Game magazine review.

Amica

So a few months back i was asked by a close friend to play and do a write up on the Elder Scrolls Online for his magazine. Something he gets me to do when the work load gets a bit swamped for his team. Some of you may or may not recognize the name Amica as the author for reviews in previous games like: Age Of Conan, War Hammer, Rift and Guild Wars 2.
Even if you don't know the name i still need your help as i'm caught between a rock and a hard place at the moment. I need both, sides of the story when it comes to the Elder Scrolls Online to make a fair and accurate write up. Put in your two cents ... likes and dislikes. What you agree with and disagree with.
Many thanks Amica....

"Draft"
Greetings fellow gamer's,
To play or Not to play Elder Scrolls Online.
I have been playing ESO for awhile now, and have even run through the latest DLC Orsinium that takes you into the world of the orcs. To date my emotions have been mixed with this game.
So much potential yet so much disappointment:
Not including the balance issues or deaths from random fall damage when players hit you during PVP.
The combat animation canceling that lets you fire off a plethora of ability's in seconds when using any standard macro.
Armour sets that are completely ridiculous both in looks and stats.
Game patches that create more bugs than fixes, for example. Player grey bar during combat, so ability's will not fire. The Inability to get through keep doors in pvp unless you go to the store and preview a costume and spin your character around.
Alternatively the dreaded pvp zergs *Shudders* we all saw it in GW2 and have our own gripes or positive comments on the matter. But something we can all agree on. Is the lag the servers go through during peek play times and Elder Scrolls Online is no exception and has been battling this issue for some time. At times namely the weekends when a beer and some pvp is a sure fire way to round off the week. It becomes so bad, that even with a good computer it's not worth playing and you find yourself out mowing the lawn. Or actually not making yourself scarce when the wife ropes you into some random task.
Lets talk the PVE content, now as most will know that is a dirty word to me "PVE". After games like "Unleash The Fury" Which was PVP only. I reluctantly do Pve content to get to the level cap or to obtain an item i require from dungeons etc. And it has to be a really really really really good item for me to go through the torture. But i found myself at first glance saying "you know what, this game might actually draw me into the Pve aspect for a change.... oh how wrong i was. The painfully repetitive delves that have you going left the entire time as if one leg is shorter than the other, got old after the first zone.
The story main story line was good and they did nail the build up to the final boss. But once again i was disappointed when simply strafing left or right for the whole fight saw you easily down the boss with little too no effort.
Then came the EPIC loot, after hours of game play your story came to a close... for a "BLUE" item (Since been changed to a equally useless purple item) that you vendor or broke down for resources to craft better gear. Yes Elder Scrolls Online is not the only MMO that has almost made us grown men and women cry with the end game loot items and im sure it will not be the last.
Zenimax, DO have one thing going for them. Amazing zone designers that really make the world look nice visually. Exploring is something that just happens naturally during your course of leveling. I often found myself having to back track after a "hey whats that down their and over their" Detour.
The dreaded Vet levels...
Once you do your first character you really never ever want to lvl a toon again. Each veteran level requires the almost complete completion of an entire zone to go up just one level in advancement. Which means more delves, Run left, grab the sky shard (3 sky shards to obtain a skill point to spend on ability advancement) Kill the boss and leave through the same door you came in. Yes repetitive is an understatement, But for your first character its not so bad if you have some tunes playing a fridge full of beer and or some friends to just pug along with.
Game patches:
Zenimax falls VERY short on fixes. Now i'm not too sure what is worst a company that just does not fix something that is broken or one that puts in a fix that comes with a multitude of new bugs and exploits. Zenimax to date has been my 20 years of gaming winner when it come too putting in a patch that makes class "A" under powered and Class "B" OP. meaning entire new builds that often destroy your play style just to remain competitive.
Final thoughts.
Its worth a shot to anyone that loves repetitive pve content or likes spending 180 days leveling a mount .... per character you have. yes every new character the mounts needs to be leveled again, meaning your small group will get half way across the map leaving you painfully trailing behind to the point fights are often over by the time you get to there location. But alas you can pay $150 to buy the mount upgrades in the store.
So for elder Scrolls Online i give Stars out of 5 for the game .... A dismal 1 star and that is just for the pretty zones.

zornyan

You're really trusting a game review?

