Is the water that bad?

[Rydin]

Sorry but the water in this game is pretty unacceptable. And I'm not just saying that to be a dick. It's true! Take note next time you're on the boat or in Limsa. It's just terrible. Even in Coerthas you can't look at it for very long without becoming disenchanted.

That's funny... but you're right. The boat ride water is sub par compared to everything else....
It really does look like a Windows Media Player visualization.... hahaha...
And yet Shroud gets more hate than any zone...

[Sinzfeldt]

Yes the water is that bad. The water is essentially a flat square with a texture and a shader on it. EQ2 had water you could swim in and water that ACTUALLY MOVED, a crazy concept i know!

[gifthorse]

That's funny... but you're right. The boat ride water is sub par compared to everything else....
It really does look like a Windows Media Player visualization.... hahaha...
And yet Shroud gets more hate than any zone...

While the water in Black Shroud is the least of the zone's worries, that doesn't necessarily make the water good. It's only good by comparison.

I mean, other games have such nicer looking water than FFXIV, even free games.

[Laughlyn]

id like to some more life inside the water, possibly the "Fish" type you can catch in it.
(or atleast some varity, dont want a shark swimming around in 2 inches of water do we...lol)

[Rankin]

In my opinion the only things that look good is the characters everything else is second rate no shadows casted water is flat and stale light passes through stuff characters do not stand properly on surfaces they sometimes float if the terrain is slanted its just crap

[Alzelia]

That's funny... but you're right. The boat ride water is sub par compared to everything else....
It really does look like a Windows Media Player visualization.... hahaha...
And yet Shroud gets more hate than any zone...

Any idea why the Black Shroud, ( which I will call the BS from here on out) is so much better in this regard?

[Xatsh]

Well the water in limsa does not look at that bad, it is very choppy and not transparent. Corethas lakes are very calm and the water is not clear. The river in corethas look real good in my opinion, and the crystal clear creek things in grid are top notch.

The only water that fails completely is the boat, and the ocean is too calm need more waves and what not as it gets closer to land. Besides that I see nothing wrong with the water.

[gifthorse]

Well the water in limsa does not look at that bad, it is very choppy and not transparent. Corethas lakes are very calm and the water is not clear. The river in corethas look real good in my opinion, and the crystal clear creek things in grid are top notch.

The only water that fails completely is the boat, and the ocean is too calm need more waves and what not as it gets closer to land. Besides that I see nothing wrong with the water.

If you stare at the water for too long anywhere in the game, you realise it is all the same thing: a moving tile that barely represents what water looks like, let alone its interaction with its environment. It's a very old-fashioned representation of water. There are new standards and it's weird to see a graphic's engine that seems so capable in other areas fall so far behind in this area.

[Munba]

I don't dislike the water effect (river and lake one) but the interaction with it. When you walk in it the effect is horrible. It needs better splashes and more whirls effects. The sea water instead is rather normal.

[Sinzfeldt]

Gifthorse just posted a link, it isn't that hard to outdo ffxivs water so a simple youtube search will work too.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1WRktXLtrM