Should ESO be made more casual?

AlienatedGoat

There's been a lot of posts on these forums lately talking about how hard the game is, particularly for casual players, in actual game difficulty, or in time commitment.

I'm curious to know if this is even an issue, so my question to you is this: Is ESO casual-friendly enough, or does it need to be made more friendly to casual players?

Specifically, I want you to think about if ESO is friendly to casuals in the following three areas:

• Is the game casual-friendly enough with the current Enlightenment CP catch-up mechanic, or does it need to be reworked?
• Is the current combat system casual-friendly, including the use of animation cancelling, or does the system need to be reworked to become more accessible to casuals?
• Should the game be casual-friendly in difficulty, particularly in older veteran content, or should hard content remain hard?

Please leave a comment below about your thoughts on the matter.

I promise I will be reading each and every one carefully while I nom on my tasty grass.

AlienatedGoat

No, the game is already casual enough.

Just so you know where I stand: I think the game is casual enough, and further dilution makes the game unappealing to me.

This is just one goat's opinion.

jedtb16_ESO

Other

speaking as a casual player (nothing formal about my play style) i can't see any point to this poll other than the op seeking attention...

oh ####, i've slipped up here haven't i?

FakeFox

Other

No, ESO is already laughably casual.

Edit: I picked "other" because I think ESO should be less casual and the first opinion does not seem to include that.

flguy147ub17_ESO

The one issue i have is from brand new players starting from scratch. Getting to 720 is a freakin nightmare. Especially if you playing through the content like the game was designed which i think majority of players actually do on their very first character. They to play through the zones, Caldwells gold, Then the DLC zones, Mages Guild, Undaunted, Crafting, Main Story.
It really would take so long playing the way the Developers actually designed the game to be played. And by the time they get to 720, CP will be in the 800s.

LadyNalcarya

I think even if they would give all mobs 1 hp, people would still complain that they need to press light attack to kill them.

MyKillv2.0

I like polls where the OP tells you exactly what they think moments after posting a poll asking everyone's opinion.....

just sayin'

Recremen

No, the game is already casual enough.

I think the game is plenty accessible to casual players and they've done a great job keeping the game enjoyable for all audiences. There's normal-mode dungeons and trials, no-CP PvP areas, and basically all the questing is easy as pie. With casual play comes casual rewards, of course, but I think that's how it should be. If you want competitive end-game gear then you're no longer really trying to be casual, are you?

Vaoh

No, the game is already casual enough.

Pretty sure the only content that a “casual player” can’t complete are the Veteran dungeons and trials. Very tiny fraction of the game.

And then if those players improve, they can go after the Veteran content next. That’s the progression.

Things are fine as is imo. In fact I’d argue the game is too easy for casual players too. You can beat all overland content with 0CP and non-set armor while swinging light attacks at every enemy in sight, granted you have one heal.

It’d be good to add a “Veteran” version of zones so players can improve overtime without oneshotting every enemy in sight as they get stronger.

AlienatedGoat

No, the game is already casual enough.

MyKillv2.0 wrote: »

I like polls where the OP tells you exactly what they think moments after posting a poll asking everyone's opinion.....

just sayin'

Transparency is important.

rustic_potato

Goats are awesome.

If they make it any more casual they will have to give achievements for logging into the game.

Ley

No, the game is already casual enough.

Phage wrote: »

There's been a lot of posts on these forums lately talking about how hard the game is, particularly for casual players, in actual game difficulty, or in time commitment.

The same could be said for posts talking about the game being too easy.

I think that the game has a lot of very easy content and some very hard content but is lacking in content in between to bridge the gap and help train people to become better players.

Juju_beans

the game is fine as it is. For me there has to be some challenge to overcome.
I left wow because it became one-shot faceroll even while leveling and quests rewarding legendary gear because you saved some squirrels.

Motherball

Yes, but in other areas NOT mentioned. (describe in comments below)

Trading/economy could be more streamlined and inclusive, imo. Its my biggest complaint in the game. Its not difficult to trade, just annoying with all the arbitrary constraints.

Runefang

Yes, but only in CP Enlightenment.

Difficulty of content is fine but I think given the age of the game the main 'long grinds' need to be sped up a bit. Name horse training, trait research and CP gain.

AlienatedGoat

No, the game is already casual enough.

