Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

[cidbahamut]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

I don't have an opinion on dropping PS2 support, but...

Whitegate is still the hot gathering spot, the latest add-on areas are where the EXP and latest gear grind is.

That's not even remotely true.

BBQ doesn't know a damn thing about FFXI anymore, so you shouldn't really be surprised.

[Yygdrasil]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

That's not even remotely true.

Agreed... if you think Whitegate is a happening location... boy do I have to tell you about this really cool place in Orlando called Pleasure Island. It's just hoppin' with people these days.

[Raydeus]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

Whitegate needs more tumble weeds and saloons.

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

That's not even remotely true.

If you're going to correct someone, you can at least post the correction. Its not hard.

Also nice to see Cid chip in with a non-correction as well, but he's just an angry person in general. You still pay and play so you're superior in knowledge to me. I get it. Go put that on your resume and see if it impresses anyone.

Do you feel like you won the internet now? At least Ygg tried to make light of it rather than rage, Cid. I gave you a chance to correct me and you spent it on being a jerk. Good job!

Short of Whitegate, I can't think of many places aside from Abyssea-related ones where people would commonly gather right now and if you dare to think that you can go there to shout for help on other things, God help you.

Am I getting warmer?

Also, I thought this was about PS2 and the future of FFXI. Heaven forbid some people contribute to the discussion here.

Dropping PS2 support and F2P are not going to happen, at least not while they're still bleeding money from FFXIV. They wont do anything to weaken their current best source of income until they can replace it.

I don't know I'd be so confident about staying subscription-based when there are MMOs going F2P and then Guild Wars 2 launching as F2P. I have to think that the people at Mythic'/Bioware who've worked so long on TOR have got to be shitting themselves as all these MMOs are going F2P right on top of their big launch. Its also worth pointing out that DCUO had a 700% revenue increase by going F2P.

In other words, more money than FFXIV has made in a year.

[cidbahamut]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

Short of Whitegate, I can't think of many places aside from Abyssea-related ones where people would commonly gather right now

Guess what the whole goddamn game has been revolving around for the last year or so.

Seriously BBQ, if you're that far removed from what's going on in the game you really ought to lurk more before posting and flaunting your ignorance.

[Squiggs]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

Um, sorry? Port Jeuno is where most people are now. Or anywhere in Jeuno really, since they put the /yell function in.

[Yygdrasil]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

Short of Whitegate, I can't think of many places aside from Abyssea-related ones where people would commonly gather right now and if you dare to think that you can go there to shout for help on other things, God help you.

The vast majority of people have moved back to using Jeuno as a HUB these days. Thanks to it being the universal spot that Abyssea Warp NPCs were first introduced. Unlike the last time that Jeuno was a hub, everything is now centralized around Port Jeuno instead of Lower Jeuno's AH area.

In regards to WG, saying it's empty isn't entirely accurate. These days it's pretty much the gathering point of all the JP players. You can walk in there and you'll be bombarded with shouts containing nothing but JP text back to back. People are there. Not people I can really play with because of the language barrier... but people none-the-less.

Starter-Cities however... are still empty as empty gets unless there's some kind of seasonal event going on that people want something from. The Summerbreeze Festival was the last time I saw a substantial number of people in any of the cities.

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

Guess what the whole goddamn game has been revolving around for the last year or so.

Seriously BBQ, if you're that far removed from what's going on in the game you really ought to lurk more before posting and flaunting your ignorance.

Two opportunities and Squggs picked it up before you. Way to be.

At any rate, your rage has nothing to do with the topic. This is about "Should PS2 support be dropped for FFXI?" stuff.

Its a hypothetical discussion and you're not participating, just looking to pop off.

If the gathering spot is Port Jeuno - though that could also be Lower and Upper based on server, I'd imagine - then my point about starter cities being barren still stands.

I brought up the F2P stuff to this discussion because shutting out PS2 players does not improve goodwill for SE or improve activity in areas not being used at present. WoW kind of has this same problem, though they exacerbated it earlier with level caps than FFXI ever did. WoW's move to "try to level 20 before subscribing" helped turn that issue around a bit.

When an MMO caters in full to the endgame crowd, it starts to dwindle down the road and look unattractive to those in the beginner and intermediate areas of the game. Plus there are lots of people that just like to explore, solo and do missions and never tough high level content. Fun for some people in WoW is just starting a new character and going to the top and starting over again with another - they want nothing to do with the raids and being fairly solo-friendly, WoW can keep those people, as can other MMOs.

Soloing might be easier now in FFXI, mission level caps removed and all that, but its still a very group-oriented experience and if you can't even find people to play with at level 10 or 15, you're not going to stick around. for max level.

Whether SE kept PS2 support or not, banking on the hardcore FFXI players to help FFXIV pull through hard times is like asking a senior to take his grandson's place in a marathon. With 2.0 still a long way off and all these issues FFXIV still needs to address while FFXIV's former competitors are going free to play - that's not a good foundation to build on. SE seriously needs to be considering alternative revenue streams or before long its going to be FFXI and Dragon Quest X and whatever other MMO they concoct carrying FFXIV.

The F2P and community beta models have now been proven, I think SE should pour over the variety of models out there and pick the most successful ones for adaptation.

The MMO landscape is rapidly changing in favor of F2P and its cementing itself as a standard. There's no closing Pandora's Box for that one now.

[Raydeus]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

I like the idea of a:

Final Fantasy XI
-Offline-

But then again, that's what people who have quit a MMOG they played for some time would normally say.

[Omgwtfbbqkitten]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

I like the idea of a:

Final Fantasy XI
-Offline-

But then again, that's what people who have quit a MMOG they played for some time would normally say.

