Console subscription

Hallothiel

Given the threads & discussions on subscription, I was just curious as to whether those who play on consoles do also subscribe to eso, in addition to paying the sub to psn/xbox live.

I may be wrong but it seems that subbing is more of the norm for pc gamers - on the consoles, you just buy the game & then if have the console sub, you can play online. So the sub model is not the norm / one console players are used to.

So, has eso changed this - do console players subscribe?

Danikat

Subbing is an exception for PC gamers too.

The vast majority of PC games do not charge any kind of subscription, even ones with online components. It's only certain MMOs which charge a subscription.

Beardimus

Yep I sub on and off as aside from the big crown sales it's the cheapest way to get crowns. So for new content I'll sub a month and play the DLC, if I like it buy it and cancel the sub and so on.

Tommy1979AtWar

Some console players subscribe, I would imagine there are probably more PC subscribers though.

Vaoh

Console players are not used to dealing with paying $15 a month every month for one game on top of the PSN/Xbox Gold services. It's simply never been a thing before (with the exception of a few unpopular games I may not have heard about).

As the norm, most of us tend to just buy DLCs outright. That's just how people do it on console, at least for the vast majority. Buy a ton of Crowns, spend them on Costumes/Mounts/DLC. The views on it right now are usually like "Oh a Sub? That's pretty cool, would rather just buy what I want though." And we do. Nothing wrong with it. It's like a culture. This is precisely why ESO would've been guaranteed to fail miserably if the mandatory Sub-fee was kept for console launch. Everyone, on every game, was saying to each other "OMG that Elder Scrolls is releaasing but $60 plus $15 a month? That's ridiculous, forget that." Best choice ZOS made was dropping the forced Sub.

PC players have access to all of the other MMOs and games that ask for or require subs. Steam also doesn't force a Sub-fee on you. The Subbing system leans much more toward the PC populace which has already dealt with lots of games adopting this system. Maybe it's not liked or popular, but the concept is old on PC whereas it's new on console.

Console players, for the most part, do not Subscribe. There was an early Crown Sale, where people just stalked up on Crowns to spend over the course of a very long time. Many console players don't stick to a single game though. Many arguments early on before the forced Sub-fee dropped were from players saying they don't feel like it's worth it to pay when they only play a few days a week.

N0TPLAYER2

I sub. Xbox one, na.

I like to buy things with crowns. Figure I would spend around $15 a month anyway, so why not get the crowns and the extras?

People like to argue it's more and you don't get to keep the dlc. I own dlc for many games and when I am finished w the game, that's it. Owning the dlc is irrelevant because I'm not playing it anyway. Just my .02

MikeB

PC players don't have to pay $60 a year for PSN or Xbox Live on top of your internet just to play an online game. Not to mention PC games are generally much cheaper and go on sale much sooner than a console game. If you're in the market for a system PC is a much smarter choice.

llSRRll

I sub NA PS4, I found that its better to sub and get the 1500 crowns every month than buy the DLC's out right. Once I had enough crowns I bought the DLC's. I still sub even though I bought them for the 10% xp bonus and perks for writs.

Refuse2GrowUp

PS4 here.

No PS4 sub to play online required. Edit: Actually, I think I pay an annual fee to pay online that I tend to forget about if it isn't renewal time.

I do sub for ESO mostly just to support the game.

Therwind

I'm currently paying for two eso subs on xbox. I will be dropping my sons account though since he can't seem to save he's crowns.

Asherons_Call

I'm a console player and I subscribe. Its not a big deal for me as I've been subscribed to 1-2 games at a time for nearly 20 years now.

Now that gaming business models have changed to all of these new weird acronyms (BTP, FTP, etc), it changes how I view things slightly. If I'm putting my time in on a game, I want to get 100% of all available content so I will subscribe. I don't really see the point of spending hundreds of hours on something where you're not experiencing the full benefit. Also, like always, I like to show my support to the team that puts their time and effort into the game.

NewBlacksmurf

I started on PC and subbed. Transferred to console and subbed for about 6 months but they couldn't seem to give us our crowns so I won't sub anymore. Per PAX East and last month I tried and it's still not working even though they suggested it was resolved 3-4 months ago. Confirmed yesterday that it's not for Xbox one tho.

bedlom

I have been subbed from day one even when I am not happy with it.

Pr0jektile

XBOX.NA.

I sub. U figure it's about $10 for the 1500 crowns they give you on the subscription. I use them for XP scrolls mostly to try to keep pace with my friends who have more time to play. So, I'd mostly likely spend the money anyway if I didn't sub.

For the rest if the sub $5 per month it's like paying $15 for each DLC assuming they continue releasing one per quarter.

Better than the $30-40 to purchase each outright.

Plus the 10% XP, Gold, Inspiration bonus helps too.

I don't consider the LIVE sub in that cost because I pay for live anyways. If I quit ESO tomorrow I'd keep the LIVE sub for other games.

It's a reasonable sub for the volume of content. Although I'd expect less downtime in a game we pay a sub on.

Mickey_Ox

PS4 here and have subbed since launch(-3months i was playing fallout) and before that i was subbed on and off to DCUO while waiting for eso to launch. There certainly isn't the value for money here as there is there but a certain bag will help change that.

Jaronking

I use to pay a sub for the game but dropped it around February after realizing that they give two *** about PVPers. And will never fix the lag.If they every do fix it I'll resub and write them a apology for all the time I said they couldn't. Right now if you enjoy PVP their no reason to sub because they don't care about that part of the game.

Eshelmen

I know plenty of PS4 players including my self that sub with this game.
$20(PS PLUS + ESO Plus) a month isn't breaking my bank.

Hallothiel

Thanks to those that answered - it is something that I have never had to consider before as always played on consoles & it never came up, and I did think it was more of a pc gaming model.

Panth141

It's all about your view on it -

If you have a bit of disposable income, you decide whether you save or spend, and what you spend it on.

For me, I easily put in 100 hours/mo (I'm rounding that down to make myself feel better) and I have to ask myself if that 100 hours is worth £9 ($15 elsewhere) for ESO+ and I conclude that yes, each hour I spend in ESO is worth 9 pence (15 cents) to me. I can easily spend £13-15 to see a 2 hour film and grab some popcorn - and each hour of the film is certainly not as enjoyable as ~ 78 hours in ESO.

Then you have to decide if you want to spend the money on your game time by choice - for me the subscriber benefits are more of a 'thank you' than a reason to subscribe - I pay to support the game, ZoS shows appreciation by giving me some perks.

There have been times when I've been disillusioned with ESO, but I was always subscribed on PC and I am now subscribed on console.

RAGUNAnoOne

I subbed for a bit but my cash flow is bad now so I can't If I want to buy DLC I just get the sub instead of the crown packs outright as they are the same price yet you get more for that same price.

PS4_ZeColmeia

I sub on ps4 mostly because I play on 1 character and want to finish my 9 traits faster. After that it's gonna be a harder decision on buy all of the expansions I currently can access (aside from Orsinium because I'd rather get Craglorn writs, @ZOS_GinaBruno you guys should really let us choose our expansion zone for writs to help farm the material from there) or keep subbing for the craft bag.

I don't NEED the craft bag as I am max on bag and bank space but it would help me hoard more vet 9-16 mats for crafting for money on demand.