Pick One Thing You Wish They Fixed

And your only evidence is there were more subscribers in 75 era?
Consider :
1)People who left after level cap was raised due to the gear they worked hard for no longer being relevant.

2)Same people who whined for Adoulin level REM.

3)High barrier to entry for newer players post 75 era. Pre-abyssea had a good saturation of EXP groups across level ranges. This decreased drastically as established players used Abyssea to level from 30-current cap. You needed to have taken part in an EXP party on an already leveled job to be able to do this, or have friends to leech off of, which most new players wouldn't have at their disposal.

4)Have they even advertised at all since PS2 release? I remember seeing the same commercial for it constantly, and then all future news came from the Playonline bubble. Then you look at WoW which has multiple commercials for each expansion, airing well before and after launch date, apart from whatever other advertising campaigns they do. Best I've seen from Square Enix is emails, and most of us don't use the same email from way-back-when(hell, it took me forever to update to my college email and that's already been long abandoned). Point being they don't have strong methods of pulling in new or old subs.

Critically speaking you can say any era in the game has flaws but I think 75 was more glaringly obvious. Mostly comes to how they play the casual-hardcore scale, though I think most of that shift has come from better understanding of game mechanics within the player-base as opposed to how they actually design content(with the exception of a few special-mention pieces like Orison Pantaloons +2 and Daurdabla).

It's obvious that most people still playing today would prefer today over yesterday. That is blatantly obvious. this typically presides among all mmos, because people who quit playing a game normally don't stick around its forums. That being said, the subs that existed is a pretty good idea of what eras were more enjoyable.

Now I'll use Everquest as another example. Everquests decline started roughly after its expansion Gates of Discord. Everquest currently has many many QoL changes that almost all its current player base would consider better for the game. They release this TLP servers every few years that do phenomenally well and usually start to die after GoD expansion just as the subs previously showed for the era this was originally released.

What does this mean? It's an example of the biased feelings of a current pop of a game would suggest that the current game is better. Do people still enjoy games like FFXI in its current state? Absolutely, but to imply that the game is BETTER now and days is completely fabricated. I support the idea that someone feels it's better and I completely enjoy the current game and have a significant amount of fun, but from a financial standpoint it's not. Now I know you guys don't like me claiming its fabricated, but you have no way of proving otherwise. What people do have access to though is subscription numbers that did exist and the success that several companies have had restoring the nostalgic factor.

If what you guys claimed to be true mmos would start declining as soon as they launched, rather than hitting s peak of enjoyment that people felt was the best time of the mmo then decline. Do mmos slowly die from influenced outside sources like other mmos? Most definitely, but as WoW has shown, you can regain those numbers proving that "MMOs are guaranteed to die" statements false. Have they lost people since they regained a large number? Absolutely, but not because of the theorized idea that MMOs are suppose to die, but because people lost enjoyment. Do they correlate? Definitely, but it also contradicts your guys reasoning, because if people don't enjoy the game anymore, obviously they will quit. If the game was better after the 75 days people would keep playing.

Why are games like LoL or smite growing all the time? Because they are suppose to die?

Nostalgia goggles bolted on tight, not getting anywhere where this one.

That sudden stop in Upper Jeuno.

Good talk.

The damn skirmish taru from taking your stones regardless of if you didn't like the random augment he gave you or not. >_> Seriously, SoA's been out for about 2 years now and they still have not fixed that issue. I could take the random augments IF the freakin taru didn't take my stones regardless, that's always annoyed me... <_<


/glares at SE

What was that? There's a monster sitting on a hill right in front of your face? Nope, don't see anything.

Aside from a few magazines doing brief stories whenever a new expansion pack was coming out, I don't recall seeing anything. I remember when PS2 version came out, it was covered monthly for 7-8 months, then nothing.

Uh, if he didn't take your stones whether you took the new augment or not, what would stop you from just handing in the exact same stone over and over and over again until you got exactly what you wanted?

