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Letter from the Producer LIVE at TGS 2014 – Event Digest (10/17/2014)
We are pleased to present a digest of the Letter from the Producer LIVE at TGS 2014! If you missed the live stream, this is your chance to catch up on all the latest coming to Eorzea.
* All contents announced are under development and subject to change
Letter from the Producer LIVE at TGS 2014
Letter from the Producer LIVE at TGS 2014 (Day 1) – Eorzean Census
* The video is recommended for viewing on either PC or smartphone devices.
Letter from the Producer LIVE at TGS 2014 (Day 2) – Patch 2.4 Feature Q&A
* The video is recommended for viewing on either PC or smartphone devices.
Announcement Digest
Patch 2.4 Videos
New videos have been added, including the official trailer for patch 2.4—Dreams of Ice!
Proceed to the videos.
Proceed to the videos.
Coming soon: FINAL FANTASY XIV FROM ASTRAL TO UMBRAL
A Blu-ray disc album featuring live band and piano arrangements of music from FINAL FANTASY XIV
Coming soon: FINAL FANTASY XIV: A Realm Reborn The Art of Eorzea - Another Dawn -
An artbook featuring over a thousand pieces of exquisite illustrations, conceptual designs, and sketches chronicling the creation of A Realm Reborn.
Regarding the Sale of Fantasia (Optional Items)
Information has been released on the official sale of Fantasia.
Eorzea Café – Online Reservations Now Available
It is now possible to make reservations for Eorzea Café at the official site and Lawson convenience stores (Loppi) throughout Japan.
Letter from the Producer LIVE at Tokyo Game Show: Q&A Summary
Patch 2.38
[04:44]
Q: I can’t buy a house! Yoshida, please do something!
A: I’d like to address this first since there are people saying plots are unavailable and prices are just too high. First off, I owe you an apology for my subpar explanation of why personal and Free Company housing cost the same amount. The prices were determined after extensively reviewing the game’s economy, and they won’t go higher than they are now.
Basically, the reason both personal and Free Company housing plots aren’t segregated is that because it’s been a year since our official launch, the rate at which Free Companies are established will gradually decrease. If the land for personal and Free Company housing was separate, we’d have to keep supplementing both in spite of declining demand for Free Company plots. Plus, when a Free Company is dissolved, its property is relinquished. On the other hand, individual players will continue to earn gil, so the demand for personal housing plots will only increase from now on. Separating the two would result in a situation where a player can’t purchase land in crowded personal housing areas or buy an empty plot in the Free Company areas. So, while I do understand that people want to buy a house right away, we have decided to proceed with a system that won’t keep players from building houses in the long run.
We’re planning on doubling the number of plots in Patch 2.4, and we’re aiming to add even more land in later updates. At the moment, though, we don’t have a good handle on how many players are trying to buy personal plots worldwide, so just sit tight─more is on the way.
Finally, I’ve seen a few posts on the forums saying housing would be better if it was instanced like inn rooms are, so I want to point out that instances aren’t saved. Nothing in an inn room needs to be saved; player housing, on the other hand, necessitates personal save data for things like furniture placement and character location. So, it would really amount to adding more land anyway. During a previous Letter from the Producer LIVE, I mentioned that we would make it possible for players who don’t belong to a Free Company to have a house with a yard so they can garden and raise chocobos, and the current system is designed to do this. We will be doing our best to provide more land as soon as possible, so please bear with us a little longer.
[08:48]
Q: I’ve noticed it’s easier to find both Oil and Sands of Time in Syrcus Tower and the Second Coil of Bahamut now. In the future, do you plan on increasing the chances of obtaining these items by making them available in instanced dungeons?
A: The short answer is no. We will, however, be removing the weekly limit in Patch 2.4, so your opportunities to obtain both will increase. Plus, we’ll be introducing a new type of Allagan tomestone in Patch 2.4, meaning players will have better gear to go after. So I think the demand for items like the Sands of Time will decrease.
[09:55]
Q: Do you plan on adding a way to view the soul attunement levels of Nexus weapons as numbers?
A: No, we don’t. Right now players are exchanging info about what yields what bonuses, and we’re worried about turning it into a mechanical, numbers thing—“Just X more points to go!”
