"SUCH An Improvement... It's Insane!" | My Stormblood Patch MSQ Exp

[@bellulargaming9515]

I started to get the *big feels* at a few points watching Michael talk in this video. That Nanamo/Raubahn cutscene, seeing Tsuyu again... and man, Tataru's face when we return safely. Boy, this game is special. - Matt Anyway, wishlist The Pale Beyond ;) bit.ly/TPB_Steam

[@Blitzwaffen]

There's even more in the Tsukoyomi fight. During the transition off the intermission she speaks about the bloom of the Spider Lily. More specifically the red spider lily is a flower used to mark the graves so those who pass on can be lead to the afterlife. It is said to lead women of ill repute to Buddhist hell. And the red spider lily has another name as the "Abandoned Child Flower."

[@itsthevirginXD]

what gshade preset do you use? Or did you make your own?

[@itsthevirginXD]

Also wishlisted pale beyond! Looks great

[@Rhaethyn]

So regarding super difficult versions of duties, I think they *might* be doing that now? In 5.3, at least, you can manually remove the Enhanced Echo buff, and that makes the relevant duty a genuine challenge. You'll probably need potions and food, if you're playing a DPS.

[@ニャ-g7g]

When you begun Stormblood I left a message "This man of culture will appreciate and taste this expansion to fullest" I'm so incredibly happy to hear this now. I used to think I'm the alone in this because it was only me who loved SB but finally there are more people that realize its Weak strong and great bits which together crates an amazing expansion. Im so happy so happy

[@CaptainWolverine1993]

The auto correct shitpost for ShadowBRINGERS had me in bits xD

[@maleficios1987]

i lost it HAHAHAHAHAHHA

[@mukaonline3]

Oh god..

[@miannekahkol9556]

wish we got one for all the times he said "yotsuRu" instead of "yotsuYu"

[@TheSilentsaber]

Bellular: "Shadowla..." Yoshi-P: "BRINGERS!" Just Yoshi-P yelling from the sky nothing to worry about.

[@gateauxq4604]

In that moment we were all YoshiP 😬

[@araragisenpai4088]

That was too funny LOL

[@DakonBlackblade2]

What really gets me on the Tsuyo storyline is that her last words are "I wonder, was the fruit as good as he remembered" showing us clearly that she cherished the memories she made while with Gosetsu and wished she could have lived a different life than the one she lived.

[@FabbrizioPlays]

Tsuyu does a great job in making us skeptical of treating antagonists as forces we have to defeat to save the day. It asks uncomfortable questions about nature and nurture, and while those questions aren't exactly novel, her plotline recontextualizes interactions we have with other villains and leads us to a perspective which informs the rest of the story.

[@danilooliveira6580]

Gosetsu was literally the only person in her life that treated her with kindness

[@GruntSquad92]

Now think back to the quests when you first got to the Ruby Sea with Alisaie and Lyse and how she tortured Gosetsu. And then how they 'part ways' during her final moments. Even now I think about that every once in a while when going to bed. Dunno why, but that has stuck with me.

[@scottballentine1846]

That is actually my most favorite moment in the expansion. It was so beautifully Japanese as well.

[@JannetFenix]

To me, Tsuyu's story is even better, because she does not get redeemed. There was bravery in telling a story of a broken, twisted, rotten character - created through lifelong suffering and disdain. Bravery in showing that yeard of abuse cannot be undone by a single act of kindness, a power of friendship. Gosetsu made her crave for life where she cares for someone, but it is not enough to revert damage. She got to see the light if only for a moment. But she doesnt get to live long and happily after. And its good.

[@Law-gnome]

The "holding out until the Warrior of Light arrives" duty was so amazing. That isn't something you see very often, and it really sells both the power of your character and the relationship you have with these other characters.

[@LordMazafeff]

If you pay attention to the zone dialog, reports come in talking about how the Warrior of Light is plowing their way through whole fortified positions and just shattering the Garlean Legion.

[@Skyblade12]

@@LordMazafeff When an unstoppable force meets a few VERY movable objects.

[@Eiensakura]

@@LordMazafeff Yeah, the field reports of the WoL yeeting everything in his/her path as the WoL rushed to Hien's aid made you feel how powerful the WoL is.

[@CrispBaker]

Yeah it REALLY nails down how your character has become an absolute beast

[@TheRedAzuki]

Ye it's my absolute favorite duty. Just your WoL basically spriting full speed bulldozing literally everything in their way as nothing on that field aside from Zenos is even a threat to you at that point.

[@charlesjag3407]

I loved the development to Nanamo and Raubahn to solidify them as leaders of their nations. The Yotsuyu stuff in 4.3 was so tragic. I loved the difference they showed between her as an innocent childlike girl and using the recovery of her memories to show what her environment turned her into. "Tsuyu deserved a kinder fate."

[@maybeitsyou1317]

Yeah if she was a stronger character maybe she could have just stopped at killing the people torturing her and not generalizing an entire race. But she is a whack job so it is what it is. I always loved her as a Villain because shes incredibly easy to hate. The revelations where cool but it didn't make empathize at all, I don't want to get into specifics because spoilers but yeah. Those flashback made me realize she is just like her brother. A shitty lunatic.

[@Mechanikatt]

"If only I hadn't remembered..."

[@zai5880]

@@maybeitsyou1317 Generalization of people is never good but to play devils advocate here yotsuyu has only ever been around domans that took advantage of her or saw her as a waste of space so naturally you'd grow a negative bias to people who treat you like that, maybe not to yotsuyus levels but hey fiction doesnt have to be grounded in reality 100% of the time to be entertaining lol

[@maybeitsyou1317]

@@zai5880 That is true. I agree the story was entertaining. Im not saying I didn't enjoy it. All Im saying is I don't have much empathy for the Yotsu character because of how far she took it.

[@zai5880]

@@maybeitsyou1317 Sometimes characters who just wanna watch the world burn can be a nice change of pace, especially in 14 where every character is empathetic to a fault to an extent. It's why I like yotsuyu and zenos more than most, cause they break the mold of 14 story telling with villains and just let you have fun with them as villains.

[@soliquidsnake3990]

I cried during that Nanamo and Raubahn scene so much. I started back in 2013 with Ul’dah being my starter city so that scene was much more personal for me.

[@TemLightKiBlade]

Honestly it feels more and more that that uldah is the most important starting experience out of the 3. Not that the others are bad, just we keep going back to uldah stories the most.

[@TheDeliciousMystery]

Honestly its a shame Limsa is the go to recommendation for beginners nowadays with its earliest way to get one of every role early since i tried every opening and Uldah's feels like it benefits the overall story way more than the other two.

[@tibowmew]

@@TheDeliciousMystery I actually like and use Limsa the least of the 3 starting cities. Though I started in Ul'dah, my favourite city is Gridania.

[@soulechelon2643]

@@tibowmew Yeah Gridania for the atmosphere, Ul'dah for the story imo. I got nothing against Limsa as it's a beautiful city on a beautiful coast, but I've always been a sucker for a forest village.

[@LoDu1357]

@@soulechelon2643 shall we all just appreciate how they create a different something for each and all of us :P

[@jaeusa160]

@6:35 It also works well because Asahi sas Bowlcut is flanked by more sincere characters, giving just a few slivers of "Well, maybe..." credibility by proxy. Also, if you're a Lalafell, Asahi has to KNEEL DOWN to get in your face when he reveals his true colors. So, you know what, I still won, I made him kneel.