These are so petty and useless even the staff that work in the shops think they're a joke.

Not to mention most of the points are completely invalid and incorrect. Please stop trolling.

MrDerrikk

So you're the author of this, or your friend is? Just asking so that I can phrase my answer to "him" or "you".

SHADOW2KK

Wall of text, hard to read, harder to care.

I give this review a dismal 1 star out of 5.

However some valid points, but disagree with a few, namely on a good computer that pvp is terrible, actually it is not, runs fine on my gaming rig, even with huge battles going on, on my laptop it runs like crap, so it boils down a lot to client as well.

And seems a bit general about us all knowing about GW2, nope some of us do not know, some of us do not care, most who play ESO came from the TeS games and or other gaming genres completely and not from MMOs.

There are different camps of players who play the game, so do not rope us all into cliches and badly worded vitriol, just cos you do not like it, or your computer cannot handle it.

And anyways for a magazine writer, no offence, but your post is not great...

Olivierko

Why are people hung up on macroing in ESO?

It's nothing revolutionary, it's been around for ages and it's not a issue bound to the game itself.

Amica

MrDerrikk wrote: »

So you're the author of this, or your friend is? Just asking so that I can phrase my answer to "him" or "you".

This draft is my input and how i have found the game.
Another five people also put in there review and its pieced together into the final review. Done by the magazines editor who i'm pretty sure is one of the other five people. I do not know the people who do the other five write ups. except the editor who i know from other games i have done. Does play the games themselves to get first hand input of there own.

MikeB

Olivierko wrote: »

Why are people hung up on macroing in ESO?

It's nothing revolutionary, it's been around for ages and it's not a issue bound to the game itself.

Its not about the macroing, its the fact that the macros make animation canceling an after thought. Animation canceling makes a HUGE difference in your damage and healing output. It will make a difference in whether you win a fight PvP or PvE.

Amica

Shadow2kk no i'm not the best writer, i am just given the option to do a review on a game from time to time. As mike knows i'm honest with my personal opinion on games i play regardless of criticism. It is a MMO only mag so the GW2 comment should have been understood by most but not all like you said.

I posted it here to 1 get a discussion going that might better outline the positives and negatives of the game at its current state. So i can write a better and not so bi est writ up.

2 maybe the devs will see what people like and do not like. So they can implement more things or fixs.

As for my computer like most MMO players its better than your average computer but i don't blow big $$$ for a hobby.
Just a i7 8gb Ram solid state hard drive and a nvidia 970 card. Yes mine handles it better than some people but it still bogs out from time to time on heavy zergs.

Volkodav

You gave it "a dismal 1 star and that is just for the pretty zones." ???
Well,I noticed right off the bat that you dont like the game. You didnt add anything positive. Gives everyone a real good idea of it,huh? Nope,..just a personal dislike. But,I guess that's what you are supposed to write,though in other magazine reviews they are a lot better with the pros and cons.You only posted the cons. Perhaps you might be a bit more even keel with it,..unless you really cannot find enough to please you.If that's the case,there's no need for you to play it.
We can do without the review.Go do your worst.

Olivierko

MikeB wrote: »

Its not about the macroing, its the fact that the macros make animation canceling an after thought. Animation canceling makes a HUGE difference in your damage and healing output. It will make a difference in whether you win a fight PvP or PvE.

... which is something that you may accomplish without using macros.

Would there be discussions if people were setting up macros for certain skill rotations as well?

Consider the fact that macros aren't reliable due to inconsistent latency, a user can adjust to a situation whenever needed, a simple macro does not, the ones that are using macros for the sole purpose of animation cancelling are the ones that have trouble doing it manually most likely.