[10:27]
Q: I’ve noticed a bunch of new color selection options have been added for dyes, but the actual dyes aren’t available. When will we be able to use these colors?
A: We want to add rare dyes in or right before Patch 2.4, and those options were added in preparation. At the moment, we’re thinking of making these dyes available through retainer ventures. And when I say rare, I mean extremely rare.
[11:01]
Q: Minions such as the Nutkin and the Wind-up Succubus will sit on your head or shoulder when called with certain emotes. Are there any other Easter eggs like this in the game?
A: Honestly, I don’t know. The dev team in charge of this─the “Minion Alliance”─pretty much does its own thing, regardless of how much time and resources it takes. I prefer to include all new features in the patch notes, but the minion team wants players to be surprised when they discover them, so they’re adamant about keeping them out of the patch notes. Moreover, I don’t always have time to check their additions. So, in a nutshell, whether or not there are more Easter eggs in Patch 2.3 and 2.38, let alone if players have found everything out there, is a mystery. They might add more in the future, so keep an eye out.
Q: I can’t buy a house! Yoshida, please do something!
A: I’d like to address this first since there are people saying plots are unavailable and prices are just too high. First off, I owe you an apology for my subpar explanation of why personal and Free Company housing cost the same amount. The prices were determined after extensively reviewing the game’s economy, and they won’t go higher than they are now.
Basically, the reason both personal and Free Company housing plots aren’t segregated is that because it’s been a year since our official launch, the rate at which Free Companies are established will gradually decrease. If the land for personal and Free Company housing was separate, we’d have to keep supplementing both in spite of declining demand for Free Company plots. Plus, when a Free Company is dissolved, its property is relinquished. On the other hand, individual players will continue to earn gil, so the demand for personal housing plots will only increase from now on. Separating the two would result in a situation where a player can’t purchase land in crowded personal housing areas or buy an empty plot in the Free Company areas. So, while I do understand that people want to buy a house right away, we have decided to proceed with a system that won’t keep players from building houses in the long run.
We’re planning on doubling the number of plots in Patch 2.4, and we’re aiming to add even more land in later updates. At the moment, though, we don’t have a good handle on how many players are trying to buy personal plots worldwide, so just sit tight─more is on the way.
Finally, I’ve seen a few posts on the forums saying housing would be better if it was instanced like inn rooms are, so I want to point out that instances aren’t saved. Nothing in an inn room needs to be saved; player housing, on the other hand, necessitates personal save data for things like furniture placement and character location. So, it would really amount to adding more land anyway. During a previous Letter from the Producer LIVE, I mentioned that we would make it possible for players who don’t belong to a Free Company to have a house with a yard so they can garden and raise chocobos, and the current system is designed to do this. We will be doing our best to provide more land as soon as possible, so please bear with us a little longer.
[08:48]
Q: I’ve noticed it’s easier to find both Oil and Sands of Time in Syrcus Tower and the Second Coil of Bahamut now. In the future, do you plan on increasing the chances of obtaining these items by making them available in instanced dungeons?
A: The short answer is no. We will, however, be removing the weekly limit in Patch 2.4, so your opportunities to obtain both will increase. Plus, we’ll be introducing a new type of Allagan tomestone in Patch 2.4, meaning players will have better gear to go after. So I think the demand for items like the Sands of Time will decrease.
[09:55]
Q: Do you plan on adding a way to view the soul attunement levels of Nexus weapons as numbers?
A: No, we don’t. Right now players are exchanging info about what yields what bonuses, and we’re worried about turning it into a mechanical, numbers thing—“Just X more points to go!”
[10:27]
Q: I’ve noticed a bunch of new color selection options have been added for dyes, but the actual dyes aren’t available. When will we be able to use these colors?
A: We want to add rare dyes in or right before Patch 2.4, and those options were added in preparation. At the moment, we’re thinking of making these dyes available through retainer ventures. And when I say rare, I mean extremely rare.
[11:01]
Q: Minions such as the Nutkin and the Wind-up Succubus will sit on your head or shoulder when called with certain emotes. Are there any other Easter eggs like this in the game?
