Decision time!

Ok so I've given it a lot of thought (for the past 9 hours or so) and I've decided to return to XI.

My decision was based on 2 things.

1. I want to experience the new content that is being released as it's being released.

2. I apparently never unsubscribed from the game and have been unwittingly paying for it every month (good job).

I'm not coming back to further myself personally, but to help out the friends of mine that I know still play. Namely I'm going back as a high level assistance to Jarre, Leasious, Cid and a few others.

The way I see it, if I remove the grindy aspect of the game and replace it with more of the social aspect, I can get a lot more enjoyment out of it. The things I really truly enjoyed the most about XI are all dead content that I can really only hope to experience vicariously through someone else.

This approach also eliminates the exhausting "standard" of play that I've grown used to. I never did like being told what job to come as or what to bring or what to do or where to stand or how to play my job. The majority of my over 900 hours of gameplay were spent alone. The fact of the matter was that nobody wanted a SMN in their party and nobody thought that one was every a useful option.

I want to return to the game as a SMN to experience and enjoy all the things that made me love th game in the first place all over again.

This time I'm doing it for me. No events, no schedules, no requirements, no statics... no nothing of the sort.

I might even consider spending an hour or so just riding the Mana Clipper back and forth.  Who's to stop me? It was a relaxing experience for me when I would ride on it. Any of the archaic travel mediums were a welcome escape from the GO HERE! QUICKLY!!! pace of the game.

Before I left, I showed Leasious "Teleport: Dem" and "Warp II" and she was thrilled. I think her exact words were "That was AWESOME!!!". It made me think. When did the game stop being that fun for me? I remember feeling the same way as her when I got my first teleport cast on me. I felt that way when I went to Jeuno for the first time... and I felt that way when I finally got my Chocobo Permit.

I don't know... I guess I just want that same feeling back.