A decent MMO plagued by some serious problems that make it unplayable in the long run

[Katchii]

You are not being "locked" from anything

This claim is factually incorrect. You ARE locked from progressing the MSQ and experiencing "locked" content until you clear the required group content and get to that point in the MSQ.

There's no way for someone to join you in a dungeon until they've unlocked it via the MSQ. A level 50 character who hasn't progressed the MSQ can't just go to Heavensward content even though they're the appropriate level to start it.

Just because this is how FFXIV does things doesn't mean it's not locking you out from that content.

[Mojo03]

After playing FF14 for 3ish months now, I actually prefer it’s combat to WoW.

It just has a better flow to it.

WOW definitely has more fluid and responsive combat, and it’s ability system is far more interesting,
but the combat is too twitchy and tedious for me.

FF14 definitely to me has more thoughtful and elegant combat, but it’s also a little too slow and not quite responsive enough.

The ideal combat for me would be somewhere in the middle of the 2, but currently I actually prefer FF14.

[Graeham]

FFXIV's combat shines best at end game when everybody is working with their full kit. Before that, many jobs suffer from losing out on key/interesting abilities. I hate playing DRK in low level dungeons, for example, since I don't have access to my shadow bubble or my shady buddy which both feel satisfying to use in combat.

[Saltysquidoon]

Long time player of both as well. Imo wows combat is very responsive and clean. However, after adjusting to ffxiv I can say I enjoy ffxiv combat more. What seemed clunky at first became natural and had its own flow.
Telegraph engine is fine honestly. It's safe to step in when the telegraph disappears, which is different than the attack animation. I would personally also argue that animation locks and slide casting are a good thing. Realizing when to use your ogcd during your cds to not clip. It's all fun gameplay that makes wow feel stale to me when I go back.

The issue isn't whether slidecasting is good or bad (it literally doesn't bother me at all EDIT: I would actually call it part of the fun of casters) it's the fact it's an unintended consequence of how a system was built, it's basically the definition of jank, which is my point.
This isn't to say wow lacks jank, like for example the infamous hardcoded backpack size.
My point has never been FFXIV's combat is bad, it's that people claiming it's not janky and more fluid than wows are having themselves on.

Also just as an aside telegraphs and animations not matching up is just bad design, it's really immaterial that it 'doesn't matter or 'you get used to it' (I have long ago). Like even if it's an engine limitation that only adds to the argument for janky-ness.

[zorkuus]

So, for example: Having your rotation randomly grant you between 1 and 5 combo points depending on if the random meter decides you get 2 per attack or not?
Wait, no, that's WoW's combat.

FF has random procs too. Hardly a pro or con for either game if they both have them.

How about cooldowns coming off during a boss' move-away phase?
Wait, nope, still WoW, FFXIV cooldowns are generally planned around the best time in a fight to get the most benefit overall.

If I have a 30s cd, a 90s cd and a 120s cd, they do not line up perfectly according to the fight.

[Flame6]

Long global CD (which i hear gets better later........way way later).
ARR is a boring slog to get through. The story might be fine, but its presented in weird cut scenes that often feel stiff.
God forbid you try to level the first time with friends. Huge portions are traveling together, followed by solo instanced quests. And if someone gets ahead (or has already done the MSQ) than you're shit out of luck letting your friend do it solo.
For a Multiplayer game it has one of the worst leveling experiences in a group I've seen.

I did like the complexity of the rotations though. Got my samurai up past ARR and holy cow do I have a ton of buttons (probably too many).

[minteK917]

Of course you are, you have years of content and story to access. The issue is when people compare one WoW patch to years of already built FF14 content. Once they run out of that, they'll see it for what it really is.

That highly depend for why they left. If they left because wow has literally no effort in any causal content and just bunch of grind on top of grind to extent the end game, they might actually think being able to only play 2-3 times a week like TBC or even WOTLK allowed you to do, is refreshing.

[Selah]

Have to disagree with OPs original assessment. I've become quite smitten with most of everything in the game. Admittedly, only level 54 and still working through the ARR story quests but the game feels really good to play. On top of that, as a WoW player, it feels like a very natural transition going from WoW to FF14.

That said, I reserve the right to change my opinion at any time. Who knows what the next couple of expansions will bring as I work through them.

[Raysz]

I recently started playing this game and while I do like it, I don't love it. Took me a while to figure out why.
For me it comes down to immersion. The loading screens between zones really break immersion for me. On top of that, the overall art style, not a fan.
Having said that, I love the attention to detail and some rpg aspects. Just the simple fact you have a room in an inn you can rest in is awesome.

