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[Kidd Bushido]

Well, if you're going to be skipping all the dialogue in an MMORPG, you're going to end up skipping a LOT! Besides that, a lot of that dialogue ends up being gameplay tips and such, which I would just assume new players NOT skip.

I already got the jist of the game and sometimes it takes too long to go through a quest just need a skip button ya know?

First of all, this is no FFXI, and this will be no FFXI-2. If you want to play more FFXI, go do some Seekers of Adoulin or something. FFXI didn't have 22 classes at launch, it took them 10 years for that.

You talk about FFXI, so you know about FFXI. What is the relation between the stories of characters of Rise of the Zilart, Chains of Promathia, Treasures of Aht Urghan, Wings of the Goddess, etc? There's no relation. So what's your point about the story? You are making no sense dude.

Also about the Marauder skills, you obviously don't know what you are talking about, don't come out here saying "some skills are the same" when they are clearly not. If you actually think they are then say them by name and prove me wrong.

Skills in this game are part of a combo system, when you use them one after another one you gain additional effects and make them more powerful, even those skills that you mention which probably are Skull Sunder and Butcher's Block, yes they have to be stacked because that's the whole idea of the system to combo skills to increase their power, because by themselves they don't do much.



You sound like you don't care about the story at all. Why don't you go play a different game that has 0 story?



I think AFs will be good enough to farm lv50 dungeons and maybe do some Primals, but I don't think they will cut it for raids. Also endgame FCs will probably not allow people on full AFs on their CT/LoB runs.

I haven't played FFXI in years but using it as a comparison since it's the previous online FF game. I only have Zilart and the other one but they don't mesh in with the story. FFXIV has a chance to mesh in with the main story with the expansion. Even when the new classes come around where would they be at? Not saying that just the expansions can ruin the main story or have no relevance. Did you see the comment where I said i was going to wait for expansion to get this game?

 

[Khrno]

Did you see the comment where I said i was going to wait for expansion to get this game?

See you in two years.

 

[Boss Man]

They are still too lengthy know with the voice acting much and it takes too long. Option to go through everything completely would be nice and you can view the cutscenes/dialogue story later in options.

After creating like ten different characters and going through the opening and tutorial part a bunch, this definitely got on my nerves.

In a more realistic/permanent context, I personally don't have any problem with long dialog or cutscenes at all though. I tend to enjoy it if it's my first time seeing it.

Having said that, I know not everyone feels the same way. From a more objective standpoint, a lot of the dialog is probably more long-winded than it needs to be. Things that are really just asking you to go kill a certain number of things and come back should probably let you skip the dialog and send the objective straight to your journal.

The opening in particular is really long, and I could see that turning some people off. I was surprised that they even blocked me from going outside with invisible walls. I think this is just part of the design philosophy of this game. They want to make sure no one accidentally skips anything. They're kind of funneling everyone onto a careful path.

They really don't want new/casual players to get lost - so no one gets to wander around. I feel like this philosophy carries into the proper game to varying extents, too. It's the biggest disappointment for me and at this point I'm just hoping that 1-50 really is one big tutorial and 50-99(?) opens up into a more persistent sandbox with more opportunities for emergent experiences. There are hints that this is the case, and also hints that it isn't.

 

[chrono01]

I just noticed that the Square Enix online store is officially SOLD OUT of the PC Collector's Edition.

I'm not sure how many they made, but I'm glad to have my pre-order in. Although Digital River...

-_-

 

[Spiritreaver]

My only issue with constantly comparing this game to FFXI is that it lets people get away with not looking at XIV critically by just going "this isn't FFXI".

The game's changes were made not to please XI fans but to please casuals. The game plays much more like a casual themepark MMO than it does XI. If anything, I want to see more people compare it to those MMOs.

 

[Kidd Bushido]

See you in two years.

Yah I'm sure you know when the first expansion is being released...

After creating like ten different characters and going through the opening and tutorial part a bunch, this definitely got on my nerves.

In a more realistic/permanent context, I personally don't have any problem with long dialog or cutscenes at all though. I tend to enjoy it if it's my first time seeing it.

Having said that, I know not everyone feels the same way. From a more objective standpoint, a lot of the dialog is probably more long-winded than it needs to be. Things that are really just asking you to go kill a certain number of things and come back should probably let you skip the dialog and send the objective straight to your journal.

The opening in particular is really long, and I could see that turning some people off. I was surprised that they even blocked me from going outside with invisible walls. I think this is just part of the design philosophy of this game. They want to make sure no one accidentally skips anything. They're kind of funneling everyone onto a careful path.

