Quote:[email protected]

Bayohne for Yoshi-P Wrote:Hello everyone, director and producer Yoshida here.

Thank you for the large amount of feedback on the content released between the launch of Heavensward and Patch 3.15.

We’ve been reading over all of your feedback as well as playing the game alongside you, and we understand that there are various issues with game balance and content balance at the moment.

We plan on correcting the game balance in Patch 3.2, the next major update; however, I would like to take a moment to discuss the development teams understanding of the current problems that have developed from 3.0 to 3.15 and the thought process on how we plan on addressing them in Patch 3.2.

I’ll be covering many different points, so I apologize for the long read.

The Difficulty and Rewards for Alexander: Gordias (Savage)

One of the major pillars of FFXIV’s game design is based on the item level of weapons and armor. Furthermore, the latest raid, Alexander: Gordias (Savage) is content where you are able to obtain items with the highest stats as a dropped item.

The difficulty and the item level of the items that can be obtained in this raid were set to be the highest in terms of game balance, so I would like to start off by talking about this point.

Jumping straight to the conclusion, I feel that the difficulty level of Alexander: Gordias (Savage) is too high. I’ve met many players from all over the world and have been hearing requests for even harder content, and it was to answer these requests that we set the raid to its current difficulty. However, this caused the following as a result.
The difficulty was high to the point that players were transferring to different Worlds in search of groups to beat it.
The difficulty was high to the point that players were unable to clear the content, and the time in which they were unable to obtain items grew too long.
Due to the severity of DPS checks, it’s not possible to supplement with item levels only.
Players who were seeking difficult content welcomed this, but for those who are unable to beat this content, it’s the same as if Savage never existed, and we are reflecting back on this now.

Based on this, we are currently making balance adjustments to Alexander: Midas (Savage), which is scheduled for release in Patch 3.2, so that the difficulty is somewhere between The Second Coil of Bahamut and the Final Coil of Bahamut.

With these balance adjustments, I believe the number of people who are able to clear this content will increase, and it will be possible to find parties to challenge this content on your own World.

Furthermore, we also understand that obtaining an item level 210 weapon for clearing the fourth area of the extremely difficult Alexander: Gordias (Savage) is an issue due to the fact that this is the same item level as that of the upgraded Esoterics weapon. Had Savage offered an item level 215 weapon, it would have given a clearer identity to those who cleared this content. It would also have made it possible to implement the Esoteric weapon upgrade and Anima weapons earlier, and in turn made those easier to obtain.

In summary, the development team feels that the difficulty level of Alexander: Gordias (Savage) and the item level of the rewards for this content were poorly set, and as a result it largely affected the content that came afterwards.

Based on the feedback that we have been receiving, we will be lowering the difficulty of Alexander: Midas (Savage) that will be implemented in Patch 3.2, while simultaneously setting the item level of the Savage weapon and the item level of the new Allagan tomestone weapon to be different. We would like to revamp the overall balance moving forward with these changes.

Exploratory Missions

Exploratory missions were implemented as a new type of content based on the idea that items can be randomly obtained through farming and players could create their own rules and approaches. Up until recently, there were many limiting rules and a focus on set content in FFXIV.

However, since this deviated greatly from the content we’ve had up until now, there has been challenges involving the friction between players who want to gather and those who wish to battle, as well as the length of time spent playing this content.

Additionally, due to the fact that this was new content, we felt the need to include reward items which were attractive, which is why we decided to add item level 210 items to Diadem. This had both pros and cons. With the item level of the rewards for Alexander: Gordias (Savage) set to 210, we had to restrict the amount of item level 210 gear in circulation in order to maintain the minimum amount of motivation for players challenging Savage.

Just as mentioned in the feedback we have been receiving, had the item level been 205, I believe we could have kept it as it was for farming and not had to make adjustments. This equipment could then have been used to challenge Savage, and we feel that this was an issue as well.

In accordance with feedback, we will be aiming to make exploratory mission content more rule based, such as the following.
More chances for exploration.
Make a system for matching routes with different objectives such as battle and gathering focused.
Add variation to the exploration objectives, and make it more fun to explore as an individual party.
Create set rewards and make it so that farming is not the only objective.
Reduce the content time, and turn it into content that does not rely greatly on player skill.
We'll be introducing changes via maintenance in order to reduce the content time of exploratory missions and to make adjustments to the balance of item circulation, while making it into a place for collecting items and spirit bonding. We’re also planning a large scale expansion to this content in the next exploratory mission update. We’ll be utilizing everyone’s feedback as much as possible for this.

