Satisiun

Except that ...

... erf. Mistake post. Please to delete?

Mein Gott (thank you, resident Deutschlander)! I have no other words (which is shocking).

Perhaps. But right here, the OP them self explicitly says about communicating with other people in the world ...

Fittingly, as per your avatar, good sir ... (Minus the "Oh wait you were serious", that is. :lol: )

I think he looks a little too stoned in the third one, actually. "Dude. Dude ... like ... my mead ... it's all gone, dude ... whoa, did I, like ... like, did I ... drink it all already? Whooooaaaa ..." So! With that said, numero dos.

lol, this is what I've been thinking the whole time. I guess in that case, a huge RETCON would be in order. That or enjoy your level 1 do-over. :lol: Either one isn't exactly going to be the best of situations, especially if SE actually does integrate them at some point. And they have claimed they want to do so, but it being SE, one can never know.

If that really is his voice, then I guess you better ... ... be prepared.

So. Like. While everyone is busy yukking it up over meta-gamers, I'm glad to see I am not the only one with concerns about this, much like Verence both rationally and extensively points out. At what point, for example, is it no longer meta-gaming when a character realizes something is just a little off about that Miqo'te they are interacting with? Or that the character behind the mask has some sort of familiar tic, or personality quirk, or even a familiar facial feature or bodily feature not able to be concealed so easily? And at what point do you look in the mirror and realize, "My god. I'm godmoding/meta-gaming myself!" by making it nigh-impossible for someone to get suspicious, curious, or wondering after a period of time of interaction between characters? Yes, if someone whom you have never played with before sees your character history and description and sees you're playing what is effectively a "Sweet Miqo'te Transvestite from Transexual Miqo'te Transylvania" comes up to you and within the first hour goes, "Something seems ... off, about you," then you have every right to call foul. Without a doubt! In essence, the only way you'll ever be able to avoid this sort of problem is by playing in a very closed environment, with very specific people, who will always adhere to what you want in interaction without question. A bit exaggerated, yes, but you will never be able to free-form roleplay, or interact with characters on the fly without having to always worry. That's just me, though. :?

Pic related. Couldn't help myself. After I made my first entry that basically started the ball rolling on this issue, I saw others had already stepped in on both sides and figured I'd sit back with some popcorn. :joker:

You invite a friend over to your house for the afternoon. Describe what your friend would see upon entering your home. (This is under the assumption that FFXIV houses will be like XI, and simply be one, large room) "Let's see," Satisiun said as he thought about the layout of his household. "Likely the work desk over in the far left corner with matching seat, for one. My bed is near that as well. There's also the fireplace situated in the middle, which I tend to keep covered with a grate, considering that the whole house is made of wood. Don't want to cause any accidents, right?" Chuckling, Satisiun continued. "I also have an aquarium on the other side atop my dresser drawer, and a couple potted plants flanking either side of it. Not much else, though ... I tend to be out of the house so often, I don't really spruce it up a lot." During the casual small-talk that ensues, your friend asks you if you have read any good books lately. How do you respond? "Probably that I can't think of any," Satisiun confesses, shrugging his shoulders. "I haven't really sat down and read a book in a long time, for the same reasons my house is pretty bare." Your friend eventually leaves, and you're still bored. Restless, you leave the house and set out for a walk. Describe the neighborhood you live in. "Pretty peaceful, actually," Satisiun responded with a smile, pausing to take a small drink from his canteen before continuing, his throat having parched some from answering the previous questions. "A lot of the houses overlook the pathway that head back towards the market and guild areas of Gridania, and if you head further in to the residential area, you'll find a different stream from the one that makes its way through the city. It's always good when you want to find a place to go and do nothing but walk." Oh no! An orphan is in trouble! Down the street from where you stand, a small street urchin is being bullied by three larger youths. What do you do about it? "I'm not surprised, for one," Satisiun confesses with a sigh, and a small roll of his blue eyes. "A lot of the kids in Gridania, for whatever reason, are real bullies. But I'd step in and tell them to leave, and they tend to respond when adults, even strangers, tell them what to do." Another swig from his water canteen was taken to again quench his throat amidst all this answer giving, before continuing. "I'd probably take the child I helped to the tavern, and get them situated with the keeper there before heading home. They'd have better luck figuring out who the child belongs to than I would." Adventure time! The next day, still restless, you decide that what you need is a good change of pace. How do you pack for your four-day road trip to Ishgard? "I ... wait ..." Satisiun said, his brow quirked in a rather confused expression. "But ... Ishgard is only a day's trip from Gridania, not four." Pressed to answer anyway in the hypothetical, Satisiun sighed. "Okay. Then I guess just a good, sturdy pair of clothes for my time out in the field, and then enough water canteens and Meat Miqo'tebobs to last me. There's enough Aetheryte spots between here and Ishgard that I shouldn't have any problems finding safe or comfortable sleeping arrangements." Along your journey, you spot some bandits waiting at a bridge across a wide but slow moving river up ahead of you. They haven't seen you yet. You need to cross the bridge to get to where you're going. How do you handle the situation? Satisiun gave a small shrug before answering. "Discretion is the better part of valor, and I'm only one adventurer to several bandits. I'll lay low until they leave." You have just arrived for the first time in a new big city. Where do you go first? Satisiun rubbed his chin for a moment in contemplative thought, blue eyes looking rather thoughtful for such a simple question before he finally turned to the survey taker, and speaking again. "The city seems to have some really tall towers and peaks throughout. I'd love to head to one of those first, and see just what the view is around the region, and the city itself, before doing anything else." For being the 1,000th tourist to the city, you have been given a 6,000 gil voucher to spend as you like at the Ishgard Department Store (think FFXIV version of Macy's). What do you spend it on? While looking momentarily enthusiastic, Satisiun then paused, and reaching for the back of his head began to rub at his dark hair, laughing almost in an embarrassed fashion. "I was about to say something silly, but then I realized I always seem to run my equipment ragged," said the Lancer with a stupid grin. "So I guess on repairs instead of anything else. Lots and lots of repairs." All of that shopping has made you deliriously hungry. What sort of food establishment do you seek out for lunch? "Nothing too special," Satisiun replies. "And after so much cured meat during the trip, something different might be nice. Maybe a bread stand?" The curious look from the survey taker made Satisiun blink, then laugh a little. "What? I mean, I know it's plain. But I don't have a problem with that. Sometimes the plainer things are better." Five months later and safely back at home, you realize the Winter Festival is approaching! What sort of present do you pick out for your mother (or nearest living relative, or closest friend)? "She'd probably enjoy a new, warm robe or wool blouse, or something similar," Satisiun said as he mulled ideas over in his head. "She lives over in The Silver Bazaar, and the winters around the Ul'dah region and deserts can be pretty unforgiving."

