FFXI
Submitted by Abalieno on December 25, 2006 - 20:05.
...completely ruined by stupid game design and stupid policies at a fundamental level.
I was giving a quick look at the notes from the December update. There's some interesting stuff as they are bringing on the plans connected to the release of the latest expansion (Square releases an expansion with very few of its content accessible right away, then they slowly open up and develop new parts throughout the whole cycle, till the next one).
I still believe that between all the online worlds we have at the moment, FFXI is the very best. Noone creates worlds like Square, noone can even go near to their charm and originality. They only produce masterpieces and today FFXI is still absolutely the most unique and fascinating "world".
What they are doing with the chocobo rising system is exactly what you would expect from the IDEAL of the virtual world. Systems with some depth, not just focused on combat and only combat. Or gear, or endless levels to ding. It's an example of something that adds "game". And adds that "world" flavor. It makes that place feel distinctive. It gives depth. Different activities to pursue and explore, interesting variations.
I can only read things and have very vague ideas about what they are developing, but it gives me the impression of a very good direction. I don't know about the execution, but the ideas are "sound". The same for the new "hunting" system that they call "salvaging".
I've already commented positively all this stuff as most of it has been already announced with the expansion's release and I still believe that Square is pouring some excellent and innovative ideas into this game. It's very sad that the game is ruined at a much more fundamental level and all that stuff is irrelevant if those problems aren't solved beforehand.
I'm just reporting that FFXI is still a good example of both the worst and the best that these games can offer.
I wonder what we could have if Square was a little bit more "connected" with the community and understood better its needs.
Submitted by Abalieno on July 18, 2006 - 21:14.
Zonk on the hypothetic sequel to FFXI:
With several expansions to the original game already released, and the title available on three platforms, Square/Enix is finally talking about a sequel to Final Fantasy XI.
Finally?
Anyway, Square pushed out a press release to confirm that they are working on something, but not directly as a sequel to FFXI:
As the Company announced in May 2005, it is currently developing an online title for next-generation platforms including game consoles and PCs; however, this title is being developed as a completely new MMORPG (Massive Multiplayer Online RPG).
Quite expected. They aren't going to announce anything without an appropriated, dedicated event (that won't be anytime soon, knowing how slow they are). And it's obvious that they are going to start something from zero instead of consolidating and strengthen the world they already created.
I guess this news was supposed to tranquilize those players who started to worry about FFXI, but the truth is the exact opposite. That announce is no less than the announce of the end of FFXI, we don't know when, but we know it will happen. With a completely new game in development it just means that Square's resources are being moved and that they don't believe anymore in the value of FFXI.
Stupid as everyone else. Worlds with expiration dates.
Submitted by Abalieno on July 18, 2006 - 10:16.
There was a rumor yesterday about a Final Fantasy Online sequel:
July 17, 2006 - Japan's Nikkei Net news service reports today that Square Enix is currently at work on a sequel to Final Fantasy XI. The next generation massively multiplayer online RPG is being developed for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Windows Vista formats. Further details are not provided.
Square Enix has previously shown trailers for a next generation MMORPG engine, without actually announcing a final product based around the engine. It's unclear if the FFXI sequel is going to be the game to use the new engine, or if Square Enix has another title in development.
The "next generation engine" they talk about is the one that Square presented during the E3 2005, which was nothing more than a flyby around that place you can see in those screenshots. It was for them just a test for the XBOX360 hardware, so it's not sure if those art assets will be used or not, or if they'll even reuse that engine.
That a new mmorpg was in development based on their main franchise was already known as Square hinted about this possibility in many interviews. It probably became a stronger need as they see FFXI subscribers slowly decreasing and the 360 version deluding and not taking off as expected. I'd say that the game is crippled more by awful game design on certain aspects than the real need for "new", but if nothing has changed significantly along these years then it means that Square "doesn't get it".
So this news about the sequel is nowhere surprising, but still disappointing. Mmorpgs sequels are DUMB. But I'm writing about this because what is interesting is the possible transition.
Some players on the forums are already complaining since the development of a sequel means that their world of choice will be made obsolete soon, and all their invesment will lose value as the "new" will be hyped. I wonder if Square will be smart and handle the transition in a new way, or if they'll be dumb and just repeat the mistakes of every other mmorpg sequels.
I think I just felt a hint of existential anguish.
What am I doing?! I've had this game for two years and my highest level is 42. I have yet to experience CoP or Zilart missions, Sky or Sea, HNMs or Dynamis!
And soon, it will all be obsolete!
Why am I not playing now!? My mortality is apparent and the end is nigh! Repent, repent!
/panic
My idea is that if you really want to develop a "sequel" then you need an "exit strategy". What I mean is that the sequel should really replace the previous title and not try to co-exist as SOE tried to do with the EverQuest. You may think that is much more convenient from the commercial point of view to keep two worlds alive till they are both profitable (and the experience also taught us that sequels still have a very hard time to affirm themselves over their elders. This is valid for EQ as it is for Counter-Strike) but I have a different way to see at this scenario.
The idea is to create a real sense of progression between two titles, so that the players won't be encouraged to try to keep a foot in both, but instead move to the new game with a strong motivation and bond with the game world and their characters. The risk with a sequel is that when a player is forced to look for something else it's not granted that he'll chose what you are going to offer him. It's more probable that he'll chose a completely different world, or nothing at all, to never return again.
When you encourage your community to move, you risk to lose them as customers.
This is why instead of a lax policy that aims to keep both worlds active, I believe it would be a better strategy to plan a smooth, deliberate transition. With strong incentives so that the players get even more attached to their character and presence in the world. Want to make a mmorpg sequel? Okay, then have the balls to really develop a replacement and advance the world. Moving your whole playerbase over.
Keep the "elder" game alive for a year or two. Develop the new one as a "remake" set in the exact same game world and locations. You can create a completely new system, but the goal should be about porting over at least 70% of so of the content of the previous game into the new one, with the remaining 30% being brand new. The new world should be familiar and new at the same time and I believe that the proportion I'm suggesting could be a good compromise. Porting the old content would be about reevaluating all the content in the old game to only select the best, and then polish and adjust it to the new standards. It would be interesting for all players to experience the content for the first time or even what is already familiar to then to discover what changed.
The goal would be about porting the characters directly to the new world (maybe set slightly in the future to excuse some compelling twists in the plot and the aspect of the world), offering them even an incentive to accept the transition. No need to reissue billing infos or resubscribe. Maybe even a refund of $20 if you move from the previous game to the new over the cost of the box, so that you would pay for about the same the price of an expansion to have your characters move to a brand new game, without losing progress and with still the possibility to access the large majority of the content that you could expect in the previous game (due to the port of content).
This is how I think you can create a strong bond between the game world and your community. The sense of progression would be lead by the content ported over, the slight progression in the timeline, the new content and continuation to the events to discover, along with the possibility to not lose your own progress and continue seamlessly with the character that you played for so many hours.
Instead of feeling that sense of loss because the world that you love for so long is being made obsolete and replaced with something that you feel distant, your character would become your tie and bond with that world. A way to reaffirm your presence and participation. An incentive to continue on that incredible journey instead of that sense of loss that would encourage you to look for something entirely different.
So progression and persistence could become a strong motivation to be part of that world, to renew the bond.