They really don't want new/casual players to get lost - so no one gets to wander around. I feel like this philosophy carries into the proper game to varying extents, too. It's the biggest disappointment for me and at this point I'm just hoping that 1-50 really is one big tutorial and 50-99(?) opens up into a more persistent sandbox with more opportunities for emergent experiences. There are hints that this is the case, and also hints that it isn't.

I understand but there has to be an option to go through all of it especially when you are doing all of these quests and get one that is very lengthy you get burned out.

 

[Ravidrath]

Yah I'm sure you know when the first expansion is being released...

Yoshi-P told me when I interviewed him that it'd be out around 18 months after launch.

 

[Spiritreaver]

Yoshi-P told me when I interviewed him that it'd be out around 18 months after launch.

Oh hey, meant to get back to you, but despite the 4chan drama I'll probably stay on Ultros.

 

[Korezo]

My only issue with constantly comparing this game to FFXI is that it lets people get away with not looking at XIV critically by just going "this isn't FFXI".

The game's changes were made not to please XI fans but to please casuals. The game plays much more like a casual themepark MMO than it does XI. If anything, I want to see more people compare it to those MMOs.

The jobs in this game are already mostly more advanced than XI, in XIV you have to be active. What did dds do in XI, mostly did 2 abilities then weapon skill and repeat. The only thing hardcore about XI was the length it took to get anything done which was more a chore than anything. Even though XiV combat looks like a spamfest, you are doing way more than XI combat.

 

[Khrno]

Yah I'm sure you know when the first expansion is being released...

I sure do.

“It’s hard to be specific because all sorts of things could change with the launch, but personally I hope to release an expansion pack within about a year and a half of the start of the service,” he said. “It could be two years, though, because a year and a half could be too tight to create the volume of content we’re aiming for. As for update patches, we’ll probably release one every two and a half or three months – four times a year.”

Yoshi-P told me when I interviewed him that it'd be out around 18 months after launch.

What site do you work for?

 

[omlet]

Ah right, so it's only down to THM again. Wwhat's the stats increase for Jobs? I think it was about +20 on the main stat on 1.2+, wasn't it? If so the DEX increment will right outweigh the loss of Internal Release. Playing as MRD that was my favourite buff, specially since it's in a lower recast than the attack buffs.

I'm pretty sure it was a +10 boost to both of the job's primary stats in 1.x. Like +10 STR and +10 INT for a Monk but I'm also pretty sure you took a hit to other stats like VIT in exchange. I didn't actually pay close attention in ARR but I notice some similar stat changes when I set a job.

 

[Ferr986]

. I only have Zilart and the other one but they don't mesh in with the story. FFXIV has a chance to mesh in with the main story with the expansion.

Well, certainly Zilart is a direct sequel of FFXI, and CoP ends (atleast IMO) that storyline arc.
ToAU and WoTG seemed more independent.

 

[Boss Man]

My only issue with constantly comparing this game to FFXI is that it lets people get away with not looking at XIV critically by just going "this isn't FFXI".

The game's changes were made not to please XI fans but to please casuals. The game plays much more like a casual themepark MMO than it does XI. If anything, I want to see more people compare it to those MMOs.

I think a substantial portion of this game's potential audience is people who played FFXI though. You can just look at the races to see that no one should be pretending that there's no relationship between the two. The reason so many people compare it to FFXI is because so many of the people who are interested in paying a subscription for a FF MMO only know MMO design in terms of FFXI.

This game should be aiming to please both. There's a base on FFXI right now that's paying monthly for a game that's been on its last breath for a while. A decade after its release, that base is drying up whether FFXIV grabs them or not. It just so happens that FFXIV has a direct line to it, and as long as they don't screw up really bad they'll get them.

FFXIV needed to be more accessible, but personally I do think it's a mistake to make that the entire game's focus. I just don't think it's very well thought out to have a subscription based MMO that defines itself as a quick-lived casual theme park when there's already so much in that market that does it better and for cheaper/free.

FFXI was too demanding, but FFXIV won't even let you give anything to it. It's really interesting to see such a huge contrast between the two. I think FFXIV's approach will attract more people, but FFXI's will maintain more people and certainly more paid subscriptions.

I'm totally willing to wait and see though, because there's a lot about FF14 beyond the apparent fundamental design goals that I like a lot. If they fill the world up in such a way that it feels worth exploring and paying monthly for, it may end up being my GOTF. It's just aggravating that it's missing this one huge but subtle thing and no one seems to understand what people are referring to.

It's like seeing your favorite flavor of ice cream that you thought was off of the market, and it's in this awesome new cone that looks delicious. You buy it, take a bite, and realize that it's fat-free yogurt.

 

[Khrno]

It's like seeing your favorite flavor of ice cream that you thought was off of the market, and it's in this awesome new cone that looks delicious. You buy it, take a bite, and realize that it's fat-free yogurt.

