paul-sage
Latest
Tamriel Infinium: Elder Scrolls' ginormous post-50 update plan
Earlier this week, Elder Scrolls Online creative director Paul Sage dropped by the Elder Scrolls OTR podcast and proceeded to drop a ton of update info on fans of ZeniMax's fantasy themepark MMO. We put out a corresponding news post, of course, but there was so much meat on those bones that I couldn't let an issue of Tamriel Infinium go by without adding my two cents. Plus, hey, it was only two weeks ago that I was advocating for an adjustment to the game's post-50 approach. Ask and ye shall receive, right?
Elder Scrolls' Sage explains new Champion alternate advancement
Elder Scrolls Online creative director Paul Sage released a lot of interesting info about the future of the game on a recent ESO Off the Record videocast. Sage talks about everything from the new Dragonstar Arena in Craglorn to an Imperial City three-vs.-three PvP map to guild management and class balance additions to extensive VR changes. The veteran rank tweaks are so huge that they'll be rolled out in phases, the first of which debuted earlier this week and featured "lower difficulty" in existing VR zones. Phase two will remove veteran points in favor of normal XP and will also include increased PvP XP. Phase three will completely replace the current VR system with the Champion System, which involves alternate advancement that Sage compares to the AA system in EverQuest II. That's not all, either, as Sage's interview runs for nearly two hours. You can watch the whole thing after the cut. If you don't have time for that, Dulfy has published a summary transcript.
Tamriel Infinium: Examining Elder Scrolls Online's first major update
I've often wondered if my frustration with game creators should be taken out on the game itself. This goes for any game, not just Elder Scrolls Online. Perhaps I love the game, but I believe the creators have had missteps that drag down production, or maybe they set customer expectations to a certain level then didn't quite deliver.
Elder Scrolls Online's Craglorn update is coming tomorrow
ZeniMax creative director Paul Sage told IGN that Elder Scrolls Online's endgame-focused Craglorn update is coming this week. "I think we're still at the tail-end of six weeks[.] I could be wrong there[;] it's all a blur," Sage said. "But we're either in the sixth week or the seventh with this update[,] and I believe our next update is fairly on schedule," he said. After it launches Craglorn, ZeniMax plans to unveil the Crypt of Hearts veteran dungeon. IGN also says that it talked to Sage about player housing, the Thieves Guild, and the Dark Brotherhood, but that information won't be available until later in the week. [Update: ZeniMax has just posted that in fact the Craglorn update will arrive tomorrow: "We are very happy to announce that Update 1, including Craglorn, will hit the live servers starting tomorrow, when we'll be bringing the servers offline to begin deploying Update 1. [...] Offline maintenance will begin on Thursday, May 22 (tomorrow!) at 8 AM EDT for the North American megaserver and at 10 PM EDT for the European Megaserver. Craglorn and the rest of Update 1 will be available to players after the end of the maintenance period."]
Today's Elder Scrolls Online AMA discusses bug fixes, housing, spellcrafting, and more
The Elder Scrolls Online's Paul Sage, Matt Firor, Rich Lambert, Brian Wheeler, and Nick Konkle descended upon Reddit today along with a bevy of community managers to run another ask-me-anything, perfectly timed after the release of this morning's release of ZeniMax's plans for the game in 2014. Here are just a few of the highlights: Spellcrafting will involve the rediscovering of "traditional" Elder Scrolls schools of magic, like alteration and destruction. Wheeler hinted that aesthetic changes might be en route for the Imperial City. There are no current plans for smaller scale PvP zones or dueling. Grouping, werewolf, quest achievement, and PvP vampire issues are being worked on. SLI support arrives with Craglorn. Lambert confirmed the Thieves Guild and Dark Brotherhood will have their own skill lines. There's no time-frame for player housing right now. "We want to do it right," Community Manager Jessica Folsom said. Guar mounts are also planned sans timeline. Aside from weekly stability patches and "after the dust settles," the team still plans content updates every four to six weeks. The complete AMA is on Reddit for your review. [With thanks to tipster Leiloni!]
