To ESO's new Direction: Crown Store feedback - what would make us spend more

SkaiFaith

Posting this in "General" for visibility. (Please Mods wait before moving)

Leave here your feedback about crown store.
Game is in a transitory phase, let's try to help reshaping it better.

Personally, my biggest issue with how it worked for 11 years is: the majority of items are available for few days and they return after more or less 24 months - that's outrageous.
A person that starts playing today and realizes has missed the desired item by a week will have to face the fact it will take 2 years before the occasion to purchase it will return: this pushes people away, not bring them in!
I would seriously encourage Devs (marketing team) to change this attitude and let the game have more permanent items and let ALL limited time items to rotate A LOT faster - there shouldn't be ANY occasion where someone should wait more than 12 months for an item.

What's your store feedback? What do you hope to see changed?

Sly80

I agree. I recently built a new 'house' that needs certain types of houseguest to complete the theme. It might be months or even years before I can buy the right ones. There are a few things that I would happily buy if they were in the store, but which should still be available via other in-game means on a rotational basis. None of these would give any advantages over other players. They are essentially cosmetic. It would be an additional source of revenue, some of which could hopefully be invested in game development.

Asdara

Honestly, the problem with the Crown Store isn’t just about a few overpriced mounts or cosmetics, it’s about the direction it pushes the whole game. When flashy store content keeps arriving faster than meaningful in-game improvements, it creates the feeling that the developers are prioritizing microtransactions over the health of ESO itself.

The pricing is already absurd in places. Houses, appearance changes, mounts, they’re priced at levels that feel completely disconnected from in-game value. Add to that the vague or even misleading descriptions of items (like outfit slots not being account-wide), and it creates distrust. Players feel deceived, and once that trust is gone, it’s very hard to win back.

What makes it worse is that so many of the most appealing cosmetics and mounts are locked behind the store, or worse, hidden in RNG Crown Crates. That erodes the sense of achievement. When you see someone riding an incredible mount, you don’t think “wow, they earned that,” you think “they opened their wallet.” In an MMO, where prestige and progression are a huge part of the experience, that’s poison.

And then there’s the long-term issue: if more energy is poured into monetizable content than into actual game improvements (PvP fixes, new mechanics, performance, bug squashing), the game’s core will stagnate. People don’t log into ESO just to admire their mount collection; they log in to play. If the quality of that gameplay slips while the Crown Store expands, people will eventually stop logging in at all. No amount of cosmetic sales can sustain an MMO if the player base shrinks because the game itself isn’t evolving.

The Crown Store should be supplementary. Right now, it feels like it’s the main dish, and the game itself is becoming the side. That might bring short-term profits, but it’s not sustainable. In the long run, the only thing that keeps people spending money is if they’re having fun in a healthy, growing game and that requires real investment in content, not just cosmetics.

Katheriah

I would buy every house in this game if it wasn't so extremely overpriced.

Morvan

Completely agree that they should increase the cadence in which items return, I have recently decided to make a Druid home, wanted to get Gladesong Arboretum but then realized it already returned this year, so now I'll have to wait 1-2 years for it.

I get that FOMO can be useful to sell things, but then how many people also just change their minds or give up because the thing they wanted didn't return while they were interested?

Always thought they could add a token to allow us to buy anything not available from the store, maybe something tied to ESO+, like, for every month subbed you get this one token that allows you to buy anything you want, maybe with a discount even, that would be a great addition to the game.

Destai

I'd spend more if two things were changed.

1. Lower prices. I'm sorry, I'm not buying a house in-game that's the price of the game.
2. More availability. I'm tired of the spend-now-or-never FOMO. I would probably change my mind on the houses more often if they were permanently in the store. There's been so many times where I see something on someone else's character and want to buy it, but can't. That's money lost.

I spent A LOT on Gw2 since returning to it back in August. Their prices are way lower for comparable things like appearance changes and outfits. They also have gifting and currency-to-gold exchanges. They go out of their way to make sure I can spend what I want, when I want.

LunaFlora

i wish for there to be a constant rotation of all the different limited time items without pause.
like when 1 returning crate leaves there should be another one immediately.

skill styling
the Class skill styles should be available permanently, it is strange that there are no permanent skill styles in the store.

mounts
it is cool that we now have more specific mount categories, but i wish that the store permanently had 1 mount from each of these categories.
i find it odd that the first Mammoth mount was not a permanent addition to the store.


Housing
- it would be wonderful if houses got added to the store permanently after reaching a certain age like 5 years. There are so many houses after 8 years, it takes too long for them to all return.

- This October has 5 returning houses which is good, even though most are thematic to Halloween and Witches Festival. i wish all months had this many returning houses.

