Choose your Beginning

Danikat

Yes, I would like the option to start with the a chapter of my choosing from character creation and feel it would give me more freedom

Ley wrote: »

Agenericname wrote: »

The current system isn't very intuitive In terms of finding the main quest line for new players.

I agree with this. I think they should find a way to make it completely obvious how to start a main quest. Easiest thing that comes to mind would be the "Quest Starters" tab in the crown store. Have a quest starter for every main alliance story line, chapter, and DLC.

That might be the easiest place for ZOS to put it, but I don't think it would be easy for new players to find it. If I didn't already know how ESO worked it would never occur to me to look in the cash shop menu for access to parts of the game I already own, only for new stuff to buy.

IMO a better solution would be either to add the starter quests to a new characters quest journal automatically (with a note in the description to make it clear which is which) or to send them mail about it, like the one we get at the start of Morrowind. (But my preferred option is still to make it a dialogue box at the end of character creation, like the current option to play or skip the tutorial.)

I would suggest doing what they did with the DLC and adding an NPC you can't possibly miss to the starter cities so you can pick the quest up in the game as soon as you start. But that could get very silly very quickly. Even in an RPG there's only so many people who are going to run up to a total stranger and try to recruit them to help with something right away.

Iccotak wrote: »

MEBengalsFan2001 wrote: »

weedgenius wrote: »

New players would have no idea which beginning they want, and the beginning is intended for them.

The problem is the main story is another town and if you are truly new to ESO you won't know where to go to start the main story line from the original ESO.

I think that if you never played Cold Harbor that should be the initial start for all NEW first time players. Once you do that, than the game opens up the ability to select which place you wish to start at.

I think that is a tough thing for Zenimaz right now but I do want to agree with you.

On one side; Normally Elder Scroll games will only give you the base game introduction but once that is said and done you have the rest of the game including expansions.
In Skyrim you didn't start in Solstheim when you got the Dragonborn expansion. You still start in Skyrim if you make a new character but you have the option to go check out Solstheim if you want to.
Just because you had Shivering Isle for Oblivion doesn't mean you started there and worked your way backwards to Cyrodil.

That being said as a B2P MMO, ESO is reliant on attracting people with DLCs and Chapter expansions. So they start them in those areas to offer the best of what they have offer. Seeing as how the Expansions and DLCs are of better quality than many areas of the base game.

So how do you handle that?

I've only played two other buy-to-play online games and each handled it differently, in spite of being part of the same series.

Guild Wars 1 offered players a choice - when you make a new character you choose a PvP-only character or a PvE & PvP one. If you pick the second option you have to choose which of the 3 campaigns to start in and you get an image and a brief description of each to help you choose.

If I remember correctly they said they didn't want to do that with Guild Wars 2 because they didn't like having to make new tutorials for each release. Whatever the reason in that game you don't get to choose - you always start just outside your race's home city and start with the main storyline. The expansions are max level content which aren't available until you've levelled up. (Although they do come with a 1-time max level boost, and if you use that you can swap between the storylines freely.)

Ultima Online was the same when I played it (no idea if it is now) - I got the version that came with the first expansions but I started in the same place as everyone else and had to find my way to the expansion maps if I wanted to go there. As far as I'm aware that's how most games do it. But then most games don't have level scaling across everything so starting new players in expansions would mean starting them at max level and that would probably be even more confusing and frustrating.

Ley

No, I don't see this as an inconvenience or a problem. You can drop the chapter if you want to start with Coldharbor

Danikat wrote: »

Ley wrote: »

Agenericname wrote: »

The current system isn't very intuitive In terms of finding the main quest line for new players.

I agree with this. I think they should find a way to make it completely obvious how to start a main quest. Easiest thing that comes to mind would be the "Quest Starters" tab in the crown store. Have a quest starter for every main alliance story line, chapter, and DLC.

