(05-21-2015, 06:20 PM)hauntmedoitagain Wrote: Item level in particular has always baffled me as a design choice. Why not just go full horizontal at level cap that way the gear you find actually has some long-term value? I just don't get it.

Also, while the story in FFXIV is certainly competent, it is not the main draw for me, not by a longshot; the game world and attention detail are what draw me here as well as the varying mechanics at max level. It's an expansive, nuanced game hidden behind numerous locked doors.

(05-21-2015, 06:42 PM)Kellach Woods Wrote:

(05-21-2015, 06:12 PM)Natalie Mcbeef Wrote: If a brand new player isn't willing to go through the original game, and just wants to hop into new content, well then tough luck, this game isn't for them.

That's less of a concern than how many new players will there be at those levels? Most of the gating content is group-based.

People are already having a tough time to do MSQ dungeons if they're a certain class while leveling. Not because they're difficult but because nobody queues for low-level unless they absolutely need to. Couple that with the typical lack of tanks/healers in MMOs, there's the recipe for a full blown disaster. Around as bad as the original Tri-Disaster.

(05-24-2015, 03:21 PM)Zyrusticae Wrote: The reasoning is extremely obvious: they want a carrot on a stick for maxed-out players to chase over and over again. Horizontal gear drops does not accomplish this because the motivation to gun for that gear simply is not strong enough (not to mention it can introduce serious balance issues that result in certain pieces of gear being used for years without replacement). This is besides the fact that the game was not designed for that sort of thing to begin with, so adding it down the road would only introduce massive complications as they try to work things out.

(05-24-2015, 03:21 PM)Zyrusticae Wrote: I do understand the game's story shouldn't take so much priority in your view, but obviously Yoshida disagrees, and he is treating the game much like a single-player RPG in that regard - he wants to able to have some serious story developments occur, and having people be able to skip around is quite problematic for that kind of storytelling. Unfortunately, if this does not sit right with you, it's just something you'll have to deal with.

(05-24-2015, 03:43 PM)hauntmedoitagain Wrote: "Carrot on a stick" only appeases a small minority. In a game that the director advertises as easily accessible, this is counter-productive in the entirety.

Frankly I've never seen a game with said balance issues due to horizontal gear; Guild Wars 2 did it just fine and the balance issues were found elsewhere, not in the gear itself.

The game already really is designed for it; merge ilevel and required level, tie stats to the colored tiers, scale back post-ilevel 60 content and boom, done. Time consuming and unlikely? Sure, but it's not an Einstein project.

(05-24-2015, 03:43 PM)hauntmedoitagain Wrote: Once again, Guild Wars 2 managed it just fine. The story was entirely optional making it no longer a tedium (at least in that regard, the writing was another story) to simply wade through. Hell, it works out just fine for countless sandbox games. Why not here?

Don't get me wrong, either, I totally get it; SQX wants that single player Final Fantasy appeal. That's fine and all, I can deal, but at least do us all a favor and have the MSQ unlock things on an account level. It's too much of an epic to do more than the one time, nor is it really good enough for that matter.

(05-24-2015, 08:14 PM)Ryoko Wrote: As for the idea that players will have to sit at level 50 and grind out gear to access Heavensward, that's also nonsense. They haven't said how they'll change that, but it's nearly a guarantee that it'll be changed. Likely through some sort of Echo buff, much like you get in the solo instances throughout the MSQ. And we can guarantee this because at the end of the day, Yoshida is a man who was raised on Western RPGs. He knows exactly how Americans play games, and thus far he's catered to that. I'm baffled at how many of you suddenly think he's going to abandon that for no apparent reason.

(05-24-2015, 08:38 PM)Kellach Woods Wrote: Also, Echo buffs do not allow subgeared people to do the dungeons, btw. If you're undergeared you're undergeared and the system will not allow for that. They'd have to manually nerf and analyze the threshold needed to nerf it if necessary. Although, considering every rotation is rehauled, I'm not exactly sure if everything will work as intended at 50 since you will no longer be a complete character at that point.

(05-25-2015, 05:52 AM)Ryoko Wrote: Sure it can. It hasn't been used for dungeons yet, but there are several solo instances throughout the MSQ where an echo buff was applied which raised the characters stats. Literally all it would take to solve the issue of level 50 dungeons is an upward level-sync. 

