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Tamriel Infinium: Immersion matters in Elder Scrolls Online and every other MMO
I'm fully on board with all of the changes ZeniMax listed in its latest state-of-the-game update. My only concern has more to do with personal OCD issues than it does with any long-term effects on Elder Scrolls Online. See, as I mentioned in a previous piece, I love the fact that ZOS allows me to play all of the game's quest content, which is spread across three different factions, on a single character of a single faction. I hate alts, or more accurately, I hate the need for them because they pull me right out of the game world. Oh yes, I'm going to talk about immersion, even at the risk of inviting a bunch of anti-immersion comments. I'll even define the dreaded "I" word, though of course it's pretty subjective.
The Elder Scrolls Online's third update lands in August
ZeniMax says that The Elder Scrolls Online's next patch, which includes the preliminary veteran rank system changes and balance fixes previewed in yesterday's dev blog, is officially on the way next month. The patch is coming in early August and introduces armor dyes, guild tabards, public guild store locations, a new difficulty mode for Trials, and plenty of fixes and improvements. You'll be able to personalize your look more than ever before, represent your guild, and charge with them into a new level of challenge. The team has posted a preview video focusing on the many changes to guilds due in the patch. Wanna join our guild? We have tabards, yo! Enjoy the video below.
Elder Scrolls Online plans massive revamp of veteran rank content
ZeniMax has just posted a new Elder Scrolls Online dev blog, titled The Road Ahead, which outlines the studio's plans for the game in the relatively near future. Of note to MMO players are details for update 3, which is due to hit the test server "soon." The patch will enhance guild creation and management (with ranks, bank permissions, and heraldry) as well as address class balance changes, itemization issues, and combat feel. The team also means to revamp grindy veteran rank content with short-term balance tweaks in endgame zones, some of which are live on servers already; ultimately, the veteran points system will be deleted entirely from the game and replaced with a new system "based on new character customization and growth mechanics" that will be discussed at this year's QuakeCon and beyond. The full post can be found on the official site.
One Shot: The eternal vigil
Some MMO tableaus attempt to tell a wordless story, and some of those stories are up for personal interpretation. I love finding these scattered around the world because they invite my imagination to be a part of the experience instead of spelling it out for me. Reader Chiara came across our first screenshot of the week here in Elder Scrolls Online, and it brought out strong emotions: "I don't really know what this man's story is -- but I can't help but wonder about it since I've first seen him. Did he die there? Did someone arrange his skeleton? I've no idea, but the scene just struck me as incredibly sad." Maybe he was keeping a vigil for a loved one. Maybe that vigil is not yet over. Who knows?
Tamriel Infinium: About that Elder Scrolls VR grind
Last time around I took a little flak from people who felt that my positive opinion of Elder Scrolls Online would change once I reached a certain veteran rank. In the past two weeks, I've gotten most of the way to VR2 whilst playing primarily solo a couple of hours per day. I would've gotten higher, but I got sidetracked into ESO's addictive crafting minigame! Anyway, so far my opinion of the world's first Elder Scrolls MMO hasn't changed despite the fact that the VR content does seem pretty grindy. The game is still a first-class themepark that's full of content, incredible art direction, and interesting progression, and the cherry on top of this particular sundae is one of my favorite IPs. All that said, ZeniMax could stand to alter its post-50 approach.
Elder Scrolls patch adds veteran dungeon, improved lighting, and more
It's patch day in Tamriel, as ZeniMax has rolled out Elder Scrolls Online's 1.2.3 update. The main content addition is the veteran Crypt of Hearts dungeon. Additionally, there's now a field-of-view slider for first-person fans as well as improved interior lighting and a number of bug fixes. Full details are available via the patch notes. [Thanks Zjeven!]
The Big Picture: Sauron in the stars
Nope, that isn't a grainy leaked photo from a new Lord of the Rings spin-off up above; it's actually an image of a space-dust ring surrounding nearby star HR 4796A. The star is part of the Centaurus constellation, and this picture was taken by the European Southern Observatory's (ESO) Very Large Telescope that's been recently outfitted with a SPHERE instrument. What's the SPHERE? According to the ESO, it's the Spectro-Polarimetric High-contrast Exoplanet Research tool that has a main objective of studying extra-solar planets that orbit nearby stars. As Space notes, not only does this picture capture a very Eye-of-Sauron vibe overall, but it's also a showpiece for just how powerful the SPHERE tool is. Namely, it's able to kill enough of the glare to make the actual fiery ball of gas visible, something Space says is essential to discovering more and more celestial bodies.
