What order do I play the games in?

Wuggums47

Hi, I just started playing, and I'm only a level 9, but I was wondering going forward if I should play through the first five games before I get to far. Will I get more enjoyment in the story playing the first five games before or after I get to endgame?

ers101284b14_ESO

This is set 1000 years before the other ones so no you don't have to. Each game also has its own story but its the books and the lore that are the same through all 5 other games. You don't have to have any knowledge to enjoy any o the games though.

UrQuan

ESO takes place about 1,000 years before the most recent single player ES game (Skyrim), so you really don't need to play through the others to get the story.

Having said that, there are a lot of little things in ESO that you'll probably only appreciate if you've played other ES games (like a lot of the things M'aiq the Liar says). It's worth playing the other games, but it's not necessary.

I don't know that I'd recommend playing anything earlier than Morrowind, though, just because the older ones just seem so archaic now. They were cool for when they were put out, but I'd imagine them to be painful to play now. Heck, even Morrowind (which many players consider to be the best of the series) looks terrible to me today, so I can't really bring myself to play it. Skyrim, on the other hand, looks great, and Oblivion still looks decent.

Ragefist

Arena and Daggerfall are not advised, unless you plan to become a hardcore fan. They are just too old now. However Morrowind can be modded to look nicely and it is best game of the series. Skyrim is still very good game, tho many features have been trivialised to appease kiddies and the game is mostly about chasing quest arrow

Wuggums47

Ragefist wrote: »

Arena and Daggerfall are not advised, unless you plan to become a hardcore fan. They are just too old now. However Morrowind can be modded to look nicely and it is best game of the series. Skyrim is still very good game, tho many features have been trivialised to appease kiddies and the game is mostly about chasing quest arrow

If I where to skip the first two games, would there be a place online you could recommend that would have just the story? I kind of do intend to become a hardcore fan, I'm a naturally obsessive person and can already see many ways that ESO is superior to other MMOs, and worthy to have a lot of my time invested in it. In a lot of other MMOs I've played it's been really hard to care about the stories, especially because the stories have been something along the lines of "Kill 5 dwarves then report back to me". Also the combat in this game is outstanding, I mean who would have ever thought there was a better system than having 400 keybinds that magically find your enemy without you ever having to aim.

david271749

Wuggums47 wrote: »

Hi, I just started playing, and I'm only a level 9, but I was wondering going forward if I should play through the first five games before I get to far. Will I get more enjoyment in the story playing the first five games before or after I get to endgame?

Unsub and play the other games. You'll thank me later.

ers101284b14_ESO

Wuggums47 wrote: »

Ragefist wrote: »

Arena and Daggerfall are not advised, unless you plan to become a hardcore fan. They are just too old now. However Morrowind can be modded to look nicely and it is best game of the series. Skyrim is still very good game, tho many features have been trivialised to appease kiddies and the game is mostly about chasing quest arrow

If I where to skip the first two games, would there be a place online you could recommend that would have just the story? I kind of do intend to become a hardcore fan, I'm a naturally obsessive person and can already see many ways that ESO is superior to other MMOs, and worthy to have a lot of my time invested in it. In a lot of other MMOs I've played it's been really hard to care about the stories, especially because the stories have been something along the lines of "Kill 5 dwarves then report back to me". Also the combat in this game is outstanding, I mean who would have ever thought there was a better system than having 400 keybinds that magically find your enemy without you ever having to aim.

http://www.imperial-library.info/

kijima

I played skyrim last night on PS3 (I've thrown many, many hours at Skyrim, I'm at level 109 ) and I'd say keep going with ESO. You aren't missing much at all, but if you want something to fill in the blanks as you go, then yeah sure.

It's hardly necessary though.

Rosveen

UrQuan wrote: »

Heck, even Morrowind (which many players consider to be the best of the series) looks terrible to me today, so I can't really bring myself to play it.