But that's actually healthier and better for you..

 

[Boss Man]

But that's actually healthier and better for you..

Right, it's an appropriate comparison I think.

 

[Spiritreaver]

The jobs in this game are already mostly more advanced than XI, in XIV you have to be active. What did dds do in XI, mostly did 2 abilities then weapon skill and repeat. The only thing hardcore about XI was the length it took to get anything done which was more a chore than anything. Even though XiV combat looks like a spamfest, you are doing way more than XI combat.

Maybe they utilize more abilities, but the mechanics of the jobs aren't exactly more advanced or creative. However I suppose this can be attributed to it being "launch" and XI didn't have any unique job mechanics before ToAU.

But my point was that there are other MMOs to compare this too. A lot of things feel like a not as fleshed out version of SWTOR. Jobs are just SWTOR's advanced classes, minus the diverse skill trees and with a lot less unique abilities.

I'm really interested in seeing how they handle SCH and SMN. This will show just how much effort they've put into the job system. If SCH and SMN have enough unique abilities/mechanics to differientiate themselves, it'll be great. 4-5 abilities isn't enough.

Take a look at SWTOR.

You have a base class "Imperial Agent" that upgrades into an advanced class at level 10. "Sniper" and "Operative" then go on to level as completely different classes and playstyles. The share many abilities on the way to cap, but also get loaded with unique abilities along the way.

On top of that they have 3 skill trees to further augment playstyle. Sniper is a purely DPS class, but no tree plays like the others.'

XIV goes a different route with jobs not differentiating until much later in the game. Majority of the playstyle of each job is defined by the base job under it. You can argue that the subabilities each job borrows from will bring about the diversity, but is it even necessary for some jobs to even use their subskills? Can you even expect players to play a job differently simply because you give them new skills despite having spent half the game being forced to play one way.

That's what irks me the most about the system.

 

[Ravidrath]

What site do you work for?

I filled in for Kagari at E3 since she wasn't feeling well.

http://www.novacrystallis.com/2013/06/e3-2013-final-fantasy-xiv-developer-interview/

Oh hey, meant to get back to you, but despite the 4chan drama I'll probably stay on Ultros.

Boo. Fit-XIV will miss you. :\

 

[Boss Man]

What ever happened to that other guy who asked us if we had any questions for his interview?

I either always miss the results of these or they never seem to happen lol.

 

[Khrno]

Take a look at SWTOR.

I played SWTOR during the first 3 months, so I don't know how it's changed. But in that game all your skills were mostly improvements of older ones, and some were actually obsolete if you had mastered one of the trees and just have some extra randoms from the other 2 trees.

In the end the playstyle never changed all the way to cap, you just got improved skills of what you had at the beginning. Just a couple of key new skills on the trees' branches, but you could compare them to the exclusive Job skills (that earn by doing the Job quests).

As I said I don't know how the game has changed now in its 2.x version, but the gameplay was far from deep, by the way I was a Sith Marauder, reached lv50, completed the storyline, tried to do end-game and pvp stuff, but I didn't find it interesting or appealing so I left.

The combat on ARR so far has involved the use of more skills than I did on SWTOR, and the only thing I can say SWTOR was vastly superior to FFXIV v1.0, ARR, or any other MMORPG with the exception of FFXI, was the story, which was absolutely incredible, and had me really interested all the way to the end.

ARR's still lacking in the story department, but it can be attributed to the beta, I'm sure with the main story being voiced, and having all the story quests (and even side-quests), that it will get better. I mean, I played 1.0 all the way from Tanaka's horrible launch to Yoshida's amazing End of an Era finale. So I know that we are in for a treat with ARR's story.

 

[Boss Man]

I filled in for Kagari at E3 since she wasn't feeling well.

http://www.novacrystallis.com/2013/06/e3-2013-final-fantasy-xiv-developer-interview/

Nova Crystallis: If you have a positive experience with someone in the Duty Finder, will you be able to flag them so that you can play with them again?
Yoshida: At launch, we don’t have any plans for that feature, and the biggest reason behind that is, because dungeons are around 30 minutes, we don’t think players will get that close to one another within that time. You’ll come in, say hello, get through the dungeon, get your gear, say thanks and goodbye and it will be done. That is pretty much our reasoning behind the matchmaking system; no need to worry about finding people, you can go in, get the dungeon done, and leave. If you want to make friends, we would suggest the FATE system in order to meet new people that are on your server.

Damn, that is a depressing answer all around.

Good interview by the way. I think I've seen parts of it but not the whole thing.

 

[Khrno]

I filled in for Kagari at E3 since she wasn't feeling well.

http://www.novacrystallis.com/2013/06/e3-2013-final-fantasy-xiv-developer-interview/

Oh it was you who wrote that interview? When I read the interview and I saw the header "By Michael Vreeland", I said who the hell is this? Where's Kagari!? No wonder the interview sucked!