[@ericbright1742]

Although Bellular's comment about Zenos's bathwater made me laugh so hard I nearly hacked up a lung.

[@seekittycat]

Asahi: My Lord Zenos Zenos: Who are you Asahi's whole character is about taking Ls

[@midoribookstore]

Potato life, fuck yeah! Low five!

[@littlebitofepic]

Bend the knee.

[@HeavenlyBrush]

Zenos body hopping is my favorite thing because it was set up as far back as ARR, remember the quest leading into hard leviathan? With the sahagin priest body hopping using the echo right in front of us? That was the set up for zenos doing this one and a half expansions later. They planed ahead in the story and set things up beforehand LIKE A GOOD WRITER WOULD!

[@Zazzaro703]

That truly is the best thing about this overall story. You can tell they had a plan at the beginning where it was all going to go rather than just making the bigger arcs up as they go along completely disconnected from the earlier content. Raise of hands how many people like Zovaal was actually a thing when Warcraft 3 was released 20 years ago 🤨

[@lancelot717]

It wasnt so much to explain Zenos as to explain the effort necessary to kill an Ascian-like being though. The only way to gain that power is through "divine" intervention a la a primal or just be incredibly adept at aetherical manipulation (as seen with Graha and the Ascians). What it DOES show though is that not only is Zenos a god among men in martial prowess, but he's super fuckin smart too boot. Not even the Allagans had figured out how to do what he did.

[@Wuffskers]

I only just got to Shadowbringers and I was watching Rich Campbell react to Stormblood and towards the end he was asking questions about how one becomes an Ascian and how they can have kids that aren't Ascians, but based on everything I remember from ARR and what we know of both Ascians and the Echo and how their power is compared to the Echo, it would seem that the answer is plain, you become on Ascian by the same way we have the Echo and theoretically we can do all the things the Ascians can do if we wanted to, and Zenos with his artificial echo can also do it. Obviously if we had a kid there would be no guarantee our kid would have the Echo, and it seems to me the Ascians are just the Zodiark equivalent of us and were just "chosen" and they've just been body hopping for thousands of years. Zenos is a special free agent echo-bearer though it seems.

[@lancelot717]

@@Wuffskers The "if we wanted to" part is a little loose just because we are so much less when it comes to understanding and manipulating æther, because one doesnt "become" an Ascian. I wont say much else though just because you have a lot to learn from Shadowbringers

[@alexandrostype-2211]

When we will look back to the whole MSQ, we will understand that if Stormblood is maybe not the best story, it is the central and most important plot. It's the true ending of Heavensward and the conclusion of ARR, and also the setup for Shadowbringers and Endwalker. It connects all the dots. Stormblood made the lore and the scale of FF14 so much bigger. The Story of Stormblood will be truly appreciated for what it is in the future.

[@lampdevil]

I think we're already starting to see a reconsideration of Stormblood, several years on from release and with the whole thing being able to be enjoyed in one go. It has highs and lows and divisive moments (people have strong feelings, positive and negative, about Yotsuyu and Fordola even now!) but that people feel strongly enough to still be discussing them says a lot. It was impactful and powerful, the climax of many old things and the gateway to what's widely considered to be the best of what FFXIV has accomplished thus far.

[@emgames89]

@@lampdevil Yeah I agree with you on this. When Stormblood was 1st out I was in my own headspace being like "ughhh, Lyse isn't Yda!" "This is slow!", "Ala Mhigo is just an instance!". I think my own hype and expectations blinded me at the time. After Shadowbringers and watching other people's playthroughs, I'm appreciating it a lot more.

[@sleepythemis]

In a story like this, I don't believe any of it is more or less important than its other parts. But that's just me.

[@StormsparkPegasus]

Yep, sometimes you have to take a step back and worldbuild, and while it may not seem to be the most exciting thing at the time, it elevates all future content.

[@alpsi285]

@@emgames89 goes to show what sheep you are. Stormblood is and has always been just as good as HW if not better. Heavensward a lot of flaws that people ignore but its just cool to praise HW and bash SB

[@chaoschris8194]

That's what is so great about FFXIV's storytelling: Either you know about the twist but don't care because it was done so well, or you are on some level aware of a twist, but you're so invested in what's going on in the story right then, you don't even think about it.

[@TDOTCRFH4]

oh, definitely. I'll die on the hill that a well-constructed but predictable twist is always better than a surprising one that has sloppy or even no set-up.

[@chaoschris8194]

@@TDOTCRFH4 "Plot twist" is usually an excuse for poor writing. If you never actually see something coming, it was poorly done!

[@Lightfire398]

@@chaoschris8194 Minor counterpoint - it’s poor writing if you can’t go back *after* the plot twist and spot the pieces that you might have missed first time around. Not everyone spots the hints first time around after all.

[@chaoschris8194]

@@Lightfire398 That's true. Even worse, if the "hints" are retroactively shoved in. I can't think of any company who would do that tho...

[@GruntSquad92]

I can say that even if you see a twist coming it doesn't detract from the enjoyment at all. I called the betrayal (Ilberd in particular) during the whole investigation into the Immortal Flames arc (looked like a big ironic foreshadowing to me, so it was clear to me that whatever has happened to the Flames is going to happen to the Braves), but the execution of that storybeat still blew every expectation I had for that out of the water. And you feel a sense of achievement and validation, that paying attention to the story is not done in vain, that you are rewarded, and that your intelligence/dedication is respected (and not tossed away because they want to retcon something). And no matter how much you understand or expect a stiuation, the way they dive into the feels and emotions makes it impossible for you to prepare for that.

[@Mechanikatt]

The Tsukuyomi fight is still in the top 5 for me of most cinematically impressive primal fights. Possibly top 3. It's like you said, the intermission phase is just perfection.

[@gewy982]

I personally like how cinematic the Stormblood trials are. Susanno, Emanation, and Byakko are my favorites

[@firedrake110]

Her extreme, the Extreme for the finale of the 5.0 patch, and I think Sephirot would be the three coolest.

[@ericmoll1530]

The intermission and also the music transition going into that last phase is just pure perfection. Just thinking about it gives me goosebumps.

[@khiyon]

It's perfection until you wanna farm the doggy and has to see that intermission 100 times. Cool, but let's keep it out of Extremes please.

[@firedrake110]

@@khiyon disagree. I saw the intermission like 50 times in one night of prog back when, was not in the top 5 things blaring inside my skull lol how terrible my static is at handling moons though, or telling apart which debuff is which... Those are what made me want to die lol

[@clumsyturtle8544]

Aw man, shame you didn't mention anything on the Gaius reveal. That is still my favorite one because you can predict most of them throughout the game because they set it up to were if you pay enough attention you can sus it out. But the Gaius one shocked me, I had no idea that was coming, the only thing they tease is the mask and the weapon that clearly went over my head lol. One of the few times my jaw dropped.

[@eltoncdb]

The weapon is a big tell, but I done Prae so many times actually the new VA (great Roose Bolton himself) threw me off

[@TheNCreid]

There's another brief hint at it during the scene where he and Alphinaud discover the Black Rose victims. He talks about how the Ascians express no desire to rule, but rather only want to spread chaos and destruction. Gaius' philosophy on the importance of rulership is integral to his character. But honestly, this is the kind of hint that's so passing you only see it after you already know who he is.