Having to stay logged in for others to access my bazaar, how much electricity wasted since the release of XI over that ?

Complete overhaul of auction house to a system that doesn't encourage the player-base into a race for the lowest price, Everquest got their AH right, XI and WoW both sadly failed.

Merge methods of transport, I don't want Homepoints/survival guides/waypoints/outpost warps/augral conveyours/proto-waypoints/geomagnet fonts. I want 1 system that doesn't make my head hurt trying to remember how to get anywhere.

Just give us our own personal Wyrm so we can just fly to where ever we wanna go.

I totally agreed. Nicely said

Has anyone pointed out here in the EverQuest analogy that EverQuest is F2P?

If XI were to go F2P (not going to happen, given they still make tons of money from it), but if it were, how many subs do you think would come back?

Honestly, probably not that many. XI is pretty cheap all things considered; the bigger problem is that the target market overlaps so much with XIV, which is still on the ascension. People (most people) don't have time for two MMOs, so the older one with the declining population is what gets cut.

I just don't see the sub cost as a barrier to entry.

This is the whole point of the game. If you don't like it, go play literally any other MMO. When I stop playing FFXI, I will not go to any other game because they don't let you change gear once engaged.
Changing gear while engaged it what made FFXI FFXI.

This one may be out of the ball park but. Price of admission. Over years if dumped over $4000 into this game. It's a great game. But I kinda wish SE would move in the direction of all the new stuff and be free to play with lots of cosmetic micro- transactions etc

I dunno. Maybe it's just the age group (both my own and those I've played with specifically), but I know a lot of people who have quit as a means to save every bit they can as a result of moving out on their own, having kids, etc. They're not hurting for cash even, necessarily (though some are, but I don't want to go too much into P&R economy topics here!). Their priorities just change.

Edit: I've also known several people on disability or a fixed income otherwise who play (and no, not "welfare queens". I know those too, but I give them ***for it). Generally if they have "down time" where they can't play much, they hibernate their subs for the sake of saving dinner/gas money for a few days.

My own character since 2004 and a mule account since 2009 or so, therefore I'm probably in the same ballpark.

But then again, given how much I've gotten out of the game, I'm not complaining. It's been a major component of my life, both socially and entertainment wise, and it's probably saved me a lot of money going out to the bar/etc. over the years.

Maybe they should lower the monthly fee from 12.99 to 6.99? :D FFXI is old...

Honestly, I don't see them lowering the fee at all unless they make it F2P, but I've been wrong before...

Loss of chat connectivity while zoning.

That's a pretty good one.

"Zoned" might be the word I've typed the most in the past decade.

You're blind to this whole subject here, People go back to games because they ENJOYED them they don't go back if its ***. SNES games aren't games that take long to play like MMO's, you sir picked a HELP I AM TRAPPED IN 2006 PLEASE SEND A TIME MACHINE example to compare it to. Even so people go back to old games like i do with old FF games from time to time because i thoroughly ENJOYED them growing up, exactly like people do with ANY game, Gameboy games, SNES and even WOW. They went back (again because they enjoyed it) played for a bit and quit when they got bored. I came back after a 2 year break of playing other games because i enjoyed XI more than any other game but i got bored after completing most the content with very little left for me to do other than grind a mythic. I've been back 3 months and I am still swamped with things to do and i am enjoying it a lot.

Being back i have met a ton of people that have come back from 4 all the way to 8 years ago and all agree on 1 thing the game has changed a lot and for the better. The only thing better like someone said already was the community. More people to do/talk with makes for a good community and a good community can really make a game shine. The game itself though was so so much worst lvling took forever running about took forever, Just a lot of wasted time that wasn't enjoyable.

Anyone really interacts with any players online at all?servers are empty,most people just use mutiple accounts to accomplish anything.

