I know people don't want more PC launchers but can PlayOnline be revived in some form
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Oh boy playonline. I can hear the music just reading that name.
And the warning when you'd start FFXI ^_^.
I'd love to use it for SE games
And the warning when you'd start FFXI ^_^.
I'd love to use it for SE games
No thanks.
Only thing to like about POL is the music. A shame they don't use some of those tracks elsewhere.
Only thing to like about POL is the music. A shame they don't use some of those tracks elsewhere.
POL was a bit of a hastle. There was almost no need for it and was just another barrier to get to XI...but the music made it SO WORTH.
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LOL I just logged out of PlayOnline. The FFXI community at large wants this thing gone. OP you are wild.
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Well I'm partly there. Still need the icons and general aesthetic of PO though!
Was it actually needed for anything on the backend or was it simply tied to FFXI because it was meant to be a more general game launcher? I assume the former since at some point you would have thought SE would just remove the need to have PO along with XI unless it was necessary for whatever reason.
Hey, I said in some form! I don't think most people want it as is. At least not the install & update process. If it were more modern and its own little launcher for other games it'd be less offensive.
You missed the peak of POL
It used to have a card game in there, based off of FF9's tetra master,
People used to actively use the friend messaging system (well because PS2) and could share screenshots
It also used to update with more dev info or fixes
As well as banners for upcoming Square games, it had the bouncer, front mission and etc.
It used to have a card game in there, based off of FF9's tetra master,
People used to actively use the friend messaging system (well because PS2) and could share screenshots
It also used to update with more dev info or fixes
As well as banners for upcoming Square games, it had the bouncer, front mission and etc.
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A banner add for The Bouncer is sickening. I like that it has its own wallpaper system though.
I think I saw your other thread about starting XI recently, if your in Asura and need help, let me know
Oh yes playing Tetra Master was always fun. And staying in contact with friends without logging into FFXI
edit: oh signal just started playing FFXI aka the best mmo ever? Have fun!
edit: oh signal just started playing FFXI aka the best mmo ever? Have fun!
You could also launch Terra Master through it. But barely anyone played that.
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😁
I know I'm viewing it through a super unorthodox lens but aside from the annoyance of installing it and updates for games, was it actually that bad in its time just as a launcher? I guess it would be annoying to open it every time just to play XI or whatever but aside from that?
To all those that don't understand what the intention of PlayOnline is:
you have to understand, this launcher came out BEFORE windows XP and was also made available for the PS2, from a launcher as well as a social platform standpoint, this made the most sense. Heck it even pre-dates Steam.
The way this game was made, like all games were back then was it was designed for then. Nowadays we try to make things more forward friendly, not a option back then.
Not to mention, Square Enix, a predominantly PS1 developer at the time, had no idea what they were doing with this at the time. (Or Spirits within)
This game is stuck as literally a PS2 game, it still uses calls to direct x 8, they have a hard enough time trying to update it, let alone their target date of like 2021 to make a new launcher for the 20th anniversary
you have to understand, this launcher came out BEFORE windows XP and was also made available for the PS2, from a launcher as well as a social platform standpoint, this made the most sense. Heck it even pre-dates Steam.
The way this game was made, like all games were back then was it was designed for then. Nowadays we try to make things more forward friendly, not a option back then.
Not to mention, Square Enix, a predominantly PS1 developer at the time, had no idea what they were doing with this at the time. (Or Spirits within)
This game is stuck as literally a PS2 game, it still uses calls to direct x 8, they have a hard enough time trying to update it, let alone their target date of like 2021 to make a new launcher for the 20th anniversary
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They're probably just voicing disgust at me calling for it's use. And new launcher in 2021?? Rip.
Can anyone find an extremely old concept video for PlayOnline, which I believed used some FFVIII gameplay? Does anyone know what I'm talking about?
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Yeah I think that was the absolute beginning of it, in 2000. First for digital guides of their own games, and later as a service for their MMO.
I did have an account, for the exact ultimate weapon locations on the world map. They would have screenshots of them on the PO guide.
The Worst Strategy Guide Ever Made
Pop quiz: does the name “PlayOnline” make your blood boil, or at least cause one of your eyes to start twitching? No? Lucky you. If it does, you might be familiar with the worst strategy guide in video game history.
kotaku.com
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Dunno. From the screenshot, it looks more feature complete than EGS.
I LOVED the playonline launcher. The music was great and if I remember correctly it had cool little backgrounds. I only used it for FF 11.
Do you still need it for that game?
Do you still need it for that game?
Good music isn't a good reason to revive PlayOnline. It's absolutely fucking garbage. Took me well over an hour to log into FFXI for the first time when I bought the game a few months ago because the registration and authentication process is so obtuse, archaic, and user-unfriendly.
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That can be modernized! Just make it not-FTP anymore or whatever lol. And yeah the login stuff sucks.
Yep.
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Well I never used it because we didn't have a broad-flat till 2006 and even though I wanted to play FFXI back then the monthly payments were a no-go because of no prepaid but wow seeing all the videos and hearing the music dear god do I love the atmosphere! Why aren't these atmospheres still a thing today? Is the kind of music a type of genre?
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Logging into POL to play my once-in-a-blue-moon FFXI sessions is a nice little time capsule into the period of time when SE was still acknowledging Sword of Mana and Brave Fencer Musashi's existence.
I don't think they've updated the Crysta purchasing interface since the last time they updated POL either.
I don't think they've updated the Crysta purchasing interface since the last time they updated POL either.
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Sounds comfy to check in periodically and read PO mail from friends.
Oh that's still possible? I'll read up on it later! I remember I bought a FFXI set ages ago from my pocket-money in middle-school but couldn't play on after the 30-day included phase and I surely won't remember the account anymore so I might aswell create a new one.
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Yeah I'm doing it right now. It's what made me make this thread!
The worst launcher I've ever had the displeasure of using.
Not only was it barely even working for anything you wanted to do, especially billing (which hasn't changed at all for Square Enix online games actually), but it was clunky and sluggish to use with way too many sub menus and scrolling pop up windows... it was made for consoles, and it shows. This was NOT how you made a PC launcher, even at the time.
But it did have nice music and looked nice... which also meant that it was an insane waste of resources and ran like dog shit on more modest configurations.
An example of what should be avoided.
Not only was it barely even working for anything you wanted to do, especially billing (which hasn't changed at all for Square Enix online games actually), but it was clunky and sluggish to use with way too many sub menus and scrolling pop up windows... it was made for consoles, and it shows. This was NOT how you made a PC launcher, even at the time.
But it did have nice music and looked nice... which also meant that it was an insane waste of resources and ran like dog shit on more modest configurations.
An example of what should be avoided.
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