[@VorAbaddon]

@@TheNCreid There's also a big hint when he's first revealed, but it has a red herring. When it zooms in on the masks right after he first pops up in the burn, there's a last mask... and it's his mask from Prae. But because you're seeing the Ascian masks you more associate it with that and you don't put 2 and 2 together. I never noticed until I saw a reply awhile later and was like "... Ohhh GOD DAMMIT, how did I miss that!" But it's so well played.

[@JBoehmGames]

@@VorAbaddon He's also wearing the same red jacket that he wore under his armor, just understandably more tattered. Between that, the gunblade, and the mask on his belt next to the ascian masks, I knew immediately who he was. "Dying is gay. I'm out" -Gaius van Baelsar

[@kuronaialtani]

The devs have actually commented on this at some point, I think during an interview or fanfest. Essentially, they just forgot to ever decide if gaius was really dead or not after prae went kaboom and it was only vaguely mentioned in text from time to time such as Regula saying we “slew Van Baelsar” and all. So they decided let’s see what could unfold if we bring him back with a revenge plot against the ascians and man does it work. Plus he more than got his due in the Weapons trial series

[@Kingdomfire551]

There are extremely difficult solo bosses in Shadowbringers Bozja content, they're called Duels and only one person can do them at a time, everyone else in the instance can watch from the sidelines!

[@crab_emoji]

Besides duels there's also the Masked Carnivale for Blue Mages only, a series of solo fights designed to really get the most out of the job, which take advantage of the diverse skill set BLU has, and even have some mechanics you don't see outside of it. Enemies have varied elemental and status effect resistances and weaknesses like a traditional sort of console RPG, and fights require you to make use of things other jobs just can't do, like AoE knockbacks or massive damage mitigation, and have alternate solutions using BLU-only things like instant death skills. Most of them aren't that difficult, and are more along the lines of puzzles or open-ended challenges to find how to use the tools at your disposal to clear them, but some of them are very much straight up serious solo boss fights, with multiple phases and decent list of mechanics to deal with, which even come with their own achievements that reward you with special titles for beating them in a fairly tight time limit without making mistakes.

[@RyuSaarva]

not so difficult anymore, unless you plan to not use any future bozja abilities or any honor stat bonuses, in fact they are brain dead easy if you cheese them with casters.

[@Aquilenne]

They're not really all that difficult, just punishing since you'll generally get like one pull every few hours.

[@AoyagiMei]

I wouldn't call them "extremely difficult". I would say they are on par with Extreme trials in terms of execution requirements. Just very punishing if you mess up, and with accessibility in consideration, makes "progging" those duels more annoying.

[@ATchouMeuMeu]

The way they went with Yotsuyu's story is incredible. It's no so much about redemption or responsability for your actions, instead it's all about compassion. Sympathy for the villain, who is just another victim in the end. One that was able to rise and rebel in their own way, to walk their own path, an exceptional character not that different from us. However twisted she may be i can't help but love her and that's great character design.

[@midoribookstore]

******SPOILERS****** I had such big respect for not-Hanzo (lol jk I love Hien) when in Doma Castle after he listened to Yotsuyu give her reasons, and then come to an understanding of them, he STILL made the bitter choice as his people's leader, to cut her down. You KNOW he felt for her, and that he knew that she could have done nothing else to live, else die at the "mercy" of the circumstances surrounding her life. Tsuyu was tragic indeed, truly.

[@brynphillips9957]

@@midoribookstore When Hien says to her 'I will remember your words' and later to Gosetsu 'I will build a nation where all children can smile' I took it has Hien expressing that Yotsuyu's story was something that Doma had to learn from and do better.

[@midoribookstore]

@@brynphillips9957 Ya damn right!

[@KLGChaos]

When Gosetsu came out during the Tsukiyomi intermission, my god... I literally stopped pressing keys because it was just such a huge epic, heart-warming and heart-wrenching moment all in one. Also, you'll love ShB. It answers a lot of those mysteries that have been set up since the start. Also, Bozja has something called duels, which are basically like solo trials. Very difficult one on one fights where you use special actions to prevent certain attacks and enemies can literally one shot you if you fail mechanics. They're tough to get into because you have to play previous group fights perfectly to even have a chance to queue for it, but they are cool, hard content that requires perfect play to succeed.

[@standingbylife]

The fact Asahi gets in in the WoL's face, no matter the race, really showed how much he hated us. That aside it's really funny watching how he has to crane his neck or crouch, depending on your WoL's height!

[@midoribookstore]

Potato mode is best cinematic/narrative perspective, no contest. lol

[@andrewshandle]

One thing you forgot, Alphinaud diving into the water is the best, laugh out loud moment in the entire game up to that point. Second place is when Soroban is shocked and says "a talking turtle?" when we meet Genbu for the first time and your character and Tataru both turn and stare at him in the cut scene. There's some really spot on humor in Stormblood

[@drakelx]

I’d imagine that he wasn’t done the 4 Lords storyline. He is trying to catch up before Endwalker after all

[@andrewshandle]

@@drakelx ah, you are correct, given he hasn’t done any optional stuff yet he’d have missed it.

[@drakelx]

@@andrewshandle haha just hit the checklist part of the video myself, and yup he definitely hasn’t done any side content

[@bgtv5909]

The moment where Y'shtola reject Magnai and both the WoL and Hien shrugged it off as Sadu is RIPPING into Magnai had me laughing out loud for several minutes. First real gutteral laugh I've gotten from a game in a long time!

[@RothAnim]

I think the interesting moral question about Yotsuyu is whether we can forgive people who have changed. Of course in a fantasy RPG, this change is "amnesia" rather than the long process of soul searching, rejection of past beliefs, apologies and behavioral changes that need to happen in the real world. Despite the speed of her change and reversion, the question as to whether people can (or even should) forgive her is still a relevant one to the real world. Especially given the risk of that change being false, or being undone. Fordola, meanwhile has to take the hard route. She has to confront her past decisions, live with her choices, and face the scorn of those she fought against. One of the lines that got me was the village elder after she saves them from Lakshmi; "You are not forgiven. Not you. You I can never forgive. But I will thank you." That complexity may potentially give her a rich character arc in the future.

[@JathraDH]

They have "hard mode" solo duty fights in Bozjan front in endgame Shadowbringers, and everyone else can watch you fight the boss. It's a neat little feature.

[@theultimateevil3430]

more like watch you die because you forgot to bring dispel

[@rieyuki]

@@theultimateevil3430 lol yeah, reflect too

[@JathraDH]

@@theultimateevil3430 Isn't that half the fun though? ;)

[@Arthillis]

Yeah those fights are brutal to learn. Once you know how to do them though they are easy, it's getting to that point since there is no being able to do it over and over back to back to learn it. And one screw up means death. Your lucky if you can do some of them even once in a day. I finally ended up doing some of them the cheese method which involves stacking a LOT of powerups right before going in then hitting with shadowflare shortly after engaging.

[@troper7317]

Tsukuyomi arc still the best arc till this day, every character in post SB is DAMN well developed, Nanamo, Yotsuyu, Gosetsu, Raubahn, Fordola, Lyse. It is really really well done.

