Choice and Guidance: Character Creation, Starting Zones, Tutorials, Guided Storylines, Etc.

tinythinker

Here are various things put together from the past few years and new material as a recommendation package for respecting player agency within the "Go Anywhere" spirit of One Tamriel while also offering options to guide new players who are looking for some structure and direction in the game as it becomes larger and more complex. Thus players have a choice to more easily follow certain paths if they so wish or to completely ignore any recommendations and just go wherever they feel like going at any given moment.

Rather than having these recommendations scattered across time and different threads, they are collected here for ease of reference whenever a related issue comes up. And of course this thread can generate it's own reaction and responses as per various audiences that come across it.

GETTING STARTED WITH CHARACTER CREATION

Yay! You've started a new character (for the first or thirtieth time). And you can now locally save slider configurations and other data from the character creation screen. Plus, when you hover over each Alliance you get a paragraph or two describing them - what makes the one you are hovering over distinct, it's main agenda, etc. So now you can make something of an informed decision from within the game and look up more info in a browser if you wish. Plus keep any cool character designs you make in case you get timed out or just want to save a nice design for later or share it with a friend. Also, maybe some lighting options to get a better feel for how characters will actually look in game.

This doesn't hurt any players who don't care about such things. You probably won't even notice it's there.


CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE TUTORIAL

OK, well, this one you will notice one

For this section here are the biggest points:

• Give players a choice about where to start a new character when character creation is done
  
• Do so with a new UI with a series of rectangular screen-width buttons featuring an appropriate title, appropriate background image, and a very brief enticement of a description

I've encountered new players who get dropped into the latest chapter that came with their ESO purchase and are confused. Or not feeling a connection to the game world or its inhabitants. Or wishing they could start someplace else ("How do I get to Morrowind?", etc.). I suggested to one such individual who was confused and not relating to anything that they could go back to the original opening story/quest by doing x, y, and z and they cheered right up.

As more and more Chapters with their own tutorials come out, even if they get folded into the DLC bundle over time, having a clear set of options for starting areas, beginning with the original, becomes increasingly important. Let new players and existing players decide where they want to start their adventures with a new character.

For example at the top of the list (using cheap filler text I came up with):

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Invasion from Coldharbour

Unexplained disappearances. Strange figures in the wilderness. Fiends from Oblivion attacking travelers on the road. The God of Schemes stirs - will you stand against him? Fight to drive back the darkness and reclaim the stolen souls of Tamriel.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Click that and go to the standard opening for the base game and its tutorial. Or maybe you click the one underneath it:

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Morrowind

Vvardenfel. Land of Dark Elves. Home to the Ashlanders who revere the goddess Azura and keep the old ways, as well as to the Great Houses who follow the Tribunal. Explore a bizzare landscape of giant mushrooms, volcanic rock, and unique wildlife as you uncover the island's dangers and mysteries.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

And now get the opening for the Morrowind chapter instead. Now make something similar for Summerset, Elsweyr, and whichever chapters come after that with their own tutorials.

Not only does this help players get a feel for the type, scope, and original order of content (for those who care), it also gives them more agency. Maybe they want to start Morrowind because of nostalgia for TES III. Done. Maybe from the beginning with the original story. Done. Maybe in the latest chapter to play with their friends. Done. It's also good for sales and marketing. What isn't unlocked for an account is greyed out and you can't select it. But a texts appears that tells you how to get access. Like "Buy Now". And if there are bundles, a pop-up that says "You can unlock with the [BUNDLE NAME HERE] and also unlock [NAME OF OTHER CONTENT]."


GENTLE PUSH OR BIG SHOVE TOWARD THE MAIN QUEST

As per the last two sections, again, I'm for a balance of players agency as well as some structure to help new players make informed choices. No spoilers, but, well, most of the original base-game assumes that you went through the original tutorial and its story. So if you start somewhere else, like Vvardenfell, Summerset, Elsweyr, etc. Some questlines and dialogues don't really make sense. Again, no spoilers, but doing the original tutorial as soon as you go back to the old base-game zones can be super helpful. Right now, they have a hooded figure approaching you offering you a quest, but there is no sense of urgency or importance.

I have no intense preference for any of the following (though at the end of the day the first two are easier and least restrictive so I'd lean that way), but there are different levels of heavy-handedness possible here:

• Automatically give you the quest when you go back to the base-game areas (which you could still ignore, and which currently has some unhelpful and spoilery descriptions)
• Have the hooded figure hound you to a degree even Stuga would find shameful or obnoxious
• Have a miniquest auto-start when you leave your starting chapter's zone where you become stranded in a small area and investigate some strange happenings, eventually get captured rather than save the day, and well, roll cutscene for original tutorial
• Have the original tutorial cutscene start as soon as you leave your starting chapter's zone

Basically, options are in order from the most player agency to the least but still give at least a gentle push toward the main story. Yet with any of these options, you are free to go wherever you like once the tutorial is done and you can forever and ever ignore the old main quest. And for some of these options you can keep ignoring even the tutorial as well. But they all help to resolve an assumption built into a lot of old content.