MGSO is the answer. Modded Morrowind looks quite beautiful. The only downside is that if you go overboard, your FPS drop to like 5. But the pretty landscapes! *sigh*

Stick to ESO for now. The games aren't directly connected, each can be played without any prior experience with TES universe. There are a few references to earlier games, of course, but nothing major. They form a sort of story arc though, about the decline of the Septim Empire and its eventual downfall. In that way they are all important to understading the events leading to the end of the Third Era.

On the other hand, ESO takes place in the Second Era, a period that wasn't deeply explored in previous lore. So other games won't really help with the story, just give you a better feel of the world.

Morrowind, Oblivion and Skyrim are modern enough to be easily accessible to a new player. If you want to try them - and you should, they're great! - I'd start with Skyrim. It's the easiest to get into. The others have different mechanics, so it's better if you get immersed in the world first. It will help you get over the differences between the games, which otherwise could be a bit jarring. Morrowind's over a decade old, after all. Still very playable though, with the best main story and a fascinating portrayal of the Dunmer society.

Shaun98ca2

Ummm I would probably recommend shoddy cast on youtube. Your not going to get much of the actual story from the previous Elder Scrolls games but you will get much of the lore that is actually relevant and important.

As has been said all the previous Elder Scrolls games take place after this one, probably due to a FEW reasons....

1. Not much was ever known about his era to begin with through the lore books.
2. No prior knowledge of the series is really required to play and enjoy the game.


Skyrim I bought and played.....for a VERY short while(hate wasting time on NON MMOs). Have to say I learned way more from play this game than anything else.

Audigy

Wuggums47 wrote: »

Hi, I just started playing, and I'm only a level 9, but I was wondering going forward if I should play through the first five games before I get to far. Will I get more enjoyment in the story playing the first five games before or after I get to endgame?

I would advice to maybe play a bit of Skyrim, just to get firm with the whole setting. While ESO has no Skyrim yet, a lot of the things feel very similar and you will learn a tiny bit about the different races and their characteristics.

That said, you can of course play ESO just fine without ever playing an ES title - maybe that's even more fun as all will be totally new for you.

AreoHotah

No no. They are very little connected. I suggest you find a fan site or something and read about lore, races and history a bit but thats enough.

Greatfellow

Wuggums47 wrote: »

Hi, I just started playing, and I'm only a level 9, but I was wondering going forward if I should play through the first five games before I get to far. Will I get more enjoyment in the story playing the first five games before or after I get to endgame?

You'll never get around to ESO if you play the other ES games first. I spent two years on two of them. Just play ESO first, til you get tired of it.

My favorite single player of the franchise is Skyrim. it was very "mod" friendly, and i spent about six months learning modding related to it, then loaded more than one hundred mods on it and played happily for another year. Man i wish we could have the housing in ESO that we could put in Skyrim.

Added note: I see you like the combat in this game. Yeah, I love it too, particularly the melee, and the fact that I can only use a few skills at a time and have to strategize and use my resources conscientiously. It all makes the combat, particularly multiple-opponent combat, more immediate to me and more satisfying when I prevail (if I prevail).

Stranglehands

Don't worry about not knowing what happened in the previous games - not only do most of the characters around you not know much about history either, it might even be fundamentally unknowable. There is a "dragon break" sometime before Morrowind which is a violent metaphysical event in which several contradictory things all happen simultaneously. One fundamental thing about elder scrolls is that there is no objective reality and no absolute morality. There are several conflicting definitions of a god, and nobody seems to agree who the gods are. So basically, just jump in and let it all wash over you, it's the best way to go

AngryNord

Chronologically:

-ESO
-Redguard (spin-off game from the late-90s, almost impossible to get hold of these days)
-Arena
-Battlespire (spin-off game from the late-90s, almost impossible to get hold of these days)
-Daggerfall
-Morrowind (+ two expansions)
-Oblivion (+ expansions)
-Skyrim (+ expansions)

If you want to get a feeling of the Elder scrolls universe and lore, I'd recommend at least giving Morrowind a go.

