Overland Content Feedback Thread

SilverBride

notyuu wrote: »

I'm not saying make vet zones or craglorn, that's be like a 5/10 on the difficulty scale.

I'm saying make overland have more than negative levels of a challenge where you can't just tab out or go afk part way through a fight and be fine and dandy when you come back to the game, you know, just enough resistance where the average, not higher end, dungeoneer trial type, but your average 12k DPS, no sets, light attack spam mcgee has to pay attention when fighting, and thus engage with the combat system and mechanics, which in turn would make it far easier to progress in skill and ability due to having core basic knowledge of the fundamental combat systems.

And I still say no.

If a player wants more diffiulty the only fair thing to do would be to give that player a slider or debuff that ONLY affects that player, and does not effect everyone else that is happy with things how they are now.

colossalvoids

Interesting to see what the solutions might be cooking after Kevin's response in another thread and if those are actually directly addressing complaints here and not another Bastion Nymic situation that was a solution that no one really asked for. It was an interesting thing as a world event but not a solution to overland difficulty in any capacity.

spartaxoxo

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

I'll allow the mile just this once. Also just want to be clear that the intent is not to turn this into an overland conversation. Just to answer this specific question because I think it is important to note that the thread is not ignored. It's been a valuable resource when talking about this internally.

Just high level follow-up, since we don't have anything to announce today on the issue. Overland is brought up and we (ZOS) have conversations about how to address this issue regularly. Myself and my fellow community team members pass on Overland content feedback and note often it is one of the most requested player items when chatting internally. We started the Overland Feedback Thread so that we could keep track of everyone's ideas and worries when talking about overland. It's a tricky thing as we want to provide a fun and meaningful experience with an Elder Scrolls spin, while making sure we do not alienate players who don't want a different difficulty experience. But conversations are being had and that feedback thread is being referenced when we do have those discussions.

So the conversations are happening and your feedback is helpful in those conversation. But any announcement or future news is not for me to share.

Just also posting this latest response from ZOS_Kevin here. I'm glad this thread finally got a response. But, it feels a bit like a slap in the face that nothing has been posted in this actual thread for so long after relegating all feedback about it here for so long.

Coo_PnT

I think overland should be easy, I suspect there are quite a few people from the TES series who just want to go around the world and do solo quests. Relatively higher difficulty content includes dungeons and trials,Infinite Archive. Also, most of the people on this Forum are old-timers, are there any newcomers here? I would like to hear the opinions of newcomers.

tohopka_eso

I'm somewhat against raising difficulty. One I treat this as an MMO and not a single player RPG. True I might solo mainly but this is why.
Every MMO I have played, the first thing I always witness within guilds, friends or groups if the NPC is kicking your butt I've always heard "maybe level higher, grab a over leveled player, get better gear....."
Never once have I heard to use overland to teach a person how to block, parry, dodge.....now a couple games I've played you to raise your skills this way but the individual would always be over leveled and just train a bunch of mobs on top of them.
Now being this is TES game, best solution I can think of is what FFXIV does and that is use instance for the story. Like dungeons and stuff, overland in that game just feels more of a"let's make the world feel alive" type stuff.
Oh, and I have been following this thread since it was created....I am on SilverBrides side but see spartaxoxo side as well.
There, I have finally said my piece.

disky

tohopka_eso wrote: »

I'm somewhat against raising difficulty. One I treat this as an MMO and not a single player RPG. True I might solo mainly but this is why.
Every MMO I have played, the first thing I always witness within guilds, friends or groups if the NPC is kicking your butt I've always heard "maybe level higher, grab a over leveled player, get better gear....."
Never once have I heard to use overland to teach a person how to block, parry, dodge.....now a couple games I've played you to raise your skills this way but the individual would always be over leveled and just train a bunch of mobs on top of them.
Now being this is TES game, best solution I can think of is what FFXIV does and that is use instance for the story. Like dungeons and stuff, overland in that game just feels more of a"let's make the world feel alive" type stuff.
Oh, and I have been following this thread since it was created....I am on SilverBrides side but see spartaxoxo side as well.
There, I have finally said my piece.

