Things I hate about FFXI - Part 2: Player vs. Avatar

FFXI is a great RPG, more so than any other MMO. The richness of the story and the environment really makes you feel a bond with your avatar. There are lots of other MMOs that might be more fun to play but few provide such a great RPG feel.

Having said that, the line between my avatar and me is a little wonky.

I rely solely on my avatars ability to learn skills, fight monsters and cast spells. My avatar also knows how to ride a chocobo. I don't need to know how to do any of these things because my avatar can do it for me. I don't need any previous RL riding experience to get on a chocobo.

If that's the case, why does my avatar have the memory of a goldfish?

So, what can't my avatar do that he/she relies on me for?

1) Remember recipes

In many other games, recipes are learnt, in the same way spells are in FF11. So, why can't my character remember recipes? Most of us probably don't even know HOW to find out about recipes in-game.

1a) Repeat simple actions

My avatar can't just make the same recipe again. He forgets how to do it the instant he's done it. Stupid Taru.

2) Remember anyone's name

My avatar remembers all my PC chums perfectly but he can't remember anything about any NPCs. I have to remember who they are, what they do and why they might be relevant.

3) Remember where anything is

You have a quest that asks you to go back to someone you have met previously. Your avatar has no idea where they are. Luckily your avatar CAN read maps but only if you have one.

4) Remember more than basic facts about quests

Your avatar can fight vast battles, cast powerful spells and use lethal weapons skills but he can't remember how many shells an NPC wants you to collect, or tell you when you have enough.

That's quite a list!

Why does FF11 work this way then? The answer to this question is almost certainly "PS2 limitations", there is only so much the PS2 can store on that little drive.

But who cares anyway, we have the wiki, right? Well, I hate the fact that without the wiki this game would be colossally time consuming. It's ridiculous. I think it's great to have community involvement and the wiki is a credit to the community and every single author but the quality of the wiki only highlights the failures of the game.

More about the wiki in my next hate.

A lot of people don't like those blue quest arrows above NPCs heads in other games. They consider it to be artificial looking. To me it simply says - your avatar recognises this person from previous knowledge or recognises that this person might need assistance or be able to assist you. In the latter case it's implicit that PCs and NPCs constantly interact without my knowledge/involvement - I don't need to explicitly speak to a person to find out they have lost their cat - my avatar knows. That's how it should be. My avatar lives in the world, he/she should see things in that world that I cannot or I might overlook.

I dunno that I like big blue arrows specifically, they are a little unsubtle, but as a visual cue it does the job and it's hard to miss.

There's not much to say about recipes - in other games you learn the recipe and use the recipe as necessary. There really is no need for me to remember these things and it really isn't fun to put the materials together every time. If I've got the materials, just make the item. It doesn't take SKILL to arrange the items, so why make me do it? Is the answer RMT?

Given that FF11 is 8 years old and was originally designed to run on a now grossly obsolete console, I can largely forgive all these problems. What I can't forgive is some of these things being carried over into FF14; what should a be a state of the art MMO. And, based on my experience so far, some of them have been...