Rosveen

Greatfellow wrote: »

Wuggums47 wrote: »

Hi, I just started playing, and I'm only a level 9, but I was wondering going forward if I should play through the first five games before I get to far. Will I get more enjoyment in the story playing the first five games before or after I get to endgame?

My favorite single player of the franchise is Skyrim. it was very "mod" friendly, and i spent about six months learning modding related to it, then loaded more than one hundred mods on it and played happily for another year. Man i wish we could have the housing in ESO that we could put in Skyrim.

They're all mod-friendly. The last three, anyway.

BBSooner

Just try to remember, canon in Elder Scrolls is fluid. There are multiple avenues for the lore to change, and occasionally contradicts itself.

UrQuan

Shaun98ca2 wrote: »

Ummm I would probably recommend shoddy cast on youtube. Your not going to get much of the actual story from the previous Elder Scrolls games but you will get much of the lore that is actually relevant and important.

Actually, this is a good idea. I noticed some small inaccuracies in the shoddy cast vids, but overall they're a good (and relatively comprehensive, all things considered) way to get a fairly solid understanding of TES lore.

Lionxoft

AngryNord wrote: »

Chronologically:

-ESO
-Redguard (spin-off game from the late-90s, almost impossible to get hold of these days)
-Arena
-Battlespire (spin-off game from the late-90s, almost impossible to get hold of these days)
-Daggerfall
-Morrowind (+ two expansions)
-Oblivion (+ expansions)
-Skyrim (+ expansions)

If you want to get a feeling of the Elder scrolls universe and lore, I'd recommend at least giving Morrowind a go.

Battlespire is always on Ebay from time to time for about $20usd. Can cost a bit more if you want it sealed but what's the point?

Don't forget about the TES travels series either. Oh wait... GO ahead and forget those! Kind of funny that I categorize this game along with TES Travels.

To the OP:
If you choose to play Morrowind or some of the earlier games then you will need to take note of a few things...

• Class decides your journey. Even more than it does in ESO!
• The combat isn't dynamic like you see in ESO, Oblivion or Skyrim.

Rosveen

Lionxoft wrote: »

AngryNord wrote: »

Chronologically:

-ESO
-Redguard (spin-off game from the late-90s, almost impossible to get hold of these days)
-Arena
-Battlespire (spin-off game from the late-90s, almost impossible to get hold of these days)
-Daggerfall
-Morrowind (+ two expansions)
-Oblivion (+ expansions)
-Skyrim (+ expansions)

If you want to get a feeling of the Elder scrolls universe and lore, I'd recommend at least giving Morrowind a go.

• Class decides your journey. Even more than it does in ESO!

I'd argue the opposite. All skills are available to all characters regardless of class, your starting skillset is just a template you can take in any direction and this alone makes it a more open system than ESO. No more "my class has no direct heal, sucks to be me" or "I wish I had Bolt Escape".

However, it's true that due to the failure mechanics your choice of skills has an impact on the early game. Even if you put your favored weapon as a major skill, you'll still miss quite a lot. And attribute increases are a minigame of their own, but I never micromanaged them and I was fine every single time, so I believe it isn't so easy to screw up.

katkat42

Wuggums47 wrote: »

If I where to skip the first two games, would there be a place online you could recommend that would have just the story?

I'm fond of the Unofficial Elder Scrolls Project at www.uesp.net.

Lionxoft

Rosveen wrote: »

Lionxoft wrote: »

AngryNord wrote: »

Chronologically:

-ESO
-Redguard (spin-off game from the late-90s, almost impossible to get hold of these days)
-Arena
-Battlespire (spin-off game from the late-90s, almost impossible to get hold of these days)
-Daggerfall
-Morrowind (+ two expansions)
-Oblivion (+ expansions)
-Skyrim (+ expansions)

If you want to get a feeling of the Elder scrolls universe and lore, I'd recommend at least giving Morrowind a go.

• Class decides your journey. Even more than it does in ESO!