OPTIONAL GUIDED TOUR OD TAMRIEL

In the quest journal add a symbol/color for each Alliance storyline that would be mirrored by the game world marker. They kind of did this recently with the zone guide stuff, but the diamond-shaped "storyline markers" all look the same. Yet if they went further and had a unique "Main Story (Base-Game)" marker symbol in the journal/game world, an EP marker, an AD marker, and an DC marker, you would be able to keep each of them straight and pick them back up any time you want. In the journal, your chosen Alliance might have some further stylization to set it apart. Plus each chapter has a unique symbol already associated with it that could be used for those.

You could ignore going in any kind of order, but if you ever change your mind the "next one" in each sequence would always clearly stand out in the journal and in the world. Again, options for structure who want it and the agency to ignore it if you don't.

And while we're on the broader subject, prior to One Tamriel you had a clear storyline that you had to follow for your Alliance then an explanation of how you, the Champion of your Alliance, was able to go and fight for the enemy. This is technically still in place but the structure supporting it is gone. Which is fine, but storywise it's broken. A relatively easy fix would is in the spoiler for those interested. If not, never mind

When you first arrive in a different Alliance than the one you start the game with, add a glowing ball of light that appears only to you and that is heavily synthesized or continually altered in tone, pitch, etc. to make it seem other-worldly and unrecognizable. Something like this:

Mysterious Voice: You have strayed into lands that may see you as an enemy. My master sees great potential in you, and will cloak you from detection. In the eyes of those you meet here your true identity will be unknown. Your reputation here will be born anew according to your actions.

Player: Wait, I don't understand. Who is your master?

Mysterious Voice: All will be revealed...if you show the qualities my master anticipates. Fare thee well, mortal.

When you enter the other "enemy" Alliance, the original line from the Mysterious Voice changes a bit to this:

Mysterious Voice: Ahhh, mortal, once again you have strayed into lands that may see you as an enemy. My master still cloaks you from detection. As before, your reputation in this place will be born anew according to your actions.

So, you know, there you go. When you finally figure out who is pulling what strings (and why) later with Cadwell's Silver this will make sense, but until then it adds another layer of intrigue. Now ZOS just needs to have a coder put in an NPC with the form of a glowy sphere at location x,y,z triggered by a new player entering zones a,b,c, then add in the text dialogue and set it to auto-play upon arrival, and grab a voice actor for a few minutes of work. Nothing too complicated or overly expensive/time-consuming.

JOINING THE FIGHT

To round things out, since people can play through the quests of all the Alliances and may decide later, "Oh, I wish I had chosen [X] as my home Alliance", there is a nice way to allow people to "try before you buy". Again, more informed decisions and player agency. You would have until level 50 to decide if you want to switch to another Alliance. Once done, it's done forever. One chance pre-50 to switch. If you don't change before 50, your original character creation choice stands. To change, find a recruiter outside of Glenumbra, Davon's Watch, or Vulkhel Guard. That's it. Simple.



OK, that's it, just some things that might help players, especially newer players, as the game and its content continues to expand. Have a great day and enjoy your time in Tamriel.

Veinblood1965

I like this a lot, wish this had been available last year when I started. I started in Summerset and felt disconnected to the story lines.

sionIV

I love the idea of choosing your tutorial (with a small description like above), and I don't understand why ZOS haven't already added this feature to the game. I never got to play the original tutorial as I started the game with Morrowind.

tinythinker

Veinblood1965 wrote: »

I like this a lot, wish this had been available last year when I started. I started in Summerset and felt disconnected to the story lines.

I heard that from players starting in Morrowind while taking alts through that chapter. We let them know how to find earlier content that would help orient them. I mean, if you're a huge TES fan who knows lots of lore and what not it might be a little easier, but even then this game takes place hundreds of years before the other game.

sionIV wrote: »

I love the idea of choosing your tutorial (with a small description like above), and I don't understand why ZOS haven't already added this feature to the game. I never got to play the original tutorial as I started the game with Morrowind.

You can always do the quest/walk-through for the original game even if your tutorial is from a Chapter, it just won't have the combat tips anymore and will play like a regular quest. You can pick up that quest, "Soul Shriven in Coldharbour", by going to Vulkhel Guard in Auridon (for AD characters), Daggerfall in Glenumbra (for DC characters), or Davon's Watch in Stonefalls (for EP characters). A mysterious Hooded Figure will approach you and offer the quest.

Bored_Owl

I absolutely love this! I find myself getting bored with doing the same opening quest over and over again for any alts so choosing which one would be awesome. And the little descriptions of the alliances when you hover over them would be super helpful to any new players (and the races and classes already have little descriptions, so it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to include them for alliances too)

tinythinker

Bor wrote: »

I absolutely love this! I find myself getting bored with doing the same opening quest over and over again for any alts so choosing which one would be awesome. And the little descriptions of the alliances when you hover over them would be super helpful to any new players (and the races and classes already have little descriptions, so it wouldn't be too much of a stretch to include them for alliances too)

Yeah, while a lot of this is helpful for new players and those returning after a very long time, it's also nice for alts

tinythinker

Trying to think if there is anything else along these lines to help with new/returning players and alts...

Bored_Owl

Maybe a warning in the alliance descriptions that it'll affect PvP if you want to play with your friends? Like "If you join the fight in Cyrodiil you can only fight with members of your own alliance. Choose wisely"?

tinythinker

Bor wrote: »

Maybe a warning in the alliance descriptions that it'll affect PvP if you want to play with your friends? Like "If you join the fight in Cyrodiil you can only fight with members of your own alliance. Choose wisely"?

Yes, that would be good