Why FFXI?

[Ziero]

Re: Why FFXI?

umm im a little new at this site but plz dont b mad if om not on a relevent thread but how do i make money in this game?

It helps if you search the forum a bit before bumping older threads with somewhat unrelated questions. But to help point you in the right direction

Lionna's New Player Guide - FFXIWiki

http://www.ffxionline.com/forums/general-ffxi-discussion/67451-faq-how-ask-question-read-first.html

Selphiie The Enchantress: Guide To Farming

[Ketski]

Re: Why FFXI?

There are several ways to make money in the game.
Doing quests, fishing, farming, buying/selling, and other options.
As for me, I don't really like farming, so I fish. There should be a couple of fishing guides out in the forums somewhere, and farming guides too that you might want to look at.

[Lunatone]

Re: Why FFXI?

umm im a little new at this site but plz dont b mad if om not on a relevent thread but how do i make money in this game?

[Tsikuro]

Re: Why FFXI?

FFXI's main strengths in comparison to WoW:

1) Good looking characters and special effects. No Lego men in FFXI, though this too can't be news to you.

Subjective, but I do agree for the most part. There are only a few races I like in WoW in terms of looks, including Blood Elves and Draenei.

2) Party mechanics. Skill chains and mana bursts are something WoW has no equivalent for, which is why being a damage dealer in a raid/party in WoW is often like soloing, only with other players in the area. Sadly, these mechanics have fallen out of favour for reasons that I've ranted about before, but are probably too complicated for this thread.

It's true that WoW doesn't have MBs and SCs, but the combat is generally more varied and interesting, especially at lower levels as a non-caster class. In FFXI, you're stuck auto-attacking with barely anything to do for a long time as most classes.

3) Missions! Did you ever give a rats ass why you were doing quest X in WoW? Or why you went down into a dungeon (besides the loot)? Or why boss Y had to be put down? I sure didn't, and neither did any of my friends. This is because WoW utterly fails at making a connection between the player and the game world. FFXI, on the other hand, is supreme at it, and I believe it is largely thanks to the story, which the missions carry.

This is also somewhat subjective, because there are plenty of people in WoW that care about lore and enjoy the raids for storyline progression, but that's not available in the game anywhere near the start-- well, instances and their bosses all fall back heavily on lore, but you wouldn't even know about that unless you read up on it outside of the game.
Honestly though, you can't really compare FFXI missions to WoW quests: you should compare FFXI quests to WoW quests. Do you care why some old lady wants you to take a bottle of something to her husband? No, but you do it anyway. WoW leveling quests are like that-- it just doesn't have a "Mission" system aspect, which is where FFXI one-ups it.

Also,

I admit I don't know much about WoW but the more player impressions I read the less I understand why anyone would play that game for very long. I just don't get it as there are no intresting storylines(which abound in FFXI...even some small quests have neat little mini-stories), it's far too easy to gain levels and there's not much endgame content beyond a few raids.

What you're reading is likely coming from a biased source.
There is plenty of endgame content in WoW, and it's all very fun and engaging.
The fact that PvP is very fleshed out and active in WoW, it's a viable alternative to raiding-- in fact, you can obtain some truly amazing gear from it, being a completely casual player. I personally LOVE both games, and can reasonably tell you that there are pros and cons to either. Generally, though, the community of FFXI is extremely generic and unfoundedly biased against WoW-- just as there are internet fads where it's cool to be biased against MySpace and the like.

Don't be a mindless drone, always think for yourself. If you're curious about WoW, there is a free trial with which you can try the game out-- then you can form your own opinions about it.

[Yellow Mage]

Re: Why FFXI?

Well, there are many raids, but in the end they start feeling pretty much the same. There are no interesting stories whatsoever either, but the controls and UI are light years ahead of FFXI and then there is the PVP content, which just doesn't exists in FFXI.

Ignoring all the other errors in your post . . .

[Maju]

Re: Why FFXI?

I admit I don't know much about WoW but the more player impressions I read the less I understand why anyone would play that game for very long. I just don't get it as there are no intresting storylines(which abound in FFXI...even some small quests have neat little mini-stories), it's far too easy to gain levels and there's not much endgame content beyond a few raids.

Well, there are many raids, but in the end they start feeling pretty much the same. There are no interesting stories whatsoever either, but the controls and UI are light years ahead of FFXI and then there is the PVP content, which just doesn't exists in FFXI.