That might be the easiest place for ZOS to put it, but I don't think it would be easy for new players to find it. If I didn't already know how ESO worked it would never occur to me to look in the cash shop menu for access to parts of the game I already own, only for new stuff to buy.

IMO a better solution would be either to add the starter quests to a new characters quest journal automatically (with a note in the description to make it clear which is which) or to send them mail about it, like the one we get at the start of Morrowind. (But my preferred option is still to make it a dialogue box at the end of character creation, like the current option to play or skip the tutorial.)

I would suggest doing what they did with the DLC and adding an NPC you can't possibly miss to the starter cities so you can pick the quest up in the game as soon as you start. But that could get very silly very quickly. Even in an RPG there's only so many people who are going to run up to a total stranger and try to recruit them to help with something right away.

I personally would not want to have the quests added to my quest journal from the start, it would just add to the confusion and clutter my quest journal. I absolutely would not want more NPCs chasing me around and harassing me every time I walk into cities.

Reason I thought adding them to "Quest Starters" section in the crown store was a good idea is because:
1. You must own these chapters/dlc or subscribe to ESO+ to have access to them, so it makes sense to have them there.
2. It's easy to direct a new player to the crown store "Quest Starters" tab. Rather than try to explain how to get to a specific location and find a specific NPC to start a quest.
3. This way it's there for those who want it and everyone else can ignore it.

Iccotak

Seems like an option to choose the tutorial at character creation is the most appealing option to players.
_____________________________________________________
A new player automatically start in the latest chapter

Their second character is presented with options to start in the base game or any of the previous chapters

Unseelie

o.O

"Rise from your grave....."

vestahls

Yes, I would like the option to start with the a chapter of my choosing from character creation and feel it would give me more freedom

I get what ZOS is trying to do, but the fact is that with each new chapter, the storyline drifts further and further away from the main quest. It's really absurd that you should have Abnur organising the defense of Elswyr and at some point be in the Castle of the Worm, then back in Elsweyr depending on how you jump between quests. Same for Sai and his imprisonment.

And it's only going to get worse.

The best option would be to force new people to start in Coldharbour, and the second best is to let people choose.

Thevampirenight

Yes, I would like the option to start with the a chapter of my choosing from character creation and feel it would give me more freedom

This should have been a thing right from the very start. I think there reason is to have players catch up to the latest point then start them off with the older content. That is something that is very annoying. There does need to be an option to select which one you start with or not do it at all. I don't know if coding its the issue. it is then make it so all the players can do all the tutorial quests from all the chapters. As starting quests for those chapters. So they can experience what they have not be able to experience. Because of this issue.

Valykc

Yes, I would like the option to start with the a chapter of my choosing from character creation and feel it would give me more freedom

So I started a new character up the other day and skipped all the tutorials and stuff. Didn’t start the main quest and went to the dark brotherhood to work on that since I made a Nightblade character and wanted to role play with it a bit as an assassin, and I also never finished that story line before so I was curious to how it progressed after quest three in the chain. Anyway, once you get to the litany of blood it states that the soulless one is the one to perform the kills and their is even npc dialogue saying that you have no soul. However, I had not started the main quest to talk to the hooded figure to then be sacrificed to Molag Bal and become the vestige without a soul. I know it’s a stupid small thing but it shows how new additions can impact story dialogue if they are not careful with the order of events

Nemesis7884

Yes, I would like the option to start with the a chapter of my choosing from character creation and feel it would give me more freedom

would be nice to be able to choose, just wondering if it wouldnt overwhelm new players that dont know any story progression...and they most likely came due to the marketing material of the new expansion so they want to play the new expansion...

Youd probably do it like - default choice - start in the new expansion with the other starts as alternative choice

Iccotak

@Nemesis7884
This is why it would probably be best for new players second character to be presented with the options for different beginnings as they would have a better idea of what they are doing by then AND they still get right to the latest content which is what probably drew them in the first place.