Qestioning whether or not to purchase

[Nile8]

Hey there I'm new to this forum lol but I ran across it while doing a little research into finding a new mmo for me.
I haven't played a reall mmo since ffxi (yes I played wow but hated the ease of it, i'll explain.) My idea of an mmo was exactly what ffxi was. team work grinding great community, it seemed there were less angry teenagers and more adults that would help or just grind out mobs with you lol. Wow I quickly got to endgame material and though it had a whole lot of people on the server it didn't feel as easy to chat with people lol. long story short loved ffxi and as much as id like to just resub and head back.... its 12 yrs old lol and id like to start from the beginning of a new mmo. Right now I've been looking at ESO FFXIV and GW2.

[Katchii]

Just to put it out there, there isn't anothe rgame out there that requires as much teamwork just to level as FFXI did back in the day. All of the MMOs out now have mechanics that allow for someone to solo all the way to max level. FFXIV requires dungeons to be done as part of the storyline, which is the main source of experience the first time you level a job but it is by no means a requirement.

Having said that, I do find that FFXIV does generally have fewer trolls and "angry teenagers" than WoW, but they still exist and are just as bad when found.

I've heard and seen sales for FFXIV for as low as $15, which is a great buy. ESO is still pretty expensive and.... has it's own issues, but it's still a decent game, I just stopped because I couldn't spend time in both FFXIV and ESO, just not how I play my MMOs.

Give it a shot, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

[Clockwork Pinkie]

Having said that, I do find that FFXIV does generally have fewer trolls and "angry teenagers" than WoW, but they still exist and are just as bad when found.

Until you get the pleasure of being in a zone that happens to be the weekly beast hunt and you will see how insane people will go just for one mob for some points. Blacklisting people for killing a mob before they got there/without telling anyone is just insanely stupid. Other than that, this game is fantastic. But those new beast hunts just ruins the server community.

[Nile8]

Lol from the sounds of it.... Leapin lizzy comes to mind haha! Well I figured some soloing would be inevitable but I think the community for FF overall has always veen pleasant. I guess im just worried about change lol I miss my THF and NIN lol. But I think ill be buying ffxiv eso just doesnt seem to be worth the high price and a sub. Ill end up with it later though lol. Thank you both for the response any suggestions for realm?

[Katchii]

The new hunts are fucking retarded.... IMO. Ruins the community and the daily/ weekly hunt bills are pointless.

I like the concept, but currently it's so easy to solo the elite marks when EVERYONE wants to kill it, that if more than 2 people get near it it's highly likely only the person who tagged it will get credit because it dies in 2 seconds.

[Arkenaw]

The new hunt system has brought more vitriol to this game than I have EVER seen in ANY online community, so just a heads up with how trashy this game's community has gone in a single patch.

[Vodox]

I had really high hopes for this game, as one of my friend was saying many positive things about this game, and yes there are many positive things. But when i start playing, i feelt like running and running, the graphics was a huge disappointed compearded to other mmorpg out there even Aion looks better. I would use my money some where else.

[Graeham]

I'd consider FFXIV's graphics to be pretty stunning, personally. It's one of the most visually appearing MMO's currently on the market as far as I'm concerned.

[Deleted]

Eh, FFXIV has some of the best graphics on the market, if you're not playing on a toaster

[Captain N]

I think a toaster might be the only device to make FFXIV's graphics look bad - Even on my old laptop on Standard Settings the game looks great. Sure it's not as pretty as it looks on Maximum Settings but it's still very impressive.

[Miguel85NYC]

FF 14 is a awesome MMO, it has story, graphics, gameplay.. it feels like a RPG!

[Faroth]

I compare it to WoW in the late Classic to Burning Crusade era.

When I first played ARR, my initial impression was "This is just WoW in 2014, and that's good. Square has taken all the things that worked in other MMOs, put their own interpretation on it, polished it, and put out the best product I could ask for."

You have plenty of content to do solo when you're short on time, but the game really shines when you're able to group with friends. The Free Company provides the traditional guild social option while Linkshells allow you to join other groups of similar interests to be able to chat and play with.

The designs of the game itself are wonderful. I love that Square expects players to work together in the crafting realm and has made it a real challenge to be self sufficient. Desynthesis ensures nobody is self sufficient in that area.

Most of all, I absolutely love Yoshida-san's style in interacting with the community. He's pretty open with their ideas, but they also stick to their design and really spend time evaluating before making changes. At the same time, I've seen quotes from the forums where he's pretty much stated they won't take incessant whining and attacks because he and his team are human and people can only take so much hostile negativity. They seem very open and engaging while tempering expectations and following their design vision.

I really dig it as I felt Blizzard became to knee jerk reactionary.


