Add-ons on XBox are important

Bubbastic · September 2018

@ZOS_GinaBruno @ZOS_RobGarrett

I restart the debate because it fell to oblivion and/or we resigned ourselves. The game is not the same without the add-ons. We (all) need extensions on ESO XBox as MiniMap, Destinations, Skyshards, Lorebook, MasterMerchand, CraftStore, and so on ... Anyone can at least quote one or two that they particularly like.

Could you give us the point of view of ZOS and Microsoft on this? There was a time when the subject was on the table, everything looked ready then radio silence ...

Thanks for your feedback

Edit : "Mods" changed to Add-ons

Sparr0w · September 2018

Multi craft, Combat metrics, action duration reminder & that one that lets you quickly change gear/skills/cp

mague · September 2018

Action duration reminder should be part of the base game. Just as" Should i eat or drink" or True Exploration or Research Grid.

I play on PC but with XBox Gamepad and Gampead UI. And 2k and 4k TV need an option for a bigger Target Cursor.

Bubbastic · September 2018

In my opinion, the lack of mods on console makes potential buyers reluctant to buy the game (for those coming from ESO PC)

There are games with mods on Xbox One like Fallout 4 for example so why not ESO ?!

Royaji · September 2018

You should probably direct all you questions to Mictosoft on that one. Addon developers are probably not willing to bother with passing Microsoft's certifications and ZOS is unable to take that as their responsibility (considering how much they dislike this certification themselves). Sorry, but you are using a closed platform.

Bubbastic · September 2018

Fallout 4 has mods, so they can do it

Royaji · September 2018

Bubbastic wrote: »

Fallout 4 has mods, so they can do it

Is it allowed to use non-in-game assets in those mods? I might be mixing it up with PS4 but still. Addons require addition of extra code to the game. And by Micrsoft's own policy the code has to pass certification to be run on their console. Addon authors are usually hobby coders who are not going to bother with passing that certification.

susmitds · September 2018

Bubbastic wrote: »

Fallout 4 has mods, so they can do it

As a modder for single-player games myself, I can tell you making mods for a single-player game and a multiplayer ever changing game is wildly different. Modding for single player games is something you can do with proper knowledge and time in hand but making add-ons for MMOs requires unparalleled dedication and devotion to the game. Also modding for console titles opens a different can of worms, which I realized when making Texture and HD mods for PS2 games.
For PC, making MMO-addons is plausible as no-one is there to pushing their views of how things should done and you don't have to go through the ordeal of getting it certified. Modders are largely volunteer developers who like to improve the player's enjoyment and do not deserve the way companies like Microsoft or Sony treat them.

idk · September 2018

If Zos has replied to such a discussion is was long ago since it would have been long ago this was initially brought up.

Zos tends to not discuss topics every time they come up and they tend to not speak about their partners like Microsoft and Sony which is likely the case.

Clearly Zos does not have an issue with add-ons. That much we can state as fact since they chose to ditch the full feature UI they developed for the no frills one and have players build out the rest for PC. The bottleneck does seem to be the console service providers and this is not the same as mods.

and again, you keep saying mods. Add-ons are not mods. At least mods like what we have with Skyrim and such are merely just skins. Add-ons take on a different flavor.

This brings us back to Zos does not like to speak ill about their partners.

Lake · September 2018

There's more chance of addon functionality being slowly added into the base game, than actually getting addons.

Draxinusom_ · September 2018

As far as I know, you don't need to get any certification from MS (or Sony for the PS Skyrim/Fallout) as modders. What happens is that you need to have your Account linked to a bethesda.net Account and you need to upload the addon through that. If the addon becomes available immediately or not I cannot say, but it's possible that Bethesda needs to review and clear any uploaded addon before they appear in player's mod dialog to be installed. This process would mean that in effect Bethesda takes over the responsibility for the terms in the certification.

Also as far as I know, the different platforms have widely different rules what is allowed and what is not. PS4 Skyrim for example does not allow "external assets" meaning you cannot upload a mod with own textures, sounds or effects. You can only change what is already in the game assets while XBox Skyrim has no such limitation. However both consoles have (different) size limits imposed (due to limited availability and loading time issues I presume) on mods.

Nothing of that kind exists on PC of course, as you are in full control of your system contrary to consoles. Essentially it is not a technical problem but merely a political/policy one imposed by the creater and owner of the platform in question.

By the way, the UI in console ESO is from a technical view also just an addon. If ZOS would just take existing addons from esoui.com and bundle them within the next console release they'd work, but obviously that would be misappropriating other people's work and can't be done. The issue is "random people" on the internet being able to create content that "runs" in some kind in the walled garden of Microsoft/Sony.