Paul Sage on Elder Scrolls' endgame
"When your character in Elder Scrolls Online reaches level 50," ZeniMax says, "the journey isn't over." This is good news for those of you concerned about Elder Scrolls' endgame, and creative director Paul Sage has authored a lengthy blog post that spells out the current post-50 options. Said options include solo or duo PvP, small group PvP, large group PvP, solo or duo PvE, four-person group PvE, and 12-person group PvE. Sage also talks up ESO's first adventure zone, an area called Craglorn that is built for a four-person group despite being the size of a standard PvE zone. Read all about it via the links below.
Elder Scrolls Online Q&A focuses on group mechanics
ZeniMax Creative Director Paul Sage fielded 42 questions from the Tamriel Foundry community yesterday about grouping and other Elder Scrolls Online topics. Sage elaborated on various mechanics that PvE group members will encounter, such as healing, experience bonuses, role-swapping, switching alliances, and armor usage. He said that not every instance will require a four-person group to have the holy trinity, although the tougher dungeons will demand this. Skill synergy was a topic that Sage addressed at great length: "Synergies are those abilities which another player casts, they are useful by themselves, but take on new dimension if another player comes over and activates the synergy effect. They are much more about reacting to situations and using them at the right time. They aren't necessary, but they do provide a large advantage when used correctly and may be the difference between life and death in harder combats." Head over to Tamriel Foundry for the full read! [Thanks to Phanes for the tip!]
Tamriel Infinium: Look! A video not about Elder Scrolls Online PvP
I know that I've been hypercritical of The Elder Scrolls Online marketing strategy. For the longest time it's felt as if we have been hearing about PvP and nothing but PvP. From the launch announcement trailer to the Emperor skill line, most of advertising for the game has seemed like one big PvP push. Maybe it was. In the first Tamriel Infinium of the year, I predicted that we would see a greater push for PvE content in future ESO advertising, but then all we heard about after that was news about the sub model and more PvP. I wasn't crying in a corner, but I admit that I was disappointed. (OK, maybe I was crying in a corner.) Because I've been critical of ZeniMax's marketing, I should praise the studio when it does something right. And the video the team released on Wednesday was amazing. Don't get the wrong impression when I say amazing. I wasn't knocked out of my chair, but I did find myself completely engaged with the video. That, I think, is more important than feeling a rush of adrenaline following the destruction of a huge keep or the explosion of a Daedric beast. Although a rush might make someone artificially excited about the game, an informative and engaging video will make people want to stick to the game for the long haul. Let me break down this video for you.
Tamriel Infinium: What to do in The Elder Scrolls Online besides PvP
As a part of my series of articles that explain some of the core features of The Elder Scrolls Online, I want to talk about what most people would consider obvious activities in the MMOs, but because of the way ZeniMax has advertised the game up to this point, many casual followers have come to believe that ESO will not have much in the way of PvE activities. Of course, players will level up via PvE, but beyond that, is there anything to do? What about group activities while you're leveling up? Are there endgame group activities? Is there raiding? Although I like PvP, much of my focus in MMOs is PvE-related. I enjoy story, exploration, and group activities. Save for the group activities, that's what The Elder Scrolls is to me. Exploring every ruin and cave or finding a hidden cult or hearing the NPCs talk about how they each took arrows to their knees defines the series for me. I don't think I could call a game Elder Scrolls without attaching defining PvE moments. I believe the developers at ZeniMax understand this, which is why they have hired some amazing voice actors to the game and why much of the website advertising revolves around the lore of the game. But is it enough to tell us what the game is about, and will ZeniMax finally show us?
