I will be the first one to step up and offer them props if they really do address these issues by release. I've been quite vocal in my skepticism, but I'm encouraged.
It at least proves they are aware of the issues and opinion of the community at large.
Even if all of these aren't implemented at release I'll feel more comfortable simply because I know they are issues that SE are aware off.
I will be the first one to step up and offer them props if they really do address these issues by release. I've been quite vocal in my skepticism, but I'm encouraged.
It at least proves they are aware of the issues and opinion of the community at large.
Even if all of these aren't implemented at release I'll feel more comfortable simply because I know they are issues that SE are aware off.
My thoughts exactly. I'm excited to finally be able to try to beta soon ^^
I dunno, "New Director" sounds like "B squad" to me, and "Tons of exciting, new content" sounds like "Give the masses an orgy of "new content" to keep them blind to a dying game." Hell it only took me 3 days to level my favorite jobs to 85, do the new cutscenes, get my weapons upgraded, get all but my feet armor(which will be coming this week)... now for 3 months of farming abyssea... yee haw?
I will be the first one to step up and offer them props if they really do address these issues by release. I've been quite vocal in my skepticism, but I'm encouraged.
Something tells me that the beta was just a scratch on the surface.
They didn't really give us full exploration which means that they were hard at work on major things in the game in a closed environment while we wreaked havoc on their servers and play tested all the concepts that they had.
Actually, did they mention that there were in fact 2 separate clients? They made reference to a "retail client" and as a distinct "beta client"... That sounds odd to me. Usually games are tested on the actual client... there is usually only one test string? Coulda just been a translation hiccup.
Is there a second version out there that SE plans to flip on come the 22nd? And just how many teams do they have working in tandem to pull off such a feat. Seems ridiculous. Copies of the retail game should be reaching businesses within the next day or 2... I suppose we'll have to wait :(
Actually, did they mention that there were in fact 2 separate clients? They made reference to a "retail client" and as a distinct "beta client"... That sounds odd to me. Usually games are tested on the actual client... there is usually only one test string? Coulda just been a translation hiccup.
Is there a second version out there that SE plans to flip on come the 22nd? And just how many teams do they have working in tandem to pull off such a feat. Seems ridiculous. Copies of the retail game should be reaching businesses within the next day or 2... I suppose we'll have to wait :(
Well the Beta client lacks a whole lot of content in game and on the back-end of it. An entire new client will be necessary.
This is why we were severely locked out of menu options and control changes in the Beta.
Actually, did they mention that there were in fact 2 separate clients? They made reference to a "retail client" and as a distinct "beta client"... That sounds odd to me. Usually games are tested on the actual client... there is usually only one test string? Coulda just been a translation hiccup.
Is there a second version out there that SE plans to flip on come the 22nd? And just how many teams do they have working in tandem to pull off such a feat. Seems ridiculous. Copies of the retail game should be reaching businesses within the next day or 2... I suppose we'll have to wait :(
Well the Beta client lacks a whole lot of content in game and on the back-end of it. An entire new client will be necessary.
This is why we were severely locked out of menu options and control changes in the Beta.
This^
I do believe that we only had access to a very limited portion of the game, now the reason behind that I'm not sure, but I do believe that it has to do with the fact that they just wanted us to test out the things that they were really having problems with without basically giving us the full game up front, they want the players to expect something come release otherwise people will just be like "oh that again" instead of "Oh my god! wow, that's cool!"
I'm not sure how limited we were but I do know that we didn't have access to barely anything.
I'm sure the Collector's Edition box and content takes much much longer to make than the actual CD that goes in it, so I bet they could even wait as long as the end of this week to start producing the actual CD and still get it done on time.
To be honest, I think this whole testing phase was expertly done by SE. They put a lot of noticeable hard work and effort into fixing problems considering the massive leaps between alpha, closed and open betas. I like that they used separate clients and didn't release all of the game to the testers, gives us all something we haven't seen before when the game comes out! People seem to forget what alpha/beta TESTING is and that we are just free labor for them, but they still try to give us a good show.
Now, less fanboy of me, I am not looking forward to the download and uploads for this game because as we all know, that's where SE is desperately lacking... that and communication with those damn foreigners! =P
I'm still very skeptical of the "they didn't give us the real game because they wanted us to test X" thing. No MMO company has ever done that before. It's pointless because you want people testing things the way they'll work at release, not a different use case. Otherwise there's no point in testing.
