Both World of Warcraft and Final Fantasy XIV allow flying through their gorgeous zones. World of Warcraft has changed the method of getting flying over the years, and I look at that and how you get flying in Final Fantasy XIV. Which game do you think handles it better?
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Final Fantasy XIV[b] is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by Square Enix. Directed and produced by Naoki Yoshida, it was released worldwide for Microsoft Windows and PlayStation 3 in August 2013, as a replacement for the failed 2010 version of the game, with support for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and macOS releasing later. Final Fantasy XIV takes place in the fictional land of Eorzea, five years after the events of the original 2010 release. At the conclusion of the original game, the primal dragon Bahamut escapes from its lunar prison to initiate the Seventh Umbral Calamity, an apocalyptic event which destroys much of Eorzea. Through the gods’ blessing, the player character escapes the devastation by time traveling five years into the future. As Eorzea recovers and rebuilds, the player must deal with the impending threat of invasion by the Garlean Empire from the north.
The original Final Fantasy XIV, released in September 2010, was a commercial and critical failure. In response, then-Square Enix President Yoichi Wada announced that a new team, led by Yoshida, would take over and attempt to fix the issues with it. This team was responsible for generating content for the original version as well as developing a brand new game which would address all of the previous release’s criticisms. This new game, initially dubbed “Version 2.0”, features a new game engine, improved server infrastructure, and revamped gameplay, interface, and story. The original version shut down in November 2012 and was followed by an alpha test for Version 2.0.
(source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Final_Fantasy_XIV)
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World of Warcraft (WoW) is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) released in 2004 by Blizzard Entertainment. Set in the Warcraft fantasy universe, World of Warcraft takes place within the world of Azeroth, approximately four years after the events of the previous game in the series, Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne.[3] The game was announced in 2001, and was released for the 10th anniversary of the Warcraft franchise on November 23, 2004. Since launch, World of Warcraft has had eight major expansion packs: The Burning Crusade (2007), Wrath of the Lich King (2008), Cataclysm (2010), Mists of Pandaria (2012), Warlords of Draenor (2014), Legion (2016), Battle for Azeroth (2018), and Shadowlands (2020).
Similar to other MMORPGs, the game allows players to create a character avatar and explore an open game world in third- or first-person view, exploring the landscape, fighting various monsters, completing quests, and interacting with non-player characters (NPCs) or other players. The game encourages players to work together to complete quests, enter dungeons and engage in player versus player (PvP) combat, however the game can also be played solo without interacting with others. The game primarily focuses on character progression, in which players earn experience points to level up their character to make them more powerful and buy and sell items using in-game currency to acquire better equipment, among other game systems.
CHAPTERS
00:00 – Intro / WoW flying
03:16 – Final Fantasy XIV Flying
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So which game do you think handles getting flying better? Anyways, thanks for watching and happy holidays!
Honestly, the Aether Currents was never a big deal to me. It makes sense that they would want players to get through the end of the area's story before allowing us to fly through and bypass the lovely zone design.
reasoning for no flying in WoD: player's aren't appreciating the zone.
FFXIV sprinkles aether currents around the map, making you explore, and appreciate the zone. some wow players: omg aethercurrents are the worst thing ever.
I love walking in ffxiv. The maps look nice, and interisting.
in wow I really felt that the "overland" was just there as like a "room" becouse you need a room to do stuff in. it was nice in the terms of a nice vase or something like that. compared to ffxivs vase that has some nice flowers lovingly arranged in it. That sounds stupid but it is how I can describe it. or like a restaurants food vs your grandmothers.
and tbh I always get my currents just becouse I HATE the blank map, I MUST explore it! (ignoring any and all else)
I completely forgot how they handeled flying previously in WoW… Just buy a licence. That you can buy when you have the appropriate level. On one hand I understand the requirement of "earning" something, but yeah, Blizz went completely overboard here. Some speculate that they do this because the zones keep getting smaller with each expansion, so forcing you to do stuff on foot makes the zones appear larger… Whichever it is, its annoying. I have no problem to finish each zone's major questline and finish exploring the zone (this is pretty much what is required in FF14, too), the problem is that you also have to grind out several reputations (four or five), and then in the next major patch 2 more reputations – plus the new major storyline and zone exploration. And thats just stalling.
In FF14 you have (at least from Stormblood onwards) two zones were half the map is locked, so unless MSQ brings you there you wont be able to fine all Aether Currents. But still… a bit questing, some exploring, done. Personally I love it. I like the shift in perspective when flying – and some vistas are specially created with flying in mind.
Im actually not that mad at blizzard for pathfinder. Unpopular opinion but i did world pvp a lot and in warmode it really sucks that your oponent can just fly away :D. It kind of ruins it for me ( i play arms warrior or reta pala ). I didnt mind dungeons being hard in Cataclysm. I always welcome challenges. In wotlk it felt stupid that a healer could never go oom in hc dungeons. If something is really easy i lose interest in doing it. Im playing season of mastery now, and i really dont mind walking around places and slower progression. I guess to each their own, but i dont think blizzard made so many mistakes. ID say their biggest was adding so many QoL features that IMO ruin the game. Everyone does not need to have access to everything. Best gear being an example.
Back in wrath of the lich king everything was conceived with the idea that players will be able to fly in the new zone. From the geography of regions who were huge to certain quest lines that required to fly.
Then in warlords of draenor, while the regions were still huge, they had not the time to implement all the quests they planed for the expension and some regions were not used but accessible by flight. Therefor time gating flight was a good solution to give them time.
Then they see that removing flying save a lot of efforts. Regions can be made small and with tricks like mountains and ravines it is easy to falsely make it look bigger. Smaller regions, less work.
See shadowlands right now. 4 really small regions. On ground it takes you not much time to see all. Only the tricky features (mountains, ravines…) make it longer. In flight anyone would have instantly seen the smalleness of the zones.
In FF 14 it's almost the same tricks because regions are smalle there too. (to bad because regions are beautiful). So the time gating of flying as the same purpose. But it is far less tedious to unlock flying in ff14 than in Wow. Mostly because players don't have to search far for the quests and locations needed to do that. Only do the main story line.
I don’t mind with the aether currents because going around the map to collect the currents and questing is better then GATEKEEPING from REP and DAILIES
There is a grind in FF14 if someone is inclined to do so. The Shared FATE system grind which earns you Gems to purchase mount speed. This only applies while grounded though.
WoD zones were never originally designed for flying (an arrogant move by Blizz in the first place, thinking people would never want it eventually)
Redoing all the zones for flying was a very tedious chore that took quite a while to finish
Pathfinder was a very tedious chore that took quite a while to finish
It sure feels like anytime Blizz gives in to player wishes, they do so with a 'fuck you' style dagger twist right back at players – I've never been against experiencing the zone's story while grounded, but it's an understatement saying Blizz went overboard with how it's earned.
FFXIV has the most reasonable system I've seen because
(1) flying unlock is there at release
(2) unlocks are zone by zone
(3) you get most aether currents by completing the zone's main story
(4) most aether currents in the world are along the route of MSQ – worst case scenario, there are some stray currents missed – it's no harder getting those remaining currents than it is doing the Explorer achievements in WoW
(5) right away, they even give you a compass to help find the aether currents (you can actually unlock all flying without a website)
Is it not that in SHB with mount 2 speed you move as fast as if you are flying?