Final Fantasy 14's director, Naoki Yoshida, details fixes coming in the game's upcoming patch that will rebalance the difficulty after player complaints.

Following gamer backlash after the increase in difficulty with the release of Heavensward, it looks like the next patch for Final Fantasy 14 will rebalance the game. Final Fantasy 14 director Naoki Yoshida announced the update coming in patch 3.2 in a message to the community with details about the upcoming changes.

The 3.2 patch will make adjustments to the Alexander: Gordias (Savage) raid, Exploratory Missions, and the Anima weapons that were added to Final Fantsy 14 in the 3.15 patch. In the post, Yoshida shared his perspective about the increase in difficulty and the results it had on players:

I’ve met many players from all over the world and have been hearing requests for even harder content, and it was to answer these requests that we set the raid to its current difficulty. However, this caused the following as a result.

  • The difficulty was high to the point that players were transferring to different Worlds in search of groups to beat it.
  • The difficulty was high to the point that players were unable to clear the content, and the time in which they were unable to obtain items grew too long.
  • Due to the severity of DPS checks, it’s not possible to supplement with item levels only.

This situation is a prime example of the challenge game developers have to provide high-quality experiences to as many gamers as possible. In this instance, it seemed many players wanted more of a challenge, but the ensuing challenge turned out to be too much for others.

Even though the new patch will balance the difficulty, hopefully the team at Square Enix will still find a way to help advanced players find the challenge they seek. If nothing else, hopefully they reflect on this experience while they complete Final Fantasy 15.

Concerning the Exploratory Missions, Square Enix is looking to improve a different kind of balance. Rather than disparities in difficulty, the developer referenced contention between those gamers who want prefer to gather, and those looking for more opportunities to fight. Yoshida detailed the changes coming to provide greater balance to Exploratory Missions:

  • More chances for exploration.
  • Make a system for matching routes with different objectives such as battle and gathering focused.
  • Add variation to the exploration objectives, and make it more fun to explore as an individual party.
  • Create set rewards and make it so that farming is not the only objective.
  • Reduce the content time, and turn it into content that does not rely greatly on player skill.

Hopefully these changes will give all players something to enjoy and appreciate in Final Fantasy 14. Chances are, though, that the patch will introduce other issues that spark new complaints among gamers. Such is the world of gaming.

What do you think about the changes coming with Final Fantasy 14 patch 3.2? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Final Fantasy 14: Heavensward is available now on PC, PS3, and PS4.