Are there really WOW players migrating to FF14 or is that "WOW refugee" term just banter?

[Dreamboum]

I keep seeing wow refugee videos on my youtube feed about how everyone hates BFA, how they hate it so much they moved on to FFXIV.

But is that shit true? Have you seen actual wow heads going to FFXIV? Only wow heads I know are never playing any other video games other than WOW to begin with. If WOW was an infinite black screen and FFXIV the fucking sistine chapel in video game form, they would still play WOW

How many of you moved on from WOW to FF14 and were like really invested in WOW to begin with? You folks went from fighting your 45th war chief as a night elf druid to playing a high pitched cat girl cooking on the beach with a bikini? I'm starting to think this wow refugee business is more just a jab against wow than a real exodus.

If you do, congratulations, and also what do you think of my cat? stylish? ass?

 

[Aeana]

People have been going back and forth depending on which is getting updates, and that's been going for a few years. That's pretty much how I play, too.

 

[PRrambo_]

Cat looks fierce

 

[Feep]

Off topic but I appreciate your Ghost Trick avatar, OP.

 

[Yoshichan]

Cat looks gr8

 

[Komo]

Honestly another MMO that is surprisingly goood is Star Trek Online lol. I on a whim downloaded this and it's pretty damn good.

 

[Deleted member 5491]

Many migrated to WOW classic when that came out. Espacially healers, because healing in Shadowbringers is totally boring

 

[Darkstorne]

WoW refugees are a thing, yes. I see a lot of them in ESO.

But like all happy-ending refugee stories, they all return to their home once things look bright and cheery again =)

 

[Ryuelli]

I couldn't be less interested in FF14, the art direction does nothing for me.

I went from WoW to taking a break from WoW and looking forward to Shadowlands.

 

[PeskyToaster]

I never really thought about playing another MMO myself. Especially with WoW Classic, I can wallow in the past and full submerge myself in nostalgia.

 

[Dalik]

It was definitely true during last year summer, bfa is a garbage pile of crap and shadowbringers was getting stellar reception. I've always been playing both of them since 6 years but i quit when WoW 8.2 launched to play only xiv. I'll come back in shadowlands if its wont be as shit as bfa.

 

[Deleted member 2229]

People have been going back and forth depending on which is getting updates, and that's been going for a few years. That's pretty much how I play, too.

Click to shrink...

Pretty much this for me. I play FF14 as a single player game and WoW as more of an MMO/active participant. Can't really see myself leaving one for the other, especially since they fill such different 'roles' for me and I enjoy having them both around.

 

[Hippopuncher12]

I'm sure it's true. I left WoW for FF 14 and went back to WoW after a couple of weeks, I just like WoW a lot more. The OG quests are a massive slog and I just couldn't do it. I will probably try it out again when they shake them up, but I won't ever leave WoW for it again full time.

 

[Milennia]

I mean my friends just play it for fun, we are on the high end of the raiding totem pole rank wise and like to dabble in FF when new raids come out just to see how they look
The game is legitimately just fun to play casually right now compared to WoW, and the game is at a content spiral until we get the Xpac (personally been playing alpha for shadowlands myself as I hate farm)
What others are saying is true in my experience, I know tons of people who also manage FF guilds that literally only play the game when there's a WoW content drought

 

[Ruck]

As someone who's been playing 14 since 2.0, yes, WoW refugees are a thing but they never stay. They get to level cap or not even, then go back to WoW when a new patch or expansion comes out. I've never met a single WoW player that actually stuck with 14 after quitting WoW

 

[Risev]

Most people just go back and forth. Besides, those who truly wanted to leave WoW for FFXIV would probably be dissapointed to see that most of FFXIV's end-game content is one and done. FFXIV doesn't have nearly as much repeatable content as WoW does at end-game, and that's completely fine. It just means that I can play the FFXIV new patch for a month or so, and then go back to WoW until the new FFXIV patch rolls around.

 

[monketron]

Most people don't realise their boredom with WoW is more to do with their boredom (is that the right word? maybe 'staleness' is a better term) of MMO gameplay in general, especially if you've been playing WoW for a decade+. Switching to FF, or any other MMO, isn't going to magically cure that, if anything not having the comfort of your characters and world building of the MMO you've played for so long will just make it worse.

 

[Serious Sam]

OP are you aware how Youtube's suggested content algorithm works?

I returned to WoW about 2 years ago and your thread is the first time I heard of "WoW refugee" term. I haven't seen "FF14" or "wow refugee" mentioned in General or LFG chat once on my realm. I once saw an in depth post on official forum comparing both WoW and FF14. Person basically said both games are great, they both have extensive list of strengths and weaknesses. Nothing about refugees though.

 

[Tangyn]

I'm sure it's true. I left WoW for FF 14 and went back to WoW after a couple of weeks, I just like WoW a lot more. The OG quests are a massive slog and I just couldn't do it. I will probably try it out again when they shake them up, but I won't ever leave WoW for it again full time.