In short:
- 70% of old content ported and revised. To let the players continue to experience the content that they still didn't see and preserve a sense of familiarity. Along with a strong sense of progression and discovery (new content, timeline advancement, new plot twists and slight changes around the world to discover)
- Possibility to port (copy) old characters. Again to create a bond with the game and not lose any of your progression on your character. Nor your "identity" and feeling of "belonging".
- Semi seamless transition. Install the new game, log in with your old account, insert the keycode and select "upgrade" to have your characters automatically ported. The monthly fee is the same you continued to pay, no changes needed.
- Single monthly fee to access both worlds. For the one/two years that the "elder" game is kept online a player with an "upgraded" account can still log in the old version to play with friends. Since the characters data is ported to the new game as the account is upgraded, all the progress made in the old world past that point will be likely lost. This will be compensated through a form of "currency" to which you can convert/recash your progress (loot, money and exp, for example) and that can be transfered to the new game. (recycle exp/money/loot gained in the old game by converting them into "currency" -> transfer currency between the two games -> convert currency into progression in the new game)
- Concrete incentives for the transition. $20 refunded on the price of the full new game if you use the key code as an "upgrade" instead of creating a brand new account.
This, I think, could be a recipe to make a successful "sequel" that isn't dumb and that would retain the former community without worriesome losses, while also attracting many new players.
Sadly I don't even remotely hope that these ideas will be ever used.
Submitted by Abalieno on May 2, 2006 - 19:23.
Now that I'm pissed off, let me backfire.
I had archived (when I still didn't have reasons to flame the game) a link to a Gamespot review of FFXI on the XBOX360 to comment later on. It fits prefectly the momentum:
Preposterously long installation period, plus layers of unnecessary inconvenience; virtually nothing done to enhance the experience for the xbox 360; slowly paced action and exploration caters almost exclusively to the hardcore; tough-to-swallow monthly fees required.
That's a quite good beginning, isn't it?
Let me quote more:
There's something to be said for a game that can stand the test of time. Final Fantasy XI Online dates back to 2002, when it was originally released in Japan. Clearly inspired by the influential massively multiplayer PC game EverQuest, FFXI infused the online role-playing formula with the distinctive look and feel of Square Enix's hugely popular franchise. The game naturally attracted thousands of players, many of whom stuck with FFXI over the long haul, since it featured a deep character class system and a huge, evolving world to explore. However, it's simply impossible to look at FFXI for the Xbox 360 in the same way as the previously released PC and PlayStation 2 versions. Paradoxically, that's because this latest translation of the game is essentially no different than the others. It makes no concessions whatsoever to take advantage of the Xbox 360, and it practically goes out of its way to inconvenience and alienate new players. If you're addicted to FFXI already, now you can play it in HD on the Xbox 360 if you feel like buying another copy. But if you've avoided the game up until now, you'd best keep that up.
The game's sprawling environments and initially slow-paced combat makes the underlying action feel like a chore even early on.
Just beginning play for the very first time literally takes close to three hours, from the hour it takes just to install the game to your Xbox 360 hard drive (the game gobbles up more than a third of the total amount of free space on that thing), to the hour it takes to update the game files once you connect, to the hour it takes to enter about half a dozen registration codes and, finally, spending a few minutes to create your character. Like other versions of FFXI, this game is unfortunately saddled within Square Enix's PlayOnline viewer, a shell that provides you with a free e-mail address and some other completely unnecessary services. It must be an inextricable part of the game, but all it does here is make it more difficult for you to jump into a session of FFXI.
Once you're in the game, you'd better get comfortable, because the slow pacing means you'll have little to show for your time spent unless you play for at least several hours at a time. You'll also find it's almost impossible to make progress after a while unless you join a well-coordinated group of players. And after you manage to find an adequate group and start slowly grinding your way toward your next level, killing monster after monster, you'll naturally pressure each other to keep playing. In the past few years, online role-playing games have evolved to cater to more types of players, by doing a better job of accommodating people with less time on their hands or those who prefer the option to play solo. Such games as World of Warcraft and City of Heroes have attempted to become less restrictive, easier to get into, better looking, and simply more fun than their predecessors. By comparison, a game like FFXI feels like work, not play. No wonder the game's character classes are called jobs.
Another issue worth mentioning is that, for better or worse, FFXI throws all kinds of different players into the mix. That means you'll run into Japanese players running the PS2 version of the game, American players running the PC version of the game, and so on. Most of them have probably been at it for months already, so don't expect much sympathy as you try to learn the ropes. Don't expect the game to do a good job of teaching you the ropes, either. The manual spends about as much time explaining the registration process as it does telling you how to play, and the game itself pretty much drops you into the world without any instruction. At least the PlayOnline service itself offers some advice, though in FFXI, you'll have to learn most everything the hard way...or hope that an experienced player is kind enough to walk you through some of the finer points of etiquette, grouping, combat, macros, travel, and so on. Prepare for a frustrating uphill battle just trying to get your bearings in Vana'diel.
You can still look forward to some decent character graphics and environments, but this game looks seriously below par, and rough edges like an inexplicably uneven frame rate and distant objects suddenly popping up on the horizon hurt it further.
While each of these expansion packs add substantial amounts of content, none of them are likely to even come into play until you've already invested dozens of hours in the game. So while FFXI has grown over time, it hasn't really evolved. One of these expansion packs might have done something about the interface or the graphics, for example.
Whatever mystique there was surrounding FFXI is gone now, and what's left is a great, big game that's almost intolerably cumbersome. If you're very brave, masochistic, or stubborn, you might find some rewarding experiences in FFXI. But chances are good that you won't. Considering this is the first time the Final Fantasy series has appeared on the Xbox, it's hard not to feel sorely disappointed by the slapdash job done in clumsily pushing this game onto the 360.
That's what I define a good review. Even if here I collected the gripes, these are good gripes, whether you like the game or not. The point is that you can like it. But IN SPITE of these problems, and not because they do not exist. These are problems that existed since the very beginning and that affected just everyone. Square did very little to address them and the game remained essentially the same without even trying to improve.
I believe FFXI is a wonderful game. One of the best mmorpgs, sitting close to WoW. Even better on certain aspects. But the fundamental point is that the game is CRIPPLED
by absurd problems that could be extemely trivial to address. This is why the lowest common denominator is Square's masochism in those choices that cut the legs of this game and, as the review says, alienate possible players.
Some of the common gripes have good reasons behind and I can even defend them. Compromises that have a foundation. For example the "worldpass" mechanic (you cannot create a character on a server of your choice) was a "lesser evil" that pissed of every single player. But that was still able to effectively achieve the miracle of balanced servers. See what is happening to Blizzard and you'll understand why this choice wasn't so terrible.
The same for the decision to unify the interface and technology between the different hardware platforms, or the decision to have global servers to cut the maintenance/administration costs while striving for a good ideal. There were good ideas behind, good principles. Even innovation and the desire to try something different. Something to strive for.
But beside those valid points, there were also other, fundamental flaws without good reasons to support them. From the decision to not allow the game to run in a window or deleting not only the characters, but even whole accounts after a period of inactivity, to the very little work on the game client to take advantage a bit more of the different platforms.
It wouldn't have been too hard to code a better mouse support to improve the controls on the PC.
That review lists and explains clearly most the perceived major problems at the high level. It is interesting to notice that the great majority of them aren't even directly related to the game.
