Before I start, I realise how many people are going to disagree here and I doubt this thread will be very popular, but I still want to make it so people who looked like crazy for opinions on this (like I did) will hopefully find it. For people who both agree or disagree, please at least drop some quick info as to why you do (or don't).
After spending a solid month+ getting to 2.0, lvl 50 and finally finishing The Ultimate Weapon I felt really good about doing the 100 quest grind between 2.1 and 2.55. How hard could it be I figured.
The truth is, it's painful. Like really, it's actually that bad in my humble opinion and it's worth all of the memes and bitterness that people exude when talking about it. Every quest that I did felt more boring than the last.
First I tried paying attention to everything and watching all cutscenes but it was like watching your favorite show get a new writer and go in a completely different direction for an entire season.
Then I tried mass clicking through dialogue and skipping every single cutscene, reducing the quests down to just the myriad of "Go here, talk to this person" and then "Go there, click on this". This is where the game starts to really show how reliant it is on the MSQ (Main Scenario Quest) for entertainment and world and character building. If you're skipping everything the game quickly gets very boring and starts to feel like a chore. But the content was just so boring to watch and experience properly, I felt between a rock and a hard place.
By lvl 50 I had unlocked all possible dungeons, trials and so on after finishing The Ultimate Weapon. All I had left to do was the 100 quest 'slog' through 2.1 and 2.55.
My choices:
I went with option 2 and it was the best decision I've made in years when playing an MMO. One small paymen, a single 20 minute video and a quick relog later, I was literally watching the Heavensward opening and I knew I was right back in the thick of even better storywriting, ready for my best adventure yet.
For a bit more context, I did 21 quests in the 2.1 ARR to 2.55 line. I hated every second of it. I didn't know much about them except they were mostly universally despised. Now I honestly can see why. They felt completely removed from the main story and what makes the game fun and enjoyable. Every game has its 'less than great' moments and for me that was the first I've witnessed with FFXIV.
For those on the fence about the skip, and who just couldn't be bothered to go through with the huge task of doing those 100 quests, I honestly think the $10 skip is worth every cent, as it will take you about a month to finish them if you wish to maintain much of your sanity in the meantime. I wasn't even aware of the skip until my friend told me that it was an option because I was having such a bad time with the ARR questline. Honestly, as silly as it might sound. I may have quit if I wasn't able to skip those quests, despite how much I like the story. I probably would have taken a break from the game and just not come back due to a long disconnect from the enjoyable periods and bad aftertaste of ARR.
To those who have done those quests, I honestly /salute you and I realise that skipping any part of the story in a 100% story-driven game like Final Fantasy is a massive taboo, but at the end of the day I still have so much to experience in Heavensward, Stormblood and Shadowbringers and beyond. I am not even mad.
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After spending a solid month+ getting to 2.0, lvl 50 and finally finishing The Ultimate Weapon I felt really good about doing the 100 quest grind between 2.1 and 2.55. How hard could it be I figured.
The truth is, it's painful. Like really, it's actually that bad in my humble opinion and it's worth all of the memes and bitterness that people exude when talking about it. Every quest that I did felt more boring than the last.
First I tried paying attention to everything and watching all cutscenes but it was like watching your favorite show get a new writer and go in a completely different direction for an entire season.
Then I tried mass clicking through dialogue and skipping every single cutscene, reducing the quests down to just the myriad of "Go here, talk to this person" and then "Go there, click on this". This is where the game starts to really show how reliant it is on the MSQ (Main Scenario Quest) for entertainment and world and character building. If you're skipping everything the game quickly gets very boring and starts to feel like a chore. But the content was just so boring to watch and experience properly, I felt between a rock and a hard place.
By lvl 50 I had unlocked all possible dungeons, trials and so on after finishing The Ultimate Weapon. All I had left to do was the 100 quest 'slog' through 2.1 and 2.55.
My choices:
Wait a month+ until they apparently streamline it a bit more on August 11th and remove 13% of the quests required and some of the tedious back-and-forth nonsense.
Pay literally less than 10€ (aka about 1 month of subscription) to skip everything from 2.1 to 2.55 and right up to the start of Heavensward.
I went with option 2 and it was the best decision I've made in years when playing an MMO. One small paymen, a single 20 minute video and a quick relog later, I was literally watching the Heavensward opening and I knew I was right back in the thick of even better storywriting, ready for my best adventure yet.
For a bit more context, I did 21 quests in the 2.1 ARR to 2.55 line. I hated every second of it. I didn't know much about them except they were mostly universally despised. Now I honestly can see why. They felt completely removed from the main story and what makes the game fun and enjoyable. Every game has its 'less than great' moments and for me that was the first I've witnessed with FFXIV.
For those on the fence about the skip, and who just couldn't be bothered to go through with the huge task of doing those 100 quests, I honestly think the $10 skip is worth every cent, as it will take you about a month to finish them if you wish to maintain much of your sanity in the meantime. I wasn't even aware of the skip until my friend told me that it was an option because I was having such a bad time with the ARR questline. Honestly, as silly as it might sound. I may have quit if I wasn't able to skip those quests, despite how much I like the story. I probably would have taken a break from the game and just not come back due to a long disconnect from the enjoyable periods and bad aftertaste of ARR.
To those who have done those quests, I honestly /salute you and I realise that skipping any part of the story in a 100% story-driven game like Final Fantasy is a massive taboo, but at the end of the day I still have so much to experience in Heavensward, Stormblood and Shadowbringers and beyond. I am not even mad.
submitted by /u/muhmmorpgs
[link] [comments]
Continue reading...