This game employs level scaling, meaning it doesn't really matter what level you are, the enemies will be scaled to your level. This is why you don't see a level next to the name of an enemy when you select it. With level scaling there is no reason to believe that any individual will be at a serious disadvantage due to level, only that their gear/build may be sub-par and something they could work on to improve their situation.

That being said, I think the prevailing idea in this thread is to provide options rather than a general increase for everyone. Some people want that but most of us understand that the best way forward is not to *** off anyone who likes things as they are.

TaSheen

disky wrote: »

tohopka_eso wrote: »

I'm somewhat against raising difficulty. One I treat this as an MMO and not a single player RPG. True I might solo mainly but this is why.
Every MMO I have played, the first thing I always witness within guilds, friends or groups if the NPC is kicking your butt I've always heard "maybe level higher, grab a over leveled player, get better gear....."
Never once have I heard to use overland to teach a person how to block, parry, dodge.....now a couple games I've played you to raise your skills this way but the individual would always be over leveled and just train a bunch of mobs on top of them.
Now being this is TES game, best solution I can think of is what FFXIV does and that is use instance for the story. Like dungeons and stuff, overland in that game just feels more of a"let's make the world feel alive" type stuff.
Oh, and I have been following this thread since it was created....I am on SilverBrides side but see spartaxoxo side as well.
There, I have finally said my piece.

This game employs level scaling, meaning it doesn't really matter what level you are, the enemies will be scaled to your level. This is why you don't see a level next to the name of an enemy when you select it. With level scaling there is no reason to believe that any individual will be at a serious disadvantage due to level, only that their gear/build may be sub-par and something they could work on to improve their situation.

That being said, I think the prevailing idea in this thread is to provide options rather than a general increase for everyone. Some people want that but most of us understand that the best way forward is not to *** off anyone who likes things as they are.

Yes.... thankfully YOU at least are reasonable about it.

disky

TaSheen wrote: »

disky wrote: »

tohopka_eso wrote: »

I'm somewhat against raising difficulty. One I treat this as an MMO and not a single player RPG. True I might solo mainly but this is why.
Every MMO I have played, the first thing I always witness within guilds, friends or groups if the NPC is kicking your butt I've always heard "maybe level higher, grab a over leveled player, get better gear....."
Never once have I heard to use overland to teach a person how to block, parry, dodge.....now a couple games I've played you to raise your skills this way but the individual would always be over leveled and just train a bunch of mobs on top of them.
Now being this is TES game, best solution I can think of is what FFXIV does and that is use instance for the story. Like dungeons and stuff, overland in that game just feels more of a"let's make the world feel alive" type stuff.
Oh, and I have been following this thread since it was created....I am on SilverBrides side but see spartaxoxo side as well.
There, I have finally said my piece.

This game employs level scaling, meaning it doesn't really matter what level you are, the enemies will be scaled to your level. This is why you don't see a level next to the name of an enemy when you select it. With level scaling there is no reason to believe that any individual will be at a serious disadvantage due to level, only that their gear/build may be sub-par and something they could work on to improve their situation.

That being said, I think the prevailing idea in this thread is to provide options rather than a general increase for everyone. Some people want that but most of us understand that the best way forward is not to *** off anyone who likes things as they are.

Yes.... thankfully YOU at least are reasonable about it.

I think most of the people who want a global challenge increase just haven't really thought it through, which is why we have to keep discussing it whenever this comes up. I'd rather try to change their minds and get them asking for something better than just shut them down, it's not productive.

Blackbird_V

I am glad we got some news form @ZOS_Kevin, but it's a shame that that post hasn't been posted in this thread - the main Overland thread. Could I request that we get that response here for the record? Or something similar?

I know it's been posted by others, but it won't count for official ZoS replies here, if you wanna use the forum system to skip to ZoS replies.