I'm only kidding! The interview was great, thanks for that.

 

[Anteater]

Yoshida: At launch, we don’t have any plans for that feature, and the biggest reason behind that is, because dungeons are around 30 minutes, we don’t think players will get that close to one another within that time. You’ll come in, say hello, get through the dungeon, get your gear, say thanks and goodbye and it will be done. That is pretty much our reasoning behind the matchmaking system; no need to worry about finding people, you can go in, get the dungeon done, and leave. If you want to make friends, we would suggest the FATE system in order to meet new people that are on your server.

Pretty silly, that's exactly what people are gonna do and act like bots, I had this one guy who kept rushing us through a dungeon like he's trying to speedrun that shit. No time to chat, hurry hurry hurry bye~

 

[Boss Man]

Pretty silly, that's exactly what people are gonna do and act like bots, I had this one guy who kept rushing us through a dungeon like he's trying to speedrun that shit. No time to chat, hurry hurry hurry bye~

I'd be ok with it if this was just a part of the game. Like, if the main story happened this way that's not so bad because the main story is something that could be sort of sectioned off and happen in instances parallel to the world.

Unfortunately, the main story is the game and the world in FF14. Nothing off of that path is very significant. You'll have chocobos to raise, houses to build, PVP realms, and stuff like that...but in terms of actual character progression and exploring content with others...the main story is where they seem to want all of it to happen.

There's not like an open dungeon you can ride over to with a group of friends to find a big rare drop in the back of it.

It's very worrying to me that FATE is the answer they're going with. I wish they had just said that there's nothing yet.

Casual Carl can can hop on once a week when he gets tired of COD and queue up the matchmaking for whatever mission he's on. Other players can be roaming around the world together and going after special equipment. I just can't understand why they refuse to do this. Duty Finder won't refuse to invite Carl to a party because he doesn't have Supertough Sally Pantaloons HQ from some fish with a 10% drop rate, so why can't they exist? The only thing I can imagine is that it's simply easier to release episodic content like it's F2P, and also subscription money is nice.

 

[Khrno]

Pretty silly, that's exactly what people are gonna do and act like bots, I had this one guy who kept rushing us through a dungeon like he's trying to speedrun that shit. No time to chat, hurry hurry hurry bye~

I do understand wanting to socialize and everything, but do you actually get into a random dungeon run, where people will most likely just go in to get the exp and be done with it, or to stop after a sub-boss and have a 15 minutes chat about, well anything.

I know some times there are occasions where someone says something and you might start chatting and do a few stops in the way to keep talking before progressing through the dungeon, that happened me twice this past weekend, but most other times after exchanging pleasantries we were there to get the run done, and grab the loot/exp.

In my case I'm not one to start up or bring up conversations, but I can get into one if someone else starts and everyone (talking about a 4 man party) gets into it, so in your case, if you can break that ice and create the mood to have a conversation during the runs, you should do it, since there might many people like me that will go just to get the run done and not talk unless necessary or if the mood is right.

Also about this past beta, and for the future as well, you have to consider that there might be many PS3 players that won't have a keyboard, and chatting with the in-game keyboard is not the easier thing to do.

 

[Kidd Bushido]

Well, certainly Zilart is a direct sequel of FFXI, and CoP ends (atleast IMO) that storyline arc.
ToAU and WoTG seemed more independent.

All of these new jobs and content aren't in the main cutscenes/story with the game originally released when the main baddie was Shadow Lord and the rest.

 

[Anteater]

I do understand wanting to socialize and everything, but do you actually get into a random dungeon run, where people will most likely just go in to get the exp and be done with it, or to stop after a sub-boss and have a 15 minutes chat about, well anything.

I know some times there are occasions where someone says something and you might start chatting and do a few stops in the way to keep talking before progressing through the dungeon, that happened me twice this past weekend, but most other times after exchanging pleasantries we were there to get the run done, and grab the loot/exp.

In my case I'm not one to start up or bring up conversations, but I can get into one if someone else starts and everyone (talking about a 4 man party) gets into it, so in your case, if you can break that ice and create the mood to have a conversation during the runs, you should do it, since there might many people like me that will go just to get the run done and not talk unless necessary or if the mood is right.

Also about this past beta, and for the future as well, you have to consider that there might be many PS3 players that won't have a keyboard, and chatting with the in-game keyboard is not the easier thing to do.

I'm actually there to play with ppl, that's why I don't mind playing with new players and discussing what we needed to do, that's also part of socializing, loot and exp is just part of the objectives, rushing through the dungeon and having a few words isn't going speed up a 25mins dungeon by that much. When every dungeon is full of people that acts this way, I'd rather not do them and play a single player game.

