Originally posted by RagnorMalak Yet another single player game dressed up as an MMO. Unless there's some meaningful end-game experience with sandbox elements, it will just be another game you play till max level and then leave until another expansion comes along. (Maybe add 2 alts if it is true that all three factions have their unique leveling experience (They said this of SWTOR as well for the classes, but the majority of quests were shared quests), but even after that the content will 'dry up' if there's not some way of player-driven and -created content.)
the game systems changed over the years a bit with skyrim being the least deep system but with a very deep world.
so the game's system is not that important if the spirit (customization, exploring etc) of the series is met.
i just hope when it comes out i feel like in an TES game.
also what i really can't understand are the discussions about a hotbar/hotkeys. most of your fighting will be done with weapons anyway. in the single player games you could bind a spell to your hands (and as this is somewhat around alpha that may very well still come) and if you encountered something calling for a bigger spell... you got into your spell menu and the game paused. oh..wait.. we can't pause an mmo... so of course you have some of your other abilities in a hotbar.
let's just see if the hotbar, in the end, will be not used to cast something but to equip it and then cast (or use) it with your hands.
Given the fact the official forums were full of speculations and miss-informed outright delusions about how the game is supposed to work, I kind of given up on following it.
But after reading this, I'm back to my original comment when I first heard of ESO: "One way or another, it will be the last MMO I'll ever buy".
Better to be crazy, provided you know what sane is...
TESO will be like any other so called Triple-A-MMOG since 2004. Its based on the same gameplay mechanics and concepts like so many predecessors: quests - story - dungeons - raid gear grind and pvp as endgame content. Don't expect innovation, complexity or longevity ... just be satisfied with another MMOG witch perhaps will keep you interested for 100 to 300 hr of playtime.
In my opinion the last classic MMORPG will be Archeage, it seams to be the sum of all, it has most of the features MMOGs developed over the last decade and xlgames added some new stuff to it. Any other MMOG, that doesn't even have half of the features a game like Archeage or Wildstar is offering to its players, will be only an average and fast decaying product. And i personally hope that after 2014 the 'classic mmorpg gameplay' will be history and companies will focus on really new ideas.
My care meter went from "Meh - WoW clone, I'll pass" to "Holy crap! This might hold my attention for more than a couple of months!" after reading this article.
I'll be watching the progress of this MMO with a lot more interest now that they seem to at least be trying to capture the feeling of the Elder Scrolls series (I still vividly remeber playing TES: Arena on my 486 back in the day).
I'm a big ol' fluffy carewolf. Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Sounded awesome right up to the part where they mentioned "mega server" and when the area fills up a nother copy of the zone is made. That is not the way to go, that ruins games. One thing that breaks immersion in an MMO is when you're running in a zone and you know there are copies of the same one but with different people in, that you can switch between at will. That is lame.
Since they are sticking to the Race/Faction and Class locks, Ill still pass on this.
TESO is nothing more than DAOC2 with some features from RIFT, GW and a few others, done in an Elder Scrolls theme for marketability
Tried: EQ2 - AC - EU - HZ - TR - MxO - TTO - WURM - SL - VG:SoH - PotBS - PS - AoC - WAR - DDO - SWTOR Played: UO - EQ1 - AO - DAoC - NC - CoH/CoV - SWG - WoW - EVE - AA - LotRO - DFO - STO - FE - MO - RIFT Playing: Skyrim Following: The Repopulation I want a Virtual World, not just a Game. ITS TOO HARD! - Matt Firor (ZeniMax)
I like that it's story based (instead of "kill x" quests) and the open grouping. I also like that they're taking care to make sure you don't lose your friends even when multiple instances of the server are running. All in all it sounds pretty interesting.
I never liked the Elder Scroll combat system, though. I'll be waiting to see how it's adapted to this MMO. Also I really hope they won't have skills like haggling. When I played Daggerfall I spent hours practicing that skill, but once I moved to Morrowind and was older and more patient it just felt like a chore having to practice haggling, jumping, running....
