So PS3 only folks, any of you walking away?

[Eticket]

I can understand being frustrated at the wait.

However, six months between start times really isn't a big deal especially when there won't be as much content to catch up on.

My advice would be for anyone that bought a PS3 for FFXIV to join Gamefly and spend the six months with some quality titles.

God of War Collection
God of War 3
Uncharted
Uncharted 2
Demon's Souls
Gran Turismo 5 (theoretically)
Metal Gear Solid 4
Heavy Rain

There's a lot of great ways to kill the time til March.

[Araius]

Playing MMOs through college is definitely the worst decision.

This. More than anything in the world, this. Especially if you're just starting out. I started FFXI for PC 3 months into my first semester, which I was already struggling in. Sure, I have a great job now and my RL has recovered from the clusterfuck that was late 2003-2004. But in the meantime I blew a full ride scholarship to a major university, missed out on the entire college experience, and still can't get a girlfriend to save my life. On the plus side, I had a sweet RDM pimp hat by April '04!

Regarding OP:

When the benchmark came out and I realized I'd need a significant vid card upgrade, I had sold myself on getting the PS3 version, granted I've had it since MGS4 release. When the release date was announced, I was pissed, and rightfully so I think. But ultimately, it could be the best thing in the world for you. The vast majority of us never played FFXI during its first 6 months, and though SE has years of MMO exp under their belt now, there's no reason to believe the first 6 months isn't going to be a living hell of maintenance, crashed servers, bugs, and complete gameplay overhauls. Whatever you might be "missing" over the first 6 months, I suspect you'll be glad you did.

That said I'm still getting a new vid card and CE for PC now because...well...I still have an addiction :/

[Zelduh]

I'm gonna turn 360 degrees and walk away from FFXIV

[Purrrfect]

For everyone upset: just remember no matter how bad things may seem, they could always be worse. You could have an xbox...

[bluefan]

Seems like it was the lack of RAM on the PS3 that caused its eventual delay. Saw this coming a mile away. Console limitations, part II.

http://www.ffworld.com/?page=article&id=41

[brand]

Seems like it was the lack of RAM on the PS3 that caused its eventual delay. Saw this coming a mile away. Console limitations, part II.

http://www.ffworld.com/?page=article&id=41

At least from the sound of it, this time they are porting a PC game to console rather than the reverse.

[Ezek]

Awesome, console rimitations are already causing headaches. The PS3 is a great gaming machine but I sure as hell wouldn't touch an MMO on it (or any other console for that matter). There are some genres that just don't work out too well on specific platforms and (imo) MMORPGs just don't mix well with consoles.

[Elcura]

lol @ this, we all knew this would come eventually, but so far all the backlash affects only PS3 users. I just wonder when the PS3's baggage will hold PC users back.

[sruon]

cba translating the blabla, basically same interview as earlier, here are the Q&As.

Q: Final Fantasy is known for its amazing stories. What place does story takes in the game?

A: Considering it is a MMO, story will be different from those that you must absolutly follow to progress. (Referring to solo RPGs) In a MMO you can appreciate it from different angles (POV). It will be long and awesome and I'm sure you'll like it just as much as a classic RPG.

FFW : You already explained that the MMORPG style was the only way to create the best Final Fantasy ever. Why's that?

When a game is offline, you only have access to what developpers imagined. But in a MMO case, there is a part of the story that doesn't depend on them, but rather on players who create it themselves when they meet each others. We can't live that kind of experience in an offline game. On top of that, we can update the game the way player want, we are a lot more flexible, only aiming at bringing you a deeper experience, more emotional. That is our objective.

Q: Will there be differences between PS3 and PC version (Graphics related Q)

In term of mechanics, everything is based on the servers so there is no difference. In terms of graphics, PS3 resolution will be set in stone, whereas PC players can set it how they want. But from a player PoV, I don't think you'll notice any difference.


Q: Why did you choose controller on PC instead of keyboard/mouse?

A: Since it's a crossplatform game, PS3 players will use a controller anyway, so we gave players the opportunity to use it. But if you play on PC, it will be no doubt, easier to use keyboard and mouse. Controller are only an option.