Having a macro for that reason alone will not be beneficial to many players that are already familiar with animation cancelling.

For the record I don't use macros myself, nor do I have any issues with people whom are.

MrDerrikk

Amica wrote: »

MrDerrikk wrote: »

So you're the author of this, or your friend is? Just asking so that I can phrase my answer to "him" or "you".

This draft is my input and how i have found the game.
Another five people also put in there review and its pieced together into the final review. Done by the magazines editor who i'm pretty sure is one of the other five people. I do not know the people who do the other five write ups. except the editor who i know from other games i have done. Does play the games themselves to get first hand input of there own.

In that case, I'll address this to you:

I see a lot of your points as valid. Granted, I personally disagree with pretty much all of them but I can see how you came to them.
The thing that confused me at first is that this is very much an opinion piece, whereas I would expect it to be a gameplay-based review with a more open viewpoint to the very different audience from yourself to which it is catering. The fact that you yourself say:

Amica wrote: »

Lets talk the PVE content, now as most will know that is a dirty word to me "PVE".

says to me that this game was not, in almost every way, created for an audience such as yourself.

ESO is a very different MMO from pretty much all others, in that it is coming from a series of highly popular and successful Single Player games that are all about the story, the exploration and the PvE. This means that whilst it is still technically an MMO it is mostly comprised of casual players who want Skyrim with friends. This went down really badly at the original launch - where I stopped playing straight out of Beta - because it was leaning too much in the direction of group play for the soloists, and too much in the direction of solo/PvE/PvP for the hardcore MMO players.

From quotes such as this:

Amica wrote: »

Once you do your first character you really never ever want to lvl a toon again.

it makes me think that you have never enjoyed any of the fantasy single-player RPG's that have come out that, like the ES series, actually encourage you to go back and replay the entire questing content through with a different build. I'm on my second run through a character and whilst I haven't fully-levelled either, I feel no need to grind as I'm doing it for the fun of first shocking everything to death with my Sorc and then burning everything to death with my DK. I'll be playing a healer next, and will happily do all the same quests again, as it's about the role-playing experience and crafting your character through hardship.

Anyway, that's just a couple of points I wanted to make from my own opinion, and note that I am neither a Journalist nor really awake at this juncture, so the hideous manner in which I crafted those paragraphs make me cringe a bit.

MrDerrikk

Amica wrote: »

Shadow2kk no i'm not the best writer, i am just given the option to do a review on a game from time to time. As mike knows i'm honest with my personal opinion on games i play regardless of criticism. It is a MMO only mag so the GW2 comment should have been understood by most but not all like you said.

I posted it here to 1 get a discussion going that might better outline the positives and negatives of the game at its current state. So i can write a better and not so bi est writ up.

2 maybe the devs will see what people like and do not like. So they can implement more things or fixs.

As for my computer like most MMO players its better than your average computer but i don't blow big $$$ for a hobby.
Just a i7 8gb Ram solid state hard drive and a nvidia 970 card. Yes mine handles it better than some people but it still bogs out from time to time on heavy zergs.

This is actually around my build (i5, 24GB RAM, 2x970's but no SLI support for ESO) and I have come to realise that your latency plays a gigantic role in how good things are. I have crummy internet and if I so much as go to Cyrodiil in peak times the game crashes.

Gyudan

Please let me know which magazine your're writing for, so I can make sure to avoid it in the future. ESO may not be worthy of praise but no game deserves such a poorly written review. 0/5 for you.

Fat-Larry-Makes-All

I got about half way.

Honestly? I do not think this piece is the term "review" worthy, all I see is a long tedious summary of all of your own personal gripes. I don't want to be hurtful, but it's quite hard to read and you're not giving ESO a fair chance in my opinion.

Though I think it's cool that you're putting in work to help out a friend.

Tannakaobi

I think your review is too negative to be honest and does not reflect the quality of ESO in comparison to other MMO's

I don't see how you can be so negative with PVE content. It's clear that you don't like PVE content and because of this your review is too personal and misses the point. In terms of PVE ESO is well above other MMO's.