[@somnus970]

Eh...I personally disagree. She was a lack luster character that is pretty much one note. I don't really want to go into it because spoilers but she was your typical abused girl who came into power

[@TheRealJonster]

Strong disagree. She had the opportunity to rise above her past, but she decided to remain a homicidal psychopath. Her arc had contrived writing; too many convenient setups to try and push her story along. Loved the post MSQ of SB over all, but not her arc.

[@GetterRay]

@@TheRealJonster I don't think her choosing to be a monster at the end makes her any less tragic. Its an acknowledgement of how unfair the world is. It doesn't matter what she feels or if she wants to be a better person, the people around her would never allow her to be anything but. Its tragic because that little voice in the back of her head, Gosetsu telling her that she doesn't need to seek revenge, is drowned out by the sheer amount of trauma she's experienced. I don't think a character needs to have a contrived Blizzard-esque "redemption" in order to be a sympathetic character.

[@GruntSquad92]

@@TheRealJonster Sometimes a well written character are ones, who had the opportunity to rise above her past but simply don't. I am neutral on whether it was contrived writing or not, but I'll hold adamantly that Yotsuyu sticks out among the cast /because/ she was a person with weak character thrust into a bad circumstance. 'Tsuyu' proved that Yotsuyu is the product of her history. She never rose above, and instead let herself be swayed by the waves, it was such a human story. I definitely went away thinking "huh, do I remember things from my own life, that echo some of her failings?"

[@lllllShjnllll]

The fact that people are still arguing about Yotsuyu up to this day is the ultimate proof that she is well written. If she was another half assed take abused girl went wrong then people would've remember her the way they remember Nabriales. I'm not saying hers is the best arc, but it's definitely up there considering how tasteful they conveyed the subject for people to discuss.

[@knight4light]

"count edmont gives you a sense of safety" the biggest facts ever. He is elf dad. fortemps manor is home. more home than our actual home base of rising stones. Ishgard is probably what people consider home more than any other city.

[@JackgarPrime]

And you know that actual houses are going to sell FAST in Ishgard once they go up on sale. Are they supposed to be day 1?

[@Delques1843]

I am forever salty that they never give us an instanced room in the Fortemps manor like an inn room that we can log off at. T^T

[@Skyblade12]

@@JackgarPrime Nope. 6.1

[@midoribookstore]

I'm finna get a house in the Firm and move from my Shiro Med, just so I can be neighbors with Papa Eddy.

[@SventFulgur]

The Tsukuyomi fight is one of my favorites, "Wayward Daughter" still makes my eyes water. Her sins are not forgiven, but she was a product of her environment and had a chance to start anew that also brought some light to Gosetsu's brutal life before being ripped away. Excellent writing

[@GetterRay]

I think after Shadowbringers there are a lot of people who look back on Stormblood fondly because of how well told the character drama is. People went into Stormblood expecting another epic like Heavensward and they got a gritty depiction of war and revolution where you're dealing with extremely murky moral waters. Hien refuses to condemn Jiraya for dealing in sexual slavery, rape, human trafficking, ect. Fordola was a woman who grew up in a nation that she was loyal to, and to her, the Ala Mhigo the resistance fought for and murdered her father for never existed. Our heroes aren't free of sin and our villains aren't one dimensional psychos. The way of telling the big sweeping story by focusing on individuals and how they are moved by the world follows into Shadowbringers and its why they can tell a big sweeping cosmic story while still being grounded. Everything is told through the human experience rather than big epic battles between larger than life figures.

[@MelvaCross]

We were so close to saving her soul. We almost saved her from herself. But we failed. And that hurts more than anything. Yotsuyu's character arc was masterfully written and it's one of my favourite parts of the entire game.

[@paladinshark2448]

Baelsar stole the show the second he shows up again. I never would have guessed the first stereotype crazy dictator bad guy in ARR would be the best character in the game if not the Series to me is insane. Seeing him stroll up and save my son Alphinaud, immediately made me forgive him. Especially after the weapons. His VA is insanely good too. Hope Gaius joins the Scions or becomes emperor by the end. He’s earned it above all else.

[@yvindvego9404]

gaius dont have what it takes to be emperor

[@Tesskr95]

Personally, for Gaius' sake I hope he does not become emperor. He's probably the best person for the job, but I think it would break him as a person. I think he honestly deserves to just retire to a farm somewhere with his adoptive daughter and live out the rest of his days in peace.

[@tjac7027]

@@Tesskr95 His own Island Sanctuary, probably? Lol

[@denofpigs2575]

He was never a crazy dictator bad guy type to begin with. He was always a genuinely honorable person who treated every single one of his subordinates well as seen in Rhitatyn sas Arvina who himself was a conquered Roegadyn tribesman. In 1.0 he even teamed with the Warrior of Light to help save Eorzea from Nael's plans. He exemplified all the most positive traits that Garlemald, on the surface, represented. Structure, order, stability, and unity in purpose. It was just that from his perspective, the governments of Eorzea were so terribly mismanaged and weak they did not have any legitimate claim to power from the internal struggles of Ul'dah's Syndicate and Monarchy to a city of pirates that can't even maintain their own peace treaties with the kobolds and Gridania's constant submission to the elementals. Was he misguided? Sure. Was he wrong about his reasons for thinking that Eorzea's ruling body was feckless and needed replacing? Not at all. Quite literally the only reason Eorzea is standing at this point is because of you and the scions and not just because you stopped the empire and the ascians.

[@GruntSquad92]

To my surprise the Sorrows of Werlyt became one of my favourite stories. I admit, the theme that plays in Terncliff is a big part, but aside from that, the story was heart-wrenching.

[@jeffreydanielmaurer9159]

The Tsukuyomi fight is one of the best marriages of gameplay and narrative ever made.

[@Eiensakura]

Wayward daughter makes it even all the more tragic

[@ReikoFrostwolf]

Love the part where the editor put all the stuff left to do up on-screen. The rapid escalation and some of the entries got me laughing quite a bit. Good job there.

[@ryanseager123456789]

AFKing in Limsa Lominsa got me, massive part of endgame

[@eternalwind08]

Yeah, I can't wait for Bellular to get to the Extreme Raid Progression! XD

[@Nikimoney86]

ngl I felt called out by it. I've still yet to do at least half of that

[@ReikoFrostwolf]

@@Nikimoney86 it's absolutely fine to do these at your own pace. None of it is going anywhere, and all of it is optional. 🙂 For me, there are a few things I passed on for months before giving a try because I didn't feel ready, or didn't feel like doing. Never felt FOMO from it.

[@Nikimoney86]

@@ReikoFrostwolf true for the most part. What I do get some FOMO of is the ew related stuff I haven't done. I should, but I kept leaving them for later, but now I barely have time lol

[@LordMazafeff]

"Estenien is a cool fella." well, he is the Azure Dragoon

[@princessjello]

Fucking hell i can hear the phantom sounds

[@mr.mystere4999]

ESTINIEN!!! (He's the Azure Dragoon!)

[@QwertyBoredom122]

These videos are making it so I can't wait to hear your thoughts on Shadowbringers especially the Ascians.

[@osamudazai579]

One of my favorite moments in FFXIV is when Nanamo pretty much just fires Rau-G so that he can head up the reformed army of his homeland.

[@BlankPicketSign]

I've always loved Lyse, so I enjoyed Stormblood a LOT. She's charming, silly, a lil dumb, but has a big heart and gosh darn it she tries her best! I admire her!