ZOS_Icy

Greetings,

After removing some unnecessary back and forth from this thread, we would like everyone to keep posts on the subject at hand, civil, and constructive. If there may be any questions in regards to the rules, please feel free to review them here.

Thank you for your understanding.

BasP

Coo_PnT wrote: »

Also, most of the people on this Forum are old-timers, are there any newcomers here? I would like to hear the opinions of newcomers.

Though I don't visit ESO's Subreddit daily, I've occasionally seen posts by new players complaining or asking about the lack of difficulty. This recent one came to mind, for example:

Of course it's probable that most new players think that Overland is fine the way it is. I do think that having multiple Overland difficulties might be beneficial for ESO in the long run if that would convince a portion of new players to stick with the game for longer, though.

TieWolf

Overland content is too easy. I can appreciate that it makes things accessible for lower level players, but I feel there needs to be some overland content that has dynamic consequences that not only pulls overland zone folks together as a large group event in difficulty, but maybe it has consequences on (for example) the structures in nearby cities, villages, and camps.

Example: A large [insert boss type event] spawns where there are LOTS of adds and one main "boss" - they travel and can be seen on the map when active - encouraging zone participation. If the event is not successful on the players' behalf, the mobs and boss can destroy towns and cities (while leaving some main essentials accessible within reason).

How do the cities get rebuilt? Player assistance. Quests specific to town and city rebuilding - each zone will have a ripple effect of consequences. Basic example again: if there is a farm that was destroyed by bandits, the major city in that zone may not have provisioning options available. Or if a major city were attacked, certain amenities would be inaccessible until player assistance is reached - basically creating a living environment where participation or lack thereof has consequences that can be fixed.

It essentially would create more reason for veteran players to actually hang out or participate in overland content. It also makes veteran players and new players work together on the spot. I should state too, something like this should have good reward drops as further incentive for vet players and guilds to participate in overland content. Maybe when pulling up the map have a little progress bar for either defense or rebuilding objectives.

This is a thing two other MMORPG's have done that really does pull veteran players into every single zone - a huge asset to these overland events is they are great gold making opportunities. So if money talks and y'all want more engagement from vet players in overland content - this could be a fundamental, but dynamic change to environment.

Additionally, these types of events aren't constant in each zone - it would rotate to the next zone once completed until the next "timer" hits if that makes sense - which makes questing otherwise still accessible and leisurely for newer players or lower level players.

--

Aside from difficulty, there is a lack for good gold making opportunities. Nobody wants to mindlessly spend hours picking flowers... that is not a fun or enjoyable way to make gold. The other means has been selling motifs, blueprints, etc. which the pricey ones are mainly in 4-man content or trials - which obviously is an instanced group event - not something that pulls folks into overland content.

-

Dolmens and World Bosses are okay, but they play no integral role in the environment or have consequences. For event ideas, if dolmens aren't completed in a timely manner, they could continuously spawn more adds and minibosses - initiating some of the overland "events" that pull people in. But that would mean altering some old achievements and such, which is probably not worth it in that aspect. And honestly, for the veteran players, we don't want to keep seeing dolmens... they give us nothing new and are bland in and of themselves from many hours and years grinding them out when leveling new characters.

-

Over the last year there has been more visual effects to indicate holiday events taking place which is an AMAZING step forward from ZOS. I'd love to see more added to that - really add more holiday related effects to the entire map. Have some mobs that make a jingle bell sound, have some mobs with face paintings, have some mobs with pumpkin heads, change subtle things like that on otherwise basic mobs in overland zones. Even new synergies while attacking certain mobs - like throwing a snowball to stun them or concuss them at random. Or during the winter holiday events, while killing dragons or world bosses, see how quickly people can build a snowman to come to life to help aid in the fight as a sort of side quest amidst fighting bosses that nowadays aren't seeing much attention.

-

And last, it would be cool if achievement points actually served a purpose. There's no incentive beyond individual completionists to actually gain achievement points unless there are some that offer mounts, skins, dyes, etc. Adding purpose or even tiered rewards for achievement points could also encourage folks to take part in more overland content (among other things).



