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[Review] Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn: Heavensward - A Compelling, Well-Polished Expansion
SBFord
Former Associate EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 33,129
I grew up with the Final Fantasy series so it always pulls at my nostalgic heartstrings whenever a new one is released. Disappointed with the release of XIV in its 1.0 state I was amazed at how Square Enix was able to right the ship with the release of A Realm Reborn. XI was a great MMO and now SE has been able to turn XIV into a worthy, if not direct, successor.
Read more of Rob Lashley's Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward - A Compelling, Well-Polished Expansion.
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Comments
As for the crafting - I can see where you think the crafting is irrelevant, however that is because you can get raid gear so much easier. I too wish crated combat gear would be more rewarding. Crafting is rewarding if you use it in other systems, such as decorating your house, building your airship, leveling and crafting your gathering and crafting gear so you can craft more lol.
I am overall very pleased with this game.
Most memorable games: AoC(Tryanny PvP), RIFT, GW, GW2, Ragnarok Online, Aion, FFXI, FFXIV, Secret World, League of Legends (Silver II rank)
I'd like to know if they added voice overs to this expansion.
I do have confidence in their story telling and cutscenes.
I do not feel they did any improvement that was meaningful from release.The idea of GEAR being how you perform is a really bad design,one that WOW does and should not receive any praise for doing so.
That is the difference FFXI classes were way more diverse,more options and it was about those options rather than your gear,at least until Square ruined that game as well.
I understand it is just a business to them,to make as much money as possible,but you lose fans like me when you just try and copy ideas from a game i do not like at all...WOW.
Square always did one thing badly,they never looked hard enough at the negative to their thought process.The ONLY reason they ramped up the transition was to sell the expansion,NOT because it is good for the game.They did the same thing back when Abyssea came out in FFXI,they have really turned more towards greed than good gaming decisions.
Never forget 3 mile Island and never trust a government official or company spokesman.
There's a lot to like, I was subbed over 3 years....but eventually (particularly once I reached endgame activities post-ARR) the gear treadmill got old.
Not going to comment on most of your opinion, as I just wanted to respond to your query about voice overs.
Important story points are voiced, though I believe the voice actors for the English version have changed, so some characters will sound slightly different now.
A writer and gamer from the Philippines. Loves his mom dearly.
Can also be found on http://www.gamesandgeekery.com
Very fair review and very fair score. It's a Solid game for the Price and Subscription. Yes some servers everyone wants to be on and they have disconnections and problems, however this game was never designed for 500K players to play on 1 server. Sorry your friends are on these few servers that are over loaded, maybe its time to jump on to a lower pop server.
As for the game I love it and will be staying for a while. Yes I know its a Gear Tread mill. Problem is I like it as long as I can moderate how hard I go at the tread mill.
If anyone is looking for friends to play with on Siren that plays 8 to 10/1030 ET send me a message and I will gladly play along side you.
You need to get over the fact they didnt make a FFXI-2
FFXI had its own issues, and certainly gear was very dependent there too.
Still no game has been able to match EQ (particularly mid-age EQ, around LDoN or maybe OoW) in terms of balance between class depth and skill/knowledge of the class, class variety, and progression (both character and gear) all mattering but still providing options for everyone (provided you grouped).
FFXI had the second best group mechanics though, and FFXIV fares better than most games but is nowhere near those two games. And thats OK.
They have clearly filled the need for a quality themepark with a good group element and good class design which hasnt really had an option since EQ2 and WoW fell off after EoF/halfway through WotLK.
I really don't see any reason to resub at this juncture. It's not that FFXIV is a bad game; but its pure, unapologetic theme park design just feels like an exhausted horse tethered to a lonely telephone pole -- I don't really trust that steed to get me across a desert. Also, I gotta say, I detest the world design in that game. The single, most applicable word that comes to mind is claustrophobic -- the game feels more constricted than a South American snake.
*Edit* Also, as others have pointed out, this is a horrendous review.
Would like to know what this review is talking about. Particularly in the crafting section, whereby it names another game, talks about furniture and then speaks of -- and this is an assumption -- class quests? Then it makes an assertion in the "cons" section without giving any details.
Is this supposed to be a standalone review, or is it #4 in a series of reviews in progress? More information in the previous ones regarding crafting and such?
I know crafting is pretty big right now, with some items selling for upwards of 25,000,000 gil with materials and items obtained through various means such as airships, treasure hunting, dungeons, gathering (specific times a day and conditions for some of the rarest materials, plus the other conditions met with each piece selling for 50-100k), etc.
What is not relevant? Unable to make gil? Surpass raid level gear? Prepare one for raids to get raid level gear? Is it just talking about 50-60 or 1-60 and the rush for items with the new classes and people starting anew or trying out new classes and a rush of purchases? No mention of the scrip systems with regards to these? You can also get level 60 crafting classes without doing the main storyline, just not continue the class quests. At least, it was simple to do the first week when they forgot to nerf previous levequests. But experience for crafting items is exceptional now, as well.