The issues of course don't end there. Even the game has serious accessibility and design problems and it's again interesting to observe that it was fairly successful in spite of them. It's a game with a huge potential, high production value and execution, but that suffers from very simple problems that are evident to everyone but Square (and here there's obviously the cultural gap that hinders a good communication between the comunity and the japanese devs). It could have been much, much, much more successful than how it is now but it is again grounded by those basic flaws. As I wrote on Q23: "I hate the retard, masochist parts of the game, not all of it".
FFXI is a game I always wanted to love but that has remained really hard to approach for me. I'm sure I'm part of a large majority in this.
It's fundamental for every mmorpg to remain flexible, evolve and adapt. FFXI, while remaining one of the best game worlds to date, performs very poorly with these three.
Submitted by Abalieno on May 2, 2006 - 16:37.
It seems I have no luck buying european expansions for mmorpgs. And SquareEnix continues to have a passion for masochism.
This morning I received the latest expansion box for FFXI. This time it comes as just a dvd box. I always like to find manuals and give them a read while offline, I've already commented as it would be a good idea to start giving the retail boxes more value as we move to the online distribution. Not through lame items in the game, but with some content in the form of good manuals, atlas and so on. Something you wouldn't find in the digital download and something that would appropriate for a physical box, like something you can read offline.
Well, this dvd box has two DVDs inside and a sticker with the registration code. Nothing else. Not a single piece of paper, not even install instruction. I wish I could have got a digital download version, but it seems it is too smart for them. So I can only buy a retail box that is essentially empty.
I've seen a discussion complaining about the lack of transparence on the monthly fee if you buy the game for the XBOX360. Well, the expansion box for the PC version I bought doesn't tell you anything. There's "online" written in the title, obviously, but no mention that it is an online game, nor that it is an expansion pack. It doesn't say anywhere that the basic FFXI is required to play. On the back of the box there are five screenshots and the system requirements. Nothing else. It doesn't say anywhere that it requires FFXI, nor that it is an expansion pack, nor that it requires a monthly fee. What you can see is the title logo and the "PlayOnline" logo.
I said there are two DVDs in the box. Well, one is for the manual and nothing else. I've looked at this manual, it's a pathetic five pages pdf. Let me repeat: a WHOLE DVD used to contain a five page pdf. If this isn't retareded I don't know what could.
So I insert the other "game" DVD to install the expansion... and I cannot. It tells me that Final Fantasy XI is not installed. The problem is that I am using the american version, and it seems that I cannot install the english european version I bought over the english american version of the game.
No, I'm not that stupid. The past expansions WERE compatible. I guess this isn't anymore the case. Right now the billing system is down for maintenance so I cannot say if the key-code works, at least. I'm quite sure it won't. Anyway, I won't be able to install the files, even though they are identic to the version I have.
As the billing system comes back up I won't go there to register the expansion, but to cancel my subscription for good. I wish I could send them a FUCK YOU in big, fluorescent letters. I won't touch another SquareEnix online game with a long pole. It could even be the Jesus of mmorpgs.
EDIT:
To begin with, I was owned (they rebill the first of the month, one day late to cancel).
While I was waiting for the billing system to come back up, I was able to install the expansion by creating dummy registry keys and let the game believe it is the european version. This worked smoothly and I was able to verify, patch and run the game without a hitch. The client works with all the expansion enabled.
Now the problem is that it doesn't fucking accept the european key code. Let me rephrase. I have a working client with all the expansion enabled, but now I cannot activate it because it doesn't accept a fucking key code. What is the purpose of this, I really don't know. Square self-publishes and distributes, so they don't even have a good reason to protect the local market. Why do they care where I buy the expansion? They have global servers no matter where you live and a multi platform game, but you still cannot use a fucking key code from a different country. The billing system physically resides in the smae machine, it is in Japan, and it still discriminates over a key code for no apparent reason. I bought the game legitimately, but this is still not enough to let me play the game.
My account was created when the game launched in the US. I don't want to spend 60$ just for the shipment plus taxes and there is no fucking way to buy a gooddamn keycode online because it seems we are still in the prehistory of the internet. Or maybe it would be a too good business practice while Square must always do something stupid to fuck up their games. What is fun is that with my username and password I can play on any client version. On PC, PSX2, XBOX360. From Italy, Japan, Australia or USA. But not the fucking key code. It won't work. The key code is the only goodamn thing to be picky.
Fucky you, SquareEnix. I'm done giving you money.
Btw, when shit happened with SOE (see the first link) the problem was promptly acknowledged. I don't think Square will come in my help this time. "Customer care", of course.
P.S.
To complete the fun: a gaming magazine in Italy received a review copy of the expansion from Square. Obviously european. Since this expansion has only high-level content it's necessary that you enable it on an account with an high level character. But their only account with which they originally played is american since the european version was published only one year after.
They weren't able to play the game and Square will do without its review. Win-win.
Submitted by Abalieno on April 18, 2006 - 01:18.
The version update arrived along with the patch notes but the stuff specific to the expansion pack won't be enabled for another couple of days (when the exp will hit the shops).
I've already loosely commented what is coming to the game and for the occasion I've reactivated my subscription (and my character was still there after these six months). As already noted not all the features are enabled right away (like the chocobo breeding and circuit) but will be added with the next updates as Enix always did with every expansion (the storyline progresses along the months with new missions, till the cycle is complete and the new exp pack arrives).
The patch notes have some interesting tidbits like NPCs taken as prisoners during the mobs raids and that you have to rescue if you want to have their services back ("Besieged" is the new gameplay mode that creates a conquest system between the characters and beastmen. If the beasmen become too strong they leave their zone and go to charge directly the city, and the players have the duty, all together, to defend it):
(from "Besieged" detailed description)
After Besieged is over, some NPCs in Al Zahbi are taken to the enemy base as prisoners. These NPCs are chosen randomly, and will disappear from town when they are captured. Depending on the NPCs captured, you may lose the ability to purchase goods at certain shops or use the auction house. You can free a captive by acquiring and using the key to their prison.
Plus some sort of communal "party room" that you can rent for obscure purposes:
A new feature called the "Kokba Hostel" has been added. You can reserve the facility for a certain amount of time to use for private functions. Players are provided with a variety of temporary party items and food upon entering the hostel. Attendants and a special hostel chat channel also come with the reservation.
Beside these there are also three fancy diagrams explaning changes to some sort of aggro code. Since I've digged the details I think I can somewhat explain what the fuss is about:
FFXI seems to have issues with claiming mobs. If you are fighting a mob noone around you can attack it if he is not in your party or if you don't break the encounter and call for help. At the same time FFXI is fond of EverQuest and I think you can train the mobs and drag them around to grief noobs. If I remember correctly there was a patch around december to address this problem and this last change was made to address an exploit.
Before this change you could aggro a mob without claiming it (so without locking the encounter), for example with AOE spells. Another party could then claim that mob, locking it, but without aggroing it directly. This would lead to a situation where the guy who initially aggroed the mob couldn't attack it anymore because the other party claimed/locked it but still without getting the aggro. So this guy would finish in a situation where he has a mob pounding on him without any possibility to defend himself since the encounter is locked to the other group.
