Regarding the FINAL FANTASY XI Test Server (08/26/2011)

[Xanthe]

http://www.playonline.com/pcd/topics.../6974/6974.jpg

We are pleased to announce that we will be launching the FINAL FANTASY XI Test Server on August 28th!

The FINAL FANTASY XI Test Server is a special server dedicated to testing various features that are in development for future version updates. With the test server, players may try out new content before its release and submit feedback and suggestions for improvement on the official forums.

The initial test period will focus on the new job abilities, job traits, and magic spells set to accompany the level cap increase that will be featured in the forthcoming version update.

More details on how you can join the FINAL FANTASY XI Test Server will be announced in the coming days, so stay tuned!

See? They didn't forget!

[Foldypaws]

What the hell, this is happening in 2 days? That came out of nowhere. Still, this interests me.

[Taube]

Wonder how the transfer to the test server will be handled and if there is any limits on how often you can go back and forth...
...Or if we will just be making "new" characters and setting the levels/skills/gears to whatever we want....

[Clash Perez]

...Or if we will just be making "new" characters and setting the levels/skills/gears to whatever we want....

I'm guessing this.

[Alkar]

It's a test server so I'm assuming your "new" character will have access to pretty much everything right away.
Considering they want to test JAs, spells and traits I assume we'll get level 95 characters with all jobs capped.
Now I understand why we got all that job info this soon.
I'll be testing Blue Mage right away.

[Cairthenn]

All I know is there's (potentially) finally somewhere to test those more annoying aspects of the game.

[Byrthnoth]

Screw these guys for releasing this when I have stuff to do. Good luck testing things, everyone.

[Kaisha]

What the hell, this is happening in 2 days? That came out of nowhere. Still, this interests me.

The date pretty much made me say "What?!" out loud, which rarely happens for me. ;/

Seems they're going with debug NPCs to set you up like I was expecting a couple months ago. Can't wait to not be able to log onto it due to server being full, which'll be exasperated courtesy of the real update itself being late for deployment across the normal servers and people wanting to see what's up.

[Amok]

I have so many questions...
And yet, this is definitely not something for me. I can barely be bothered to do anything on regular servers... let alone on a test character/server.

[Divinius]

I wonder what the method of delivering testing feedback to the devs will be. I'm assuming something on the official forums.

While I find the idea of access to a test server intriguing, having it open to everyone does concern me a bit. FFXIV beta used forums as the vehicle for feedback, and (as anyone here that had the privilege of visiting them during beta can attest) they actually seemed worse than the current official forums. It was so bad that any useful information was drowned out by mountains of dumb, and most of the people I know that would have been intelligent enough to actually make useful suggestions, simply avoided posting on there at all.

I just hope that a similar thing doesn't happen with the test server. The dumbest people tend to be the loudest, and the ones most willing to spend their time trying to "help".

[Khamsin]

In before you need to pay an extra $1 per month for another content ID to make a character for the test server?

[The Stig]

In before you need to pay an extra $1 per month for another content ID to make a character for the test server?

And in before casuals crying about top end LSes testing new content/NMs and then monopolising certain NMs/items/etc when the content is released?

Spoiler: show

It's a WoW reference.

[Cail]

Have fun testing it, ill be busy dying in the hurricane omg

[Valisk]

Have fun testing it, ill be busy dying in the hurricane omg

Nobody ever goes to Connecticut. Not even hurricanes.

[Auspice]

I hope it's not a limited signup thing, I leave for Vegas tomorrow morning and won't be back until next weekend.

[Julian]

Since we're getting a test server, I guess we'll be getting most of the patch update this weekend? For mining purposes and stuff.

[Gokulo]

High change with the server start, yep.

[Septimus]

Is it too much to hope that this will be invitation only? Not to sound too elitist, but good lord there are some scrubs out there whose feedback to should be ignored...

[GreenKnux]

Yeah I'm not looking forward to seeing 16 server's worth of people trying to crowd onto one server. If you thought port jeuno was bad before...

[Gokulo]

Is it too much to hope that this will be invitation only? Not to sound too elitist, but good lord there are some scrubs out there whose feedback to should be ignored...

Invitation by who then? There's no way you're gonna avoid them no matter what sadly. Can't have a selection on the servers login D;