I still play FFXI, but I think it's clear that the migration of the bulk of the FF MMO community to XIV:ARR will result in the near-term shutdown of XI.
That said, there is a subject I've been meaning to blog about for some time, and I think that, for both elitists and casuals, SE has completely missed the boat on the entire process.
I think I can clearly base this on the concept of a response by Matsui regarding Solo Play, Barriers to Party, and Community Enhancement, from the Official Forums:
" I feel that there are three groups of players: those that want solo growth elements, those that want to join parties more easily, and those that want a way to be able to practice and learn content."
He's wrong. Though those three groups exist, there are at least two more, which do have an intersection:
- People who wish to make money at the game (RMT)
- and people whose only existence in the game is to clear content and control who else can.
First, casuals and hardcores cannot co-exist on Final Fantasy XI.
Second, only one group has the right to play on Final Fantasy XI. Square-Enix just needs to get a set and determine and enforce which one.
Why do I say this?
First, Siviard calls Matsui out basically immediately:
"The bolded section is the most inaccurate piece of blabber I think I've ever seen by Matsui. Sadly, the opposite is true. Players who have better gear and are "ahead of the game" do their best to REJECT players who are behind and won't allow them to come along for endgame content.
Don't have Aegis/Ochain on your Paladin? You're not wanted. Don't have Gjallarhorn or Daurdalba on your Bard? Leave now. Don't have Annihilator 119 on your Ranger? Don't bother responding. etc. etc."
Worse yet, if you aren't a:
- Monk
- Ranger
- Bard
- Corsair
- White Mage
- or Paladin
Maybe the occasional BLM.
But, again, Siviard's statement doesn't take into account that the vast majority (on the North American side, effectively ALL) elite players cheat, demand cheating and do everything in their power to ensure they are the only ones who can -- and since they can clear the content, they inflate the difficulty of the game for everyone else.
Let's take a look at a Term of Service that I think these hardcores refuse to use to their advantage...
Prohibited Activities, 3.2:
3.2 Disruption. You may not in any way disrupt or interfere with the Game experience of other players, including the disruption of SQUARE ENIX’s computers and servers.
Note that, by saying "in any way", this is in no way limiting the discussion of Game Disruption to physically disrupting the game/Internet, Square-Enix actually has opened the door to do the following in response to Byrth's response to some of these concerns:
"It's being cast as a community issue, but really it's not.
* You want a job that can survive essentially anything? You want an Ochain and Aegis PLD.
* You want to fit two buffers into one party slot? You want a Daurd/G-horn BRD.
* You want a competitive DD that won't pull hate off a Paladin? Your options are either a Yoichi RNG or Anni RNG."
Essentially, if I were an elitist fuck like Thornyy/Comeatmebro or the other scum who have polluted the community beyond all semblance of repair, I would do the following:
Refusal to play an optimized job, and optimize that job completely, disrupts the Game Experience of any player who is meaningful to the game.
Refusal to use bots/third-party programs, attempts to play non-optimized jobs, refusal to gear your job "properly", should be an expulsion offense, to these players.
So, what of it, Square-Enix?
Or is Siviard's call what you have wanted all along, and, now that FFXI means nothing to you, you can let this happen now until the game shuts down:
"In essence.....FFXI has become BlueGartr "
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