I'd argue the opposite. All skills are available to all characters regardless of class, your starting skillset is just a template you can take in any direction and this alone makes it a more open system than ESO. No more "my class has no direct heal, sucks to be me" or "I wish I had Bolt Escape".

However, it's true that due to the failure mechanics your choice of skills has an impact on the early game. Even if you put your favored weapon as a major skill, you'll still miss quite a lot. And attribute increases are a minigame of their own, but I never micromanaged them and I was fine every single time, so I believe it isn't so easy to screw up.

Ok. Go into Daggerfall and attempt to put on light armor as a Knight class. The game will tell you that your class cannot wear it. Also, try using a sword with no points rolled/spec'd into blade. Good luck hitting that lesser creature with the roll system!

Also, try being a destro mage with the atronach sign in Oblivion. No magicka recovery without taking damage from spells. You picked that class though so I guess you're stuck with it. Run out of your fortified magicka pool against a warrior and you're toast. Nothing you can do about it but run away.

Or just plan your character more. Classes are HUGE choices in the previous TES games before Skyrim. Sure, you can faceroll through with the difficulty at low with a poorly built character but you might as well be typing `tgm while you're at it.

LordEcks

As many others have said its not necessary to play the previous games because mainly two reasons.

1) The setting of this game is many years before all previous games.
2) Even playing through the entire games will only serve in ESO to provide a few general references that are commonplace throughout the (majority of the) series.

For example. I highly recommend playing The Shivering Isles expansion of Oblivion. Otherwise you will be confused by things like the Wabbajack, or why the god responsible for it (Sheogorath) seems so bat *** crazy (albiet hilarious).

Like someone else also said, watching the ESO Lore (shoddycast) on youtube is a good start.

Dekkameron

Wuggums47 wrote: »

Hi, I just started playing, and I'm only a level 9, but I was wondering going forward if I should play through the first five games before I get to far. Will I get more enjoyment in the story playing the first five games before or after I get to endgame?

You don't need to play the other games.. but i would recommend watching the Shoddycast "Elder scrolls Lore" youtube videos.

Season 1 playlist
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0Od2lbw9N4&list=PL7pGJQV-jlzCPBUy9uAXQUXZ4UBaDLKS5
Season 2 playlist
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZjneISs-vA&list=PL7pGJQV-jlzB-qocScD0wPA5twwi1IM5p

Lionxoft

If you like reading here is a good resource. Lady Nerevar is an awesome archiver.

http://www.imperial-library.info/

UrQuan

Rosveen wrote: »

I'd argue the opposite. All skills are available to all characters regardless of class, your starting skillset is just a template you can take in any direction and this alone makes it a more open system than ESO. No more "my class has no direct heal, sucks to be me" or "I wish I had Bolt Escape".

Um, you seem to have missed where he specified that he was talking about the earlier games. In Morrowind (and he did specify Morrowind or earlier games) your class has a huge effect on your skills: skills that aren't major or minor skills for that class take way more effort to level. The class also has a huge effect on your attributes. In games before Morrowind, class was much more restrictive.

It's really only Oblivion and Skyrim that had really open systems where you could go in any direction you wanted (without the massive penalties that Morrowind gave you if you went in a direction your class isn't really meant for).

AlexDougherty

Wuggums47 wrote: »

Hi, I just started playing, and I'm only a level 9, but I was wondering going forward if I should play through the first five games before I get to far. Will I get more enjoyment in the story playing the first five games before or after I get to endgame?

Not really, the books in the games might add more flavour, especially the ones which aren't in this game, but the games themselves don't add to this games story.

They do show the typical attitudes of the races, but you get that from this game anyhow.

But I will say this, if you do play any of the games, play them in order. If you play Oblivion then Morrowind seems too slow, if you play Skyrim then Oblivion looks slow and dated.

Attorneyatlawl

Wuggums47 wrote: »

Hi, I just started playing, and I'm only a level 9, but I was wondering going forward if I should play through the first five games before I get to far. Will I get more enjoyment in the story playing the first five games before or after I get to endgame?