A: Honestly, I don’t know. The dev team in charge of this─the “Minion Alliance”─pretty much does its own thing, regardless of how much time and resources it takes. I prefer to include all new features in the patch notes, but the minion team wants players to be surprised when they discover them, so they’re adamant about keeping them out of the patch notes. Moreover, I don’t always have time to check their additions. So, in a nutshell, whether or not there are more Easter eggs in Patch 2.3 and 2.38, let alone if players have found everything out there, is a mystery. They might add more in the future, so keep an eye out.
New Instanced Dungeons
[23:55]
Q: Can you tell us anything about the new instanced dungeons?
A: *The video shows off footage of the new instanced dungeons.
We’ll be adding three new instanced dungeons in Patch 2.4: Sastasha (Hard), the Sunken Temple of Qarn (Hard), and Snowcloak, a brand-new dungeon. With a Patch 2.4 title of “Dreams of Ice” and a graphic featuring Shiva, I’m sure you’ll get an idea about what’s waiting for you there. As for Sastasha (Hard)—don’t worry. I’ve run the regular version a lot too, and I told the level and background teams that changing the mechanics a little wouldn’t be enough. I’ve done my run through of the revamped area now, and I can tell you it’s got some crazy mechanics. The Sunken Temple of Qarn (Hard) has been created around the adjusted version of the dungeon, and not the launch version where Final Sting could one-hit kill you. We’ve designed the dungeon so that you can experience it as you have up until this point, and we hope you enjoy it.
We’ve also added new music and tweaked existing tracks.
Q: Can you tell us anything about the new instanced dungeons?
A: *The video shows off footage of the new instanced dungeons.
We’ll be adding three new instanced dungeons in Patch 2.4: Sastasha (Hard), the Sunken Temple of Qarn (Hard), and Snowcloak, a brand-new dungeon. With a Patch 2.4 title of “Dreams of Ice” and a graphic featuring Shiva, I’m sure you’ll get an idea about what’s waiting for you there. As for Sastasha (Hard)—don’t worry. I’ve run the regular version a lot too, and I told the level and background teams that changing the mechanics a little wouldn’t be enough. I’ve done my run through of the revamped area now, and I can tell you it’s got some crazy mechanics. The Sunken Temple of Qarn (Hard) has been created around the adjusted version of the dungeon, and not the launch version where Final Sting could one-hit kill you. We’ve designed the dungeon so that you can experience it as you have up until this point, and we hope you enjoy it.
We’ve also added new music and tweaked existing tracks.
Shiva Battle
*The video shows off footage of the Shiva battlefield.
[21:44]
Q: Will we be able to fight Shiva in main story quests?
A: Yes, you’ll get to take on Shiva during a main story quest. She’s actually referred to as “Saint Shiva” by some people, and she’s a bit different from the primals you’ve seen up until now. She plays a pivotal role in the plot, and the future of our story.
[22:20]
Q: What is the item level of the gear obtained from the Ahk Afah Amphitheatre (Hard) and the Ahk Afah Amphitheatre (Extreme) trials?
A: Like the Striking Tree (Extreme), the main rewards will be accessories, and there will be weapons for all jobs as well. Patch 2.4 will usher in a host of new weapons, as well as an increased item level cap, and although the weapons obtained from Shiva won’t be the newest max item level, they’ll be good enough that even high level players can use them. The accessories, however, will have levels so high that they’ll be hugely prized, so I fully expect players to keep taking on Shiva in pursuit of the gear for days to come.
[23:20]
Q: With a new primal coming, there’s going to be another set of three: Shiva, Leviathan, and Ramuh. Is there another weekly primal quest in the works?
A: Not this time around. I think it’s an interesting idea, but since we’re already increasing the item level cap and adding new items, anything like this would have to be implemented at a future date. I think players would need some extremely high level rewards to motivate them to take on these three primals.
[21:44]
Q: Will we be able to fight Shiva in main story quests?
A: Yes, you’ll get to take on Shiva during a main story quest. She’s actually referred to as “Saint Shiva” by some people, and she’s a bit different from the primals you’ve seen up until now. She plays a pivotal role in the plot, and the future of our story.
[22:20]
Q: What is the item level of the gear obtained from the Ahk Afah Amphitheatre (Hard) and the Ahk Afah Amphitheatre (Extreme) trials?