FFW: Why did the PS3 version get pushed back?

We did our best to have the 2 versions out at the same time, but since PS3 has less RAM, we had to change some aspects, including data size. This is why we need more time to work on it. We're really sorry about it and we'll do our best to get it out as soon as possible.

FFW: When will beta happen on PS3?

A: This month we will decide of the PS3 Beta schedule. I hope I can give oyu more details soon.

Q: Some players are very attached to japanese voices, but these in game are in english. What do you intend to do?

A: In real cutscenes, the dub will be strictly in english. Reason for that is labial synchronisation. That being said, for fights and when characters do emotes, there will be a lot of voices to pick from. Some were made in Hollywood, but we also used some japanese dubbers.

FFW: Rock music in battle seems a bit anachronistic in a fantasy game. You're not afraid of "surprising" players?

When you look at other FF, there was for exemple "Clash on the Big Bridge" of FF5 that was really popular and it was already very rythmed. We think that's what every FF player expects. On top of that, it's M. Uematsu that composed them all, and he does as many classic music as rock. He even has his own rock group, "The Black Mages".
We think those musics will be considered as "true" Final Fantasy musics. I hope you'll like them.

Q: Will there be chocobos?

A: As you could see in the trailer, chocobos will be available as mount. That being said there will be a new way to use them.

FFW: There are a lot more F2P MMO whose quality is pretty good. As a P2P MMO, how will FFXIV demarcate itself from F2P games?

Of course there is a lot of F2P MMO on the market, but they may pretend being free, truth is they work with micro-transactions. If player doesn't pay, he gets bored really fast, but if he starts buying items, it gets costly really fast. Finally, those game don't have such a long lifespan, you should know that P2P MMO have the largest part of the market. I think that if you want a good MMO, the best plan is P2P.

Q: What lessons did you retain from FFXI?

A: We learnt that it is extremely important to listen to the playerbase. It is really essential. On top of that, since FFXI was crossplatform/region, we had reactions from players from the whole world and that is something we really liked. If we had separate servers, some regions would have been left behind. Since all servers are common to everywhere, we can update the game for everyone. No matter where the player is, there will never be any delay for them.

Q: Will SE continue to support FFXI after FFXIV release?

With latest update we changed the level cap so that players could continue to make their characters better. Also in June, we published the first battlefield of "Abyssea". 2 more are planned.

Q: What do you think about PS Move and 3D Games on PS3?

A: About the movement detection, since this is a MMO, the best way to communicate is still keyboard. If you had to use both at the same time, it'd be annoying. For now, we're sticking to keyboard, but if there is a large demand, we'll think about it. As for 3D, current version is already available in 3D if you use NVIDIA equipements. We're currently examining other technologies.

i'm tired brah

[Kaylia]

lol @ this, we all knew this would come eventually, but so far all the backlash affects only PS3 users. I just wonder when the PS3's baggage will hold PC users back.

If there is limitation, it will show with the lack of graphic update each expansion. I don't think gameplay feature will ever be limited by the ps3 like they were in FFXI. The spaghethi code they used to optimize ffxi on ps2 wont come back, since the ps3 is much closer to a pc than the ps2 was.

[Elcura]

If there is limitation, it will show with the lack of graphic update each expansion. I don't think gameplay feature will ever be limited by the ps3 like they were in FFXI. The spaghethi code they used to optimize ffxi on ps2 wont come back, since the ps3 is much closer to a pc than the ps2 was.

I guess so, but only time will tell if this is truly the case. If it does happen, I reckon it'll be because the dev team is lazy and likes using "limitations" as an excuse to not do something. Hell, I know I would.

[Hyan]

It's either limitations or "our budget is too small to work on a solution in short term". Makes sense why they'd say the former.

But come on, "they're lazy" is never the answer.

[Elcura]

Of course they wouldn't admit it, but it would be easier to say limitations and not explore viable alternatives than to do so. Which is laziness. Naturally, who can say, none of us work for SE so no one knows.

I do know that some companies think that way though.