Tamriel Infinium: In which you're told that Elder Scrolls Online kicks ass
Welcome back to Tamriel Infinium, folks. I'll be your new writer, but don't worry about Larry. He's alive, well, and we're lucky to have him back at the helm of Hyperspace Beacon here on Massively. I've done plenty of dedicated game columns in the past, but it has been a while, so you'll have to bear with me while I shoot from the hip for a week or three and figure out what's best for this space. One thing I know already is that I dig Elder Scrolls Online, even though that's a pretty unpopular opinion in some quarters. With that in mind, let's poke fun at anti-ESO hipsters after the break, shall we?
The Elder Scrolls Online illuminates its veteran dungeons
A new Creating ESO blog post on the official Elder Scrolls Online site today aims to give players an inside look at the process of creating the game's veteran dungeons. These dungeons are "much more than just tuned-up, harder versions of the original dungeon[s]," the post insists; they're special boss encounters and storyline expansions that include complex mechanics and battles. They likewise include elite loot, the acquisition of which often requires repetition, something the developers say they keep in mind when writing dialogue and staging the area. ZeniMax also emphasizes the importance of testing for these dungeons: Much like we do for Trials, we have groups of skilled, coordinated testers ready to take them on. The Dungeon Team wants to kill you, don't get them wrong, but they don't want bosses to be unfair or impossible. It's a difficult tuning and balancing act to get them just right, especially considering the broad range of character builds that will be attempting them. When the testers wipe several times learning the fight and let out a cheer when they finally manage to scrape by with a win, we know we're on the right track. The video that accompanies the post is embedded below.
Elder Scrolls Online on solo veteran content, dungeon scaling
ZeniMax is back from E3 with a brand-new Elder Scrolls Online ask-us-anything variety pack. Here are the highlights: The Craglorn update will be included as launch content when ESO arrives on consoles. Dungeon-queueing intentionally locks out overleveled characters for balance reasons, but the devs are working on a scaling system that will eventually adjust dungeons to the leader's level. ZeniMax is aware that Enchanting levels slowly. It'll be tweaked in a future update. Using Equilibrium to exchange magicka for health to gain Ultimate power isn't considered an exploit but might be revised in the future. There will eventually be veteran content that doesn't require grouping. Notably, the developers request that players continue to use the report player chat option to help combat bots and gold spammers. More questions and answers await over on the official site.
E3 2014: The Elder Scrolls Online offers small-scale PvP at cons
If you are one of the fans who has been begging for a smaller-scale PvP experience in The Elder Scrolls Online, E3 2014 offers a glimmer of hope. Instead of dishing out a large production, ESO offered attendees a a unique 3v3 experience that was made specially for the convention. The map itself, which utilizes art assets from Cyrodiil and is about the size of one fort (like Glademist), took the devs only about two weeks to put together. There are no kill counts or rankings, and players battle for control of a single flag in King of the Mountain-style gameplay. The drop-in-and-play scenario has apparently been well-received; game representatives on the floor reported that players really like the size and the fast pace of it, which is perfect for short allotments of time. If you want to try out this small-scale PvP yourself, it will be be available again at both Gamescom and QuakeCon later this summer. And if you want to see a version make it into the game itself, be sure to let the devs know on the official forums! Massively's on the ground in Los Angeles during the week of June 10-12, bringing you all the best news from E3 2014. We're covering everything from WildStar and Landmark to Skyforge and H1Z1, so stay tuned!
ZeniMax reduces ESO customer support staff in Ireland
The Connacht Tribune reported earlier this week that ZeniMax, which had established a customer service operation in Galway, Ireland, for The Elder Scrolls Online, has let go "up to 300 workers," apparently temporary, from its Rahoon location. It's not at all uncommon for MMO studios to let go crunch-time staff after a launch (or when a release is delayed, as ESO's console releases have been), but former employees told the publication that many of the staffers, some hired on short-term contracts of two to six weeks on up to six months in duration, were being terminated significantly earlier than anticipated. The Tribune suggests there are currently "just over 100 employees at the European customer services centre in the Rahoon Business Park." We have requested more information from ZeniMax and will update accordingly. [With thanks to tipster Paul!]
