Edit: whoops, major mistake fixed.
I'm kind of surprised that there will be changes to the Chocobo Circuit schedule in the next "major" version update, among other things. Given the skeleton crew assigned to FFXI, you have to wonder if there is any sense of priority. On the other hand, there should no longer be any surprise that SE tends to play up features that hold limited interest, at best, among the "player base" in the lead-up.
For those of you who choose not to spend time racing a chocobo in the Circuit (actually spending time earning enough in entry fees actually to be able to enter your chocobo in the races), here is an overview of what I think the stated changes actually mean:
Bigger Rewards. The amount of chocobucks rewarded to first, second, and third place winners in chocobo racing will be significantly increased.
What it actually means: They obviously forgot to mention the part where the entry fees to chocobo racing rise accordingly. Given SE's penchant for parsimony, the end result is that it will take more time to accumulate enough chocobucks to race, not less time.
Revised Race Schedule. The Chocobo Circuit schedule has undergone a full review. ...
Comment: What do you expect? Their tendency is toward being even more tight-fisted. Any careful consideration (to the extent that there actually was a "full review") is done only to ensure that any changes don't make things inadvertently easier on players.
... The C2 Chocobo Race and C1 Crystal Stakes will be held with greater frequency, and races will take place at the same time each Earth day, making it easier for players to participate than ever before.
Comment: To understand the potential implications, you have to understand how C2 and C1 races are handled under the current schedule. (You may review the details of the August 2007 update that introduced the Chocobo Circuit.)
Currently, all C1 and C2 races are handled by the blue NPC. Either C1 or C2 occurs every hour, but there are only three consecutive C1 races in an 8-hour cycle, or nine in a 24-hour cycle (with the remaining being C2). Furthermore, the sequence of C1 and C2 races follows a pattern such that there are only two C1 races that occur every day, with the third C1 race occurring every other day in its time slot (alternating with C2).
Moreover, the registration period for each C1 (C2) race is only 15 minutes, starting 15 minutes before the hour and about 35 minutes before the actual race. Also, the registration procedure is handled such that up to six PC chocobos can enter a given race, apparently, yet you, the registrant, are completely blind as to how many PC chocobos are currently registered or will eventually register, not to mention blind as to whether the scrub chocobos MegaFlare or LunarHarvester are actually in the race (they always occupy lanes 1 and/or 2). Chocobo racing seems to be fairly popular, relatively speaking, in the JP community (although sheer numbers of Japanese, given that the "market share" of FFXI is predominantly the Japanese market, provide another plausible explanation), so that it's pretty rare, especially during JP prime time, to be in a race that is completely uncontested. (That is no guarantee that you'll win, though.) Therefore, chocobo races end up being a zero-sum game where the first two finishers have net positive earnings (accounting for entry fees) while the rest are totally fucked. (Imagine how it is when there are six PC chocobos registered...)
Also, you are only allowed to register for a race only if at least 24 hours have passed since the last time you registered. Yes, this is the same kind of player-unfriendly time-limit feature that manifests with Dynamis, Limbus, and Einherjar also occurs with chocobo racing. So you can see how the combination of limited C1 races, small registration windows, competition among the JPs (at least on Fenrir), and time limits to registration makes chocobo "racing" generally pretty annoying, but I can deal with it.
Now, regarding the changes, the allegation is that C2 and C1 races will be held with greater frequency. The red NPC, which currently handles only C4 races (yes, C4 races, which have trivial rewards, are held twice an hour currently), will now handle C2 and C3 races, meaning that C3 races may occur twice an hour now.
It will probably be the case that the frequency of C1 races will be cut while the frequency of C2 races will increase, so that SE can technically be correct by saying that "C2 and C1 races will be held with greater frequency" while looking like the asshole Scrooges they are.
New Rewards. The dashing racing silks dutifully worn by jockeys will be added to the list of reward items obtainable in exchange for chocobucks. With each color offering unique beneficial effects for its wearer, there is bound to be something for every chocobo fan!
Comment: Honestly, this is kind of a nice perk and not unexpected, but I wouldn't be surprised if they made the body (and legs?) 500 chocobucks apiece with the benefits being completely incommensurate with the cost (and I don't mean there's going to be movement speed +12% on them).
Stay tuned to see if I should issue a mea culpa after tomorrow.
I suppose I should mention my chocobo racing record since I'm talking about it. I actually had a nice run going, actually approaching the 50% win rate at 149/299. Of course, I dropped my 300th race (second), which initiated an eight-race losing streak (including two 3rd place finishes and coming in second in both uncontested races) that was snapped today, so I now sit at 150-106-35-17. Starting with my 9- or 10-race winning streak (I forget which) earlier in the year, my record since then is 52-28-11-2, for a 56% win rate, which isn't that bad for a server that seems more competitive than others.
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