 

[Spiritreaver]

Pretty silly, that's exactly what people are gonna do and act like bots, I had this one guy who kept rushing us through a dungeon like he's trying to speedrun that shit. No time to chat, hurry hurry hurry bye~

Heh, this is why I like being a tank in MMOs. People tried to pull this shit all the time in Tera, going ahead of the tank and bumrushing through everything.

No sir. You learn that I set the pace, and you follow it. If they don't listen to reason then I just stop holding aggro/hate. If we wipe, we wipe.

Selfish I know, but I'm not learning mechanics or figuring out a dungeon by rushing through it.

XIV's community is nice though, it was never really an issue. I usually tell people it's my first time running a dungeon and people go out of their way to explain each fight. Refreshing really.

 

[Khrno]

Unfortunately, the main story is the game and the world in FF14. Nothing off of that path is very significant. You'll have chocobos to raise, houses to build, PVP realms, and stuff like that...but in terms of actual character progression and exploring content with others...the main story is where they seem to want all of it to happen.

I think you are overestimating the value of the story, the story is indeed the path to take you to level 50, but the core of the game is not the story, is the endgame. Yoshida is that kind of man, the story is there as one of the most important features of the game because this is Final Fantasy, but the story is no where the be all and end all in the game.

The game won't really flesh out until you reach level 50, and by then you won't have many story fights left to do, but a whole new range of dungeons, instances and raids to do to improve your character. You will be barely doing stuff with 3 other people during story missions, meanwhile outside the story you will be grouping with 23 people more to take on the most challenging content.

I think you have a wrong impression of this game.

 

[Taruranto]

Even doing a dungeon with a group that didn't speak much but fit your play-stile (god knows how many times something went wrong) is an accomplishment.

I'm not sure how FATE can replace dungeon-interactions, most of the time they are rather chaotic and you are not forced to party, not to mention fight all the time. Dungeons force you in a 4 person party with plenty of time to chat, especially if people already did the dungeon once.

So yeah, all-knowing Yoshida is wrong this time.

 

[AmethystEnd]

This is why I'm glad I'm coming into this game with my pre-established guild from Guild Wars 2. Organized, active, and a mumble server.

 

[theSlacker]

Pretty silly, that's exactly what people are gonna do and act like bots, I had this one guy who kept rushing us through a dungeon like he's trying to speedrun that shit. No time to chat, hurry hurry hurry bye~

To be the devils advocate here, can view this as the same thing as seeking groups for hours without the duty finder. In the same way, this new system may take time to find a group that wants to socialize, or play the game your way, but that is the same time it would take to find a group normally without the duty finder for some people.

 

[Road]

Will the August beta actually let us unlock the full-on job classes? I really wanted to be a Dragoon - lancers are so boring.

Why do you think Dragoon will make a Lancer less boring?

Honest question. I was playing as a Lancer but it is Dragoon that actually sounds so boring to me. Looking at the skills (haven't played as one) and their minutes of cooldown, not looking forward to it at all. =P

Unless you mean you want to use that one Dragoon armor.

Do jobs give extra attribute bonus or something?

 

[Anteater]

Heh, this is why I like being a tank in MMOs. People tried to pull this shit all the time in Tera, going ahead of the tank and bumrushing through everything.

No sir. You learn that I set the pace, and you follow it. If they don't listen to reason then I just stop holding aggro/hate. If we wipe, we wipe.

Selfish I know, but I'm not learning mechanics or figuring out a dungeon by rushing through it.

XIV's community is nice though, it was never really an issue. I usually tell people it's my first time running a dungeon and people go out of their way to explain each fight. Refreshing really.

I was actually the tank, lol, but I try not to make people's life difficult though! I was still having fun tanking mobs and I don't mind the fast pacing, I got used to it because I do try to do things quick, and it's better if I engage the mob first for hate before the trigger happy melee starts hitting everything, but when 1 dude is trying to rush the entire party, it gets kind of annoying, especially if there might be 1 and 2 dudes that might not know what to do and needs time to absorb everything, I actually didn't notice him until my conjurer friend felt annoyed that he's being too pushy.

Yea the community wasn't so bad actually in beta, I've seen people doing shouts for fate and having fun killing the cancer together.

 

[Khrno]

This is why I'm glad I'm coming into this game with my pre-established guild from Guild Wars 2. Organized, active, and a mumble server.

Well, I'll be on a legacy server with the linkshell I was on at the end of 1.0, which also uses voice chat and what not. But even so there will be occasions where you happen to have just a short amount of time to play, enough for a quick token farming run through the DF, and the last thing you want is delay the completion of the run by stopping to chat about what will be the next class added, or how the minion the tank has with him is so cute, or w/e.