Conclusion:
- Difficulty is too easy in overland content outside of some select world bosses and dolmen type events in some DLC zones.
- Reward and gold incentive is non-existent. Picking flowers in an MMORPG as a way to make money is not enjoyable - it creates some resentment.
- There isn't enough event based variety in overland content to pull players in (vet or low levels) that makes the content engaging. Consequences for participation on an hourly or bi-hourly cycle could bring back population, but that is with emphasis to rewards and difficulty.

SilverBride

TieWolf wrote: »

Overland content is too easy. I can appreciate that it makes things accessible for lower level players, but I feel there needs to be some overland content that has dynamic consequences that not only pulls overland zone folks together as a large group event in difficulty, but maybe it has consequences on (for example) the structures in nearby cities, villages, and camps.

ESO is NOT that kind of game and it would be devastating if it were to go in that direction.

TaSheen

SilverBride wrote: »

TieWolf wrote: »

Overland content is too easy. I can appreciate that it makes things accessible for lower level players, but I feel there needs to be some overland content that has dynamic consequences that not only pulls overland zone folks together as a large group event in difficulty, but maybe it has consequences on (for example) the structures in nearby cities, villages, and camps.

ESO is NOT that kind of game and it would be devastating if it were to go in that direction.

I feel there are maybe a fair amount of people who would really like that - I'm not one of them, and if overland went that direction, I'd absent myself permanently....

But I also feel as if the devs do have a plan, and we all just need to wait until we see what that plan is before we go off on a tangent.

SilverBride

Kevin said they read this thread and discuss the feedback so it is important that we make our views known. Doing so is not going off on a tangent.

TaSheen

I'm pretty certain that everyone who's ever read this thread knows EXACTLY how some posters feel. From the word go....

I might be the ONLY one who's moderated her stance over time.

SilverBride

I adjusted my stance from not wanting anything done to agreeing with a slider or debuff that only affects the character using them.

spartaxoxo

TaSheen wrote: »

I'm pretty certain that everyone who's ever read this thread knows EXACTLY how some posters feel. From the word go....

I might be the ONLY one who's moderated her stance over time.

I did too. While I was always in favor of an optional slider over a separate instance, I no longer object to this being prioritized over the release of new content. Like if this was the Q3 update, I'd be ecstatic. But back when this topic first started, I would have resented it. Now that AwA has landed, I also don't care if it comes with titles or other rewards.

I don't need or want them but I don't feel negatively about it either. The only thing I feel is necessary is exp to match so it doesn't break the basic gameplay function of questing. My previous objection to that was that questing is one and done content so you'd be sol of getting the achievement on that character. That's no longer the case, so I withdraw that objection.

I am also more open to special attacks that only affect the person using the slider. When I first made the suggestion, I didn't even realize that was possible. But, then someone pointed out it happens in LOTRO, and I read up on it and support that.

In addition, a while back a user by the name of CredibleJoe suggested (and I hope I remembering this correctly) something along the lines of a hybrid solution of slider and separate instances. In Joe's version there would be no slider. The overworld for the main town, world bosses, and world events did not change. But story instances, public dungeon instances, and delves had selectable difficulty levels as a separate instance. This additional difficulty instance did not drop leads or count for daily quest credit, to encourage people to use the base version during events.

I felt like that was a wonderful hybrid idea that balanced the concerns of both people in favor and against separate instances. And I still do. So, now I wouldn't mind that hybrid solution at all.

In addition, I have soured on walking world bosses. I used to think they'd add a nice burst of spontaneous and dynamic challenge. And they do the rare times I come across them. But they didn't really address the main concerns I had, so I don't feel it was such a great idea anymore. Those were actually one of the things that I suggested pretty early on (wasn't the only one). So, mea culpa on that one. My bad.

spartaxoxo

@Credible_Joe

Did I remember your idea correctly? I hope so. I genuinely liked it!

