Final Fantasy XIV Online (FFXIV)

[DeputyMoniker]

I just heard the news!! I couldn't be happier to hear there is a new online adventure coming! Every time I hear anything about FFXIII, I can't help but think about how badly I want a FFXI sequel. Well, it's coming next year!

I do think they announced it a little too early, though. Kindof made me feel like he was going to announce XV, XVI, XVII, and XVIII too. Like an SNL skit.

As it is now, the plan is for it to be a PS3 exclusive. (STFU before you even start. We all know what you think about that and you're the only one here who wants to read it.) The development system is going to be different than what we saw in FFXI. Rather than being based on race & class, it will be based on the gear you choose. I'm fine with that as long as they give me the freedom to build a nuker. I'd like to be able to focus on black magic, but I won't be too upset if they make it a little more general than that. I'll keep an open mind, but I really need to be able to nuke. Also, I'm really hoping they don't go with the Oblivion mage battle system where I have to aim fireballs. That feels too much like an archer to me. I guess if I were to give it a chance, I may end up finding that it adds to the excitement. I played Oblivion for only a few hours before I stored it away so I never really gave it a chance.

Word is that you will be able to solo if you like...so that addresses the one big complaint I had with FFXI. I didn't have predictable days off, so I wasn't able to stick with a static party. So every time I wanted to play, I'd have to find a new party. Waiting outside the Crawlers Nest for 12 hours on a Saturday should not be a problem with this new installment. So it's already shaping up to be what I've wanted!

Anyway, this is the first game in ages that I have been this excited about. I'm completely enamored of FFXIV Online. In my little world, this is a major announcement. I can't wait to pour myself into this game.

Announcement & trailor:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puOiYZE7B1w

EDIT: Fixed a typo.

[kupomogli]

No waiting 30 minutes to an hour to actually get into a party? Then feeling out of place since it seems these people party alot, etc(usually?) Given the fact that I only put about 35-40 hours into FF11 means that the few people I did party with regularly it wasn't much.

If I have to put 5000+ hours to finally really start enjoying the game. No thanks. I really do hope this isn't like FF11 on that aspect.

[Therealqtip]

I always wanted to play 11 but hearing that it's just a grind fest and a waste of time I'll just wait for this one.

[portnoyd]

If they don't fix the GUI, I won't be going anywhere near the game. FFXI's interface was just horrendous and it made a good game barely passable. This is someone who put 80 days into FFXI and whose SO put 310 days into it.

[Overbite]

Wow you guys are behind the times. Some alpha videos came out days ago

http://www.ffxivcore.com/index.php?/topic/424-ffxiv-at-gamescom-updated-all-the-time/

[StetsonGraves]

I'm not much of an MMO person, there are just way too many games to play for me to spend months and months on a single title. But with that said I think I might try this for a month or two after it comes out.

DeputyMoniker, you said you haven't been excited for a game in forever, what about White Knight Chronicles? It's supposed to have an online multiplayer that's similar to an MMO.

[Snapple]

You just heard about this? E3 was a while ago.

[DeputyMoniker]

No waiting 30 minutes to an hour to actually get into a party? Then feeling out of place since it seems these people party alot, etc(usually?) Given the fact that I only put about 35-40 hours into FF11 means that the few people I did party with regularly it wasn't much.

If I have to put 5000+ hours to finally really start enjoying the game. No thanks. I really do hope this isn't like FF11 on that aspect.

30 minutes to an hour of seeking party? Yeah...you didn't put much time into the game at all. Like I said, I used to stand outside the Crawlers Nest for 12 hours seeking party. That was early in its life, so things may be better now.


I'm not much of an MMO person, there are just way too many games to play for me to spend months and months on a single title. But with that said I think I might try this for a month or two after it comes out.

DeputyMoniker, you said you haven't been excited for a game in forever, what about White Knight Chronicles? It's supposed to have an online multiplayer that's similar to an MMO.

I don't mind spending months and months on a single game if I'm still enjoying it. I guess I don't desire variety as much as some other people do. I can leave the same movie playing for a month.

As for White Night Chronicles, I haven't heard of it. I just looked it up & I see it's a PS3 exclusive. I don't have a PS3 yet so I haven't been following its "non-hyped" releases. It's just that FFXIV jumped out and bit me.


You just heard about this? E3 was a while ago.

Yeah but you have to admit that FFXIV hasn't been getting much press. Relative to FFXIII...or a hundred other games right now.

[BHvrd]

But, but....

Can I bring my Moogle and stuff from XI. :(

[Overbite]

i will bet monies that there are moogles in this

[ScourDX]

If Square Enix put Cloud & Sephiroth as playable characters in their latest FF MMO, I'm pretty sure a lot of die hard fans will buy the game and continue to pay as long as they have Cloud or Sephiroth as their character.

[Snapple]

Yeah but you have to admit that FFXIV hasn't been getting much press. Relative to FFXIII...or a hundred other games right now.

True. But there's not a lot of info to get hyped about yet. It will get bigger, the closer the game gets to release.

