Idea: updates for old mounts, monster, pet models?

AlwaysOnFire

I'm personally thrilled by the variety and quality of brand-new models in ESO right now, especially as mounts, pets, and environmental monsters. It's really dramatic to see the improvement actually. One Tamriel has us hanging out in old zones with old wolves, for example, and the contrast between that ancient model and the new wolf mounts and mobs in the Gold Coast is huge.

But it also highlights how far we've come since game launch. And while the art staff certainly worked as hard then as they've worked now, I can't help but think that some of these things need a style update?

Another example: the horse mounts with their chunky legs, too-big-feet, now-plastic-looking faces, and strange conformation. Maybe not as noticible at-launch because there were no other mount options and nothing to call attention to its by-now noticeably strange shape. Also, we can purchase the stock dog and cat models from launch in the crown store as pets but their quality is really strange-looking compared to the later crown store pets and environmental creatures. As the quality of our surroundings progressively increases thanks to ZOS hard work, these older models are frozen in time.

Maybe a revamp of this old stuff would be a great gift for players who obtained it before the progress of new assets. It would make me extremely happy to wake up one day and find all my horse mounts are the same style, superior quality, and nicely-textured as recently released content. It would certainly make the cavalry charging across Cyrodiil day and night more impressive!

Anacario

They did this with dro-m'athra a few months back. All of the dro mobs in Reaper's March and Stonefalls were updated to use the Maw of Lorkhaj appearance in One Tamriel, I think.

Would be great if they kept going with this!

Dev

Sure, they will revamp them, no problem...

catch is the updated versions would be crown store / cash crate only...

Abeille

I would be very happy to see them update older models.

ESO came a long way in the art department (and in other areas too) in so little time. I agree with what you said about wolves. The Dire Wolves look really nice, I love them to pieces, and I wish the regular wolf models looked as good.

And yes, the horse model is really outdated. They added some new horse idle animations a while ago, which is great, but I would love a more detailed model for them - a model that could blink. Also, I love the texture of the tails in the Alliance Horses, it looks great.

The only dogs that have good models, in my opinion, are the Markarth Bear Dog and the Alliance Dogs, because they have a tongue and also a realistic color in their mouths. That isn't true to the older dog models. And the cats are just blocky.

Korah_Eaglecry

I would love to see a better horse model and attachments.

AlwaysOnFire

Anacario wrote: »

They did this with dro-m'athra a few months back. All of the dro mobs in Reaper's March and Stonefalls were updated to use the Maw of Lorkhaj appearance in One Tamriel, I think.

Would be great if they kept going with this!

I suspect that humanoid mobs are much easier to "update" because its just a matter of dressing them in certain updated gear, versus animal mobs that need new models, new rigging, animations. But they're doing so much great work with even random animals like deer in wrothgar (I instantly fell in love, like 'wow when will THAT be a mount?' 4,500 crowns later...) that aren't combat mobs or right-away mounts that revamping some of the old stuff feels like the next logical step.

Valethar

Don't be surprised when they decide this is a great idea.

And then put them all into the clown crates.

AlwaysOnFire

Valethar wrote: »

Don't be surprised when they decide this is a great idea.

And then put them all into the clown crates.

That's not really what I mean. I am not sure that even ZO would make you buy two shornhelm shepards, two horses, etc. when it's just an updated model? That wouldn't solve the problem of updating the art, it would just mean that there's a premium Good Looking Horse, a premium Black Dog and the old ugly Black Dog running around side-by-side.

Like I understand cynicism and Unbridled Capitalism(tm) and not expecting any content for free but I'm not sure they'd be able to get away with that. They update small parts of the game for 'free' all the time, because the game is a service for which many of us are paying with subscriptions.

If we want to take the "they won't do stuff unless there's a net monetary gain for them" approach, we could be like "they'll never change it because people aren't unsubbing due to the horses being ugly." But at the same time, corporations change and update stuff all the time to remain consistent with their style, brand, or experience they are selling as a package. Especially when they have to work hard to regain consumer trust after shortcomings. The launch was a rocky time and much of the game is unrecognizable from that period, so updating the creatures from that era I feel would be a wise move.

TheShadowScout

Anacario wrote: »

They did this with dro-m'athra a few months back. All of the dro mobs in Reaper's March and Stonefalls were updated to use the Maw of Lorkhaj appearance in One Tamriel, I think.

Yeah, they did.
And I also see them using the new costumes and yet to be released ones here and there... still wish they would do more of that sort of course. But I expect they might, in due time. Whenever they do something for the crown store or a new DLC... they could also add it to the NPC/mob population.

And I would love them to update the old mounts as well! Especially the old mount -blech- saddlebags... though I fear that may be hoping for too much. Still would be nifty if, say, all the old mounts got the nifty looking saddlebags from the mind shriven horse instead of those clunky rucksacks they still have...
Still, who knows? Maybe someday, they might release a new crown horse... (or similar mount using a comparable shape, zebra, unicorn, whatever) and meanwhile, refit all the old ones...

MarrazzMist

I have wished for the same thing every time I look at my beta monkey. I would be great pet if it wasn't so out dated. Very cool if they did this, but not high on my wish list.