RPC has moved! These pages have been kept for historical purposes

Zyrusticae · **07-30-2015, 06:08 AM**

I just have to remind folks that, for whatever reason, Square Enix still has yet to give us an actual subscriber count or even a new concurrent user record - and that, I suspect, is likely in large part because those numbers just aren't something to be particularly proud of. (That being said, I would at least expect the concurrent user record to have been broken during Heavensward's launch - but surely they would have told us by now if such a thing occurred?)

Don't get me wrong - the game is definitely quality. But it's still a themepark MMORPG, and it's like to be prone to the same trials and tribulations that other themepark MMORPGs are, even if it is a step or three above the others.

(07-29-2015, 03:01 AM)hauntmedoitagain Wrote: Especially with the current skill level of the average player base these days (i.e. not even trying). Most every leveling roulette involves me carrying my party through the storm.

It's sad how many DPS players don't even know how to play their class... and the game never gives them feedback on how they're doing so they don't even realize how poorly they're doing it.

I swear, I shouldn't be near the top of the DPS charts when I'm the bloody MT, but that's still a thing that happens today.

(07-29-2015, 03:01 AM)hauntmedoitagain Wrote: [...]
On the positive, at least they'll make it quicker/easier months from now...?

Hah! All the more reason to take a break, I suppose.

(07-29-2015, 06:05 AM)Artigan Wrote: You're more than likely burnout due to your lifestyle and being able to play all the time (which doesn't discount your points).

If I may suggest: try something other than FFXIV each week: working out, figuring out a good diet plan and preparing your own meals, trying a practical martial art (Boxing, Judo, Wrestling, Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) Yoga, or whatever meets your fancy that isn't based in a virtual world (granted if you budget allows for such distractions).

Yet I agree FFXIV has a major tendency to play the grind game in respect to collecting "tokens" to purchase items, and keeping those "tokens" exclusive or locked to certain dungeons which becomes tedious.

The same issues of 2.0 unfortunately are back.

Oh, no, don't get me wrong, I have pleeeenty of other things to occupy myself with. Especially food. I love messing with new recipes and tweaking old ones.

But, yes, I have probably been playing the game too much regardless. Hitting 60 in a second class within the third week is likely a sign of too much time investment.

Still, I admit, the weekly caps have had an adverse psychological effect on me. I always feel guilty for not at least capping out on my tomestones every week, because none of that rolls around to the next week (and why not? This is one of the weirdest oversights in the game IMO). And that guilt, to be frank, was messing with my head to the point where I could not enjoy the game anymore, because, yeah, it starts to feel like work - like an obligation - rather than like something I do for entertainment.

Which is a big part of why I would like them to add more alternatives for obtaining esoterics, so I wouldn't feel so bloody obligated to run Expert Roulette (and Trial and Frontlines roulettes) day-in and day-out. What reason could they possibly have for not sticking Esoterics on everything?

(07-29-2015, 12:35 PM)Graeham Wrote: It's not really Square Enix's obligation to 'respect someone's time'. The game is set up in such a way as to ensure that if people fall behind there's plenty of ways for them to catch up. If they happen to miss a content patch by the time they return there will still be people running previous content. It's a luxury that many other MMO's don't have.

There's literally no rush to do anything - it's all in everybody's head. The game would run out of steam very quickly if people could acquire everything they desired within a matter of days. I also think that some people just have more time on their hands than they know what to do with and then end up getting frustrated that they can't constantly get instant gratification.

Or maybe they're pressed for time...but again, they can pick up and play the game whenever without missing anything...other than seasonal events, that is.

But they can do better.

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Spoiler'd for length
I mean, it's a serious problem for Square Enix if a significant proportion of players just drop off in the months following a major expansion waiting for the next patch. The whole point of something like Gold Saucer (and the accompanying chocobo races and Triple Triad) was to provide that incentive for players to log in long past the point where the content is exhausted. We need more stuff like that to keep things fresh and keep people subscribed consistently instead of jumping in for some quick sightseeing and then running off like a bunch of MMO tourists.

Mostly, I just want to see them add more sandbox-y stuff and take a few steps back from this content mill themepark style stuff. To be frank, I don't think this is a winning strategy over the long haul - over the short term it works out, sure, but people are going to get tired of the same formula eventually. No series, no single game, is exempt from this. That's why we get things like the 'players as content' PvP gankboxes and MOBAs and other such designs that attempt to get around the problem entirely (and frankly, it works - as long as the base gameplay is actually good, that is). Obviously, I don't mean I want them to ape those games, but to at least try to carve out its own niche instead of being 'World of Final Fantasy the Third'.

The really blatant ripping off of other themepark games got their proverbial foot in the door and a whole lot of good will, but I think that design - that whole paradigm - is over now. Its time is done. This is their chance to really blow peoples' minds and make the game all it can be. But if they just keep throwing more of the same at everyone, the game is just going to stagnate. The population will dip over time, followed by spikes of activity around patches and expansions, and then just dip further and further again over greater lengths of time, just like you see with most other themepark MMORPGs.

They need to start thinking laterally. Not so much vertically. You can only build the tower up so high before it keels over under its own weight. The base just isn't strong enough yet. So much potential in this genre... why should they settle for 'just good enough to survive'?

And, I mean... this is the one game with the largest and most frequent content updates on the entire planet. And it's still just not enough. There is literally no way they can keep this up, either, judging from how much they've been overworking the team simply trying to get Heavensward out the door. It's just not good enough. I won't presume to know exactly how they should improve the game (outside of combat and character creation, anyway - I've got thousands of words with which to expound on those), but the game already has a really strong framework and just needs more built on top of its foundation. More that isn't just... you know... another handful of dungeons, another raid tier, and another batch of short-lived story quests.

I want to have reasons to stay subscribed to the game. I don't like dropping it a month out after every major update. I like a lot of what's already there, but... when I'm done, I'm done. There's just nothing to provide that incentive to come back before that next update. And I know I'm far from being alone in that.

That's fine by me, but is it fine for Square Enix? I suppose time will tell...

Patch 3.05 Notes

RPC has moved! These pages have been kept for historical purposes