"Oh btw, FFXIV Online in 2010"

[Ard]

Keep in mind that the Deus Ex date push might just be corporate fiscal year shenanigans at work here, if they expect it  to sell well, and have already given up on being profitable this year.  If they can make next year look stellar, at least on paper, they can continue to go on and pretend things are okay, or at least returning to normal, despite the fact that they're having to play games with their release schedule to do this.

[Simond]

How S-E can get the money-hats back:
FFVI remake for 3DS.
FFVII remake for...something/things.

And they need to fire everyone who liked FFVIII.

[Paelos]

And they need to fire everyone who liked FFVIII.

Not strong enough. Have them deported as well.

[Dren]

Maybe this game will be the one that finally sets an example that executives can use as an example of losing much more by launching early than late.  I have no idea about this game, but with this kind of reaction by the market, they HAD to have known something was wrong at the time they decided to publish.

MMO markets have shown over and over that if you don't launch well from the beginning, you are done.  You might be able to string yourself along for a few years with f2p and invite-your-friend deals, but your potential revenues are a fraction of what they could have been.

[Bzalthek]

Heh, as a side note, I just got FFXIII as an early Christmas present.

And I'm enjoying it so far.

[Murgos]

How S-E can get the money-hats back:

FFVII remake for...something/things.

Really, just reuse FFXIII art assets in a FFVII remake and release the thing for 360 and PS3.  "Boom" 100's of millions in profit.

[Goreschach]

How S-E can get the money-hats back:

FFVII remake for...something/things.

Really, just reuse FFXIII art assets in a FFVII remake and release the thing for 360 and PS3.  "Boom" 100's of millions in profit.

Better yet, make FFXV whatever. Each copy sold gets a vote to determine whether their next game will be a remake of FFVI or FFVII.

[Draegan]

Just start the genre over again with FF I without remakes.  Just start the numbers over again.  This way we can forget about XI, XIII and XIV.

[Rasix]

Heh, as a side note, I just got FFXIII as an early Christmas present.

And I'm enjoying it so far.

It's not THAT bad.  I enjoyed it enough to beat it.  It just had a terrible plot and horrid level design.  

edit:

My own personal preference would be to not see a FFVII remake. I know a lot of people love it, but I find it dreadfully boring with pretty stale mechanics.

[Velorath]

I agree with Rasix.  Remaking a game that came out almost a decade and a half ago now isn't a compelling way for a company to show that they're getting back on track after some big disappointments.  It's brilliant though if you want to send the message "yeah, our best days are behind us".

[ghost]

Heh, as a side note, I just got FFXIII as an early Christmas present.

And I'm enjoying it so far.

It's not THAT bad.  I enjoyed it enough to beat it.  It just had a terrible plot and horrid level design.  

edit:

My own personal preference would be to not see a FFVII remake. I know a lot of people love it, but I find it dreadfully boring with pretty stale mechanics.

What about a remake of the same (or similar) story line with different, updated mechanics?

[01101010]

http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2010/12/most-disappointing-games-2010/

 

Having both your recent FF titles mentioned has to get a post here...

[Paelos]

Back to back no less.

But nothing could beat APB in sheer  . They did get that right.

[Lantyssa]

FF should have beat it on that list.  APB was a cool concept, but it was ambitious, and at least it worked.  FFXIV was a complete mess with no excuse.

[Paelos]

FF should have beat it on that list.  APB was a cool concept, but it was ambitious, and at least it worked.  FFXIV was a complete mess with no excuse.

APB sunk faster than the Titanic and closed up shop. FF still runs on hubris. I think they got points for still standing at the end of the year.

[Mrbloodworth]

FF should have beat it on that list.  APB was a cool concept, but it was ambitious, and at least it worked.  FFXIV was a complete mess with no excuse.

APB sunk faster than the Titanic and closed up shop. FF still runs on hubris. I think they got points for still standing at the end of the year.

I think they loose points for this title being the 14th in the series, and the second time they have made a MMO. APB had none of that. FF14 was an out right inexcusable blunder given its pedigree, funding and talent pool.

You can't compare one of the most successful, and at times ground breaking franchises to a well funded indi endeavor. Sorry.

[Lantyssa]

Sony also has much deeper pockets.  They can afford to keep it on life support in hopes of turning it around for the PS3 release, which they need.

[LK]

I think the cultural differences between Japanese players and the rest of the world have reached a zenith where making a game exclusively for a Japanese audience, which FFXIV SEEMS like it is, is game design death for outside Japan.

[Lantyssa]

Last I heard it wasn't well received in Japan either.  It's not cultural differences but a shit game.

[LK]

Welp.  As MrB said, you'd expect more from something with that many sequels, but the sequels weren't really improvements on the formula but experiments with it. The only thing that's seemed to advance with those games are the graphics.

[Paelos]

You can't compare one of the most successful, and at times ground breaking franchises to a well funded indi endeavor. Sorry.

And yet, when we are comparing most collassal start to finish fuckups in the history of MMOs, I still think APB has set the bar from zero to SHIT!