The Elder Scrolls Online's Paul Sage talks about dungeons and player experience
How closely have you been following The Elder Scrolls Online? Are you eagerly devouring every new piece of information that's trickled out following PAX Prime? Because there's a new video interview out with creative director Paul Sage that should provide you plenty to devour. Sage comments on some of the major changes made to the game for its PAX appearance (such as the implementation of the new compass and a more "weighty" feel to the combat) as well as the game's launch dungeons. He also mentions the Veteran Point system currently in development, a form of alternate advancement after your character hits the level cap. Of course, anyone eager for information has no doubt signed up for beta, which means you'll want to check your mail religiously today as a new round of testing invitations has gone out. Would-be players can also take part in an emote contest to win beta access as a grand prize. Or you can just check out the full interview video after the break. [Thanks to Jeff for the tip!]
The Elder Scrolls Online plans to update early and often
Players will be waiting until next year for The Elder Scrolls Online, but the development team is already looking to the post-launch environment. Creative director Paul Sage has stated that the team wants to have new content coming out for the game on a frequent basis. Sage emphasizes that players should always feel that something new and exciting is just around the corner, considering that many players will be chewing through launch content with lightning speed. The game's story will also be expanded post-release. A conclusion for the main story will be present in the game on release, but Sage states that it's simply a springboard into something bigger and better for the future. When asked about launch dates, Sage stated that the team cannot promise simultaneous release on all platforms, although the current target date for all incarnations of the game is spring of 2014.
The Elder Scrolls Online's gameplay at QuakeCon [Updated]
QuakeCon, hailed as the largest LAN party in North America, kicked off yesterday, and since MMO fans have been clamoring for some uninterrupted Elder Scrolls Online gameplay, ZeniMax chose QuakeCon as the venue to show off its latest addition to the Elder Scrolls franchise. Starting right now (at 1:30 p.m. EDT), Creative Director Paul Sage and other lead designers are livestreaming direct from Dallas, Texas. Our intrepid reporters are watching along, providing a periodic liveblog in this post as well as frequent chatter in our comments. Watch the stream and join the conversation right now! [Update: The stream is over now, but we've collected the important bits beyond the cut, and Larry's liveblog in the comments is still viewable!]
Tamriel Infinium: Elder Scrolls elves are supposed to be ugly
I don't know if you noticed this, but in the fully rendered trailer for The Elder Scrolls Online, the Aldmeri Dominion elves looked nice. In traditional fantasy lore like Lord of the Rings, elves are some of the most beautiful creatures in the universe. However, I've always seen the Elder Scrolls elves as somewhat alien -- like the grey-men kind of aliens. In fact, the dark elves with their ashy skin really looked like grey men, especially if they were bald. Yet that particular MMO trailer presented a different kind of elf. Of course, that's just a CGI trailer, and CGI trailers rarely represent what we will see in the game. I can accept that. But more and more screenshots have popped up and more in-game videos have appeared on different websites, and in each of them, it appears to me that the elves -- the "mer" -- have received a makeover. And it's not just the elves; even the Argonians and Khajiit look different. I suspect there's a reason for this.
The Elder Scrolls Online wants you to explore everywhere
Any RPG player worth his or her salt knows that there are two primary maxims to making it big: explore everywhere and take everything not nailed down. Fortunately, ZeniMax subscribes to this philosophy as well, which is why the team has placed an emphasis on exploration and loot-gobbling in The Elder Scrolls Online. In a new video, Creative Director Paul Sage shows how players can loot all manner of goods in the world and then use those items for crafting. He also points out how the world will be populated with readable books, fishable areas, hidden chests, and ability-boosting stones. So if you were wondering if it's OK to rob a church in TESO, the following video should assure you that it's more than fine -- it's encouraged.
ZeniMax's Paul Sage on The Elder Scrolls Online's endgame, PvP, and crafting
During my hands-on play session with The Elder Scrolls Online at the media event last week, I got a glimpse of the early game experience, and it was delicious. But most MMOs are judged on what awaits players at the max-level endgame, so I sat down with ZeniMax Online Studios creative director Paul Sage to ask about those areas of the game that I didn't get to see. Specifically, I asked Sage to describe ZeniMax's strategy for keeping players occupied once they hit the level cap at 50. His reply included four main activities: questing in enemy alliance zones, four-player dungeons, adventure zones, and the PvP alliance war in Cyrodiil. Read on for all of the details I gleaned from the interview!
