The Truth About Streaming Final Fantasy XIV

In this video I rant about my experience over the last 6 months streaming Final Fantasy 14 and my plans streaming and making videos going forward.
Follow me on Twitch: / genjigearlive

[@Anharie]

my only regret in playing ffxiv is that i didnt take my time playing it. i rushed through the story because i wanted to be ready for endwalker, and the longer i played, the more i regretted forcing myself to play it. i should have taken my time and enjoyed the journey.

[@genjigearlive]

Yeah, I really feel like that experience playing it over the 10 years it was coming out was the ideal way to do it. Being excited with friends and speculating what’s gonna happen next!

[@Gamemaster-64]

Well there some good news, alts don't cost extra so you can do that or ng+.

[@blackanof]

Thank you for your honesty. I'll keep right here, waiting for your Shadowbringers' experience

[@genjigearlive]

Ha ha, thanks! And yeah, I am stoked for it too. I will certainly praise it when praise is due!

[@Barnuses]

I think a lot of people have trouble distinguishing between hating something and wanting it to be better. Criticizing something isn't putting it down, it's wanting to see it improve.

[@nurddiii]

Just wanted to say, from one creator to another, I appreciate your honesty on this ❤

[@burtwonk]

No worries man! Don’t feel bad for not loving it. I still think Shadowbringers will change your overall opinion, but it’s still going to be on rails and that’s not going to appeal to everyone. What sucks is having your expectations set by so many. I’ll keep checking in! Thanks for the awesome uploads!

[@genjigearlive]

Thank you! I am looking forward to enjoying the game some more!

[@dantecorbett2221]

Very timely as I've recently been looking into returning to this game or elsewhere. I know Blackdesert is trending again, mmo use to be fun for me, then I took a long break and couldn't give my time towards it. Really looking forward to something to get me excited to play and re-love RPGs again.

[@gardnerelijah16]

I apprechate how candid this is. No game is perfect. I do think if you're burnt out you should definitely take a break from it. There are so many great games out that I'm sure folks would love to see you play!

[@Magnarmis]

I think it is a great idea to cut the play down to a couple days a week. The story will be much more enjoyable and make the content last longer if you cut it down to more bite sized portions.

[@genjigearlive]

Thank you! That is the plan!

[@WelfareAllstar]

I just want to say, I really appreciate your honesty. I think that most people who do follow you enjoy THAT aspect of you rather than it being just FF based. You have the ability to review games in depth and give your critique in a manner of casual / tryhard. Personally, with the number of hours you've put into this game... I would have lost some faith as well. A game needs to capture you, through and through. I'm excited for the upcoming content you're looking forward to playing because there is a whole hell of a lot of games out there that I'm SURE will spark your interest and viewers (Starfield being one of them). And for anyone who (like myself) enjoys watching your videos, I hope they will tag along!

[@michaelkpate]

My favorite all-time video game story is The Witcher 3. That was my transition game between WoW and FFXIV. You wouldn't like it though - it has lots of cut scenes. Like a lot of ex-WoW players who came to FFXIV after leaving WoW, FFXIV is my number one FF game by default - we haven't played any other. I look forward to you doing a follow-up video to this one when you finish Shadowbringers and Endwalker to see if FFXIV can climb into your top 5. And for whatever reason, I rarely watch Twitch. So I'll keep watching your KZbin videos.

[@genjigearlive]

Hey, Witcher 3 is my favorite too. It does have cut scenes yes but it has choice, a great story and characters and is fun as hell, and don’t worry about it, I don’t watch streamers either. But yes I will continue to do follow ups! Still very open to the game surprising me and moving up my list.

[@elaine_of_shalott6587]

Ultimately what it comes down to is that "best story" is a matter of taste. A lot of the games you sited as better just aren't my cup of tea and I think the story of ARR is sinfully underrated. I'd put it at an 8 on first playthrough and a 9 on post Endwalker replay because of how well everything dovetails together. But as far as streaming I'd always rather watch a streamer play a game they enjoy. I've got you subscribed and followed and when you are playing games I enjoy watching I'll be happy to stop on by.

[@genjigearlive]

Thank you! I appreciate it. And yes of course there is always preference at the end of the day that is going to decide what’s best for you. I think there are still objective critiques that can be made with stories that in comparison other games can simply have less of, but that’s not really the point of this video, and at the end of the day critiques can also just not matter as much to you if you just love the game.

[@elaine_of_shalott6587]

@@genjigearlive I have a hypothesis that people who read a lot of long form fiction are more likely to enjoy the slow burn style of FF14's story. Do you mind answering my related question? Do you typically read at least one story comprising more than 500K words across at least 3 books in a year?