You don't mention anything about the amazing combat system that Zos has created. In fact quite the opposite when you talk about animation cancelling.

In my opinion ESO is a cut above anything else on the market right now in terms of MMO's. It's not the revolution that I was hoping for with a TES game, but is still miles above the likes of WoW, Wildstar, Archeage and all the other MMO's out right now. The picture you paint is that it struggles to even keep up with the average MMO's which is quite frankly not true.

To be honest I'm glad that in this day and age I don't have to rely on magazine reviews to get my information.

anitajoneb17_ESO

The writing and the spelling quality (not even mentioning the content) shows that your friend should ask someone else when it comes to actual *writing*. Good for him that you did not mention the name of the magazine, you'd have stained its image if you had.

Dettne

This review is spot on. Nice work

Volkodav

Dettne wrote: »

This review is spot on. Nice work

If you believe it is so spot on,why do you play ESO then? Not dissin,just askin.

MrDerrikk

Dettne wrote: »

This review is spot on. Nice work

Derra

Horrible review with wrong facts gets to the right conclusion.

Cuyler

Fan boys abound! lol

Here's my comments:

1. I expected your "final thoughts" to be a summary of your review, however it was an additional point about horse feed timers being character bound. Move it into the review and actually summarize the review at the end.

2. I think most of your points are true, although as someone else pointed out, macroing is not exclusive to ESO. leave it out. Animation canceling is exclusive to ESO, and although you view it as a negative, others such as myself feel it adds a more responsive type of gameplay.

3. ZOS made a very beautiful game with relatively high recommended requirements and has no way to force people to meet those recommendations, in addition, most ppl are inept when it comes to PC performance. Personally, I pay extra for a super fast connection and have a gaming rig. I experience very minimal lag even in primetime PvP. I have to wonder if those with extreme lag issues just don't know they are playing with potatoes. leave it out.

4. I don't think you give enough credit to some of the content. vICP, vWGT, vDSA and vMA for example are not boring at all. They're very well executed and a ton of fun to play.

5. The review feels a little dated to me. You don't discuss any of the recent changes or concerns of the players, such as: the champion system, justice system, battle leveling, cross faction grouping, content scaling, node scaling, BoP/BoE, etc.

6. My final thought, the review seems to lack detail and substance with a lot of the hand waving type of arguments found here on the forums. Although all but the mass lag issue are true, and I realize it's just your opinions of what you experienced, some concrete examples to back up your statements would improve your credibility.

For example your statement, "Armour sets that are completely ridiculous both in looks and stats." has no reference. what gear? what styles? what stats?

Edit: OH! and paragraph spacing pls!

Brrrofski

What do you mean by magazine?

Your writing is not at apublishable level.

This isn't a review, it's a big huge moan.

Youve managed stretch "I don't like thus game" into that wall of text.

A review is written from a neutral perspective.

Furthermore, a forum for a game is usually going to have members who like this game.

Why post a review expressing how much you hate the game on this forum?

Rainteal

Is this a joke?

Your "review" is a long list of complaints that reads like a Craigslist posting. I understand that it is a draft, but you should do at least some revisions before you post it to the public for suggestions.

I cannot imagine anyone who would put that in print.

Ommamar

Ok here is the thing I am all for discussion on forums that is what they are here for. But to come on with a post having the premise of hey do my job for me on this opinion piece I was asked to write for a friend. Nah mate, I will tell you what wire me a grand and I will give you my opinion of the game.
But you don't really need to do that as you can just peruse the forums to see what individuals think on this or that then ask them if they could be used as a source.

Cuyler

dbl post

Callous2208

First off, no I don't recognize your name and after reading that drivel I can see why. This seems like an angry troll post. Is it safe to say you gave gw2 a -10/10? As an mmo enthusiast I can honestly say it's one of the most pointless, boring games in the genre.
Anyway back on topic. I think... no. You know what, nevermind. You're no reviewer and this opinion piece is nothing but flaming troll bait from an everyday player who rage quit for some reason or another. Try again somewhere else.

