Pseudo Content

[Drazzan]

I'm unsure what Dev Tags to chuck in here, if any at all. So I'm just going to go ahead without them.

Many people on Final Fantasy XIV complain about the lack of any content. We all know the content is coming, and coming at a fast pace, that it'll soon be with us. But its entirely possible to dub down the wait for the content using Pseudo Content.

Many of you will /sigh or just stop reading as I mention this, but many people fail to realise the impact it has on a game. I propose a form of Achievement System for Final Fantasy XIV. It's simple the reasons why.
1) There is already a form of Achievement System integrated into The Lodestone.
2) Achievements increase a player's want to play the game.
3) Granting the player a bonus reward for achieving means the player gets gratification and a sense of success.
4) Achievements are used in almost all forms of gaming now; to increase playability, re-playability and to make players indulge in Game Mechanics they may have not touched.

Mentioned above is the Achievement System that's already integrated into The Lodestone. Located on the History Tab a player can see a list of achievements that he has obtained. I.e Obtained Shield Rank 25, Obtained Physical Level 40 Achieved, Player has attuned themselves with Aetheryte X, Completed Quest X and Obtained Mark Ability X.
It's clear to see that this system here was designed with a similar goal in mind, but sadly with integration with the website and not the game; means many players miss-out or don't notice this system as it is not a focal part of the game.
The achievements on The Loadstone are very generic and very boring but they don't have to be. Achievements such as:

Cartographer - Thanalan:
Player has attuned with all Aethryte Camps, Aethryte Gates in Thanalan as well as visiting; The Swamplands of Thanalan, The Highcliffs of Thanalan and the Port of Thanalan.

Cartographer - Ul'dah:
Player has explored all Ul'dah has to offer and has visited; Ul'dah Aetheryte Palace, Chocobo Stables, The Dunes, Ruby Road Exchange, Sapphire Avenue Exchange, The Quicksand, The Hourglass, Platinum Mirage, The Coliseum, Eshtaime's Lapidaries, Sunsilk Tapestries, Amanji & Sons Mineral Concern, Arrzaneth Ossuary and Frondale's Phronstiery.

Savior - Heal 100 Damage
A True Ally - Heal 1,000 Damage
Guardian Angel - Heal over 100,000 Damage
Blessing of Thaliak - Heal over 1,000,000 Damage

Brawler - Deal 100 Physical Damage
Knight in Training - Deal 1,000 Physical Damage
Elite Champion - Deal 100,000 Physical Damage
Halone's Fury - Deal over 1,000,000 Physical Damage

This is purely just some examples, Achievements could also be added for the following:
Partying a certain number of times
Completing a Story Line
Completing Quests
Attaining Levels/Ranks
Obtain a certain set of gear
Defeat a certain NM
Obtain a certain number of marks
Complete a certain number of leves
etc

Now, as for rewards. I want this to be something we could discuss, I have several ideas.
The first; A player receives points for each Achievement Obtained, taking these points to an NPC, he will weigh your total number of points against a system and the player will receive an Item/Equipment/SP/Attribute/Elemental Points. An idea of this would be
0 Points = Nothing
100 Points = Item
200 Points = X amount of Gil
300 Points = Equipment Piece
400 Points = SP Reward (Player will be notified and will be able to change Class)
500 Points = X amount of Attribute/Elemental Points

Physical Experience shouldn't be added to the equation as players who have maxed out their Physical Levels will be unable to obtain a reward, unless this could be changed so that the player is awarded X amount of Gil/SP if their Physical Level is 50.

The Second; The player is granted a level in Achievements and the more advanced achievements he obtains the greater the Achievement Experience and the greater the reward upon leveling.

The Third; Every 100 Points the Player obtains X amount of Attribute/Elemental Points, meaning that the player will be able to obtain a reward fairly easily and the reward will always be the same.

This is just some ideas on how an Achievement System could be integrated and how it could encourage players to play more. Having this system would add alternative goals within the game and give players things to work toward. This system is fairly common practice and I personally think it would make a good addition to Final Fantasy XIV.

Thanks for reading ^~^

[Colino]

I'm unsure what Dev Tags to chuck in here, if any at all. So I'm just going to go ahead without them.

Many people on Final Fantasy XIV complain about the lack of any content. We all know the content is coming, and coming at a fast pace, that it'll soon be with us. But its entirely possible to dub down the wait for the content using Pseudo Content.

Many of you will /sigh or just stop reading as I mention this, but many people fail to realise the impact it has on a game. I propose a form of Achievement System for Final Fantasy XIV.

We have those semi-achievements on the lodestone and that's all we need, to be honest. Achievements are pseudo and fake content as it gets. They don't add anything except for frustration and repetition, not to mention they don't fit with the lore of the game and can completely ruin immersion. They just don't make sense.

If you're after bragging rights that's a whole different story, but from a content perspective achievements is definitely NOT what this game needs.

[Verecund]

I think the real weight or value in achievements (besides a fun or perky thing to do) is to present a long-term or higher-valued goal to achieve.

[Drazzan]

While I do agree with the game needing more than this; I think a system like this will enable the game to seem more enjoyable, or rather; lessen the wait and give players something to partake in while waiting for content to arrive. When you mention Immersion, what you say is true; however I often find myself removed from the Immersion of MMOs purely because of the Players, and Tasks that are performed. The only time I feel truly immersed in an MMO is when I'm involved in a heavy Story-Content Mission. There is also no reason that the Development Team can't tie lore into the Achievement System.

[Masamune]

I really, really, really like this idea. Should be easy to implement, it's already tracked, and it adds something to do. Then again I'm crazy for getting platinum trophies. Make it a guild somewhere and just give out rewards that are not very important but entertaining.

[Drazzan]

I really, really, really like this idea. Should be easy to implement, it's already tracked, and it adds something to do. Then again I'm crazy for getting platinum trophies. Make it a guild somewhere and just give out rewards that are not very important but entertaining.

I was thinking the same thing, as it's already tracked they must have a statistics system somewhere in Final Fantasy XIV. Perhaps this was an idea that was on the table?, either way; I hope it gets attention and something like this can be added, tying it with the lore of the game would be unique and interesting.

[Seif]

/sigh but I agree it seems like a pretty low hanging fruit so why not implement it? If the players had housing it would be cool if these achievements could be displayed as trophies in some wall with a proper amount of slots for them to get that "gotta cat...achieve them all!"-feeling.

[Drazzan]

/sigh but I agree it seems like a pretty low hanging fruit so why not implement it? If the players had housing it would be cool if these achievements could be displayed as trophies in some wall with a proper amount of slots for them to get that "gotta cat...achieve them all!"-feeling.

Yeah~ Many players do dislike the idea of achievements and trophies however, those that do enjoy them would love a system, especially for the whole bragging rights. Not to mention that it may keep the people wanting to just "try" the game around a bit longer to see the real content.

[Felis]

I was thinking the same thing, as it's already tracked they must have a statistics system somewhere in Final Fantasy XIV. Perhaps this was an idea that was on the table?

I think this too. Maybe the Lodestone achievement system is a beta for the PS3 trophy system?

[Drazzan]

I think this too. Maybe the Lodestone achievement system is a beta for the PS3 trophy system?

Could be a possible idea of why it exists. I thought it was odd when it was added to Lodestone but no feature existed in the game, I'm pretty sure they meant to add something to the game ^~^