[@AlexanderPR2]

Lyse was one of the most misunderstood characters in this entire arc. You perfectly described her and all the reasons that made me love this character even more. And for me, who play with Japanese audio, listening to one of my favorite VA, Aya Endo, bringing Lyse to life was just wonderful. Unfortunately, the people who criticize Lyse are the same people who "love" Captain Marvel and Ray from Star Wars and wanted her to be an absolutely terrible character just like these two.

[@Sucaru667]

@@AlexanderPR2 I don't think Lyse was the worst thing ever, but there are definitely problems. Lyse would be far from anyone's first choice to be commander of the rebels. She's brash, she charges headlong into battles without thinking, she spends the majority of SB having companions stop her from making dumb mistakes that would put everyone in jeopardy. And yet, Conrad picks her to be commander. Everyone supports it. No one second guesses. She has done nothing to make her an obvious candidate for leadership. Consider Alphinaud. End of ARR, he puts himself in a leadership position by establishing the Crystal Braves. He's a smart guy, but through his own inexperience and overconfidence, his organization is infiltrated, imploded, and everyone nearly dies. He takes it incredibly hard and over time his companions help build him back up, but now with newfound experience and caution that makes him a wiser person. Lyse never has anything like that. She's put into a position of leadership and she constantly second guesses herself, everyone around her says "No, you can do it!" and she gets over it, nothing bad ever happens through any failure of her own. Her success doesn't feel earned. I would have liked her time in the story a lot more if she grew more into her role as a leader, rather than it being so abrupt. I imagine this is one of the failing of the split focus Stormblood had between Doma and Ala Mhigo. I'm not even saying there's anything particularly bad about Lyse, just that her character never really fit for me in the role the writers gave her.

[@crow6558]

@@Sucaru667 nothing bad ever happens through any failure of her own? what about when the anata summon lakshmi at the peace talks? where lyse has to think quickly and problem solve, showing how she's grown and matured as a leader? you're right, she does second guess herself, because thats an aspect of her character. she spent years running away from ala mhigo and pretending to be her sister because she didnt think she was good enough. her becoming the resistance leader despite not really wanting the position is proof of her character growth. instead of saying "no, i cant do that" and running from her responsibilities, she steps up and takes control through her own skills. it's the conclusion of a character arc.

[@lampdevil]

Just rewatching the footage of the Tsukuyomi fight had my eyes welling up. That intermission and its emotional impact is a hell of a thing. FFXIV is rightly praised for its story, but the moments when it uses carefully-crafted gameplay mechanics to sell the feeling of that story are just absolutely magical. The strength of this game is not just that it has a good yarn to spin, but that it knits you into it and invests you by action and reaction and reinforcement of your character's position within the tale. I can't get enough, I'm so excited for Endwalker, and I'm so thrilled that it seems like you'll be joining us in it! Woo!

[@GypsyxDarling]

It had me MESSED UP! I am used to my emotional beats being fully separate from my gameplay ones, so I was totally unprepared. I still think of it. What a cool thing for this game to do.

[@TDOTCRFH4]

"the warrior of light's timely arrival" is my favorite stay alive countdown in gaming.

[@Akinon93]

the gosetsu and tsuyu storyline is one of my favorites in the whole game. it's just so...bittersweet. vicious enemies, somehow turned into what each other needed the most. tsuyu got the father figure she never properly had, and gosetsu got a sort of daughter to keep him company in his old age. it was such a twist, yet sweet thing, and it really brought both of their character arcs together in an amazing way.

[@holschermarc]

I would recommend everyone to engage a certain Quest called "Out of sight". Its a Aethercurrent Quest in the Peaks that starts a Questline revolving around the NPC Baut. Its a really really beautiful Story about what the Garleans did to the people and how one officer stood against it to make the people suffer as less as possible while being helpless to prevent it complettly.

[@everyonethinksyoureadeathm5773]

It is a recommended quest because you need to do it. Just to unlock flight and yes it's such a sad questline.

[@andrewshandle]

So, I did some of that quest line...and honestly, I don't see it. I didn't finish the quest line ether because I wasn't enjoying it, so maybe it improves later. Baut is the "nice Nazi", and how so many people in the town will riot if he's taken away was a bit hard to believe especially given how they all say how completely horrible every other person from the Empire treated him. Not only that they also basically side with him over the Alliance and the Resistance was a bridge too far with me. I see what they were going for, and I can see how they wouldn't trust the Alliance or Resistance because they've been living in terror for years, but defending the "nice Nazi" over the forces lead by the Bull of Ala Migho just doesn't make sense.

[@holschermarc]

@@everyonethinksyoureadeathm5773 Yeah i notices that a lot of the Aethercurrent Quests get ur attention to really good Questlines. I can generally recommend to continue thise Questlines if there is a continuation

[@holschermarc]

@@andrewshandle Well i dont know how far u got in there and how many informations on the real events u got but "nice nazi" is kind of a lacking comparision. For once because except for conquering other nations there is not a single similarity between the Garlean and the Nazis, but i know thats probably not really the main focus of ur point here. The other point is that Baut wasnt a Garlean and his actions spoke of it. To not spoil a potential continuation of the Quest or anyone reading this that still wants to do it i will not go into details (also because my memories are lacking and i dont wanna throw around half truths) but the story revolves around the villagers seeing Baut as the only one who ever protected them from the u predictable behaviour of the Garlean Soldiers. He made their live a lot better after he arrived there and they dont want him to get punished for fighting on a side he didnt really wanted to fight for from the beginning. I can see it not being everybodys cup of tea for the amount of walking&talking u have to do but for me it was a great show of the conflicts that comes after "the glorious reconquering of the legendary main character and his fellow heroes", those conflicts are overlooked in many storys of war and i like that they have put attention to it.

[@andrewshandle]

​@@holschermarc "nice Nazi" is just the name of a story telling Trope, it basically means that one of the "bad guys" is actually nice. In Stormblood, the Garlemond rank and file are flat out reprehensible. They call everyone savages, they starve people, they beat people even as they pay tribute, etc., etc., to say they lack any nuance or even subtlety is an understatement, so the idea that people in a town would shout down their liberators and instead threaten to riot if the "nice Nazi" gets arrested is a bit silly. The average Ala Mighan _hates_ the empire and I think the quest writer tries to make it seem much more even that it really is. But you are right, I haven't finished the quest line, so maybe it gets better, I did 2 or 3 extra "side" quests in that chain after getting the Flight Aether Current Orb thing.

[@Galeforce017]

I absolutely adore the Yotsuyu storyline. She's probably the character I still have the most emotional connection to for this day, a ton about it resonates with me.

[@jaeusa160]

Since you've no doubt watched the Shadowbringers cinematic by now, just know this. We got an incomplete cut (no Scions basically) of that cinematic in 4.3 when only Thancred had fainted thus far. It was the most outlandish "what the heck is even going on" tease so far in this game, because we had SO little context for this very different and distant setting going on in that cinematic.

[@hundset]

I get so excited for these, every video now I've been anticipating the next vod where you share your thoughts on the story as you go.