And of course, it's not like you'll just be sitting there grinding out dungeons with no reward. You'll be getting experience the whole time, meaning you'll probably have a few level head-start when you hit 3.0 content.

(05-25-2015, 07:50 AM)Kellach Woods Wrote: The problem is the amount of available bodies who will be around to do 2.1-2.5 content. The only solution that's been brought forward is literally "let's help the new people!" or "they should join an established FC!"

Joining a rando FC should never be a solution, and people here shouldn't feel pressured into helping out new people.

Since this needs reiterating : NO ONE IS SAYING THEY SHOULD NOT HAVE TO DO THE CONTENT. I'm saying that this decision has underlying problems that I'd like the devs to address.

(05-25-2015, 07:50 AM)Kellach Woods Wrote:

(05-25-2015, 05:52 AM)Ryoko Wrote: Sure it can. It hasn't been used for dungeons yet, but there are several solo instances throughout the MSQ where an echo buff was applied which raised the characters stats. Literally all it would take to solve the issue of level 50 dungeons is an upward level-sync. 

And of course, it's not like you'll just be sitting there grinding out dungeons with no reward. You'll be getting experience the whole time, meaning you'll probably have a few level head-start when you hit 3.0 content.

Try going into Coil while undergeared - just T1 will do. You have an Echo buff from the start these days, but you still need i70 to do so. Patching in an Echo buff won't change iLevel requirements, and yeah sure it's easy to get up there in iLevels these days... provided you can get a group, period. Unless they went out of their way to make solo versions of these instances (which would be arguably incredibly stupid) what you propose won't change a thing.

The best news to combat a bit of this (in short from 30-49) is that new classes start at 30. Since that means from 30 onwards there'll be a bigger pool of people leveling DRKs and Astros.

The problem is the amount of available bodies who will be around to do 2.1-2.5 content. The only solution that's been brought forward is literally "let's help the new people!" or "they should join an established FC!"

Joining a rando FC should never be a solution, and people here shouldn't feel pressured into helping out new people.

Since this needs reiterating : NO ONE IS SAYING THEY SHOULD NOT HAVE TO DO THE CONTENT. I'm saying that this decision has underlying problems that I'd like the devs to address.

(05-25-2015, 04:06 PM)Ryoko Wrote:

(05-25-2015, 07:50 AM)Kellach Woods Wrote:

(05-25-2015, 05:52 AM)Ryoko Wrote: Sure it can. It hasn't been used for dungeons yet, but there are several solo instances throughout the MSQ where an echo buff was applied which raised the characters stats. Literally all it would take to solve the issue of level 50 dungeons is an upward level-sync. 

And of course, it's not like you'll just be sitting there grinding out dungeons with no reward. You'll be getting experience the whole time, meaning you'll probably have a few level head-start when you hit 3.0 content.

Try going into Coil while undergeared - just T1 will do. You have an Echo buff from the start these days, but you still need i70 to do so. Patching in an Echo buff won't change iLevel requirements, and yeah sure it's easy to get up there in iLevels these days... provided you can get a group, period. Unless they went out of their way to make solo versions of these instances (which would be arguably incredibly stupid) what you propose won't change a thing.

The best news to combat a bit of this (in short from 30-49) is that new classes start at 30. Since that means from 30 onwards there'll be a bigger pool of people leveling DRKs and Astros.

The problem is the amount of available bodies who will be around to do 2.1-2.5 content. The only solution that's been brought forward is literally "let's help the new people!" or "they should join an established FC!"

Joining a rando FC should never be a solution, and people here shouldn't feel pressured into helping out new people.

Since this needs reiterating : NO ONE IS SAYING THEY SHOULD NOT HAVE TO DO THE CONTENT. I'm saying that this decision has underlying problems that I'd like the devs to address.

How is it any different from the parts of the 1-49 MSQ which already require dungeons? Roll them all into low-level roulette, scale them down to be doable in ilvl 60 gear, and call it a day. Again, we've been playing this game for 2 years now, and it's heavily based on a game most of us played for up to a decade. Nothing here is new, and it's entirely easy to predict exactly what SE will do. 

Seriously, have a little faith in the dev team. They're not idiots.