Thinking of returning, whatcha think?

[Intensity]

Me and the wife are considering comin' back and wanted to see what everyones thoughts of the game is after all this time. Has the economy stabilized at all? Keep in mind before answering that, when I left, it was shortly after the Xmas fiasco and prices for everything hadn't resolved themselves as of February when I bailed. Also, what's the general attitude of players nowadays? Is the elitest attitude still pre-dominant in endgame and is finding parties still a 3 hour ordeal for some jobs? Also, how much content did ToAU really add? Is it an "OMG I haven't left the new areas since it came out!!!" type of deal or more like, "Eh, I check out the newer content when I'm not busy doing cooler things.". I quit the day I went and picked up ToAU (Yeah, retarded timing but that's a story for another day) so I never got to check any of it out, but all the reviews I've glanced over rave about it. When I was playing, I was camped in here constantly so I respect the opinions of everyone here, hope to hear from y'all soon.

[Murphie]

Re: Thinking of returning, whatcha think?

Prices are the lowest I've seen them in a long time. So that's good. Of course, it's also bad, because people who are used to making a lot of money on things aren't making as much. Win/lose there, I guess, depending on perspective.

ToAU added a lot, IMO. The new zones are great. Most people 55+ exp there almost exclusively. Besieged can be fun (if tedious), Assaults are really interesting, and while the Missions haven't quite gotten off the ground just yet, they are shaping up to be pretty interesting (no frustrating level capped BCNMs just yet, so keep your fingers crossed). There is also a lot of new gear that is Rare/Ex, which means no super-inflated prices. That's been a godsend to some folks.

Most notably, of course, are the three new jobs. Corsair and Blue Mage are both really amazing, and while Puppetmaster is struggling a bit, there are some folks out there that really love the job.

All in all, I think it's worth checking out again, if you loved the game at one time. Worst case scenario, you reactivate for a month, realize it's not to your liking, and you cancel again.^^

[Intensity]

Re: Thinking of returning, whatcha think?

lol I did in fact love the game at one time. I actually played from NA release until last February or March. Surprisingly enough, I completely forgot about the new jobs. As far as that Rare/Ex equipment goes, is there a fair amount for 70+? My characters are a 71NIN and a 64SAM and my wife has a 72BRD. We were really interested in the Assault because we wanted something we'd be able to pal around together doing with our other 2 friends who still play but we haven't been able to talk to them recently. That's awesome to hear that all the prices have leveled out finally, I have very un-fond memories of 10 million gil Haubergeons. Thankfully, I never got rid of any equip or deleted my character so my Byrnie will be waiting for me. =P Unless there's something better. lol

[Murphie]

Re: Thinking of returning, whatcha think?

Itemwise, as an example you have the Walahra Turban, which is quite a big deal apparently. And free. There is also the Pahluwan Gear, the Yigit Gear, and the Amir Gear. These are Assault Rewards, with the exception of the Turban.

Almost all of the new stuff is for mid-to-endgame players.

[Intensity]

Re: Thinking of returning, whatcha think?

Wow. That's some awesome gear. Well, guess we'll see what happens. I'll be calling SE on Monday to see what we can do about coming back. Thanks for all the info Murphie.

[Loial]

Re: Thinking of returning, whatcha think?

Similar to the OP, I also left the game a while ago and came back. I played from NA PC release until Nov. 2004. I then left and came back in Nov 2005. Of course, coming back to AH prices that were 3-5x greater than when I left was a bit startling.

The ToAU missions are a little lacking. That's not to say the story itself isn't all that good. For the most part, you just go through the motions. I know that CoP was harsh, but these missions (17 or 18 so far) have entailed killing 1 Marlboro mob, 1 skeleton, and 1 BC. However, the next set of missions come out in October. So, we might see things tie together now.

Assault is a nice addition, IMO. They are short 15-30 minute activities you can do with 3-6 people. They aren't all hack and slash either. The rewards are reasonable. For those that aren't involved in end-game, you can get items that are similar to some abjuration items or other things that you could only attain from an HNMLS. I believe the Yigit Body (earned in assault) is more or less a Sha'ir Manteel minus the CHR. Not bad IMO.

As for elitists.... there will always be elitists. They added in more merits. Some are worthwhile and can add a new facet to a job. Others are merely "so-so."