So ESO officially a single player MMO?

Scardan

Darkstorne wrote: »

All modern western MMOs are predominantly single player. That's what the market wants. The vast majority of us spend 95% of our MMO time in solo experiences like questing/exploration, and like optional group content for the other 5% like dungeons, trials, and PVP.

Forced group content in zones never goes down well. A lesson Craglorn learned well...

I think the next big "MMO" advancement for the genre will be to make solo content truly solo, so you don't even run into random players on the map unless it's beneficial to you (ie, world bosses, dolmens, public dungeons). Seeing other players around you when you're questing or delving actively detracts from the experience since it necessitates MMO tropes like respawning mobs and simpler quest structures (can't have set pieces and big changes after quests in a shared world). It's not a thought many players want to face though - they'll defend seeing players everywhere and say "that's how an MMO works" as though MMOs have stayed the same and never evolved, and as though modern MMOs like Destiny and the Division aren't half way to this position already. But it's almost certainly going to happen, and I think that 95% chunk of players will love it for the increased quality in AI, level design, and quest structure as a result.

I gave you insightful, because it is. Another example - Path of Exile is doing well over years, being "solo MMO".


Companions will not replace players, such statements are just ***, logically. Also OP, I dont believe that your topic here is serious. It is common knowledge that MMO does not have to force people interact with each other to be massive multiplayer online game. It is impossible to oversee that companions are meaningful, since they will provide fun to a lot of people.

Klad

SeaGtGruff wrote: »

Klad wrote: »

Gone are the days of screaming fake Tank
Gone are the days of Git GUUD Scrub.

I'm just guessing, but I doubt that companions will be allowed in queued dungeons-- walk-in dungeons, yes; but probably not queued dungeons. I mean, how would that even work? But who knows; perhaps they'll figure out a way to handle it.

So it seems likely that players are still going to have to put up with obnoxious OP players if they want to queue for a dungeon to grab their daily transmute crystals.

You guessed wrong...very very wrong.

The only place you can't take Companions are arenas and other types of PVP.

A link for your convenience

Man today is a excellent day.

Goregrinder

Officially? No, not officially. By your definition? Yeah sure, I mean view the world however you choose to...no one else can decide what the world around you looks like other than yourself.

Rudrani

Massively Multiplayer....
Erm....
Solo MMO??? Ferreal? Why?

Its like eating clothes or wearing food.

Honestly I think the real problem is that TES games are VERY single-player/solo.

A big chunk of people are playing ESO because there is no TES6.

They don't want an MMO, they are playing TES5-and-a-half, or something.

Please, SEPARATE this stuff.

NoSoup

Would be cool if you can play as someone's companion. The master still sets the gear and skills etc but you become the puppet master....

Lumenn

I might be showing my age here but I remember EQ was SO focused on forced grouping(MMO means GROUP DUH!) until a certain care bear game called WOW came out that was SO much easier and casual/solo friendly. We all laughed at this baby game(in comparison). It wiped the floor with EQ and never looked back. EQ tried many things but with some dumb decisions, plummeting population, and "hardcore" grouping, "mercenaries" were probably the smartest thing they could have done.

These companions will help your average everyday person(married/kids/work/heavy college schedule/health issues/whatever your life is) see more of the game. Die hards can still guild/trial etc. Pugs may be harder but you can use your own companion. Soloers play longer before losing interest and leaving. It's good for the game.

Aptonoth

Even though I don't end game I seen what happens to mmo's that try and cater exclusively to solo players its usually a death spiral. The mega autists (a compliment) keep the active and alive even between big content drops, they make the guides for new players, and generally add a long term presence to the game.

Even though I only occasionally do end game stuff I will fight for our right to pve end game that is hard lol and requires some dedication to get good. I'm less supportive of pvp though as I feel it needs to completely be its own separate balance but the servers can barely handle stuff as it is.

Austacker

I have played a healer main in this game since launch.

We've always been in two minds with most of the playerbase and ZOS on what value we bring to the table in this game, but I've no doubt once we have NPC healer waifus out there, player healers will only be wanted for hard mode DLC or Trial content.

ie it's really not worth the effort making a healer anymore

I know some people will take the DPS NPC and toy with a healer, but this is a MMO at the end of the day and at some point you'll be looking to participate in group content.

In the future, I just get the feels that dedicated player healers will become more rare than even tanks in this game.

Wait and see.

Kiralyn2000

Aptonoth wrote: »

Even though I don't end game I seen what happens to mmo's that try and cater exclusively to solo players its usually a death spiral. The mega autists (a compliment) keep the active and alive even between big content drops, they make the guides for new players, and generally add a long term presence to the game.

Even though I only occasionally do end game stuff I will fight for our right to pve end game that is hard lol and requires some dedication to get good. I'm less supportive of pvp though as I feel it needs to completely be its own separate balance but the servers can barely handle stuff as it is.

Nothing about this companion idea seems to be "catering exclusively to solo players" or removing your "right" to a PvE endgame.

barney2525

Lysette wrote: »

majulook wrote: »

Companions are going to be a bigger part of the game. Read this

https://gameinformer.com/interview/2021/01/26/the-elder-scrolls-online-oblivion-is-the-next-step-to-adding-romance-in-game

That sounds pretty much like the companion system in Fallout 4 - which actually has been pretty good.