I liked FF11, but I had to quit because it is a huge time sink, like most MMOs. I'd like to think I was a pretty good Galka bard though. Not many of those around.

[portnoyd]

If Square Enix put Cloud & Sephiroth as playable characters in their latest FF MMO, I'm pretty sure a lot of die hard fans will buy the game and continue to pay as long as they have Cloud or Sephiroth as their character.

That'd be pretty stupid. As it was in FFXI, there were hundreds of XxSephrothxX and CloudXCloud type names floating around. It certainly didn't need a reason for these people to make completely unimaginative names.

[NayusDante]

I'm definitely excited about FFXIV, but to be honest, I'm apprehensive about a few changes from FFXI.

First of all, I actually LOVE the interface in FFXI. It's gamepad-focused, so it's not a clickfest like other MMOs. I like selecting my skills, not clicking them. It just feels right. From what I've seen of FFXIV, it's a hybrid between the hotbar of typical MMOs and a menu-driven interface, which I can get used to. I'll be fine as long as it isn't another game where my skills are icons with an animated refresh meter.

FFXI looked damn good for its time, and it had a beautiful visual style. With that look, the animations fit pretty well. The look hasn't changed much, but the animations look awkward. We'll have to wait and see on that. I like the fact that Tarus are taller, not sure what to think about the Mithra and Galka changes.

Regardless of the changes and holdovers, I'm going to be absorbed in Eorza on day one. Until then, I'm struggling to play FFXI. Back when it was new, FFXI was the most amazing thing in the world for me, and it looks like FFXIV might rekindle those feelings.

[portnoyd]

FFXI was great looking game (makes WoW look like dog shit), sounded brilliantly and actually had a story, compared to pretty much every other MMO out there. The music still brings back good memories to this day.

However, the menu driven GUI was horrible. If it wasn't for macros, the game would be completely unplayable. Selecting your abilities is all well and good... until you hit the internal, unseen global cooldown and get 'This action cannot be performed' right when you are trying to get a critical cast or ability off. Then you have to dig back to the menu option and try again. The game desperately needs to get with the times and go with icons/hotbars.

I always said that the devs hated the player base and with stuff like AV, non-instanced zones (nothing like missing Beaudicine for a month straight due to zone jacking) and the grueling leveling system, I think that's true. I mean, how many things did FFXI adapt for WoW just to make it more appealling? It's clear they were doing many things wrong.

[NayusDante]

I don't understand why everyone hates the menu system. Considering that it's FINAL FANTASY, and the series has only been using menu-driven combat FOREVER, bashing it really can't be justified. If it were hotbar based, it wouldn't be Final Fantasy. FFXIV does NOT need to compromise its uniqueness to fit in with everyone else's current expectations of a WoW clone. WoW ruined MMOs, and to this day, FFXI is the only MMO I can stand anymore, because it's actually different.

[Tempest]

I don't understand why everyone hates the menu system. Considering that it's FINAL FANTASY, and the series has only been using menu-driven combat FOREVER, bashing it really can't be justified. If it were hotbar based, it wouldn't be Final Fantasy. FFXIV does NOT need to compromise its uniqueness to fit in with everyone else's current expectations of a WoW clone. WoW ruined MMOs, and to this day, FFXI is the only MMO I can stand anymore, because it's actually different.
I never had any trouble with the menu system in FFXI. Like any game it took me a bit to learn how to use it, but once I did I was pretty fast with it and I was only using a controller not a keyboard!

I'm really looking forward to XIV. If they can take XI and fix some of the issues like forced partying past level 10 then I'll be happy. The reason I left XI was that I didn't have hours to sit around waiting for a party to form only to disband 20 min later. That and I was tired of all the best stuff being perma-camped (good luck ever getting Lizzy or the guy who dropped the Peacock Charm or the mobs for the various colored belts).

Tempest

[portnoyd]

I don't understand why everyone hates the menu system. Considering that it's FINAL FANTASY, and the series has only been using menu-driven combat FOREVER, bashing it really can't be justified. If it were hotbar based, it wouldn't be Final Fantasy. FFXIV does NOT need to compromise its uniqueness to fit in with everyone else's current expectations of a WoW clone. WoW ruined MMOs, and to this day, FFXI is the only MMO I can stand anymore, because it's actually different.

WoW ruined MMOs? Are you kidding? WoW did MMOs right, then ruined itself. Trying to cater a game towards the amount of people equal to the population of Zimbabwe will do that. As it is, breaking the xp loss on death mechanic is something they should be hailed for.

Bashing that godawful menu system is indeed called for. It'll still be FF. Menus are not exactly the one thing people associate with Final Fantasy. They have to change or it will be just as tedious as 11 and it will never reach the level of acceptance the rest of the game's quality calls for.

[NayusDante]

Trying to cater a game towards the amount of people equal to the population of Zimbabwe will do that...

...it will never reach the level of acceptance the rest of the game's quality calls for.

The word "cater" is really not the best word for this situation. I prefer "pander." When one of your goals is "mass appeal," you probably won't end up with a unique game or something that really accomplishes anything worthwhile. The more people you want to appeal to, the more generic your product becomes.