P.s. Why does pointing out obvious untruths and enjoying a game make someone a fanboy to be rediculed? What then shall we call those who would rage quit a game but stick around to stalk the forums in an attempt to what, hate on those still playing?

Parrotbrain

I "scrubbed" the draft through google translate, just for lulz, and this is what I got,

This is not the game Elder Scrolls Online uk dolphins play now, even walking to the other end to your DLC Orsiniu. Mixed feelings from the game.

However, reliable software so embarrassed;
PVP player killed the injury problem and illness left and watch, not participate in the autumn.
Macro animations using standard shooting war, it is possible to stay in a few seconds.
Completely false statistics and personal session with a weapon.

For example, board games, on the condition that to create the insects. Players compete for band not draw. Your clothes and not before going to the store to buy a really fast, VF buy a number.

Not many PVP Zerg * Shake the criticism and GW2, and have a good idea. So what do we have to accept that. If you have no time exception and laughing through it, and the online servers Elder Scrolls appear in the game and fight this problem. PVP beer every time, completed a few weeks before the end of the week. The play with the free computer and asked him to cut the grass so sick. Or the woman who can not make any part of the cable.

Really, most of you, now I know PvE content dirt forgotten history "PVA". Etc. Mars. Can stop taking things through the eyes of the "gratitude of rage" as a game, his heart an update for PVA content, it is very similar is not for me to go through the ordeal will be Nr. Although it is not accepted that I said, 'You're doing .... I change the way you play, open a problem with what can be achieved with a PVA, all the time when less than a length, will be in the first circuit, while the other repetition.
Talk about the actual day of the last peak of the user. I was ashamed users to record at least secure, we refer you to fight all of the right or left.

When fishing in EPIC, a few hours after the game because of something "Blue" (change if the media is not needed) ... then cut the material goods that sell well or damaged artwork. The Elder Scrolls online game lute called Hammon and adults, women represent, I am convinced that it is impossible to accept.
ZeniMax is what they are. Look beautiful smile beautiful interior designer. The performance was compared correctly. I'm sure, "Hey, they take a" first.

Recent fuel ...
The first person who does not want you UHVWDUW. The need to eliminate the part of the airplane in a very high level experts Tsugahobo. One of the dead to share something else in the air (You can set the purchasing power for the development of wind energy in three parts), we were able to we walk out the door. If you have some friends to play a boxer month reiterate our two full beer and a can not sing badly.

Game play:
Flying ZeniMax study. Similarly to lose the worst companies bug fix, I went to work or new. If your clothes, turn the power of '20 "" ZeniMax steward of the "category" B history, if you are going to eat. This reform, in many cases, does not mean that you play to stay competitive.

Last thoughts.
PKA 180 days of upgrading the content and frequency mountains .... money and the ego is worth. Getting a new level of quality, and half of a small group of mountains all over the map and see too often the staff of the war. Unfortunately, you can pay $ 150 to upgrade the mining sector.
Yes, five stars, dies .... it one star for Elder Scrolls Online games, considering the simply beautiful area.

Callous2208

Parrotbrain wrote: »

I "scrubbed" the draft through google translate, just for lulz, and this is what I got,

This is not the game Elder Scrolls Online uk dolphins play now, even walking to the other end to your DLC Orsiniu. Mixed feelings from the game.

However, reliable software so embarrassed;
PVP player killed the injury problem and illness left and watch, not participate in the autumn.
Macro animations using standard shooting war, it is possible to stay in a few seconds.
Completely false statistics and personal session with a weapon.

For example, board games, on the condition that to create the insects. Players compete for band not draw. Your clothes and not before going to the store to buy a really fast, VF buy a number.