Originally posted by goofy3k Sounded awesome right up to the part where they mentioned "mega server" and when the area fills up a nother copy of the zone is made. That is not the way to go, that ruins games. One thing that breaks immersion in an MMO is when you're running in a zone and you know there are copies of the same one but with different people in, that you can switch between at will. That is lame.
Not only that, but you also know that the "change the world" only applies to your own experience and it's different for different player characters. You could play two different characters and "know" two different worlds, in this one "mega" world.
It is lame. I don't know why game developers have this mental block on the meaning of "world". It's like they just can't wrap their minds around the importance of it to the gamers.
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
Sadly they've lost me as a daoc fan with all this megaserver, phasing, instanced pvp hideyholes, cross factioning, raid endgame, sharded zones etc.
So they've lost both the tes fans and the daoc fans now I guess.
The irony being, apart from the 3 factions, a daoc 2 would be closer to tes than this. (zero instancing, meaningful crafting, huge open world etc..) heck they could have made the 3 factions 3 houses you choose to join like Morrowind.
great article. I will keep the hype very low (GW2 will help me achieve that), but ill certainly keep my eyes on this bad boy.
Now just have to wait the bigger news that it will be Buy to Play with some fluff items ala GW2 cash shop. Then im definitely in. I still havent beaten skyrim so if theres a sub in TESO ill just stay with Skyrim... and GW2.
A mega server with phasing, no thanks! The whole point of the elder scrolls games and REAL mmo's is the PERSISTENT WORLD. If the developers truly want this to be a successful game they will steer clear from the phasing system like the plague and at the very least implement an 'overflow" world system like GW2. So to attain a somewhat persistent world feel.
Originally posted by Axxar Sounds to me like this megaserver means that each zone will be instanced... a LOT.
Not instanced..."phased". Ya gotta get your marketing lingo right.
"Phased" equals entire zones instanced just for you, saved world data included. Remember to bring a friend so they can see the difference between your world and their world.
Yeah, definitely has classes. Which I can understand lamenting, but I think once you see how much each class can be tailored you'll be pleased with the diversity. It uses the single-hotbar design and entails so many different skills across armor, weapons, and class choice that you really will be a unique character even if you are called a "Dragonknight" or whatnot.
Being that it uses a single hotbar design automatically tells me that this is going to be like Guild Wars 2 / The Secret World already.
My concern would be how it plays out in PVE, questing, PVP Faction Wars, WvW, RvR, or FvFvF, Or Free For All. Then there is the RP players. Just from Screen Shots we can tell no doubtedly that the world of TESO is going to be B-E-A-UTIFUL!!! However the testers will be that I mentioned above. I'm sure that this will be a Pay to Play as well. Typical standard fees I'm asuming. $14.99 per month? Options to go for less for 3 months, 6 months, 1 year?
I noticed that there was a post stating that the world is going to be sandbox type. Which is good. However, a little Directional support with quests will be appreciated. As for the Factions, I would be opened to have controlled PVP environments, as oppose to just going to a new starting zone area and ganking all the newbies. Give those new lvl 1 characters a chance to get out of the zones and get some gear before shooting an arrow in their knees.
If a players chooses to go into a starting area to kill then let it be on a Faction Based loss; meaning: If you kill a player or NPC (Quest NPC's exclused!!) then you lose Faction with current city or Related Factions. The more you kill then you either become nuetral or Hated. If you've become Hated so much; Then the guards will see through invis or stealth and then you can get instant killed the next time you get close to those city gates. Then you have to do some questing to get some Faction back, if you're able to.
If players are aligned like D&D style (chaotic nuetral etc. etc.), then this would play very nicely into the whole Faction concept. And If there is going to be Dungeons, then they can't make it so hard that it takes overgeared players to go in just to clear. The main concern I have is where this is going to lead to game wise. As of right now, it doesn't sound too TRUE to the TES vision. And One last thing I must absolutely have to add is that no midevil game is complete without a Dragon in it. I'm sorry. but It's true. And I know they have already stated that there will be no dragons. But that's the reason why I added that statement.
