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Just tell me, is this game playable now?
Dolmong
Member Posts: 515
Hi guys, FF XIV is one of the beautiful games that I wanna play.
However, is this game playable now? I played this at start but is nearly unplayable.
How is the status ? !! Please update me !! Thanks!
Comments
Much better than release, I play it. Doesn't that make it playable? {I don't understand your question}
http://xivpads.com/?1595680
http://guildwork.com/users/murugan
I found that with the auto attack update that combat was even more yawny that before. Just my opinion, however.
He who keeps his cool best wins.
Sorry I assumed English wasn't his first language, so I was hoping they would help.
http://xivpads.com/?1595680
http://guildwork.com/users/murugan
If you didn't like it then, chances are you still won't like it now. A lot of functional things have improved, but overall there still isn't that much content.
I still logon from time to time and enjoy it a bit though. If you've already bought it, you can just try loging on and see for yourself.
Many things improved, but the core problems are still there: extremely frustrating UI (if you play on keyboard + mouse), lack of content, lack of hints as to where a player might find what s/he needs.
The lag is gone (except for the response time of the mouse, and I fear they won't change that). I also encoutered a bunch of bugs I was convinced would be fixed by now.
The visuals are great and the storyline is interesting, so if you already have the game or can get it cheap, try it out. (Choose a populated server, or you'll have trouble buying (and selling), especially at a reasonable price.)
Otherwise you may want to wait a bit more. Even with the latest patch, I really can't say the ingame experience changed significantly.
Of course, you can also buy the game and hop in only occasionally, for the sake of graphics and out of curiosity about the development.
TL;DR:
If you liked the game concept but hated the game mostly for the lag at the beginning, pick it up. If you disliked the controls and gameplay in general, you'll probably feel the same way now.
EDIT: typos
lol no that's the auto translate tool in FFXIV/FFXI.
http://xivpads.com/?1595680
http://guildwork.com/users/murugan
The mouse lag is fixed, software mouse has been removed and replaced with Hardware mouse, yaaaay! 2 new instances, faster UI response times though it's still clunky and I think a quick bar would be a lot more efficient than the menu they give you, also with hot keys assigned from the get go would help tremendously, Leves actually a viable source for SP, but still monotonous overall, a lot more quests added to the game but I still feel like there could be more of them to make questing actually useful to the player. The combat is faster and slightly more fun, although I feel like the game has been pushed back back into somewhat of a beta phase. Changes are constant now, additions to the game always happening, but with all these changes there are bound to be bugs. Lots of hot fixes and what not to fix the bugs right away, but game still needs a lot of reworking. It's fun, but I think most of the fun is just playing and waiting in leu of the major changes they will be having in the next few weeks to come. Like a previous poster said, purchase it and play it to see the graphics and updates mostly. The game is a visual treat and the community is top of the line, although when you do encounter a weirdo they are slightly stranger than any weirdo you've met in other MMOs, true story. Go look up all the changes that are in planning, a huge list of what is coming in the next few patches was posted by Yoshi a few weeks ago. By the end of the patches the game should feel like a different game completely, the biggest change being quest hubs (which addresses one of my previous complaints) and a complete redesign of all the areas, geographically and themeatically.
Considering that 1.19 patch is supposed to be large enough to be considered an expansion for most games, I'd say it will either make or break FFXIV.
Exaggeration, the patch is not enough to be considered an expac by any means. I think patches 1.18-1.21 maybe enough content to be considered an expac. But no, 1.19 just adds some missing content plus Materia, with UI tweaks and new quest zones. The big patch is 1.2 mostly, as well as 1.21 which may introduce new zones and/or Ishgard.
The only gripe i have right now is that i can't seem to get my hands on any low level gear to level with. I can't even make it because you seem to need a higher level crafter to make alot of the parts you need to make a low level piece. seems a bit silly to me. At least in ffxi i could buy a rusty set of gear for levels 10-20, right now i'm r14 and still in my starter gear.
wutai server
Guys thanks for the comment.