A: Like the Striking Tree (Extreme), the main rewards will be accessories, and there will be weapons for all jobs as well. Patch 2.4 will usher in a host of new weapons, as well as an increased item level cap, and although the weapons obtained from Shiva won’t be the newest max item level, they’ll be good enough that even high level players can use them. The accessories, however, will have levels so high that they’ll be hugely prized, so I fully expect players to keep taking on Shiva in pursuit of the gear for days to come.
[23:20]
Q: With a new primal coming, there’s going to be another set of three: Shiva, Leviathan, and Ramuh. Is there another weekly primal quest in the works?
A: Not this time around. I think it’s an interesting idea, but since we’re already increasing the item level cap and adding new items, anything like this would have to be implemented at a future date. I think players would need some extremely high level rewards to motivate them to take on these three primals.
New Class and Job
*The video shows off the actions for rogue and ninja.
[26:19]
Q: Can you share more details about how ninjas will fight? Will they be a DoT-DPS job, or will they be another directional DPS job, like dragoon?
A: Ninja is indeed a DoT-DPS job. However, though people assumed rogues would be DoT when I mentioned they would use poison, their poison will be a kind of DoT that is different from anything that’s in the game. We’ll have more details for you soon.
Ninjas will ultimately have direction-based DPS, but part of what’s at play in the video is the newly added “mudra” system. This is a special system exclusive to the ninja job that allows players to use ninjutsu after combining a series of hand gestures, or “mudras.” No other job has anything like mudras, and keeping track of it on top of your directional DPS won’t be easy. That being said, though the rogue in the video was sneaking up behind enemies and performing directional actions, these won’t be incorporated into combos. The spec is completely different from existing jobs that use actions, and you have to figure out what mudra to make and what to do with it. As you can see in the video, battle moves along at a pretty brisk pace. I can’t give out too many details until right before the patch, but I can say that ninja will have lots of abilities, such as Silence. It’s a versatile job, but the trick will be to maintain DPS while doing other things. It’s an interesting job unlike anything you’ve experienced before. The team has put a lot of effort into creating it, and I’m confident that it will please.
[29:24]
Q: Are there any special requirements for becoming a ninja?
A: Since there’s a shortage of tanks and healers, I’d love to say you need to be a level 50 paladin, warrior, white mage, or scholar. But no, there aren’t any special requirements. The only thing I can think of is that rogue can’t be selected as a starting class, so you’ll need to raise another class to level 10 beforehand.
[30:39]
Q: Could you tell us about any other ninja skills?
A: Not yet. It’s still a secret.
I can tell you, though, that ninjas will be able to enter stealth-mode with the “Hide” action during PvP. However, there’s also a “Detect” action that allows players to uncover other players sneaking about. If other ninjas hide themselves at the start of a Frontline match and you use Detect, those who are concealed will pop up, one after another, making for a very strange sight.
[31:38]
Q: In previous FINAL FANTASY games, ninjas have traditionally had the “Throw” ability. Will ninjas in FFXIV have a similar action that consumes an item to perform an attack?
A: I’ve actually talked a little about this in the past, but let’s say you run out of items you can throw during an end-game raid, your DPS drops, and your party starts yelling for you to throw your High Allagan equipment. I don’t think anybody would enjoy that, so no, there won’t be any actions or abilities that consume items, since we’d like the gaming experience to be as relaxing as possible.
[26:19]
Q: Can you share more details about how ninjas will fight? Will they be a DoT-DPS job, or will they be another directional DPS job, like dragoon?
A: Ninja is indeed a DoT-DPS job. However, though people assumed rogues would be DoT when I mentioned they would use poison, their poison will be a kind of DoT that is different from anything that’s in the game. We’ll have more details for you soon.
Ninjas will ultimately have direction-based DPS, but part of what’s at play in the video is the newly added “mudra” system. This is a special system exclusive to the ninja job that allows players to use ninjutsu after combining a series of hand gestures, or “mudras.” No other job has anything like mudras, and keeping track of it on top of your directional DPS won’t be easy. That being said, though the rogue in the video was sneaking up behind enemies and performing directional actions, these won’t be incorporated into combos. The spec is completely different from existing jobs that use actions, and you have to figure out what mudra to make and what to do with it. As you can see in the video, battle moves along at a pretty brisk pace. I can’t give out too many details until right before the patch, but I can say that ninja will have lots of abilities, such as Silence. It’s a versatile job, but the trick will be to maintain DPS while doing other things. It’s an interesting job unlike anything you’ve experienced before. The team has put a lot of effort into creating it, and I’m confident that it will please.