I just think that for all those that want big emphasis on socialize, there's those that just want to get their objective done in an effective and quick manner.

Dungeons force you in a 4 person party with plenty of time to chat, especially if people already did the dungeon once.

You have to see both sides of the coin here. You either get in an experienced group that click from the beginning and have a nice chat with them, or you get in an experienced group that has done the dungeon so many times, that the last thing they want is to stay in there more than necessary.

Also what I mentioned above, if you are time-constrained because of something scheduled with your LS/FC soon after the dungeon run, or even more, because of real life, you don't want to waste time.

Just trying to say that socializing more than necessary is not something that everyone always will want or can do. And people can't be blamed for either wanting or not wanting to do it.

Do jobs give extra attribute bonus or something?

They do give a bonus to your main stats of somewhere around +10 or 20 points.

 

[Boss Man]

I think you are overestimating the value of the story, the story is indeed the path to take you to level 50, but the core of the game is not the story, is the endgame. Yoshida is that kind of man, the story is there as one of the most important features of the game because this is Final Fantasy, but the story is no where the be all and end all in the game.

The game won't really flesh out until you reach level 50, and by then you won't have many story fights left to do, but a whole new range of dungeons, instances and raids to do to improve your character. You will be barely doing stuff with 3 other people during story missions, meanwhile outside the story you will be grouping with 23 people more to take on the most challenging content.

I think you have a wrong impression of this game.

I genuinely hope that I do.

I'm not really talking about the 'story' specifically, but the main line of progression/quests.

Dungeons, instances, and raids are all the same thing aren't they? Aren't these all going to be things that I go into the menu to queue up, then wait in town until the matchmaking finishes?

It would just be nice to be able to go and do something that isn't attached to a clear path or DF. I want to ride chocobos with a group of friends out to some area to get some incredible thing that makes me type in all-caps for the rest of the day.

The convenience of the other stuff is very nice, and it's fantastic to think that I could just log in and get things done and experience significant content without any sort of dedication. Awesome, don't stop doing that.

But I don't want that and nothing else. I mean, even if I can't get around to the deeper stuff I feel like that sort of content that fleshes out the world and makes it a persistent adventure is what makes a subscription worthwhile. Otherwise I should just be able to play for free and pay for a new instance whenever it's released if I want to.

I want those experiences too but I think a lot of us take for granted the fact that FFXI came to the states with a shitload of content already available in Rise of the Zilart. It didn't only add new regions, it also fleshed out older ones with new zones and alternative ways to traverse the world. When I think about what was available in FFXI day one and what will be there in FFXIV day one, I don't think the comparison is all in XI's favor that much.

This is the sort of thing that keeps me interested in the game. I'm quick to point out my issues with it but I'll be damned if I don't have fun chopping wood in FFXIV. The world is beautiful, I love the art. The class/job system seems like it could mature into something really special. I see a ton of potential, but a whole lot of talk that makes it sound like they aren't looking to go there with it. I'd be curious to hear more about FFXI pre - NA PS2. I just can't imagine that game ever feeling this narrow. I'd rather play current FFXIV than 2004 FFXI at this point in my life, but I wouldn't sub to 2204 FFXI right now either and I think FFXIV could still stand to gain some of its aspects before I'd consider it to be worth a fee.

 

[Pai Pai Master]

I think what you're looking for is the kind of stuff that takes time to build. Right now I think their focus is set on having a functional game that will take players through the story from 1-50 and introduce them to the kind of content they will spend months and hopefully years experiencing.

Compared to the lack of content that was available in 1.0 launch, I think they've created a miracle along with all the work they put in to fixing that mess.

I want those experiences too but I think a lot of us take for granted the fact that FFXI came to the states with a shitload of content already available in Rise of the Zilart. It didn't only add new regions, it also fleshed out older ones with new zones and alternative ways to traverse the world. When I think about what was available in FFXI day one and what will be there in FFXIV day one, I don't think the comparison is all in XI's favor that much.

But I know what you mean. My biggest gripe with XIV is that the dungeons are locked behind timed quest runs and duty finder. There's no massive Palborough Mines or Ifrit's Cauldron to spend hours traversing and exploring. I loved that XI's dungeons still for the most part had their starts and finishes but they didnt force you down that path wvery time you walked in. Hopefully that is something that would come further down the road once they have established a functional game world.

 

[Road]

They do give a bonus to your main stats of somewhere around +10 or 20 points.

I see. Thanks.

That's a start, as far as Dragoon goes. Now they just need to make one or more jumps part of a combo with increased potency and things would be more interesting.

 

[theSlacker]

I see. Thanks.

