20 reasons to get FFXI?

O

old.Gombur Glodson

Guest
Bit bored atm and need a nice mmorpg to pass time when there is nothing else to do, but FFXI is a bit expensive, so I want to be sure it's a game I'll like before I get it.
So lemme know 20 reasons why I should get this game.
 
W

Whisperess

Guest
1. Lovely graphics
2. Lovely music
3. Lovely economics system that actually impacts gameplay
4. Lovely support - getting replies to questions within 24 hours
5. Lovely bug-fixing - reported bugs that are quick fixes get in within 24 hours ( last one did anyway )
6. Lovely information flow - maintenance notes up several days in advance, and always ( as far as I've noticed ) sticking to schedule
7. It's not beta like every other mmorpg out there. It's been out for a few years in Japan, making it a more solid game than most the other "new" stuff.
8. Fun doesn't start at end-level in comparison to Daoc
9. You don't restrict yourself to a certain job like in daoc, you can easily swap to another one without any loss whatsoever
10. You don't restrict yourself to a certain crafting guild like in daoc.
11. Good amount of class options thanks to classes, advanced classes and any main/sub combination of all classes
12. Fun tradeskills in comparison to daoc. You actually do something in here, fishing for example :)
13. It's a cooperative game ( no PK'ing, yay! )
14. It has a vast world filled with content everywhere
15. Questing/Missions etc are fun! ingame Cut-scenes make them moviesque.
16. Player skill greatly impact group success, giving positive feedback to those that try even slightly harder. ( Renkeis, Magic bursts etc )
17. Content! Just now in the latest patch there's christmas decorations just about everywhere and fireworks going off constantly. ( read: the developer care )
18. Filled with stuff to do other than leveling. Crafting, Fishing, quests, missions, supply runs, gardening, house decorating and more!
19. The Auction House!
20. The Auction House! ( it's worth 2 slots really ) - but ok, no buffbots! hmm, how about

phew, why did you have to say 20? :)
 
F

Faeldawn

Guest
Best to balance with a few other points imo, as with every game, it has its faults (note, these arent necessarily my opinions of the game).

Have to say tradeskills are poor compared to SW:G, restrictive, expensive and badly structured (effects are nice, but they are only fluff).

Class system is restrictive compared to SW:G.

Group system is excellent (cant fault that even if i tried).

Forced grouping is annoying, soloing to higher lvls is almost impossible, plus high lvl quests are impossible solo.

Language (or rather the assumption that everyone understands what you say) can be a problem, not all Japanese use English symbols or speak English, but with so many NA players this isn't really a major issue.

Login is annoying, takes way to long to connect to the game.

There is no end-game as such, not so much of an issue for most, but for those who like to have a goal to achieve (something to aim for), they may find this game lacking.

FFXI is 100% carebear, zero pvp atm, even when they do implement pvp its likely to be very restrictive.

The Auction House is my favourite aspect, brilliantly done.

If you have a powerful computer you can make full use of the graphical settings, even with a mid-range machine the graphics are good. They are impressive at full res, and the fluid animation is so serene, a work of art imo (especially the intro movie, really sets the scene well).


I am not a FF fan, but i do like this game.
I am a casual gamer and it suits my style.
I know a few hardcore gamers who also love it, mainly due to the renkei (quality idea).

My opinion? Best mmorpg on the market atm.
 
W

Whisperess

Guest
Interested in knowing what it looks like in action?

http://square.radix.accelia.net/v1.asx

that's the liveCam, showing server #11 ( I think ) live from pre-programmed camera sweeps all across Vana'diel.

Note that since the camera sweeps are pre-programmed and the content is live, you might not see action all the time :)

( and yes, my original post was kinda tilted :) )
 
E

ECA

Guest
just a thing about solo'ing.


it is possible, however when it takes 3 minutes to kill a dancing weapon for 46 xp, and you could have been in a group and killed it in ~1-2 minutes, and then killed another 4-5 without resting.....


Basically solo'ing is possible, however only with some classes are you able to solo effectively enough for it to be an alternative to grouping.


the major flaws of this game are:


The storyline doesnt take you past the ass boring levels before you start grouping.

Without info sites knowing what to do on some quests can be frustrating. ( this is what its meant to be like.....but i dont think western gamers like this approach ).


Monster Variation: there isnt enough. You will see the same monsters everywhere you go.

for example: in your start area in windhurst you will see pugils, you will also see them in qufim, valkurm dunes, yahtunga forest.

It doesnt matter that they have different names ffs .

the same occurs with mandragoras etc.

its ok for the beastmen to be the same...thats expected....but they should have varied the wildlife a bit more.


However, there is probably a lot more variation than most games, and these are the worst flaws I can pick out.

If you want to sit at your pc for hours bashing monsters and resting all on your own ( what kind of person finds THAT fun ), then don't buy.


Otherwise buy it.

I hate single player FF, love this.
 
B

bylin

Guest
I really love this game for all the reasons stated above. I would echo ECA's comments though which is the need for grouping. IMO it is the one downside.
 
C

chi_

Guest
Originally posted by Whisperess

13. It's a cooperative game ( no PK'ing, yay! )


That's a benefit? Since there are relatively few EQ players on this board, most would view the lack of any form of PvP as a con, not a pro.
 
W

Whisperess

Guest
Originally posted by chi_
That's a benefit? Since there are relatively few EQ players on this board, most would view the lack of any form of PvP as a con, not a pro.
My points are just that - my points. It's my view upon the game, no universal qualification to what's good and what's not.
 