I am going to try the game out but I got a couple of questions:
1.) Which server is the most populated / famous ?
2.) I already have 2 characters in Figaro, Can I start to make another character? Do I need to pay?
3.) If I can make another character, any info on how to do it? Because when I saw the option to add player slot, it tells me to pay more crystal. Can anyone explain?
4.) If I delete my original character, will I lose any bonus ? Do I need to pay sub for the game ?
Thanks! see you all in game soon!
Selbina is the most famous for having the best community, and most prolific grouping. Other heavily populated servers (with less quality people obviously) are Besaid, Lindblum, Mysidia. Gyshal/Rabanstre/Figaro/Cornelia/Melmond/Bodhum/Kashuan are apparently medium pop, and Wutai/Karnak/Trabia have the lowest population.
At the moment you can create as many characters as you have slots available without having to pay a subscription for them. After subs start you will be charged for your extra characters if you keep them all, I'm not sure about paying for slots I only have 2 characters and I don't remember setting them up to be honest it was so long ago.
You will not lose the collector's edition bonus, you just can only claim it once per server I believe. The FFXI bonus if you don't still have a current account you may not be able to claim again (not sure).
http://xivpads.com/?1595680
http://guildwork.com/users/murugan
I see !! Thanks for the info !!
But any news when will they start the subscription ?
Anyway, I will start a new character in Selbina, See you there !!
Sadly, you are right. Once you aren't paying for FFXI account you will not be able to get the FFXI shoes bonus while creating a new character. Hopefully, one day these boots will become a BOA item, which is only fair...
On the topic, the game is much better, I was one of the many who left after a few months after the start and am now enjoying the game once again. All the major issues I personally had problems with were fixed and I can already enjoy the game as it is. Further improvements might make FFXIV a true pearl we all hoped it will be one year ago.
"Only in quiet waters do things mirror themselves undistorted.
Only in a quiet mind is adequate perception of the world."
Hans Margolius
Wow, you wouldn't have lasted long in the early MMOs. When I started M59 I got a color map showing almost nothing and hints were rare at best.
OP: I think it was a misstake to try to make this game multi platform, they should have either have focused on it for PC or PS3. Chances are that if you didn't like it at launch you wont still like it, unless it were small bugs that was the problem.
A hint that it isn't ready is that as far as I know is the game still without monthly fees, once they announce it ready and start to charge it might be worth a second look but until then you probably should stay away.
Saying someone will or won't like it now is difficult to say, because you know people are looking for all sorts of different things in an MMO. However for the most part the game is nothing like it was at launch.
Combat, leveling, how experience is gained, content, controls, removal of surplus system, the enmity system, party sizes, UI all of these have been drastically changed since the release.
The world map, transportation, job system, removal of physical level system, alterations to classes to make them more unique, alterations to stats to make them more useful, alterations to crafting and gather both in the way they are done and their uses, alliance content all of these things are changing drastically in the next few patches.
Does that mean everyone who didn't like it at launch will like it now? No of course not:
For one they could just not like Final Fantasy games.
They could not like any UI system that isn't absolutely identical to WoW's.
They may not feel it has enough content, they might not even feel it has enough content after the revamp is done and PS3 version launches (or 2 years from now, or 4).
They might not like partying for optimal XP and want an MMO which focuses overwhelmingly on solo (quest grind/etc) leveling.
They may refuse to play on international servers were there are people who speak other languages.
They may refuse to play on servers located in Japan because they think they are at a disadvantage due to latency.
They may not like a multi class one character type game.
Those people likely will never like the game.
However, you can see how saying "Chances are if you didn't like it at launch you won't still like it" is assuming a lot especially if you yourself don't currently play it and know what has changed. I think the game will be a lot better after PS3 launch/revamps are done, but the majority of people I know that have checked the game out again recently did like it. It's all a matter of preference.
http://xivpads.com/?1595680
http://guildwork.com/users/murugan
OP, game still suffers from lack of content. If you are ok with that you might enjoy it but you will be most likely end up grinding on mobs after completing leves which are more less the same. Just find a group and grind away, i know many find that fun.