Its also a mimic of SWTOR companion system. IF that article is correct, and they are adding personalities to the companions, with an eventual goal of possible romance, all they need to add is the change where companions no longer need to have gear attached to them, and this system will be interchangeable with SWTOR . Depending on the role you select for them, their skills, attacks, damage and defenses are set in stone, based on the level of the main character. Gear just becomes cosmetic.

daemondamian

I for one like the possibility of being able to complete some content solo (dungeons, hardest WB, vet/dlc dungeons) with a companion, that I couldn't quite beat solo on any of my 13 characters .

I'll still participate in groups but for achievements (personal & official) and farming sets hopefully a companion will give me the edge I need so I don't have to always wait for PUGs according to what pledge is current or for other players to show up for the hardest WBs.

volkeswagon

If there are khajiit ones then I'll use them

mickeyx

JoseDelgadoCub17_ESO wrote: »

Gearing up some npc is this expansion big feature.

/yawn

Like while I understand the thought because of swtor but npc allies are good in single player games because the storylines involving them but in mmorpg they're nothing but a ball of stats with no meaningful substance.

Dude I don't know what game you playing but out of dungeons and trials its already single player 🙄

Iccotak

barney2525 wrote: »

Lysette wrote: »

majulook wrote: »

Companions are going to be a bigger part of the game. Read this

https://gameinformer.com/interview/2021/01/26/the-elder-scrolls-online-oblivion-is-the-next-step-to-adding-romance-in-game

That sounds pretty much like the companion system in Fallout 4 - which actually has been pretty good.

Its also a mimic of SWTOR companion system. IF that article is correct, and they are adding personalities to the companions, with an eventual goal of possible romance, all they need to add is the change where companions no longer need to have gear attached to them, and this system will be interchangeable with SWTOR . Depending on the role you select for them, their skills, attacks, damage and defenses are set in stone, based on the level of the main character. Gear just becomes cosmetic.

Except for skills this set up was basically what Fallout 4 had. Personalities, Stories, and Romance were all part of the package.

So you could argue that’s its stolen from BioWare but it is also an extension of what was in the single player games

Linaleah

Iccotak wrote: »

barney2525 wrote: »

Lysette wrote: »

majulook wrote: »

Companions are going to be a bigger part of the game. Read this

https://gameinformer.com/interview/2021/01/26/the-elder-scrolls-online-oblivion-is-the-next-step-to-adding-romance-in-game

That sounds pretty much like the companion system in Fallout 4 - which actually has been pretty good.

Its also a mimic of SWTOR companion system. IF that article is correct, and they are adding personalities to the companions, with an eventual goal of possible romance, all they need to add is the change where companions no longer need to have gear attached to them, and this system will be interchangeable with SWTOR . Depending on the role you select for them, their skills, attacks, damage and defenses are set in stone, based on the level of the main character. Gear just becomes cosmetic.

Except for skills this set up was basically what Fallout 4 had. Personalities, Stories, and Romance were all part of the package.

So you could argue that’s its stolen from BioWare but it is also an extension of what was in the single player games

its not at all stolen from bioware. several ES single player games had companions/followers, whom you could also marry, mind you. long before swtor, you could hire npc's in guild wars 1 to adventure with you and those npc's had stories and interactions.

honestly, the whole follower thing goes way WAY back to DnD party mechanics, being translated into single player rpg games, and there were several companies making those as well. so... /shrug.

A_Silverius

When are you guys going to wake up? ZOS doesn't care about player experience, these "companions" are just another method they are going to milk the cash out of the diehard loyal ESO player. They are going to sell companions for like 5000 crowns each just like what SWTOR is doing.

Sure these companions are "optional" but that means less effort is put into what was suppose to be a Massively Multiplayer Online game.

A simple way to fix this is to give these companions banter with other companions when in the same group, kind of like what we see in most Bioware titles like Dragon Age, Kotor, Mass Effect, it's a small detail but it can add so much and at least its an incentive for grouped players who bring their companions along.

Then we also have the new botting problem this might bring about.

Lugaldu

A_Silverius wrote: »

When are you guys going to wake up? ZOS doesn't care about player experience, these "companions" are just another method they are going to milk the cash out of the diehard loyal ESO player.

I think you have to look at it in a more differentiated way. Of course, for a company, economic interests are in the foreground, it's business. But I always find the statements a little hard that ZOS is not at all interested about the experiences and wishes of the players. The whole design of the game shows that there really are people behind it with enthusiasm, the artists, writers, etc. Sure, they are employed and are paid for their work, but capable people are selected here to create the right atmosphere for the game. Otherwise, they could just throw “something” on the market, for a certain time the money would also come in, but not in a long term and with a large fanbase.

mocap

Scardan wrote: »

Another example - Path of Exile is doing well over years, being "solo MMO".

PoE and Division are not MMOs, they are single player games and optional cooperative. With some exception of dark zones in Division, where you can face random players.

