JP Button Questions

For those of you who never heard of it, JPButton is a cool site run by a guy called Elmer the Pointy. He's been fostering relations between the Japanese and English speaking players, and posts a lot of content published in Japan for us foreigners.

Recently he posted a bunch of questions from Japanese players for English speaking players to answer. I replied on the comments page, but now that I have a blog, I'll repost here.


1. Do foreign players have a lot of interest in joining social Japanese Linkshells? (Especially ones with only JP members) I ask because when I recruit for my shell in Japanese, I get a lot of tells from foreigners looking to join. Personally, I feel like even if they could understand my /shout, it still would be hard to keep up with regular conversation. They wouldn’t understand pop-culture references to old TV shows, for instance.

I would like to meet more Japanese players, but my ability to speak Japanese isn’t that good. What’s more, I don’t understand the cultural differences very well, and I have a hard time speaking to Japanese players for fear of offending them without realizing it.

2. Parties that cycle in replacement members seem to be popular amongst foreigners, but a lot of times the party will just disband once the replacement arrives. Of course, there are times when the replacement is contacted before they get all the way there, but there are many instances when no one says anything. There are also many cases where inappropriate jobs are invited and the party can no longer function well.

To me, this is a big reason behind some of the negative images Japanese players have about foreign players. What do you think about this?

Generally, I don’t mind replacements as long as the party discusses it (asking how much longer everyone will stay, and if the new member’s job is acceptable for the party). Sometimes when someone says they’re leaving in 30 minutes, other people might also want to leave around that time, and then it’s no good to invite a new person. I hate it when a new member just shows up and someone says “gtg guys my replacement’s here” without letting anyone know beforehand.

3. Why does it seem like many foreign players don’t bother to bring medicines and potions to Missions and BCs? Many Japanese players make sure to have Vile Elixirs, Hi-Potions and/or Reraise Earrings.

Medicine is expensive, so I can understand people not wanting to bring it. I always carry a stack of echo drops and a RR item, though.

4. Sometimes I see foreign pick-up parties recruiting for members using Auto-Translate, but then when I join the party, all the conversation and battle planning is in English. I’ll ask for them to {Please use the Auto-Translate function.} but nobody ever does. If you are going to /shout for help with the Auto-Translator, why not use it in the party? It feels like I was tricked.

I think this is mostly a matter of feeling more comfortable speaking one’s native language. Whenever I’m invited to Japanese parties, they often don’t use the auto-translator beyond offering a {Hello!} or {Nice to meet you.}

5. How many NA and EU players do Campaign? Any thoughts about the recent nerf to Fortifications?

A lot. I do campaign frequently, usually while seeking for a party. I’ve got friends with over 1 million Allied Notes. As for the fortification nerf…. I haven’t noticed it, to be honest ^^

6. What equipment do you think has great stats but horrible looks?
What equipment do you think has the best graphics?

99% of end game head equipment is ugly. Optical hat and Walahra turban in particular look horrible. I also think Ares body looks pretty bad. The best looking equipment is definitely AF1. There’s not a single job whose AF1 I dislike. Some AF2 looks good, too, but some looks ugly (I hate the way COR AF2 looks). For low level gear, I think leather armor and noct equipment looks good.

7. Outside of your normal party gear, is there any equipment that you go out of your way to get strictly for looks? What are your favorite pieces of casual equipment?

I like wearing a runic sword on my SMN.

8. I’m a Mithra, and I find that a lot of foreigners seem to be into Mithra fashion. They examine me and ask where I got my equipment and such. Do you think male players enjoy dressing up their Mithra in cute outfits?

Yes.

9. I wonder if you calculate the XP/hr of parties, and if so, do you think that Skillchain/Magic Burst or Weaponskill spam produces the best results? Before parsing became widespread, Japanese players used to think Skillchain/Magic Burst was the best.

I don’t calculate XP/hour personally, but I know a lot of people who do. As for whether skillchain/magic burst or weaponskill spam is better, I would say it depends on what jobs your party has and what enemies you’re fighting. Generally, if you’re fighting something with low defense or hp (like imps or colibri), I’d say weaponskill spam. If you’re fighting trolls, I’d go with magic burst.

10. How come it seems like so many people don’t utilize Search Comments properly? Why don’t they write their camp location for others to see? Also, it’s strange to see so many people seeking without basic information written like available jobs and where they can access. Don’t you want an invite?

People used to use search comments to show how close they were to next level, but with level sync that’s become irrelevant. As for available jobs, generally people seek on the job they want to get a party for.

11. If you know you are going to be busy, how come you don’t alert people at the beginning of the party instead of surprising everyone at the last minute?

Often times people don’t know they’re going to be busy. Things can come up. When they do know, however, they should inform the party.

12. Honestly, the largest difference in thinking between Japanse and foreign players exists
in the Merit party.
You often say 5 DDs and a RDM is so good, but having a single, solitary healer is hard
on the RDM.
Japanese realize that healers can be in short supply, so we make sacrifices to lighten
their burden, like subbing a mage job, or using Utsusemi.
I feel like many people don’t show proper respect to healers.

When we say JP ONLY, it isn’t always an issue of language,
but the fact that we feel there are other dangers and demerits associated with
a non-JP party, stemming from our different play-styles, that we wish to avoid.

This key difference in thinking, more than any race or language issue,
is what really sets us apart as players. They are just looking to sit back, relax
and earn some decent XP.

Please feel free to provide your own insight and thoughts.

Personally, that doesn’t sound like a very good party to me. Ideally, there would be a BRD or COR, or better yet, both. If neither is available, though, I would prefer another mage or a dancer to a 5th DD.

Bonus Question: What type of sushi do you like best?

I don’t like sushi. Sorry ^^

Good times, good times. A few things I'd like to mention:

1. I'll talk more about my thoughts on JP players in a later post. I have a few things to say here about perceptions and language barriers.

2. In regards to question 8, well, I'm a mithra. Honestly though, I think most people regardless of race or gender likes to make their character look appealing. The players who don't are really just looking at the game and seeing numbers and equations rather than graphics