Letter from the Producer IX (5/2/2011)

[Reapz]

Hope we get something this week, really want SOME kind of info on battle system changes/job system rather than silence. Mid june is a while away, so keep us happy with details

[Sagacious Sundi]

I'm guessing we will also see Sahagain sometimes soon since there is bit of a talk about them in game already.

Yeah, but I figure we'll only get a stronghold for them rather than a whole new region.

[Gulkeeva]

Like Kurokikaze mentioned, on the battle system, I'm thinking it will be more or less a bandaid on fixing the current combat system up. Theirs alot of risk in just adding a whole new battle system that would take weeks of "adjustments" to fix up, where as fixing flaws in the current one with minor tweaks would be the fastest method.

I'm sure their more in a rush to "add stuff" for the complainers of "no content" then playing with a completely new reworked battle system with months of adjustments.

I'm sure most of the changes will revolve around the auto attack and the delay was probably in wtf to do about classes like gladiator, pugilist, lancer, marauder's light/strong attacks "effects".

Also like in my previous post, "that one guy" went speeding through walls to the other area's people mentioned above and posted more pictures (also someone found some videos from beta/alpha of unexplorable areas)

[Tomino]

Like Kurokikaze mentioned, on the battle system, I'm thinking it will be more or less a bandaid on fixing the current combat system up. Theirs alot of risk in just adding a whole new battle system that would take weeks of "adjustments" to fix up, where as fixing flaws in the current one with minor tweaks would be the fastest method.

Agree, but in the end no one's asking them to re-do the whole game but to fix a lot of stupidity they tossed around in the first place.


The more I play, the more it looks like the borrowed ideas from other genres without having the techincal support needed : game's full of "reactive", quickly consumed skills and then.. it's a lagfest like no other.

They first design Guard to be constantly refreshed and then everything that's related to it generates animation locks, wastes precious seconds and makes everything clumsy.
They made monsters possess TP moves that can be avoided like any action game, and then your character is locked in place most of the time because of how animations work.
Sustained skills like Protect have this ridiculous duration which forces you to stop and recast every 5 mins, which makes absolutely no sense.

Let's not get started on stats, rank10 THM goign around in r50 plate set and so on...

[Kurokikaze]

The above is correct. Every somewhat cool aspect of the battle system is hampered or held back by some other mechanics/system that is totally failing. This extends out to classes as well.

Day 1 of the wait: Disappointed.

If you want to amuse yourself on the forums... Apparently a lot of people think this game is ready to be paid for.

[Kaiyoko]

The above is correct. Every somewhat cool aspect of the battle system is hampered or held back by some other mechanics/system that is totally failing. This extends out to classes as well.

Day 1 of the wait: Disappointed.

If you want to amuse yourself on the forums... Apparently a lot of people think this game is ready to be paid for.

Until they add dungeons, revamp combat, and add transportation, I'm not paying for shit. I'll be playing XI again before that shit happens.

[m4th_]

i agree completly with both gulkeeva and tomino.
i can't wait to see the wave of disappointment when they'll reveal something releated to the next patch: expectations are way too high, or at least, mine are. so i'll be easily disappointed.

[solracht]

If you want to amuse yourself on the forums... Apparently a lot of people think this game is ready to be paid for.

That thread is on its way to hell and it hasn't even been 3 pages. Can't wait until Abriael posts.

[CrstyCptSteveWitherspoon]

Paid for.. lol. Here's my morning. Hoping to knock out the last 1.5k marks I need on alc to get a book so I pick up leves. Do two leves in Uldah and get 2/2 for marks, sweet 200 to go. I do two more leves for black brush and drybone. I have to RUN to them because I'm getting low on anima and I have other things I'd like to teleport to later. I also can't return to Uldah because I'm keeping my return point to cassio so I can return there later to fish(and conserve anima). Go 0/2 on those leves for marks, no book, and I'm out 30 minutes for my run to dry bone and back to Uldah. Next I decide to pick up fishing gear. The market wards are empty of gear that I need but luckly I have almost every craft to 30 so I can make stuff. I go to make dodoskin jerkin; Celeste blue cotton needs me to get some dye and make the dyed cotton; Leather chest guard (black) requires me to make dyed black AND red leather among other mats to make; need to make a GREY sheep leather strap; turns out I'm outta dodo leather; also out of cotton yarn. So 30 minutes later I have a dodoskin jerkin (blue). Repeat this process for the other 5 pieces of gear I'm going to make. Next I find that I can do the rank 42 MQ but they want me to run to grid. Trying to conserve anima so that's out of the question.

I'm out over 2-3 hours easy for the above with little to show for. I can't even enjoy half the world(or game) due to time/anima constraints.

Summary: if people are willing to pay for this game as is, I'm seriously in the wrong business.
(also, sorry if this should go to the random complaint thread)

[Grey Jorildyn]

It's a priority problem with them constantly. Do they revamp combat? Just throw in dungeons and wait on combat? Do both simultaneously?