Anyone can solo most content with npcs, SE literally patched the game into a offline mmo. I don't see any purpose of paying a sub fee when SE finish Rhapsodies of Vana'diel. Unless you're ok with them stealing your money after November.

Amen Ramyrez.

But Level 75 era better? For real? How insane is that?
So when is someone going to break out with a lamentation about cassette tapes and compact discs being better than today's media options too?
FFS! ALL of the QOL improvements made in FFXI have been wonderful, even if there are rampant teleport options everywhere, but does anyone really miss ridiculous travel time?
Waiting LONG periods of time for replacements in pick-up exp/merit parties?
How about carrying around all the ele staves? No thanks.
Sure, tons more subs "back in the day" but I don't miss the massive RMT presence nor the revolving door of membership that was most HNMLS.
On a note of positivity though: since the decline of the population in FFXI, I've had the pleasure of meeting quite a few very wonderful people both in game and through forums who genuinely enjoy this game and are extremely courteous. A rarity during the level 75 days. So even if there are still plenty of *** playing FFXI, at least they are a lot quieter.
-In game anyways.

Please tell me exactly what was better other than the community and explain exactly why it was better if you believe it so much. All i keep seeing is it had more subs so of course it was better which again was a HELP I AM TRAPPED IN 2006 PLEASE SEND A TIME MACHINE idea.

I remember his game lost a lot of subs when people rage quit about the level cap before it even happened not even to give the game a chance.

They lost a lot of subs with the mass bans they do.

This game lost a lot of subs due to FFXIV like myself for example most of my friends followed me from XI. Like someone has already stated SE hasn't really tried to push this game out there anymore with advertisements. A lot won't even give it a try any more because there are much nicer looking games out there. WoW is known world wide and i remember seeing adverts for it on TV not even that long ago with celebrities in it like Ozzy and chuck norris. Also a lot will think why play an older version of FF when XIV is out and looks so much better not even knowing the difference. The community is getting worse with the decrease which also puts off the very few new players the game does get.

Games like LoL, DOTA2, Smite, heroes of the storm are games you can play less than an hour long unless unlucky. They get great advertisements with LOL being #1 on twitch most the time. HOTS just being a Blizzard game gets instant likes. DOTA2 is a Valve game and a remake of very enjoyable old mod that all these MOBA games were based off.

The only problem within communities are ignorant shitters who open their mouth and fail to realize that their feelings are worth zero and are only to create unneeded dramas. They are the only thing that creates a distance between X and Y part of the community.

I joined a Sky LS after I finished HNMs to help people and get the last Abjuration I needed. The guys who were asking me what Shield Mastery did or why they could barely see my character when we were fighting weren't annoying, but that guy who was a full STR full time SAM and that acted like he was hot ***and would talk down on anyone telling him that he should know his role and shut his mouth, this guy annoyed me.

TL;DR: Shitters have always hated successful people, this is how life is. If you were in HNM and were getting stuff, you were successful, you were hated (by the less successful players, including your own LS). If you were a rich crafter who never did any HNM but would have his name all over AH history, you were hated.

If you were that retard that bet all his pride on his SH+1 as MNK and would belittle most people because of that, you were hated, but for the right reason.

And so on.

If people hate you, at least it means you're doing something right.

I can't quite grasp this concept.

Completely, utterly ridiculous. I was one of the first NA relics on Hades and half the server showed up to Dragon's Aery to congratulate me, people I didn't even know. It was partly about the novelty, I'm sure, but the sense of pride that one of us had done something (with a tremendous amount of help from his linkshell) was palpable.

You can absolutely be successful without being an *** about it, and you can certainly do it without being hated. Stow your cynicism.

*ahem*

*coughs embarassingly*

Tapes I can live without aside from nostalgia, but I actually like owning physical copies of music. Gives me a little more freedom with something I've paid for.

That said, all-digital is certainly more convenient!

Sorry for the slight tangent, but...uh. Well, I'm weird like that.