Good luck!
I think it's better if you decide for yourself too; no amount of opinions here can compete with your personal experience ingame. No news about the subscription yet.
Sorry if I respond to you, I agree with your post in general, but I'm just guessing your quote is referring to what said about the mouse lag.
The mouse still feels less responsive in the menus. The lag is most evident while fishing and trying to jig with a mouse. There the delay between the player's click and the time when the game actually registers the command is quite noticeable, all the more because timing is important.
I know they introduced the hardware mouse quite some time ago, and that's why I doubt they'll change it again.
Sorry if I respond to you, I agree with your post in general, but I'm just guessing your quote is referring to what said about the mouse lag.
The mouse still feels less responsive in the menus. The lag is most evident while fishing and trying to jig with a mouse. There the delay between the player's click and the time when the game actually registers the command is quite noticeable, all the more because timing is important.
I know they introduced the hardware mouse quite some time ago, and that's why I doubt they'll change it again.
You know, I agree with you completely.
Only from my point of view the game wouldn't last long.
I certainly wouldn't put up with it now, and back in the day I obviously didn't have the chance.
I think there might be a fundamental difference between what (many) veteran players expect from a game and what the next generations expect. IMO two major changes, both brought on by technology, caused the rift between generation inside and outside of the gaming world. One is the availability of information and the other is the different perception (evaluation) of time. (Which results in the "no-lifers" VS the "spoiled children who want everything handed down to them" argument.)
I prefer if hints are readily available in the game for anyone who is interested, rather than stumbling upon them by chance or upon hours of ingame search.
In practice I think true 'explorers,' players who figure out everything by themselves, have always been rare, and most players relied on friends, guildies, and other more experienced players (and wiki and various fansites today) to gain information.
So yes, I like the idea of a game that provides its gamers with information instead of relying on players and external sites to do it. I'm also a fan of having choices, so IMO the ideal is a system where information is easily acessible but not compulsory/forced upon the player.
Wait, what was your question again? Oh, no question. NVM my rambling, then. XD
I understand where you're coming from, but I think this isn't fair neither to WoW players nor to MMORPG players in general.
The UI has been cleaned up a lot, agreed, but FFXIV still suffers from poor control adaptation from pads.
It's obvious that the basic principle is "open menu, select, (go deeper into menu, select further, repeat), confirm," and work your way out of it in a similar way. This works well for pads, while for PC games mouse left click, right click, DOUBLE CLICK, SCROLL with the scroll button, and all kind of keyboard shortcuts work wonderfully and are very efficient.
For example, there's no reason why the inventory you open by clicking on a shortcut (icon) should exclude gear, weapons, and money, while the inventory opened from the menu doesn't. There's no good reason why one shouldn't be able to normally move (using the keyboard) and use the mouse to scroll the chat log at the same time. Interacting with crystals could easily be done without having to open the main menu first. And just count how many steps one needs to perform in order to change the character's gear.
Putting so many trivial steps before a player can execute one (often simple) action does not enrich gameplay or make it interesting.
Those actions are so simple that they don't need macros, or at least they shouldn't.
Same for basic spell actions - the additonal step of chosing the area size and confirming it each time, this kind of negates the purpose of the system that is made for a quick and easy use of skills = skillbar.
Sorry for the rant. I really hope SE will address these issues, but right now it looks like the developers are caught and lost between three concepts; their traditional way of making games, the newer standards set by other games, and the desire to bring something new/unique to the table.
I hope for their sake and the sake of (potential) players that they will find the right balance eventually.
Good luck!
I think it's better if you decide for yourself too; no amount of opinions here can compete with your personal experience ingame. No news about the subscription yet.
Sorry if I respond to you, I agree with your post in general, but I'm just guessing your quote is referring to what said about the mouse lag.