I think it's very much a "lighter" game experience than FFXI, so you kind of warm up to it faster but also grow tired of it faster.

It also hasn't got broken game mechanics the way FFXI does. Armour and shields actually do something instead of just looking pretty underneath a few layers of shadows and so on.

[Shadowneko]

Re: Why FFXI?

I admit I don't know much about WoW but the more player impressions I read the less I understand why anyone would play that game for very long. I just don't get it as there are no intresting storylines(which abound in FFXI...even some small quests have neat little mini-stories), it's far too easy to gain levels and there's not much endgame content beyond a few raids.

In FFXI you could count alot of the story as endgame simply because alot of people don't get to it untill later in the game. You can get through the first few(with help of course) when you get a job to lvl 30-50 and also there are some easy nation missions you can do right off the bat(up to nation rank 2). Many missions have some decently tough bosses. The one with the hardest fights is the Chains of Promithia expansion.

Other than missions(some of which can be run as certian points durring leveling) we have Dyanmis(nation rank 6), Limbus(must finsh CoP), Salvage, and Enjineir(I can't spell...forgive me!). Most of these are abit like the raids you're used to.

PvP is well...non-existant in the main game but there are two PvP sports...Balista and Brenner. These are fun to play but they aren't as popular as they used to be...

It took me two years to get my first job to 75 but then again I was forever stopping to do more missions because I love the stories ^^

[Rei 0]

Re: Why FFXI?

I started playing a year ago, but never really got into it. I picked it up because I wanted to play an mmo with my boyfriend, and this was the only one he was interested in the time. (Turns out he hates it, oh well). I think my highest level was around 10 or something. This September I started playing again, started a new character on the Ragnarok server because I had a friend there and have generally had a better experience this time around. Being in a nice linkshell makes this less boring. My boyfriend still refuses to play with me =\

And I should mention I'm having a great time mostly soloing so far.

[Neomage]

Re: Why FFXI?

I just googled one of those tests and took my own. Apparently I'm an EASK.

[Telera]

Re: Why FFXI?

XI is slow. Soloing is difficult without proper jobs/gear set ups, for most classes. I don't know anything about 'sinking 4 years to get to 75' feeling like 'more' of an achievement to me than the time it took me to hit cap on LotR. In fact, I don't really draw any sense of achievement from level capping (other than 'oh, good, no more partying'). Some people do, but I don't, so neither is of any real import to me.

I took one of those MMO player personality tests. I'm a SEAK. Basically meaning I scored highest on the socializing-exploring end, achievement for me I draw more from helping others or finding rare things.

And just because you're shoved in parties perpetually past lvl 10/15, doesn't necessarily equate to socializing, and I've never understood why people always draw that line as a requirement for a MMO. I've gotten more out of socializing with people I just happen upon both in XI before I quit, and LotR. In both games, people seldom speak in-party. So just because XI is more party centric doesn't automatically mean you're going to be socializing out the ass.

Mostly, I found my friends through getting in a linkshell, or just chatting to random people I happened across.

That, I think, is a key factor to enjoyment of XI. A good network of friends either via linkshell or other method. People who can help you out, and who you can help. If you have a crap LS, it tends to color the rest of your experience. If you've got a great one, they can be an unbelievable boon.

Again, though, if you're more into being able to log in in small spurts and still feel like you've accomplished something, XI doesn't lend itself well to that. Especially for some jobs. It's really a rather hard-core MMO, and if you're a more casual-style gamer, you likely will not enjoy it. It isn't certain, but this game by no means really caters to the casual player. It also doesn't really cater to PvP on the scale WoW does. So if that's a major contention point for you, you'll find yourself disappointed.

Myself, I don't like the game anymore. *shrugs* But that's just because my play-style and the time I'm willing to dedicate, and what XI often demands are not the same. I play to play. I don't play to have a second job and at times, it feels as if that is demanded of you. I'm more a role-player and general explorer first in a game, not a grinder. And XI is just about entirely grind. Keeping yourself well geared is a must. Not only for others but for yourself. Leveling can be slow enough. Gimping your gear will just make it worse. Farming the money for some pieces, especially later on, can be a rather long trial.

If you enjoy that, you'll love the hell out of this game. If not, I think you might find yourself annoyed fast.

Endgame I can't say anything about; I never got there. And raids are not my thing. I don't even do the Rift/Carn Dum/whateverelsehere with my Kin on LotRO.

[TheGrandMom]

Re: Why FFXI?