That's a start, as far as Dragoon goes. Now they just need to make one or more jumps part of a combo with increased potency and things would be more interesting.

No combos on the jumps imo. I like them as they are, freed from the GCD. Could do something like what archer has with Bloodletter though, in that something else can cause one of them to come off the cooldown instantly.

 

[Khrno]

Dungeons, instances, and raids are all the same thing aren't they? Aren't these all going to be things that I go into the menu to queue up, then wait in town until the matchmaking finishes?

It would just be nice to be able to go and do something that isn't attached to a clear path or DF. I want to ride chocobos with a group of friends out to some area and find some crazy monster that we didn't expect to see and get some incredible drop that makes me type in all caps for the rest of the day.

Right, I understand better what you mean now.

But let me ask you, do you actually expect, after experiencing everything the game has to offer to be wowed by that crazy monster that you weren't expecting the first time? I mean, you have to be realistic, you are going to have a group of friends (either coming with you to play the game, or that you'll meet in game) and you will be able to go out and explore the snowy mountains of Coerthas, and you'll find that huge Behemoth from the video and you'll be wowed.

You might be something like level 20, or 35 or something like that when you all went to explore the world for the first time. But after a while you will be level 50, and you will be with the same group of friends, or maybe some other people and you will have a clear objective, to go to the snowy mountains of Coerthas to defeat that Behemoth. You will reach him and you won't feel the same as when you found it the first time, however you will be able to experience the satisfaction after defeating him, but its' going to be something different than just meeting some unexpected crazy monster.

What I'm trying to say is, that you will see everything for the first time, but the second time, and hundred times after, your reactions and expectations will be different, it won't be about what you might find, about the unknown, but what you want to find, what you know is there and you want to get for yourself.

Also, this is the internet and nothing will be left undiscovered for too long.

About your first question which I bolded, yes, they are basically the same, but they differentiate in 2 ways mainly. All the low level dungeons, guildhests and primal instances are designed for random people to get together and be able to beat the content, not much strategy involved besides knowing how the game mechanics work.

The second group will be those composed by lv50 dungeons, 24-man raids and I dare even to say (going by V1.0 experiences) lv50 Primals. You can still use the DF to join such instances and try to beat the content, but they are not the same type as the ones I mentioned before, they are considerably harder content, where you need a certain amount of focus and knowledge, also cooperation and communication to complete, and those are things that you won't find in a 24-man DF run and that you will need to do through your Linkshell, Free Company or friend list to complete it.

There have been talks about adding easy/hard modes to all the endgame dungeons and raids, I don't know if such a feature will be at launch or when at all, but if they were to do an easy mode for DF and a hard mode for FCs, then that'd be a different story.

 

[Ravidrath]

Oh it was you who wrote that interview? When I read the interview and I saw the header "By Michael Vreeland", I said who the hell is this? Where's Kagari!? No wonder the interview sucked!

That's my press pen name.

 

[Khrno]

But I know what you mean. My biggest gripe with XIV is that the dungeons are locked behind timed quest runs and duty finder. There's no massive Palborough Mines or Ifrit's Cauldron to spend hours traversing and exploring. I loved that XI's dungeons still for the most part had their starts and finishes but they didnt force you down that path wvery time you walked in. Hopefully that is something that would come further down the road once they have established a functional game world.

If you got to explore the world during the beta, I'm sure you saw many red dots in the maps with names and probably all of them happened to have some sort of entrance, however those entrances were blocked by something. Now I'm not going to say that at launch every single named cave or ruin in the game that had a red dot and a name will be explorable, but there is a very high chance for that to actually be the case, and those areas were simply sealed off due to the beta.

Also don't forget that both Coerthas and Mor Dhona were absent from the beta, and they will mainly be lv40+ areas with many dangerous places to explore.

 

[Sheppard]

Nova Crystalis: From everything it looks like, Scholar branches off from Arcanist, like Summoner. When can we expect to see other Jobs branching off from other classes?
Yoshida: We haven’t announced anything official, but we hope to have other jobs branching off of classes that already have jobs before an expansion. Right we now we have too many attackers, so we’re trying to figure out what to do next. Personally, I want to have scout classes – something tricky, to do traps and those types of maneuvers.


Be still my beating heart...

 

[omlet]

RE: The discussion about separate PS3 and PC game versions: http://support.na.square-enix.com/faqarticle.php?id=5382&la=1&kid=67233&ret=main

Via http://forum.square-enix.com/ARR-Test/threads/88318-Buy-PS3-play-on-PC

Looks like either I was right or their FAQ is wrong/outdated (but I have never read anything contradicting this FAQ entry).