- Please add more furniture packs permanently too. For example it would be awesome if the Dwemer pipe pack was always available.


no idea what else to add, but this seems like a good thread. hopefully it influences zos a bit

Marto

My assumption for many years has been that ZOS keeps developing and releasing massive 10k crown manors because their data shows tons of players are hoarding 20, 30, or even up to 100 thousand crowns, without ever spending them.

But for some reason someone at the studio interprets that as "There's nothing in the store that appeals to the player. We need to make more expensive items.", when the reality is that there are items the player wants, but they are currently out of rotation.

Having to wait 1-3 years for the return of an item you want sucks. It's downright insulting to your players and customers.

I'm no marketing expert, but I would bet players would spend a lot more if:

• There were always 2-3 crown crates in rotation, instead of 1-2.
• A lot of the houses, outfit styles, and other FOMO items were in the store permanently.
• Seasonal items were in the store for 1-2 months, instead of 1-2 weeks.

Soarora

I think almost everything in the crown store should be put on a predictable schedule. The FOMO doesn't work-- even as a clueless casual, the only thing I got FOMO about was Ezabi... who never left. Wasn't just me either, friends were also like "I'll just get it next time it comes to the store". FOMO also never feels good, I'm always relieved when a game has cosmetics that come back around. Besides, if people want to spend their money on something that isn't there... let them be aware when it will be there so they can... give you money...

Lucjan

Great thread. The cycles where things return need to be shorter. Waiting 2 years or longer is just counterproductive. Some has the crowns to spend, has an idea for a house or themed character and realizes it might be 2 years or longer to make it happen is insane.

I love the idea of having more crates in rotation. 3 would be a sweet spot. It not only solves the problem of people who missed out having to wait so long (and actually not even knowing how long), but also another problem: having something to buy.

Assuming the point of the crown store is to make money, how about giving players who are spending a lot an opportunity to actually spend it? I know quite a few people who are not playing all that long and they lack things to spend money on. Heck, even I have some missing items from older crates that I missed. Take this month as an example. We have many great items returning to the store, but if you are someone who regularly buys anything that comes onto the store, there is nothing of interest this month except the Hidden Kindred crates for the whole month. Having 1 or 2 old crates placed into the rotation would alleviate the problem quite a bit.

fizzybeef

I would spend more if the game was active.
But its just not anymore on console (EU)

tomofhyrule

Step one: actually put things in the Crown Store, instead of having a month with literally two things in the tell-case.

Step two: return things on a more reasonable schedule, not waifing two years or more for someone’s impulse to leave. We have enough Crates and Arms Packs now that there should never not be an old one back for a week or so.

Step three: finish what you started. We have enough ‘collections’ like the Daedric Artifact styles and the Undaunted Arms packs that we still don’t have done (there are 5 year old dungeons that still never got an arms pack release).

With all of the surveys we’ve gotten lately, I’m surprised they didn’t come out with a “what kinds of things would you pay for if we released them?” survey. I definitely have a whole list of things that I’d give ZOS a blank check for, but it seems like they don’t need my money.
Hey ZOS, if you’re listening, great idea for another survey!

Displaced_Salad

There isn't a single service or item that isn't obscenely overpriced. Between that, the lack of meaningful QoL changes and the operational state, I would be hard pressed to spend a single penny on anything, so I don't. Short answer: not one single thing would make me buy more things in the crown store.

alakeyfox

Agreed. Also "selling" items via loot boxes is just absurd. I'd buy so many things from the current rotation if it was actually possible. I am not paying hundreds of bucks to have a chance to get a few items that I'd like.

Kendaric

Less flashy, glowing and/or exploding mounts and pets.

Reduce the pricing on outfit slots or make them accountwide.

Houses are totally overpriced, their prices needs to be cut.

Release actually good looking hairstyles... the recent ones look ugly and weird. And please, no more weird colored hair styles.

Recent

2 words ' Hair dyes'

rothan117

First of all, the prices are just way too high. I do not even bother thinking of buying anything due to the prices. There a good number of houses I would be interested in but not for what they want to charge. Same with mounts and everything else in there.

Then, all large items, such as houses, appearance sets, mounts etc should always be available, no FOMO nonsense. I see something I want, like a house, not presently available. Lost sale. And by the time it comes around again, if at all, I have forgotten about it and the sale is lost permanently.

Due to the prices, the only crowns I spend are those I get for being ESO+.

Recent

alakeyfox wrote: »

Agreed. Also "selling" items via loot boxes is just absurd. I'd buy so many things from the current rotation if it was actually possible. I am not paying hundreds of bucks to have a chance to get a few items that I'd like.

My thoughts exactly.

