Suggesting a form of content lock to aid chronological storytelling

ArchMikem

With additional Story Content portraying a linear passage of time by incorporating events from older Quest zones, the damage to the game's timeline is only being worsened, and making it increasingly more confusing and less immersive to newer players who are trying to grasp the game and it's story lines.

Because of this, I'd suggest instituting a Content Lock system.

Please, lay down your pitch forks and delay your furious keyboard smashing replies for a moment. Because of One Tamriel's "Play whatever you want, whenever you want" ability, it is directly impacting the game's linear story telling by letting you experience not only future events first, but also both future and past events at the same time, for example, this thread. When one moment you're being told by the Companions that Tharn must be recovered from Mannimarco's Castle, but then you go to another location and see the man is perfectly fine and asking you to help him find the Demon Weapon, that's a major conflict.

In the interest of preserving the game's story integrity, the Content Lock would ensure players experience all game content, from the Base Game up to it's latest Chapter and Adventure zones in Chronological Order. The Content Lock would place Prerequisites on prior Story Content, only unlocking once your character has completed the previous Main Questline. In practice, the game won't allow you to enter The Clockwork City until you've saved Vvardenfell, and it won't let you enter Vvardenfell until you've stopped King Kurog in Wrothgar.

As an added bonus, the Content Lock system will give players a sense of encouragement to Quest, as well as accomplishment when completing a Questline which then opens up a previously closed off land to them. Yes, restricting content sounds unfair and unenjoyable, most new players that are enticed into the game are only here because of the hot new content such as Summerset and Elsweyr, but with the way ZOS is writing the stories for these Zones, no favors are being done to them when it comes to grasping it. Playing the new content first will only lead you into Paradoxes, and then we get more and more threads about Dragonbreak pish posh.

In order to create a better storytelling experience, we must sacrifice a little gameplay freedom.

You may now smash your keyboards at me.

Another less restrictive idea.

If not an addon to the Zone Guide then how about just a Main Quest lock? The zones themselves can be available to explore and quests associated with delves, and the world are open but the main questlines would have prerequisites

srfrogg23

No. Just no.

ArchMikem

srfrogg23 wrote: »

No. Just no.

Intriguing.

VaranisArano

Better storytelling. Worse gameplay.

As much as I love chronological storytelling, I love the freedom from the railroad that One Tamriel gives more. Players can choose to do quests in order if they want.

Pinesy

Weird how the game became so much more popular after the One Tamriel update... hmmm.

Wildbloom

It's not a terrible idea, but I don't think it should be mandatory at all. An in-game guide that shows you where to start any of the main stories that the game has told through multiple content-releases that suggests where to start the different ones would be amazing.

Strictly locking content simply to guide players towards the proper story goes against what this game encourages, but I see no reason not to guide them in the right order instead. There's a difference between "enforce" and "suggest".

Oakmontowls_ESO

Alternatively they could just directly tell us in game the time line order.

ArchMikem

Wildbloom wrote: »

It's not a terrible idea, but I don't think it should be mandatory at all. An in-game guide that shows you where to start any of the main stories that the game has told through multiple content-releases that suggests where to start the different ones would be amazing.

Strictly locking content simply to guide players towards the proper story goes against what this game encourages, but I see no reason not to guide them in the right order instead. There's a difference between "enforce" and "suggest".

I like your reasoning.

Acrolas

Time is relative to those under Daedric influence. Darien confirmed as much in Artaeum.

So there is no "correct" content order. It all happens on the mortal realm in what appears to be linear time, but we're free to bounce around or experience the same day over and over for eternity. It's our choice how we realize and rationalize it.

Gilvoth

we were told and promised that as long as we were subbed we would never have to pay to visit other zones.
they lied.

Gilvoth

its not fair

DirtyDeeds765

Wildbloom wrote: »

It's not a terrible idea, but I don't think it should be mandatory at all. An in-game guide that shows you where to start any of the main stories that the game has told through multiple content-releases that suggests where to start the different ones would be amazing.

Strictly locking content simply to guide players towards the proper story goes against what this game encourages, but I see no reason not to guide them in the right order instead. There's a difference between "enforce" and "suggest".

This is the answer.