With the new change this situation cannot happen anymore and the other party can lock/claim the encounter only if it does enough damage to also get aggroed. Basically: before you could lock an encounter without aggroing, now you the "aggro" and "claim/lock" happen together and cannot be separated.
Note for ALL game companies: you should always *explain* the design thoughts and reasons behind the changes, not just objectively *describe* the change.
By looking at the auto-translate new places names and the new region map already in the game for the expansion (which is separated from the standard one) I'm guessing the number of new zones added between 20 and 30 (and not "forty" as some previews claim), which is still rather good if you consider all the efforts in the storylines, cutscenes, (fantastic) soundtracks and brand new gameplay modes. When it comes to "content" and artistic dedication noone is on par with Squaresoft.
To reach the new region you have to take a boat. But to take this boat you need to finish some sort of quest:
A new ship route has been added from Mhaura to Al Zahbi. You must fulfill certain requirements before you can board the ship to Al Zahbi.
Along the same line the three new classes aren't available right away, but they need to be unblocked through quests. Still no clue at which level they are doable and whether they are complicated or not:
The advanced jobs "blue mage," "corsair," and "puppetmaster" are now available. You must clear certain quests in order to acquire the new jobs.
As I can find more details about it, I'll make a post. The total number of classes in the game is now 18.
On the footsteps of "we are all noobs" declarations I have to confess that I've been subscribed for a long time to FFXI. Now try to guess at which level is my character... Well... Level 10. I'm so utterly, hopelessly pathetic.
Now let me say this. I have a new goal in life. Before I'll unsubscribe again my character must reach at least level 15. UBER I SAY! I have to try hard!
And I want one these sooooo much! I really want to see how they are animated in the game:
P.S.
The windower is still broken.
Submitted by Abalieno on March 21, 2006 - 14:05.
The Xbox 360 version of Final Fantasy XI has the best box art I've seen in a long while.
Here's the cover (the colorful version, used for the expansion pack, is also pretty)
Now I'll just wait for a game that truly reproduces the visions of Yoshitaka Amano. That's my gaming nirvana.
The screenshots from the expansion look very good and crisp. I cannot avoid to compare them to Oblivion's bland and generic look.
Submitted by Abalieno on March 12, 2006 - 21:26.
Ugh.. must.. resist.
I cannot understand how regularly every year Square convinces me to buy the latest exp pack, reactivate my account, patch for hours and then only look around for a couple of hours before unsubscribing again. I'm weak and hopeless like that.
But, come on, it's soooo pretty.
There's a new expansion (Treasures of Aht Urhgan) to be released around the end of April and looking truly interesting. But even before the features what really stands out is the graphic. Despite the engine is still exactly the same, it seems that Square artists and animators just keep surpassing their excellence. I love the screenshots I've seen, the new creatures and zones stand out compared to everything I've ever seen in a mmorpg. Square is the new "Origin", they are the only one left that truly "create worlds" with their own consistency and depth. Each of their games is an unique world on its own, fully crafted in every detail and where you can immerse yourself completely. There's an engrossing backstory that ties all the elements together and that is the true heart of the game, not just a generic theme used as an excuse. Noone does this better than them.
Stories, characters, worlds. Where are they in today's mmorpgs? We just chase loot and have bland excuses to move through superficial content.
The features coming with the expansion are quite surprising. There are going to be new zones, monsters and missions that will follow a similar scheme of the content of the two previous expansions (the missions are consecutive adventures used to narrate the story of the game) but in one of these zones there will be a city, Al Zahbi, that will introduce two new gameplay modes: Besiege and Assault.
"Besiege" sounds like a dynamic scenario that could trigger at any time while you are around the city. Basically the monsters will start to attack and swarm the city instead of roaming quietly in the wilderness and it will be your duty and the duty of those caught in the attack to defend the city. If you die you won't lose xp points so the assault shouldn't be a major burden for the players we are surprised into one. The NPCs will defend the city and fight along with you and from the previews I've read it sounds as something really chaotic but also a hell of fun.
In our town, we took on hoards of giant lizard monsters that were out for blood. Think of Besieged as the battle for Helm's Deep in Lord of the Rings. The enemies just keep coming and they don't stop.
"Assault" instead should be like a reversed besiege. You gather a group of players (from three to six) and grab an "assault mission" available in the town and then go to "assault" the lair of the mobs. It's unclear if this will be an instanced zone but from the sound of it I believe these tasks can be taken just by one group and will be unavailabe to others till the group accomplishes it or fails. There's a screenshot suggesting that there will be impassable barriers, and the official description says that the zone will be evacuated of players that don't belong to the group who "tapped" the assault task.
EDIT: The two modes seem also related. From a dev note:
The strength of the beastmen that attack all depend on the players attacking the strongholds. If the players have beaten the beastmen back, their raids on the town will be weaker. The stronger the beastmen in the region, the harder their attacks will be.
Completing assault missions will grant you "assault points" and move your character through mercenary ranks that will probably give you the possibility to get some fancy, unspecified props. I love alternate advancement in mmorpgs when it lets you explore different parts of the game world and different gameplay. Both the Besiege and Assault sound absolutely fun and interesting. I wish other games would also try to add some new gameplay with the expansions instead of just bigger mobs and fatter loot. Can't you see how it is awfully boring to be stuck in just the exact same, redundant gameplay as always? What are bringing to the table the new expansions of WoW, DAoC, EverQuest if not just more instances, mobs, levels and zones?
At least here we have a variation, an exploration of other possibilities to enrich the experience.
But the assault and besiege models aren't the only interesting features in the work. The expansion will also intruduce three new classes: the "Blue Mage" who will mimic the attacks of the monsters, the "Corsair" who will be able to shoot at range with a gun and "elaborate luck-based abilities to alter the stakes of battle" (it should use a deck of cards randomly drawn) and a the recently revealed "Puppetmaster" who has a puppet following him around and will probably use it to deliver the attacks (that's all I was able to find out).
And Chocobos! Yes, I know they are already in the game, but with the expansion you'll be able to raise your own chocobo!
Not only, you'll also be able to make it breed with other players chocobo to generate new ones, hinting (I hope!) the possibility to customize them and develop sepecific traits. Also because the most awesome features is what comes next: The chocobo circuit! You'll be able to ride your chocobo in a race against other players and, maybe, win prizes. How awesome is that?
The last new feature in the expansion is the Coliseum, it is still in the dark but taken directly from the tradition of the series. It is unclear if it will involve directly the players or if you'll only be able to bet on monsters vs monsters encounters but it's possible that Square will continue to add more content after even this part is released.
It's interesting to notice that all this new content won't be available right away but it will be staggered along the bi-monthly content patches. So all the features will progressively dribble in the game as it already happened with the story-missions in the previous expansions, distributed along the year till the possible next expansion.
While looking around I've also read the notes of the February patch. Along with the new quests and content I noticed something that I would gladly see in DAoC or WoW:
In a previous update, damage taken during Conflict (PvP) by melee, ranged, and magic attacks was adjusted to an amount relatively lower than damage taken in regular battles with monsters.
Anyway, what really picked my interest about the expansion is the graphic that is truly amazing and without the need to use any new technology, which again demonstrates that tech is not art and that an engine is never a true limit for anything. Along with a feature list that for the first time isn't limited to just "more of the same", but that truly tries to explore some new possibilities and add to the variety of the game instead of drying it.