Credible_Joe

spartaxoxo wrote: »

Did I remember your idea correctly? I hope so. I genuinely liked it!

Close enough. And thank you.

The main point I always pursue is that the issue is content congestion, not necessarily difficulty. I can self handicap enough to make any content engaging, but there's nothing to do but wait or skip when other people are facerolling the adversity ahead of you.

It would be user-friendly if the interior instance solution was applied along with personal difficulty settings. That would free up the armory slot I use to be naked with no attributes. If I recall correctly, there were some other concessions so people don't exploit instanced interiors to easily grind leads or XP; like disabled monster respawn. One-and-done. Alternatively, we could limit the instanced experience to conditions like first discovery; flipping the map icon, or when you're pursuing a daily delve quest. And have it public any other visit.

spartaxoxo wrote: »

Those were actually one of the things that I suggested pretty early on (wasn't the only one). So, mea culpa on that one. My bad.

FWIW I love wondering bosses, so thanks for that. I do agree they didn't fully resolve the issue, but I'm always excited to run into one when I'm doing dailies.

TaSheen

@spartaxoxo - yes, you did moderate your stance. So.... there's two of us. *sigh* Not enough to make much difference, but hey - represent anyway!

SilverBride

The purpose is to give feedback, not to change our minds. Although the more we discuss the more likely we are to adjust our ideas to include more players preferences. Which is how my stance also changed to agree with more options, as I posted above.

Dahveed

Hello again everyone.

I've contributed often to this discussion, and I've often had the impression - as many of you - that this entire thread is some kind of purgatory for our feedback and we are all just ignored. We've complained more than once about the ZoS "radio silence" on this issue.

Well I have some encouraging news, as it would seem that this is not the case. (Like, at all.) According to a community manager, this issue is brought up all the time in their meetings.

Here is the post in question:

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Dahveed wrote: »

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

Dahveed wrote: »

Let's face it, at its core it seems that WoW's new "delves" are basically ripoffs of ESO delves, but with massive updates to gameplay systems and much more variety in terms of progression and replayability.

I wonder if there's any chance that ESO devs take a look at that and perhaps throw some of their own salt and pepper into the mix? Perhaps adding a different instance of their own delves... i.e. a hardmode or a retold story, similar how they do things like "Fungal Grotto II" or "Wayrest Sewers II".

Perhaps with new challenges, modifiers, etc.

I dunno, just throwing that out there. I haven't played the new WoW content (haven't touched retail WoW in about 10 years and probably never will), but at least it looks like they're trying to evolve their gameplay formula. Perhaps ZOS should do the same? It seems that more than ever they need to breathe new life into their aging formula after the recent (supposed) outflux of players.

Thanks for the feedback here. We'll pass this along to the team for their future consideration. We don't normally create something "in response" to what another game does, but it can certainly inform future systems we work on. Thanks for the suggestion.

I appreciate the green text! (As far as I can remember it's my first time getting green text that wasn't telling me to "smarten up" lol.)

BUT in true "give them an inch and they'll ask for a mile" fashion, can you give any updates about the "overland content feedback thread" pinned on the general forums?

The general impression players seem to be getting is that it's just a place to filter all overland content and is just permanently /ignored. Are there any dev discussions regarding a difficulty slider (specifically pertaining to the optional "self debuff" slider)?

My hopes aren't very high. (At all.)

Cheers!

I'll allow the mile just this once. Also just want to be clear that the intent is not to turn this into an overland conversation. Just to answer this specific question because I think it is important to note that the thread is not ignored. It's been a valuable resource when talking about this internally.

Just high level follow-up, since we don't have anything to announce today on the issue. Overland is brought up and we (ZOS) have conversations about how to address this issue regularly. Myself and my fellow community team members pass on Overland content feedback and note often it is one of the most requested player items when chatting internally. We started the Overland Feedback Thread so that we could keep track of everyone's ideas and worries when talking about overland. It's a tricky thing as we want to provide a fun and meaningful experience with an Elder Scrolls spin, while making sure we do not alienate players who don't want a different difficulty experience. But conversations are being had and that feedback thread is being referenced when we do have those discussions.

