ffxiv FFXIV - Dawntrail: A Rollercoaster of Different Opinions!

[Neviriah 383]

It's been a few months, and many players have shared their feedback and thoughts on how Dawntrail measures up to previous expansions. Let's take a look at the general opinion!

A few months after release, plenty of players have shared feedback and comments on how the expansion is: have they appreciated it or not? How was the story? How are the dungeons? Here is all you need to know about Dawntrail ranks when compared to prior Final Fantasy XIV expansions!

Dawntrail, the latest and current expansion for Final Fantasy XIV, has received extremely mixed reviews. Similar to Stormblood, it seems to be a situation of “you either love it or you hate it." Some players appreciate its story, new content, mechanics, and cultural themes; others feel it falls short compared to previous expansions like Endwalker and Shadowbringers, which was to be expected.

As the following Reddit thread shows, the expansion ranks overall lower than previous ones:

The low ranking could be due to a few different reasons:

• Story and pacing issues:
  • It seems that a large portion of players have complained about the reuse of too many similar plot elements from previous expansions.
  • The pacing of the MSQ has been quite uneven, especially in the second half.
• Character development:
  • Many players wish that our own characters would be more at the center of attention.
  • Erenville and Krile’s story is not the center of the plot in the second part. After Wuk Lamat becomes the new ruler of Tuliyollal, she should have stayed there while we investigate further with Erenville and Krile. Both of those characters have mostly completed their stories off-screen, and players would have loved to be able to be a part of that. 
  • Weak Villains: Both Zoraal Ja and Sphene do not really come off as villains and are way less iconic than the previous villains we know.
• Gameplay:
  • There are many players who have complained about the lack of evolution in the gameplay and jobs.
  • Lack of difficulty: while the dungeons and raids are introducing new mechanics, they remain quite easy, and players are asking for more challenges.
  • Jobs are being made too easy to play. Rather than changing the jobs to make them more unique and refresh their gameplay, they have all been modified to remove what may have made them interesting in the first place, and a lot of players have been feeling sad about this.

Of course, Dawntrail may not be perfect, but a lot of players have still enjoyed it and have given a lot of positive feedback:

• Story:
  • Although it is rather slow in some moments, for the players who have been reading and actively following the story, it all makes sense towards the end, and it is an amazing start to a brand-new journey!
  • Despite some characters lacking story and being put to the side, it is refreshing to follow new friends and find out more about them!
• Gameplay:
  • A lot of players have been praising the new mechanics and risks the FFXIV team has been taking for this expansion! The dungeons have been rather innovative, and the raid is extremely fun to go through, despite being less challenging.

In the end, the biggest issue with Dawntrail may have been the high expectations a lot of players have had. After such amazing and big expansions like Shadowbringer and Endwalker, it was hard to not expect something of such high quality. However, meeting or exceeding those expectations was a tough challenge. The two previous expansions set a very high bar regarding storytelling, character development, and gameplay. So in a way, it is natural that this time, things have been less exciting for a lot of players.

Yes, Dawntrail introduces new and exciting elements to Final Fantasy XIV, but it seems to struggle with living up to the legacy of prior expansions; nevertheless, after completing the story, the game continues to live up to what made it such an iconic series. Dawntrail is as much part of Final Fantasy XIV as its predecessors, and it simply paves the way for more exciting adventures to come!

[Prophet001 598]

wuk lamat annoying