[@puddi8817]

Goddamn the intermission, legit teared up when gosetsu showed up. And again during the "Was the fruit as good as he remembered?". She was evil, no doubt about that, and she chose revenge when she had a chance at new life because she couldnt let go of the past. Such a sad story overall. Also, ghimlyt during release was met with a sigh of relief, mainly because the duty finder was still in tatters after the burn, which was also known as "duty finder (extreme)" by me and my FCs other healers because it was the only dungeon you got, and mist dragon pre nerf tore bad players apart.

[@GrayveStone]

Pretty sure this when the ShB and Azim Steepe writer was placed in charge

[@TheRayzorOne]

Nope, Ishikawa didn't write any of the Stormblood patch stories. She deserves all the praise she gets but I don't like that people seemingly try to put down the other writers as if the game only started being good in ShB. Nobody would care about ShB if the story was bad before, and at the same time ShB is as good as it is greatly in part because of what came before.

[@Miyao05]

Natsuko Ishikawa, the woman behind the creator of many people's favorite quest/jobs! She is amazing~

[@atelierbagur3831]

@@TheRayzorOne yes please, people need to stop cherry picking stories when they're all overall generally nicely written. I love Shadowbringers but thats because I enjoy the full weight of the narrative due to how much lore you've gone through and the build up. This game's story generally gets better and better in general.

[@brynphillips9957]

Actually Oda, who is the narative lead is still her boss. She is the lead writer in ShB and EW. Plus lets give credit where it is due. Oda's whole team is what made FF14 what it is. After all, it didn't just come good with ShB. HW is critically aclaimed for a pretty good reason.

[@seekittycat]

Shadowla- bringers 😂 editor save

[@dubblebubble3926]

I was like, wtf was that tick.

[@Dotoku14]

I really wish you streamed all of this. Would be amazing to see your reaction to Shadowbringers.

[@chobitsotaku5613]

Would be nice if he surprised us with a KZbin video of his best moments on FFXIV and reaction to all cinematics.

[@PubstarHero]

Depending on how bad you wanna no life it, you got a week. Its doable. Get the MSQ done and join us on EW launch night! Just make Michael do all the channel work for the rest of the week.

[@raiderglace8641]

Just finished 5.0 msq in to two weeks. completely doable

[@elizabethz]

Yep, I finished 5.0-5.5 in a week while attending work and school - it's 100% possible!!!

[@GetterRay]

I did 5.0 in like 3 days on release.

[@dahulius]

I don't know how the release of this video lines up with his actual progress, I could have sworn there was a clip of him on a different channel where he said he was getting into the SB patches, and that was before he released the main SB video. So maybe these take a while to edit and he's actually a bit into shb already.

[@GetterRay]

@@dahulius You have to judge by what shirt he's wearing lol. He was at 4.4 on Friday, this video was recorded a few days ago judging by his shirt being the same as another video. He's probably in Shadowbringers now.

[@Karn0010]

Hope we see your entire 5.x experience before early access next week. Thursday seems like a good day for that. That will be like a kid on Christmas Eve.

[@good_playlists]

Reallly loved how you explained Yotsuyu and Gosetsu as characters its almost poetic in a way the characters are so developed i wish Yotsuyu did have a better fate especially after everything she went through..

[@arseniykorchevskiy1564]

It’s true Stormblood overarching story isn’t as good as HW, but I really love what they did with many of the characters here - Fordola and Yotsuyu especially. Even with Lyse, I think a lot of people miss the fact that Lyse was intentionally not as competent as the other characters, but in my opinion that makes her more relatable and it makes it all the more satisfying to see her grow. I mean Alphi has grown a lot too, but Alphi is literally a genius ever since we met him, but I feel like it’s nice to see a more grounded character who isn’t as strong or smart as the other Scions.

[@specialnewb9821]

I mean physically she can probably punch harder than any of them...

[@ojon12389]

Mind that I just started ShB. Arguably, she has the most potential for growth, and I hope SE completes her story in the future. She can totally be a badass in her own right, all she needs is a more experience under her belt as a confident leader. Maybe not to the levels of Raubahn, but it could be up there in due time. With the other scions, they already had a high bar from the start. Let's say there's a 5 year time skip, while all the scions will grow a way you would expect them to, I would be most interested in Lyse on what she can accomplish on her own.

[@IrideaeSnowbloom]

I just.... kinda miss Yda. It feels like we lost a charming airhead and gained... a character that still needs some depth. Also that shocking reveal had me like "uuuh okay?". I immediately had to ask my specialist who knew the lore more than me at the point if we had any connection for that reveal :/

[@arseniykorchevskiy1564]

@@IrideaeSnowbloom i never played 1.0 but yda just seemed like an even less competent and more hotheaded lyse. Is there something that actually makes her special that i’m missing, or are you talking about the actual yda?

[@フフウェイ]

Stormblood is my favorite expansion, btw :3

[@Zenith118]

The Stormblood patches are absolutely phenomenal. 4.3 onwards was when Alphinaud really started growing on me. I also love how the game wasnt afraid to dip into some silly humor.

[@joshy541]

>observing Alphi's elegant and graceful diving technique

[@EludyaQuinn]

I've loved following along your journey as I've been just a bit ahead of you this whole time, so it's like I get to experience it myself, and then a week or so later I get to see your recap videos like this one and see you talking about some of the same things I've loved. (I have a pretty diverse history of MMOs played and I love how the mechanics are working in this game.) I hope you're enjoying Shadowbringers as much as I am, since a lot of what you talked about loving mechanics wise from the Stormblood patches is just bigger and better in Shadowbringers! I'm not done with 6.0 yet, I think I'm around the 76-78 content, so I won't get finished by Endwalker but I'll be close! Also here for the Magnai-burn train, Y'shtola's comment drove me to such laughter that I pulled a muscle in my side.

[@lucikruxapache9034]

When the Burn dungeon came out, we all loved it and thought it was incredibly beautiful. With Ghymlit Dark, we also thought it was beautiful at the time, and saw the cinematic-esque sequences(like the airship falling in the background) to be really neat. Difficulty-wise, a lot of people had more difficulty with the final boss in the Burn than Ghymlit, at least in my experience. We still found it fun, though. Ever since then, we've gotten a lot more cinematic dungeons.

[@kellynine7438]

Yotsuyu's arc is honestly one of my favorite parts of the MSQ. They did a fantastic job over the span of a single expansion of establishing an absolutely awful, wretched villain, and making me sympathize for her. After the Echo scene, I understood exactly how she got to be the person she became, and actually had me rooting for her in the scene with her foster parents. And her final scene is so utterly completely SATISFYING. Y'shtola's shutdown had me screaming YAS QUEEN at 3 am. I'm sure my roomates appreciated that.

[@ToastyCoyote]

At first Zenos’ soul floating into another body was kinda weird but then I remembered that that was shown all the way back in ARR when the Shahagin priest wouldn’t die even when killed because his essence would float into another shahagin

[@blackenedtiamat2807]

"Zenos is back, and the Scions are in for a beating!" Cuts to Thancred falling from a table. That was perfect editing! LOL

[@Nep_Draws]

Editor listing off what you still "Want" to do did you dirty lol glad you're really liking the Journey thus far!

