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Discussing the design of quests in The Elder Scrolls Online
The Elder Scrolls Online has certain player expectations going in, such as an expectation of the sort of quest structure you usually find in the series. More specifically, it's the sort of structure in which you start off on some simple quest and wind up wandering off into some completely unrelated point of interest. A recent interview with creative director Paul Sage and lead content designer Rich Lambert reveals that the team is aiming for just that sort of model in the game. As Lambert explains, the team wants to move away from the usual hub design in favor of several points of interest, each of which provides a little snippet of content and story. The points aren't meant to be structured as an A-to-B affair; instead, you have several points of interest in a given region which build into a large overarching story. Take a look at the full interview for more information about how quests will work in the game and how players will be guided through objectives as they play.
The Elder Scrolls Online Ebonheart Pact faction profiled
The flashlight of knowledge has already been directed at two of The Elder Scroll Online's three main political factions, and now the third is getting a little time in the light. We've already told you about the Daggerfall Covenant and the Aldmeri Dominion, and today Game Informer is closing out ouroboros with the third faction, the Ebonheart Pact. The alliance that makes up the Ebonheart Pact was first forged after an Akaviri invasion, when the Nords and Dunmer banded together and then cut the Argonians in on the friendliness in order to find safety in numbers. While the Aldmeri Dominion is bent on conquering and ruling, the Ebonheart Pact is really just an attempt to stay alive in a world of invasions and power struggles. The Dunmer, also called Dark Elves, call the familiar lands of Morrowind home. Skyrim, which a few folks may have heard of thanks to a rather underground game that came out last year, is home to the militant and cold-resistant Nords. The reptilian Argonians, or Saxhleel as they like to call themselves, come from the Black Marsh, also known (by way of total coincidence, I'm sure) as Argonia. They share the area with the Hist, a race of sentient trees, and all matter of poisonous and malicious critters and plants. If you need help keeping all the names straight (the Nords are also referred to as children of the sky, by the way, although apparently that's an informal title), be sure to read the full profile.
Matt Firor on The Elder Scrolls Online's '100% solo' personal story
Games in the Elder Scrolls series have always been about giving players the opportunity to become the game's hero, and it looks like The Elder Scrolls Online will be no different. The title's game director, Matt Firor, has announced that each character's main storyline in the game will be "100% solo." Firor points back to the previous entries in the series, stating that "in The Elder Scrolls games, you're always the hero... The last thing you want to do is have the final confrontation with Mehrunes Dagon as he's stomping across the Imperial City, and you see like 15 guys behind you waiting to kill him." While it's a good point, we can't help but wonder what kind of an impact this design will have on the social aspect of the MMO, but at this point all we can do is wait and see. Firor's full interview over on Game Informer has plenty of extra information as well, so if you're jonesing for more details, just head on over and check it out for yourself.
The Elder Scrolls Online factions profiled
Three alliances control the political scene in The Elder Scrolls Online's Tamriel, and Game Informer is taking a closer look at all of them, starting with the Daggerfall Covenant and the Aldmeri Dominion. The Daggerfell Covenant is made up of the Orcs (also called Orsimer), Bretons, and Redguards -- although the latter two are coming out of something of a love-hate relationship, with a history of as much internal conflict as external. Apparently time does heal all wounds, though, because the three races have worked out a democratic system of mutual love and respect. The Orcs and Bretons call the beautiful land of High Rock home, while the Redguard are based in Hammerfell. The Aldmeri Dominion is a more hostile power composed of the Altmer, the Bosmer, and Khajiit and intent on total domination. Also known as Wood Elves, the Bosmer call Valenwood home (surprise: It's a heavily wooded area) and enjoy tramping through forests, living in harmony with nature, and building cities in migratory trees. The Altmer, or High Elves, can be found in the little-known Summerset Isles. The Khajiit, who missed out on the alternative name lottery, live in Elsweyr, whose climate is ideal for the cultivation of Moon Sugar. Got all that? Study up, there'll be a test. Feel free to read the full profiles, and keep an eye out for Ebonheart Pact information on Friday.