I shudder every time I hear someone say they wish Skyrim was an MMO or had co-op. Its like they don't even think about what they're saying.

[cidbahamut]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

If the gathering spot is Port Jeuno - though that could also be Lower and Upper based on server, I'd imagine - then my point about starter cities being barren still stands.

You would be wrong, as usual.

I brought up the F2P stuff to this discussion because shutting out PS2 players does not improve goodwill for SE or improve activity in areas not being used at present.

Neither does letting a game stagnate. They're going to have to recode stuff eventually or throw away a well established and profitable game that has the potential to continue being profitable. This is not to be contested, it is a harsh reality. Console hardware won't last forever and the ancient wrapper for PC is already having issues with Windows 7 and won't even be compatible in years to come as new versions of DirectX come out and drop compatibility for the version FFXI uses.

[Firewind]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

I would love Skyrim to have Co-Op actually. Two Worlds 1 did it well there playing Co-Op would have the other guy drop into your game world and you could do quests together.

Thinking a little more on the subject, I can think of only one way they can drop PS2 support and get away with it.

Go free-to-play.

Considering how FFXI has been since even before I quit, it deeply needs is community reinvigorated. Linage II went F2P just today and logging into the starter city was like walking into Aht Urghan Whitegae the first day TOA was out. Lag Central, but because a ton of people started playing the game. I might have to wait a few days for it to settle so it'll be playable for me but it was kind of the same story with DCUO just weeks ago.

The starter cities in FFXI have been dead since the start of TOA, but especially so with WOTG. People starting out now arrive to a dead city and there's hardly a soul in them that would even care to help them get started. SE has tried their best with EXP rings and adapting EXP quests and the like but its still pretty much dead.

Whitegate is still the hot gathering spot, the latest add-on areas are where the EXP and latest gear grind is.

Most basic PCs could run FFXI now and the accounts made on PS2 would be just as viable on PC - it was always that way by design.

But then, that kinda puts pressure on FFXIV to go the same route and SE is looking to start charging soon if they haven't done so by now. In FFXIV's case it might be wise to go the way of Minecraft, TF2 or DOTA2. Much of the changes FFXIV has enjoyed this last year has been from community input and going into 2.o its still going to be that way. Let players leave their mark on FFXIV by letting them get involved.

TF2 has proven people will pay cash for silly hats.

It doesn't have to be the F2P model Aeria games has, I think DCUO nailed it with their F2P model and the public long-term beta is proving to actually be a good thing and profitable.

With the number of great F2P MMOs out there is a good reason for FFXI to go the same way. F2P + Money shop would not be a bad way to go at all. I personally would pay for +X% XP over so much time or +X SkillUps over a certain time. I love playing DNC but skilling up Daggers is just a pain in the arse. It's the same with WHM, Holy II hits like a truck but I hardly have the time to sit there grinding my Divine magic skill when I'm job hunting.

NM Pop items for Abysses are another one. Farming up enough sets for you to get the drops you need to upgrade your AF3 can take fucking ages depending on the NM's difficulty (Though to be fair I can duo all WHM NM Upgrade drops with a competent NIN, or not Ygg ), and don't get me started on AF3 accessory drops. I wouldn't object to having the option there to spend a few real life £'s to make grinding less of a hassle.

They can even kick RMTs while they're down too while they're at it by offering small gil packages. Not that making gil is hard anymore post Abyssea.

It's the same when you're working. I don't want to spend my free time just sat there grinding Skill Ups or Farming NM pop items, it's too much like a second job, when I can be getting shit done.

FFXI isn't a PvP game so a F2P + Cash Shop option could add a ton of things that don't upset the balance of the game.

EDIT: It's Port Jeuno that is the main gathering point now BBQ. It's also a city that I will avoid like the plague on WHM unless my /anon is on.

[Squiggs]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

so a F2P + Cash Shop option could add a ton of things

I haven't played any other MMOs, so I'm not familiar with something like this. How would this work? What types of things are for sale and how would it help the game?

[Firewind]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

Games like Age of Conan and DC Universe Online are free to play but have a shop where you basically can buy things like "X% XP boost over Y time". There's also a bunch of cosmetic and utility items you can get. AoC also has a very good new player starter package you can buy to get yourself going. There are some other MMOs that also do RMT via their cash shop which means that RMT spam and hackings are non-existent. Why would you risk your account being compromised when you can just by gold from the cash shop?

Basically it wouldn't unbalance FFXI much because:

1) There's lots of grinding. While Merits are trivial to get now, SKill Ups are a MASSIVE pain.
2) There is no PvP

As long as a cash shop avoids the whole "Pay To Win" thing (Like Warhammer Online to the Bioware fucking it all up), then it's just a harmless extra really.

Cash Shops basically generate revenue. WoW's Cash Shop is just notorious because its a paid MMO really.

[DakAttack]

Re: Dropping PlayStation 2 Support

I haven't played any other MMOs, so I'm not familiar with something like this. How would this work? What types of things are for sale and how would it help the game?

There's a lot of different ways it can be done. Riot, for instance, runs a cash shop for League of Legends, which is insanely popular. They actually have two currencies, one that's earned by playing the game and one that's bought with cash. The earned points can purchase new champions and runes with which to customize them. Cash, on the other hand, can purchase all that plus new costumes for the champions and boosts to the rate at which earned experience is gained.

I imagine players would pay cash for boosts to experience gains, item drops, or any other way to shorten some of the game's more drawn out-experiences. They could also sell express passes to skip certain things, like limit break and artifact armor quests, or missions. They could even sell weapons, armors, or any other item the player might want. They could sell gil, but I don't think that would benefit anyone.