Thoughts on design choices

BladeStew

For a TLDNR just read bolded.

Preface:
The development style for ESO has clearly come a very long way. I remember my first experiences touring zones in April of 2014, and at the time I was truly concerned about the depth of the zones. They felt uninspiring and bland which was in complete opposition to other Elder Scrolls games. I worried about the future of the game, and hoped it would improve. I'm glad I stuck in because by the release of the Morrowind chapter, I felt that developers shaped the rather bland game into an awe-inspiring and unique adventure. It was packed with content and a whole world to explore at your leisure. My favorite change was going to a system of scaling enemies to players, which blew open the doors to this new world and inspired me to keep going. The game improves with every update and I can't wait to see where it goes. Great job devs, I appreciate what you have done with this game.

The Good:
This is by far the most beautiful designed zone I have ever seen in an MMO. It is lush, dense, and I enjoy the layout. The cities are breath taking, the wildlife is superb, and the textures are elegant. My god was I surprised to see such an vibrant world. It's so hard to believe it even exists in the same game as say Stonefalls. Let's address the elephant in the room... it is small(ish.) Yes, it may not be massive, BUT I see it as quality > quantity. Would you rather a hugely spread out zone with about as much content as the rift? Do you want to run around on badly textured grass and fight the same packs of saber cats? No, you don't, so accept the beautiful and dense landscape you have been provided.
The jewelry crafting system is something we've needed for a long time. I hate farming jewelry. I hate waiting, and I especially hate finding green necklaces all day. THANK YOU for adding this system.

The Bad:
Let's talk about microtransactions. Okay... YES I know that developers have to eat, BUT Guys, the Friday the 13th Stag would have required a $40 purchase of crown coins to obtain. I don't know about you, but that is the better part of the day of working for me at minimum wage. That would be okay if we could actually obtain something other than a sickly paint horse in-game. Okay crown crates are either going to have to get cheaper, or have better items. I've watched people spend $100 on opening crown crates and only come out with some costumes, potions, and maybe 150 crown gems. Come on guys... that is crazy.

I wish questing was less monotonous. I feel like quests in ESO are often more running and clicking through long dialogue sequences than being involved in the action. This is bad because it doesn't release endorphins in the player's brain the way quests do in other MMOs. That is unfortunate because the endorphin release is the glue that keeps a player playing a game; FORTUNATELY, ESO is packed with other systems that keep me playing, but it could be so much better.

I had a lot of issues with getting my access code to start playing. I always do actually, but this time I waited like an hour. I feel like there are much better security systems that could be used, BUT it doesn't detract from the actual game. It's just a headache.

Thank you ESO for (randomly or not) selecting me for closed beta.