Elder Scrolls Online spotlights Dragonknight Healer build
Next up in Elder Scrolls Online's player-submitted build column is a look at the so-called "Dragonknight Healer." This build is primarily focused on survivability and support, creating a very durable character that can patch up allies on the fly. "Though her build may be missing some of the advantages of Templar and Sorcerer healing, you give her a call if you need a healer that is sturdy and really hard to kill," player Ville Korpi wrote. The build doesn't come without offensive abilities, as it contains both multi-mob and single-target DPS as the situation warrants. It's not a boss-killing build, but for those who can heal like this, chances are that they'll be invited to groups where others will do the dirty work while this build shines in the support wings.
Tamriel Infinium: The big thing that Elder Scrolls Online got right
I've spent a lot of time over the last few weeks explaining and complaining about the issues I have with Elder Scrolls Online. Some of my readers got the impression that I neither like nor play the game. The reality is that I do like the game, but I'm horribly frustrated with it. Many of the ideas and promises that the developers set up for the game just aren't happening (or aren't happening fast enough). That's made me not want to log into the game. The fact that the game isn't roleplay-friendly hasn't helped, either. Despite all my misgivings, ESO does compel me to log in for one main reason: the story. And not just the story but how well the characters are written and how the story is told. The subject matter isn't bland and cliche. The characters are taken seriously, even when the story is humorous, regardless of gender or race. Although I cannot give you every example here, I would like to touch on a couple of the stories that exemplify what I mean by great storytelling in an MMORPG.
E3 2014: Elder Scrolls releases 'live another life' video
ZeniMax has released an E3 teaser vid for Elder Scrolls Online. It's titled "live another life," and it's a three-minute cross-section of all there is to see and do in the game's version of Tamriel. If you've played the game already there's not much in here that's new. If you're on the fence, though, or if you're just a fan, it's probably worth watching simply for the game's production values. Click past the cut to check it out for yourself.
Elder Scrolls Online begins testing Update 2
Elder Scrolls Online's Update 2 is currently on the public test server, and any interested subscriber can now check it out. ZeniMax announced today that its test server is now open to all active account holders and gave details for the game's second update. Update 2, which is scheduled for June 23rd, will contain a new veteran dungeon (Crypt of Hearts), a field of view slider, more object interactions, and plenty of bug fixes and balance tweaks. In the team's "Road Ahead" letter, ZeniMax informed the community that it's working to carefully balance the classes, get the EU megaserver online, create additional player customization systems, rework quests, and improve the veteran system.
The Daily Grind: What's your favorite thing about your favorite MMO?
I'm dabbling in a bunch of MMOs right now. Actually, I'm pretty much doing that all the time. Anyway, I'm dabbling the most in Elder Scrolls Online, and while it's not a perfect game by any stretch, I can't get enough of its production design and general aesthetics. In fact, I'd say that's my favorite thing about the game at the moment, aside from the IP. What about you, Massively readers? What's your favorite thing about your favorite MMO? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Bethesda's Hines on ESO console delay
Bethesda VP of PR Pete Hines spoke to CVG recently, and while the thrust of the interview focused on the company's interests outside of MMORPGs, there were some tidbits relating to The Elder Scrolls Online's console delay. It's a closed system. It's not just an ESO thing -- they have rules and regulations that govern all games, if you're going to do something it has to work a certain way. It doesn't matter the way that we want to do it -- it has to fit their requirements. I'll give you an easy example; payments. When we do stuff on PC, we manage it ourselves, it goes through our store, we manage the whole thing. When it goes through somebody else, that someone is doing all of that; taking your money, charging your PayPal, and then transferring that information to us. This is just inherently a different process than the one that we have, where it's our store and we just have to make sure our system works. It's the same thing on PSN -- you have to just make sure that all of that stuff communicates. When you start adding up the pile of things and everything that we learned from launch, it was clear that we needed to take the time to do this right, because it has massive ramifications if it doesn't work right for the consumer experience.
ESO spotlights player-made Thunder Thief build
The folks at Zenimax and Bethesda are spotlighting particularly powerful builds created by Elder Scrolls Online players, and this week, a player named Ramon Paulino de Castro sent in a detailed build of his Sorcerer he calls the Thunder Thief. This build uses dual blades and medium armor, along with a focus on high damage in short bursts. Primary skills include Whirlwind for multiple foes, Surge for its lightning power, Mage's Fury to cause bleeding and recharge magicka, Flurry for a single enemy, and Lightning Form (with Thundering Presence) to resist damage. Take a look at the entire build in today's Battlemaster's Corner, and submit your own builds to community@elderscrollsonline.com.
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.