To know that already this game is a mixture of GW2, TERA Online, and Rift is already putting this in a downward spiral. But; being that this is in it's "pre-alpha stages" lol They may change it up still. We'll just have to see about that. I personally didn't have an issue with GW2, only that people got bored with it too soon. Now I'm on a dead server. I didn't have an issue with Tera, but it was nothing more than a Quest Grinding Game. I didn't have any issues with SWTOR, But it too became repetitive with storyline modes that seem to be just slightly different but always the same. No matter how you played it, it still became a game where PVP upto max lvl then do dungeons to further your gear. Then you're done minus the dailies. The only plus out of any of these game was GW2 only because it was Free to Play from the very beginning. And for that I'm happy. I still have my WoW account for now. but that too will be shortly cut off due to the rising demands of todays economy. Quite honestly I will happy if and when they will ever come out with a game that suits to everyone's needs and not be so demanding on paying a subsciption for it to play only to give it up a few months later because it didn't live up to it's expectations. It's not the games that make it bad; it's the game developers lack of imagination and innovated ideas. I see more and more games that are turning into a copy and paste than an original. And I'm not referring to the UI setups.
Either way I look forward to the open Alphas / Betas, I'm hoping to get into both. I'm looking forward to the game and giving my comments and thoughts. Hope this turns out to be a good game. But somehow I just have a bad feeling on it. On a brighter side though... getting back to true Dungeon Crawling Games.. I love my Legends of Grimrock.
I had some hope that maybe this would be worth playing but the phasing is honestly a deal breaker for me, someone who plays MMOs with other people.
Hey Dakirn,
I can say that the phasing as you go through the story was jarring. But they maintain that you'll be able to group with your friends no matter what path they take through the main storyline. How they do is? I assume you'll just "join" your friends through the UI. Definitely not the best solution, but at least you can do it.
Thats not a solution though. Its like they were brainstorming and though how cool it would be if the world changed based on your actions but then after they did it someone reminded them they were making an MMO not a single player game. I do not see how they pull this off honestly and do it well.
It's a tough one, that's for sure. I think that once you "complete" the story mission of a certain area, you're back into the general populace. But that doesn't change the fact that DURING that mission you'd be cut off from friends without going to the UI and having them join you. Yep, it's a tricky one.
If they took the area phase like they done in Tera Online, then it wouldn't be a bad thing.. where Each Zone was based on Channels. And each Channel was based on population; and if you were trying to quest in a more population zone you could just easily switch over into a lower populated Channel for that zone to quest. In doing so could free up the problem with typical "Phasing" issues.
I will admit I was extremely skeptical when ESO was first announced. I must now admit it is sounding less awful than I previously imagined, but I'm still skeptical...just not as much. Being able to (hopefully) beta test it will be the only sure fire way to make a truly informed decision.
I keep seeing people hate on the phasing...but thats probably the best thing FOR keeping true to TES. The problem with a persistent world that ALSO changes based on player choice is that most players aren't part of said choice. They get to play in a world that has already had its changes made for them, which is to say its absolutely NO DIFFERENT than just playing a regular themepark. The thing about Elder Scrolls is how you affect your world, but outside of phasing it to the player individually you can't really affect it at all. The only other alternative is to make it a pure PvP game where faction control means something...but even then the average player is still forced to live under the choices made by others. TES is dear to us for being a single player game. They've done a great job of recapturing that while still giving us multiplayer. Think of it less as an MMO, and more like a new TES game with full on multiplayer. Considering how much about the game in terms of skills and gameplay they change each time...its really not hard to see.
Comments
I agree, but I would expect this game to be:
Adventure > end-game experience or sandbox
This is how dungeons were back in the good old days... Thank god its coming back...
i am cautiously optimistic about TESO.
the game systems changed over the years a bit with skyrim being the least deep system but with a very deep world.
so the game's system is not that important if the spirit (customization, exploring etc) of the series is met.
i just hope when it comes out i feel like in an TES game.
also what i really can't understand are the discussions about a hotbar/hotkeys. most of your fighting will be done with weapons anyway. in the single player games you could bind a spell to your hands (and as this is somewhat around alpha that may very well still come) and if you encountered something calling for a bigger spell... you got into your spell menu and the game paused. oh..wait.. we can't pause an mmo... so of course you have some of your other abilities in a hotbar.
let's just see if the hotbar, in the end, will be not used to cast something but to equip it and then cast (or use) it with your hands.