The mouse still feels less responsive in the menus. The lag is most evident while fishing and trying to jig with a mouse. There the delay between the player's click and the time when the game actually registers the command is quite noticeable, all the more because timing is important.
I know they introduced the hardware mouse quite some time ago, and that's why I doubt they'll change it again.
Sorry if I respond to you, I agree with your post in general, but I'm just guessing your quote is referring to what said about the mouse lag.
The mouse still feels less responsive in the menus. The lag is most evident while fishing and trying to jig with a mouse. There the delay between the player's click and the time when the game actually registers the command is quite noticeable, all the more because timing is important.
I know they introduced the hardware mouse quite some time ago, and that's why I doubt they'll change it again.
You know, I agree with you completely.
Only from my point of view the game wouldn't last long.
I certainly wouldn't put up with it now, and back in the day I obviously didn't have the chance.
I think there might be a fundamental difference between what (many) veteran players expect from a game and what the next generations expect. IMO two major changes, both brought on by technology, caused the rift between generation inside and outside of the gaming world. One is the availability of information and the other is the different perception (evaluation) of time. (Which results in the "no-lifers" VS the "spoiled children who want everything handed down to them" argument.)
I prefer if hints are readily available in the game for anyone who is interested, rather than stumbling upon them by chance or upon hours of ingame search.
In practice I think true 'explorers,' players who figure out everything by themselves, have always been rare, and most players relied on friends, guildies, and other more experienced players (and wiki and various fansites today) to gain information.
So yes, I like the idea of a game that provides its gamers with information instead of relying on players and external sites to do it. I'm also a fan of having choices, so IMO the ideal is a system where information is easily acessible but not compulsory/forced upon the player.
Wait, what was your question again? Oh, no question. NVM my rambling, then. XD
I understand where you're coming from, but I think this isn't fair neither to WoW players nor to MMORPG players in general.
The UI has been cleaned up a lot, agreed, but FFXIV still suffers from poor control adaptation from pads.
It's obvious that the basic principle is "open menu, select, (go deeper into menu, select further, repeat), confirm," and work your way out of it in a similar way. This works well for pads, while for PC games mouse left click, right click, DOUBLE CLICK, SCROLL with the scroll button, and all kind of keyboard shortcuts work wonderfully and are very efficient.
For example, there's no reason why the inventory you open by clicking on a shortcut (icon) should exclude gear, weapons, and money, while the inventory opened from the menu doesn't. There's no good reason why one shouldn't be able to normally move (using the keyboard) and use the mouse to scroll the chat log at the same time. Interacting with crystals could easily be done without having to open the main menu first. And just count how many steps one needs to perform in order to change the character's gear.
Putting so many trivial steps before a player can execute one (often simple) action does not enrich gameplay or make it interesting.
Those actions are so simple that they don't need macros, or at least they shouldn't.
Same for basic spell actions - the additonal step of chosing the area size and confirming it each time, this kind of negates the purpose of the system that is made for a quick and easy use of skills = skillbar.
I really hope SE will address these issues, but right now it looks like the developers are caught and lost between three concepts; their traditional way of making games, the newer standards set by other games, and the desire to bring something new/unique to the table.
I hope for their sake and the sake of (potential) players that they will find the right balance eventually.
Good luck!
I think it's better if you decide for yourself too; no amount of opinions here can compete with your personal experience ingame. No news about the subscription yet.
Sorry if I respond to you, I agree with your post in general, but I'm just guessing your quote is referring to what said about the mouse lag.
The mouse still feels less responsive in the menus. The lag is most evident while fishing and trying to jig with a mouse. There the delay between the player's click and the time when the game actually registers the command is quite noticeable, all the more because timing is important.
I know they introduced the hardware mouse quite some time ago, and that's why I doubt they'll change it again.
Sorry if I respond to you, I agree with your post in general, but I'm just guessing your quote is referring to what said about the mouse lag.