I'm sure the Collector's Edition box and content takes much much longer to make than the actual CD that goes in it, so I bet they could even wait as long as the end of this week to start producing the actual CD and still get it done on time.
Talked to gamestop and they are e-mailing a code with download instructions for the early access. They said the actual product will not be available for pickup until the official release date.
I'm still very skeptical of the "they didn't give us the real game because they wanted us to test X" thing. No MMO company has ever done that before. It's pointless because you want people testing things the way they'll work at release, not a different use case. Otherwise there's no point in testing.
That said, I'm still encouraged by the update.
They didn't give us the real game because they wanted the Beta client to be 5Gb instead of 12Gb lol.
There's not much fat they could trim, perhaps the opening movies.
I'm sure the Collector's Edition box and content takes much much longer to make than the actual CD that goes in it, so I bet they could even wait as long as the end of this week to start producing the actual CD and still get it done on time.
Talked to gamestop and they are e-mailing a code with download instructions for the early access. They said the actual product will not be available for pickup until the official release date.
Ah, good to know. Utorrent will be up and running! lol
I'm sure the Collector's Edition box and content takes much much longer to make than the actual CD that goes in it, so I bet they could even wait as long as the end of this week to start producing the actual CD and still get it done on time.
Talked to gamestop and they are e-mailing a code with download instructions for the early access. They said the actual product will not be available for pickup until the official release date.
Not really sure how that would work :/ what if you didn't order it online? Dunno about you, but I don't think if you walked in the store and pre ordered it that they automatically have your e-mail :/
Honestly I am probably most psyched about the fact the Dragon/airship in that trailer is pretty clearly the Keeper of the Lake in Mor Dhona.
What was with all the aetheryte shards in Mor Dhona?
Not quite sure about it. Its part of the mystery and why I'm so obsessed with the zone. Theres just too much unexplained there.
This.
I love the zone (especially during darkness weather/miasma - the purple fog just makes it look even more mysterious), and I was just musing with friends that I'd love to know more about the Keeper (since it was obviously wrapped around an airship; knew as much before this trailer came out) and then this trailer shows up! Of course it explains next to nothing, but it's still pretty damn cool.
I'm sure the Collector's Edition box and content takes much much longer to make than the actual CD that goes in it, so I bet they could even wait as long as the end of this week to start producing the actual CD and still get it done on time.
Talked to gamestop and they are e-mailing a code with download instructions for the early access. They said the actual product will not be available for pickup until the official release date.
Not really sure how that would work :/ what if you didn't order it online? Dunno about you, but I don't think if you walked in the store and pre ordered it that they automatically have your e-mail :/
I placed my order in store and had to go back to update my e-mail info, so if they don't have yours might want to go and update it.
I'm sure the Collector's Edition box and content takes much much longer to make than the actual CD that goes in it, so I bet they could even wait as long as the end of this week to start producing the actual CD and still get it done on time.
Talked to gamestop and they are e-mailing a code with download instructions for the early access. They said the actual product will not be available for pickup until the official release date.
Not really sure how that would work :/ what if you didn't order it online? Dunno about you, but I don't think if you walked in the store and pre ordered it that they automatically have your e-mail :/
I placed my order in store and had to go back to update my e-mail info, so if they don't have yours might want to go and update it.
Weird, I know everyone that works at my gamestop though :/ so they might have done it for me.
If I don't hear anything from them by next week i'll either FB em or go by there.
Something I noticed from the trailer was the fireballs from the sky that you see in your opening CSs, I hope SE keeps with a storyline kind of atmosphere and doesn't just stick things all over the game without any rhyme or reason like they did in FFXI. I love a good backstory that can take you out of the grind and keep you interested like a good book.
Something I noticed from the trailer was the fireballs from the sky that you see in your opening CSs, I hope SE keeps with a storyline kind of atmosphere and doesn't just stick things all over the game without any rhyme or reason like they did in FFXI. I love a good backstory that can take you out of the grind and keep you interested like a good book.
While on the subject of continuity, the same song plays for each opening city's CS at one point or another. After having the OST and listening to the song itself, I'm still scratching my head as to its significance within the story. While each city has its own entry, these "fireballs" and that song are the only two constants. I'm curious as to how it will link each one.