Maybe Brad McQuaid was right. Maybe it's true that the fresh air into the genre will come from the evolution of the consolidated models we have now. What I know is that I like when these game introduces new possibilities and content that don't just overlap with something else.
Vana'diel is easily the most interesting, original and detailed world between those I've experienced in this genre, it's a pity that there are some structural design flaw that compromise its quality and undermine its accessibility.
Submitted by Abalieno on September 17, 2005 - 07:09.
I always try to follow this mmorpg because I consider it one of the best, despite Square then breaks it on a good number of core features. One of those games that I classify under the "what if?" category. Potentially awesome games that could reach and expand on their success but that are then only sinking because of very bad decisions and inappropriate development.
In particular I was curious about the announce of the next expansion because it would have given me more precise hints about what Square wants to do with this game world. Everyone knew already the title ("Treasures of Aht Urhgan"), that it was going to be announced at the Tokyo Game Show and even a few guesses about a possible new class, the blue mage. All three were correct. And I'm not rejoicing. In fact I'm rather deluded. As I said, I believe in the potential of a game and it's disappointing see the game moving in a direction that I really don't find interesting or useful for the game. I was expecting (hoping for, actually) something interesting, some new ideas and developments, the developers becoming more self-conscious of the actual problems and needs of the game, addressing them properly. Instead we have an expansion that pretty much repeats the same, consolidated pattern that I don't really see leading anywhere noteworthy. We have more zones, new missions and one new class that the game doesn't really need considering its already critical LFG problems. More of the same without anything really important and relevant for the health of the game both in the short and long term.
Beside these few confirmations of suspects we already had, I find more interesting an interview that was published on a german website, which I believe complements the other informations:
- How many users Worldwide are playing FFXI now?
There are over 500,000 subscribers world wide. Also the number of active FINAL FANTASY XI (FFXI) characters total over 1.6 million, so on average, each player has 3 characters.
The subscription numbers are one of the most quick and direct ways to figure out the health of a mmorpg and that line pretty much confirms the same situation we had in March, which is already surprising considering that the game isn't really moving from where it is and not trying to get more people interested. What is to underline here is the good retention of old players.
In fact I believe this data plays a strong role on the plans Square has about the game:
- The FFXI Graphical Engine is now 3 years old. Will you update the engine for PC users after the release of Xbox360?
We will keep working hard to improve and expand the game’s quality as much as possible, but we’re very careful to choose what to do regarding upgrading at the same time, as this might affect our development speed sometimes. Until now, we’ve improved our engine to accept wide-screen displays, 3D display function, options for upper spec PCs on the Windows version. But currently we do not have any plans to use next-generation technologies which may require re-creating all graphic data. If we chose to do this with FFXI, it would take a few years to complete upgrading. So we’ve decided to use our development powers to create a new, next-generation MMORPG. Until then, we will keep having version-updates and expansion packs for FFXI as we’ve always done.
Have you ever considered about doing this constantly and progressively? The reiterative development is what could make online worlds stronger.
If you usually follow what I write, you may know how much I hate the announce of new mmorpgs to "replace" old and obsolete game worlds. I always consider this the biggest failure possible and I just refuse the hype for a "sequel" as something good. It's unacceptable how these game worlds are made to be disposable and get wasted as junk. I just cannot and will never accept this. It's another game world sinking because of horrible marketing and development decisions and a huge potential once again choked.
I said I believe the data about the subscription numbers plays a role. In fact we have probably another expansion aimed to offer "more of the same" to that mid-to-high level players that are already subscribed. It's just my personal estimation but I believe no more than a 10% of the subscribers has seen more than half of the previous expansion and I wouldn't be surprised if the actual percent is way below that one. That's my point of view. Maybe it's good to try to retain those subscribers that keep the game active but this is also an implicit decision to NOT DEVELOP the game. Not appeal to new players, not grow it, not believe on the project and invest on it if not to confirm the consolidated pattern to rinse and repeat (exploit) till it's commercially viable. And till the game is completely "dry" (draining life as from a set "stock") and has nothing anymore to offer, compared with a game world that flourishes over time.
Maybe I'm just a silly idiot but I believe that these game worlds have their own dignity and a potential to respect. I refuse to consider them as disposable and I strongly believe that these stupid "life cycles" are a deliberate choice of a blind development more than an unavoidable destiny. Game worlds should never be replaced and they can grow along with the technology and their commercial success (instead of relocationg the resources elsewhere). This choice to build them with defined lifecycles is just an heritage of an obsolete attitude coming from single player games. It works but it doesn't really tap and develop the potential of online worlds.
But who cares? This is once again just a subjective point of view without any concrete foundation. And I'm once again ranting against the wind mills.
Beside this, it's interesting their position on RMT and gill sellers:
- Do you think SE will ever be able to stop Gil, Item and Account Seller and Buyer? Do you think it’ll be possible to stop them or will you go the way like Sony EQ2?
We don’t think it’s illegal to trade virtual data when there’re buyers and sellers. However, we think the problem is that there’re many criminal acts happening in the real world during those transactions. Also, FFXI is not created based on real money trading (RMT), thus, we believe this will make our title less enjoyable. This is why we forbid RMT with FFXI by user agreement. It will be easy to eliminate RMT completely when we remove economics from the game, meaning removing trade functions and making all items non-tradable. But this will also remove amusement from the game itself. As SOE has done with EverQuest II, there is a way to create a game considering trading virtual currency or items with real money. However, FFXI chooses a different way. Even by choosing different ways, we believe both EverQuest II and FFXI have the same purpose of protecting users from crimes in the real world such as fraud or scamming.
And a final note about the crazy backbone of the game. I suggest them to buy a Lum and spare on those resources:
- What kind of Servers are you using in background?
Each FFXI world has about 20 multi-core processor front-end machines (Solaris OS). As we now have 32 live worlds, there’re totally over 640 servers. In addition to those servers, there’re huge backend servers including DB servers, file servers, and log servers as well as billing servers, PlayOnline type servers, and monitoring facilities, using large-scaled data centre.
Oh, and it's also sort of fun how the Xbox 360 seems to not be able to handle this four years old game that still runs okay on a Playstation 2 and on PCs:
Visually, Final Fantasy XI seems to be gradually making itself home on the 360. The characters look good; the environments the players moved through were predominantly dry, rocky canyons, flowering cacti, and stretches of deserted beach that the chocobos trotted through. One thing we did notice, though, was that the game's frame rate took a noticeable, large dip when there was a lot of onscreen action. For example, certain areas on the Buburimu Peninsula blow up dust storms that drift across the arid landscape. These dust storms, in conjunction with a number of enemies spawning or popping into view, made matters sluggish during certain points in the gameplay. The draw distance didn't seem to otherwise get in the way of matters too much, though, and seemed to occur at a reasonable distance out from the characters.
I mirrored the video if you need it. It's not really that good, even Promathia's video was more interesting.
Submitted by Abalieno on August 18, 2005 - 12:20.
This sort of guide explains how to archive and store safely the patches for FFXI so that you don't have to download and reinstall 700+ Mb of patches in the case you have to format the hard disk. If you are on dial-up (ISDN, in my case) you know how *painful* this could be.