Anima Weapons

The successor to the Zodiac weapons, Anima weapons, have been implemented; however, their balance is directly linked to the item levels of the rewards for Alexander: Gordias (Savage).

Since it is currently only possible to obtain an item level 210 weapon from Alexander: Gordias (Savage), the time and effort required to create an Anima weapon was set to be roughly the same level with this as a benchmark.

Similar to Zodiac weapons, Anima weapons are based on the following concepts.
Will not be the strongest weapon at the same time as the rewards for clearing the hardest difficulty content.
Clearing the hardest difficulty content will not require you to obtain Zodiac/Anima weapons.
Creating these weapons will require you to put in effort over a longer period of time.
Just as mentioned in the patch notes, a long period of time will be required to complete Zodiac and Anima weapons, and they have been designed based on the idea that you will progress through the series at your own pace. Additionally, this content is strongly geared towards the element of time for players who are not into raids or other difficult content, or for those who wish to play solo.

An exception to this concept was the necessity to beat the hard versions of Ifrit, Garuda, and Titan for the relics released at 2.0; however, looking at the percentage of players who possessed relics at that time, we determined that this was a wall for players who were not into difficult content.

The development team will no longer be using difficult content such as this, but in the event that they utilize content completion as a requirement it would be on the level of storyline primal battles or Alexander normal, and such. By doing so, even players who are not into clearing difficult content will have a goal and be able to earn powerful weapons if they put in the time, though they will be slower to reach this point than the top tier of players.

However, due to the fact that the item level for Alexander: Gordias (Savage) is 210, we were unable to make the current Anima weapons any higher than this, which resulted in concerns being raised about Esoteric weapons and the lifetime of weapons that are to be implemented in Patch 3.2. Furthermore, with the difficulty of Savage being very high, Anima weapons have become the sole option for obtaining item level 210 weapons for some, and we understand there is an issue with there being no other options.

With these weapons starting at item level 170, players who have joined the game later can quickly reach item level 200 without having to rely on the weekly limited Esoterics. Additionally, in regards to collecting crystals through FATEs, using feedback from the 2.X period, we eliminated the job restrictions, removed level restrictions, and prepared multiple avenues for obtaining items, so players are able to collect items how they want.

With all that said though, we will be revamping the item level hierarchy in Patch 3.2 and making adjustments so the flow afterwards is more fitting. The next phases for enhancing Anima weapons will take place in Patch 3.25 and Patch 3.3.

While we've been receiving requests to make Anima weapons involve more challenging content and to not tie it to randomness or crafted items, just as I mentioned above, this is content that is focused on creating weapons by spending time, so I’d appreciate everyone’s understanding that this is an option for players who are not into challenging difficult content.

To repeat what I said earlier, we made mistakes with the setting of the difficulty for Alexander: Gordias (Savage) and the item level of the rewards, which affected the content that came afterwards leading up to Patch 3.15. We are reflecting on this problem, and based on everyone’s feedback we will be revamping the balance of the game from Patch 3.2 onwards.

As always, thank you very much for your feedback and support!

Quote:We've been receiving a lot of feedback, and we understand that the game balance has been disturbed as of Patch 3.15. Due to this, we will be revamping the overall balance in Patch 3.2

Regarding Alexander: Gordias (Savage)

This raid is currently the hardest content in FFXIV, and it is the top of the item hierarchy. Since this is relevant to the future, I’ll start off by talking about this first.

We implemented the more difficult Savage mode in addition to normal mode to answer the requests we received globally for more difficulty content.

However, we received comments stating that it was too difficult, and we've been reflecting on this--especially the aspect where the DPS check was too severe. It has been difficult to find members that have the motivation to clear this content on the same World, and players have even took to transferring Worlds in order to beat it, which makes me feel that we overdid it. Additionally, for the people that feel it’s too difficult to even attempt to challenge Savage, it’s essentially the same as if this content never existed.