I remember levelling in GW2 for the first time while being on a Wow break, and I wanted to play GW2 every day. I don't feel the same way about FFonline. Not sure what it is, it's a very nice game for sure and GW2 and FFonline are quite similar. Maybe I'm just worn out on the Mmo genre.

[javierdsv]

Some random YouTube nobody starts playing the game, and suddenly people stop knowing what they like and what they want, and start having existential crisis.

Use your brain people, you don't need others to tell you what you will like or not, take your own decisions.

[Schmittay]

Some random YouTube nobody starts playing the game, and suddenly people stop knowing what they like and what they want, and start having existential crisis.

Use your brain people, you don't need others to tell you what you will like or not, take your own decisions.

I'm not a fan of Asmongold nor sought him out, but even I knew he was pretty big years ago, to say otherwise is disingenuous at best.

Could be that many never gave FFXIV a shot, and seeing their favourite streamer play it has given them a chance to see what it's about and give it a try.

You just sound sour TBH, people are jumping off WoW because well...it's fucking shit now and has been heading that way for years. The devs truly love FFXIV and it shows. Can't say I feel the same about the WoW dev team. It feels like they try to do anything they can to prolong your time in WoW without the thought of this little thing called "fun". Some might not like it and that's perfectly fine too.

[Itisamuh]

Some random YouTube nobody starts playing the game, and suddenly people stop knowing what they like and what they want, and start having existential crisis.

Use your brain people, you don't need others to tell you what you will like or not, take your own decisions.

I agree with you in principle. I really could not care less about what streamers, or any other type of celebrities for that matter, think about anything. They are just people, and have nothing to do with me or my preferences. In this case though, I think it has less to do with people blindly liking whatever the streamer likes, and more to do simply with exposure. A lot of people never even bother to check out other games, especially in this genre, but then see it on a stream they like to watch and decide it looks fun. Especially if the streamer and people in chat are discussing it, describing differences, pros and cons, etc.

[alturic]

I even find it's better to treat the game like a good book. Sit down, play through a few chapters, then set it down and come back to it when you're ready. If you're expecting it to consume every moment of your life - There's plenty in it that can, if you want it to. But the game doesn't impose that you want to play it BEFORE you, yourself, decide you want to. Then there's plenty to look forward to.

I get this logic (in terms of being ok with not reading the book in one sitting), but I feel if a book isn't entertaining/intriguing/engaging enough to make me want to keep reading instead of picking it up when I have nothing else to do... it's not that great of a book.

This, at least for me, is what I mean when I say things like no MMO since WoW has been able to hook me like UO, EQ, or WoW once did - and it could certainly be me just getting older, but like I say I refuse to believe that, ha.

- - - Updated - - -

I agree with you in principle. I really could not care less about what streamers, or any other type of celebrities for that matter, think about anything. They are just people, and have nothing to do with me or my preferences. In this case though, I think it has less to do with people blindly liking whatever the streamer likes, and more to do simply with exposure. A lot of people never even bother to check out other games, especially in this genre, but then see it on a stream they like to watch and decide it looks fun. Especially if the streamer and people in chat are discussing it, describing differences, pros and cons, etc.

See, I feel like it would be the opposite of what you're saying. People who watch streams (just like people who visit MMO-C) are in the minority of gamers... dare I say they are the more knowledgeable (can't think of a better word) players. So they would know all of the other gaming sites that would highlight all of "what's out there".

Kinda like how people who are a bit computer-savvy are inherently the ones who torrent.

[javierdsv]

See, I feel like it would be the opposite of what you're saying. People who watch streams (just like people who visit MMO-C) are in the minority of gamers... dare I say they are the more knowledgeable (can't think of a better word) players. So they would know all of the other gaming sites that would highlight all of "what's out there".

Kinda like how people who are a bit computer-savvy are inherently the ones who torrent.

You're right, people who look at the internet usually have more information at hand, and can take better decisions. But when we're talking about streamers, it becomes exactly the same as religion, a cult. And people blindly follow their words as irrefutable and eye opening.

My advise for anyone reading this thread is: If you want to give the game a shot, go ahead, it's a decent game, but don't try to bash other games based on it, and don't let others influence how much you like it. Look at it as if it was a whole different thing, because it is.

[alturic]

it's not like they were brainwashed or something.

I wouldn't say they were brainwashed but I can tell you, as sad as it truly is, all of these "influencers" have a LOT of sway in the minds of the pre-teens/teens who watch them.

[Alamhaoingaturlife]

Some of the people itt are acting like literal cultists.

