POL News: The Mog Bonanza is back.

So its back! With the usual host of goodies and loot for players to drool over, and inevitably not win! Just like real life /grin. Yes I know, I am deeply cynical.

BUT! Since you are a scrooooge if you don't! All the details of the prizes are available to drool over here

Yes yes, I know, a miniscule post, but what is there to say, buy balls for gil, win stuff hopefully, suffer a month of -10 inventory space!. That is really all there is to it.

<a href="http://www.playonline.com/pcd/topics/ff11us/detail/5098/5098.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.playonline.com/pcd/topics/ff11us/detail/5098/5098.jpg" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 415px; height: 100px;" /></a><br /><br />So its back! With the usual host of goodies and loot for players to drool over, and inevitably not win! Just like real life /grin. Yes I know, I am deeply cynical.<br /><br />BUT! Since you are a scrooooge if you don't! All the details of the prizes are available to drool over <a href="http://www.playonline.com/ff11us/guide/mogbon/index.html">here</a><br /><br />Yes yes, I know, a miniscule post, but what is there to say, buy balls for gil, win stuff hopefully, suffer a month of -10 inventory space!. That is really all there is to it.

POL News: It's the Great Pumpkin, Allakhazam!

Alla has their yearly pumpkin carving contest going again. It's pretty much the same deal as every year, but the prizes are pretty good and you get to laugh at the entries that suck. :)

Here are the prizes:

Grand Prize: Shadow Lord Statue, 3 months ZAM premium membership

3 Runner-ups (2nd, 3rd, 4th place): - Star Onions and Piano Collection CDs, 1 month ZAM premium membership

First 10 (approved) entries: - Nation Key Chains

Top 25 Finalists: Large in-game pumpkin

First 500 (approved) entries: Small in-game pumpkin

Check out Allakhazam for more information.

<a href="http://www.playonline.com/pcd/topics/ff11us/detail/4905/4905.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.playonline.com/pcd/topics/ff11us/detail/4905/4905.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 415px; height: 100px;" /></a>Alla has their yearly pumpkin carving contest going again. It's pretty much the same deal as every year, but the prizes are pretty good and you get to laugh at the entries that suck. :) <br /><br />Here are the prizes: <blockquote>Grand Prize: Shadow Lord Statue, 3 months ZAM premium membership<br /><br />3 Runner-ups (2nd, 3rd, 4th place): - Star Onions and Piano Collection CDs, 1 month ZAM premium membership<br /><br />First 10 (approved) entries: - Nation Key Chains<br /><br />Top 25 Finalists: Large in-game pumpkin<br /><br />First 500 (approved) entries: Small in-game pumpkin</blockquote><br /><br />Check out Allakhazam for <a href="http://ffxi.allakhazam.com/wiki/2009_Pumpkin_Carving_Contest">more information</a>.

Morning in Vana'diel: Plain Old Fun Vs. Shiney New Fun.

Morning in Vana'diel is your daily dose of FFXI and all things Vana'diel. Give us your thoughts on the interesting topics of the day! I don't know about you, but I am not having less fun in game but I am having less fun anticipating having less fun in game.

I have no internet at work this morning so I have no idea when this is going to be posted. And in this moment without instantaneous entertainment I am left to think about things a little more slowly, and a little more globally. I made me wonder how the developers really think about monster and event creation.

Now it is obvious that SE really isn’t putting anywhere as much heart into their events as they once did. The last two updates have seen events that mirror one of their oldest event systems: Garrison. Maybe they decided to use it because no one uses this kind of semi-instanced event anymore, but I have a feeling it is more to do to the need to spend less time developing new programming for events so they can work on the mini-expansions and FFXIV.

These events are not bad at all. The ANNM and Fey Weapons events are actually quite challenging and rewarding. They do require a little more thought than some other things that have been introduced lately and some of them like the Xarcabard Fey Weapon battle are actually very difficult. It is not the challenge or the reward I am concerned about, it is how they come up with the events they do implement.

There are weird balances between the different events. Some of the things they come up with are very interesting, intriguing and challenging. Salvage, for example, is probably the best implemented idea SE ever had, or at least after they added the crate of cells at the beginning of the run. Some zones were hard, some thought provoking and some required trickery, but all were interesting. But then you have something like Pandemonium Warden and Absolute Virtue, which are nothing more than insane puzzles that only the developers have the answers to the riddles. Why even create challenges that are not meant to be defeated? If we were reading a story or watching a movie these would be fine, but in a game are challenges that are too challenging even worth the development time?

[Note: Of course, Pandemonium Warden has become increasingly defeatable, but that is only because of the changes that occurred because of the way it was originally designed.]