The Soapbox: Translating Elder Scrolls Online dev speak
Disclaimer: The Soapbox column is entirely the opinion of this week's writer and does not necessarily reflect the views of Massively as a whole. If you're afraid of opinions other than your own, you might want to skip this column. Language is a pretty fascinating thing, and studying a second one is something I've long intended to do. Aside from entertaining thoughts of learning Korean to play ArcheAge, though (seriously, I looked into it), I haven't gotten around to much beyond college-level Deutsch. But as I watched last week's interview with The Elder Scrolls Online creative director Paul Sage, I realized that I already have some pretty good second-language skills. I'm fluent in both English and MMO dev-speak, so as a public service, I'm going to translate some of what Sage said into the former.
Analyst predicts The Elder Scrolls Online will launch with a subscription fee
Are you hoping that The Elder Scrolls Online will be part of the classic subscription model rather than go the free-to-play route? According to analyst Nicholas Lovell, founder of Gamesbrief, the odds are good that you'll get your wish. Lovell notes that since the game began development in 2007, when subscription games were at their apex, Bethesda is likely to launch using the more familiar business model. Whether or not it will remain as a subscription game is another matter. Of course, the price of play is far from the minds of most fans -- the real question is what the game will look like when it's actually playable. Director Matt Firor recently sat down to discuss the game's earliest stages of development, the relationship between ZeniMax Online Studios and Bethesda, and working within the lore of the established IP. It's an interesting look behind the scenes of development, and if you're interested in the game, watching the video is certain to be six minutes well spent.
Elder Scrolls creative director: We want to make a good game first
The recently announced Elder Scrolls MMO has a lot to live up to. If the initial fan reaction is any indication, it's not doing as well as you might expect in the court of public opinion. Creative director Paul Sage recently stepped in front of the camera to talk at length about the project, and some of what he has to say probably isn't going to sit well with fans who are concerned that ZeniMax is making a generic themepark MMO out of the much-loved single-player sandbox series. "We have to make our own game," he tells Game Informer. "We want to make a good game first. Not a good MMO, not a good Elder Scrolls game, we want to make a good game first, a great experience for the player."
More ouroboros: The Elder Scrolls Online announcement trailer
Old alliances broken, new things forged, the enemy of your enemy is your friend ... and all that faux-wise voice-over material culminates in another shot of the triple ouroboros. Enjoy this teaser for The Elder Scrolls Online that tells you less than is already known.
First Elder Scrolls Online details unfurled
Details from Game Informer's Elder Scrolls Online cover story have already begun appearing online, it would seem. The game has been in development since 2007 by a team of 250, according to a post on NeoGAF. It will feature full voice acting throughout and will be played from a third-person perspective (generally not the most efficient way to play previous Elder Scrolls titles). As mentioned in yesterday's announcement, The Elder Scrolls Online takes place 1000 years in the past and will span almost all of Tamriel, though certain areas are being saved for the purposes of future expansions.Zenimax Online is reportedly doing its best to strike a balance between the Elder Scrolls series and traditional MMOs, trying to appeal to players of both. In other words, yes, expect to use a traditional MMO hotbar to access your skills. You can also expect epic player-vs-player battles – up to 100-vs-100 in some instances – as factions compete to take over Cyrodil's Imperial City, with the winning faction installing its greatest champion as emperor. The NeoGAF post has plenty of other details and, of course, July's issue of Game Informer has even more.%Gallery-154671%
Rumor: Elder Scrolls Online media revealed
We know next to nothing about Elder Scrolls Online at this point, but we may have our first glimpse of what the game will look like. A smattering of images, including concept art and what appear to be either screenshots or target renderings, have been published by All Games Beta. Elder Scrolls fans will certainly spot a few familiar elements, notably a flame Atronach.%Gallery-154671%
ZeniMax Online Studios builds new MMO customer support facility
The folks at ZeniMax Online Studios have founded a new support facility in Galway, Ireland with the intent to provide customer service for "players of future massively multiplayer online games." While some of you are probably wondering just who in the heck ZeniMax is, others have no doubt seen the parent company name scrolling by on the startup screens for Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. ZeniMax Media owns not only ZeniMax Online but also Bethesda Softworks and id Software (the brains behind the Doom franchise). ZeniMax Online is headed by Mythic co-founder Matt Firor, and ex-World of Warcraft dev Rich Barham is serving as the director of customer support. Though the studio has yet to make an official game-related announcement, it's clearly laying the foundation for something big.
