SKILL POINT BUG(S)

Archmage_Teferi

Below will be a general topic outlining skill point bugs. Being such an important component of the experience, and seeing how many of us are experiencing what I am about to detail; I believe we should voice our concerns.

First off, I loved this game! First time playing Elder Scolls, but I now understand why people tell me to just play Skyrim instead.

Before I detail the lack of support from costumer "support" let me include, yet again, my bug report.

HARSH LESSON

--Did not award skill point after completion despite showing it on the rewards upon completion. CS even confirmed it, my request to fix the issue ignored twice now.

EDIT: I have now been told this mission is not supposed to grant a skill point, despite the fact it said so in the rewards section at the end of the quest. This is perplexing that online resources would list it in the skill points awards column, and yet (if this is accurate) no one decided to update or correct the text to accurately reflect the reward.

NOTE TO DEVS: If you haven't already and it's simply a case of the text being inaccurate or not updated please fix it so others don't have the frustration I did.




RULANYIL'S FALL

--(PUBLIC DUNGEON) Did not award skill point after completing both achievements and quests. I checked the forums, realized my initial mistake and corrected it, finishing the known requirements to receive this point. Took me over an hour but I'm happy to work through it. However, no point. This being the second time was slightly infuriating. I've noticed people seem to be having issues or had issues with many of the public dungeon's. NOTE to DEVS: This is really disappointing, as I was looking forward to playing this content. Not anymore.



COSTUMER SUPPORT

--I am including CS in my BUG report here, because I have repeatedly, politely, and even humorously pleaded with them to resolve these issues. I also understand others seem to be going through the same. By the time I finish outlining the problem I get the standard this will be out last reply, hope your issue was fixed message, when no attempt was made to fix it. To whomever it may concern, as a costumer (I am an ESO PLUS member, but have cancelled my renewal until this is resolved) when I take the additional time to report this and go in depth to explain it to them, I expect them to make at least some kind of effort to fix or explain the problem, not feel completely ignored. This is the most serious bug of all, because CS is our last line of support to resolving issues. I could live with the occasional bug, or not having a skill point awarded, if I was confident it would be easily fixed. But alas, much frustration later has resulted in this.



OTHERS LIKE MYSELF,

Please voice your experiences and concerns here, maybe someone will notice.

Tef

Shadowshire

Like the OP, after I began playing The Elder Scrolls Online, I fell in love with it. But infatuations never endure, and when the initial pleasure and satisfaction recedes, there must be something left as the foundation for a relationship to continue. In my humble experience, the foundation which once seemed rock-solid has slowly eroded away into sand.

During the 2+ years that I've been playing, I've seen Customer Service decline from excellent to practically non-existent. When I began receiving the "we have received your message" brush-off it seemed most likely to me that ZOS chose to reduce the CS staff to lower costs (thus increase profit). When a game is initially published, good CS is essential to its success. But, eventually only a minority of players contact CS to report bugs, ask for information about playing the game, or ask for help with other issues. Most who do that do not do so very many times, or do so very often.

Consequently, although the CS staff reduction alienated some players, ZOS probably did not lose enough revenue -- at least in the short term -- to exceed the immediate increase in profit from reducing the staff.

Note that the ZOS sources of revenue are (1) purchases of the base game software by new players, and ESO Plus subscriptions from the devoted, and (2) the ongoing development and sale of DLCs, and sales of Crown Store items. To which, ZOS expects to add the pending Morrowind game expansion (the pre-release order price is $99 for the base expansion, ~ $60.00 more if you have that much to squander on the Gold Edition).

Whether ZOS is a profitable game software developer depends fundamentally upon the integrity of its products. Accordingly, (1) recurring failures to produce correct output from correct input, (2) accumulating flaws in the design and re-design of game features, and (3) the evident lack of resources -- whether desire, let alone commitment -- to remedy any but the worst bugs and flaws, has been quite sad to witness.

For the most part, playing the game has been wonderful! But over time it has become a game in which the wonder has been eroded away by boring grinds, and frustrating software flaws and failures.

In sum, short, and fine: the software bugs and design flaws have increasingly rendered playing the game a waste of time and effort.

Personally, I have no plans to buy Morrowind. In my honest opinion, the Homestead update has been quite instructive as to whether ZOS is willing and able to produce, and Bethesda can support, a game worth playing. Maybe I will return to Skyrim, or perhaps World of Warcraft would be worthwhile to re-visit.

Last, but not least, my remarks are not written with any hostility or ill-will toward ZOS. In contacts with its personnel, ordinarily I have found them intelligent, understanding, interested in their work, and doing their best in what increasingly seems to be a bad situation. My only intent has been to share my experience honestly. Not that I expect anyone is likely to read this, whether also to agree.