Now FFXI has already an horrible installation. Yes, the game is huge and has a lot of content but if we consider the low resolution textures and the reused assets there's really no justification for an installation that arrives at 6.75 Gigabytes. It's just insane. I'm not sure about the causes but my suspect is that it's a raw, direct port of the PSX2 version, so that they can keep updating both client without double work. It seems that the PC version is more like an emulator that parses the data file and makes them work as they are on the console. The result is that we have this insane installation as the consequence of a data format that isn't really appropriate for the PC.
A confirmation of my suspects came after I (successfully) tried to save and archive the patches. I reinstalled the game recently, I have the original american version with Zilart included, plus Chains of Promatia CDs. So I had the game client updated to September of the last year, when CoP was released. Basically about a year of patches to download and apply. Which translates to about 3500 files for a grand total of 700+ Mb to downlad again and install.
The surprise was when (after more than eight hours of download) I finally zipped those files to burn them on CD once for all. With Winzip set on "normal" compression the final archive was barely above 300Mb.
Now my question: why Square doesn't send these damn patches compressed and then expand the files when they are already on the PC? You know, it would "just" hugely impact the server load when a new patch is released and it would be a positive improvement for all those players that aren't on broadband and that do not like to spend hours waiting the new patch to download. In particular when for each update there's the need to rescan all the files. A process that takes alone more than *30 minutes* on a Ultra-ATA hard disk.
I guess this comes along the other inexplicable, annoying quirks of the game I listed at the end of another article.
Beside these "pointless" disquisitions. I have a rather simple way to save those patches so that you don't have to redownload them in the case you need to reinstall the game. Unfortunately, this is possible only if you "plan ahead" to build the archive since you cannot save the files after the client is patched successfully. So if you want to save those files you need to restart from a clean installation and go through the upgrade process at least once (or save only the most recent patches that will be released in the upcoming months).
If you do this (or will do when you'll have to reformat/reinstall), remember to install the original game, Zilart and CoP. I underline this because the three installations don't start automatically and if you leave an expansion out you'll have to redo most of the patching. So install everything in the proper order, launch PlayOnline and the update to the game. At this point the client will check all the files one by one (the 30+ minutes scan) and then start to download those that changed (at this moment, with all the expansion installed from scratch, it's about the 3500 files I pointed above).
Those files will be stored in the game directory before they will be actually installed. In order to catch and save them you have to *stop* the updating process before the installation of the files happens. So I suggest to stop the update when only 10 or so files are left to download. When you reach this point and PlayOnline is halted, you should go on Windows start menu -> Search -> For Files and Folders. Here you select "all files and folders", then in the "look in" field you select the directory where you installed the game and in the name field you insert *.tmp2 which is the extension of the files downloaded before they are installed. And press "search". If you followed the instructions you'll get an endless list of .tmp2 files. You go to the "edit" menu, press "select all" and then right click on the files. If you have Winzip you'll have an option saying "Add to Zip". You select it, give a name to the archive you want and, most importantly, select the "save full path info" checkbox. And press "add".
The archive will be built and once done you can burn it on CD or put it wherever you want.
When you'll have to reinstall the game you'll just need to decompress the archive in the game directory (pay attention so that the files go in the right place) and launch the update from PlayOnline. After the scan is over the client will see that the files are already available and will install them directly without redownloading them. Which is exactly the goal of this guide.
I didn't test directly if it's possible but I believe you can then work with Winzip to update the archive with the latest files when a new patch is released. So that you can keep just one archive instead of one for each different patch released.
I guess I could upload the archive on the site and make it public as I do with WoW patches, but for now I think I'll avoid the option.
P.S.
I lost the install CD 2 and 3 despite I usually keep care and store safely my games. Thanks to eMule that wasn't a big problem. Speaking about the utility of P2P.
Submitted by Abalieno on August 10, 2005 - 10:27.
Final Fantasy XI is still fascinating and unique on many different levels despite some radical flaws that some players considered almost show stopping. One of these aspects is the unique attempt to build one community as an hybrid of different cultures. Mixing together japanese, american and european players. Something that was harshly criticized by many players and that I always praised as a valuable goal to pursue, despite the difficulties.
I wish I could find a very old thread on Grimwell where I discussed the merits of the approach while everyone else was trying to demonstrate me that it wasn't a laudable attempt to chase an utopia but just a solution of convenience to spare the money and cut the risks by supporting just one centralized server farm.
(EDIT- found. See in particular Tobold's comment on the last page)
Anyway, this is a post on FoH's boards expressing an unusual point of view that I read and found worth archiving:
When I started FFXI it was right on the NA release, I'd come off playing EQ for a couple years and I had a lot of free time on my hands. I quickly outstripped all the other NA players on the server. There wasn't any online sites with quests, at least in any language I could read, and there wasn't anyone at my level that I could group with that wasn't Japanese. But it was okay. The Japanese players, many who had been playing for almost a year, were very helpful, very friendly and when we couldn't understand each other we usually got things figured out anyway. After a lot of bad experiences and few good ones in EQ I'd decided to keep a list of people in FFXI that had significantly helped me out, and in a game where monsters are more powerful than you and soloing is unheard of, this happened a lot. I filled up a sheet of paper in the first couple months of play, and many of them didn't know much more english than "yes", "no" and "ok."
Sadly the days of people jumping off their chocobo because they see a low level playing with a non-Japanese name struggling to travel through a high level zone are over. Most of the Japanese players are still going to be polite and the vast majority who are still playing also speak English, but after experiencing NA players for the last year and a half they've taken to saying "no thank you" too. I know who I'd rather be playing with.
What is sad about the whole issue is how some of the awful mechanics of the game put the two communities one against the other. I believe that the divergencies came mostly as consequences of competitive PvE systems that just weren't appropriate for the original goal of the game. I'm speaking in particular of the camping of the NM (Notorious Monsters). I don't know directly the system but from what I heard different parties gather up around the spawn points and need to "tag" the monster before everyone else. This simple, awful (unfun) mechanic brought to many conflicts between the two communities, Especially considering how the system was perceived as unfair toward NA players. Being the servers in Japan, the japanese players could benefit of a faster reaction and so a sensible advantage over those playing from another continent.
It's obvious how, when the cohabitation is already shaky, every little detail can break things beyond repair. In particular when a system is perceived as a "cheat" favoring the opposite faction. That's the principle that can start a collision which can easily deteriorate from that point. It builds factions and hostility. It builds differences because the "other" is perceived as a stranger that is violating a competitive space.
After I read that post from FoH boards, I felt the curiosity to check again what was going on in the game and I was positively surprised when I skimmed through these recent fixes (1 August) to find a radical change that all the players were waiting from more than two years and that is now quickly dismissed in a couple of lines:
- Players will no longer be able to use spells or abilities to claim a monster as soon as it appears.
If players attempt to use spells or abilities to claim a monster before a set amount of time has passed since it appeared, they will not be able to use those spells etc. again for a certain duration.
Which means, explained through the words of a player:
The way I see it, this update fixes the JP latency advantage. As stated by an earlier poster, the JP advantage is *very* small. It is less than human reaction time. So that means, by the time a JP player would be reacting to a HNM on their screen, its already appeared on a NA player's screen as well. Of course, this gives a JP player a huge advantage when spamming a macro, or using a turbo controller to spam voke. In that case, the JP player doesn't need to react to the HNM appearing in order to claim it. This being one of the reasons why King Behemoth is one of the most JP-dominated HNMs across all servers. KB's spawn is nothing but a spam-fest. The only other monster in the area is a lone Thunder Elemental. Much different camp than Fafhogg or Aspidochelone, which require a player to target the HNM through a field of other monsters to get claim.