[Mrbloodworth]

Here is the problem I have with that list, and comparison. 14th title in the line, second MMO.

It had nothing to do with cultural differences, it had everything to do with development in a vacuum. FF14 Had precedence (Fantasy Asynchronous RPG combat MMG), it even had precedence in its own pedigree. APB was a start up, highly risky game design, highly undeveloped style of MMO, and had no previous titles in the franchise to back it up.

FF14 is still operating, because closing it down is not an option. Its finial Fantasy.

You can't compare one of the most successful, and at times ground breaking franchises to a well funded indi endeavor. Sorry.

And yet, when we are comparing most collassal start to finish fuckups in the history of MMOs, I still think APB has set the bar from zero to SHIT!

I agree. However, you can't compare the two, and in one hand FF14 is way more egregious. It should have been easy street for them. 100% easy street.

[ghost]

APB also seemed like it might possibly be fixable.  I'm not even sure what sort of content they could add to Final Fantasy XIV to make it work

[Lantyssa]

They could port FFXI to the new engine, keep the easier class switch mechanics (saving your equip and ability slots), and make it possible to solo/duo.

[ghost]

i.e. start over? 

[LK]

FFXIV will be a black mark on Squaresoft and the Final Fantasy series, regardless what they do. This is the type of thing Blizzard tries to avoid with every one of its releases. It tarnishes the image of the company to a significant degree by what it represents: a step backward, and a significant one.

[ghost]

In a very recent intereview, the newly appointed director of Final Fantasy XIV (FF XIV), Naoki Yoshida, outlined his vision for rehabilitating the lackluster performance of Final Fantasy XIV Online. His approach is to translate the successful gameplay and atmospheric elements of Final Fantasy VII to Final Fantasy XIV online. Final Fantasy VII was a runaway worldwide hit.

Linkage

They are going to reboot and rebuild FF XIV, eh?  I really wonder what these fucksticks were thinking in the first place.  With the lag problems that they have, which I understand are caused by most things being done server side, is it even possible to fix? 

[LK]

I wouldn't quantify Final Fantasy VII as having "successful gameplay" by modern standards. It was a completely different time back then, one in which there wasn't as much choice for quality titles or game experiences.

The characters, the setting (properly mentioned), plot points, and the, at the time, advanced graphics helped form an emotional connection to the game that would make people think less about its flaws and more about how much they loved the non-game bits. Nostalgia and time have also hindered the collective memory's take on the game.

SquareEnix can make some FANTASTIC visuals and character designs, but at their core they are years behind other game developers when it comes to making *games.* Unfortunately in our entertainment culture I see this becoming a standard in the games industry similar to how certain movies are just porno for graphics junkies.

[Mrbloodworth]

In a very recent intereview, the newly appointed director of Final Fantasy XIV (FF XIV), Naoki Yoshida, outlined his vision for rehabilitating the lackluster performance of Final Fantasy XIV Online. His approach is to translate the successful gameplay and atmospheric elements of Final Fantasy VII to Final Fantasy XIV online. Final Fantasy VII was a runaway worldwide hit.

Linkage

They are going to reboot and rebuild FF XIV, eh?  I really wonder what these fucksticks were thinking in the first place.  With the lag problems that they have, which I understand are caused by most things being done server side, is it even possible to fix?  

I am in awe at the cash they must have to burn.

[Velorath]

In a very recent intereview, the newly appointed director of Final Fantasy XIV (FF XIV), Naoki Yoshida, outlined his vision for rehabilitating the lackluster performance of Final Fantasy XIV Online. His approach is to translate the successful gameplay and atmospheric elements of Final Fantasy VII to Final Fantasy XIV online. Final Fantasy VII was a runaway worldwide hit.

Linkage

They are going to reboot and rebuild FF XIV, eh?  I really wonder what these fucksticks were thinking in the first place.  With the lag problems that they have, which I understand are caused by most things being done server side, is it even possible to fix? 

From the link:

In terms of concrete development plans, Yoshida outline the following: making the interface easier to use and more intuitive, better interplayer communications, build subscriber trust and expand the subscriber base, work on ironing out lag times, and using an add-on system based on subscriber feedback.

I'd kinda like to see the actual interview rather than this summary, because as it stands right now this doesn't make any sense.  You can't really say that you're going to make the game better by somehow infusing it with elements of a game they made 13 years ago, then when asked for concrete plans just say you're going to fix up the UI a bit.

[01101010]

Soooo... FFXIV.2?

[LC]

I thought most of bioware's garbage was garbage. I didn't like FFXIII either. FF7 was my favorite out of the entire ff series.

[Margalis]

I would not rely on translated snippets.

[Lakov_Sanite]

Slapping FF7 art assets on an already bad game is only going to result in tarnishing the image of FF7.  If they built it from scratch it could work, maybe but to just try and revamp it by adding sephiroth? not gonna work.

[Pagz]

I'm a little confused as to how FF7's gameplay will translate well to an mmo: FF7 had no classes and you basically just leveled up abilities that could be traded around your characters. Also what happens to characters already in the game when this overhaul takes place?