Even zone design and traversal is formulaic

[Valence]

To be perfectly fair Dawntrail is the first expansion where there has actually been some interiors being modeled. Not a lot of them like in ARR, but certainly more than the 1% of every other expansion. If you go to most settlements they do have interiors here and there, sparsely. I take what I can and consider this an improvement.

[AmiableApkallu]

don't play stupid man, you know wha i mean...

None of what you've highlighted has anything to do with the design of the zones. Indeed, as an adventurer, you would expect there to be natural and artificial features blocking your path.

The actual problem is that when our so-called adventurer (the WoL) asks, "How do I go over there?" FFXIV's answer is inevitably, "You've got one option: Do more MSQ."

If this were Shadowbringers, we would have been able to go after the light wardens in whatever order we pleased. If this were Dawntrail, we would have been able to do the various tablets of the right of succession in whatever order we pleased.

But instead, we're forced into one specific order, and one specific path. The initial split at the start of the expansion is merely to avoid another Raubahn EX.

[AmiableApkallu]

Shaloaani and other zones have a plethora of prop buildings that you can't enter because they can't be arsed to design interiors of houses and make them look actually lived in.

That has been a thing since ARR.

The big difference is that ARR buildings at least had the decency to put a "No Entry" sign in front of doors you couldn't go through.

[fulminating]

With the instance system, it should be possible to have just a 1 zone filter shouldn’t it? I don’t know if it would make the expansion feel more distinct, but if they write a story without that restriction they might be less constrained.
Really it’s bookended with the final zone - the story building up a sense of urgency only to spend 90 minutes helping npcs tie their shoelaces. Having a postgame half zone (even as an underground cave system or cavern) could be interesting and help with making the patches feel slightly less like a rehash - then again the goose that lays the golden egg actually being respected is good to see.

[Absurdity]

That has been a thing since ARR.

The big difference is that ARR buildings at least had the decency to put a "No Entry" sign in front of doors you couldn't go through.

ARR was the only time where you had a significant amount of buildings in the zones that you could enter.
The smaller zones also had more small details in the environment, be it clutter, camps, interiors or just NPCs doing their thing.

Then ever since basically Heavensward, and the introduction of flying, the zones became huge but rather bland and lifeless.

[JohnLakeside]

The half-half structure wouldn't even be bad if the zones themselves were designed interestingly and immersively. Currently replaying ARR on an alt and I am blown away by how awesome it is going through those zones for MSQ. It really was peak and I unironically dislike everyone who says ARR has the worst zones. Fools, the lot of them.

ARR was the only time where you had a significant amount of buildings in the zones that you could enter.
The smaller zones also had more small details in the environment, be it clutter, camps, interiors or just NPCs doing their thing.

Then ever since basically Heavensward, and the introduction of flying, the zones became huge but rather bland and lifeless.

ARR has over 40 enterable buildings/rooms with doors that open and close. I've counted. ShB, the expansion fools say has the best zones, only has 12ish enterable buildings. I've counted. LAME!!!