Auction cheating and lack of solidarity causes Square concern
Solo gamers troubled by playing together.
SquareSoft of Japan has expressed some concerns about the way its debut MMORPG Final Fantasy XI is being used, and abused, by its players.
The initial concern voiced by the development team was the fact that players are somehow misusing the auction system in the game to acquire large amounts of FFXI currency. Though this is causing small imbalances in the game, Square thinks that a revision of the system, the third to take place since it launched, will fix the problem.
The other problem facing the future success of the game, at least as far as the original game concept is concerned, has to be seen as being a little more fundamentally serious.
At present, Final Fantasy XI has a level capping system in place, meaning that early adopters of the technology don’t leave a gaping chasm in the game when others eventually take it up. The level cap is currently set at 50 and is likely to stay at this until the game rolls out into the US.
SquareSoft stated several times that they hoped this initial capping would encourage players to take a more co-operative stance to RPG gaming but, in a recent statement, the firm said that this just isn’t happening. Players are choosing to play alone and simply avoid the more difficult situations or monsters that would require co-operative play.
The possibility of this happening was raised by those in the know when Final Fantasy was announced as being an online RPG. The Japanese have taken to online gaming fairly well and Phantasy Star Online is considered a relative success in the region. This is because it’s the first time that players have taken to a more ‘intimate’ style of online play, as opposed to the relatively anonymous online games of the past.
It would seem that the Final Fantasy community in Japan prefers to avoid contact with other humans in favour of interacting with the digital world as much as possible.
As ever, we’ll keep you updated on this, and any other Square news, as it breaks.
The initial concern voiced by the development team was the fact that players are somehow misusing the auction system in the game to acquire large amounts of FFXI currency. Though this is causing small imbalances in the game, Square thinks that a revision of the system, the third to take place since it launched, will fix the problem.
The other problem facing the future success of the game, at least as far as the original game concept is concerned, has to be seen as being a little more fundamentally serious.
At present, Final Fantasy XI has a level capping system in place, meaning that early adopters of the technology don’t leave a gaping chasm in the game when others eventually take it up. The level cap is currently set at 50 and is likely to stay at this until the game rolls out into the US.
SquareSoft stated several times that they hoped this initial capping would encourage players to take a more co-operative stance to RPG gaming but, in a recent statement, the firm said that this just isn’t happening. Players are choosing to play alone and simply avoid the more difficult situations or monsters that would require co-operative play.
The possibility of this happening was raised by those in the know when Final Fantasy was announced as being an online RPG. The Japanese have taken to online gaming fairly well and Phantasy Star Online is considered a relative success in the region. This is because it’s the first time that players have taken to a more ‘intimate’ style of online play, as opposed to the relatively anonymous online games of the past.
It would seem that the Final Fantasy community in Japan prefers to avoid contact with other humans in favour of interacting with the digital world as much as possible.
As ever, we’ll keep you updated on this, and any other Square news, as it breaks.
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