WotG: A Half-baked, Incomplete Product?

[Sasarai]

Summary of the thread: Right or wrong, Milkman is still a retard.

[Lyramion]

I hated WotG but it has grown to me. CoP release had like nothing in it really - anyone remember tav beeing closed? :D

[ronin sparthos]

Tav wasnt closed, Promyvion was just buffed to all hell.

[Toksyuryel]

Apprently so according to Milkman

Stopped reading here.

[BRP]

INCOMPLETE, Period. Even now ToAU jobs are still INCOMPLETE. Where are BLU, PUP, COR's af+1, relic, relic+1 ? It's almost 2 years and SE cannot deny this shit/lame fact.

Unless you are saying all launches are incomplete(duh), I pointed out how ToAU's launch wasn't busting of content compared to WotG's. People are using the word incomplete way too often and incorrectly.

[orson]

If anyone was surprised with the review you need to start reading some game reviews. WoTG needs lots of work but as someone mentioned before assault instantly added good gear and Walmart Turban and really this is what a lot of people care about. That's why there's a lot of people with sand in their viginas about WoTG not having any content what they truly mean is there's no lewt.

Assaults > Special Ops

but by far

Campaign > Besieged

[Ryko]

INCOMPLETE, Period. Even now ToAU jobs are still INCOMPLETE. Where are BLU, PUP, COR's af+1, relic, relic+1 ? It's almost 2 years and SE cannot deny this shit/lame fact.

Unless you are saying all launches are incomplete(duh), I pointed out how ToAU's launch wasn't busting of content compared to WotG's. People are using the word incomplete way too often and incorrectly.

Yeah but you're silly to think anyone agrees with you on that silly "content is content" crap about why the ops are so lame.

[BRP]

I'm just stating the facts. People need to stop using the word incomplete. WotG's initial update really lacked good gear additions. If Ops had the Assault sets, "too easy, too short" would have been "relaxing and quick! wonderful!". That's a wonderful reason to hate the expansion so far, but "incomplete" isn't.

[Ryko]

I'm just stating the facts. People need to stop using the word incomplete. WotG's initial update really lacked good gear additions. If Ops had the Assault sets, "too easy, too short" would have been "relaxing and quick! wonderful!".

No, they'd still be "Too easy, too short, but at least worth doing."

[Quicklet]

Summary of the thread: Right or wrong, Milkman is still a retard and every other thread Kimiko makes schills for him.

[sephir]

remember, this is the internet people cry about every little thing here. WoTG just came out a few weeks ago, I know there was barely any content released but SE may have wanted this 2 month period between release and first update to be a period in whcih people; activate all the maws, explore the new zones, and add a little story to keep people interested (though obviously they didnt add enough). ToAU and CoP didnt come fully active in their first month, instead it took months to bring about its full content. Just give this some time and wait for the first update to see what SE has set in store.

[CharlotteW]

The addition of new jobs is a necessity in FFXI now

I lol'd.

[Lythandies]

Why not re-skin salvage, put in some of the endgame bottlenecked shit that people always complain about into instanced form, give it a one word name and slap entrance zones near the main cities?

To be more honest: endgame needs a new sky. There needs to be more lateral expansion of gear that actually encourages players to specialize their merits (Teir I + II both) in a manner that suits their play-style. There needs to be an increase in the number of HNMS, and perhaps a CoP like series of missions that result in a non-gear reward, such as enhanced 2 hour abilities, or individual player based buffs (Essentially what the ring was, if you want to cry 'balance!').

What we got is a fixed besieged and a set of simple missions that pale to the series of challenges and interesting scenarios that CoP offered in it's missions and ToaU found in assaults. Currently, the areas are devoid of features that make them worth exploring unless your specifically interested in new places to EXP up to 75. Save for the worm, whom is fought 'because he's there' the rest of the NMs on the beastman side are roadblocks. The new jobs are, well, new jobs. It may not be my place to say they don't seem to compare to the love that was put into blue mage, but there you go. Like the expansion, there are things to be added to them to round them out. Right now it's a 2/10 for a 30 dollar product. It needs the new gear that CoP introduced (which changed the face of how almost every job equipped itself at 30) and the endgame benefits (Those merit camps) that ToaU had from the start before it's really going to take off.

It needs more content. Not just new areas: I wouldn't complain about re-skinning old areas if there were LOTS of new things to do in them.

[Cesaria]

Personally I don't like TOAU - the storyline didn't quite appeal to me (even Naja being completely mental and the mace wore thin after a while) and the fights lacked the epic "oh hell yes" when you win that a lot of the COP fights had when you pulled them off... apart from the final Alexander BC which did have the whole atmosphere/music/challenge aspect down to make it suitably epic.

The thing that dragged me along with COP was that I wanted to see where the storyline went next - TOAU I pretty much trudged through because "oh well I suppose I'd better get this batch of missions done before they release the next ones". Yes parts of COP were probably a bit TOO challenging in terms of level caps and mob placement - but even promys before they care-beared them down are still wonderfully atmospheric, beautifully designed zones and I love the music in there. I like WOTG because I like wandering around the zones seeing what's changed, I love Garliage in the past and the differences with it, and Campaign is something I can do to avoid actually having to exp my white mage to 75 without the moronic shout/lag-fest that Besieged is on Midgard. I think it has a lot of potential.

And yes it IS possible to get a level 1 mule to Sandoria (s) because we did it while bored the other weekend - albeit with a little mazurka/hymnus assistance from my other account. Made 200k doing the gobbiebag item quests and sticking them on the AH - not bad for an afternoon's entertainment and it was funny as hell doing it too.

