Is FFXI still worth playing? (Or worth playing at all?)

PotluckBrigand

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Jul 30, 2008
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I've been playing FFIX the last few days and having a lot of fun (I haven't played through it since it first came out back when I was still in high school), but it's put me in a mood to play more Final Fantasy.

I used to play FFXI. I played it when it launched and got bored of waiting for parties and the frankly EMBARRASSINGLY inefficient travel systems throughout (basically, when I was having fun I was having a lot of it, but 80% of the time I was riding a chocobo through the same places over and over, waiting for a boat, or sitting with my party flag up reading a book).

I played again a couple years ago and I appreciated the new level-scaling system they had, which did away with a lot of the problems I had finding groups, but I didn't stick with it long enough to really explore anything else that might have changed (I unlocked Blue Mage and tooled around a bit...) I didn't have anyone to play with or a Linkshell to be in.

I guess my question is: Should I consider reinstalling? Has anything changed? Is solo play any more possible? I know Final Fantasy is, at its core, a series about party dynamics and that's why they made solo content virtually non-existent, but I wonder if they've taken any of the past ten years' advances in MMOs and added anything else to their game.

Really I'm just bored and I like Final Fantasy. Does anyone even still play?
 

Dragoon

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Me and a friend were looking into it since he can't run graphically intensive games and with that being old we could both play it. I'm not sure if it's good for solo though. You may be better off waiting to see how XIV turns out, that may be more in line with what you're looking for.
 

devotedsniper

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I used to play XI pretty much everyday but eventually gave up after a number of changes, it's now easier to get into and level up, the community is still strong but a lot of veterans have quit due to these changes and if you wanna do anything older (so the original content, + some expansions) you'll have to make it an event with your linkshell as no one really does them anymore.

The original solo/team mechanics are still there but they have improved them with things such as level sync (a lvl75 can help a lvl 30 party missing a member now). In some ways the changes have made the game better but for a veteran there a bit of a turn off (stuck in our ways), it annoyed a lot of people who would spend a good year leveling there character to the cap (which was 75) to only be shown you can now cap (lvl100 now) within a few months, oh and all that gear which cost millions? it's now worth all of 10-200k.

If you didn't put in a lot of time previously you'll likely like it, for me? They've made it too easy, that and it doesn't help all my friends quit.
 

Colt47

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Oct 31, 2012
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devotedsniper said:
I used to play XI pretty much everyday but eventually gave up after a number of changes, it's now easier to get into and level up, the community is still strong but a lot of veterans have quit due to these changes and if you wanna do anything older (so the original content, + some expansions) you'll have to make it an event with your linkshell as no one really does them anymore.

The original solo/team mechanics are still there but they have improved them with things such as level sync (a lvl75 can help a lvl 30 party missing a member now). In some ways the changes have made the game better but for a veteran there a bit of a turn off (stuck in our ways), it annoyed a lot of people who would spend a good year leveling there character to the cap (which was 75) to only be shown you can now cap (lvl100 now) within a few months), oh and all that gear which cost millions? it's now worth all of 10-200k.

If you didn't put in a lot of time previously you'll likely like it, for me? They've made it too easy, that and it doesn't help all my friends quit.
Sounds like the more extreme version of what happened with World of Warcraft, only WoW has now completely become entrenched in end game grind affairs for one side and Player vs Player on the other. People make it a duty to speed level as fast as possible to end game just because that is where the economy and player base is at. Actually I think the only thing keeping people playing WoW is the fear of falling behind the current end game and losing face in the community. At least the current FFXI is entertaining and has some intrinsic qualities to it (subjob combinations and the skill chain system)
 

devotedsniper

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Colt47 said:
Sounds like the more extreme version of what happened with World of Warcraft, only WoW has now completely become entrenched in end game grind affairs for one side and Player vs Player on the other. People make it a duty to speed level as fast as possible to end game just because that is where the economy and player base is at. Actually I think the only thing keeping people playing WoW is the fear of falling behind the current end game and losing face in the community. At least the current FFXI is entertaining and has some intrinsic qualities to it (subjob combinations and the skill chain system)
XI is the only mmo i ever really got into, i played it for years it's just a shame they changed it so much it no longer appeals to me. Level sync was a nice addition but anything after that pretty much killed the game off for me, the few times I've tried to go back i generally play alone due to everyone doing the new easy ways. Hell if half the people at level 100 tried to get to 75 back when i did they'd probably quit considering how long it takes (not to mention having to craft or buy the gear).

I've also tried XIV (beta and release) before it got took down and that at least showed some promise of not being mega easy, but if i had a choice i'd go back to the old XI that i knew in a heartbeat given the chance.
 

Eclipse Dragon

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PotluckBrigand said:
I believe they just came out with an expansion pack [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/121270-Final-Fantasy-XI-Expansion-Releases-in-March].
So Square at least feels it's still worth playing (supporting).
 

Siege_TF

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When Abyssea came out it felt like SE saying 'Okay, you can use this to finish your character quickly and move on to FFXIV'. Then FFXIV sucked, so they made another expansion pack. I personally quit when my character was as finished as it was going to get, and there wasn't enough linkshell drama to keep me interested.