I'm a story/lore-nut so its these kinds of things that get me excited about rather large games. Theres just so much to tell...
Notice the Espers (summons) flying out of the downed airship?
Notice how the Garlean empire seems to be at war with the monsters? Specifically the Beastmen?
Guildleves in the Beta: We sincerely apologize to our open beta testers for the client errors that would occur more frequently during guildleves in the beta. In the release version, we are dealing with these diligently.
Retainer: Right now, when you buy something from a retainer, there is an unnecessarily long delay. On release, we plan to make this a lot more smooth. We would like to make improvements to make commerce even easier for everyone.
Relationship Crafting/Gathering & PC Status: PC's physical level & attributes will have an effect on crafting and gathering. There are hints in the game as to what does what, so please search for it.
Crafting:
Physical: Closely related to the tool being used and will particularly affect quality
Attributes: related to "Godsend" [I think these are the extra result/HQ result] probability & "attribute stability" [?]
Gathering:
Physical: Affects difficulty in obtaining items in the "gather" phase as well as the number of items obtained[
[translator note].. this is a literal translation of "physical" and "attribute" I wasn't sure here if they're talking about skill level or what, but judging from the use of katakana for Physical, I must assume it means physical level, even though that sounds odd to have an effect here.
Market: We don't want crafters and gatherers to simply "put up" their items on the market and that's it. We want them to also act as salesmen and learn to play the market intelligently. For this purpose, we will begin with focus on the Bazaar market system. On that note, in order to be able to tell "What's for sale?" etc, we are planning to adjust policy and add functionality to improve the user friendliness.
Retrying guildleves: The best way to level is with guildleves, that is, even without the guardian's favor, you will earn way more exp and skill points per each kill. For this reason, we wanted to prevent abusive use of leves by killing all the monsters but failing right at the end and then retrying on the spot. However, if you visit the NPC that gave you the leve, you can retry it.
There will be hardware mouse support!
We believe that the item selection interface should be very responsive, and by release we will have introduced a MUCH improved version. After release we will continue improving this.
The FFXIV development team acknowledged that there's issues with the mouse and user interface and apologized about it. Hardware Mouse + UI improvements will be a major focus for them.
There will be package discount pricing on the subscription (Japan-3months, NA/EU 3/6 months)
Due to game balance consideration, the level cap on release will be 50
We will change it so you do not lose disabled abilities when changing class any more. [assume this means they won't leave the ability bar, they will probably just gray]
Physical stat distribution will affect both crafting and gathering classes as much as it does everyone else.
There aren't any "open world" NMs outside of guildleves.
New hairstyles will be added, as well as the ability to change hairstyle in game after you make your character.
Crafters will be able to cooperate in large-scale projects (boats, cannons, wedding cakes! YUM) so more fun for you and your company!
There will be guildleves where crafters and adventurers have to cooperate.
The guildleve issue will be fixed so they cooldown will be significantly decreased from 48 hours.
Anima regeneration will have to be raised since you'll have to travel more for more frequent guildleves.
The faction leves have you fight different beastman tribes and such.
Negotiations are another way of obtaining loot (other than battles). By choosing the right conversation subject with a NPC, player can engage in negotiations and receive items in exchange for items wanted by the NPC. If player does exceptionally well, it's possible to get some free stuff as an extra.
Ishgard: Ishgard's people have long been at war with man-eating dragons, and thus have not taken on Adventurers. In this city, there are already several quests appearing for the "Dragon Slayers" [faction?] who are at war with the dragons.
Mana Regeneration: MP management is supposed to be important. Also, spells are supposed to deal high damage in one hit. Having this concept in mind, SE plans to continue to balance this system and (in the future) add some other ways of regaining MP, other than abilities and Aetheryte.
Damaging monster body parts:
There are monsters which have different body parts that can be damaged. Using a specific weapon skill while standing in a specified position can lead to cutting a monster's body part off. For example, you can cut Malboro's vines or a horn/tail if the enemy has one. In addition to changing the monster's appearance, those actions can have the following effects:
- Weakening the monster
- Preventing monsters from using specific skills
- Acquiring materials from cut/damaged body parts