I can be patient and wait on combat system fixes to happen over time personally. I'd die for some new content even though I don't quite consider myself, or anyone really, capped on current content. With the amount of abilities to get from other classes and guild marks to get, it can take such a long time to min/max your character. This is particularly noticeable when you're locked into carrying the same six leves around all the time to facilitate max speed ranking up.

A dungeon would still be really nice to have. Breaking the monotony would just be fantastic at this point. I'm tired of ranking up, like many others, but still get something out of it when I hit the rank with that skill to pushes my character's development to the limit just a tiny bit more.

[Hyan]

I guess it helps to develop content simultaneously since if they left that for after everything else it might take too long even if they had more resources available at that point. I think throwing money at the problem only works for some extent.

Either way, if you ask me they've got to have one hell of an update frenzy if they want to get anywhere before 2012. Overhauls need to start coming monthly after the rather underwhelming first half of the year, which if they have been developing multiple features on parallel isn't an impossibility. Don't get me wrong though, I'm not expecting anything of the sort.

[Kensaki]

I'm really struggling to keep interest in this game at the moment its more of a chat room to keep in touch with ls mates etc than anything. I think we'll see 5 more months of underwhelming patches that never fixes the underlaying issues then Yoshida bites the bullet and calls the game a failure and shuts it down in favor of several smaller projects.

[Grey Jorildyn]

The disinterest in the game is very infectious when you can only find others aroundja that are disinterested. If it wasn't for the great people in my LS, which are also very interested in the game while still being able to admit it's mostly craptastic, I likely wouldn't be playing anymore. It's really hard to do anything without a group too so that about kills anyone who has little to no friendly support in the game.

[Gulkeeva]

Well they do have alot of "interesting" stuff hidden around ffxiv. its just all not in use for whatever reason.

Many unused mob models, spells and effects, area's.. tons of it, enough to make a whole expansion out of its all just sitting there unused. Theirs hundreds of spells dozen or so unused mobs and massive areas... SE's jsut all keeping it locked away ;/

[Tomino]

Either way, if you ask me they've got to have one hell of an update frenzy if they want to get anywhere before 2012.

Imho, it's worst than that...
Even if we take into account they manage to fix almost everything, I really don't see what kind of lifespan this game would have. It felt "old" the moment it released, if feels old as you interact with the world around or undertake quests. Aside the FF lure, there's no peculiar feature, now or announced, that sets this game aside unless Grand Companies are something different from Conquest/Campaign which I doubt.

Then comes the final thorn : FF11. While other titles can stil stand as reprensentive of certain genre (WoW, SW Old Rep, korean styled TERA), 11 and 14 looks like they bite on each other, more since 14 started to borrow from 11. Sure they can someday kill FF11 but that won't mean all its playerbase will suddenly enjoy 14.

[Lhyet]

SE only have one chance left; PS3 launch. If they don't get the game up to a decent level by PS3 launch then it'll be good night FFXIV.
They must know this so they surely must know that this battle update and dungeons have to do the trick and compete with the other MMOs out there.

I say that and I want to feel hopeful... but this is current day SE.

[Celeras]

Like Kurokikaze mentioned, on the battle system, I'm thinking it will be more or less a bandaid on fixing the current combat system up. Theirs alot of risk in just adding a whole new battle system that would take weeks of "adjustments" to fix up, where as fixing flaws in the current one with minor tweaks would be the fastest method.

Evidence to the contrary:

1- Its taking fucking forever, though thats not really out of the ordinary for SE.

2- Would you welcome changes to FINAL FANTASY XIV that would drastically alter the rules already set in Eorzea?
http://static.finalfantasyxiv.com/to...6/e0/492_6.jpg

That doesn't scream 'bandaid' to me. I think the changes are gonna be big. Whether theyre good or not is another issue.

[Tomino]

I think the changes are gonna be big. Whether theyre good or not is another issue.

I agree on a logical standpoint, but I can't help but thinking if they really wanted to "drastically" alter the game, they would had taken servers down.

People leveled classes to unluck skill combinations, bought marks and farmed gear, not to mentioned learned their classes (good or bad, ur pick) for almost 5 months now. It's hard to believe miracle is gonna shine upon us as they finally re-design classes people have at rank50, stats on equips players bought and so on.

I think after those first census, they decided IF and HOW impose major changes, and decided they simple weren't worth it. Obviously, it would be a pleasure to be proven wrong.

[Lhyet]

With any luck they've found a way to make big changes to the system and things like you just mentioned, Tomino, will transfer across in some way shape or form.
How would they transfer across? I don't have a clue. That's what they pay their team to come up with.

[Kurokikaze]

Evidence to the contrary:

1- Its taking fucking forever, though thats not really out of the ordinary for SE.

2- Would you welcome changes to FINAL FANTASY XIV that would drastically alter the rules already set in Eorzea?
http://static.finalfantasyxiv.com/to...6/e0/492_6.jpg

That doesn't scream 'bandaid' to me. I think the changes are gonna be big. Whether theyre good or not is another issue.

I hope you're right man. They have a lot riding on this new battle system. ;/

Btw Hyan, there have been some new dev posts; one of which is incredibly disappointing and I'm banging my head against the table reading what this one moron (Peregrine) has to say to defend it. I'm infuriated. lol