So the conversations are happening and your feedback is helpful in those conversation. But any announcement or future news is not for me to share.

Here is some context from the original thread for those who are curious:

Recently I posted about WoW's new delves: https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/667146/any-plans-to-launch-a-counter-attack-to-wow-delves/p1

This didn't pertain to overland difficulty, but I got a "green" community manager to respond to someone else in the comments. Something about "we're listening to feedback." I figured, since I have their attention, why not push my luck? So I asked them specifically if there was any discussion about this current "overland content feedback thread." And this was their answer.

So, yeah. All hope is not lost! Let's keep up the constructive discussion. Perhaps we'll get through one day

Dahveed

And as for people virtue signalling, and insinuating that they are the only ones listening and modifying their stances: That is incorrect. I have seen much back and forth, and many different people come around to understanding others and changing their minds. (Don't throw out your wrists patting yourselves on the back, eh? haha.)

As for myself, I have not really changed my mind since day one. The optional "self debuff" slider is inclusive enough and takes into account others' preferences, which I feel is already respectful and open-minded.

However I have indeed come to a better appreciation of many players' desire to keep the overall difficulty the way it is, to keep things relaxed, stress-free, and a true "story mode" free from frustration. I understand more now than I did before how important this is to many ESO players.

But I have always understood this, which is why the slider has always (in my mind) been an optional toggle, which would not hinder others who abstained from it in any way whatsoever. This has always been my argument, ever since I first had this idea for World of Warcraft, back in the days of their Cataclysm release. IMO it had the same problem I face now, where all the questing is easy and nothing posed a thread. And I got the same pushback from other players worried that I was trying to make their casual MMO "hardcore" or something... which was not true then, and is not true now.

Whatever ZoS does (if indeed they do anything), I would sincerely hope it would not be to the detriment of people who want a more casual experience... and this has always been my opinion, precisely because I'm someone who considers the point of view of others when formulating my ideas. (My turn for some self-aggrandizing haha.)

For the most part I think about 98% of the people posting here have been thoughtful and respectful, even when sometimes things got a bit heated and argumentative. There's no reason that should stop.

So let's keep it up guys!

SilverBride

Dahveed wrote: »

Whatever ZoS does (if indeed they do anything), I would sincerely hope it would not be to the detriment of people who want a more casual experience...

Unfortunately they have and it is.

Since around High Isle the Story Bosses have gotten progressively more difficult with invulnerable phases that do nothing to make the fight more engaging but only serve to prolong it. It's reached a point that many players can no longer defeat these Bosses and complete the zone story.

The same with World Bosses with invulnerable phases, and now Incursions, too. And the group event Boss in Silorn is ridiculously difficult for a Public Dungeon, but thankfully it is having its difficulty adjusted down to something more reasonable.

They could make everyone happy if they stop putting invulnerable phases on every Boss, and stop increasing the difficulty of these Bosses more and more with every Chapter, and fix the ones that have already been taken too far, and just implement an optional slider or debuff for those that want it.

I want my more relaxing overland story experience back.

mocap

SilverBride wrote: »

I adjusted my stance from not wanting anything done to agreeing with a slider or debuff that only affects the character using them.

This is literally what the players are screaming about for all 239 pages. You've finally realized it, hallelujah.

disky

TieWolf wrote: »

Overland content is too easy. I can appreciate that it makes things accessible for lower level players, but I feel there needs to be some overland content that has dynamic consequences that not only pulls overland zone folks together as a large group event in difficulty, but maybe it has consequences on (for example) the structures in nearby cities, villages, and camps.

I think any amount of dynamic content would do wonders for overland, but I think that if it's going to happen, it has to be relatively lightweight and it has to be optional in order to minimize the various risk factors to ZOS including time lost, money lost and the impact on player sentiment if it fails. Your idea sounds really cool to me but consider how it might affect someone who just wants to log in and have a cozy time shopping or doing their dailies. The game is meant to accept all kinds of players with different motivations and ZOS has to consider all of those people which is why riskier ideas like this tend not to float to the top. This sounds like a really excellent, but different game to me.