Very concerning and more than a little creepy

[Wrecktangle]

So, for example:

• Having your rotation randomly grant you between 1 and 5 combo points depending on if the random meter decides you get 2 per attack or not? Wait, no, that's WoW's combat.
• How about cooldowns coming off during a boss' move-away phase?
• Wait, nope, still WoW, FFXIV cooldowns are generally planned around the best time in a fight to get the most benefit overall.
• So your VALID complaints come down to: Lag prevention (as slide casting is caused by the 500ms delay, server-side ticks is another form of lag prevention, and animations/telegraphs not being tied together [and for that matter not being clunky, just being a different method of display] is, once again, to ensure everyone with reasonable internet speeds are able to react accordingly) and animation locks.
• This is lag prevention. I don't feel these are "clunky," I feel they are simply combat mechanics that require some getting used to.
• If anything, I find slide casting as an option to be better than not, and "wasting" a cooldown because you used it too late to hit the target is... just your fault lol. Cast faster.
• I don't find WoW combat "fluid" at all. It's "reactionary" at best. You wait for things to light up and you hit the lit up things. Otherwise you spam your "spammable" ability. Missing any GCDs drops your DPS significantly, and you have more oGCDs than you can possibly count.
• It's far too fast paced to have any manner of mid-combat thinking done, you're basically running a dozen spreadsheets to solve the fight for you before bothering to step into the raid. If that's "fluid" combat, then yes, I'll take "clunky" combat over it any day.

The problem here is that you are simply using the wrong definitions for the words you're using to try and justify your points. It's not even that your points are some egregiously inaccurate set of statements, they're only grossly wrong because you're not using the right words to describe what you want to. Try to detach your feelings from the discussion and look at the points objectively:

• RNG isn't clunky..., and EVEN if it was, which again it's not. There are a few jobs who have RNG mechanics in FF14 so I guess BRD and DNC are clunky too further proving my point...
• That's weird, I have plethora of examples of bosses jumping away during my cooldowns in FF14. Hell in order to get them to line up appropriately on Shiva, I needed to cast my DPS cooldown 3 seconds before we started a 20s countdown pulled which is super fucking awkward and only use it for 3 GCDs. That's fucking clunky. That aside, it's still not clunky to have bosses go away while cooldowns come up lol...
• That's weird. No other game needs all these lag prevention measures that negatively impact the gameplay experience. Regardless of whether or not it's lag prevention, it still FEELS clunky.
• That's a quote of the year lol. "I feel that they're simply combat mechanics that require getting used to" because they're unintuitive, and thus proving my point that they're clunky lol.
• Cast faster isn't a solution to the problem. Cast earlier is, but then that just doubles down on my point that it's clunky. If you need to account ahead of time for a clunky spell that doesn't apply it's effect until 1.5s later on an animation, and then account for server ticks, that's the literal definition of clunky.
• Speak for yourself. I'm more than capable of thinking mid combat in WoW. I have no issues looking at timers while managing my resources/GCDs and planning uptime optimizations. Most players can do this to varying degrees of success...I definitely don't run a spreadsheet to solve a fight lol. That's 9-5 shit.

[Ragnarocket]

FFXIV's combat shines best at end game when everybody is working with their full kit. Before that, many jobs suffer from losing out on key/interesting abilities. I hate playing DRK in low level dungeons, for example, since I don't have access to my shadow bubble or my shady buddy which both feel satisfying to use in combat.

I feel this - I love my Dark Knight at level 80 because the full combination of abilities really makes for a fun rotation while also trying to manage mechanics on some of the Savages.

But man...lower level you're just sitting there watching the tank busters come in and you cry because you don't have TDN.

[Swnem]

This claim is factually incorrect. You ARE locked from progressing the MSQ and experiencing "locked" content until you clear the required group content and get to that point in the MSQ.

There's no way for someone to join you in a dungeon until they've unlocked it via the MSQ. A level 50 character who hasn't progressed the MSQ can't just go to Heavensward content even though they're the appropriate level to start it.

Just because this is how FFXIV does things doesn't mean it's not locking you out from that content.

He is NOT locked. Just has to sit in a queue that WILL pop. This is all just impatience.

[Katchii]

He is NOT locked. Just has to sit in a queue that WILL pop. This is all impatience.

Can he continue the story without completing the dungeon he's forced to sit in that queue for?

If the answer is no (which we both know it is) then he's locked from that content.

Each step in the MSQ is a gating item for every step that comes after it, including any optional content that can only be unlocked after completing a portion of the MSQ he can't get to yet.

You either don't know what locked means, or are being completely disingenuous with your argument.

If you can't do X until you complete Y, then X is locking you out from Y. Period.