[@genjigearlive]

I might be the outlier to your theory, the current book I am reading is Anna Karenina. My theory is that the people that LOVE FFXIV don’t play a lot of newer western single player RPG’s or newer story based games like Red Dead 2, Cyberpunk 2077, Witcher 3, Skyrim, Disco Elysium, Last of Us, or God of War. All games that tell better story’s, have better voice acting, story, world building, animation and even music. I’d love to test my theory, but my theory also states that people will just say they have played those games and they didn’t like them in order to make their opinion more valid. There is definitely a type of person that like different games. I think trying to flush that type of person out is super interesting but I feel like talking about it just makes people angry because it feels like you are being put into a box. I guess for myself, I used to think Final Fantasy games were the best stories and they definitely do it well, I was kind of afraid to play more action based games because I thought I wouldn’t be good at them, and I assumed they were made for “bros” or people who didn’t appreciate story like I did. But I eventually grew past my mindset and tried all types of games out and found out that my assumptions were wrong. I think a major flaw of most final fantasy’s is that they try to tackle too much and by doing so they don’t develop their characters enough. The games they do this well are the ones I enjoy the most. For the most part FFXIV delivers story by standing around and giving long explanations for things. This pales in comparison of the subtleties of Dutch slowly going insane in RD2 and Arther slowly realizing his own mortality, or the amazing performances from Jackie Wells in Cyberpunk, or Johnny’s slow character arch from hating you to wanting to sacrifice himself for you, or you Visa versa depending on what you choose. Or the opening of the last of us when Joel’s daughter gets killed in his arms and the ending when he selfishly saves Ellie. I guess my point is, I don’t think a lot of people who play FFXIV even know what I’m talking about, they just decide FFXIV is the best story because it’s long and sometimes people sacrifice themselves and die. (Which we can almost ALWAYS see coming from a mile away) I would be happy to chat more about it on discord or on a livestream if you like, YT comments might not be the right place for this conversation, but at the end of the day I just don’t think FFXIV holds up to modern story based games and I have 100 examples of why.

[@elaine_of_shalott6587]

@@genjigearlive Yeah. I'm not just talking long books I'm talking about a specific story structure. I find the story structure of FF14 and its expansions to be like a well structured sci-fi or fantasy series. That's why I specified 500K words across at least 3 books. That's about the minimum for that structure.

[@elaine_of_shalott6587]

@@genjigearlive And the real issue for me with the discussion isn't the youtube comments format, it is that you are in Stormblood. I can't talk about how plot threads and character arcs started in ARR flow through every expansion right through Endwalker until you are caught up. As for those other games, I admit I don't play M rated games. It's a personal choice, I don't like all the unnecessary blood and gore that most of them contain. A skilled story teller can draw the emotion out without needing to resort to that crutch. I believe most of your examples fall into that category. If you can recommend one that doesn't and is available on Steam I'd be interested in checking it out. I have played HZD which was a fun story but lacked the emotional depth I am accustomed to in FF14 or in my prefeered novelists work.I don't necessarily think FF14 is the best story of all time, for one thing I hold that nothing that isn't still appreciated 50 years after its creation can earn that type of title, you have to see if they stand the test of time. But I would definitely put it in my top 5 game stories overall.

[@darthdan]

Players and internet as a whole tend to exagerate but generally speaking most people agree that Heavensward, Shadowbringers and Endwalker have great stories. However people also tend to forget pacing issues, fetching quests etc in ARR/Stormblood and certain game elements that are not that great.. thus overselling the game. It's by far not a perfect game but it's still pretty great :) People should enjoy for what it is. I quit in ARR and nearly quit again in Stormblood when I returned. Glad I persisted tho, Shadowbringers is to this day one of my favourite stories in any game but do not expect perfection there either. Cheers man, good video :)

[@genjigearlive]

Thanks, it's nice to hear reasonable opinions like this!

[@SeaborneWhale]

I think my biggest issue with FF14 has consistently been the hype- I ended up loving ARR and StB, despite those often being talked about really negatively in the community, and ended up being fairly disappointed in ShB which everyone told me was going to be the best. It's not an experience I've really had before because I play mostly singleplayer games in a bubble, but in an MMO it's pretty much impossible to not end up being influenced in one way or another by the community I still love the game and am looking forward to EW but I've definitely lowered/tempered my expectations, which will hopefully lead to me vibing with it

[@genjigearlive]

Nice, yeah I can totally relate as I usually play single player games too. I think I will be able to enjoy the game a lot more now that I have re adjusted my expectations.

[@SeaborneWhale]

Yeah I've come to realize expectations are really important for me to manage with games- hype is always a killer for me, but if I walk into like a '7/10 videogame ass videogame' knowing that's what it is, I often end up loving them as personal 10/10s (things like EDF or Stranger of Paradise) I've tried more recently to approach bigger more hyped games with the same mindset but it can be hard with the internet being as pervasive as it is

[@MediArgentum]

So, FFXIV a 6th favourite Final Fantasy. I wonder if it will be bumped up to 5th favourite one after Shadowbringers. Will be interesting to come back to this after that.

