Way I figure it, the more threads and posts there are about the BLM rework, the more likely SE will hear about it and decide to do something. So yeah, there's a lot of threads, but if me throwing in one more amplifies the voices of concern, I see that as a good thing.
TL;DR: How a job feels to play is more important to me than how it performs, and this is the case for a lot of players I've seen. The BLM rework has greatly disrupted this, as have reworks in the past.
I'll be real: I'm a pretty casual player. I don't really do high-end content. I'd like to, but party finder scares me a little bit, and I don't have many friends that wanna try it either. But I love playing BLM! The technical aspects of the job, of executing efficient rotations in tight Enochian windows, of utilizing things like Triplecast and Aetherial Manipulation to deal with mechanics forcing you to move. The sheer satisfaction of knowing exactly where to place a Ley Line to be able to keep up a rotation while still dodging mechanics by inches without leaving the circle. When you get good at BLM, it feels really good.
Well, it did.
The technical crunch of the job is gone. No timers to force efficiency; no long cast times to convey that feeling of weight behind your spells. Abilities such as Paradox and Umbral Soul have lost a lot of their relevance, when before they were key parts of playing the job. What's left about BLM to satisfy someone who played it for its challenges?
This is the loss of game feel. We're not playing this game to produce sufficiently exponential quantities of numerical outputs to compete with increasing demands, because FFXIV isn't a corporate office job. It's a game! We play it because it's fun! And we latch onto certain jobs because it feels fun and good to play them. This is the case with BLM. It is also the case with several other jobs; I for one remember the old days of AST where the draws were random, and you learned to play the cards you were dealt. I enjoyed that aspect, and now it's long gone.
Frankly, I don't care if BLM doesn't have the absolute best damage in high-end content, or that the changes make it easier to handle "future encounter design". What I care about is how it feels to play BLM, and this very much seems to be the case for a lot of players. And yes, perhaps the changes will allow new players to feel more confident in playing the job. But how many existing players will stop playing the job as a result? And what is it you would like for us to do instead?
Continue reading...
TL;DR: How a job feels to play is more important to me than how it performs, and this is the case for a lot of players I've seen. The BLM rework has greatly disrupted this, as have reworks in the past.
I'll be real: I'm a pretty casual player. I don't really do high-end content. I'd like to, but party finder scares me a little bit, and I don't have many friends that wanna try it either. But I love playing BLM! The technical aspects of the job, of executing efficient rotations in tight Enochian windows, of utilizing things like Triplecast and Aetherial Manipulation to deal with mechanics forcing you to move. The sheer satisfaction of knowing exactly where to place a Ley Line to be able to keep up a rotation while still dodging mechanics by inches without leaving the circle. When you get good at BLM, it feels really good.
Well, it did.
The technical crunch of the job is gone. No timers to force efficiency; no long cast times to convey that feeling of weight behind your spells. Abilities such as Paradox and Umbral Soul have lost a lot of their relevance, when before they were key parts of playing the job. What's left about BLM to satisfy someone who played it for its challenges?
This is the loss of game feel. We're not playing this game to produce sufficiently exponential quantities of numerical outputs to compete with increasing demands, because FFXIV isn't a corporate office job. It's a game! We play it because it's fun! And we latch onto certain jobs because it feels fun and good to play them. This is the case with BLM. It is also the case with several other jobs; I for one remember the old days of AST where the draws were random, and you learned to play the cards you were dealt. I enjoyed that aspect, and now it's long gone.
Frankly, I don't care if BLM doesn't have the absolute best damage in high-end content, or that the changes make it easier to handle "future encounter design". What I care about is how it feels to play BLM, and this very much seems to be the case for a lot of players. And yes, perhaps the changes will allow new players to feel more confident in playing the job. But how many existing players will stop playing the job as a result? And what is it you would like for us to do instead?
Continue reading...