The mouse still feels less responsive in the menus. The lag is most evident while fishing and trying to jig with a mouse. There the delay between the player's click and the time when the game actually registers the command is quite noticeable, all the more because timing is important.
I know they introduced the hardware mouse quite some time ago, and that's why I doubt they'll change it again.
You know, I agree with you completely.
Only from my point of view the game wouldn't last long.
I certainly wouldn't put up with it now, and back in the day I obviously didn't have the chance.
I think there might be a fundamental difference between what (many) veteran players expect from a game and what the next generations expect. IMO two major changes, both brought on by technology, caused the rift between generation inside and outside of the gaming world. One is the availability of information and the other is the different perception (evaluation) of time. (Which results in the "no-lifers" VS the "spoiled children who want everything handed down to them" argument.)
I prefer if hints are readily available in the game for anyone who is interested, rather than stumbling upon them by chance or upon hours of ingame search.
In practice I think true 'explorers,' players who figure out everything by themselves, have always been rare, and most players relied on friends, guildies, and other more experienced players (and wiki and various fansites today) to gain information.
So yes, I like the idea of a game that provides its gamers with information instead of relying on players and external sites to do it. I'm also a fan of having choices, so IMO the ideal is a system where information is easily acessible but not compulsory/forced upon the player.
Wait, what was your question again? Oh, no question. NVM my rambling, then. XD
I understand where you're coming from, but I think this isn't fair neither to WoW players nor to MMORPG players in general.
The UI has been cleaned up a lot, agreed, but FFXIV still suffers from poor control adaptation from pads.
It's obvious that the basic principle is "open menu, select, (go deeper into menu, select further, repeat), confirm," and work your way out of it in a similar way. This works well for pads, while for PC games mouse left click, right click, DOUBLE CLICK, SCROLL with the scroll button, and all kind of keyboard shortcuts work wonderfully and are very efficient.
For example, there's no reason why the inventory you open by clicking on a shortcut (icon) should exclude gear, weapons, and money, while the inventory opened from the menu doesn't. There's no good reason why one shouldn't be able to normally move (using the keyboard) and use the mouse to scroll the chat log at the same time. Interacting with crystals could easily be done without having to open the main menu first. And just count how many steps one needs to perform in order to change the character's gear.
Putting so many trivial steps before a player can execute one (often simple) action does not enrich gameplay or make it interesting.
Those actions are so simple that they don't need macros, or at least they shouldn't.
Same for basic spell actions - the additonal step of chosing the area size and confirming it each time, this kind of negates the purpose of the system that is made for a quick and easy use of skills = skillbar.
I really hope SE will address these issues, but right now it looks like the developers are caught and lost between three concepts; their traditional way of making games, the newer standards set by other games, and the desire to bring something new/unique to the table.
I hope for their sake and the sake of (potential) players that they will find the right balance eventually.
Good luck!
I think it's better if you decide for yourself too; no amount of opinions here can compete with your personal experience ingame. No news about the subscription yet.
Sorry if I respond to you, I agree with your post in general, but I'm just guessing your quote is referring to what said about the mouse lag.
The mouse still feels less responsive in the menus. The lag is most evident while fishing and trying to jig with a mouse. There the delay between the player's click and the time when the game actually registers the command is quite noticeable, all the more because timing is important.
I know they introduced the hardware mouse quite some time ago, and that's why I doubt they'll change it again.
Sorry if I respond to you, I agree with your post in general, but I'm just guessing your quote is referring to what said about the mouse lag.
The mouse still feels less responsive in the menus. The lag is most evident while fishing and trying to jig with a mouse. There the delay between the player's click and the time when the game actually registers the command is quite noticeable, all the more because timing is important.
I know they introduced the hardware mouse quite some time ago, and that's why I doubt they'll change it again.
You know, I agree with you completely.
Only from my point of view the game wouldn't last long.
I certainly wouldn't put up with it now, and back in the day I obviously didn't have the chance.