[29:24]
Q: Are there any special requirements for becoming a ninja?
A: Since there’s a shortage of tanks and healers, I’d love to say you need to be a level 50 paladin, warrior, white mage, or scholar. But no, there aren’t any special requirements. The only thing I can think of is that rogue can’t be selected as a starting class, so you’ll need to raise another class to level 10 beforehand.
[30:39]
Q: Could you tell us about any other ninja skills?
A: Not yet. It’s still a secret.
I can tell you, though, that ninjas will be able to enter stealth-mode with the “Hide” action during PvP. However, there’s also a “Detect” action that allows players to uncover other players sneaking about. If other ninjas hide themselves at the start of a Frontline match and you use Detect, those who are concealed will pop up, one after another, making for a very strange sight.
[31:38]
Q: In previous FINAL FANTASY games, ninjas have traditionally had the “Throw” ability. Will ninjas in FFXIV have a similar action that consumes an item to perform an attack?
A: I’ve actually talked a little about this in the past, but let’s say you run out of items you can throw during an end-game raid, your DPS drops, and your party starts yelling for you to throw your High Allagan equipment. I don’t think anybody would enjoy that, so no, there won’t be any actions or abilities that consume items, since we’d like the gaming experience to be as relaxing as possible.
Other
[32:38]
Q: Can you actually fight Bahamut in the Final Coil of Bahamut?
A: That’s a secret. Since Patch 2.4 will usher in the final coil challenge, we’ve put a lot of energy making it something that’ll really wow the players. Word will eventually spread from the first people to finish the dungeon, but we don’t want to ruin it for people. If you want to discover the truth of the Seventh Umbral Era, we invite you to take on the Final Coil of Bahamut.
[33:24]
Q: Will there be a savage version of the next Coil of Bahamut? If so, will it share the same flag as the regular version?
A: The next chapter’s title is “The Final Coil of Bahamut.” We haven’t decided yet whether or not to add a savage version for this. Even if we decide to add one, the earliest we could implement it would be Patch 2.5. We’ve been receiving a lot of requests from players worldwide taking on the Second Coil of Bahamut (Savage) to make it constantly accessible, since they’re willing to take on Turn 4 even if that means not getting rewards for completing it. Subsequently, we’re thinking about changing the flag system for the next savage dungeon. But if you want more of a challenge, we can make it so that you have to start from Turn 1 and clear each Turn in order.
[34:29]
Q: With the Coil of Bahamut ending in Patch 2.4, will there be a system that allows users to finish only the story?
A: Yes, I think we need to prepare something like this. Now, we are going to gradually lower the difficulty level, but with new patches coming out and new players coming in, we’re anticipating a time when there aren’t enough people to play through the dungeon, and we have to look into avoiding that situation. We’ve still got a ways to go before reaching that point, so it’s a little too early to set up anything concrete, but yes, I do feel we need something that lets people who can’t complete the Coil to experience the story.
[35:12]
Q: I’m looking forward to the wedding system. Will it be part of Patch 2.4?
A: The marriage system, or “Eternal Bonding,” is currently under development on a massive scale. Despite the resources we’re pouring into it, it’s been slow going because we’re setting it up as a reservation system where you pick a date and time to tie the knot. Right now we’re looking at a Patch 2.45 release. It’ll definitely be worth the wait, though─the system is going to be huge and very customizable. We should be able to give you a sneak peek of things like what kinds of dresses there will be fairly soon.
[36:17]
Q: Will there be any special actions you can use exclusively with your marriage partner, like teleporting to their location?
A: Well, we’re going to start off with a special chocobo that two people can ride together, and add more features bit by bit. Please don’t expect a whole lot right at the beginning.
[36:57]
Q: The stats for the Ehcatl smithing gloves aren’t all that different from existing gear. Could you make them stronger?
A: Ehcatl smithing gloves are a reward for completing the Ixal daily quests, and, even though the focus of the story for these quests is crafting, we designed these quests with players who didn’t have a lot crafting experience in mind. We wanted these gloves to inspire people to experience the finer points of crafting. For this reason, their stats are not especially high.