[@genjigearlive]

I will definitely check back in

[@KylerStern366]

I'm one of those people who thinks this is the best story I have experienced in any media, and FF14 is currently my favorite game. However, you do make a good point. It shouldn't take hundreds of hours to "get good." That is fair, haha. To me, it was less of "getting good at x point" and more "wow I can't believe it got better!" But enjoy the game how you like and be awesome!

[@RETROtheGAMER]

I wish people didn't hype the story up so much. While XIV is one of my favorite videogame stories, I didn't feel that way until I beat Shadowbringers and Endwalker. In fact, I didn't even really pay attention to the story until I made a new character while waiting for Shadowbringers to launch to refresh myself. In my case it was more of a "wow, this story built to this!" Kind of thing. I won't deny that it was also in part that I have played since 1.0 so I was already invested in the game itself. But yea, I hope XIV ends up being an overall positive experience regardless of your opinion on the story. And as a gamer who also really likes story based games I'm excited for Starfield. I feel like that will really scratch the itch for a choice based game

[@genjigearlive]

Thank you! I will for sure complete the game and I think I will enjoy it more now that I have tempered expectations. Yeah Starfield and Cyberpunk DLC look really good.

[@jonno.alexander]

I'm not an MMO fan either and this is the only one I play. I only got into it bc postpandemic money woes forced me to be a cheapskate with entertainment and so I discovered the free trial not knowing what was ahead of me. I guess I'm lucky bc I had no expectations (only really bad impressions from it from 1.0 and Reborn from 10 years ago put me off of it for a decade knowing full well of its existence). They got me good with that trial. I played the hell out of Heavensward for a year before caving into SB's subscription!

[@saphyremerald2282]

.. I understand what you are saying and I agree to a degree... I don't like MMOs and FFXIV still is one even if it tries to be an RPGMMO instead of a MMORPG... But I don't see FFXIV as a game anymore... It's just a story that is told in a videogame format. It is too easy and it is perfect for me because I don't want to have to grind for hours to get the next piece of story or even die 2-3 times and have the storybeat fall flat because of it. It's a piece of media like Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars or Game of thrones... The last 2 extensions (ShB & EW) are the best, but they are only because books 1 to 4 placed the world where those stories takes place. Is it the best videogame... No. Is it a good videogame... Not during MSQ... There's other place to go when you want to play. IIs it one of the best story of all time... Even there, it depends... The fact that it's been going on for so long allows to have scenes like the campfire in Heavensward: Slow scenes where you can just spend time with characters that are part of the family. It's the cantine scenes of Firefly or mundane episodes of supernatural... Bottom line, it's a world where you can lose yourself into like any ongoing saga, but "because" it'd a videogame it gives you the illusion that YOU are part of the world... Somthing that no film or book can truly do the same way.

[@genjigearlive]

Hey, I am glad you enjoy it so much. I don’t need to argue with that at all, it’s special to you and you really enjoyed it, I can totally respect that! Thanks for sharing!

[@neonkaiju]

I have no idea why this was recommended to me, but it 100% mirrors my experience. I was a hardcore FF fan that began with 2/4j and this one just doesn't do it for me. I found the gameplay paper thin aside from mechanic-heavy bosses, and the story meandering. That's fine, of course, but there's a real cult out there that will NOT let you have a lukewarm opinion about the game. It's like saying something negative about Nintendo.

[@genjigearlive]

Yeah, that’s exactly right. It’s funny because it was hard for me to make that video and I got a lot of push back but I think it’s resinating with the right people you know? Thanks for watching!

[@buttonafficionado3408]

I appreciate that this fellow gave XIV a good shot, and I half agree with him about his feelings. At the end of the day, its style probably isn't to his liking. However I must say, for the sake of potential new players - there is XIV before Shadowbringers, and there is XIV after Shadowbringers. Where Heavensward is pretty good, Stormblood is good and ARR is ok, Shadowbringers is an absolute masterpiece and that's what most people have in mind when they gush about XIV. I'm not joking or being hyperbolic. The gameplay fleshes out and starts feeling good in ShB, the story is spectacular and it just feels more modern and polished and engaging. If you feel like giving it a shot, yeah, you're in for a good long time until it gets to its pinnacle, but at least in my opinion, I think it's awesome and worth a look.

[@SPERanger]

Personally, I think the overall journey I’ve had with the msq over a 10+ years cemented this story as my favorite final fantasy of all time. I’ll even be in the camp that I feel it’s one of the best in medium. However there’s no way in hell I would ever say that to someone to get them to play it lol. There are definite downsides and it’s not for everyone. I see ARR for it’s worth but I laughed my ass of when you said the real story in the noclip doc is waaaaaay better than ARR. but glad you were able to vocalize your honest opinions and it’s better to reset expectations.

