Do people care about Lore?

Woodenplank

The Elder Scrolls game have, in my humble opinion, some of the best, most interesting and profound lore of any video game. And I really admire the world and all the rich history and characters that have been woven into the games.

But I wonder; am I just a lonely nerd among millions? Do people actually care to know about the lore behind the game?
Do people care who the Eight/Nine Divines, the Tribunal, and the Daedric Princes are?
Do people care how the various races came to be? How Tamriel came to be shaped like it is today?

I'm curious to know.

Isellskooma

No! It's at best a distraction from gameplay

Hurts balance.

Nickernator

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

I do care a lot, lore is what makes a MMO interesting and unique for me.

Without lore it would be an empty and boring place

Foxic

Honestly don't care, it's nice to have, but not something to look into.

I paid alot of attention to the lore when I played Morrowind, like I know more about dark elf lore than I should.

However when playing an mmo I honestly couldn't care less. As long as the content is cool and I'm having a good time with friends I don't care what the objective is lorewise

Bouldercleave

Honestly don't care, it's nice to have, but not something to look into.

I like a good story and in depth quest lines more than I worry about lore.

Lore is important as an overall game guideline, but I don't see me raging and quitting if they mouse it up a little to create a rich gaming experience. In a single player game you certainly can hold lore a bit easier but an MMO is so much more vast and fluid it just holds you back.

Balamoor

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

hmmm 77% yes so far guess that answers the question.

EnemyOfDaState

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

I care about major plot points but ZOS can take liberties with the more minute details.

Acrolas

Google cares about lore.

Most people can't even remember what they ate for lunch two days ago.

CapnPhoton

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

I like the history as I always have in ES games. There is a really good vid on youtube describing the timeline:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAV1F7DAlnU

Karius_Imalthar

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

I enjoy the lore but i'm not a purist. I'm fine with some liberties here and there when it makes more sense or is easier to understand. Some of the Elder Scrolls lore, if not a lot, is some mind bending metaphysical mumbo jumbo.

Abeille

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

It's the only reason why I even tried this game to begin with, and about 90% of why I'm still here.

EnemyOfDaState wrote: »

I care about major plot points but ZOS can take liberties with the more minute details.

Also this. I am very flexible when it comes to parts of the lore that are not set in stone (TES lore is heavily dependent on unreliable narrators) and try to keep in mind something the current Lore Master said, that his work is not saying "this can't be done in TES", but "this is how this is done in TES".

theher0not

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

I find the lore interesting. I am not a "lore nerd" but I will from time to time read lore books I find that are interesting.

What I enjoy the most are books that is about the khajiit, anything from culture and religion to history and biology (like how the lunar phases at a khajiit's birth affects its biology, or that their religion says that the dragon god Akatosh is really "a really big cat"). The Dro-m'athra are also interesting even though I don't know anything about them except what a few NPCs have said.

menedhyn

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

Lore guides, influences and shapes my characters. But it doesn't dictate what I do. It fascinates and frustrates in equal measure.

FluffyReachWitch

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

I love lore. But what's most important to me is how it builds the world up rather than acts as a backdrop (or worse: doesn't make sense unless you take the time to read extra materials that you would not otherwise be interested in).

The reason I picked up ESO was I wanted to enjoy some Elder Scrolls in the Summerset Isles, Valenwood, and Elsweyr and learn what these places are actually like. And ESO has excellent writing and great additions to the lore that have allowed me to enjoy the Elder Scrolls more overall. Weaving the lore carefully into the quests and demonstrating things in the world, through NPC interactions, zone design, even the little details in stolen goods just makes it that much better. The game even addresses lore conflicts and challenges you to think: "Is it true what this person or book is saying? Or is it merely true that they are saying it?"

So, lore to me is just as important as the game itself, and I love how ESO handles it.

BlackSparrow

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

Basically, there are two fairly distinct types of players in this game: the MMO lovers who want to climb up to max level so they can participate in the endgame content, and the Elder Scrolls players who are happily exploring Tamriel while waiting for TES VI to come out. Granted, there is a little bit of overlap (I'm a TES nut who also enjoys MMOs), but as far as mindset goes, most players are either one or another.

See these two examples:

Isellskooma wrote: »

Hurts balance.

Nickernator wrote: »

Without lore it would be an empty and boring place

Personally, I'm a TES lore nut. I've loved TES lore since Morrowind sucked me in (as it did so many people). The world's history is full of great cataclysms, divisive figures, mind-boggling mysteries, wonderful characters... the depth and breadth of the lore is staggering, and it keeps building on itself with each installation of the series.

That said... ESO is a bit of a blip for a lot of the really hardcore TES lore community. There are things that go against what we previously knew (2E Cyrodiil not being a jungle, for example), and not in the fun, "We just learned more about the world" way. For example, there are a great number of books in ESO that should not actually have been written yet.

One of my lore pet peeves is Vanus Galerion... I can't talk to him in-game without flinching, because I don't know if that personification of him is canonical, or if it was a design decision on the part of these particular writers.

But, if we know anything about TES lore, it's that it's malleable and prone to in-canon retcons, so I do try my best to turn that part of my brain off and enjoy the experience.