Meh, thats what I get for multi-tasking. Dynamis needs mission 5-2 completed for your starting city. Like I said, the missions are what can hold you back the longest.

[Ameroth]

Re: Why FFXI?

The biggest thing about rushing to get to end game is that you also need certain things accomplished for endgame. The ToAU missions so that you can enter Sky/Dynamis. The CoP missions so that you can enter Sea/Limbus.

Not to nit-pick but for quick clarification it's the ZM needed for Sky. And AFAIK there's no ZM required for dyna.

[TheGrandMom]

Re: Why FFXI?

The biggest thing about rushing to get to end game is that you also need certain things accomplished for endgame. The SM missions so that you can enter Sky. And city missions for rank and Dynamis entrance. The CoP missions so that you can enter Sea/Limbus. Now if you join a very active ls that helps out a lot with these missions, then it won't be such a chore. But trying to accomplish them in pick up parties on your own leads to a lot of headaches and a long time getting there usually.

Also what job you choose to take to your first 75 can also help or deter you. As in any MMO, some jobs are more desirable than others and getting the experience points can either be a chore or easy as pie. If you level a job that you don't like for your first 75 just to get there fast, you might want to shoot yourself along the way. LOL

The biggest difference between FFXI and WoW for me was the time it took to get experience points. In WoW, soloing was always an option and I could get something accomplished even if I had a little bit of time. In FFXI, it doesn't always work that way. Oh there are days I log in and get party invites quickly but that isn't the norm. FFXI takes more patience but the sense of accomplishment was greater for me. I bored of WoW much quicker than I did of FFXI and that says a lot because I've been playing MMO's since the dawn of the internets. LOL FFXI is the first one that I've played for as long as I have so for me it has more of what I'm looking for.

[Ketski]

Re: Why FFXI?

Well, I can't say I have much experience with the game, but I guess I'll give my opinion about it anyway. I played this game 4 years ago when it first came out for 3 months, but I only got up to level 25 in the classes RDM and WHM. I had to quit because of money issues, but joined back recently and now have a 25 BLM and WHM.

Although I've been playing a lot, my levels are still relatively low. The reason for this is because I don't play to just gain levels by fighting mobs of monsters after another. ( I could play WoW or any other MMORPG if I wanted to do that ) I play to just enjoy the world of Vana'diel and the game in general. I have a lot of fun just logging in to the game and doing simple sidequests that barely give you anything.

I've played WoW for 2 months and reached level 66, and got tired of it. It was just mob after mob of fighting for me. I participated in 1 raid and it was pretty fun but WoW definitely lacks storyline. We just constantly fight random mobs for stupid reasons like a girl losing a ring that was stolen from x type of monster, and so you have to kill that type of monster until you find it. It was more addicting to bash a monster's skull after another than fun.

Oh, and yeah, FFXI really isn't a PvP game. It involves a lot of socializing since you usually party to fight monsters starting at level 11+ -ish?

Well that's my two cents ._.

[Neomage]

Re: Why FFXI?

wow well first thanks for all the responses and non-flames

im assuming there is no like.../played command or anything to tell you how many days you played on your character (as in days sat in frontof your cpu,ps2,etc)?

and by intricate bosses i mean the fights themselves. do guilds (i guess it would be linkshells on ffxi) fly through end game content or are there many many nights of wiping on the same boss try after try? ive tried to look at youtube videos of fights, but i mean.. i cant really decipher what is going on.

"They keep getting killed and losing over and over again. However, it is not impossible, as many players, myself included, have beaten the mission line."

this is what i want. wow is just like this but eh..like i said, ive gone through this on everything and am bored.

do linkshells use ventrilo while progressing through content?

In this day and age, there is a effective stragity for killing every boss mob(except AV). Mini-bosses such as Suzaku and Genbu(in Sky) are easy to kill IF you have the right strategy and you and your linkshell can preform the needed tasks. However, preform poorly and they will wipe the floor with you just like any other monster. So they are far from pushovers. On the other hand, if you know what you are doing you can easily win, so it's not impossibly hard.

As for the Chains of Promathia missions, they are similar to where you need a strat(on most of them) to win, you are also on a time limit. Some are so hard it's really just luck. I've seen some people go 0/50+ fights and give, up, others go 1/1 or 1/2. Most people are somewhere in the middle. One thing for sure is, it doesn't matter how powerful your character is or how great your gear,nor how long you spend fighting, you NEED strategy and skill to win these fights. Otherwise, you WILL go 0/50+