[@genjigearlive]

Lol yeah I mean I don’t even mean it in a bad way, that story is super interesting.

[@Linus8472]

I played this game for 8 years, and I must admit.... I completely agree with everything you said. Especially the point where a game should eventually end. One of the greatest stories of our modern era (Lord of the Rings) was about the end of things. And those endings gave what came before greater weight. I thoroughly enjoyed this viewpoint of FF XIV. Thank you for this. 😎👍

[@mystchevious1129]

We all get burnt out and we all have parts of the game we dislike. Heck I've spent a good chunk of time being angry at the devs for hating me as they've revamped my class. But There is something in the game for everyone. Just do what you like. Take your time enjoy yourself and have fun.

[@Syastsk]

I was in shockingly similar circumstances to yours, where I started the game with the mindset of "seeing for myself" if it was the best game ever after people hyping it up to me (even my own brother IRL saying Shadowbringers was the best story they had ever experienced), and then faced problems just like this. It's kind of amazing how similar it is. However, you are much wiser than me since I kept up the "seeing if it's the best story of all time" mindset all the way throughout, which did not work out and caused a lot of drama. Shadowbringers for example is pretty good, but if one approaches it critically as "the best story of all time," well let me just say I think your commentary would continue to be negative quite often... Lowering one's expectations and just appreciating the parts that you personally enjoy is absolutely the way to go. Gameplay-wise, I think you would most enjoy BLU Mage, which has such a varied spellbook you can kind of approach things "in your own way" and break mechanics - for example, BLU mage has a spell which makes them impervious to knockback and take 90% less damage, so for Twintania divebombs you can just use that and stand still to completely cheese the mechanic. BLU also has instant-death spells which lets you instantly kill the snake adds. FF14 gameplay will always be extremely pass/fail without *much* room for player expression, but BLU offers the most out of any job in my opinion. Funnily enough for an MMO, the most dynamic gameplay for me came from trying to solo things as BLU mage, which offers depth not found anywhere else - but in general it would indeed be better to just look for gameplay satisfaction elsewhere xD In any case, good luck. It will be a huge relief to just play it casually and not expecting the world from it.

[@genjigearlive]

Thank you for the comment, yeah it seems like a lot of people agree with us that the game isn't be best thing since sliced bread, I think there may be a bias in the sample of the people who still play FFXIV to this day and comment on videos about the game, because people who didn't absolutely love it probably fell off a while ago and aren't watching videos about it anymore. But yes I think I will be able to enjoy it more now that I have tempered my expectations. But anyway, thanks for the Blue Mage tip, yeah it sounds interesting, but leveling another character to 70 sounds a bit daunting at this point. I think my Blue Mage class is at like lvl 6 right now lol.

[@Syastsk]

@@genjigearlive The trick is to go to a zone with level 70 mobs, tag one such level 70 mob single time, then let someone else (not in a party with you IIRC) kill the mob. It should only take an hour or so to get max level.

[@Cellybeans]

@@genjigearlive Fortunately leveling BLU is super stupid fast if you've got someone to PL you. I don't think you have access to the quintessential BLU PLing spot but it's possible to go from level 1 to level 50 in about 15 minutes, then 50 to 60 is about 10 minutes, and 60 to 70 another 15 or so... Still should be possible to PL you to 60+ BLU in less than an hour in a Stormblood zone. Then you'll be in a position to really go hard on collecting the blue mage spells and can do as you like with it. ;)

[@genjigearlive]

That does sound pretty cool, I will for sure consider it. Thanks Celly!

[@r2dezki]

@@Syastsk He's not in shadowbringers yet.

[@gateauxq4604]

I see it a lot that streamers get their expectations set too extremely by chat and that sucks but it’s become an unfortunate part of the streaming culture. It may sound a bit weird but keep up with XIV. I’ve played FF since the first game dropped and Shadowbringers (the next expansion) is the best FF game Ive ever played. It has an end that is very satisfying IMO and is worth playing. If the XIV servers ever go down Shadowbringers would make an excellent standalone game. Whatever you do, have fun. I hope you’re enjoying XVI.

[@genjigearlive]

Haha, it's kind of funny because it's comments like this that got my expectations up in the first place. But anyway, as I stated many times I am going to continue to play the game. Excited to see what everyone is so excited about but I am not expecting it to be better than FF7 & 7 Remake, FF9, FF10, FF8, FF16, these are ALL better games in my opinion, but we shall see!