I think there might be a fundamental difference between what (many) veteran players expect from a game and what the next generations expect. IMO two major changes, both brought on by technology, caused the rift between generation inside and outside of the gaming world. One is the availability of information and the other is the different perception (evaluation) of time. (Which results in the "no-lifers" VS the "spoiled children who want everything handed down to them" argument.)
I prefer if hints are readily available in the game for anyone who is interested, rather than stumbling upon them by chance or upon hours of ingame search.
In practice I think true 'explorers,' players who figure out everything by themselves, have always been rare, and most players relied on friends, guildies, and other more experienced players (and wiki and various fansites today) to gain information.
So yes, I like the idea of a game that provides its gamers with information instead of relying on players and external sites to do it. I'm also a fan of having choices, so IMO the ideal is a system where information is easily acessible but not compulsory/forced upon the player.
Wait, what was your question again? Oh, no question. NVM my rambling, then. XD
I understand where you're coming from, but I think this isn't fair neither to WoW players nor to MMORPG players in general.
The UI has been cleaned up a lot, agreed, but FFXIV still suffers from poor control adaptation from pads.
It's obvious that the basic principle is "open menu, select, (go deeper into menu, select further, repeat), confirm," and work your way out of it in a similar way. This works well for pads, while for PC games mouse left click, right click, DOUBLE CLICK, SCROLL with the scroll button, and all kind of keyboard shortcuts work wonderfully and are very efficient.
For example, there's no reason why the inventory you open by clicking on a shortcut (icon) should exclude gear, weapons, and money, while the inventory opened from the menu doesn't. There's no good reason why one shouldn't be able to normally move (using the keyboard) and use the mouse to scroll the chat log at the same time. Interacting with crystals could easily be done without having to open the main menu first. And just count how many steps one needs to perform in order to change the character's gear.
Putting so many trivial steps before a player can execute one (often simple) action does not enrich gameplay or make it interesting.
Those actions are so simple that they don't need macros, or at least they shouldn't.
Same for basic spell actions - the additonal step of chosing the area size and confirming it each time, this kind of negates the purpose of the system that is made for a quick and easy use of skills = skillbar.
I really hope SE will address these issues, but right now it looks like the developers are caught and lost between three concepts; their traditional way of making games, the newer standards set by other games, and the desire to bring something new/unique to the table.
I hope for their sake and the sake of (potential) players that they will find the right balance eventually.
Actually those (u by default for usable) are in-combat usable items only, you can't change gear while in battle. If gear/weapons and currencies were included in that it would be more difficult to use items like food, ethers, potions etc. from said menu and people would have to resort to using macros for them.
Scrolling the chat log does require you to be in chat mode so you'd type out wasd, however you can auto run and chat/scroll. The way I have my 4 chat logs setup I never have to scroll during battle though so maybe I just don't have this problem
I'm not trying to belittle your complaint, I guess I just don't see it being that much of a problem (they still say they are going to "improve it" in future patches). It has never been a problem for me at all, I've played a lot of different games (MMO and singleplayer games) and adapting to a new control/UI setup is just something that is not difficult for me. Steps to change gear:
you go to gear
you select the slot
you select the equipment (you are automatically given a list of only the gear that fits the slot, so you don't have to sort through all your inventory like at launch)
So 3 steps if I counted right, I don't remember being it any easier in other MMO's. However what I would like is the ability to save gear per classes, a problem games without multi-class job systems don't have but that the FFXIV team says is coming soon (possibly in the next patch).
Of course you could also macro gear sets, in which case it is one step: press macro.
As for spells you do know you don't have to change the AOE toggle everytime, it saves it from the last use and you just press z to toggle it in between. The AOE toggle however is being removed soon (next patch I believe), and aoe versions of some spells -ga spells are being added.