It actually reminds me of some of the dynamic events that occur in Guild Wars 2 which I remember very fondly, but those occurred under very defined circumstances in specific locations. I think it could be done, but it would have to happen outside of major gathering areas and in smaller towns or settlements that are purpose-built for it, and when you're at that point, it's really just a new, branching static event type that happens in a defined area which could still be really fun, but almost completely removes the surprise element.

Frankly though, I think that if ZOS is ever going to do anything to add dynamism across overland, it will need to be much smaller in scope. One of the things that fell pretty flat for me in High Isle was an attempt at adding flavor to the world in the form of random, minimally-interactive vignettes, which very quickly became repetitive and had no real impact. ZOS could employ that idea but expand on it to create something more meaningful and rewarding to the player by utilizing a system of dynamic quest generation, which could task the player with completing a rescue, retrieving something from a delve, or even making repairs to a destroyed structure. The dynamic quests could be triggered through an NPC approaching the player or by finding an item that gives the player the information/motivation to begin the quest. The triggers would need to be uncommon as people are burdened enough with NPC quest barkers as it is and if they show up too frequently then like their predecessors, they would also become stale.

This system could be expandable with new elements as ZOS chooses to implement them too, which I think makes it more attractive because the potential for surprises grows over time.

I know what you're asking for is to feel like you need to be on your toes because anything could happen at any time, and I would love that too, but I think that because of the nature of this game as an MMO, with its wide variety of player interests, a system in which the world can be dramatically altered at any time just isn't going to happen. It's far too cozy for that, and we also have to keep in mind that ZOS doesn't want to put major effort into changing older zones, which I think your idea would require if it's going to affect the entirety of overland. I still think ZOS can still do some interesting things with dynamic content, though, and they should. It would be a huge boon to the experience if we could see even the slightest bit of reactivity added to overland gameplay.

colossalvoids

There's always cool ideas laying around but personally there's a baseline to address first - questing and instanced content like delves or public dungeons which are the main chunks of yearly releases. Then it might be spilled someway into actual open overland but I'd not run in front of the train yet.

disky

colossalvoids wrote: »

There's always cool ideas laying around but personally there's a baseline to address first - questing and instanced content like delves or public dungeons which are the main chunks of yearly releases. Then it might be spilled someway into actual open overland but I'd not run in front of the train yet.

Questing is open overland, though, and dynamic content would be part of what is considered overland questing.

Dahveed

SilverBride wrote: »

Dahveed wrote: »

Whatever ZoS does (if indeed they do anything), I would sincerely hope it would not be to the detriment of people who want a more casual experience...

Unfortunately they have and it is.

Since around High Isle the Story Bosses have gotten progressively more difficult with invulnerable phases that do nothing to make the fight more engaging but only serve to prolong it. It's reached a point that many players can no longer defeat these Bosses and complete the zone story.

The same with World Bosses with invulnerable phases, and now Incursions, too. And the group event Boss in Silorn is ridiculously difficult for a Public Dungeon, but thankfully it is having its difficulty adjusted down to something more reasonable.

They could make everyone happy if they stop putting invulnerable phases on every Boss, and stop increasing the difficulty of these Bosses more and more with every Chapter, and fix the ones that have already been taken too far, and just implement an optional slider or debuff for those that want it.

I want my more relaxing overland story experience back.

To be fair, this is the case with almost all video games though, isn't it? Especially MMOs. New content tends to become harder with new releases, because power creep generally has to be taken into account.

I'm not saying I disagree... I actually agree that a different approach should be taken. Ideally the health pools and damage output ought to be normalized, but with a LotRO difficulty slider applied. But I wonder how motivated ZoS would be to go back and nerf all the content they've introduced in the past few years? It's a tough pickle they're in, honestly...