<a href="http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/ffxi/images/0/0e/FayCrozier-Augmented.png" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/ffxi/images/0/0e/FayCrozier-Augmented.png" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 366px; height: 120px;" /></a><span style="font-weight:bold;">Morning in Vana'diel</span><span style="font-style:italic;"> is your daily dose of FFXI and all things Vana'diel. Give us your thoughts on the interesting topics of the day! I don't know about you, but I am not having less fun in game but I am having less fun anticipating having less fun in game.</span><br /><br />I have no internet at work this morning so I have no idea when this is going to be posted. And in this moment without instantaneous entertainment I am left to think about things a little more slowly, and a little more globally. I made me wonder how the developers really think about monster and event creation.<br /><br />Now it is obvious that SE really isn’t putting anywhere as much heart into their events as they once did. The last two updates have seen events that mirror one of their oldest event systems: Garrison. Maybe they decided to use it because no one uses this kind of semi-instanced event anymore, but I have a feeling it is more to do to the need to spend less time developing new programming for events so they can work on the mini-expansions and FFXIV. <br /><br />These events are not bad at all. The ANNM and Fey Weapons events are actually quite challenging and rewarding. They do require a little more thought than some other things that have been introduced lately and some of them like the Xarcabard Fey Weapon battle are actually very difficult. It is not the challenge or the reward I am concerned about, it is how they come up with the events they do implement. <br /><br />There are weird balances between the different events. Some of the things they come up with are very interesting, intriguing and challenging. Salvage, for example, is probably the best implemented idea SE ever had, or at least after they added the crate of cells at the beginning of the run. Some zones were hard, some thought provoking and some required trickery, but all were interesting. But then you have something like Pandemonium Warden and Absolute Virtue, which are nothing more than insane puzzles that only the developers have the answers to the riddles. Why even create challenges that are not meant to be defeated? If we were reading a story or watching a movie these would be fine, but in a game are challenges that are too challenging even worth the development time? <br /><br />[Note: Of course, Pandemonium Warden has become increasingly defeatable, but that is only because of the changes that occurred because of the way it was originally designed.]

POL News: Talladega Days and Celestial Nights.

SE has posted on the POL website about the next in-game event, Celestial Nights. It's a story of star-crossed love and stuff and blah... and there is an event with dancing and crying and stuff and blah... I know that people like this stuff because I always see people doing it but I just don't get it. Now for saying this Omoi is probably going to drag me out to do the event. It sounds like this is just a rehash of last year's event too, which makes it even a little more dull. I can't wait for the summer festival, I love the music for that!

<a href="http://www.playonline.com/pcd/topics/ff11us/detail/4616/4616.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.playonline.com/pcd/topics/ff11us/detail/4616/4616.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 415px; height: 100px;" /></a>SE has posted on the POL website about the next in-game event, <a href="http://www.playonline.com/pcd/topics/ff11us/detail/4616/detail.html">Celestial Nights</a>. It's a story of star-crossed love and stuff and blah... and there is an event with dancing and crying and stuff and blah... I know that people like this stuff because I always see people doing it but I just don't get it. Now for saying this Omoi is probably going to drag me out to do the event. <a href="http://www.playonline.com/pcd/topics/ff11us/detail/4616/4616_0.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.playonline.com/pcd/topics/ff11us/detail/4616/4616_0.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 480px; height: 360px;" /></a> It sounds like this is just a rehash of last year's event too, which makes it even a little more dull. I can't wait for the summer festival, I love the music for that!

Mr. QQ says "Emergency Maintenance for Kupofried? Oh Noes!"

Looks like we are in for a little bit of maintenance in the near future to fix something with the Kupofried ongoing event. SE did a bit of maintenance last week to fix the issue with mobs moving too quickly when they were in a fully rested state. Insert jokes about spaghetti code here. This might bring back the considerations I brought up in my late post about whether SE should or should not take down the servers in the case of a minor but important repair that might need to be done.

As much as I don't have a problem with it, the issue of King's is relevant for those that do camp them. It is important that the times of King's rotate through the day so that all time zones get a chance to claim the different King's. This actually can take quite a bit of time depending on when they previously spawned, so it is important to keep the servers up for extended periods of time. It may also raise the question of why there are still mobs that require this situation to exist, and that it is far past the time to consider doing away with 21-24 (or longer) spawns.

A site note: This is the beginning of the new format style even if the new format has not yet changed. Mr. QQ will be the column for information on technical issues, server issues and other minor SE issues.

<a href="http://i236.photobucket.com/albums/ff151/ringthreetheicp/QQ_Hi-2.png" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://i236.photobucket.com/albums/ff151/ringthreetheicp/QQ_Hi-2.png" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" /></a> Looks like we are in for a little bit of maintenance in the near future to fix something with the Kupofried ongoing event. SE did a bit of maintenance last week to fix the issue with mobs moving too quickly when they were in a fully rested state. Insert jokes about spaghetti code here. This might bring back the considerations I brought up in my late post about whether SE should or should not take down the servers in the case of a minor but important repair that might need to be done. <br /><br />As much as I don't have a problem with it, the issue of King's is relevant for those that do camp them. It is important that the times of King's rotate through the day so that all time zones get a chance to claim the different King's. This actually can take quite a bit of time depending on when they previously spawned, so it is important to keep the servers up for extended periods of time. It may also raise the question of why there are still mobs that require this situation to exist, and that it is far past the time to consider doing away with 21-24 (or longer) spawns. <br /><br />A site note: This is the beginning of the new format style even if the new format has not yet changed. Mr. QQ will be the column for information on technical issues, server issues and other minor SE issues.