When I told my shell I was taking a break which may be permanent I got a dismissive 'Okay, bye'. That, after nine years of playing was more disheartening than all the ????storms that I've been through put together.
 

Lilani

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May 27, 2009
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I haven't been able to play XI for several years because of money and time, but from what I hear from friends who go back every now and then the servers aren't as busy as they used to be. I can't tell you how full they actually are, but I know it is much less than it used to be. I really wish I could go back for the new expansion, but I'd have to start a new character and I ain't got time fo' dat. A new expansion is coming out, or is coming out very soon, so you might want to poke into that if you're interested.

My friends who still play XI sometimes also play XIV, and say that it's much more streamlined than XI. They went back to XI, started new characters, and were blown away by how tedious things are comparatively. And I hear they are satisfied with the XIV: A Realm Reborn Beta. I'm considering picking it up myself in a couple of months, once I figure out what I'm doing with my life.
 

AmzRigh

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Dec 9, 2010
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I'm still really enjoying it, even after playing for about 8 years. Granted, I always played at a pretty casual pace, so maybe that's why I haven't burned out on it yet. But I'm still getting new friends into it, trying to build a small group to go take on everything I don't have the means to solo, while trying to recreate the highlights of the classic experience for the new people -- we had the best Dunes party ever a month or so ago, and made some pretty amazing exp in Qufim shortly thereafter. Took a friend through her dragon fight this weekend. All the nostalgia.

That said, Siege_TF above is pretty spot-on with his assessment; Abyssea broke the game, but it did interesting things with it at the same time. If you want low-level pick-up parties, they're probably not going to happen (though levelsync does help considerably with that). I fixed that problem by building a static party of real-life friends, and organizing regular play times. And, having the people ready to go, it's nice not to have to compete for good camps. I mean, sure, we could just power our way through levels in Abyssea, but...that's just not as fun, y'know?
 

michael87cn

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Jan 12, 2011
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FFXI can be very fun, but I personally got tired of having to wiki literally every single little thing. Sometimes going on very old information.

But it was very fun while it lasted. A very refreshingly different kind of MMORPG. Plays very much like an immersive Final Fantasy console game, only an MMORPG. Has a nice world, nice animations for the time, nice graphics too.
 

Atlys

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Mar 3, 2011
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I just recently got into it. I started playing around two weeks ago and I'm only level 16. That could be because i'm just grinding solo and exploring San d'Oria. I am having a lot of fun with it though. I've been looking for an MMO that doesn't lead you around by quest markers. I like having to look for information and talk to everybody. And even though the game is older I think it still looks beautiful. There is a lot of running around though.
 

Colt47

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Atlys said:
I just recently got into it. I started playing around two weeks ago and I'm only level 16. That could be because i'm just grinding solo and exploring San d'Oria. I am having a lot of fun with it though. I've been looking for an MMO that doesn't lead you around by quest markers. I like having to look for information and talk to everybody. And even though the game is older I think it still looks beautiful. There is a lot of running around though.
The running around and not being lead by the nose portion of the game is definitely one of the high points of Final Fantasy XI. The other high point is that the game predates the obnoxious Beats Mania style click fests that have taken over the MMORPG scene ever since, as if slowing down the combat and trying a different approach would be the worst thing in the known universe.
 

Atlys

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Mar 3, 2011
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Colt47 said:
Atlys said:
I just recently got into it. I started playing around two weeks ago and I'm only level 16. That could be because i'm just grinding solo and exploring San d'Oria. I am having a lot of fun with it though. I've been looking for an MMO that doesn't lead you around by quest markers. I like having to look for information and talk to everybody. And even though the game is older I think it still looks beautiful. There is a lot of running around though.
The running around and not being lead by the nose portion of the game is definitely one of the high points of Final Fantasy XI. The other high point is that the game predates the obnoxious Beats Mania style click fests that have taken over the MMORPG scene ever since, as if slowing down the combat and trying a different approach would be the worst thing in the known universe.
I definitely agree. The combat in FFXI forces you to think before you take on a battle. If you try to take too many monsters on at the same time (at least in my lower level experience) you will get stomped on. The whole game is nicely paced and doesn't tug you along like a roller coaster ride.
 

PotluckBrigand

No family dinner is safe.
Jul 30, 2008
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Thanks to everyone for their input. I still haven't made my mind up, but it sounds like at least a few people still play. I wanted FFXIV to be good so bad, but well... I think most people will agree it was pretty awful. I'd love to try the Realm Reborn (I signed up for the beta, but haven't been chosen) and see if they managed to actually fix the problems, or if they're just spinning their wheels at this point.

I always liked the slower, more deliberate combat in FFXI, but the fact that you couldn't escape from combat in any effective way combined with leveling down when you died made it kind of tedious. Bad groups are bad enough in MMOs, but when you get punished so harshly for being in one it makes me sad. Losing EXP is fine... gives you a good reason to try not to die, but I wish it stopped when it hit 0 on your current level... nothing quite like equipping a new weapon only to have to take it off if you get a bad pull two minutes later!