So. Are we taking the Hobbits to Ish(en)gard? (And for those poor souls who don't get that ... .)

You'll only be allowed to carry pre-existing character names over to public release. Stats, equipment, everything else? Good and gone.

My grandfather's Knights of Columbus sword? I ... don't think that'll work. KoC swords are kind of, sort of, more ceremonial than actually effective in battle.

Well. If you really want to use the realism defense ... Have you considered, however, the vast difference between styles of graphics and character coordination and movements between games like WoW, Aion, and FFXIV? Look, for example, at how characters in the former two games basically jump on a dime. There's no sort of motion to it, no realism, or visible representation of the character pushing off of their feet and jumping. Largely due to those game's lesser graphics (and yes, I say that about Aion, since the only thing special was character customization and "OH GOD HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE ON MY SCREEN AT ONCE!" during forts), they're incapable (or unwilling) to implement the motion of a character pushing off the ground in an actual jumping motion. They just suddenly are off the ground, arms in the air. Look at FFXIV. Notice how basically even just turning one way to another requires the character to push off of a foot, or veer back? Or how about how they actually slow to a trot and then stop, instead of stopping the split second you let go of the key you're pressing to move them forward, back, or side to side. This might all sound somewhat tangent-y, but basically the point I am making is that FFXIV is aiming for more realistic motions of characters than either of those games. Because of this, whether jumping should or should not be implemented is less the question, and whether it can or can't be implemented in a way that keeps the realistic movements the game is aiming for with characters in motion. I don't mean any offense by saying all this, of course. I respect that some people want jumping. But based off the style of game this is, and again, the way the characters are designed to move, I have to also respectfully disagree.

For what it's worth, if any of the head cheeses around here are interested, I could see about pulling a string or two to try and get in touch with someone. I don't know if anyone around here knows the site, but my best friend is Elmerthepointy, the person behind the site JP Button of FFXI fame. He had some connections through his work, as well as fan activity, and he also knows the Corinth girl that interviewed Sundi.

This thread is called "The Pain" and there is none of this fellow? A pox on this thread.

Yeah, that's part of it. Microsoft has a real boner for their exclusive 360 servers. :roll: It's been this way for a while, too. Valve/Steam games such as Left 4 Dead 1 and 2, and Team Fortress 2, to name a couple. Despite having much more efficient and more active communities on PC, Microsoft refuses to allow for mingling. There's also the issue of payments. FFXI actually was given some sort of exception no other game has gotten, wherein even without an X-Box Live Gold account, you could go online and play the game (and with people on PC and PS2, no less!). This time, however, Microsoft won't budge on matters concerning that, and expects you to ante up for their service at the same time as you pay the monthly for FFXIV.

::Shrugs.:: I guess I'll have to agree to disagree, then. I admit, some of the characters in IX were weak; Amarant comes to mind with his later appearance and rather quick moral turnaround, for example, and Dagger/Garnet at times seemed more hopeless than I would have liked. But watching Vivi basically grow up through the game, or Steiner question his obligations to uphold rigid, strict conduct compared to what is really the "right" thing to do were great examples of character development and storytelling to me, just to cite some examples. And after the debacle that was VIII, it was nice to actually have a lead character that didn't make me want to go and down a bottle of Prozac just to keep my mood up. Say what you want about Zidane, but I liked his attitude, his personality, and even the explanation behind his backstory, and how he goes from mindless creation tossed into the world to destroy, to this open, care-free thief taken in and shown the open world by Tantalus and his adopted family. And while you could say it being aimed at a younger audience is a negative, it's worth consideration that this game was all about paying homage to the earlier parts of the FF series. The very games that we were playing as children, or yes, even between the ages of 6 and 12 (I played FFIV the first time at just 9 years old). Nostalgia goggles? Sure. Maybe. I'll admit to that. Maybe IX was trying to work off of that. But I'm not ashamed of admitting it.

And here I thought this whole thread was going to have nothing but "Zidane is a poopie head", considering what I've seen so far. :lol: Nice to finally see someone else who considers not only Tactics, but also IX, the better of the Playstation era games in the series. Not to mention, for all the crap that IX gets about Necron, several of the other FF games pulled the same "Bigger Bad Out Of Nowhere!" stuff. Hell, what about Chaos in the very first? Cloud of Darkness in III? Zeromous in IV? And even to a degree, Yu Yevon in X! A sudden appearance of an "lolSoRandom" isn't a new thing for the FF series.