[@lotte3863]

What makes this game very hard to recommend is that, in my opinion, A Realm Reborn, Heavensward, and Stormblood are not very good. If someone is interested in the story, I'd encourage them to play the game, but if they don't enjoy the gameplay, they probably shouldn't continue to play. Even if you're rushing, it takes a few hundred hours to get to Shadowbringers. Shadowbringers is really, really good, but it's very hard to justify spending hundreds of hours to get to Shadowbringers if one doesn't enjoy the gameplay that they're going to experience throughout all those hours.

[@genjigearlive]

Yeah, I think this is a very reasonable opinion, and I think I agree completely. I will still finish it though.

[@DantoriusD]

I can clearly see your Points and agree with many of them. For me FF14 has by far the Best Story out of all FF Games but its a unfair comparison. Like you said 14 is an MMO that evolves with Time and also continue the Story with Time. Also i cant Say Endwalker is the Best Story because without the Context of all the other Expensions it makes absolute no sense. So i would say with all the Context and FF14 as a whole from 1.0-6.4 yes it is the Best FF Game. But seperate by each Expansion no its clearly not. Also for me a big Factor is the Time i already playing the Game. I play on and off since 1.0 did all the Content, did all the Trials and Raids on Patch and also did all the Ultimates. The Story had a way bigger impact for me when you do it on Patch and after that you had the time to absorb all the New Patch Story, discuss with Friends about whats coming next, search for all the Hints and Breadcrumbs and also doing all the Sidecontent. Its a complete differend experience then doing all the Content in one go because its already available.

[@genjigearlive]

Yeah I think this is a great point. I think it’s cool that I can experience the story now but I shouldn’t pretend it’s the same as playing at release. There is something about waiting for patches and playing on launch that can’t be replicated, and that is okay, I think I would feel different if I played everything slowly over the past 10 years, that makes sense.

[@katarh]

That's a crucial point. ShB and EW only fall under "best FF stories ever" for people because they have so many years of build up leading to a resolution. I couldn't imagine trying to binge the game to get to them. XIV's story was always meant to be a drip feed infusion with lots of downtime. (Heck, I found that XVI felt better to me when I slowed down and played it in 3-4 hour chunks as well.)

[@DantoriusD]

@@katarh tbh im so happy FF14 is Build this way. I love Raiding and i love all the Hardcore Proggress with 16+ Hours raidtimes. But once its done i can decide for myself what im gonna do next. Do ex trials, do some Gold Saucer, Chat with friends...etc. nobody forcing me to play i dont have to grind 5+ Hours every Day because of losing progress. Atm i log in once every Week do my Raid Reclears for 2-3 Hours and also do some expert Dungeons and them im off till next week. Once everyone got the BIS Gear and the Mount i probably take a break until the next Expansion and lose absolute nothing. My Gear will still be viable till next Year.

[@8BitCerberus]

As an old-school FF fan, from the very first one, my favorite has been 6. I didn't think anything could top 6. Even playing FFXIV I loved it and I loved all the nostalgic nods to the past FFs, but "best Final Fantasy" it was not. And then I did Shadowbringers, and it was like "oh... oh, ok! This could make me rethink things" and then Endwalker really solidified it. So yeah, it's now my favorite Final Fantasy. I really, really hope someone figures out a solid private server, preferably self-hosted, because when the official servers eventually get taken down, even if it's 20 years from now, I'm going to want to be able to play through this again. I've also never been a big MMO player. I used to think it was the combat and fetch quests, but now I see it's the lack of story. Or at least the lack of an interesting story. Most MMOs are meant for you to get to end-game as quickly as possible so you can then spend the rest of your life grinding away in raids and dungeons, for that 0.01% piece of gear that you and 10 other people in your raid need so good luck on the loot roll... IF it even drops in the first place. I even played FFXI for a few years back when it first came out, but it quickly became little more than just an interactive instant messenger where me and friends would hang out. But FFXIV really opened my eyes to what an MMO, given a proper story, could be. I know you mentioned it seemed inconsistent and disjointed, and it does for a while. But just know that it does all come back around and tie things together. Even things you thought were one-off and otherwise unimportant things in the grand scheme of if, come back. That all said, Final Fantasy, and really JRPGs in general, haven't really ever been like western RPGs and CRPGs/TTRPGs, where choices actually matter and affect things. Final Fantasy has always been about the story and kinda on rails from start to finish. I do love both styles, and I think for different reasons. I love western RPGs for making your own story. I may play through the main campaign just because, but they're usually not all that interesting (with a few notable exceptions, such as The Witcher or Baldur's Gate). And I love JRPGs to experience their story and meet their characters. They're more like reading a book or watching a movie vs. playing D&D/TTRPGs.

[@fredneckteddy]

yeah overhyping FFXIV is a big issue I have found in the community. I mean it's a great game when you get to the expacs......Where you are in the game, it's understandable that you feel that way. If you're used to solo RPG games where there's a beginning and end then MMOs may not be for you. However, with that said, FFXIV has a great habit of rewarding those who slog through the mire to get to the end and I must say that the rewards are worth the slog. it's not for everyone for sure. If you continue to play FFXIV I encourage you to temper expectations and hopefully be pleasantly surprised when you "get to the good".