[Tomino]

OPs shouldnt be compared to Assaults. they are a whole new system with many welcomed fixed :

- they are organized in tiers. yes, Pit Spider I is a joke done with 3 lv75 ppl, but makes you understand what the mission is about and i'm pretty sure Pit Spider V will be challenging and all.
- the modifed tag system where any friend can help you out benefits "fun" over "stay 2h shouting for someone at T8 needing your assault"

as for the Campaign/merit exp, I'd say the first is the only way i can actually have some major fun with ANY of the lv75 jobs I have and worked on pimping. this itself is priceless to me. the whole ToAU time i only used SMN to spoil Periquia, kill Ouryu and nothing more while now, if i like, I can send my avatars out and have some simple, plain fun.

[Sykes]

You can put me in the "disappointed but optimistic" category.

I don't want to rehash what everyone else has said, but there is one thing missing in WotG that I think is more disappointing than anything: sense of accomplishment.

When CoP first came out, I was awe-struck when I walked in to Qufim and the "Chapter 1" cut scene flashed up on my screen. I knew from that point on that it was going to be really cool. Promyvions were a pretty big challenge (albeit a bit annoying too) and were unlike anything else that was in the game at the time, and finally reaching Tavnazia was awesome. SE kept that momentum going too--the Rivernes and Sacrarium were released in a patch less than a month after initial release. Things slowed down after that, but I really felt like I had accomplished a lot, so I was happy.

ToAU introduced two completely new game mechanics as well. My sense of accomplishment in ToAU came from completing the early assaults, all of which were very unique and many of which were challenging without step-by-step guides for completion.

With WotG, there is nothing in the release game that gives me that same sense of satisfaction. I'm sure Campaign does it for some people, but I simply don't feel like I am advancing through the game with Campaign, and Campaign Ops are unsatisfying as well. Plus, Campaign, although it is fun, really just feels like a rehash of Besieged rather than something completely new. I think that the real problem is that SE put all their eggs in the Campaign basket, and really failed to deliver much else.

That said, WotG has a LOT of potential. I personally hope that it turns in to CoP-like expansion with storyline-rich challenging missions. I think Northlands will be awesome, and Castle Zvahl is one of the coolest most under-used zones in the game (and Castle Zvahl Keep has some of the most appropriately creepy music in the game). I just hope I'm not disappointed.

Edit: Oh, and the new zone with Atomos in it looks really cool too.

[Toonshady]

waaaayyyyy too early to write any review seriously. wasn't there a game journalist mentality that you don't review a MMO or a expansion to a MMO til several months later?

personally, i'm gonna wait and see. every expansion up to this point has started out bland and SE adds content over time.

[Dakk]

waaaayyyyy too early to write any review seriously. wasn't there a game journalist mentality that you don't review a MMO or a expansion to a MMO til several months later?

This is true, but sadly in real life there are deadlines. And even Milk Men have to pay the bills.

[Lordender]

People expected more, I didn't expect much from SE tbh, I had pretty low expectations for WoTG release.

[Isiolia]

I don't see the point in hating on Milkman. Game reviews are going to vary depending on the reviewer. If he's not on the level with you, then take what he has to say with a grain of salt, but personally I don't tend to find him to be too completely off.

His review was pretty much spot on IMO. 5.5 was pretty generous.

While yes, we can only expect WoTG to get better, as with any expansion, I expected SE to do better from the start with it. Logically, the progression was there. CoP was aweful from the start, but we also got a lot of crafted items then, and the next update after it. ToAU improved on that. Areas were available without doing missions, we got the Mog Locker, Whitegate, Runic Portals to get to relevant XP spots, Assaults...it was all there.
Seriously, ToAU took us from 15-20 minute Choco rides or runs out to -maybe- get 10-15k/hr outside of the most elite of the elite range parties, to being a hop skip and a jump away from 20k/hr+ merit spots. That was there day 1. Assault gear was there, day 1.

WoTG is a step back in comparison.

DNC is nice. SCH, personally, I think they should have just given BLM the Helix spells, maybe BRD weather songs, and called it a day. The job is pointless otherwise. I was really looking forward to it, to leveling it, and pretty much abandoned the idea on the spot after reading up on it post-release.

I know they see the need for support jobs leveling up, and it's a real need...but really, make existing support viable to play in new ways and I think you'd see more of them out there. But nothing to distract from implementing anticipated tweaks to stale jobs than to tweak new ones that 25 people a server even play (at least that's how many seem to still be playing SCH on Pandy).

Campaign OPs so far are the quests basically. There aren't many besides them.
Personally, I was wanting Assault II. Not 7 repeatable quests a week. Maybe later the rewards will be great, but getting 100sh XP and 500ish AN is kinda meh.

Campaign is fun for a bit. Nice to be able to get a little XP on a casual basis. But really, I never cared for Besieged. I never made a point to be at it...I don't see Campaign as being any different.

I really am not impressed with essentially the entire expansion thus far hinging on the Campaign system, with it's ambiguous, at best, rank-up system that requires maintenance. Personally, I would prefer a clear-cut, permanent rank system like, oh, every other one the game has had so far.

Zones I get the distinct feeling are going to primarily be a pretty distraction that will rarely be looked at beyond Campaign. The mix of mob levels is just ridiculous. If it was a matter of DCs intermixed in with merit mobs, great, as long as they're charmable =P

Has SE even announced plans for content beyond Campaign for WoTG? I can't recall any. I mean, I assume that they'll be putting in more zones, HNMs, Dynamis/Limbus/Salvage type content, etc.

I mean, there's content there, there's new stuff to play with. But just not much. I get the impression that SE is just trying to rake in some quick cash 'cause they know we'll buy up anything with FFXI slapped on the box.
The apparently lack of testing is related to that, whether WoTG related or not.