I'm giving up on this game...for now.

I love my linkshell and I love the idea of building your own job, it's just everything else in the game is awful.  This game should not have been released yet and it's pretty obvious by all the negative reviews.  When the PS3 version is released I'll give it another go and hopefully they will implement even the simplest things like an auction house (really, why the fuck would I want to spend an hour wading through retainers?) and the UI won't be so terrible.  I can't even motivate myself to log into the game anymore because it's such a blatently cash-in outsourced terrible MMO.

Until then, if it even lasts that long,  this game blows and everything should stay as far away from it as possible. 

My review-- 4/10

I feel the same, but I'd say maybe 5/10. Because it's big.

I would like to take a moment to gloat. I called this the second the release date was announced for the PC version. Never, ever, ever trust a MMO to be finished without a long ass Beta. At least there are still some really cool ideas that can be polished up. I suspect that by the time it launches on the PS3 the game will be in a fairly good state for those that like this style of MMO.

As a word of warning to those that ignored my initial thoughts I would like to say don't expect major issues fixed in a single patch. It will be fixed slowly but surely barring some horrible disaster tanking sales and subscriptions to horrid levels like what happened to Vanguard.

Gametrailers has their review up and it isn't pretty.

4.2/10

http://www.gametrailers.com/video/review-hd-final-fantasy/705893

This is the only review I know of where you can actually hear their anger and frustration.

Not having a long beta isn't the games problem, it's problem is they just designed it without first looking at why other MMO's are successful (they didn't even take lessons learned from FFXI!) and it was released far too early.

They actually had a decently long beta and everyone in it complained about the UI.  A year long beta would not have even changed that and that is one of the two biggest problems (the other being the economy which a long beta would have also not fixed).

well I have to admit, they're right. as soon as my free trials ends I'll put my sub on stand by and go back to FFXI lol

I suppose I should have specified that they have to actually listen to the players as well as have a long beta. People bitched about the controls from minute one. We also clearly have completely different definitions of what constitutes a decently long beta for a MMO. FFXIV was too short if you ask me, but probably would have been fine for any other type of game. MMOs take a whole lot of extra testing, tweaking, and fixing.

LOL best line, "You can put up and get by if you're irrationally determined"

hmm that guy is usually quite calm.

After the negative Beta reactions I was expecting 6's and 7's

But never the 4's its getting.....this is just very sad and shocking. I guess its good I wasn't really hyped for it because I don't want to hate Square-Enix, they have put out so many amazing games recently!

-I am in no way shape or form defending this game. I just want to point out some tidbits-

FFXI released in november 2002, in japan. was a whole 11 months later before it released outside japan. during that near year FFXI had similar issues. It was not until Chains of Promathia, in my honest opinion and experience with FFXI, did the game become the greatness it is now.

I am giving SE the benefit of the doubt that this game will pull a FFXI

-signed by a FFXI player since 2003