[@genjigearlive]

Yeah exactly, I am tempering my expectations. Yeah FFXIV has big BIG moments, and they are great, but it doesn't retroactively make the slog less sloggy. There are plenty of games that do a better job and delivering story throughout and not just during the grand finales. But yeah, like I said, it's a good game for sure and maybe just not for me, though I will still finish it.

[@maligor]

@@genjigearlive I think no small part of this is recency bias - EW and ShB is what most people remember, and no doubt it's well done, but it clouds the memory of how much a slog the earlier expansions are.

[@genjigearlive]

Yeah that makes a lot of sense too

[@Asmodean1111]

I'll be honest, best game of all time is something that should never be attached to an MMO. Best story tended to start coming up after Shadowbringers and I agree, but only because that is when you character starts to "voice" themselves more in cutscene more and more and more story threads link back to events. The story starts to become more your own there. That is where a lot of hype for story comes from. Endwalker, with is the current era of the game, however mades the whole journey come to be worth it. Once you are done with 6.0 you can walk away and have the whole Story of this sage and never play ff14 again. Me, I'm looking forward to what is to come after because they place up enough hooks that I care about this world. Most FFs I don't care at all for the worlds and only like them for the characters. Like only 7 and 16 have worlds I care about I would love more storys in them long before or after the current storys of those games. As for the ARPG, I can understand enjoying them for gameplay but please don't act like you really have a choice... just look at how Mass Effect 3 turned out, your choices had minimal impact in the grand scale of things. Ever since that I avoid "choice matters" as a tag line of a game unless it's entirely standalone.

[@Barnuses]

I'll preface this comment by saying I don't watch your streams. Nothing personal against you, I just don't really watch any streams. Not my medium for gaming content. I say that so you know I don't know how you personally play the game and I'm more speaking generally through the scope of what I've seen on these KZbin videos. With that being said, I've commented on a previous video regarding the difficulty. How all MSQ fights are going to be easy as they are designed for everyone to be able to complete. At the point in the story that you are, you have plenty of Extremes you could do for a challenge. If your community is big enough, you could also minimum ilvl the raids and trials beyond the Coils of Bahamut. It's very unfortunate how people keep hyping up the later parts of the story. It makes it seem like you need to rush towards the end. You mention that the story isn't a cohesive single plot that runs through the whole story. Which is kind of true. Each expansion is written with a insular story in mind. However, I think what people are so excited about is to see how all these stories come together in the later expansions. Because as people say, SE like to use the whole story buffalo. Things that might seem unrelated or incomplete usually come back in one form or another. But I think it's just as, if not more, important to identify all the strings before following them to their end. I'm speaking entirely personally on how I play most games, not just FFXIV, but I play games to play them, not to finish them. If that makes sense. I'm not just trying to put another notch on my belt of completed games. I want to experience them. So it personally irks me when people say "just get through this part, it gets better later." or whatever. Most people had months or years between each expansion to contemplate or reexperience parts of the story to appreciate it. Then for someone new to come in and be told to rush through it and expect them to appreciate it the same is ridiculous. FFXVI is completely uninteresting to me. Nothing about it is appealing. But I know there are people who like it. You don't have to like every game or every aspect of the games you do. Play how you like. The purpose of games is to distract us for the ever approaching nothingness that awaits as all at the end. May as well try and enjoy your time playing instead of just rushing through.

[@genjigearlive]

I don’t watch streamers either lol. The point of games are to distract us from the ever approaching nothingness that awaits us all in the end? 😂😂😂 Yeah, I play a lot of games to just get distracted and lose myself, that’s why I like open world choice driven RPG’s that I can feel really immersed in. I won’t even play the main story to a lot of these games, I just go roam around and make my own story. For me I can’t do that in FFXIV, there isn’t enough choice, freedom and customization to feel like my character is unique. But I can see that for others there is enough there to achieve that. I definitely try and enjoy myself throughout the journey but sometimes story games are so linear and easy that I just get a little weary and want them to wrap up. And yes, I know the MSQ is made for everyone to be able to finish it, that’s not news to me, I just don’t like that. I think that’s a problem with FFXVI too. It really bothers me when a game doesn’t challenge me and putting in extra alternative side content isn’t the answer I’m looking for. Witcher 3, Elden Ring and Cyberpunk are the PERFECT examples. There are hard side content bosses you can do and that’s great, but the main story has a BUNCH of fun challenging situations that require you to really make an effort to get past. I feel like games that are too easy don’t respect my time, it’s like why am I even doing any combat if a brain dead bot could be programmed to do this for me. Anyway, thanks for the comment!