EA, Bethesda, and Sony Online vets form Second Star Interactive
Hero's Journey may be no more than a distant memory at this point, but Simutronics' HeroEngine -- the game engine currently being employed by BioWare to create Star Wars: The Old Republic, among other things -- is still going strong. After being quietly scooped up by Idea Fabrik in 2010, the HeroEngine is now being used to create a game in-house at a newly formed studio, Second Star Interactive. Formed by ex-Bethesda, EA, and Sony Online Entertainment devs and execs, SSI intends on creating an online game of some form that will launch "later this year." The release also notes that "a number of third-party developers who have licensed HeroEngine also plan to launch games featuring the technology before the end of 2011," which is especially interesting as the two main development houses working with the engine are BioWare and ZeniMax Online (parent company of Bethesda Softworks and id Software). We know about BioWare's big game, but we've yet to hear anything about what ZeniMax Online has planned.
Rumor: Elder Scrolls MMO in the works?
Just about every MMO player has an IP he'd like to see undergo the MMO treatment. For some of us here at Massively, that IP is Bethesda's long-running Elder Scrolls series. Due to a deep reservoir of lore and the fact that earlier games in the series (notably Morrowind and Daggerfall) were more MMO-like than many modern MMOs, we'd love to see what Bethesda would do with such a beast. Apparently we're not the only ones, as SystemLink has posted a bit of speculation on a possible The Elder Scrolls V, highlighting a few job postings as evidence in support of its theory. While we're not completely sold on the author's conclusions -- mainly due to Bethesda's plainly articulated stance on the massive genre -- we suspect this won't be the last we hear of an Elder Scrolls MMORPG..
Rumorang: Elder Scrolls MMO three years into development
According to VG247's "very reliable" source, Bethesda Softworks is already three years deep into development on an Elder Scrolls MMO. Recent court documents in the ongoing Bethesda/Interplay lawsuit have allegedly revealed that Bethesda has "close to 100 people working on a secret World of Warcraft-type MMO" -- a tasty piece of info that it's said to be currently fighting to have redacted from a 218-page court transcript. Furthermore, the unannounced MMO is said to be "very close" to being unveiled. We could even be seeing a release of the purported title later this year, as the transcript is said to also reveal a four-year development cycle (starting in late 2006 would put that either later this year or early 2011). Bethesda has commented in the past that it is currently not working on an MMO, though ZeniMax Online (another studio under Bethesda's parent company, ZeniMax Media) is working on a currently unannounced title. We contacted Bethesda for comment and were told, "We aren't talking about what that studio is working on and don't comment on rumors and speculation." Source 1 - VG247 Source 2 - Duck and Cover Forums
Bethesda clarifies MMO claims, Elder Scrolls V statements
Rather than let the statements made at QuakeCon 2009 by Elder Scrolls executive producer Todd Howard rest as they are, Bethesda's Pete Hines has clarified a few things on the company's blog. First and foremost, he wants to make sure that people know that another Elder Scrolls game will eventually be released. "Both Todd and I have said repeatedly that, of course, we're going to do another Elder Scrolls game," Hines outright states. Rather than comment directly on what Bethesda is currently working on, he instead notes that, "We aren't going to confirm or deny or comment on speculation, nor are we going to give hints about anything ... if you know us by now, you know we don't really do that." Hines additionally points out that Bethesda Softworks (the game studio) isn't working on an MMO at the moment, per the speculation surrounding a possible Elder Scrolls MMO. ZeniMax Online Studios, however, is working on an MMO, though "they have not said anything about what game they are making." It looks as though an upcoming Elder Scrolls MMO may be more likely than seeing numero cinco anytime soon, folks. What happened to that "possible 2010 release," eh, Bethesda?