I personally pay my subscription and always have. I also bought large houses over the years that cost almost $80 aus.
$80 is close to the price of a whole new game..for 1 pixel house?

I buy crowns from the eso store when they are on special and I purchase every expansion, now it's a game pass.

Why would I throw out my crowns by gambling on a crown crate? I have bought them in the past and never got anything that made me want to buy more.

I love this game, it's the only game ive played for over 10 yrs with 3 breaks inbetween over the years must show my dedication to eso. I dont want to bash the game I'm being honest with my reply.

Lucasl402

alakeyfox wrote: »

Agreed. Also "selling" items via loot boxes is just absurd. I'd buy so many things from the current rotation if it was actually possible. I am not paying hundreds of bucks to have a chance to get a few items that I'd like.

I'm in the same boat. I'd buy crowns and use the crown store if things were 1/4 the prices. I don't know what ZOS is thinking, but clearly they think we're all making in excess of 100k/year.

scrappy1342

i think they would sell a lot more crowns if they made the sale price the regular price. would love to see what the numbers are on ppl who buy full price -vs- ppl who buy at the sale price. i never paid for crowns outside of my subscription. i was tempted a few times during sales, but it was still so much.

not sure why they make ppl wait years for things to come back. 1-2 years is bad enough but there have been some 3 year gaps on things. 10 years in the case of the piebald destrier. i waited so many years for that one. i'm not sure if i even got him since he came back about the time i quit actively playing.

katanagirl1

I don’t buy crowns, but I have quite a few that are just sitting there because I got them from subscribing over the years, and there really isn’t much in there I even like at this point. I used to buy houses, but the last one was years ago. The new ones just don’t appeal to me.

All the mounts are flashy, exploding things and are too over the top. I’m not interested in anything related to Peryite or Vaermina. Sometimes I pick up a normal pet to path in one of my already decorated houses. That’s about it.

EDIT: clarification

BretonMage

Agree with a lot of the points raised. Most of the time, there is just nothing in the crown store of interest to me. Bringing back two past crown crates at a time instead of just one would be a good idea to alleviate the lack of variety on offer.

Also, let us trade in unwanted items for a few gems. They could give us just half as many gems as they do for duplicate items, and I'd feel much better about buying crates.

Hapexamendios

In all honesty, a large raise.

Mojey87

i do agree, for instance i start playing ESO for about a year now, i wanted to buy psijic house but it never showed in store, like what kind of harm would it do if content been rotated more frequently, it just will increase the amount of players will buy things sooner then later.
as well there is lot of items in store that overpriced and no one interested in them which are available permanently, if marketing team would do data analysis for the most items sold from store and most unpopular, and try to do more rotation then will make everyone happy.

Eormenric

I think rotation is the most successful method for their money-making for a constant fear of missing out. But there is now enough content that they can add more to the rotation each time.

I don't think though that the crown store is going to be the way they sustain ESO. Looking at WoW, I know there is no comparison to that team size, but highly incentivizing a subscription would be steady source of revenue. Crown Store can remain, but we paying subscribers should get our money's worth more than a crafting bag. I don't want to wait 6-12mo of DAILY endeavors for a single Radiant Apex mount. What a slap in the face for a paying subscriber. That single thing is why I have ramped down my subbing and crown store spending.

For me, I feel like my money is going towards keeping up with the rotation and fomo. Not a sustainable method for a player like me.

Faulgor

No matter what you say, I'll bet my account that they have data analysts and marketing experts that tell them the way it currently works is actually the most optimal income stream. Your continued happiness with the store is just a minor point in their calculations.

That said, I agree that the FOMO with items constantly leaving the store is the #1 gripe (outside of high prices). It's just terrible to have to tell people, often new players, that they can't get this or that cool cosmetic you are wearing because it's no longer available. Would you be less or more likely to stick around after hearing that?

IMO, what should happen is that after a few years, Crown Store exclusive items should find their way into the game. E.g. the Monster Style Armor Packs for the base game dungeons have been cycled so often, I think they should actually be added as drops to the base game dungeons, which would also help to revive older content like that (I have absolutely no reason to run those dungeons anymore). Then, with a smaller content pool exclusive to the store, more things could be added permanently, and would only leave the store when they are added to the game as earnable rewards.

Crazy, but because nothing good is ever gonna happen anyway in this regard, why not ask for the impossible?

danko355

1. Hair dyes
2. Hair dyes
3. Hair dyes
4. More skill styles, at least in all different colors to match. Make it in huge bundles, e.g. "all storm calling abilities in red", otherwise it doesn't make much sense to run your Hurricane in red, while the Streak, Critical Surge and other skills are still blue.