[@johnmatthews3226]

had to do it to him

[@YaRev85]

"Extreme Raid Progression" lmao

[@jesusdiaz4305]

I came here after stumbling upon Bellular’s Shadowbringers reaction that he just uploaded (11/30/21) because I needed to know his thoughts on Stormblood, and I’m happy with what I hear. Shadowbringers is amazing all around, but I consider Stormblood my favorite expansion despite it’s pacing because it shows how FF14 managed to stay engaging after Heavensward. Stormblood is for Endwalker the same way that Heavensward was for Shadowbringers. Now, I recognize that every KZbinr’s goal is to get Endwalker ready. In all honesty though the highlight of Stormblood is in the post-msq content (specifically the Ivalice raids and Eureka). These activities connect with the Bozjan Southern Front (Shadowbringers post-msq) to give one of the best storylines outside the msq, so I can’t wait to see Bellular experience and enjoy these activities. 👍

[@Luna-ii4mx]

I havent heard people talk much about Stormblood BUT I LOVED IT! My favourite experience so far, the areas are gorgeous , Azim Steppe being my favourite to fly around in and I love the asian culture and LORD HIEN OMG HES SO HOT IM SO IN LOVE WITH HIM AND HIS VOICE ACTOR HES THE BEST T_T

[@uberpinkwarrior]

First off: Hien is best boi. With that out of the way... While I had issues with some plot and pacing stuff, I view stormblood as actually my favorite time in FFXIV history for gameplay. The healers felt more diverse and like you had more tools and had a bigger impact, the tanks were more fun (except paladin who just... ho boi did I not enjoy playing paladin in SB. Dark knight tho I loved and miss SB dark knight.) Likewise, the raids and dungeons were almost all absolutely fantastic. The omega raids I actually loved, and kept thinking about as I was doing the savage stuff in ShB how much I preferred the omega raids. Other people might not like stormblood, but I loved it. ...Except for a certain furball and his what felt like 30 minute transition period.

[@jaeusa160]

@18:15 Wish granted! The "Bozja" content zones as you will come to know them have 6 solo "Duels", ultra-lethal, real mechanics, one attempt per spawn. And yeah, the experience of those bits at the end of Stormblood, so good. I honestly though Hien was done for, that while I'm playing Hien waiting on "myself" to arrive, that I'm still going to be too late. It was a really cool experience because, when characters have had kind of "enough" screentime and development, they start really becoming more expendable for the narrative. Sometimes their story has been told, and that's just the end of the line for them.

[@PaulRizzo504]

ULTRA LETHAL is not an understatement here.

[@jaeusa160]

@@PaulRizzo504 I still remember seeing a lot of peoples' first attempts and dead within 15 seconds or so.

[@totupok]

Yotsuyu's continued story had some tropes that really irk me in stories: death fake-out after a very satisfying conclusion and amnesia. I started this arc very annoyed and ended it crying. This was written absolutely brilliantly. I was very happy they had the balls to reject the cheese and did not redeem her.

[@TheBlueDsc]

At the end of the day, even a super common Trope can be effective when written well.

[@sakuram69]

Yotsuyu really broke me hard. Her story was just so heartbreaking. It was one of the most emotional moments for me in this game... until feelsbringers slapped me in the face and shit on my broken heart in the patches. It really is a culmination effect in that expansion. It just hits so hard and so fast, and then the build up... It's really a story telling masterpiece. Endwalker is just not coming fast enough for me. It's a week away for me tomorrow and I am actually biting my nails in anticipation. You are going to absolutely love it.

[@captainkronos]

The whole concept of a tragic villain is supremely well done in Yotsuyu's story line, even if when I first met her and then her return it was filled with cliche tropes that had me doubting what they were doing and where they were going with it. But this is a shining example of how tropes and cliches are not bad when used well in the hands of skilled story tellers. So then imagine doing that and then hearing that WoW had "big morally gray plans" for Genocide Waifu Sylvannas before BFA and then we get... "BURN IT!" and the rest of her nonsense. It was laughably sad to see.

[@skieshavefallen2970]

It’s so fun watching these videos I’m right behind you in completing the content. So it’s a nice treat to hear your thoughts as I’m processing my own.

[@barsonik3855]

At this rate you might genuinely catch up just as EW comes out. I can't wait to see the next 2 vids

[@FelixRavenhurst]

What I found really cool is that Lolorito boasts that he is a Gourmand, in regards to the Saltery... He's actually part of the Culinarian questline, so it holds up!

[@Prial]

laughed to see him say shadowlands by accident.

[@Fenril76]

Fully enjoyed your review! Finally glad people are trying out 14 and having a great time. You have a big list of things to do, I hope you have a few years set aside to do them.

[@cptn_cosmo7260]

stormblood is pretty nice and it just gets better from here!

[@ninnoofthelastunicorn2693]

A lot of great music came out of Stormblood, but Way Ward Daughter holds something special. The way it comes crashing in during the fight. The solemn lyrics, the rage in the bass line and the melody. It's a closing to what is Doma's greatest failure, the treatment of one of it's Daughter's, it's failure to it's people. The way Hein reflects on the whole situation is a silent moment, it only felt like a few seconds to us, but to him, I'm sure it felts like a life time. A life time that Yotsuyu was robbed of. Doma was given a second chance at freedom. But what about it's forgotten Daughter? I often hear players lement on how she could have been saved, how she deserved a second chance at happiness, but the truth is, she died a long time ago. "Naught save the night shall know our sorrow, we give unto it our all. No more."

[@Phex1]

Matt, can you bind Michael to his chair and force him to do the omega raid before Shadowbringers?

[@CasualChris247]

after all those stormblood patches then watching the shadowbringers trailer was one of the best experiences ive had in a video game

[@els-ii3157]

I think the story of FFXIV is so good that I want to watch cutscenes and read npc dialouges more than boss fighting or killing quest mobs.

[@Etikka]

I saw that Extreme Raid Progression :'D Nice to see you are having fun, you're in for a treat in Shadowbringers!

[@firedrake110]

Man, I remember my first time after completing the Ghymlit Dark... I dumpstered that chump Ascian without taking a single hit from all the attack patterns. I actually shouted "You disappoint me, Ascian" after the fight ended, because he just totally failed to live up to the genuine article (which was extremely satisfying, since I was a huge fan of Zenos as a proper villain character, and seeing how even an Ascian couldn't handle his abilities was just sooooo gratifying)

[@FelipeCotti]

Emissary of the Dawn was actually a 4.3 "secret quest" at time of the launch. It was put on purpose after the 4.3 achievement to surprise players, being the first "role-play" duty. And Zenos is doing what the Sahagin elder priest did all the way back in 2.2. And what Lahabrea did to Thancred, for that matter. It's the same mechanic - he just wasn't aware this was a thing the Echo (or the Resonant) allows one to do.

[@lishawnstreeter6577]

I knew this would happen...SB is underrated

[@jaeusa160]

"The future system in Shadowl-[BRINGERS]" Kek! I have almost made the reverse mistake many times over.

[@chan742]

I'm guessing that by the time this was edited and set live, Michael has started his first steps in Shadowbringers, so I'll say this. Welcome to Shadowbringers. There is no mitigation ability for emotional damage.

[@33link333]

I'll be stealing that last bit.

[@Arthillis]

Shadowbringers was definitely a fun ride. Hell the whole game has been.