So much left unsaid in this writing; it gives the vibe of "this is a good game", but it doesn't really explain anything unless we're also required to see the review in progress stuff and this is just another part of it. The screen shots seem poorly chosen as well, not to mention just being taken from the review in progress ones, which leads one to believe this is supposed to be a standalone review based on those experiences.
The scores seem to explain themselves well enough, but not so much in the case of the Pros (screen shots not displaying such, and just a mention of DX11) and definitely not the cons. No explanation on the crafting comment in the review and only a brief mention there was an issue with he mac client and that Square pulled sales of it to fix issues and offered a full refund to any mac players who got it.
That said...
My interest in future content -- such as commanding troops as a high level Grand Company member -- is pretty high. Hoping they add more wards in the next update and that the sharing house thing for spouses turns out to be in working order at the time. New information on the 24 man raid? Hmm!
거북이는 목을 내밀 때 안 움직입니다
Cons:
Mac client issues - Fair. Square did mess this up, but they'll fix it.
Crafting doesn't feel relevant - I don't think this is a valid complaint. The 2-star recipes aren't in the game yet, because it would be OP for the current content, and the hard mode version of the raid isnt in the game ye because they wanted to give people a chance to level and do the story content.
Currently playing: Elder Scrolls Online, Elite: Dangerous | Recently played: FFXIV, Rift, LoTRO, Diablo 3, Path of Exile, Guild Wars 2 | Single player RPGs: Dragon Age Inquisition, Skyrim
This isn't a signature, you just think it is.
I'm glad so many people like it. It's an amazing comeback story.
Unfortunately, the forced combat ended up driving me away.
Wow!
I held off on purchasing this expansion. I wanted to wait to see how it fleshed out 1st. I have seen what expansions can do to a crafting system in other MMORPGs. and I was concerned that crafting here would also be impacted and not for the better.
I've read reviews that say crafting seems "irrelevant" now. And to see you leave the game has not inspired me to purchase the expansion or even resub.
Are there any MMORPGs left where crafting is still important?
rpg/mmorg history: Dun Darach>Bloodwych>Bards Tale 1-3>Eye of the beholder > Might and Magic 2,3,5 > FFVII> Baldur's Gate 1, 2 > Planescape Torment >Morrowind > WOW > oblivion > LOTR > Guild Wars (1900hrs elementalist) Vanguard. > GW2(1000 elementalist), Wildstar
Now playing GW2, AOW 3, ESO, LOTR, Elite D
rpg/mmorg history: Dun Darach>Bloodwych>Bards Tale 1-3>Eye of the beholder > Might and Magic 2,3,5 > FFVII> Baldur's Gate 1, 2 > Planescape Torment >Morrowind > WOW > oblivion > LOTR > Guild Wars (1900hrs elementalist) Vanguard. > GW2(1000 elementalist), Wildstar
Now playing GW2, AOW 3, ESO, LOTR, Elite D
Geezer I wouldn't listen to Foomerang at all. He loves to cry about things way too often. Like what game right now can you ONLY craft and never face combat like people did in UO or SWG? Not a single game since WOW. AA is as close to the old school MMOs as they come and AA still forces combat up to level 30. So Foomerang's complaint its just him complaining that MMOs have evolved because they are no longer like UO or SWG.
When it comes to Crafting being important in FFXIV, yes you can make gear that will help people get into raiding faster however that gear is not in this game as of yet, it will be patched in over the course of 2 years. The Crafting gear though will never be better than current level of raid gear. Sorry but that is just the way MMOs are designed now where Crafting is no longer the best way of getting accept AA. Will we ever have crafting like it use to be where I can craft the best Rocket Launchers on a server like I did during SWG. I dont know; however I know currently that is not possible and I do not complain about it because MMOs being a expensive is they are do not go towards a niche crowd anymore.
I held off on purchasing this expansion. I wanted to wait to see how it fleshed out 1st. I have seen what expansions can do to a crafting system in other MMORPGs. and I was concerned that crafting here would also be impacted and not for the better.
I've read reviews that say crafting seems "irrelevant" now. And to see you leave the game has not inspired me to purchase the expansion or even resub.
Are there any MMORPGs left where crafting is still important?
Crafting and gathering are still important in this game and very well done. Unfortunately it is gated behind combat content so I'd rather do something else with my free time.
No need to defend myself against the name callers. You know me better than they do heh.
I am not a crafting only person, but I do like to craft my own gear. Assuming that what I can craft is comparable to what can be obtained through other methods, That interests me.
I have played and enjoyed crafting systems where others have not.
I liked GW2 crafting.......except that it was really more or less a tool for leveling and not really relevant otherwise, but I still could create my own gear.....assuming I could live with a sword that looked like an embellished boat paddle.........LOL
I also enjoyed the crafting system in SWTOR. Not because the system itself was impressive, but that I could create what I wanted based on the effort I put into it.
That said.....Does the new XIV expansion work like that? Is crafted gear on par with instanced dropped gear?
Yes, you and I have chatted in-game before, That's why I take your opinion seriously on this issue.
While we have different motivations for crafting, we both enjoy a comprehensive crafting system. So while you may not enjoy this game anymore, It does still sound like it might appeal to me.