If you really want a FFXI community feel, from what I gather, learn to read Japanese and play on a JP server. It's just a huge cultural difference than the Western playerbase that is the bulk of games like WoW. I've read that even the Hunt hasn't cause such massive strife on Japanese servers, though there's still always some guy that will pull while others are allowing time for people to gather, but it's not as rampant. Could be untrue, so take it with a grain of salt and hearsay.

- - - Updated - - -

FF 14 is a awesome MMO, it has story, graphics, gameplay.. it feels like a RPG!

It does have a nice traditional RPG element to it as well.

[Katchii]

I had really high hopes for this game, as one of my friend was saying many positive things about this game, and yes there are many positive things. But when i start playing, i feelt like running and running, the graphics was a huge disappointed compearded to other mmorpg out there even Aion looks better. I would use my money some where else.

1) Aion does not look better, even on a toaster
2) If you're playing games for the graphics alone, you're doing it wrong.
3) Can't tell if trolling....

[Scufflegrit]

Saying the graphics aren't good compared to other MMOs is like saying a blow torch isn't hot. I mean compared to the sun or a bolt of lightning... sure; but compared to most anything else it's freaking hot.
It's funny, because I was thinking about FFXIV's graphics a couple of days ago and how well they compare to pre-rendered game cinematics from just a few years ago. It makes me look forward to what gaming and graphics card companies will be able to accomplish in the next few years. Imagine if you were playing a game that looked as good as the opening cinematic... /drool
Don't get me wrong, a game needs good game play and a decent story first, but if it also has good graphics it just makes everything else so much better. And FFXIV most definitely does not have just good graphics. Its graphics are awesome.

[-aiko-]

FFXIV and FFXI sadly have little in common. However when you are leveling the first time, and progressing through the main story, you are forced to play through dungeons. So teamwork is more than encouraged, it's required to level. That is, if you are leveling with the main story (which most people probably do the first time). Alternative leveling methods exist and will be necessary when you level up another class or a tradecraft. You will grind FATEs solo, possibly while in queue for a dungeon. Otherwise FATE, FATE, FATE.

If that bothers you then FFXIV may be a little tough for you to get into. Regarding difficulty, though, FFXIV is definitely harder than WoW. Your class has unique class quests you do every few levels that can be quite challenging. You also can't AoE packs of same-level mobs down. Fighting 2-3 same-level mobs will be very tough and will require the use of cooldowns etc. Dungeons are easy until a few of the late ones. Raids can be challenging.

Um, hopefully this was a little helpful. I kind of just threw all my thoughts down without and proofreading.

[Katchii]

Saying the graphics aren't good compared to other MMOs is like saying a blow torch isn't hot. I mean compared to the sun or a bolt of lightning... sure; but compared to most anything else it's freaking hot.

I think the person might be confusing graphics with art style. I don't think anyone can argue the graphic fidelity of the game, but art style (character customization and anatomy, armor, color scheme, environment, etc...) is highly subjective and may not be well liked by everyone, which is to be expected.

[Wolfman31]

I was recently on the fence about purchasing too but I'm glad I now did. The story is very immersive and the combat is relaxing. The global cooldown is a full second slower than games like WoW so you have more time to plan your next move. At first I thought I wouldn't like it but now I'm very much enjoying it. Good game overall.

[-aiko-]

I was recently on the fence about purchasing too but I'm glad I now did. The story is very immersive and the combat is relaxing. The global cooldown is a full second slower than games like WoW so you have more time to plan your next move. At first I thought I wouldn't like it but now I'm very much enjoying it. Good game overall.

Agreed on the GCD. It actually opens up some gameplay options too. On my Monk the longer GCD is brilliant because it gives me more time to position myself (most core Monk abilities need to be used from behind for maximum effect).

[Wolfman31]

Agreed on the GCD. It actually opens up some gameplay options too. On my Monk the longer GCD is brilliant because it gives me more time to position myself (most core Monk abilities need to be used from behind for maximum effect).

Yea I'm experiencing that with my Lancer, as I'm just starting out. It seems melee in general is very position-oriented. One of my abilities grants a damage buff while attacking from the side, and another from behind. I'm liking that aspect a lot so far.

[Graeham]

Yea I'm experiencing that with my Lancer, as I'm just starting out. It seems melee in general is very position-oriented. One of my abilities grants a damage buff while attacking from the side, and another from behind. I'm liking that aspect a lot so far.

It's very satisfying once you've unlocked every ability. I've been having a lot of fun as a dragoon as it feels very satisfying to be right in the middle of the action, especially on some of the tougher boss battles. The positioning can take a bit of getting used to and there's not a lot of room for error but dragoons end up with a pretty impressive range of abilities that help them deal with most situations. I've even managed to off-tank the occasional stray enemy from time to time until it could be brought under control by a real tank.