That's another reason I respect FFXI. It doesn't compromise itself to make people like it, it just is what it is. If you have a problem with it, you don't have to bother with it.

[portnoyd]

It doesn't compromise itself to make people like it, it just is what it is.

That could be the dumbest thing I've heard. You are acting like it's a person whose values and integrity are supposed to matter. It's a game that is to be sold to consumers. If it's a chore to play, no one should respect that, whether it's Final Fantasy or not. Hey, Drake and the 99 Dragons "is what it is", but it's also one of the worst games of the last generation.

Fixing the GUI in FFXIV is not even catering to the masses - it's correcting something that you defend simply because it's a Final Fantasy game!

The point is WoW eliminated the xp loss on death mechanic, made leveling solo and group equally as viable and eliminated most spawn camping. Regardless of what it's become, FFXI is still behind the curve in those regards and if they can't fix those things, it will never reach full potential and exposure which FFXI's graphics, music and story deserved. And that's all not including the clunky GUI.

[Overbite]

Well they did pretty much fix all of that for FF14.

[BHvrd]

That could be the dumbest thing I've heard. You are acting like it's a person whose values and integrity are supposed to matter. It's a game that is to be sold to consumers. If it's a chore to play, no one should respect that, whether it's Final Fantasy or not. Hey, Drake and the 99 Dragons "is what it is", but it's also one of the worst games of the last generation.

Fixing the GUI in FFXIV is not even catering to the masses - it's correcting something that you defend simply because it's a Final Fantasy game!

The point is WoW eliminated the xp loss on death mechanic, made leveling solo and group equally as viable and eliminated most spawn camping. Regardless of what it's become, FFXI is still behind the curve in those regards and if they can't fix those things, it will never reach full potential and exposure which FFXI's graphics, music and story deserved. And that's all not including the clunky GUI.

Actually I agree with NayusDante and I agree that it doesn't compromise. I don't see how something has to be human to have integrity. I mean otherwise Spielberg might as well just remake E.T. as a porno, i'm sure that wouldn't hurt any old ladies feelings.

You go on about WoW as if it was a complete single player experience, only if you wanted to see 40% of the game it was. It was just as much a time sink as FFXI if not more so with its ridiculous rank grinding and 40 man raids.

An MMO is an MMO and most these days are cookie cutters and piggyback one another, so I definetely agree in the fact that FFXI is a whole nother beast and one tailored for FF fans, at least that's my opinion anyway.

If there's one last thing I can say, did Star Wars Galaxies not suffer massive decline in userbase cause of not catering to its fanbase? I see this happening more and more cause companies get greddy and it's a decline for alot of genres and what people expect. I don't think ever game should cater to every gamer, I think niche is still very much important, viable and profitable.

[Therealqtip]

Just signed up for the beta, I really hope I get in. :angel:

[Jorpho]

The real question is, are people going to start calling it "Eff Eff Ziv" ?

There really hasn't been a MMORPG sequel before aside from Everquest 2, has there? As I understand, it did not do much to pull people away from the EQ1 base.

I also wonder how much money Square is making off this sort of thing. At this rate they'll be able to start making motion pictures again.

[portnoyd]

Actually I agree with NayusDante and I agree that it doesn't compromise. I don't see how something has to be human to have integrity. I mean otherwise Spielberg might as well just remake E.T. as a porno, i'm sure that wouldn't hurt any old ladies feelings.

You go on about WoW as if it was a complete single player experience, only if you wanted to see 40% of the game it was. It was just as much a time sink as FFXI if not more so with its ridiculous rank grinding and 40 man raids.

An MMO is an MMO and most these days are cookie cutters and piggyback one another, so I definetely agree in the fact that FFXI is a whole nother beast and one tailored for FF fans, at least that's my opinion anyway.

If there's one last thing I can say, did Star Wars Galaxies not suffer massive decline in userbase cause of not catering to its fanbase? I see this happening more and more cause companies get greddy and it's a decline for alot of genres and what people expect. I don't think ever game should cater to every gamer, I think niche is still very much important, viable and profitable.

I must have missed this post. I've played both games and can say FFXI is much more tedious and harder to use than WoW. I tried to like FF11 more than I did, but by not compromising, they ruined the experience completely for me with the things I mentioned above. Anyway, as Overbite said, they are fixing all my gripes so looks like they jumped on the compromise bandwagon anyway. :P

SWG is a bad example. The game went from Jedi being the most unattainable thing you could possibly do to almost the opposite. People wanted to be Jedis and they catered to the masses.

Btw, did they announce when they're drawing for the beta? If it's coming out in 2010, they better get their groove on asap.

[zemmix]

Theres a few guildies in my Wow guild that are waiting for this one. To be honest there's nothing that interests me about it so far. I'm not too fond of games that can be played on both a console and pc. Imo it just makes the PC version feel dumbed down.

That Bioware Star Wars Old Republic MMo on the other hand I'll give a whirl. They have the right opinion on consoles (http://www.edge-online.com/news/bioware-rebuts-swtor-console-rumours) at least.