So, the latency advantage give JP player's a headstart in spamming matches. but thanks to the new update, you can't spam anymore. A JP player can spam voke all window long, but then KB will pop, the JP will provoke, and.... oops! Nothing happens because he voked to early, and now his voke is disabled for a little while. (definately longer than it'll take for KB to get claimed by someone else) Since spamming doesn't work anymore, HNM camps will now be about which player has the best reflexes, not about who lives closest to the server or who can best ignore the pain of jamming the enter key for half an hour.
See? We are back at considering the development time and the absolute necessity to spend time in the community instead of being isolated from it. This was one huge flaw of the game that was almost trivial to fix. But the devs of this game are between those more out of touch with the actual situation of the game. This fix comes two years too late. Yes, the gameplay will improve considerably but it will be almost impossible to heal that wound that split the two communities apart and made them hostile (or that at least had a role, if you don't share my simplified point of view on the cause of the hostility).
The other positive trait I wanted to point out is between those I already reported (in the edit). The players can now have access to personal henchmen that can be considered as "pets". Not only they are supposed to help when the player cannot find a decent group, along with the modifications to the experience points from easy mobs (FFXI has huge LFG problems considering that it's basically impossible to solo), but they became an extremely interesting feature on their own, even outside their specific purpose in the gameplay.
The fun of reasearching their (undocumented) complex behaviour and the possibilities of customizations brought to one of the most entertaining threads I've ever read. 460 posts (at this moment) progressively discovering the depth of the system and its possibilities. An investigation so fun (even to read) that quickly replaced the actual purpose of the henchmen to become one fun toy on its own as the new focus of the gameplay.
As a result, this is impressive. Squaresoft added once again an unique feature with an unparalleled depth and detail. Carefully planned to have different facets to discover and enjoy instead of becoming trivialized into a simplified and functional system without anything else to offer.
And that's the "magic" of this company. They don't plan their games just as functional systems that do their work and nothing else. Instead they add this depth and care for the personality, so that each little story and character presented has its own special role and flavor. Its own quirks to discover on multiple levels. This is what crafts a type of roleplay that makes the game so rich and unique compared to every other mmorpg out there. That's also when a game can impose its originality and break the cliches of a genre without suffering from this estrangement from the common places.
All this brings to a game that you cannot easily trade with something else. When you leave FFXI you know that you won't be able to find the same flavor and feelings somewhere else. This is why I felt always fascinated by this game in an unique way. But at the same time I was never able to accept its radical problems that just killed the experience for me. From the horrible patch process that doesn't allow you to store the patches (and an insane install above 6Gb as result of an horrible port of the data files), the ridiculous billing system, the policy to delete the characters and account after three months of inactivity and the impossibility to play in a window without recurring to hacks. That's already more than enough without even counting the actual game and the flaws of its design (in particular the insane group requirements).
FFXI is one game part of that "if only" group. It could be the best mmorpg out there... if only.
Submitted by Abalieno on July 28, 2005 - 00:09.
I'm reading too much into this?:
And now it's time for the main event--"Azimuth Circle"!
Azimuth Circle has rather complex rules, so I'll have to drill you beforehand, kupo. First off, the game can only be played in pairs--everyone must be in a party of two. So you must begin by searching for a partner. Coupling with a good friend would be ideal, of course. But even if you aren't exactly the most popular master...no problem! Just ask around, kupo!
End game--the moogle will give you beautiful swimwear to beat the heat as a reward for your efforts! Nothing like going for a dip in the ocean in this scorching weather, kupo!
Anyway, I hope you and your partner become good friends while playing. Maybe you can even invite them to join you again later wearing the rewards you gained from playing. I wonder what games you could play with them then...haw haw... *cough* ... *wheez*...!
Well, these sort of events are interesting and I believe a positive way to develop a game outside the psychotic focus on more powerful loot to acquire. This is what transforms a dull, repetitive game into something nearer to a Virtual World. This is also how you relieve directly the stress for more mudflation.
There are better ways to spend constructively the time of the developers. This is one, even if it could seem the exact opposite. It's the game to set the expectations, not the players. If all you offer is about more grind, the players will ask more and more of it. It's a vicious circle that noone should second.
EDIT- The last publish is rather interesting. They are finally tweaking some core points like the experience gained and they are also implementing NPC henchmen to assist parties. The fun part is that they seem persistent and will level along with the player.
Submitted by Abalieno on May 10, 2005 - 22:19.
I didn't expect it this year, but Squaresoft released the fifth detailed report (the second released to the american public) as they did a year ago.
The first thing jumping to the eye is that they removed completely the numbers from the charts. While the main focus of the report of the previous year was to flaunt the great success that the game was having, this year the approach is way more modest and quiet. As if the comeback campaign wasn't enough of a demonstration, it's rather obvious that the numbers of the game do not shine anymore as for the past year. Even FFXI is suffering the release of better games along with a "flat development" that isn't really improving or addressing the problems of the game.
Another confirmation of this trend comes from the second page:
Based on data compiled at the end of March 2005, we conducted research on the main job levels of over 1,550,000 characters belonging to over 500,000 registered users.
To begin with, these 500.000 registered users aren't specified as active. Secondly, from the last news we had in September I was estimating around 600k of active subscriptions or more. 550k confirmed for sure.
So it's now fair to assume that the game is stalling and starting to see a slight decline.
To notice the number of level 1 characters between the total pool of 1.5M, rises from the 34% of the last year to 41% - Mules for the win!
And the dynamics of the power curve:
-3.93% in the 2-10 level range (38.94%)
-6.16% in the 11-20 level range (16.91%)
-1.06% in the 21-30 leve range (8.74%)
+1.33% in the 31-40 level range (6.02%)
+1.20% in the 41-50 level range (5.18%)
+1.86% in the 51-60 level range (7.47%)
+1.70% in the 61-70 level range (7.44%)
+5.33% in the 71-75 level range (9.30%)
Little kids are growing...
The parsed official commentary:
Excluding level 1 storage characters, characters up to level 20 comprise around 55% of the total population. Compared to last year, there has been a 1% increase in the number of level 30 characters, which can be attributed to the effect of level-restricted areas in the Chains of Promathia, and also to players attempting to quest for extra jobs. The number of characters of level 50 and above has increased dramatically to 24% from 15% last year, while characters of level 71 and above have increased by almost 5% to 9% this year.
The detailed power curve is also interesting to compare to the one of other games:
The second one is from World of Warcraft.
Submitted by Abalieno on March 26, 2005 - 05:46.
One of the most awful "features" of Final Fantasy XI is that if you unsubscribe for three months (or something similar, I forgot the details) your characters are gone and even your account is disabled permanently. So if you ever decide to come back you'll need to buy a brand new box+expansions and restart from zero.
Now they are about to launch a comeback campaign. They'll re-enable old and deleted accounts for free (starting from the 14 April) and even restore old, deleted characters on demand.
The details aren't actually so clear but it seems that you have up to 30 days of "free" play with your restored characters, then you'll have to pay the normal fee if you decide to keep playing.