The other thing you are referring to is the option to select a new target for spells/provoke/taunt stuff like that. That part will never go away because it is actually a very useful addition which you might find if you play more/more advanced encounters where you need to select alternate targets on a spell by spell basis. You can macro it with a <t> to have it automatically fire on your current target though. Since Yoshida took over they are definitely listening to your generation of players more and catering to some of your demands, but I doubt they would remove functionality like that just to make it more like WoW. At least I hope not, it would make either high end encounters much more cumbersome or require them to design them more simply in the future.
http://xivpads.com/?1595680
http://guildwork.com/users/murugan
It is not playable. It needs overhaul then maybe. It improved since release, but it still has a long way to go.
I cant recommend this game to friends, not in this state.
Thank you for replying so in detail.
Shortcut to inventory:
I actually don't see any problem with that (scrolling), since the game already has the autosort function. By logic the most used items (consumables) should go on top, and the money already has its special slot, so no scrolling would be needed because of it. This way you'd gain more functionality without losing the function you mentioned.
Equipping gear:
I counted in the steps also entering the main menu and hitting 'escape' (or the X) multiple times to reach the normal screen again. In total that's significantly more steps than your average MMO. BTW, is there a quicker way to close the menus, something that would close them all at once? I haven't been able to find it yet. >.<
And I miss the option to multitask in the game (In general, you enter a certain panel and in order to have the options of that panel, you forsake others; for example you can't even open "gear" and "journal" at the same time. Again, something that makes sense for consoles, but not for PCs).
I rarely switch the toggle of area selection for spells.
Targeting:
And that's what I don't really understand. The system is a mess. Switching targets feels clumsy either with the keyboard or the mouse, and ironically, this is why I see the only use of this system - in case you have multiple targets, it's easier to keep track of the one you've originally selected.
On the other hand, you can't see the bar of the secondary target, the one you're casting a spell on. With the implementation of the autoattack, I can see potential problems with spells like sleep + autoattack (haven't had the chance to test it yet, because my conjurer profession is not that far up yet), if you switch targets normally, not spell on spell basis.
IDK, it's like the devs can't decide what they want. It looks like they put the "switch target" in as graphic element solely because they were going for a more graphic interface anyway, regardless of what's more practical. Some ideas may be nice in theory, but would have needed more extensive testing in order to determine which features work well and which are redundant/annoying.
Making this extra step compulsory (always assuming that you'll wish to engage another target) only slows the combat, which is already on the slowish side, in the FF fashion. Given the slow combat, it would make more sense to me if in case of multiple engaged enemies, there would be an easier way to have overview and switch targets, for example a window (like a party window, only for enemies) or somethings similar. I haven't felt the need for that in other games that don't offer it, but given the slow/clumsy controls in FFXIV, for me this option would ease fights both against single and multiple mobs.
If there are other controls I'm missing, it would be nice to have an easier way to find them.
I noticed that a targeting mode that allows only engaged mobs to be targeting is already in the works, so I'll have to wait to see how that changes combat.
---
It may look like petty complaining, because none of the issues I mentioned (and several I did not mention, some of which I'm still debating whether they are bugs or simply poor implementation of a specific idea) are deal-breaking per se, as long as there's only one of two of them. But the whole lot of together points to a lack of polish and testing, and really puts me off.
Different kinds of UI and commands can be interesting (moving solely by mouse; zoom & rotation with keys; 'inverted' mouse zoom; directional keys for moving, different ways to engage an enemy,...), and I won't despise them simply on the grounds of being different. I do expect, however, that they will offer as much or more functionality as other, more prevalent systems.
I too have been playing MMOs for almost a decade, and different console and PC games since even earlier (as much as opportunity allowed). I can't stand WoW, and that's why I don't play it, but I don't blame it for the current state of the MMORPG market, and think it's not fair to WoW players to lump them all in one single category. (Although I admit I sometimes joke that if it jumps like a WoW player and rushes like a WoW player, it likely is a WoW player.
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It's great that you find FFXIV satisfying as it is, but I don't take well to any allusion to "You need to learn to adapt" type of argument. Not when there's reason to believe the developers didn't do their work well enough in the first place.