Given the fact the official forums were full of speculations and miss-informed outright delusions about how the game is supposed to work, I kind of given up on following it.
But after reading this, I'm back to my original comment when I first heard of ESO: "One way or another, it will be the last MMO I'll ever buy".
Better to be crazy, provided you know what sane is...
TESO will be like any other so called Triple-A-MMOG since 2004. Its based on the same gameplay mechanics and concepts like so many predecessors: quests - story - dungeons - raid gear grind and pvp as endgame content. Don't expect innovation, complexity or longevity ... just be satisfied with another MMOG witch perhaps will keep you interested for 100 to 300 hr of playtime.
In my opinion the last classic MMORPG will be Archeage, it seams to be the sum of all, it has most of the features MMOGs developed over the last decade and xlgames added some new stuff to it. Any other MMOG, that doesn't even have half of the features a game like Archeage or Wildstar is offering to its players, will be only an average and fast decaying product. And i personally hope that after 2014 the 'classic mmorpg gameplay' will be history and companies will focus on really new ideas.
My care meter went from "Meh - WoW clone, I'll pass" to "Holy crap! This might hold my attention for more than a couple of months!" after reading this article.
I'll be watching the progress of this MMO with a lot more interest now that they seem to at least be trying to capture the feeling of the Elder Scrolls series (I still vividly remeber playing TES: Arena on my 486 back in the day).
I'm a big ol' fluffy carewolf. Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Ich dacht, schadenfreude ist die beste freude...
Will players be able to play all 3 sides on the same server?
If so game breaker for me.
Even though I'm a little burned out on the fantasy setting, I'm still looking forward to see how this works out.
Hopefully. it won't be quite as buggy as the single player offerings.
Since they are sticking to the Race/Faction and Class locks, Ill still pass on this.
TESO is nothing more than DAOC2 with some features from RIFT, GW and a few others, done in an Elder Scrolls theme for marketability
Tried: EQ2 - AC - EU - HZ - TR - MxO - TTO - WURM - SL - VG:SoH - PotBS - PS - AoC - WAR - DDO - SWTOR
Played: UO - EQ1 - AO - DAoC - NC - CoH/CoV - SWG - WoW - EVE - AA - LotRO - DFO - STO - FE - MO - RIFT
Playing: Skyrim
Following: The Repopulation
I want a Virtual World, not just a Game.
ITS TOO HARD! - Matt Firor (ZeniMax)
I like that it's story based (instead of "kill x" quests) and the open grouping. I also like that they're taking care to make sure you don't lose your friends even when multiple instances of the server are running. All in all it sounds pretty interesting.
I never liked the Elder Scroll combat system, though. I'll be waiting to see how it's adapted to this MMO. Also I really hope they won't have skills like haggling. When I played Daggerfall I spent hours practicing that skill, but once I moved to Morrowind and was older and more patient it just felt like a chore having to practice haggling, jumping, running....
Not only that, but you also know that the "change the world" only applies to your own experience and it's different for different player characters. You could play two different characters and "know" two different worlds, in this one "mega" world.
It is lame. I don't know why game developers have this mental block on the meaning of "world". It's like they just can't wrap their minds around the importance of it to the gamers.
Once upon a time....
If only they could capture the magic formula that made DAOC so enjoyable for me, then I'd be happy.
But I suspect they're going to focus too much on standard raiding style end game but will have to wait and see how it turns out.
"True friends stab you in the front." | Oscar Wilde
"I need to finish" - Christian Wolff: The Accountant
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
So they've lost both the tes fans and the daoc fans now I guess.
The irony being, apart from the 3 factions, a daoc 2 would be closer to tes than this. (zero instancing, meaningful crafting, huge open world etc..) heck they could have made the 3 factions 3 houses you choose to join like Morrowind.
great article. I will keep the hype very low (GW2 will help me achieve that), but ill certainly keep my eyes on this bad boy.