S

spathi

Guest
imo, this game is very good fun, but as has been discussed in depth on vnboards, there are a very significant amount of issues that will need to be adressed before PvP or RvR is implemented, so many that i wont even begin to name them all, and so that square will have their work cut out for them putting it in.

Aside from that, the only other thing i find stressful about this game is the experience system which i will whine about here, losing 10% exp towards the next level whether you are level 5 or level 55. Combine that with the fact that undead significantly more powerful than normal mobs spawn at night, and can "smell" low HP, so you are sitting after a close fight, and suddenly an incredibly tough mob pops next to you and kills you. This means even at level 30 you end up spending literally ~30 hours playtime in the same place just to make 2 or 3 levels. -I must admit, i've had some excellent groups but the game is full of newbies, and it only takes one useless WHM to kill the main tank, or kill himself, taking everyone else with him.

What annoys me most is a complete LACK of xp from quests or missions, even if these missions require significant amounts of tedious travelling, searching, or mob camping, (e.g. jeuno airpass, spend 30 minutes trekking, buying maps, and finding the mobs to kill, killing around 40 of them, one at a time, taking breaks between them because they are overpowered, then finally getting the item, only to require that you do the same thing TWICE MORE someother place 30 minutes away).

For me, questing is a big part of MMORPGS, and WoW seem to understand this, i quote "sometimes you may even get 100% the exp towards your next level from questing!" but some of the things you are required to do in ffxi are way beyond your level to solo and you attain pointless (often useless) rewards, and no exp, despite the danger and death you often face.


edit : dont get me wrong, i like the game...

i like it because its not good enough for me to get addicted to (like daoc last year). It's great when work and rl is actually more fun than my toon in a mmorpg :)
 
N

-Nxs-

Guest
Originally posted by spathi
another word:

unlikely

Another word :

Planned

And how about another

Inevitable

But stop posting the good points - there are some bad ones :-

Lack of mob graphics, seams like you fight the same mobs over and over
Controlls are near impossible to learn, but once you get over the learning curve, there pretty good :)
Attack menu covers up radar
Communication with Jap players can be frustrating at times.
Taru's have no knees
 
O

old.tRoG

Guest
Heh, there appears to be more negative points than positive ones, here. :)
 
W

Whisperess

Guest
And still we all play, so it seems the good ones outweigh the bad ones? :)

( for me atleast :) )
 
A

Azal

Guest
How can you argue the class system is restrictive? you can choose ANY combo you want of all the (cba to count, 12?) different jobs
 
H

Hyuga Hinata

Guest
Originally posted by ECA

Monster Variation: there isnt enough. You will see the same monsters everywhere you go.

for example: in your start area in windhurst you will see pugils, you will also see them in qufim, valkurm dunes, yahtunga forest.

It doesnt matter that they have different names ffs .

the same occurs with mandragoras etc.

Wtf? That Finliath is just a transparent Drakulv model.

Spraggonix! Hmmm, a wildling in different colors.... wow.

Anger sprite! A brown Grove Nymph.....
------------------------
The above examples are from DAoC, which most here are probably familiar with. DAoC is far worse than FFXI in utilizing the same models on the monsters, in DAoC the only thing that's different in the realms is the landscape. Monsters are blatant ripoffs of each other only in different colors.

Gee what variation eh?
 
J

Jiggs

Guest
yeah but its pretty funny seeing a high level PT wiped by a bunny rabbit :)
 
F

Faeldawn

Guest
Originally posted by Azal
How can you argue the class system is restrictive? you can choose ANY combo you want of all the (cba to count, 12?) different jobs

Read: Compared to SW:G where you can combine any number of classes/skill tree's and switch at-will.

Plus you can only really play one class, sub-class isnt a combo as such as it's only half the level of your main. As such there is a finite number of combinations and very little room for customisation (i.e. all BLM/WHM chars of the same race/lvl are identical, the only difference is their kit, hence restrictive).
 
O

old.tRoG

Guest
I've found all players really friendly, and just about all of them playing for fun, since there's no 'end game' to go l33tz0r p0w3rl3v0l1ngzZx for.
 
N

Neural Network

Guest
Originally posted by Whisperess
Interested in knowing what it looks like in action?

http://square.radix.accelia.net/v1.asx

that's the liveCam, showing server #11 ( I think ) live from pre-programmed camera sweeps all across Vana'diel.

Note that since the camera sweeps are pre-programmed and the content is live, you might not see action all the time :)

( and yes, my original post was kinda tilted :) )

Hm, now I've had that link running for over half an hour in the background. Really nice music. :)
 
R

rg-zorena

Guest
Originally posted by Whisperess
113. It's a cooperative game ( no PK'ing, yay! )
/point /laugh
such casual game for naabs :p
 
W

Whisperess

Guest
Originally posted by rg-zorena
/point /laugh
such casual game for naabs :p
Heaven forbid there is a game out there that's trying to appeal to 80-90% of the player base that happens to be the casual players, instead of the 'hardcore' minority.

There are a few things in FFXI that appeals to those who research how things work in greater detail as well. Won't bring them up here though, if you're interested enough you'll find 'em.

I for one am glad to not have to endure all the elitist pricks ( to be polite ) that infested game like Daoc. ( not necessarily you Z, I know you're just baiting :p )
 

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