Ley wrote: »

Phage wrote: »

There's been a lot of posts on these forums lately talking about how hard the game is, particularly for casual players, in actual game difficulty, or in time commitment.

The same could be said for posts talking about the game being too easy.

I think that the game has a lot of very easy content and some very hard content but is lacking in content in between to bridge the gap and help train people to become better players.

This is a good point and I'm glad you brought it up. I've mentioned in the past a possible solution in the form of a Veteran difficulty toggle that would bump the difficulty of overworld content to somewhere between normal and Veteran dungeons.

We definitely need a better streamlined progression of content difficulty for new players, and an option to keep the overworld content somewhat interesting for players who already do veteran content.

Grimlok_S

No, the game is already casual enough.

Anyone remember when overland quests had mechanics?

At beta/launch killing the brother of strife in stonefalls was hard. Took a bit of strategy but was ultimately very doable.

Went through it a year ago or so on a non-cp lowbie and all but two shot the incarnation of rage itself. Was very disappointed, to say the least.

ArchMikem

Goats are awesome.

Im just here for the backlash of you asking one of the questions that shall not be named.

AlienatedGoat

No, the game is already casual enough.

Grimlok_S wrote: »

Anyone remember when overland quests had mechanics?

At beta/launch killing the brother of strife in stonefalls was hard. Took a bit of strategy but was ultimately very doable.

Went through it a year ago or so on a non-cp lowbie and all but two shot the incarnation of rage itself. Was very disappointed, to say the least.

Older content definitely hasn't aged well in terms of difficulty. I remember back when progressing to a new zone meant dying to OP mudcrabs, bears, wolves etc if you weren't levelled enough.

It really feels like we went from one extreme to another after One Tam.

ereboz

No, the game is already casual enough.

I think the game difficulty is fine as is. It's an mmo so it doesn't need to appeal to solo players even though there's tons of content for solo players already anyway.

jedtb16_ESO

Other

Grimlok_S wrote: »

Anyone remember when overland quests had mechanics?

At beta/launch killing the brother of strife in stonefalls was hard. Took a bit of strategy but was ultimately very doable.

Went through it a year ago or so on a non-cp lowbie and all but two shot the incarnation of rage itself. Was very disappointed, to say the least.

yup.

how about doshia?

zos really dumbed her down.

ArchMikem

Goats are awesome.

Vaoh wrote: »

Pretty sure the only content that a “casual player” can’t complete are the Veteran dungeons and trials. Very tiny fraction of the game.

And then if those players improve, they can go after the Veteran content next. That’s the progression.

Things are fine as is imo. In fact I’d argue the game is too easy for casual players too. You can beat all overland content with 0CP and non-set armor while swinging light attacks at every enemy in sight, granted you have one heal.

It’d be good to add a “Veteran” version of zones so players can improve overtime without oneshotting every enemy in sight as they get stronger.

Dont forget DSA and Maelstrom. I frequently do Vet Dungeonw and take my DPS into vet Trials, but those two places on vet are a nightmare.

DieAlteHexe

No, the game is already casual enough.

Doesn't get much more casual than me and I think it's fine.

AlienatedGoat

No, the game is already casual enough.

ArchMikem wrote: »

Im just here for the backlash of you asking one of the questions that shall not be named.

Haha. I couldn't resist.

srfrogg23

No, the game is already casual enough.

It’s got a good variety of difficulty levels. The easy stuff is easy and the hard stuff is hard. I see no reason to change that.

AlienatedGoat

No, the game is already casual enough.

Motherball wrote: »

Trading/economy could be more streamlined and inclusive, imo. Its my biggest complaint in the game. Its not difficult to trade, just annoying with all the arbitrary constraints.

Trade in this game is very convoluted. It's even worse when you're the one trying to run a trade guild.

Synthwavius

I'm finding it to be pretty very casual since the very level 1. I'd want to have some challenge during normal questing and delves.

Kodrac

No, the game is already casual enough.

More?

PlagueSD

No, the game is already casual enough.

flguy147ub17_ESO wrote: »

The one issue i have is from brand new players starting from scratch. Getting to 720 is a freakin nightmare. Especially if you playing through the content like the game was designed which i think majority of players actually do on their very first character. They to play through the zones, Caldwells gold, Then the DLC zones, Mages Guild, Undaunted, Crafting, Main Story.
It really would take so long playing the way the Developers actually designed the game to be played. And by the time they get to 720, CP will be in the 800s.