Alexander: Midas will debut in Patch 3.2, but compared to the current Alexander: Gordias, we have eased the difficulty in the Savage mode. As an image the difficulty is something in between Second Coil of Bahamut and Final Coil of Bahamut.

There are three paths for obtaining equipment in FFXIV:
Obtaining items via difficult raids.
Obtaining equipment by earning tokens over time.
Spending a long period of time (such as Anima weapons)
Regardless of the path you choose, you will be able to reach the top of the item level hierarchy.

However, due to the fact the reward for completing The Burden of the Father (Savage) was low, and in order to maintain it’s value, it affected item levels of other equipment which can be obtained from other content.

In Alexander: Midas, we're thinking of setting the value higher for the items earned when completing it, especially compared to that which can be obtained from other content. Also, by lowering the difficulty of the more difficult version, that doesn’t mean it’ll be much easier. Normal mode’s difficulty will remain as is.

We believe those trying to clear the content at the earliest possible moment will try different methods, and we would like to set the difficulty to where players can enjoy the challenge overall.
We think it'd be best to have the difficulty set to a point where players can say "that wasn't too bad" after completing the content.

Regarding The Diadem Wrote:Regarding the Diadem

While most of the content in FFXIV has various rules, we didn't set any hard rules for exploratory missions, and designed this content around the concept of players creating their own rules. However, we've been receiving feedback asking for such things as a system that makes it so gatherers and battle classes are not mixed together.

I feel that the largest issue with this is the fact that system-wise the rules are lacking. We're not done with exploratory missions, and we’ll be adding the next phase of content based on the feedback that we have been receiving globally. We’d like to thoroughly establish rules and objectives. Additionally, we’d like to create a system that allows for players with the similar objectives to group up--such as players who wish to gather.

Due to the fact that there are changes in the materia system in Patch 3.2, we know that there will be more of a demand for materia, and although there hasn’t been any issue with the amount distributed from item exchange, we were watching the amount of item level 210 gear being distributed. If it remained as is, it'd have further lessen the drive to complete raids so we had to introduce limitations.

As everyone’s feedback mentioned, we believe the optimal item level for gear obtained from exploratory missions should have been 205.

For the next exploratory missions, we would like to not only include balance adjustments, but feature more of the "exploration" aspect.

However, in Patch 3.2 there will be a greater demand for materia from exploratory missions, so we would like to change the content time to around 45-60 minutes, and make adjustments to amount of aether currents to accompany this.

Regarding Anima Weapons Wrote:Regarding Anima Weapons

This content is focused on creating weapons over a long period of time, and we understand that there are pros and cons to this.

We’ve been receiving feedback asking for more challenging elements; however, just as I explained earlier, there are three paths for obtaining equipment in FFXIV
Obtaining items via difficult raids.
Obtaining equipment by earning tokens over time.
Spending a long period of time (such as Anima weapons)
The third path on this list is for Zodiac and Anima weapons.

For players who are confident in their skills, they can make their rounds of the extreme primals. However, for players who are not confident, it is possible to earn a powerful weapon by spending their time working towards it.

With that said, we don’t plan on associating extreme primals without the Echo for this content.
We understand that there have been requests for content with a difficulty similar to the Hydra trial or hard mode Garuda and Titan, but after looking over player data, the number of players who obtained weapons during that time period was quite low. Due to this, they were unable to challenge the subsequent content. Currently, other content has has been affected due to the difficulty of Savage, and since there has not been any easing for upgrading Esoteric weapons, Anima weapons have become the sole option for increasing everyone’s weapon item level. We will be thoroughly revamping this in Patch 3.2.

In order to explain about the above, I started off by first explaining the state of Alexander: Gordias (Savage). We’ll be balancing these aspects in Patch 3.2.

Next I would like to talk about the lifespan of the Anima weapon.

There are comments saying if it was this, it could have started from Patch 3.1, but the reason behind why we have set the item level to 170, 200, and 210, is because we wanted new starting players to be able to focus on obtaining Allagan tomestone of Estoreric gear as a priority which has weekly restrictions. As for the phase where players need to obtain items from FATEs, we made adjustments based on feedback so that players can choose their path while upgrading from item level 200 to 210, or obtain the various items while leveling other jobs.

