This expansion put in a graphical upgrade that added mandatory blur and bloom effects to the world and removed the option to turn them off, which previously had been available (at least since ARR, when I started playing). As a result, I have about a single hour a day I can play before the eyestrain, headaches, and other sensory issues make it too unpleasant or painful to continue. I'm lucky I don't have worse health reactions (some folks have gotten seizures or vertigo to the point of vomiting or being unable to walk, supposedly) but it's hard to play an MMO on a single carefully-budgeted hour once a day. Square Enix has said the new required bloom is "working as intended" when users reported the problem, so I'd recommend avoiding FF14 going forward.

This expansion put in a graphical upgrade that added mandatory blur and bloom effects to the world and removed the option to turn them off, which previously had been available (at least since ARR, when I started playing). As a result, I have about a single hour a day I can play before the eyestrain, headaches, and other sensory issues make it too unpleasant or painful to continue. I'm lucky I don't have worse health reactions (some folks have gotten seizures or vertigo to the point of vomiting or being unable to walk, supposedly) but it's hard to play an MMO on a single carefully-budgeted hour once a day. Square Enix has said the new required bloom is "working as intended" when users reported the problem, so I'd recommend avoiding FF14 going forward.