New Features and User Interface Improvements (11/17/2010)

[Darte]

So am I to infer from this article that /equip rings still won't work?
Or that text variables like <p1> will still be non-functional for anything but the chat log?

Nope

Text Commands
The <pos> command will be usable to display coordinates on the map.
The /equip and /item commands will accommodate high-quality items (i.e., items with names containing a +1, +2, etc.).
Simultaneously equipping multiple items of the same name to multiple slots with the /equip command will become possible.

[Dooom]

I dunno, if the same types of complaints are being voiced in large numbers over multiple websites and forums, then I'm pretty sure even SE will take notice. I also wonder what kind of things the JP post on Lodestone, as it seems to me they update their blogs more than English speakers. If they're complaining on there, well, it's hard to ignore someone complaining about your own product in large numbers on your own website.

Maybe I'm being too nice, but it makes it seem cooler for this stuff to be added in updates.

I think you are, because - without wanting to be too negative or whatever - making a big deal out of map markers and such helps mask a lack of content. Of course, that's the cynical view - the alternative view is they made a big deal out of it because so many people want these features, so sneaking them in on an update note wouldn't work so well for them.

[bruiser]

Nope

Yea, it blows my mind why someone would infer things that an article makes absolutely 0 mention of. I think some people are just trying to troll, or something. Nobody can fail that hard legitimately.... I would hope

[Katlan]

The only reason they are giving additional free months is because the games population is in a dire state. If they had a somewhat healthy population, w/all these problems, then you could sure as hell bet they would charge Ppl as they fix the game. I'm 110% confident they knew Ppl would be unhappy w/the retail product, but I don't think they anticipated it to be this bad and for the player base to stop playing before they even finished their free trials

[kisada]

have they ever mentioned anything about increasing the number of input characters while typing?

[Elcura]

Or that depends how do you describe "vocal" of course. Bitching on the forums does nothing, but go and cancel your subscription...

Pretty much. If I complain, I try and do it so that some part of SE sees it, not in places where it's meaningless other than to vent whatever frustration I may have had.

I don't care if you complain, it's mostly where you do it.

@Dooom, I wasn't implying earlier than you're a hater, you just happened to be the first to say something like that. There are a few people I'd put in the haters column, and I wouldn't say you were one.

[Hyan]

I dunno, if the same types of complaints are being voiced in large numbers over multiple websites and forums, then I'm pretty sure even SE will take notice. I also wonder what kind of things the JP post on Lodestone, as it seems to me they update their blogs more than English speakers. If they're complaining on there, well, it's hard to ignore someone complaining about your own product in large numbers on your own website.

They will take notice if there is some negative impact on them. If nothing changes sub wise, people keep paying, there is nothing they need to do.

Likewise, if no one complains but subs keep dropping, they will do something.

But this only applies for the useless "should have been there" comments. If someone says something constructive (and majority agrees), they can use that to make the game better at least. But pure bitching does jack shit.

[Draylo]

People have a right to hate on this game just like all the white knighting. Paid 60+ for a shit game with less content than a Dora the explorer game
Fixes are good, keep them up and more people might stop hating. M w/e and hyan should stop trying so hard though.

[kamugi]

These improvements are all real nice but they don't solve the 1 issue I have the most problem with so I will still not be reactivating my account and playing.

The chat log is impossible for me to read on my monitor, I need a background color for it like in FFXI and a larger font size, I dont care how pretty the game is or how they updated all this other stuff, if Im unable to communicate with others, I can't play.

[bruiser]

These improvements are all real nice but they don't solve the 1 issue I have the most problem with so I will still not be reactivating my account and playing.

The chat log is impossible for me to read on my monitor, I need a background color for it like in FFXI and a larger font size, I dont care how pretty the game is or how they updated all this other stuff, if Im unable to communicate with others, I can't play.

Maybe you missed the 10 times they said in previous notes / ask the devs / interviews that the transparency of the chat log would be changed.

I don't know why it's not obvious to everyone reading these that these are not a complete 100% inclusive list of updates that are coming. If they were, then why do they keep making new posts about it? If every single post was a 100% inclusive list of changes that are coming, then future posts about it would be completely redundant.

[Hyan]

Too defensive!

[Almalexia]

While engaging multiple enemies, a player's cursor will automatically move to the next target when the current target is defeated.

I hope this feature doesn't subscribe to the current targeting logic, which always selects the furthest, most inconvenient target in your field of view (or not in your field of view).