Bekkael

I understand and agree with where you’re coming from, OP, but I have to say I value choice over linear gameplay. The player should play the story as they prefer, and having huge sections of the game locked off to me until I finish another area first, would honestly just make me angry.

Bottom line: I prefer the game as-is, even though I personally mostly prefer to play the story quests in their correct order. On my main character anyway. My alts skip around all over the place, and that’s an enjoyable way to play too. ☺️

WildRaptorX

I like One Tamriel but it’s very confusing for new players. I wish they kept the main storyline and guidelines as they were. As to a fix, they would have to bring in the voice actors again to add additional dialogue. I like the suggestion above.

I just saved completed loriasel and saved shadowfen. It was weird exploring and finding quests that seem like they should have been completed before the events at loriasel. It was as though my character and the army had never been to the ruins.

Very lazy on ZOS’s part

Grandma

and if someone has access to one or two chapters/ dlcs but not the previous chronological ones? They just... can't play it until they buy ALL the content?

MojaveHeld

Harming gameplay for storytelling is always is a bad idea in this game. Wildbloom's suggestion to implement a guide that's available for the small amount of players who actually care that much about this is a much better idea.

Chadak

Is something or someone stopping you from playing things in chronological order?

I doubt it. I also doubt that this concern is related to your own experience.

Why then, I must wonder, are you so concerned with how other people play?

Siohwenoeht

Gilvoth wrote: »

we were told and promised that as long as we were subbed we would never have to pay to visit other zones.
they lied.

It's not untrue though. If you sub, a year after the chapter drops, it becomes dlc. You only pay extra to access it when it first releases. At least this has been the pattern for Morrowind and summerset. I'd see no reason why elsweyr wouldn't follow suit next year. Not entirely sure how your original post was on topic though.

But to OP, I'd definitely go for making at least the wailing prison mandatory and then present the first time player with their options to go anywhere or choose to do the story in any order.

idk

What OP suggests is rather pointless as before 1T the new zones were still designed for all to play in them. Changing even that part is very poor business since new players excited for the new content come in just to have Zos tell them they are not allowed to play their yet.

Further, many existing players really do not want to have to grind through all that old on a new character before they can bring it to the new zone. It also does not make sense for that old content to be pointless to go through just for skill pointes when we are all over leveled for it.

So in the end, Zos made a good choice for both new and existing players when they made 1T

Androconium

The sound of a tiny woodlouse magnified 65 MILLION times!!
See how it frightens the ant!

ArchMikem

If not an addon to the Zone Guide then how about just a Main Quest lock? The zones themselves can be available to explore and quests associated with delves, and the world are open but the main questlines would have prerequisites.

Dunning_Kruger

ArchMikem wrote: »

With additional Story Content portraying a linear passage of time by incorporating events from older Quest zones, the damage to the game's timeline is only being worsened, and making it increasingly more confusing and less immersive to newer players who are trying to grasp the game and it's story lines.

Because of this, I'd suggest instituting a Content Lock system.

Please, lay down your pitch forks and delay your furious keyboard smashing replies for a moment. Because of One Tamriel's "Play whatever you want, whenever you want" ability, it is directly impacting the game's linear story telling by letting you experience not only future events first, but also both future and past events at the same time, for example, this thread. When one moment you're being told by the Companions that Tharn must be recovered from Mannimarco's Castle, but then you go to another location and see the man is perfectly fine and asking you to help him find the Demon Weapon, that's a major conflict.

In the interest of preserving the game's story integrity, the Content Lock would ensure players experience all game content, from the Base Game up to it's latest Chapter and Adventure zones in Chronological Order. The Content Lock would place Prerequisites on prior Story Content, only unlocking once your character has completed the previous Main Questline. In practice, the game won't allow you to enter The Clockwork City until you've saved Vvardenfell, and it won't let you enter Vvardenfell until you've stopped King Kurog in Wrothgar.

As an added bonus, the Content Lock system will give players a sense of encouragement to Quest, as well as accomplishment when completing a Questline which then opens up a previously closed off land to them. Yes, restricting content sounds unfair and unenjoyable, most new players that are enticed into the game are only here because of the hot new content such as Summerset and Elsweyr, but with the way ZOS is writing the stories for these Zones, no favors are being done to them when it comes to grasping it. Playing the new content first will only lead you into Paradoxes, and then we get more and more threads about Dragonbreak pish posh.