Click to shrink...

Yep this is me.

Also as others said I always seem to go back to wow no matter what. I've skipped entire expansions etc etc but always go back if I hear something is good / different / getting buzz. I've probably tried every MMO released but I always go back to WoW

 

[CortexVortex]

Lots of former WoW players in FFXIV, yep.
But that is not surprising since everyone played WoW at one point.

 

[Risev]

I'm starting to think this wow refugee business is more just a jab against wow than a real exodus.

Click to shrink...

From my experience, this is very much the case. I've yet to see anyone use the term "WoW refugee" who isn't a long-time FFXIV player who already hates WoW and was never invested in it / didn't try it in the first place.

 

[Barnak]

I've been playing on and off WoW and its expansions ever since 2006. Never really started another MMO since this kind of game eat your time so much that one MMO is just enough. BFA is the longest I've put WoW on break, I think I've stopped right before they introduced playable mecha gnomes and vulperas and I'll probably only sub again for the new expansion at this point. Got too many games to finish, especially now with my new PS4.

 

[GuitarGuruu]

I've anecdotally seen a shit ton of players new to FFXIV saying they came over from BFA so yeah it's definitely a thing. I've seen so many new players over the course of the current XIV expansion and it's been great to see.

 

[Yam's]

I used to play FF14 heavily during WoW's content drought. But as much as I enjoy FF14's world and stories, there is just not enough high level content to keep me more than 1-2 months (except during vanilla where Coil kept me longer). That being said WoW last expansion was in my eye a big failure (even more so after Legion which I loved) and it didn't keep me for long either.

But I just don't see how a WoW veterans could stay on FF14 for long as there will never be enough content for them compared to WoW.

 

[Synohan]

A lot of WoW refugees play FF14 up until about 2.3 before dropping off. 5.3 is going to help fix that. 2.3 - .4 are bad in their current state.

 

[Rathorial]

I've seen some WoW refugees in GW2 and ESO. Doubt it's a big thing, but enough people who play MMOs want that kind of game to play, so given BFA is a bad expansion some have moved.

Im kinda interested to see how FF14 and WoW do when they both update the starting game experience...because you do have to wade through some pretty boring content in both before they get better.

 

[Nugnip]

15 years of WoW here, and I can't remember a time I had as much fun as I am having with FFXIV right now. I'm so glad I finally decided to try it. I'm sure I'll try the next WoW expansion but honestly, I'm not even excited.

 

[No Depth]

Was a WoW subscriber since day 1 launch in 2004.

Abandoned in 2013 for FFXIV ARR launch after playing the free month and deciding I no longer needed WoW in my life. (I was already pretty sour on the direction WoW was going at the time, and I really enjoyed what FFXIV brought to the table).

I have dipped back into WoW briefly with each new exp but always just go back to FFXIV after a week of play. With the exception of maybe a month of fun with Legion and old friends, none of WoW has impressed me for awhile. Meanwhile I have adored FFXIV, warts and all.

 

[Marie]

WoW refugee will soon figure out FF14 lacks midcore content like mythic+ and that they will be stuck doing 4 bosses for 6+ months (not including ultimate). I don't really count extremes because most ppl do that for a week or two and stop.

Of course this covid-19 situation isn't helping since this raid tier is expected to last 7-8 months now.

 

[Alucrid]

is going from a night elf druid to a cat girl really that different?

 

[Poppy]

i find wow much more fun to play than ffxiv even if it does feel more dated, ffxiv just is a little too stiff

i think ffxiv looks great and i love the ff series nostalgia but after playing for a month i could not get totally invested and i got bored. i think for me, training every job on one char instead of multiple chars gives me more fatigue as well

but i am done with blizzart so if i were to play an mmo it would certainly be ffxiv

or, you know, a private wow server, but those always end up going to shit

 

[The Crystal Exarch]

From my anecdota experience, it's true.

A few months back when Shadowbringers was released, there were dozens of posts on the FFXIV subreddit and all of them began with "Hey, WOW refugee here".

 

[Chudah]

I moved over to FF14 about 9 months ago after a nearly 15 year long stint in WOW (even have the bronze statue they gave out for 10 year vets). I have never been happier and will not be going back to WOW when Shadowlands is released. tbh, I have not enjoyed WOW for several years now (probably since MOP), and had only been playing it so long due to long time friends, and from feeling obliged to hold down the fort as GM in my guild which had been around since WOTLK. I am sure the sunk cost fallacy was partially to blame too.

I can't speak for other "WOW Refugees", but my husband and another friend made the jump around the same time, and we are all of the same mind; the grass is definitely greener over here.

 

[Finaj]

The current WoW expansion Battle for Azeroth was not very positively received by the playerbase (even if I think Warlords of Draenor and Cataclysm were way worse) and Shadowbringers received overwhelming critical praise, so it's not that much a surprise some WoW players went to check out something else.