Even though I am on PC. I think it would be a great boon for console players as well as addon creators and ZOS to finally being able to enable addons on consoles (preferably both, not just XBox).

Bubbastic · September 2018

felt in Oblivion again

Canasta · September 2018

What about a compromise solution, where the xbox only transmits information over the network to another device like a tablet. But nothing extra runs on the xbox and no data is recieved.

So on the tablet the add ons could run in somekind of framework, and recieve data from the xbox, like current map location, buffs and debuffs and other data. It would work for some types of addons, like skyshards, combat metrics and so on. But obviously not others like awsome guild store.

Sparr0w · September 2018

On Fallout & Skyrim, PS4 didn't allow external textures, external code was fine to use. Xbox allowed both up to a certain size.

The main requested addons are literally just code (metrics, wardrobe, search) so both providers should be fine with that. It's just a push to get them implemented.

kylewwefan · September 2018

QoL features like Text Type Search for guild traders, Quantity Slider for crafting Potions, food, basically any craftable. Wouldn’t even need to be an add on.

The buff trackers added in to the base game are about worthless. If we could pick and choose which ones we want to see, and place them in a good spot on the screen they would be so much better.

Most these mods are created to fix what should be base game functionality. Surely, we don’t really need a mod to tell us when to jump, dodge, block, heavy attack etc. that stuff is lame af. Combat text is just ridiculous fluff that really suits no purpose.

The Crown Store bought Banker & Merchant should totally be fully functioning to do repairs and Search Guild Traders.

I recently bought all the Lorebook reprints and placed them at my house with high hopes it would make Mages Guild leveling easier for new toons. Unfortunately, It does not work like that. Wasted 100k gold for nothing. If it did work, there would be no need for lorebook add ons.

Skyshard hunting add ons. Hmph. Are they really needed? Doing public dungeon group events and that one skyshard in there should get you the skill points you need.

And last, you should be able to change which faction you want to play on the fly. Most people have no idea what they’re doing when first creating a character and then miss out on playing with their friends for half the game. The thaught of leveling another toon for this is over the top.

Sure it’s gonna be abused. But at this point who really cares?

Beardimus · September 2018

Bubbastic wrote: »

@ZOS_GinaBruno @ZOS_RobGarrett

I restart the debate because it fell to oblivion and/or we resigned ourselves. The game is not the same without the add-ons. We (all) need extensions on ESO XBox as MiniMap, Destinations, Skyshards, Lorebook, MasterMerchand, CraftStore, and so on ... Anyone can at least quote one or two that they particularly like.

Could you give us the point of view of ZOS and Microsoft on this? There was a time when the subject was on the table, everything looked ready then radio silence ...

Thanks for your feedback

Edit : "Mods" changed to Add-ons

I 100% would not want the flood gates opened to Add ON's. It's part of the bad part of PC for me.

Adding the cool QoL stuff to base game, THAT I'm happy with.

Defilted · September 2018

ZOS needs to look at the map addons at least and code them into the game for console. Skyshards/lore books at a minimum.

We get update after update and the UI is never touched, I do not see it ever happening. I want a upgrade(and I will pay for it) that is all bug fixes and QOL updates. Big UI updates. I will pay 30 to 40 USD for this.

Take my money ZOS.

Luciferazazell · January 2019

If anything i would love to see them implement the combat metric to xbox one eso thats a mod or addon that they could easily add to the game it doesnt even have to be called addon since addons seem to be a taboo when it comes to consoles. Call it feature lol. It baffles me that this add on hasnt been added to the game. Zos we are literally dps testing blind with a calculator next to us lol and at the mercy of pc players putting up builds online of what works best. I hope we come to a point where at least this feature is added for our console players. Zos pc's getting all the love. Consoles like the red headed step sisters. Its time for a change show us the same love Im sure this isnt the first time this topic has come up. Lets not ignore it this time

iomandrex · January 2019

Defilted wrote: »

ZOS needs to look at the map addons at least and code them into the game for console. Skyshards/lore books at a minimum.

We get update after update and the UI is never touched, I do not see it ever happening. I want a upgrade(and I will pay for it) that is all bug fixes and QOL updates. Big UI updates. I will pay 30 to 40 USD for this.

Take my money ZOS.

- I love this idea. having an addon/Mod/feature that you can use to custom search for skyshard locations/lore books or general points of interest sounds great.
- questing, id like ZOS to implement a feature that can assist with questing if you've lost your way. EG, I started the story quests for the gold cost many years ago but didn't complete it. I have since dropped the quest and continued my adventure elsewhere. however, now im wanting to continue that quest line - I have no idea where to go or what to do. who do I speak with? - Something more in the tooltips or journal would be helpful for the story based quests. eg. if the story based quest line is grey (not completed) it should say - head to X and speak with X to continue this quest.