[@Barnuses]

@@genjigearlive Being an MMO obviously the social aspect is the main point, otherwise, why make it online at all. So you end up with those MMO style fetch quests and such. FFXIV is a bit different from a lot of MMOs because they put so much emphasis on the story. So much so that it seems like they just want to put the story out there without much consideration for gameplay. And leave the social aspects to fill the void. I personally don't really like the gameplay that much. I actually think FFXI did gameplay better as an MMO. But I genuinely think the lore, story, and characters of FFXIV are good, which keeps me coming back. But I know it isn't for everyone.

[@genjigearlive]

Yeah, I think it is probably one of the best MMO stories and for people who play a lot of MMO’s this might be the best story they ever played, but for someone who plays a lot of single player games it just doesn’t compare to all the other experiences out there. But yeah, the social aspects are for sure the draw.

[@tretrebul]

Stormblood does that effect on people i guess.

[@Rennat9002]

If it means anything to you, I have never played ARR patches, Heavensward, and I almost quit during Stormblood. All three of those games were incredibly boring to me, and I agree that a game shouldn’t take that long to get good. I bought story skips for Heavensward almost immediately, at like level 53, because I had skipped the previous patches, and none of it was vibing with me. That said, even without context, shadow bringers hooked me really hard all the way through to Endwalker. It wasn’t until after Endwalker that I went back and played the first three games from the beginning, including all of the 8 man, 24 man, trials, and beast tribe content. And that was a rewarding experience, and one that has lived rent free in my head daily for over a year now. I’m not saying it will be the same for you, the game definitely should be better than it is earlier than shadow bringers. If you don’t want to continue, that’s totally okay. It’s a shame it takes so long to get good, but it DOES get incredibly good, and it makes everything that came before it good. Rant over, have a great day!

[@genjigearlive]

Thank you for this, yeah I am super open to being surprised by the rest of the game, and I will still play through it. And it’s the same with me for games that hooked me, I didn’t really pay attention to the Witcher 3 story but after I got hooked I just replayed it because I loved it and soaked it all in. So yeah, still very open to loving the rest of the game and I don’t hate the game as it is now.

[@anteprs7908]

if you judge a mmorpg by single player standard your criticism then isnt valid

[@saitoXamaterasu]

my best advice? dont read chat from your stream XD is full of bad takes and anoyying people, ff14 is a good game , but play for you is a better experience

[@genjigearlive]

Lol yeah sometimes they are annoying

[@Wray62]

The overhype can always be a problem and the game definitely has flaws, but I don't think it's fair to compare an MMO to a single player game directly.

[@genjigearlive]

I know what you mean, but people saying it has the best story in any game ever, and that it has the best Final Fantasy story means that I HAVE to compare it to single player stories. Can't make that claim and then say it's not fair to compare it to 90% of video games. If I were doing a day one fair review considering other MMO options then sure, but this game is 10 years old there are plenty of KZbinr's who have already done this, I am setting out to test the claim that so many have made, that it is the BEST story in gaming. Not the best story in MMO's, I wouldn't be a good judge of that.

[@Infeston]

I completely understand your point. I personally love this game and the story, but I personally quit this game during Stormblood, because the story can be such a slog and only picked the game back up after two years. If people are talking about "best game of all time", they are propably mostly referring to Heavensward, Shadowbringers and Endwalker. Stormblood and Realm Reborn are mostly regarded as the weakest parts of the story. But the more time I invested in the game, the more I also appreciate Stormblood and Realm Reborn. I think with MMOs, you don't have to see them as games in the classic kind of way. They are more like breathing worlds with players inhabiting it. From all MMOs FFXIV is propably regarded as the least "MMO-like" MMO out of all of them, because it has a lot of single player stuff in it. But in general it helps if you view MMOs not as classic "games", but more like social media platforms, where you can find similar minded people. You also have to look at different parts of the game as different forms of content. For example: 1. The MSQ should be viewed more like a tv series with each patch being a new season, instead of a game. 2. The Extreme Raids are more like games, which often are similar to rhytm games or fighting games. There is a video somewhere which compares Tekken and street fighter combos with FFXIV rotations. 3. Crafting jobs should be viewed more like all those farming simulators 4. Housing should be viewed more like Animal Crossing. 5. Deep Dungeon are more like those rogue-like games, where you have to climb different floors 6. Eureka and Bozja are a different kind of beast 7. PVP in Final Fantasy XIV is more like dumped-down version of Team Fortress or Overwatch. So you are playing different kind of games in one game in the end. This is why i think MMOs can't be considered games in the classic sense, but more like social spaces with game elements in it. But I definitely think that Square should "fix" some parts in Realm Reborn and Stormblood to have better pacing. Especially the whole Ruby Sea Arc and also some parts in Realm Reborn before you get to Garuda. Character customization is also a critique which is often voiced. You don't get the ability to choose crazy abilities and talents. But this also often has to do with FFXIV being an MMO and the devs not wanting some classes to be overpowered, because they have crazy abilities. About the story not having a clear end: This propably also has to do with the game being an MMO. But I think you will propably get some kind of closure at the end of Endwalker for example.

