Update Existing Zones Before Dropping New Content

Supreme_Atromancer

Say, for example, they refresh Eastern Skyrim. Riften and Eastmarch together could constitute something roughly chapter-sized.

Square the map off by adding the area to the north-west of Eastmarch, which includes the long-anticipated Winterhold. Its nicely partitioned by mountains in almost every direction, and extending the map in this way could be achieved using the same assets used for refreshed Eastmarch/Riften.



The refreshed zones are base game update, while the new appendage is locked to purchase, including any sort of location you want to put in all those mountains, and the city of pre-collapse Winterhold itself. Depending on the extent and depth of the refresh, there could still be a great deal of new content, and **if** they were to do a refresh, I can't see them not going all-in.

Eastern Skyrim is the example I keep going back to because its easy to demonstrate my ideas, but I think you could find a way to handle all base game zones in a similar way, if you wanted to.

Depending on how you read Matt's Road Forward, if the sheer number of zones is problematic, what "marketable new content" (and the revenue it brings) actually means would need to be decoupled from proliferating new zones anyway.

I know I'm being flippant about what they could do, and how much work it would take. In a way its kind of pointless to say what they could and couldn't do, because there's just too much that is hard to know, and I think that applies to both sides of any debate regarding it. My strong desire to see old zones refreshed is somewhat of a love-letter to the spectacular work the team has done post-launch, and a wish to see some of our favourite places done with the same expertise and care.

maximusrex45

At best old zones will might get some polish if they decide to make a new story segment take place in them.

An NPC outfit refesh might be some better low hanging fruit to persue.

I will also say I am disappointed that Fargrave wasn't more thoughtfully filled out as a major location, with more housing options and treated like the gateway to the realms of oblivion. They didn't even add a simple portal to Coldharbor.

Maitsukas

If there are going to be overhauled zones, I fear that the major cities and the buildings in them will be gated behind loading screens (like Solitude, Markarth, Leyawiin, Fargrave, Gonfalon Bay and Vastyr).

LikiLoki

Old locations can also make a profit for the company. In each base zone there are closed houses, doors that do not open. Imagine that ZOS updated the old content and added a new one to the old map. texture improvements will be available to everyone, but in order to open doors that have been closed and take quests behind these doors, you will need to buy a "zone expansion"

Dark_Lord_Kuro

Id rather get new content than revosithing old zone. Even more now that we only get new content twice a year.

Animar111

I believe they stated that the later updates would be quality game updates instead of another dlc so I’m assuming a lot of changes and improvements second half of this year.

kyatos_binarini

Updating old content doesn’t bring money

ethantokes

Agreed. Along with my recent posts about a graphics pass and first person view, this would help a lot.

ethantokes

kyatos_binarini wrote: »

Updating old content doesn’t bring money

This just isn't true. If they did an advertising campaign about how they revamped all their old zones with impressive before and afters, it would draw players for sure, IF it was actually impressive. People absolutely love when devs pay attention to their old content and stand as far away from world of warcraft as possible.

kargen27

ethantokes wrote: »

kyatos_binarini wrote: »

Updating old content doesn’t bring money

This just isn't true. If they did an advertising campaign about how they revamped all their old zones with impressive before and afters, it would draw players for sure, IF it was actually impressive. People absolutely love when devs pay attention to their old content and stand as far away from world of warcraft as possible.

It might draw a few new players to the game and maybe a few players that quit might give it another go. New content would bring more of both though. I don't have any problem at all with how the base zones look. I would like to see some of the side quests get an added quest in the base zones. An NPC you helped out before needs your help again kind of thing.

Cosmetically though I'm good with them leaving the zones alone.

OtarTheMad

I really don't want to go through any old zones at all. Maybe when they run out of new zones to do... but I don't want to do old ones, already did them... give me something new to chew on.

Heromofo

I_killed_Vivec wrote: »

Vvardenfell...

In TES3 every tomb could be explored. Some might not have much in them (at least at first glance) but you could usually find a vampire or a skeleton in there. In Vvardenfell? Completely different - most of them are just surface features.

It's the same with houses just about everywhere. So may are inaccessible. At the very least they should be generic spaces, with maybe a recipe stuffed in a trunk somewhere to make them worth exploring.

Because that's what TES games are all about - exploration!

This comment actually hit me hard in the memories. I definitely agree it would be nice to see older zones updated and expanded upon. I am hopeful though that while Necrom will be good, the q3 qol update will be the true legend this year. Technically this could fall under a qol large update. By breathing life into older areas and adding more depth to them.