[37:48]
Q: I’m having a hard time time with the Labyrinth of the Ancients since I can’t find the party members I need. Can you add this dungeon to the Duty Roulette or adjust the rewards?
A: I’ve talked this over with the battle team, and we’re discussing modifying the mechanics a bit so that smaller parties can play it. For example, we’re looking into making the dungeon shorter by eliminating the regular monsters you need to defeat between boss battles so players can follow the story without too many interruptions. We’re also talking about opening up low-level instanced dungeons to solo players, and I think we’d implement these changes in the not too distant future.
[38:55]
Q: After being matched up for Frontline, is there any way the battle could start after both sides have an equal number of participants?
A: We aren’t planning on making any changes like this to Frontline at the moment, since that kind of balancing act would make it difficult for the system to determine when a match should start. The alliance system doesn’t constantly monitor the number of people in each of the three forces, and changing it would be a big undertaking. But I’ve personally made some pretty amazing comebacks while in alliance B with only one other player with me, so I actually think uneven sides can make people focus more and work harder. Just because your side has fewer people doesn’t mean you can’t win, and rather than a restrictive system that forces you to wait, I’d like to go with one that lets you try again and again.
[40:21]
Q: Do you have any plans to increase the drop rates for Mirrors of the Whorl?
A: Yes, I think it’s about time to increase those drop rates. In fact, I sent out an email to the team just last night requesting the change.
[40:43]
Q: I’d like to see an even higher difficulty mode for trials, like the savage version of the Second Coil of Bahamut.
A: Something like Cape Westwind (Extreme)? The first problem with that for us is what we’d call it─what’s more difficult than “extreme”? But rather than fighting a stronger version of Ifrit, for example, I think that it’d be more fun to take on new primals, so we’re generally moving in the direction of adding as many new primals as we can.
[41:32]
Q: Please improve the match speed and matching accuracy for the Wolves’ Den.
A: Thanks to Frontline, there are more players participating in PvP now than before. At events, I often meet players who have friends they want to play in the Wolves’ Den with, but can’t because of the matching. Needless to say, they want the issue fixed. But if we were to make changes to the Wolves’ Den now, we’d end up with casual PvP players from Frontline coming to try it out. Because of the disparity in skill level, they would end up being fodder for the hardcore players, and we’re worried that the casual players would get turned off from PvP as a result. So at the moment, we’re just working to get more people playing PvP by adding new rules and maps to Frontline. After that, we’re planning on making adjustments to the Wolves’ Den, a two-step process that will introduce such things as rankings and seasons—tournaments that run for a few months before getting reset. This will be a long-term undertaking, so for now I hope you keep enjoying Frontline.
However, we will be increasing the PvP rank cap and adding new rewards. We’ll also be looking into job adjustments, such as adjusting the cool down timer for dragoon’s Jump. So stick around, because there’s a lot of new stuff to come.
Q: Can you actually fight Bahamut in the Final Coil of Bahamut?
A: That’s a secret. Since Patch 2.4 will usher in the final coil challenge, we’ve put a lot of energy making it something that’ll really wow the players. Word will eventually spread from the first people to finish the dungeon, but we don’t want to ruin it for people. If you want to discover the truth of the Seventh Umbral Era, we invite you to take on the Final Coil of Bahamut.
[33:24]
Q: Will there be a savage version of the next Coil of Bahamut? If so, will it share the same flag as the regular version?
A: The next chapter’s title is “The Final Coil of Bahamut.” We haven’t decided yet whether or not to add a savage version for this. Even if we decide to add one, the earliest we could implement it would be Patch 2.5. We’ve been receiving a lot of requests from players worldwide taking on the Second Coil of Bahamut (Savage) to make it constantly accessible, since they’re willing to take on Turn 4 even if that means not getting rewards for completing it. Subsequently, we’re thinking about changing the flag system for the next savage dungeon. But if you want more of a challenge, we can make it so that you have to start from Turn 1 and clear each Turn in order.
[34:29]
Q: With the Coil of Bahamut ending in Patch 2.4, will there be a system that allows users to finish only the story?