Otherwise games like Borderlands are MMO too, which is just lol&kek.

A_Silverius

Lugaldu wrote: »

A_Silverius wrote: »

When are you guys going to wake up? ZOS doesn't care about player experience, these "companions" are just another method they are going to milk the cash out of the diehard loyal ESO player.

I think you have to look at it in a more differentiated way. Of course, for a company, economic interests are in the foreground, it's business. But I always find the statements a little hard that ZOS is not at all interested about the experiences and wishes of the players. The whole design of the game shows that there really are people behind it with enthusiasm, the artists, writers, etc. Sure, they are employed and are paid for their work, but capable people are selected here to create the right atmosphere for the game. Otherwise, they could just throw “something” on the market, for a certain time the money would also come in, but not in a long term and with a large fanbase.

Friend, I've been lookin in all the ways since beta. And in each direction (except Wrothgar and One Tamriel) I always see "Minimum effort Maximum profit". The fact that they are using the profits of ESO to make an entirely new AAA IP instead of, at the very least, fixing and improving ESO's server performance that the players have been complaining about for years should tell you enough.

Lysette

A_Silverius wrote: »

When are you guys going to wake up? ZOS doesn't care about player experience, these "companions" are just another method they are going to milk the cash out of the diehard loyal ESO player. They are going to sell companions for like 5000 crowns each just like what SWTOR is doing.

Sure these companions are "optional" but that means less effort is put into what was suppose to be a Massively Multiplayer Online game.

A simple way to fix this is to give these companions banter with other companions when in the same group, kind of like what we see in most Bioware titles like Dragon Age, Kotor, Mass Effect, it's a small detail but it can add so much and at least its an incentive for grouped players who bring their companions along.

Then we also have the new botting problem this might bring about.

Companions are said to be a quest reward.

LadyDestiny

JoseDelgadoCub17_ESO wrote: »

Gearing up some npc is this expansion big feature.

/yawn

Like while I understand the thought because of swtor but npc allies are good in single player games because the storylines involving them but in mmorpg they're nothing but a ball of stats with no meaningful substance.

People will play how they want. Solo players will remain solo with or without a companion. Group players will still play in groups because that us how they roll. A lot of people play both ways. Not much is going to change. Just don't use it if you don't want to and don't worry about how other players use their time.

The_Old_Goat

NoSoup wrote: »

Would be cool if you can play as someone's companion. The master still sets the gear and skills etc but you become the puppet master....

Doby thanks you for his sock...

adriant1978

Lysette wrote: »

A_Silverius wrote: »

When are you guys going to wake up? ZOS doesn't care about player experience, these "companions" are just another method they are going to milk the cash out of the diehard loyal ESO player. They are going to sell companions for like 5000 crowns each just like what SWTOR is doing.

Sure these companions are "optional" but that means less effort is put into what was suppose to be a Massively Multiplayer Online game.

A simple way to fix this is to give these companions banter with other companions when in the same group, kind of like what we see in most Bioware titles like Dragon Age, Kotor, Mass Effect, it's a small detail but it can add so much and at least its an incentive for grouped players who bring their companions along.

Then we also have the new botting problem this might bring about.

Companions are said to be a quest reward.

The initial two that launch with the chapter, sure, but I would be very surprised if they did not add more to the Crown Store and even Crown Crates later.

winterscrolls229prerb18_ESO

I think eso as a single player game with dlc's twice a year works perfectly fine. I still want other players around too.. to me it basically functions as replacements for the swarm npc's in the witcher.. i just see other players as more interesting and diverse npcs, and better than possible from any form of ai. Truly valuable even still.

The reason why i personally treat eso as a single player game? Time. The only way an online game as the possibility of making play sessions longer than you personally want is by engaging group content. Its like playing an mmo, without the "abuse".

I get for many people playing eso this would be their first experience in one, and they should have content too, but eso is my third serious game (wow, swtor and now eso), and i really appreciate the glorified single player mode. That's just me though.

AcadianPaladin

Healers? I'm looking forward to companions. Their schedule perfectly mirrors my own with zero coordination required and they like to play for exactly the same length of session that I do. Oh, and they stay in character all the time.

My healplar plans to use their companion as a dps so she can be their pocket healer.

My magsorc intends to go healer and build her own group of a tank (clannfear) and two dps (volatile familiar and a companion).

My magwarden will also focus more on supporting her bear and a companion.

purple-magicb16_ESO

This new content doesn't prevent players from grouping for dungeons

Sidonius

Hopefully one day they'll buff the delve bosses, those guys are ridiculously easy.

Lysette

Sidonius wrote: »

Hopefully one day they'll buff the delve bosses, those guys are ridiculously easy.

Typical - overpowering oneself and then complain about ridiculous difficulty - just take off your set gear and then fight.

Klad

Honestly I expected a scorched earth reaction to them announcing Companions, It doesn't seem to be the case though.

omegatay_ESO

CaptainVenom wrote: »

> So ESO officially a single player MMO?

Only if you want it to be.

ESO is one of a couple mmos that do a really good job at catering to all player types. Although, I do agree that pvpers could use a little more love. They have not seen any new content in at least a few years.