WoW: Shadowlands is currently in its Alpha testing and a lot of it is being very well received, but there's still a lot of testing to be done.

I'm not a huge fan of FFXIV for small personal reasons (I -really- don't like it aesthetically), but it from what I've heard it seems like a fantastic MMO.

 

[elenarie]

I keep seeing wow refugee videos on my youtube feed about how everyone hates BFA

Click to shrink...

That's your problem. :p The moment you see one negative thing about a subject on youtube, the more you will be exposed to that crap.

 

[Risev]

That's your problem. :p The moment you see one negative thing about a subject on youtube, the more you will be exposed to that crap.

Click to shrink...

Watch one shitty alt-right take on a video game and you might as well delete your youtube account.

 

[Atom Heart Mother]

Been playing WoW for 12 years, never left it LOL. FF14 just doesn't look like my style and I'm so invested in WoW, can't think of leaving. Also classic came out, and its awesome!

 

[TheRaidenPT]

Not really all my guilds and wow friends still stick to wow.

15 years and counting.

 

[Bastos]

I migrated from WoW to FFXIV because tanking in FF doesn't feel like I'm facerolling.

ALL the tanks in WoW felt similar past WoD, hated it. I never felt that I had to completely master my class and kit again.

I have so much fun tanking in FFXIV, I will return to the game as soon as I can.

 

[Chromie]

Not me. I really miss WoW and I'm tired of the current expansion and not really interested in the next. I tried FF14 again during the free week and again, it couldn't grab me.

 

[cdyhybrid]

Players are constantly bouncing between MMOs, not a surprise that there's an uptick when one of them is struggling

 

[SRTtoZ]

Not really. I renew my sub to FF14 every once in a while but I always feel like I'm so behind on main quests and usually give up trying to get to the current content. WoW is on another level IMO.

 

[Listai]

Wrong OP. Everyone is playing Final Fantasy XI.

Spoiler

Please everyone play Final Fantasy XI.

 

[sredgrin]

I think back when Shadowbringers launched there were likely a decent chunk, but probably a lot of people are just lapsed on both at the moment.

 

[Techno]

Nice cat bro, here's me and my bird.

 

[Risev]

I migrated from WoW to FFXIV because tanking in FF doesn't feel like I'm facerolling.

ALL the tanks in WoW felt similar past WoD, hated it. I never felt that I had to completely master my class and kit again.

I have so much fun tanking in FFXIV, I will return to the game as soon as I can.

Click to shrink...

If there's one thing I really dislike about current WoW, it's that class rotations are so simplified, and the the challenge instead comes from boss mechanics rather than a balance between class skill and boss-fight knowledge.

I know class rotations aren't an indication of depth, but I much prefer running through a rotation rather than clicking the shinny proc abilities.

WoW's combat does feel far more fluid though in comparison to FFXIV which feels much more stiff. So both games do their own thing well I suppose.

 

[Khezu]

Final Fantasy 14 is cool

But it's just more WoW.

I'm bored of that style of game, so Final Fantasy WoW isn't going to win me over.

That, and to be honest, WoW's minute to minute gameplay is just a lot more fun.

 

[Tatsumaki Senpuukyaku!]

Wrong OP. Everyone is playing Final Fantasy XI.

Spoiler

Please everyone play Final Fantasy XI.

Click to shrink...

i didnt even know you could still play it. then again you can still play everquest and ultima online. MMOs have weirdly long lifespans

 

[LordDraven]

I keep seeing wow refugee videos on my youtube feed about how everyone hates BFA, how they hate it so much they moved on to FFXIV.

But is that shit true? Have you seen actual wow heads going to FFXIV? Only wow heads I know are never playing any other video games other than WOW to begin with. If WOW was an infinite black screen and FFXIV the fucking sistine chapel in video game form, they would still play WOW

How many of you moved on from WOW to FF14 and were like really invested in WOW to begin with? You folks went from fighting your 45th war chief as a night elf druid to playing a high pitched cat girl cooking on the beach with a bikini? I'm starting to think this wow refugee business is more just a jab against wow than a real exodus.

If you do, congratulations, and also what do you think of my cat? stylish? ass?

Click to shrink...

Cat boy

 

[Listai]

i didnt even know you could still play it. then again you can still play everquest and ultima online. MMOs have weirdly long lifespans

Click to shrink...

There's a free return home campaign coming up in a few days (if you already own the game) if you don't now is a great time to jump in because of all of the QoL additions over the years you can easily solo the campaign. It's the most well realised MMO world in my opinion and it's a joy to explore and it's a relic of back when MMO game design was still somewhat fluid. You have an enormous amount of control over your character build unlike modern MMOs.

I like XIV well enough but I just sub for major patches and expansions because I don't like playing RPGs where I have no agency over the development of my character.