Housing for All

[Solowing]

Wards as they are now, are just completely pointless. I have had an FC and personal house since they were established and I have had a total of 1 positive interaction with another player. If they want to keep the wards they need to take a note from WoW and give us ward based activities that require cooperation and give us meaningful rewards for completing them. As it stands now there is zero reason to keep this rushed and poorly designed system in place. Just because Yoshi PR likes wards, doesn't mean they are good for the game or even liked by the player basen and it's about time he realizes that and takes the L so players can have what they actually want. They don't even need to get rid of wards, just give us instanced housing as an option. I would move to an instanced ward in a heartbeat.

People spend the majority of their time in hub cities , or one of the city hubs , what's changing the housing system going to do if the players are still going to spend the majority of their time in the hubs anyway?

Change the housing system and the players are still not going to want to spend time in an instance isolated area.

I think people forget how niche housing actually is. It's not that high on the priority list for most players.

Do you honestly think players are going to prefer doing quest for their housing rather than spending time in the general area where most people congregate?

[Ayan_Calvesse]

What are neighborhoods going to fundamentally change If the player base themselves don't want to be out in a isolated instance.

wards are empty because the aggregate player base does not find housing that high on the priority list.

Why is the wards empty, is my question?

Why do players not want to spend time in the ward system?

How would a neighborhood system change this when players already don't like isolation? Players spend the majority of their time in the hubs. How will the neighborhood system change that priority from the hub space to the neighborhood? Because realistically I don't think it's going to change anything. The players are still going to prefer the social mixing pot of the hubs over isolated neighbourhoods any day of the week

/agree

Move all housing wards to Balmung Quicksands.

[MicahZerrshia]

People spend the majority of their time in hub cities , or one of the city hubs

If that is the case this game is in a lot more trouble than we thought. A few dozen ppl around the aetheryte in LL may look like a lot in that limited space, but if that is the majority of the playerbase than this game's population is so small I wonder how they keep it afloat.

[Solowing]

If that is the case this game is in a lot more trouble than we thought. A few dozen ppl around the aetheryte in LL may look like a lot in that limited space, but if that is the majority of the playerbase than this game's population is so small I wonder how they keep it afloat.

Of course , a lot of players are around engaging with content. What I'm saying, those who just want to relax and enjoy a social experience tend to hang in the major city hubs.Because there's a lot of emergent interactions that are going on there. It's a virtual crossroads.

We are a social creature we like interactions, but the ward system isnt in a crossroad area. Had they been integrated into the city hubs? Oh yeah , you see a lot more interaction and use because its front facing and people wanna feel apart of it.

I do like housing , but the hunger on the forum doesnt match up to the hunger for it ingame. People are gonna say.Housing is as high of a priority as they think it is.Then the data needs to reflect that. Take a walk through several wards and keep asking yourself if people are so hungry for housing , why is it so empty in what's available?

Why does the forum say one thing? And in game shows another?

[Jojoya]

Of course , a lot of players are around engaging with content. What I'm saying, those who just want to relax and enjoy a social experience tend to hang in the major city hubs.Because there's a lot of emergent interactions that are going on there. It's a virtual crossroads.

We are a social creature we like interactions, but the ward system isnt in a crossroad area. Had they been integrated into the city hubs? Oh yeah , you see a lot more interaction and use because its front facing and people wanna feel apart of it.

I do like housing , but the hunger on the forum doesnt match up to the hunger for it ingame. People are gonna say.Housing is as high of a priority as they think it is.Then the data needs to reflect that. Take a walk through several wards and keep asking yourself if people are so hungry for housing , why is it so empty in what's available?

Why does the forum say one thing? And in game shows another?

Here's the thing - how do we know that housing is empty (even when almost every plot is owned) when the majority of housing takes place inside the house/apartment and not outside in the ward?

We may be social creatures overall but we also have occasions when we want to be away from the crowds, with some players feeling that need more often than other players.

Further more, the hub cities tend to have only one active "instance" going except at expansion launch. That means players that want to be in a city like Limsa are all being funneled into the same Limsa. On the other hand, players that want to be in Mist are being divided between 60 different instances just from wards/subdivisions alone or potentially up to 7200 instances if you break it down to houses and apartments. If there are 200 players that want to be in the sole Limsa and 200 players that want to be in their personal/FC housing in Mist, which is going to look busier? Limsa, of course, but that doesn't mean there are fewer players in Mist.

If there were 60 separate instances of Limsa running, with the game trying to spread players going to Limsa evenly between those instances, would it look any different from what one usually sees in a Mist ward?

I've pointed this out many times in the past. The current ward system does not offer a good visual in-game representation of how popular housing is because players are so spread out between multiple instances. It's not efficient as a social activity for the same reason. WoW's system is no better at those things (it's actually worse due to the size of Neighborhoods) despite the current hype though it is better at allowing every player that wants a house to get one.

Housing looks empty because of the poor system design, not because of a lack of interest. I've talked in the past about how it could be redesigned to make it not just feel more active and social but also address the player demand for more medium and large plots. Each district has one ward and every plot within the ward is instanced, with the placard allowing players to choose whose house to visit much as the apartment building entrance is used to select whose apartment to visit.