ZeniMax releases nine-minute Elder Scrolls Online preview clip
Last month we flew to Maryland to report from The Elder Scrolls Online's first press event. While we were getting some hands-on time with the title, we were also watching a nine-minute video that ZeniMax put together in order to introduce the game to a wide audience. Today the firm has published the clip for the first time, and it features a mixture of fly-through footage, talking head interviews with creative director Paul Sage and lead designer Nick Konkle, and snippets of PvE and PvP gameplay too. See for yourself after the break.
ZeniMax: The Elder Scrolls Online's real-time combat 'is all pretty much new'
If ZeniMax seems a bit defensive about The Elder Scrolls Online, you can hardly blame the company. Since its announcement this spring, the upcoming MMO has been met with a steady chorus of fan disapproval due to perceived similarities with other themepark fantasy MMOs. In a new interview with Kotaku, ZeniMax head honchos Matt Firor and Paul Sage attempt to accentuate the positive and differentiate TESO from its genre competitors. "When people sit down and play it, they'll realize it's different. Like our whole real-time combat system of blocking and dodging is all pretty much new," Firor explains. Firor also comes out swinging vis-à-vis the notion that TESO is nothing more than a World of Warcraft analog. "Making an MMO is making an MMO. I worked in the industry before World of Warcraft, so I can tell you that World of Warcraft had a lot of influences from a lot of games. Our priority is to make a great game and not to make a clone of anything," he says.
ZeniMax devs 'unapologetic' about making Elder Scrolls MMO
ZeniMax Online recently called in to the Game Informer podcast to talk up its Elder Scrolls Online title. Game director Matt Firor and creative director Paul Sage were the devs of record, and the 30-minute chat featured some interesting tidbits. Firor mentions that the game will release simultaneously on PC and Mac, but ZeniMax has no plans for a console version. Sage talked a bit about the progression system, which, while level-based, does feature skill-based advancement as well. In the current build, characters gain experience in skills that are slotted. Sage also mentions that you do get better with weapons as you wield them, though the gain is not 100 percent usage-based. There's also a bit of discussion about art style, camera modes, and the decision to MMOify the Elder Scrolls IP. "We're making an MMO; we're unapologetic about that. This is the Elder Scrolls MMO. It's not Skyrim. Skyrim already exists, and you can go play Skyrim. We're making the MMO version of the Elder Scrolls, and with that comes some conventions that are different from a console RPG," Firor says.
Elder Scrolls Online devs talk questing and public dungeons
There are a couple of new Elder Scrolls Online features on tap at Edge. First on the agenda is a piece about the game's public dungeons, which game director Matt Firor says haven't been seen in an MMO since EverQuest. "When you think back to the fun MMOG moments in the first generation, it's standing there, terrified, in an enclosed space, waiting for someone to come along and save you. We can't do that punitive gameplay that they did in those days, but we can put people together in places where they want to work with others," Firor says. The other feature centers on the game's questing mechanics, and it finds Firor and creative director Paul Sage talking at length about what makes a good quest as well as various high-level creative approaches taken by the dev team.
Creative staff discuss the story setting of The Elder Scrolls Online
MMOs in an existing franchise always present certain issues: You need enough conceptual space to advance a game's storyline, but you may not want to be locked in to never doing another title in the franchise. So The Elder Scrolls Online has to be set in just the right time period for the game to work. In a recent video interview, creative director Paul Sage and content designer Rich Lambert sat down to talk about the why behind the when. Sage and Lambert explain that the real draw to this particular time period was the fact that there's neither a great deal of recorded in-game history nor a lot of huge events that might affect future titles -- it's a time when almost anything can happen without derailing future events in the universe. The duo also discusses keeping the game aligned with existing lore and ensuring that nothing gets thrown off by mistake. Those looking forward to the game will want to watch the full interview, which goes into more details regarding specifics of lore and setting.