Not many PVP Zerg * Shake the criticism and GW2, and have a good idea. So what do we have to accept that. If you have no time exception and laughing through it, and the online servers Elder Scrolls appear in the game and fight this problem. PVP beer every time, completed a few weeks before the end of the week. The play with the free computer and asked him to cut the grass so sick. Or the woman who can not make any part of the cable.

Really, most of you, now I know PvE content dirt forgotten history "PVA". Etc. Mars. Can stop taking things through the eyes of the "gratitude of rage" as a game, his heart an update for PVA content, it is very similar is not for me to go through the ordeal will be Nr. Although it is not accepted that I said, 'You're doing .... I change the way you play, open a problem with what can be achieved with a PVA, all the time when less than a length, will be in the first circuit, while the other repetition.
Talk about the actual day of the last peak of the user. I was ashamed users to record at least secure, we refer you to fight all of the right or left.

When fishing in EPIC, a few hours after the game because of something "Blue" (change if the media is not needed) ... then cut the material goods that sell well or damaged artwork. The Elder Scrolls online game lute called Hammon and adults, women represent, I am convinced that it is impossible to accept.
ZeniMax is what they are. Look beautiful smile beautiful interior designer. The performance was compared correctly. I'm sure, "Hey, they take a" first.

Recent fuel ...
The first person who does not want you UHVWDUW. The need to eliminate the part of the airplane in a very high level experts Tsugahobo. One of the dead to share something else in the air (You can set the purchasing power for the development of wind energy in three parts), we were able to we walk out the door. If you have some friends to play a boxer month reiterate our two full beer and a can not sing badly.

Game play:
Flying ZeniMax study. Similarly to lose the worst companies bug fix, I went to work or new. If your clothes, turn the power of '20 "" ZeniMax steward of the "category" B history, if you are going to eat. This reform, in many cases, does not mean that you play to stay competitive.

Last thoughts.
PKA 180 days of upgrading the content and frequency mountains .... money and the ego is worth. Getting a new level of quality, and half of a small group of mountains all over the map and see too often the staff of the war. Unfortunately, you can pay $ 150 to upgrade the mining sector.
Yes, five stars, dies .... it one star for Elder Scrolls Online games, considering the simply beautiful area.

10/10. Makes a great deal more sense than the original.

Ilsabet

Parrotbrain wrote: »

PVP beer every time, completed a few weeks before the end of the week.

Sign me up.

DenMoria

Does contain a good deal of pertinent information for any new user, but, is very poorly written. Definitely not up to any sort of journalistic standards save, perhaps, an unmonitored blog.

Not only is it purely an opinion piece (yes, I realize that a review is an opinion), but contains a number of inaccuracies and biases that I, personally, find quite inappropriate.

Much of it is very accurate, but, on the whole takes a very negative tone and fails to balance the negativity with any positive aspects that the game may possess.

The comparisons to other games is apt, I agree, however, this is obviously a review for only the most hardcore of online gamers and holds a decidedly PvP only view of the game with only a passing reference to the PvE environment.

Frankly, my take is that you did not like this game and would never recommend that anyone ever play it. I don't really see any improvement suggestions other than to alienate the majority of MMO players.

Please rethink your reviewing technique. Rather than and endless wall of text and a litany of complaints and comparisons to other (in some cases rather arcane) games that are vaguely in the same genre, perhaps a more balanced approach that reviews all aspects of the game: the good; the bad; the mechanics; the graphics; the operational parameters; and, most of all, avoidance of outright "game-shaming". Frankly I get the impression that you believe that Zenimax is completely inept and has no idea what they are doing.

Weigh the ends against the means and the entire history of the game and what has been achieved thus far.

There is a reason why none of the games you are making comparisons are still around you know.

You seem to indicate that English is not your first language, so, some of my impressions may be a result of whatever translation service/program you are using. If so, and it was not your intention, I do apologize if I come of sounding harsh.

I will admit that I am not a voracious player or fan of ESO (although just about anything else by Beth or ZoS is fine with me), but, and I have been known to make strong statements of a negative kind about it, but, this is not the review that I would have written, at all.

Pallmor

Is English your first language?