For the sake of numbers, I logged onto one of my Coeurl characters just now. Limsa shows 127 players (including those in the inn and barracks). Mist shows 81 players (38 of them inside of a house, apartment or in a company workshop). Limsa may be more popular because of people hanging out at the aetheryte but Mist still has a good number of players present. I teleport over to Gridania - 95 players including those in the inn and barracks. Lavender Beds has 111 players (71 inside of a house, apartment or a workshop).

Are you that certain that housing is that unpopular, considering several of the players in Limsa and Gridania were showing as being in cutscenes and so were actively doing quests as opposed to just being in the cities to chill and socialize?

[JohncarterIx]

i bid on a small by the time i got it decorated i won a med house bid dont worry then you win

[Solowing]

snip

The housing ward is empty, and that creates a feedback loop. Where players don't want to spend time in areas nobody else is in. If you're in the ward, you are likely there for your own curiosity, or you are there seeking something. If you are looking for emergent interactions, the hubs cities are better facilitators for player interaction. And since most players are here for the social aspect, the hub city is the defacto place for it.

I don't disagree.

And that perception of looking less busy, is what is going to be a reason why people would still prefer the hub cities. Social Motion creates Social Motion. If you are here for the social aspect, you are going to go where the social space is. And those who are also there for the social aspect are going to follow them. Its a zero sum. The more people in the City Hubs, the less are in the wards. Perception is everything. People like being in places where people already are.

People would find the fullest instance of Limsa and attempt to amass there. Which would bring other people. (I left Brynildr during Stormblood, and transferred to Excalibur specifically looking for a large population server to join, Balmung was first choice, but its consistently locked status prevents me from inviting new friends, so I looked for "not as full" servers)

I personally don't see the ward system as a representation of how popular housing is. I just see a Housing system, that has the unique attribute of having a neighborhood where you live alongside other players. If I want to visit another player like my friend, who lives in Excalibur's Mist in Ward 4 Subdivision Apt 50. I can just.... Go over there.... No need for a friends list, no need for them to be online. You, I, or anyone else in this thread can go visit it. Its has a "physical" address. I don't need their BattleTag, I don't need a friends list, I don't even need them online. For myself I REALLY like it. And personally, I am a fan of it, I like having neighbors, I like having a Ward that can organically change over time. Both Housing styles and tenants. I love having a permanent address that persists as long as I utilize it in some fashion. I get why you guys want what you want. But I like what this system offers. And I'd rather not see yet another system homogenized for accessibility sake.

So lets say you have 1 ward with 50 plots and 100 people living within it. Anyone not on your friends list will not appear. Its less social because of the limitations needed to make it accessible for all. Thousands of players may live in that instanced spot, but only friended or invited will see your name on this selection list? Imagine how Island Sanctuary works, but to get into someones plot


Never said housing was unpopular :P Housing just isn't top 5 of the aggregate player priorities. Not unpopular, it adds to the game. But its not game saving or game breaking. Those who are into it can get INTO it, but we are a minority in the general audience. If they delay the housing upgrade to 8.0 I wouldn't be shocked. Abit disappointed, but not shocked.

[Moqi]

People want housing. They just don't care about wards, or want to deal with a dumb lottery system for a virtual house. There are so many reasons why the current system sucks and discourages interested players.

It's embarassing that such a big game can't even give a house to every player. There are free games out there giving you a whole island to decorate.

[GraceHorizon]

Seriously! I got a house by moving to Dynamis, but I don’t care about being part of a neighborhood, or having a yard or outdoor furniture, I just want a good sized personal space that I can invite other players into. Instanced housing or a bigger apartment (the size of a Medium house) would suit me fine.

[Jojoya]

The housing ward is empty, and that creates a feedback loop. Where players don't want to spend time in areas nobody else is in. If you're in the ward, you are likely there for your own curiosity, or you are there seeking something. If you are looking for emergent interactions, the hubs cities are better facilitators for player interaction. And since most players are here for the social aspect, the hub city is the defacto place for it.

You're making an assumption about player motivation that is less true now than it was 10 years ago. Research has shown that how people prefer to socially interact now is different compared to how they preferred to interact before smart phones and social media began saturating society. This extends even into game play.

There are a few reasons why MMORPGs continue to develop content that can be completed solo, a main one being fewer players have a desire to interact with others except in chat. The number of players demanding content that can be played solo in MMORPGs has been steadily increasing over time. That number is not insignificant considering how many MMORPGs are working to provide that content and make it rewarding in a reasonable fashion, if not as rewarding as content with a mandatory group requirement is.

I suspect "some" is a more accurate word to use now than "most" is.

There are free games out there giving you a whole island to decorate.

What F2P MMORPG is giving all of its players an entire island to decorate for no additional cost?

Trying to compare apples to oranges rarely works well and MMORPGs are more like watermelons than apples or oranges.

Definitely there is room for improvement in FFXIV's housing system, especially when it comes to basic access to a house, but there needs to be more to your argument than "random free game gives me an island". Your random free game is probably getting heavily subsidized by its whales addicted to gacha.