In order to create a better storytelling experience, we must sacrifice a little gameplay freedom.

You may now smash your keyboards at me.

Imagine the effort for something so pointless. And by that I mean your novel.

Davor

ArchMikem wrote: »

When one moment you're being told by the Companions that Tharn must be recovered from Mannimarco's Castle, but then you go to another location and see the man is perfectly fine and asking you to help him find the Demon Weapon, that's a major conflict.

You forgot something. What happens if he is already dead?

Davor

ArchMikem wrote: »

In order to create a better storytelling experience, we must sacrifice a little gameplay freedom.

I am not going to say you are wrong at all because all we have is opinions. I respect your opinion, but I disagree. Reason why I disagree is because when I play a game, I play to enjoy, to have fun. When ESO was locked, the game was much less fun. I prefer to go where I want, when I want. Since I couldn't do that, it was one of the reasons why I gave up on the first month of it's release.

I didn't ask for it to change, I just left and went on to other games. If ESO did this again, I would leave. I would find a game where I can do what I want to play. If the story doesn't make sense, so be it. After all, for me, it's about fun.

If it doesn't add fun to the game, then it shouldn't be added. Or if it adds more fun, then the story needs to be sacrificed a little bit.

After all, if we need to go by your "story" then why are we all in the game? After all, how can everyone who plays be the Vestiage? I am the Vestiage.


Just curious, going by what you say, that would mean Hollywood would have to do the same thing. No more prequels. We already know what will happen, so those stories never should be told.

Narvuntien

Thats what happenssss in a dragonbreak

Sondernaam

NO

Matthew_Galvanus

personally i believe that locking the story chronologically would be both a blessing and a curse, it'd be a blessing because we could experience the full story from start to finish, but on the flipside, it'd mean that new characters couldnt access new content.

so i suggest a compromise, give us the option to enable a lock on story content when we make a character and allow us the option to disable it if we so desire.

TehDoomBunneh

I'm a new player. I bought the game at launch but it didn't gel, so I left. Came back a few weeks ago and everything really clicked. So, I'm the person that you're talking about.

I agree with you on the screwed up continuity, but I think with a little effort, those that want a linear story line can figure it out.

For example, I looked up how to get to the OG zones and start the intro quest. I started working on that with the plan to eventually go to Morrowind, Summerset and Elsweyr in order.

Regarding things like Tharn inside the mages guild when he's really in Coldharbour (in my timeline), I just ignore it and RP in my head that he's not really there.

I'll try to weave in the DLC as needed once I figure out their place in the storyline.

Bottom line is that we don't need a game mechanic to implement this as you can do it yourself. However, a canonical expansion / DLC order would be great. Either player generated or Zenimax, doesn't matter.

DaveMoeDee

Pinesy wrote: »

Weird how the game became so much more popular after the One Tamriel update... hmmm.

This suggestion keeps One Tamriel's scaling, which was a big deterrent to grouping. It also still allows people to collect their surveys and do other stuff as needed in other zones.

That being said, I think a guide is a better approach. They already added main/skill point quest markers, which is a big help. The problem is that the main quest markers don't care about the order you pick things up. We have the zone guide already. Time to add a narrative guide. They could even add warnings about picking up quests that have content that changes based on prior interactions, like one that warns you before you talk to Razum-dar in DLC.

My feeling is that at this point, they should just leave this up to players to figure out. If I buy a game with a lot of DLC, I will google whether order matters to narrative continuity. The same with a series of games in an IP. Or a movie franchise. I won't watch The Rise of Skywalker without watching episode 8 first, but I am fine watching it without seeing Solo yet.

theyancey

This would be a great option when starting a new character. It would take nothing away from those wishing to jump right in with new content.

Iluvrien

VaranisArano wrote: »

Better storytelling. Worse gameplay.

As much as I love chronological storytelling, I love the freedom from the railroad that One Tamriel gives more. Players can choose to do quests in order if they want.

If they are even aware of what the correct chronological order is.

An optional guide or optional player-enforceable lock sounds like a great idea to me.