Now I wonder. If Squaresoft actually has all the backups of the characters, why they do not use this directly as a permanent feature? Why they decide to delete characters and account in the first place if they keep backups anyway? Just to be unpopular and prevent old players to come back when they choose so?
Submitted by Abalieno on February 24, 2005 - 03:28.
Can I STOP writing today? (also considering that this site is a fragment of what I write everywhere)
Final Fantasy XI, also known as another painfully slow mmorpg to release relevant changes, has massively patched today.
Just the new Fishing System deserves a page on its own. Squaresoft is starting to do something about the farmers. Not only they began to take actions against them. But now they are finally also addressing the awful mechancs that *produced* that situation. So we have changes to the notorious monsters and this new fishing system that finally looks interesting. Probably superior to the timid attempt in World of Warcraft.
Now you have to actually "fish", reacting to the movement and the stamina of the fish in order to successfully pull it out the water. I guess the default AFK-(macro)-fishing will be a bit harder now. A right step to deliver some more gameplay and address the farming problems.
I also noticed that these patch notes make sense and are more detailed. Maybe Squaresoft is also reconsidering the communication process. Maybe they saw as well the subscriptions numbers sinking.
There's also a new, rather complicated, search system that allows the players to set categorized messages. It doesn't sound so straightforward in how it's integrated in the UI. Probably one of those features forgotten and abandoned by the players in two days.
Submitted by Abalieno on October 2, 2004 - 07:41.
Final Fantasy breaks more records:
The number of characters (currently active registered characters) living in Vana'diel has reached the 1.5 million mark! (As of September 28, 2004.)
The world of FINAL FANTASY XI is now home to more adventurers than ever before, with over 550,000 active players logging on during the same day, and a record 170,000 players logged on simultaneously on September 18.
So:
- 1.5 millions of active characters
- 550.000 unique accounts logging during a day
- 170.000 players online at the same time
This is hard to compare because we are used to the number of subscriptions but I still have to point out that for each character you need to pay one more dollar and the game was at 500k *subscribers* when the population was of 1 million active characters and 140k users logged at the same time.
But there's an even bigger aspect to consider. There are a max of 170.000 users logged into 30 unique servers. This means an *average* of 5.600 users on *each* server.
Simply awesome. And we are probably above 600k subscribers.
Blizzard, remember this when you consider your localized server of 2000 players and terrible off-peaks.
Submitted by Abalieno on September 24, 2004 - 00:56.
Here's how you manage the situation when you know what a mmorpg is:
link
Final Fantasy XI may have a retarded billing system, an horrid interface and a crappy Windows client but the game is rock solid, deep and interesting. Despite the dubious choice of requiring "world pass" to join a specific server they have done a wonderful work to build a strong and vibrant community with no boundaries between the players of different origin and language. It's a mmorpg near to its ideal concept: a community trascending the limits.
Right now the game is being launched in Europe and the success is affecting the servers since the population for each "world" was already beyond 4000 players during peak times. But the European release isn't hindering or messing the plan. Instead it's helping the game to improve on its success:
The commencement of European FINAL FANTASY XI service has increased the overall population during peak times. Though the servers are able to cope with the added load, we have noticed that the peak population at 7:00 (PDT) has increased drastically, with more Japanese and North American players joining the game.
This is why Squaresoft is launching three new worlds, allowing characters to migrate without paying a fee.
The fact of having players, in the same server, from all over the world helped a lot to mantain the community vibrant. As you can read directly from Squaresoft:
FINAL FANTASY XI provides players with a rousing, non-stop 24-hour gameplay environment. As I'm sure you've noticed, you are apt to find the Worlds of FINAL FANTASY XI bustling and active with players, no matter what time you enter the game. This is the result of the FINAL FANTASY XI Global World concept, which has not only melded the PlayStation 2 and Windows PC into a multi-platform environment, but has also successfully bridged continents together while breaking down language barriers between players. Previously, MMORPGs have always had "on" and "off" peak times, which could make finding a fellow adventurer to party or trade with quite difficult. The Global World concept has provided a solution to this issue, and was devised as a means to avoid the depopulation of minor Worlds (servers), which can occur when smaller Worlds are created in different regions around the world.
Taking in the total number of logins from a broad perspective, it is easy to see how this balance is achieved. The workload on the servers generally undergoes a significant increase the longer a peak time lasts (and the shorter the off-peak times are), with the number of simultaneous logins at more than 4000 users during peak time. However, even with the addition of the North American peak times, this does not represent an increase in the maximum number of logins, since the North American and Japanese peak times do not overlap. As a result, the overall operation of the servers is maintained at a consistent high, with the logins spread out evenly over a long period of time. As an additional note not displayed in the chart, the total number of logins across all Worlds is more than 140,000 people during peak times.
You see? This is a major point that for Squaresoft is the heart of their game. The increasing success of the game, despite its flaws on other aspects, is the concrete demonstration of how powerful is this concept.
I'm sorry but WoW performs awfully on these aspects. The game is already quite barren during peak times aside bottlenecks that are created by broken game mechanics that devs are ignoring (like the collect quests). The choice of local servers, the small capacity of each world and the policy of keeping foreign players away will make this issue unacceptable for the normal servers and critical for PvP servers where the sense is to fight opponents.
The perspective is not about a game I'd like to play. Blizzard is doing too many mistakes on the basis of the game. They may realize this or not but it won't change the result. After a few months everyone will be capped and raiding the high level content.
The new players will find an empty world and an hostile community. The old players will discover how pointless is to play in a mmorpg where the community has no relevance. After a few months the boredom will be the most diffuse feeling.
For a game that didn't understand how to become a mmorpg.
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Filed in:
Ravings | FFXI | WoW
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Submitted by Abalieno on September 22, 2004 - 02:56.
Amen.
I finally found a link to a page with a working hack for Final Fantasy XI. The program will allow the players to finally be able to alt+tab again and play in a window.
Yes, I fully support hacks when they have no impact on the gameplay and when they are about an option that should be directly in the game.
What is wrong is that I have to search the help of an hacker and break the TOS to solve glaring issues.
Submitted by Abalieno on May 16, 2004 - 04:27.
FFXI's fourth census
Square officially confirms the new record: FFXI has surpassed EverQuest with 500.000 paying subscribers. And it's not only this. They also have 1.200.000 active characters, something to consider since every character in the game brings to square one more dollar each month.
The records aren't over, they also claim for 140.000 concurrent logins at the same time, breaking another EQ's record.
There's a lot more in the report, for example what Lum has pointed in his blog:
* 42% of their customer base hasn't made it beyond level 10.
* 34% of all characters are level 1 mules.
Well, don't tell anyone but I'm still subscribed from the beginning and I just discovered that my toon is still at level 10 ...
Anyway, this is also related with all the other things I wrote these days. Why FFXI is having a so big success? Part of it because it's playable for everyone. Once again the performance of the client. It's surely one of those game where the tech isn't pushed so high, still the artistic mood is inspired and unique.
The fact that the PSX2 shares the exact same game of the PC version adds to this. Access offered to a broad playerbase and not just a few rich geeks with the latest hardware.
I'm happy to see a company revealing informations that are usually kept reserved. It has been really interesting to read and it's a demonstration about how many of the design choices were absolutely good. Like having multi-hardware, multi-language worlds.
Now lets see how the market changes when World of Warcraft starts its challange.
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