Black Ops MMOs: Games in development under the radar
Our colleagues over at Big Download have listed several PC games in development that they call "Black Ops" projects. The idea is that these games are operating out of sight, under the radar; nobody knows what's going on. It's all very hush hush and mysterious. The game industry and secrecy go hand in hand, after all.We're bringing this up because there are a bunch of MMOs in the list. In fact, they pretty much dominate it. Titles mentioned include the KotOR MMO, the Red 5 Studios project, 38 Studios' Copernicus, ZeniMax Online Studios' MMO (which is possibly Elder Scrolls-based), and of course Blizzard's mysterious "Next-Gen MMO." Interesting stuff. Head over to Big Download to find out what's up on the down low.
ZeniMax Online is hiring at Austin Game Developers Conference
If you're a talented game professional and you're planning to attend the Austin Game Developers Conference this coming week, you may want to head on over to booth 100 and speak with ZeniMax Online Studios (which has a brand-new official site). As they've just announced, ZeniMax will be looking for potential employees with experience in Art, Programming, Design, Server Technology, Customer Support, QA and Marketing. Despite the fact that ZeniMax is located in Hunt Valley, Maryland, this may be a great opportunity for those developers in the Austin area who have suffered through the area's recent set-backs.ZeniMax Online is the sister company of Bethesda Softworks, most famously known for their development and publishing of the Elder Scrolls Series and the upcoming Fallout 3. However, don't mistake their association with Bethesda to any connection with the Fallout MMO, which is currently in development by Interplay.
Zenimax Online kickstarting development with new digs
We haven't heard terribly much from Zenimax Online over the past few months. The company, the online off-shoot of Zenimax Media and corporate cousin of highly-lauded development house Bethesda Softworks, has been tight-lipped since they told the media to get off their lawn back in November. Of course, that didn't stop us from including the purely speculative Elder Scrolls MMO as #5 in our Top 10 MIA MMOs of 2007.But times, they are a-changing. Word has it that Zenimax Online will be moving to a new 40,000 square foot facility in Huntsville, MD in anticipation of scaling up the development process on their as-yet-unnamed MMO project. Naturally, they're also going to need some new blood to make use of all that office space, so they've posted a bunch of positions for hire. East coast development houses are pretty rare these days, so if you're in the area you might want to get on that ASAP.
Top 10 MIA MMOs of 2007 - part 2
The MMO landscape for next year is already looking extremely promising for all parties involved. Even in their unfinished state, games like Age of Conan, Pirates of the Burning Sea, and Warhammer Online already appear like industry trend-setters, and its only a matter of months before we're finally able to sink our collective teeth into fresh, new, massively multiplayer meat. But as we all well know, the excitement doesn't stop with those familiar names.We return once more to deliver the part two of our list of the Top 10 MIA MMOs of 2007 -- those games which we know exist somewhere out there in the ether, but which we know ... well, basically nothing about. If you missed part 1 of the list which was posted last week, make sure to go back and read over it before proceeding any further. That way, you can know for sure whether or not we skipped that big game that you're looking forward to -- and the ensuing hate mail can, at the very least, be properly informed.
Zenimax Online bulks up with HeroEngine
In the latest story in a painfully slow drip, Zenimax Online Studios, the new massively multiplayer cousin of Bethesda Softworks, has announced a partnership with Simutronics to license their HeroEngine development platform. HeroEngine includes a number of middleware tools like SpeedTree, FaceGen, and Scaleform GFx as well as a development suite that allows developers to update their games in real-time, instead of using a series of cumbersome builds that are apt to change day to day.Among the other big name clients using HeroEngine is Bioware Austin, who are themselves currently in the process of developing their first MMO. Personally, I think any news that lends itself to speeding along development of Zenimax's new project (which may or may not be Elder Scrolls Online), is welcome news. In an age where the development cycle for blockbuster games is in the ballpark of three years, developers need to search out any kind of shortcut they can find. And at the very least, this is the sort of shortcut that lets them focus more of their efforts on those facets of the game that we actually see.