Now just have to wait the bigger news that it will be Buy to Play with some fluff items ala GW2 cash shop. Then im definitely in. I still havent beaten skyrim so if theres a sub in TESO ill just stay with Skyrim... and GW2.
Not instanced..."phased". Ya gotta get your marketing lingo right.
"Phased" equals entire zones instanced just for you, saved world data included. Remember to bring a friend so they can see the difference between your world and their world.
Once upon a time....
Being that it uses a single hotbar design automatically tells me that this is going to be like Guild Wars 2 / The Secret World already.
My concern would be how it plays out in PVE, questing, PVP Faction Wars, WvW, RvR, or FvFvF, Or Free For All. Then there is the RP players. Just from Screen Shots we can tell no doubtedly that the world of TESO is going to be B-E-A-UTIFUL!!! However the testers will be that I mentioned above. I'm sure that this will be a Pay to Play as well. Typical standard fees I'm asuming. $14.99 per month? Options to go for less for 3 months, 6 months, 1 year?
I noticed that there was a post stating that the world is going to be sandbox type. Which is good. However, a little Directional support with quests will be appreciated. As for the Factions, I would be opened to have controlled PVP environments, as oppose to just going to a new starting zone area and ganking all the newbies. Give those new lvl 1 characters a chance to get out of the zones and get some gear before shooting an arrow in their knees.
If a players chooses to go into a starting area to kill then let it be on a Faction Based loss; meaning: If you kill a player or NPC (Quest NPC's exclused!!) then you lose Faction with current city or Related Factions. The more you kill then you either become nuetral or Hated. If you've become Hated so much; Then the guards will see through invis or stealth and then you can get instant killed the next time you get close to those city gates. Then you have to do some questing to get some Faction back, if you're able to.
If players are aligned like D&D style (chaotic nuetral etc. etc.), then this would play very nicely into the whole Faction concept. And If there is going to be Dungeons, then they can't make it so hard that it takes overgeared players to go in just to clear. The main concern I have is where this is going to lead to game wise. As of right now, it doesn't sound too TRUE to the TES vision. And One last thing I must absolutely have to add is that no midevil game is complete without a Dragon in it. I'm sorry. but It's true. And I know they have already stated that there will be no dragons. But that's the reason why I added that statement.
To know that already this game is a mixture of GW2, TERA Online, and Rift is already putting this in a downward spiral. But; being that this is in it's "pre-alpha stages" lol They may change it up still. We'll just have to see about that. I personally didn't have an issue with GW2, only that people got bored with it too soon. Now I'm on a dead server. I didn't have an issue with Tera, but it was nothing more than a Quest Grinding Game. I didn't have any issues with SWTOR, But it too became repetitive with storyline modes that seem to be just slightly different but always the same. No matter how you played it, it still became a game where PVP upto max lvl then do dungeons to further your gear. Then you're done minus the dailies. The only plus out of any of these game was GW2 only because it was Free to Play from the very beginning. And for that I'm happy. I still have my WoW account for now. but that too will be shortly cut off due to the rising demands of todays economy. Quite honestly I will happy if and when they will ever come out with a game that suits to everyone's needs and not be so demanding on paying a subsciption for it to play only to give it up a few months later because it didn't live up to it's expectations. It's not the games that make it bad; it's the game developers lack of imagination and innovated ideas. I see more and more games that are turning into a copy and paste than an original. And I'm not referring to the UI setups.
Either way I look forward to the open Alphas / Betas, I'm hoping to get into both. I'm looking forward to the game and giving my comments and thoughts. Hope this turns out to be a good game. But somehow I just have a bad feeling on it. On a brighter side though... getting back to true Dungeon Crawling Games.. I love my Legends of Grimrock.
If they took the area phase like they done in Tera Online, then it wouldn't be a bad thing.. where Each Zone was based on Channels. And each Channel was based on population; and if you were trying to quest in a more population zone you could just easily switch over into a lower populated Channel for that zone to quest. In doing so could free up the problem with typical "Phasing" issues.