[@warl0ch]

The other nice thing about the dialogue of their quests is that different dialogue boxes pop up if you've done certain things in game. Like when you go around with the sultana and visit Godbert Manderville, he adds in dialogue if you've done the Hildebrand quests. Just a nice touch overall that really makes you feel like you're a part of the world. Contrast that with WOW and Shadowlands....go through the main story as a demon hunter and meet Lady Vashj...she treats you like any other class and says she wouldn't have faith in you if you hadn't killed her. As a demon hunter, I wouldn't have done that lore-wise and in fact she should recognize us as allies in the past. Just one of those polish factors that tips heavily in FFXIV's favor.

[@AaronBish]

Jesse Cox is correct; FFXIV is an RPG-MMO.

[@Tamipriest]

Happy to hear that you are enjoying the Stormblood MSQ, wish you good ride with the upcoming story

[@eternalbleedingheart]

Hopefully, Matt has reiterated to do Alex and Omega before ShB. There's such a cool pay off if you do.

[@XIV_Wolfram]

I've just finished up 5.3 and the only time I cried through the whole game was that 4.1 cutscene... and damnit your clips just made me tear up again. TT.TT No big man don't cry!!! XD

[@lhfirex]

"Tsuyu deserved a kinder fate." I can't believe how well they did that redemption story and still tied it in to villains we could despise. It does such a good job of making it clear the Garleans are the absolute worst (in ARR, there were a few too many "Gaius was right!" idiots, so they made sure we could see how bad the Empire really is in Stormblood) and showing how someone can be turned into a villain or a hero based upon what outside forces are placed upon them. At the same time, it's completely justifiable that characters like Hien and Yugiri wouldn't trust that Tsuyu's changed. It's such a strong character arc for a character I hated so much I was angry when she first reappeared. And yet, at the end of her story, I picked that dialogue choice up top because it felt true.

[@angryoaf]

That last sentence captures it perfectly. I absolutely HATED Tsuyu and at the end of it all, I was gutted. Such a painful life and end.

[@12345Granada]

i wouldn't call her end a redemption.

[@remigyfgrin8830]

I've always separated Tsuyu and Yotsuyu in my mind. Yotsuyu was beyond redemption (or, if it was possible, it would take many more years and a concentrated effort to truly change) while Tsuyu was essentially innocent. The tragedy in Yotsuyu's tale is that the sweet and gentle Tsuyu never really got to exist. I don't know if I can explain it really well, but I never felt sad *for* Yotsuyu, but rather that I was sad *with* her. Mourning the loss of what could have been, in a more kind world.

[@TillyTwitch]

My favorite thing about these video lately, its usual high quality aside, is how much you're smiling. c:

[@MistressMelancholic]

Shadowl-BRINGERS

[@yuukarnstein]

To me, until these day the ghimlyt dark is my all time favorite dungeon, EVER! the music, the pasing, the vibe, ITS JUST SOOO FREAKING GOOODDDDDDD

[@DarkKnightofAnime]

Stormblood is overall a more refined version of ARR to me in the sense where there is a stronger narrative structure compared to ARR but those pacing issues are still there

[@jeffreysmith1314]

Both ARR and SB build worlds which takes time. It would be nice if they didn't have the lulls, but they're usually building to something then it takes off. Kind of a pattern with those 2.

[@tommenno]

My only real knock on SB is that I think it suffered from trying to split the narrative between two nations. I think it could have been smoother without hopping over the continent for what felt like over and over.

[@DarkKnightofAnime]

@@tommenno I think the bigger problem there honestly is more so that it kinda screws with a lot of the in-game mechanics

[@PubstarHero]

@@jeffreysmith1314 Yeah. I know some people say StB was bad, but I felt it was more necessary for the payoffs in ShB.

[@monspeet4287]

people still complain about this even though stormblood gave so many good things for the game? seriously you need to stop downplaying an expansion based on the story alone, it just makes heavensward overhyped when the only thing i enjoyed there was the story, the lvl60 gameplay was meh and the only thing i enjoyed was ravana and alexander.....Stormblood was by far a lot more "fun" to play than heavensward. The lvl 70 skills were dope, the ps4 zones looked beautiful the raids and dungeons were just improvements, i can just keep going.

[@tbgkaru4509]

I really like the role-play sections of the game not only because the simplicity makes you jump into a class you may have not played before easier, but also because it paints the difference of skill between a "regular" person and the warrior of light

[@raven12333]

To do list: Extreme Raid Progression...... i saw that you bastards

[@PetarBladeStrok]

Damn, I really hoped you'd mention the Gaius reveal. One of my favorite reveals in the whole game.

[@arseniykorchevskiy1564]

I would love to see you react to ShB trailer! I know you don’t do reaction videos very much but the ShB trailer is really special and I love watching people’s reactions to it.

[@hyrule89]

I'm actually a big fan of the RP duties being so simplistic. Playing as Alphinaud, and really getting to feel what an Arcanist feels like at a base level, is what got me to give playing Arcanist and then Summoner a try. I ended up not only falling in love with the job, but also feeling truly comfortable with a job for the first time. Something about Summoner CLICKED, and with it came enough confidence to try doing high end stuff for the first time. My first on-content Extreme was with Summoner, and when I was invited to try Savage raiding for the first time in Shadowbringers, Summoner was the job I tried and succeeded with. And I would never have done that without having that experience playing as Alphinaud. It made me try something new, but made it fun instead of potentially overwhelming.

[@huslainemaxwell9866]

the reason Zenos was able to posess the resistance soldier is because of the artificial echo (resonant) he was enhanced with which previously allowed him to control Shinryu. This is not a spoiler but its easy to miss in the english version because they dont emphasize the echo and resonant connection as much

[@Nekros4442]

if you want to get in specifics the Sahagin Chieftain was shown to supplant his soul in other Sahagin using the Echo back in ARR

[@viciousinu4001]

so glad to hear yer review. i been waiting on this since u started and i was at that part. now one last thing im waiting fer you to review next is the end of Shadowbringers.

[@Daccura]

Great video. Severly underrated expansion imo for whatever reason.The only thing that bothered me was the beginning was kinda slow but for not really long, after that it was an incredible expansion.

[@kahoshi]

I think people often forget, but it was shown earlier than the echo allows the user to take over the body of others nearby when they die, and we know from Fordola the artificial echo is more powerful. So while I don't think its specifically mentioned, I think Zenos's super powered echo automatically took over a nearby body when he killed himself. He does not strike me as the kind of person to fake his own death.

[@rafaelnunes7688]

I love the whole arc of stormblood, the whole story about ala mhigo and the problems with the empire. I remember when i was in that last solo duty, that was sick!

[@christophertorres114]

Ghymlit Dark is by far my favorite dungeon in game, glad to hear you enjoyed it too!

[@soulechelon2643]

9:17 oh man that intermission. Brought me to tears. Could barely continue playing and every once in awhile when I randomly get this trial it gets me tearing up again. So masterfully done. edit: Aw and you had to go and show it at 10:12. Welp, back to tearing up a little again.

[@jtspender]

One of the things that I appreciate about the FFXIV story is that they have a habit of pairing the reveal of the answer to a mystery that you can kind of figure out with the reveal of a totally surprising, mostly impossible to guess plot twist. So you get the satisfaction of yelling "I knew it!!!" and feeling like your close attention and theorizing is being rewarded, immediately before *also* getting the satisfaction of a totally crazy "Holy shit!!!" mindblowing reveal. When they hit you with the twists they don't feel cheap because they've just proven they can deliver on the regular paced story beats.