A: Yes, I think we need to prepare something like this. Now, we are going to gradually lower the difficulty level, but with new patches coming out and new players coming in, we’re anticipating a time when there aren’t enough people to play through the dungeon, and we have to look into avoiding that situation. We’ve still got a ways to go before reaching that point, so it’s a little too early to set up anything concrete, but yes, I do feel we need something that lets people who can’t complete the Coil to experience the story.
[35:12]
Q: I’m looking forward to the wedding system. Will it be part of Patch 2.4?
A: The marriage system, or “Eternal Bonding,” is currently under development on a massive scale. Despite the resources we’re pouring into it, it’s been slow going because we’re setting it up as a reservation system where you pick a date and time to tie the knot. Right now we’re looking at a Patch 2.45 release. It’ll definitely be worth the wait, though─the system is going to be huge and very customizable. We should be able to give you a sneak peek of things like what kinds of dresses there will be fairly soon.
[36:17]
Q: Will there be any special actions you can use exclusively with your marriage partner, like teleporting to their location?
A: Well, we’re going to start off with a special chocobo that two people can ride together, and add more features bit by bit. Please don’t expect a whole lot right at the beginning.
[36:57]
Q: The stats for the Ehcatl smithing gloves aren’t all that different from existing gear. Could you make them stronger?
A: Ehcatl smithing gloves are a reward for completing the Ixal daily quests, and, even though the focus of the story for these quests is crafting, we designed these quests with players who didn’t have a lot crafting experience in mind. We wanted these gloves to inspire people to experience the finer points of crafting. For this reason, their stats are not especially high.
[37:48]
Q: I’m having a hard time time with the Labyrinth of the Ancients since I can’t find the party members I need. Can you add this dungeon to the Duty Roulette or adjust the rewards?
A: I’ve talked this over with the battle team, and we’re discussing modifying the mechanics a bit so that smaller parties can play it. For example, we’re looking into making the dungeon shorter by eliminating the regular monsters you need to defeat between boss battles so players can follow the story without too many interruptions. We’re also talking about opening up low-level instanced dungeons to solo players, and I think we’d implement these changes in the not too distant future.
[38:55]
Q: After being matched up for Frontline, is there any way the battle could start after both sides have an equal number of participants?
A: We aren’t planning on making any changes like this to Frontline at the moment, since that kind of balancing act would make it difficult for the system to determine when a match should start. The alliance system doesn’t constantly monitor the number of people in each of the three forces, and changing it would be a big undertaking. But I’ve personally made some pretty amazing comebacks while in alliance B with only one other player with me, so I actually think uneven sides can make people focus more and work harder. Just because your side has fewer people doesn’t mean you can’t win, and rather than a restrictive system that forces you to wait, I’d like to go with one that lets you try again and again.
[40:21]
Q: Do you have any plans to increase the drop rates for Mirrors of the Whorl?
A: Yes, I think it’s about time to increase those drop rates. In fact, I sent out an email to the team just last night requesting the change.
[40:43]
Q: I’d like to see an even higher difficulty mode for trials, like the savage version of the Second Coil of Bahamut.
A: Something like Cape Westwind (Extreme)? The first problem with that for us is what we’d call it─what’s more difficult than “extreme”? But rather than fighting a stronger version of Ifrit, for example, I think that it’d be more fun to take on new primals, so we’re generally moving in the direction of adding as many new primals as we can.
[41:32]
Q: Please improve the match speed and matching accuracy for the Wolves’ Den.
A: Thanks to Frontline, there are more players participating in PvP now than before. At events, I often meet players who have friends they want to play in the Wolves’ Den with, but can’t because of the matching. Needless to say, they want the issue fixed. But if we were to make changes to the Wolves’ Den now, we’d end up with casual PvP players from Frontline coming to try it out. Because of the disparity in skill level, they would end up being fodder for the hardcore players, and we’re worried that the casual players would get turned off from PvP as a result. So at the moment, we’re just working to get more people playing PvP by adding new rules and maps to Frontline. After that, we’re planning on making adjustments to the Wolves’ Den, a two-step process that will introduce such things as rankings and seasons—tournaments that run for a few months before getting reset. This will be a long-term undertaking, so for now I hope you keep enjoying Frontline.
However, we will be increasing the PvP rank cap and adding new rewards. We’ll also be looking into job adjustments, such as adjusting the cool down timer for dragoon’s Jump. So stick around, because there’s a lot of new stuff to come.