[@genjigearlive]

Thanks for the comment, yeah being my first MMO I am definitely learning a lot the genre.

[@grygaming5519]

I dont watch your streams but I do consume your content as it hits my feed time to time. There's a few issues that both are mainly directed at you from a consumer point of view. Others directed at the community and part of it at the game. So foremost, from consuming your content you always exerted a mask over the fact you were not enjoying the game. That the MMO aspect itself was just unappealing but because of the bump you got from playing you were now caught in a issue to keep going or drop...risking lots of unsubs. Then the negative prods at the game from lack of customization, lack of combat or lack of difficulty kind of gets grating. Its as if there was no consideration to the space the game sits....that is an MMO and to that the development team has to sacrifice some aspects of customization, combat and difficulty to balance the game for the general audience. If anything XIV kind of hits the healthy middle where all the jobs(classes) are viable in the content without any issue. Other games like Star Wars the Old Republic and World of Warcraft actually have issues with class balancing with specific classes being dead/underpowered/undesirable for content even that of the story. I mean its easier for the development team to balance 19 job classes vs the 36 jobs and specs WoW has without one class overshadowing the other. The other issue is that you come off with an expectation of failure for XIV, it may not show on the surface but below the surface you want the game to disappoint you. So even when new information kind of comes in, its the confirmation bias that kicks in. At least that's what I'm seeing from most of the negative content you placed for XIV. Now onto the community. You're going to have people who will try to over hype, oversell and overall try to ruin the new player experience for streamers. its happen before its part of the reason Asmondgold quit 14 because it was just people going after him relentlessly. There's just this weird subsect of the community that goes mental for no reason. Its the "experience it my way or the high way crowd". Now the game. I've said for a few years already that what's hurting the game overall at the end is the lack of difficulty in the MSQ. That because you can just place face on keyboard and roll your face multiple times to clear content you can do the rest of the content presented. That in of itself makes it harder for experience players to find new blood to rotate into harder content since the game itself doesn't teach you well enough to play your class at every 10 level capstone. They also severely dumbed down certain classes (Monk, Summoner) because it created a vast skill gap between some players. while ease of access is the price you pay for playing an MMO...sometimes things come at a far higher cost than normal.

[@genjigearlive]

Thanks for all your comments the past months, I appreciate it. I will make some more videos soon about particular things in the game were I will discuss some of the things you address here.

[@grygaming5519]

@@genjigearlive I'm honestly not trying to kick the chair from under you but I've seen a certain streamer who pretty much threw a childish fit once they finished the MSQ because subs/views decreased. Its kind of a known quantity that people will consume MSQ content again/ emotional parasite new players because one its fun and two its always nice to get fresh blood into the game. As it keeps it generally healthy. There's always room within XIV for content creators, its all about finding your niche so to speak. However I do think and this should be look at by anyone trying to break into KZbin gaming content (im speaking as a consumer not creator)....trying to be the 'X game' guy often leads to pigeonhole or being stuck that you cannot do any other content besides the 'xgame' you started on. Ive seen some good CoD players lose subs once they decided to try something else. It can also be the reverse you hit that vein and bring in new people once you dip yourself into a new game. I mean granted...fanbases are weird and people will just complain for the sake of complaining. The odd thing is as much as I kind of complain about MSQ difficulty, a lot of the game does passively teach you mechanics/how to play through MSQ progression. Example Binding Coil mechanics can be found in several Heavensward dungeons, Alexander mechs in Stormblood, Omega mechanics in Shadowbringers and [Redacted] mechanics in Endwalker. The said mechanics are from the savage fights adjusted slightly for consumption. However if you ever do the savage raids for each of the Expansions you'll find those mechanics peppered through all the dungeons. It'd be like "wait I saw this mechanic in this dungeons so it came from here...and why does it hurt more" kind of feel. Another thing to note, ARR and Heavensward were considered the most experimental phases of XIV before the team decided to pick the best of what worked and stick with it through Stormblood and beyond. Its pretty much a pivotal reason why Hard Mode dungeons were dropped in favor for what is now the current template Also the biggest thing to happen for the team was having Ishkawa who took over as lead writer for XIV at 4.1 be the head writer for two expansions (she also wrote the Dark Knight questline probably one of the better combat job stories in the game). This is also a note that yes Stormblood was a disjointed mess and the community who experienced it sees it as a varable degrees of 'why' due to the knowledge that two writers were in charge one was specific for Ala Mhigo and Ishkawa was in charge of the Orthard sections until promotion to head writer at 4.1.