 

[Boss Man]

If you got to explore the world during the beta, I'm sure you saw many red dots in the maps with names and probably all of them happened to have some sort of entrance, however those entrances were blocked by something. Now I'm not going to say that at launch every single named cave or ruin in the game that had a red dot and a name will be explorable, but there is a very high chance for that to actually be the case, and those areas were simply sealed off due to the beta.

Is the idea that these will be caves/ruins that you can just run right into once they're added? As in, you don't have to enter them through the menu?

 

[MogCakes]

So a debilitation/trap class? YES PLEASE

 

[Khrno]

RE: The discussion about separate PS3 and PC game versions: http://support.na.square-enix.com/faqarticle.php?id=5382&la=1&kid=67233&ret=main

Via http://forum.square-enix.com/ARR-Test/threads/88318-Buy-PS3-play-on-PC

Looks like either I was right or their FAQ is wrong/outdated (but I have never read anything contradicting this FAQ entry).

Well the thing is that if you have made an account through the PS3, and you happen to have access to a PC where the game has already been installed, then you can use your account there. It's not like the account would need to be flagged to be played on PC. The thing is that they want to sell both clients, or they would just make the PC client available for anyone to download if you had either copy registered.

Is the idea that these will be caves/ruins that you can just run right into once they're added? As in, you don't have to enter them through the menu?

Yup, that's the kind of caves I'm talking about, since that's something that was largely missing compared to 1.0. Not talking about huge dungeons or anything, but at least a few connecting caves or underground areas.

 

[QisTopTier]

From all the complaints about having to find the item to turn in, I feel like im the only person who clicks the damn icon in the trade window and adds it that way.

 

[Boss Man]

Yup, that's the kind of caves I'm talking about, since that's something that was largely missing compared to 1.0. Not talking about huge dungeons or anything, but at least a few connecting caves or underground areas.

Just for clarity, these are their own zones and everything right? If that's the case, this is certainly a bright spot for me. Hopefully some interesting things end up inside of them. At least now that seems possible. The idea of more complicated/larger ones being added later on seems more than possible.

What areas are you talking about exactly? I'd like to see this if there's a picture of a map floating around or anything.

 

[omlet]

Well the thing is that if you have made an account through the PS3, and you happen to have access to a PC where the game has already been installed, then you can use your account there. It's not like the account would need to be flagged to be played on PC. The thing is that they want to sell both clients, or they would just make the PC client available for anyone to download if you had either copy registered.

Yes, I know they want to sell copies of the game so they're not going to word their FAQ answer like "Sure, if you buy the PS3 version of the game, swing by your favorite torrent/warez site and grab an ISO of the PC version, too!"

But if I look at my SE account management screen it lists "FINAL FANTASY XIV - Windows(R)" as an option available to my account. Not "FINAL FANTASY XIV - Retail" or "FINAL FANTASY XIV - Windows(R) & Playstayion 3(R)" or something. To me, this distinction means that I can't play on PS3 until I buy and register a PS3 key to my account (via PSN), and it also means that had I created a new account using a PS3 version then my account would not be able to log in from a PC client until I had registered a key for the PC version of the game to my service account. For comparison, if I look at my XI account options in my SE account it clearly lists "FINAL FANTASY XI - PlayStation(R)2/Windows(R)/Xbox360(R)" indicating I can log into the game with any of those platforms without being required to buy extra software keys.

Remember that existing accounts were all PC because that's all there was for 1.x but that doesn't mean that SE didn't specifically flag those keys as PC version from the start. This separation may have been here from the start but we just weren't seeing it because we only had one version of the software available.

 

[Khrno]

Just for clarity, these are their own zones and everything right? If that's the case, this is certainly a bright spot for me. Hopefully some interesting things end up inside of them. At least now that seems possible. The idea of more complicated/larger ones being added later on seems more than possible.

What areas are you talking about exactly? I'd like to see this if there's a picture of a map floating around or anything.

Search for Cassiopeia Hollow or Nanawa Mines from 1.0, they were dungeon-like caves that were seamlessly connected with the open areas, they will probably be instanced dungeons now like Copperbell Mines and Tam-Tara Deepcroft which were also caves/underground areas before.

So I hope at least a couple of those old areas weren't turned instanced, or that they made new underground/caves areas, which there aren't really any at the moment.

Remember that existing accounts were all PC because that's all there was for 1.x but that doesn't mean that SE didn't specifically flag those keys as PC version from the start. This separation may have been here from the start but we just weren't seeing it because we only had one version of the software available.

Right, so there is an specific difference in the account management, I never noticed that (the Windows thingy), and since they were always thinking on a PS3 version, so I guess that's why it's been like that from the beginning.

So basically the keys from both clients are needed to play on both platforms, so for the beta they just left it open for the PS3 players.

Was it FFXI like this? If you started on PS2 (or 360) did you also need to register the PC version to be able to play on PC?