[Hyan]

Can't they just tell an employee that knows more about technical stuff to try to figure out a solution or at least an estimate? I dunno really.

I think the success of the game rests on the their shoulders for the most part so I don't think they wouldn't even consider it.

In the end they might just look at the alternatives and decide if it's worth the hassle and resources to create a workaround.

But yeah, we don't know for sure.

[Elcura]

If you consider all the effort you have to go through to create something that works, I think they would spend most of their resources on making stuff that'll be a sure-fire hit, and has the least amount of problems. It's all very speculative which I hate, so I won't go further into for now.

Later on down the road, the game is out and stuff is happening. If we get hit with PS3 limitations, I'm chalking it down to laziness first and foremost. I don't blame them for it, I can understand it very well. Budget issues and so on are likely as well, but who knows what mechanics they would need to add for it to become a problem?

[Hyan]

I just wonder if it's the developer's doing that work or just assigning someone else to do it for them.

Since they all do what their boss tells them, pretty much? Komoto & Tanaka that is. And I bet those two won't be the lazy ones, even if others probably might be.

In the end they have the budget to work with so if they spend significant amount of resources and manpower on something with little gain, it might not be worth it. Sure it's always possible, but you really need to be pumping out content first of all so people won't get bored and leave. They just may not have enough funds to work on fixing X or Y.

I could see this (lack of funds) being the case with XI, but with XIV having a lot more 'casuals' that really do not need that much of an incentive to leave the game I think they'll adjust their budget accordingly. XI players just whine but are too addicted to leave, which I'm sure they're aware of.

[Elcura]

Are you talking about designers when you mention developers? If so, they usually figure stuff out theoretically and get the ideas down. Then they follow up with whoever (art/programming) to make sure it all comes together and to troubleshoot any problems that arise with alternatives or compromises. So it bounces back and forth quite a bit. There are usually people dedicated to each task, especially in a big company.

I think for the leads, it's mostly managing subordinates and dealing with higher ups. Assessing what can and can't work and what's worth the time. Sometimes leads can just be idea men, asking unreasonable stuff then letting everyone else deal (goes down hill from there) with it and sometimes they go to great lengths to make sure it works.

All in all, it depends on how hard they work at it. As you said, it's in their hands. Maybe it's bias from XI, but I just got the overwhelming feeling the XI team was fucking lazy. But there could be a lot of reasons for why they did what they did.

[Hyan]

Hmm yeah, designers.

But yeah in the end I think the leads think up stuff, maybe with the help of someone who knows more about the particular subject (like "is there a way to do X on PS2") and decide if it's worth the time and investment, like you said.

From what you said, I can't pinpoint exactly who in the team is the bottleneck though? Are the designers too lazy to think up stuff? Or are the programmers and artists too lazy to do what their bosses tell them to do? In the end both parties should know that if they screw up, profits go down. Especially the really higher ups that manage the whole project, like Komoto and Tanaka. I'd assume the designers are really high up in the food chain as well. So who exactly feels secure enough to think that he can slack off and not get his ass kicked because of it when shit hits the fan?

Anyway,

there could be a lot of reasons for why they did what they did.

as far as the reason why they didn't do something in particular, I think the forum we're posting in answers that question.

[Elcura]

Fault would usually lie with those in charge, such as lead designers and artists. All the leads usually work together to make sure it all comes together nicely, so if anyone is being lazy, it's the leads as they make most of the decisions.

Even if the lead designer asks some of the programmers, can we do this, they might say yes but when it comes to the actual implementation, if there are too many problems the idea will get scrapped quickly. Hell, even an idea that has been in development a long time is subject to get scrapped, so nothing is safe until it makes it in. And that would be the problem, which I understand, if it's worth pursuing something that might not work and waste time finding alternatives and making it work. Or to just scrap the idea and go with something safer. I consider that to be lazy, ideally I'd always want to make something work, but I understand if it isn't an option.

[Hyan]

I get it now. I think it can be also interpreted as doing the most logical thing, or alternatively taking the option with the least risks (which isn't "lazy" per se, especially when there's money at stake), but I guess it depends.