RealLifeRedguard

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

The wacked out high fantasy world of Tamriel is what seperates The Elder Scrolls from the endless sea of fantasy games out there. The lore is a large part of what distinguishes this series.

lehran

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

Lore is the only reason I started playing this game. Without being TES, I never would have even looked at it, since I wasn't looking for an MMO to play.

Mojmir

No! It's at best a distraction from gameplay

It's preached too much and an easy excuse.

Glurin

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

Lore is what makes games like this something more than a slightly more complicated version of Checkers.

k9mouse

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

Lore is the most important aspect of ESO game. If ZOS ever breaks lore (like adding items to the crown store just to make money but are not related to the game world), I will quit the game

Woodenplank

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

BlackSparrow wrote: »

For example, there are a great number of books in ESO that should not actually have been written yet.

I think that bit has been explained/excused by Hermaeus Mora. As Master Neloth points out (regarding the Black Books of Skyrim's Dragonborn expansion): "time is more malleable if you're a daedric prince." I believe the idea is that the books have been knicked by Herma Mora from other time lines, and somehow ended up back in the 2nd Era.

BlackSparrow wrote: »

But, if we know anything about TES lore, it's that it's malleable and prone to in-canon retcons, so I do try my best to turn that part of my brain off and enjoy the experience.

Oh the Dragon Breaks and the tangled webs they weave...

Personally my favourite bit of TES lore is Vivec, and I think it's a shame if people miss out on the lore concerning the Tribunal. I know a lot of people don't like the trio, calling them treasonous and alll - which does have its merits.
But anyone who makes themself a god, seduces Molag Bal with felatio, and uses a (symbolical) *** to banish a daedric lord from Tamriel... is a pretty cool.

All that being said my favourite read is: "The Sword-meeting of Vivec and Cyrus the Restless" - found on the link below. It is fun, witty, and stars Vivec.
https://www.imperial-library.info/content/lord-vivecs-sword-meeting-cyrus-restless

Nestor

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

I enjoy the Lore as it is a framework for the story. I don't get my underwear in a wad if some individual element is not adhering to the Lore, but I do prefer the story at least make sense in the Lore. I do feel for the ones who just click through the quests and books without reading or listening (OK, I read it then click before they are done talking, but still). I miss in some ways the Morrowind/Daggerfall/Planescape:Tormet style of dialog that gives me rich meaty text to read. This can make the world come alive for me more so than something that is spoken to me which due to the constraints of the game is condensed.

Molydeus

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

I wouldn't even be playing this game if I wasn't into the lore. It's the same reason I played WoW for as long as I did. I had beaten the Warcraft RTS games dozens of times, and playing WoW was the only way to further engage in the lore of the series.

Nord_Templar

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

If I hadn't liked to read the dialogues and not interested in the storyline of the game - I'd shall play at GTA. Or something like that, such stupid games a lot.

Khairiah

Honestly don't care, it's nice to have, but not something to look into.

I just wanna slay monsters.. and humans.. and lizards.. and cats.. slay em all!

Nord_Templar

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

Khairiah wrote: »

I just wanna slay monsters.. and humans.. and lizards.. and cats.. slay em all!

Why you don't play GTA, brazza?

maltinkilic

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

But there are some errors in the lore in this game. In a book i foundin mornhold tells. Lord Nerevar was from Redoran. No he was Indoril. Maybe the author of the book was wrong(in game author) but then how can i trust which books are fact which ones are fiction in this game.

MEBengalsFan2001

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

Lore in a game increases it ability to engage the players. Without the lore you would have a void that would be filled up with boring fetch quest or grinding that would become over time boring.

Lore is the item that allows MMOs to flourish. WOW has lore, ESO has it own lore, etc...Any good MMO will have type of lore to it, especially in the earlier levels to bring the players into the game and get the players to fight on a specific side.

MythicEmperor

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

I've been taking in the lore of the Elder Scrolls for years. If It wasn't for the lore, I'd probably be playing another MMORPG. The lore gives me a real connection to the series, which is why I can be very passionate about it on the forums and in-game.

MythicEmperor

Yes! I want to know more/already know a lot

maltinkilic wrote: »

But there are some errors in the lore in this game. In a book i foundin mornhold tells. Lord Nerevar was from Redoran. No he was Indoril. Maybe the author of the book was wrong(in game author) but then how can i trust which books are fact which ones are fiction in this game.

I do not know which book you are referring to, but the series uses a tool called the unreliable narrator. Basically, in-game authors, like their real life counterparts, can be misinformed or even biased. They could be attempting to spready misinformation, or they might even challenge preexisting books. It adds a lot to the depth as you can only truly trust what your characters see for themselves, and usually the general consensus tends to be accurate, at least mostly. Sometimes books like the Arcturian Heresy cause you to question everything you know about a subject, adding debates in-universe. It is all really clever.

lillybit

Didn't vote because none of the options really covered how I feel.

One of the things I've always loved about Elder Scrolls games is that it's such a well developed world. From complex belief systems and histories down to racial tensions, it just feels real to me. I know if I was to get curious about almost any aspect of Tamriel I could probably find the answer.

That said, I don't feel any burning need to go looking for any. I'm happy they exist but I don't need the details to get something out of the game. I don't need to know how the fridge works, I just enjoy the cold coke!