If anything, I envy you for the fact that you can enjoy the game already, because I'd really like to play and enjoy it, and it's not working so well for me. I admit I was disapointed, and I'm not sure what are reasonable expectations for the future. I didn't mean to rant about every single feature and pull you into it.
Anyway, you can tell the new team is working hard to deliver a better and more enjoyable game, so we'll just have to see.
And as you said, patches are going to keep coming.
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Try numpad's *... or numpad's -. I believe one of them is the shortcut for the menu. I use the controller more now so I can't quite recall what the exact shortcut was.
He has a fair point, as it's not necessarily a refusal to adapt. A lot of us feel that the systems are rather clunky, and makes us work harder to achieve the same effect in other MMOs.
I'll use the example about ability targetting. A good number of MMOs require constant target switching in party situations, and I'll go ahead and use Aion (my experiences are pre 2.0 since I stopped playing at 1.9) for my example.
I played Templar (tank) so I would have to be able to keep aggro on all of the mobs (many fights are group vs group, and non-instanced elite areas had a large chance of getting adds). Most of the Templar abilities are single target, with VERY few multi/aoe (only 2, actually, the cost of 1 making it prohibitive to ever use), so I would have to be CONSTANTLY switching targets to ensure every mob is getting their fair share of taunts and threat abilities, along with making sure the main target is getting a good bit of attention.
What Aion did to help manage that was very simple. They used the basic marking/branding system that even FF14 has, but the simple addition of allowing an easy keybinding (no creating of macros required) to both brand it and select it by brand made managing groups of monsters incredibly efficient and easy. So for example, my Num1 branded Skull, Num2->X, Num3->ZzZ. And then I made Ctrl+Num1 select whatever's been branded with Skull, Ctrl+Num2 select X, and so forth. Again, this was simply in their keybindings menu, and did not need to be macro'd.
Taking a second to brand mobs pre-fight ensured switching between them was easy and efficient. And if we got adds, I would only need to select them once, then I could quickly brand them. When switching, most of the time I didn't even need to face them as I precisely knew what mob I had just switched to. The extra benefit to this was that every one of my party members could also easily switch between them, as the brandings applied for all party members.
Achieving this in 14 can take a good while longer due to having to slowly scroll between the mobs. Small numbers can be quick, but the larger you get, the longer it takes. I do know FF14 has a branding system as well, but it's burried in the Emote menu and in their own seperate tabs. What takes me less than a second in Aion, can easily take me several in FF14, and I'm not gaining anything for the added time (there's even been a few times where I simply could not scroll to the monster I wanted, even when it was clearly in my screen, though I attribute this to a bug).
Sure, I "adapted" in the way that I can work within it. But I find it needlessly convoluted. I like to think such a focus on having to scroll through the mobs is because of also designing it for the PS3, but I don't really know if that was the case.
It isn't just this, of course, as a lot of other systems feel nedlessly complex. Some of us can adapt in that we can get used to it, but all the while we're completely aware that we're working harder with absolutely no added benefit.
That doesn't really seem simpler to me, rather than just being able to target seperately by ability.
What you describe doing in two seperate actions (marking, then selecting based on markings) I can do per ability in XIV. So we get an add I can taunt it, we get another one I can provoke that one all while auto attacking and keeping my main target. Or as a mage I can sleep an add, heal a party member, dot my target, and heal another party member without having to do any additional targetting/worrying about waking a slept mob etc.
I do hope though they expand on the marking system as that sounds like a neat way of doing things, I just wouldn't like to see them remove functionality simply because some people don't appreciate it. What they should probably do (and I imagien they will do either with the removal of AOE abilities or in one of the next few patches) is make a toggle for subtargeting by ability.
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Heh heh. My ultimate point was that scrolling takes a lot while longer than a keybinding method, with no real added benefit. If they combined those two (ability targetting but being able to select your targets quickly with keybindings), I'd be a happy camper.