For example, if Alexander (Savage) weapons were item level 215, then we could have shortened the amount of time it takes to reach item level 210. As for the lifespan of Anima weapons that everyone is concerned about, we will make adjustments to their overall lifespan. We will make updates on Anima weapon in Patch 3.25 and Patch 3.3.

However, Patch 3.25 will likely focus more on adjustments, while the large update to this quest will occur in Patch 3.3.

Question and Answers Wrote:Q1 : Daily beast tribe quests are involved in obtaining the required items for “Coming into Its Own,” but when the quest involves completing a certain FATE it often takes a lot of time. Could you please increase the frequency that these FATEs occur?

A1 : We're currently in the midst of making adjustments to increase their frequency.

Q2: There are instances where you accept the wrong quest when progressing through the Anima quest line with multiple jobs. Would it be possible to make it so that you cannot retake the quest with the same job?

A2: We’re currently addressing this.

Q3: There are a lot of items needed to proceed through the Anima weapon quest, and since they are regular items I feel like I am going to accidentally sell it. Could you make these (Unidentifiable XXX) items key items?

A3: We won’t be making these into key items; however, we would like to address this so they cannot be sold.

Q4: We have the auto reclamation this month, but can you please let us know about future addition of land?

A4: We have confirmed that we will be increasing the amount of land for existing housing areas in Patch 3.3. After this we’re planning to introduce mansion type housing, and housing in the Ishgard area. These two are being developed in parallel, but in order to meet everyone’s demand, we will implement the mansion-type housing as a first priority. Currently it’s being planned that one mansion will be able to hold 512 residences. As for gardening, we think this will be difficult, but we’re currently developing new pots that will allow gardening, so please look forward to this.

As for furnishings with high demand, we have a goal now to increase the amount of items which can be placed, so please wait a bit longer.

Q5: Recently, other than for glamouring, the need for crafted equipment has fallen. In the future, do you have plans to implement equipment with stats high enough that can be used for raids?

A5: The new crafted equipment we will be implementing in Patch 3.2 is strong. You’ll be able to use this new gear at the same time as the new accessories, and since you can also advanced materia meld this equipment, I think there will be a demand from those who are striving to complete the raid quickly.

Regarding Patch 3.2 Content Wrote:Quest-related
Addition of new main scenario quests
We'll finally be heading towards the climax of the Dragonsong War.
Addition of new side quests
Addition of Gnath beast tribe quests
There was a wide variety of interesting text for the Vanu Vanu quests, and the lead writer for those quests is also the lead for these quests as well.

Dungeons
The Antitower
This is part of the main scenario. You will understand the reasoning for this name once you go there. Players will be able to go here at an early point of the main scenario.
The Lost City of Amdapor (Hard)
Players will be able to find out what happened after Diablos, the boss of the normal mode, fled the area.

Trials

At long last we will be starting a new series of primal battles, the Warring Triad.

The first installment will be Containment Bay S1T7, and we’ll be simultaneously implementing the extreme version as well.

Unlike we’ve been doing up until now, we’ve decided to make it easier to understand by eliminating the “hard” mode naming, since it’s confusing that you are all of a sudden fighting against a hard mode version straight away. The difficulty will be on par with the “Hard” we’ve seen until now.

The battle is extremely flashy, and there just might be a mechanic where you can fall.
In case you were wondering, the lead for this battle is the person who was in charge of both Titan and Thordan’s Reign.

Update to the Wolves’ Den

The second installment of the Wolves' Den is called “The Feast.”
I’ll be going into more detail about this content during the next Letter LIVE.

While the current Wolves’ Den is essentially a death match, The Feast features something similar to a point system as we would like to make it easier for players to get into this content and enjoy it like a sport. By defeating your opponents you can steal their points, and you are competing for the total amount of points.
8vs8 (Win/loss rate does not apply)
This is the easiest to get into. There are a lot of people in this mode, so everyone shares the responsibility. The win/loss rate does not apply, so your rating will not increase or decrease. You’ll only be able to queue up to this mode solo or with one other player.
4vs4 (Win/loss rate applies)
You will only be able to queue up to this mode solo, and the win/loss rate will apply.
4vs4 (Win/loss rate does not apply)
You will only be able to queue up to this mode solo. The win/loss rate does not apply here, so you can use this to practice.
4vs4 (Light party, win/loss rate applies)
You will only be able to queue up to this as a light party, and the win/loss rate applies.
4vs4 (Light party, win/loss rate does not apply)
You will only be able to queue up to this mode as a light party. The win/loss rate does not apply here, so you can use this to practice.