I've been playing since release. I only have 1 zone left to complete Caldwell's gold on my main and I'm only CP578. I've done main story completely on 2 characters, have 4 characters in CP level range, completed mage guild, fighters guild, dark brotherhood, thieves guild, undaunted, and clockwork on my main. Completed Morrowind on my warden. I've even run a few normal trials. I'm STILL not max CP, so I embody the "casual" player. This game is pretty casual already. No need to make it any easier.

WakeYourGhost

Goats are awesome.

There was no other Viable voting option when compared to this one.

Phage wrote: »

• Is the game casual-friendly enough with the current Enlightenment CP catch-up mechanic, or does it need to be reworked?
• Is the current combat system casual-friendly, including the use of animation cancelling, or does the system need to be reworked to become more accessible to casuals?
• Should the game be casual-friendly in difficulty, particularly in older veteran content, or should hard content remain hard?

As the CP cap goes up, it might be reasonable to add an Enlightenment Increase to allow for faster gains over the same amount of time.
Of course, in a counter point - That would de-value the accomplishment of the people who wasted so much time grinding out those CP levels.
Over-all, would speeding up CP gain help "Casual" players be better at this game - In a technical sense, bigger numbers would help. In a realistic sense, it might also hinder their progress in actually learning how to play the game without brute-force number-jacking.
Enlightenment is plenty Casual friendly - A tiny increase could help with every Cap increase, but it won't make a big difference in the end one way or the other. Certainly not the issue, I am sure.

People have claimed that Animation Cancelling is the real "Skill" section of this combat system, and that using it properly is what separates the Pros from the Casuals. ...I couldn't dream of a feature more Casual-friendly than Animation Cancelling. Yes, using it to it's maximum potential may take you like.. An hour of really thinking to figure it out. Real high Skill Bar, I know. But, early on, when you can't tell what the meat and cheese is for your combo sammich, being able to cut off part of an attack animation for a block, another attack, or a sudden rude gesture is very helpful.
Honestly, Animation Cancelling lowers the skill ceiling considerably since it is very forgiving to a lack of timing or skill.
Using it to it's highest potential? That is the only issue some may run in to, and at that point no amount of tweaking will help that. You Quit out a casual or you play long enough to see yourself get some skill.

The Dungeons and Trials all have a fair difficulty gradient, that seems to be creeping up as time goes on. Hard to disapprove of that, honestly. As long as people aren't jumping in to WGT as their first dungeon, they will likely learn how the general mechanics of a Dungeon work and pick up how to work with others.
"Advanced difficulty" Areas such a Craglorn and some Public Dungeons are also fine. It is unlikely a person will wander aimlessly in to them and be left outside of their comfort zone.


I personally think the game is plenty accessible to the Casual player, and gives a fair scaling level of Difficulty to get someone adjusted to the game and it's content.

If anything, the game needs some added treats for more Dedicated or Challenge-Seeking players. Perhaps Veteran versions of the normal areas?

TheShadowScout

No, the game is already casual enough.

...with one exception - horse training, which should stack like enlightment, for those people who cannot log in daily due to their work schedule, but play more time on the weekend.

Everything else is fine for casuals.
- The CP catchup is fine, between enlightment and lower costs everyone can easily get to where the diminished results make the gap close enough to be not that big a deal anmore...
- The combat system is easy enough once you learn the details of it. (there are also more then enough helpful topics on the forums and all around the 'net for those who have difficulties)
- The veteran content is all optional, and thus not really needs to be nerfed down to the lowest common denominator - casuals may not get the best "top dog" titles, but that is as it should be, those should come with the extra effort and not be handed out as participient trophy... (and I am spoeaking as a casual here, who doesn't have most of those titles either. I'd rather do without then see them devalued.)

Grimlok_S wrote: »

Anyone remember when overland quests had mechanics?

...yeah, some of the nerfings were a bit overdone.
I mean, if should not really be too hard... we wouldn't want newbies be put off after all... but the mechanics should still be fully in play to make it -interesting-
Doshia and other harbingers... it sort of vexes me that any of my DPS can burn them down without their "feast" mechanic ever coming into play, and could even before CP!
Falchou is still a fun fight last I did that one, sure, the "get fire" is easy enough, but if the boss was done in a way that you could easily faceroll him without that... meh. And all too nany kinda are...
Its not about difficulty.
Its about keeping the fights -interesting-!