[Spider-Dan]

Yea, it blows my mind why someone would infer things that an article makes absolutely 0 mention of. I think some people are just trying to troll, or something. Nobody can fail that hard legitimately.... I would hope

SE has acknowledged that chat variables exist, but that they do not currently work for anything but chat log display. It's not exactly unreasonable to think that this would be fixed in short order, but the update notes make no mention of it.

As far as /equip rings not working, that's a straight bug; SE's Lodestone claims that it works, but it doesn't. It would be nice if they would have acknowledged that they are fixing it.

[Spider-Dan]

I dunno, if the same types of complaints are being voiced in large numbers over multiple websites and forums, then I'm pretty sure even SE will take notice. I also wonder what kind of things the JP post on Lodestone, as it seems to me they update their blogs more than English speakers. If they're complaining on there, well, it's hard to ignore someone complaining about your own product in large numbers on your own website.

I think I can safely say that SE cares very little about what the players say. There were mountains of comments on the horrid state of the game through closed and open beta, and SE basically ignored almost all of them (with Tanaka trotting out some debugging excuse after the fact).

But the one thing that you can learn from this is that when the media says "Jump," SE immediately asks, "How high?" Remember the PW debacle that popped up on Yahoo(?) with the 24-hour battle controversy? SE immediately patched the game to eliminate those kind of fights.

Make no mistake: the reason why SE has been so motivated to fix this game has almost nothing to do with player complaints. SE already has a thoroughly fleshed-out system for systematically ignoring those. The reason why SE's hair got set on fire was the absolute savaging that they took in the game media for the release state of FFXIV. So in that sense, the early release did have a positive impact on the game.

[bruiser]

SE has acknowledged that chat variables exist, but that they do not currently work for anything but chat log display. It's not exactly unreasonable to think that this would be fixed in short order, but the update notes make no mention of it.

As far as /equip rings not working, that's a straight bug; SE's Lodestone claims that it works, but it doesn't. It would be nice if they would have acknowledged that they are fixing it.

That still has nothing to do with why you think it safe to infer things that any reasonable person would have no reason to infer.

[Spider-Dan]

SE published an article detailing UI adjustments coming in the next update.
This article makes no mention of a fix for two significant problems with the UI.
It is unreasonable to infer that those problems are not being fixed in this update?

[Gokulo]

I'm just hoping they have been omitted for being "too obvious" or left for another update note.

[bruiser]

SE published an article detailing UI adjustments coming in the next update.
This article makes no mention of a fix for two significant problems with the UI.
It is unreasonable to infer that those problems are not being fixed in this update?

Yep. Especially considering that detailed in the past numerous fixes which are coming in Novemeber which are not listed there. It basically goes without saying that the article they published is not a complete 100% inclusive list of fixes. This is just common sense, I don't get what's so hard about it.

In case you needed further evidence that you're trying way to hard to be pissed off at SE, I'll quote it for you. From this exact article in fact (and the first paragraph no less);

The large-scale version update tentatively scheduled for November 25 will bring about a number of changes to the user interface (UI). Among these will be improvements to controls on various menus and screens, an item-sorting feature, and further improvements to targeting and chat systems. In addition to reworking numerous facets of the UI, we will also be implementing a number of new features. This Topics post will introduce and detail a portion of these planned.

[Spider-Dan]

Yep. Especially considering that detailed in the past numerous fixes which are coming in Novemeber which are not listed there.

None of which were the issues I mentioned.

It basically goes without saying that the article they published is not a complete 100% inclusive list of fixes.

In an article specifically focused on UI, the two (arguably) most significant macro-related problems in the game should merit a mention, particularly since they had a section of the article devoted to text commands.

You seem to be implying that these are minor, trivial concerns that are easily ignored. They are not; targeting issues (one of the worst problems in this game) would be greatly alleviated if you could specify targets using macro variables, and being unable to equip/remove rings and bracelets via macro (the same gear that cannot be repaired by the repair NPC) adds a large chunk of time when you switch from battle gear to crafting gear.

[qpoiuwer]

None of which were the issues I mentioned.


In an article specifically focused on UI, the two (arguably) most significant macro-related problems in the game should merit a mention, particularly since they had a section of the article devoted to text commands.

You seem to be implying that these are minor, trivial concerns that are easily ignored. They are not; targeting issues (one of the worst problems in this game) would be greatly alleviated if you could specify targets using macro variables, and being unable to equip/remove rings and bracelets via macro (the same gear that cannot be repaired by the repair NPC) adds a large chunk of time when you switch from battle gear to crafting gear.

You can remove and equip rings and bracelets with macros. The issue is that you cannot equip two items of the same name to different slots. But the update notes say right there "Simultaneously equipping multiple items of the same name to multiple slots with the /equip command will become possible."