Furthermore, static party and solo ranking will have separate ratings.

This time we’re going with “Seasons” system. The first season will be in Patch 3.25. The duration of the first season will be about three and a half months long until Patch 3.35. Ratings will be updated on daily basis, and we are preparing exclusive rewards for top players in the season.

Additionally, there are ranks. By accumulating a specific amount of rating, there will be matches to increase in ranks where players will need to win 3 out of 5 matches in order to move onto the next rank. There are rewards for each rank, so players will be able to fight against the position which matches their level.

Ranking will stop once the season is over. And when the next season begins, all the ratings will be reset.

The Feast will be implemented from Patch 3.2, but there is a pre-season match from Patch 3.2 to Patch 3.25. During this time we’ll make job, and rating adjustments for PvP, and we will begin the first season in Patch 3.25.

Orchestrion

We’ve kept you all waiting for quite some time now, but this is the jukebox that I’ve been talking about for a while.

You’ll be able to place this in the inn, house, and private chamber, and it will play music if you have the music sheets for it. These music sheets can be obtained through various content and we will also be selling them in-game as well.

There will also be an individual log of what sheets you’ve acquired, so I think it will be fun as a collectable element. Of the sheets you can acquire, there will also be those that can be created by Disciples of the Hand. Additionally, you’ll be able to obtain a song as an achievement for collecting 10. Orchestrion music sheets are scattered throughout various content such as Gold Saucer and battle-related content. They can also be traded. We’ll be implementing 47 songs in Patch 3.2, and we plan on releasing around 20-30 songs in updates afterwards.

The Hall of the Novice

Players will be able to train in two ways; training which doesn’t involve roles, and training for each role. Training which doesn’t involve roles will be available right before entering Sastasha which involved dodging area of effect attacks. After this players will be able to start training for each roles which has about seven tasks each. There is also something like a graduation, and players will be rewarded with gear when completing it. There will be a specific building for this. There will be explanation for terms such as “DoTs”.

The Mentor System (Tentative)

This system will allow veteran players to be called “Mentors” for Disciple of War/Magic and also Disciples of the Land and Hand. Once players become a “Mentor” they will be able to use a system which will help new adventurers. This is basically a system where people can help out. Players will be able to use features such as a roulette called the “Mentor Roulette.”

Striking dummy training mode
This is an opportunity to test your skills by seeing if you can defeat a test dummy in a certain amount of time. I realize that skill rotations will differ depending on the content, but we’re hoping that practicing to defeat this striking dummy will serve as a nice benchmark.

Materia system changes
As mentioned earlier, the materia system will be changed. From Patch 3.2 equipment purchased with tomestones will include materia slots.

New Allagan tomestone
We’ll be implementing a new type of Allagan tomestone.

Directly selling items from retainers
We’ll be adding a new feature that will allow you to sell items directly from your retainers.

Minimap elevation information
We’ll be making it possible to tell whether your party members are above you with a new minimap feature that indicates elevation differences.

4K resolution support
We’ve been receiving comments from players who have high-spec PCs and 4K displays mentioning that the UI is too small. We will be addressing this over multiple patches.

The next real life FATE - Kagoshima

We'll introduce further details for content that will be implemented in Patch 3.2, and various information which includes information such as other existing ground mounts which will be able fly, and dyeable Allagan/High Allagan gear. Stay tuned for more info!

(12-23-2015, 09:52 AM)Virella Wrote: I had hoped to see a 2016 fanfest for Europe so I could meet up with my old EU FC, but nope, gotta wait longer then I've expected but on the upside, maybe around that time we will have the next expansion rolling in soon tm? We will see I guess!

(12-23-2015, 11:04 AM)Warren Castille Wrote: I don't know how to feel about the Live Letter. Why does SE hate people doing relic? Why is additional housing being pushed to 3.3? It's hard to read this and take away anything other than "Casual get the bare minimum, please remain subbed for 8 more months."