asiren | Losing My Patience with FFXI (Reply)

I've been thinking about quitting FFXI. The only thing that is keeping me from actually doing it is the friends I've made in the game. The game itself is going in a direction I dislike. Most of the new 'features' Square-Enix added to the game are features I don't care about or outright hate. Examples:

The Wings of the Goddess Expansion

Maybe it's because I hate Lilisette and I don't care about Cait Sith. Or perhaps it has something to do with the initial installation being much SMALLER than the Treasures of Aht Urghan expansion so it looks like a rush job of an expansion. Whatever the case may be, the story isn't keeping me interested since I hate Lilisette, one of the 'main' characters (spoiled brat). Yes, go emo some more about making the problem you were trying to fix WORSE because you were too short-sighted to think of all possible scenarios!

The "Mini-Expansions"

Aka, the Add-on Scenarios you must buy to get some of the 'cooler' looking armor and stats. (A Crystalline Prophecy, A Moogle Kupo d'Etat, & A Shantotto Ascension) Not big enough for a new expansion pack, and from what I heard, the stories are not too good either. Just another ploy to milk the cash cow.

The only one I'm actually interested in is A Crystalline Prophecy because it finally ties a loose end that started with the very first FFXI trailer. But the other two? Just more crap.

The Augment System

Random +/- attributes you gamble on your gear. Oh, and once you augment, you can't give/sell your gear to anyone except the npcs. I don't have the gil in the game to do this type of gambling, and I don't have the motivation to spend even more time acquiring the needed gil. Just look at what happened to Pnoyhypnotiq's Flame Ring.

Default stats without the augment: STR +5 INT +2 MND -2.
Augmented stats added to the ring: STR-2 DEX-2 AGI+3 Thunder Resist +13

You've got to be kidding me. The STR boost is the main reason to get the ring in the first place. Now it's augmented to be weaker; practically useless for any melee job. Might as well sell it to the npc since you can't remove the augment! 500,000 gil down the drain.

The Evolith & Synergy System

You have to keep 'stones' that take 1 storage slot each which provide some sort of boost your gear. Except the evolith stones I've been getting are crap like "+1 to Resist Virus". Oh the addition of these stones to treasure chest? Automatic /toss.

Also, to add the boost to your gear you may need a whole bunch of high level crafters to help you. Also, there's a chance of failure. Oh, and Synergy is a new craft that needs skilling up too just like every other craft. Fuck it.

The New 99 Level Cap

Getting 75 was hard enough. Now they're raising the level cap to 99 to get people to keep playing?! Fuck you, SE. You just made my white mage and warrior gimp and I'm not looking forward to having to re-gear my jobs or level them again. 6-hour parties with no break because the party leader can't find another healer to take my place are not fun and make me hate the game.

Add my disappointment with FFXIII, and I find myself doubting if I even want to stick around for FFXIV! That's with the promise of Nobou Uematsu composing the game music too. I may swear off the Final Fantasy series for good at this rate since my free time is precious. Can't say the same for a virtual item that may take 3+ years to get.