I do hope that they'll listen attentively to the players and impove the game in many ways cuz it needs those improvements.. i've been playing (an hour or so a-day) since the collectors edition came out and have really had a love-hate relationship with this game. the LOVE comes from the simple fact that it's FF (and i've been a huge fan for ages), and that this game itself it quite unique. the HATE come's from the poorly programmed un-user-friendly UI, from the laaaaggggg that seems to be alllllways there, from the lack of perfect 'polishedness' a released game should have, and sooo many more LITTLE but annoying things! this shouldn't seem like some beta or alpha..
it's funny how you mentioned about not being able to "get a sandwich" or whatever if you need to craft/synthesize something. it's sad, though, that you'd have plenty of time to make a sandwich while waiting for all the NPC's and others characters to load. frustrating, yes, but the hope of improvement hasn't been entirely crushed.
i have a slight theory on Why crafting's annoying and isn't always consistent. it's not strictly tied solely to your CLASS RANK and TOOL OPTIMAL RANK but i believe it has quite a bit to do with both the Elements and the Chronology of EORZEA: i've noticed that everything about the chronology of the game is subdivided into SIX elements. actually six Astral (light) and six Umbral (dark) elements.
the succession is this: ice (light), ice (dark), water (light), water (dark), wind (l), wind (d), lightning (l), lightning (d), fire (l), fire (d), earth (l), earth (d). Six elements x 2 = 12 (i had read this in a book at Ul'Dah's Thaumaturgy Guild which explained that time and the elements are intimately connected.) each Eorzean month has an element. if i'm not mistaken Eorzea time goes like this: 1 Eorzean day = 48 Earth minutes, therefor, 1 Eorzean month = 1 Earth day and every Eorzea month corresponds to an element (total of 12).. if you are Crafting you need to not only take into account your character's affinities to the elements (when you lvl up via point allotment) but also the crystals you USE when crafting, also each of an element.
lets say the element of the Eorzean Calendar at the time of crafting is Earth, and you have a high affitity to earth (at least higher than the other elements), AND coincidentally the shard or crystal you need to use is an Earth one, the synthesis in this case would go smoothly.
i think this is what, most likely, could be held accountable for many folks' frustrations.. it's just a theory and i could be wronger than wrong :/
please forgive all that unnecessary rambling, and thank you truely on the Great Review!!
ZAM's In-Depth Look at Final Fantasy XIV
To coincide with the launch of the Final Fantasy XIV Standard Edition, Editor Chris "Pwyff" Tom decided to take an in-depth look at this ambitious and immersive MMORPG.
Discovering Eorzea
For me, the process of really learning the game and exploring its various nuances was a refreshing reminder of the joys of self-discovery. If you have not set foot in Final Fantasy XIV as of yet, my biggest piece of advice would be to forget almost everything you know about MMORPGs. Combat in FFXIV, for example, has done away with auto-attacking, as players will need to learn to manage their stamina to perform their actions. Basic attacks generate TP, which can then be used for special attacks. As a Marauder, I was basically tapping my light attack (and missing) repeatedly until I generated enough TP to fire off a special attack. My stamina management, however, got more important as I leveled up other jobs to snag their abilities; you can use almost every other class's abilities at a reduced effectiveness. For example, my Marauder is currently using the skill "Ferocity" that a Lancer gains at level 4, and the Pugilist skill "Second Wind" to assist in my damage dealing and soloing abilities, respectively.
Leveling up in FFXIV is also quite different from most MMORPGs, as virtually everything you do raises both your "physical level," as well as your "class rank." Physical level is completely independent of your class rank, with your physical level affecting your stat growth, while your class rank (your job is tied to whatever weapon you have equipped) affects the type of equipment you can use and the abilities you have access to. Players will also have be able to pick up a plethora of "guildleves," which are basically mini-quests to gain some gil rewards (occasionally you will get a piece of equipment) and experience points.
I do approve of Square Enix's rationing of these guildleves to eight "local" leves (crafting guildleves) and eight "regional" leves (combat and gathering leves) every 36 hours, as this gives me a great burst of activity and a source of gil without requiring a lot of time spent. As long as a player is capable of logging a few hours every two days to complete his or her guildleves, they should be able to keep up with the crowd. Incidentally, crafting seems to give a great deal of physical experience, as I've put in much less playtime than my Pugilist friend and while his Pugilist is level 17 to my Marauder's level 12, our physical levels are quite close (he is 21, I am 20), as my Goldsmithing is almost level 15.
Speaking of crafting, the crafting system in Final Fantasy XIV is a far cry away from your standard "set your character to create 50 bandages, go make a sandwich" system so prevalent in other MMORPGs. Players will need to pay close attention to their crafts as they start them, choosing between three basic "styles" of crafting - standard, rapid and bold - as they try to bring that progress bar up to 100%. As you craft, your durability will go lower (if it reaches 0, it breaks the craft), and your quality will go higher. Standard crafting seems to have the best chance to succeed, with moderate gains in progress and quality; rapid crafting produces high progress gains with low quality gains; and bold crafting produces low progress gains, but high quality gains. At the end of the craft, the player will also have the ability to "Touch Up" certain crafts, thereby raising its overall quality and further lowering its durability (useful for players who want to try for a +1 craft).
Unfortunately, much like Final Fantasy XI, the crafting system in FFXIV is dense, befuddling and downright whimsical. As a level 14 Goldsmith myself, there have been times when a low-level craft has exploded in my face multiple times, and there have been times when I've completed a high level craft easily by just tossing out "rapids" every time. While it is certainly frustrating to fail your crafts for no understandable reason, comparing 'crafting styles' with other players is always interesting. Some will wait only for a yellow spark to come before attempting a rapid synthesis, while others prefer doing standard on everything other than a red spark. Personally speaking, I just like to spam rapid crafts, but I don't think it's an ideal approach.
