (I'm assuming you were trying to call valid complaints "whining" in an effort to minimalize the validity of the complaint and shift the focus from the billion dollar company who actually has a responsibility in the matter back to the player. For what reason I simply cannot intelligently reason)?

It's such bizarre behavior. Trying to invalidate the legitimacy of a complaint by painting the individual who's making the complaint as emotional or irrational. To what end? I simply have to know. The forum was designed for feedback and discussion. If you don't like the feedback and discussion, may I recommend Reddit or Bluesky? Twitter lets people who have legitimate complaints speak their minds though so you might wanna avoid that place.

Remember, most players have left the game full stop. And most of those didn't even say a word when they left, they just left. It should be seen as a blessing to the dev's that some of us are willing to give some insight into why their flagship game is in decline, and will eventually begin to enter a state of failure at this rate. Obstructing legitimate criticism and valid feedback is not a boon for the game's health, it is a detriment. The forum goalies need to realize this.

Discrediting people online and achieving nothing in the process is a popular thing to do. You'll get used to it. If the post is concerningly bad enough there's even a button for that.

[Sani2341]

I’m amazed that people don’t see how “forums only seem to have energy when stupid controversy borne of squares awful decision making comes around” isn’t just a massive red flag in it of itself

And I’m one of the “manic” poster exmo would be describing, even I barely care anymore

Yeah

When even was one of the casual threads up on the front Page? Think the whole 'show your X race glam' threads, or tales from DF, etc. Stuff that's normal Forum chitchat not complaints.

[Exmo]

Not everyone who complains is a whinger.
If you get defensive at the thought that you might be a whinger, you might be a whinger.
I said the forums were manic, not people were manic. Deliberately misreading simple sentences uncharitably makes you look like a total thorn.