Naoki Yoshida, the director for Final Fantasy XIV (FF14) recently said in an interview that the game has become too “stress-free”.

In a recent Famitsu interview, Yoshida (affectionately referred to by fans as Yoshi-P) shared his thoughts on the game’s direction. Notably, he worries that the game went too far in becoming “stress-free” and that challenge and difficulty need to be brought back.

You can read Yoshida’s statement below.

I have once again realized that we must continue to provide players with surprises that go beyond their imaginations. In that sense, I actually have some regrets… As we continue to operate FF14, we have tried to make it more comfortable and stress-free for players to enjoy, but when I think back on the past 10 years, I think we may have gone a bit too far in that regard…

 For example, if you’re playing a side-scrolling action game and there aren’t even any holes where you’ll miss if you fall, then of course there won’t be any stress. But at the same time, it loses its fun. Speaking of FF14, I would like to return to this part a little bit in the future. If we do that, I think we will be able to provide everyone with a challenge in a better sense than ever before. This is also a challenge for the next 10 years, and I’m currently designing various games, and it’s quite fun (lol). However, some people may think, “Why would you do that?”

Translation: Google

Final Fantasy XIV recently celebrated its 10 year anniversary of A Realm Reborn, the 2.0 rechristening of the game following its disappointing original launch. In the years since, FFXIV has grown to become one of the largest MMORPGs today.