Improvements To Blacklist And Blocking Features

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Hi all,

This is my first time using the official forums, so if my post here is misplaced, I take no offense to a moderator moving it to the correct location. Thanks in advance!

In light of today's showcase announcement, I wanted to voice some concerns that many players (myself included) have had for a while now regarding the intricacies of FFXIV's social features. As the development of Data Center travel is now under way, I want to be certain that the game is enjoyable as ever and safer for players both new and old. While many of us are excited about the possibility of meeting our friends abroad, many others have had to leave Data Centers as a result of consistent stalking/harassment, and are currently hoping for a solution that allows everyone to have fun while being safety-conscious. I've tried to condense my suggestions into a list below...
  1. Housing Kick Feature: As it currently stands, players on a user's blacklist can still enter that user's home. There is to my knowledge currently no way to forcibly remove them from the venue. While it is against ToS to remain in a housing space after being asked to leave by the owner/qualifies as harassment, this is sadly not enough to dissuade determined harassers. A kick button that the owner and/or appointed FC members can utilize would significantly mitigate the issue.
  2. Blacklisted Player Invisibility: As of now, it is still possible to encounter users on one's blacklist in public areas. This opens up the possibility of further conflict and harassment. If an "ignore" feature could be implemented that prevents blacklisted players from appearing in-game, that would create a much less stressful environment for both players and GMs.
  3. Roulette Party Blacklisting: As it currently stands, it is fully possible to be matched with blacklisted players in dungeon and raid roulettes. If a player wanted to leave the duty out of discomfort with other individuals present, they would then incur a penalty for doing so; the system unfortunately cannot account for the possibility that it may be punishing victims of harassment for stepping away.

In-game harassment is an unfortunate constant for which there is no universal solution; what I hope is that these changes or similar features could at least mitigate the severity of the issue and make FFXIV a safer community for all of us. As Data Center communities begin to mingle, these issues may only become more and more apparent--now is a better time than ever to consider revamping the existing blacklist structure. Thanks for reading!

If anyone has further feature suggestions/concerns, please do add them! This is a community effort that I'm happy to be part of. :-) Thank you in advance for any additional feedback on these ideas, as well.

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