This is an MMO based on Elder Scrolls lore and some design elements. It is no more needed to play the prior games than with any other MMO . Dive in and enjoy!

Stranglehands

AlexDougherty wrote: »

But I will say this, if you do play any of the games, play them in order. If you play Oblivion then Morrowind seems too slow, if you play Skyrim then Oblivion looks slow and dated.

To me it was more like a rock-paper-scissors thing. The gameplay mechanics of Morrowind are godawful compared to Skyrim, but the quality of the characters and story makes Skyrim's look really lame and half-baked in comparison

Rosveen

Lionxoft wrote: »

Rosveen wrote: »

Lionxoft wrote: »

AngryNord wrote: »

Chronologically:

-ESO
-Redguard (spin-off game from the late-90s, almost impossible to get hold of these days)
-Arena
-Battlespire (spin-off game from the late-90s, almost impossible to get hold of these days)
-Daggerfall
-Morrowind (+ two expansions)
-Oblivion (+ expansions)
-Skyrim (+ expansions)

If you want to get a feeling of the Elder scrolls universe and lore, I'd recommend at least giving Morrowind a go.

• Class decides your journey. Even more than it does in ESO!

I'd argue the opposite. All skills are available to all characters regardless of class, your starting skillset is just a template you can take in any direction and this alone makes it a more open system than ESO. No more "my class has no direct heal, sucks to be me" or "I wish I had Bolt Escape".

However, it's true that due to the failure mechanics your choice of skills has an impact on the early game. Even if you put your favored weapon as a major skill, you'll still miss quite a lot. And attribute increases are a minigame of their own, but I never micromanaged them and I was fine every single time, so I believe it isn't so easy to screw up.

Ok. Go into Daggerfall and attempt to put on light armor as a Knight class. The game will tell you that your class cannot wear it. Also, try using a sword with no points rolled/spec'd into blade. Good luck hitting that lesser creature with the roll system!

Also, try being a destro mage with the atronach sign in Oblivion. No magicka recovery without taking damage from spells. You picked that class though so I guess you're stuck with it. Run out of your fortified magicka pool against a warrior and you're toast. Nothing you can do about it but run away.

Or just plan your character more. Classes are HUGE choices in the previous TES games before Skyrim. Sure, you can faceroll through with the difficulty at low with a poorly built character but you might as well be typing `tgm while you're at it.

Okay, I misunderstood you a bit. That's what I get for posting in the middle of the night. I didn't notice you meant games even before Morrowind. Yeah, Daggerfall is a whole different beast (I haven't played Arena, so I don't know how it worked). Also, I don't see birth signs as a part of your class, but as a separate element of character creation. You're right, they can make some builds more difficult than others - honestly, I wouldn't recommend Atronach to a beginner, period. Better take some Fortify without disadvantages.

I still see Morrowind as more open than ESO... even with the penalties. I used misc skills with nearly all my characters, I botched my attributes on occassion and I don't really feel the penalties are as insurmountable as you make them out to be. Maybe I just have greater tolerance for it, I don't know. Before you ask, no, I didn't lower the difficulty to minimum.

As for Oblivion... The game which made the most sense when I stayed under level 10 forever. I wouldn't even touch that dreadful thing without levelling and scaling mods.

AlexDougherty

Stranglehands wrote: »

AlexDougherty wrote: »

But I will say this, if you do play any of the games, play them in order. If you play Oblivion then Morrowind seems too slow, if you play Skyrim then Oblivion looks slow and dated.

To me it was more like a rock-paper-scissors thing. The gameplay mechanics of Morrowind are godawful compared to Skyrim, but the quality of the characters and story makes Skyrim's look really lame and half-baked in comparison

Agreed, the stories are better in the earlier games, but the game mechanics make earlier games unplayable if you've played the next game. I tried to play Morrowind after Oblivion, but I took an hour to travel what would have taken fifteen minutes in Oblivion, it was too muxh.