What did new feature did ESO bring to the MMORPG table?

KleanZlate · June 2014

LordEcks wrote: »

Oh wait.. I've got one! Mega-server tech!

I do have to admit this is the first time I've ever played an MMO and didnt have to worry even slightly about what server my friends were on or server selection in general.

Thats kind of cool....no?

Eve Online has that one covered and they have the biggest online economy.

LordEcks · June 2014

Audigy wrote:

If we talk about the WOW release then the unique new feature was the accessibility of content for the broader audience. You could quest, run dungeons or do pvp - all alone or in groups.

Really talking about unique features here. All the things listed here are from previous games and while WoW may have had a "tweak" on them it was hardly original in concept.

Fleymark wrote:

Housing in EQ2 was instanced. Unless something changes in the last 5 years or so since I last played?

EQ2 had both instanced and non-instanced housing from launch. But as someone mentioned Ultima Online did do it first. Will fix that.

Tannakaobi wrote:

In SWTOR you can effectively wear the same gear from 1 - end game. You may have had similar systems with sockets and what not, but no other mmo has gear that relies solely on modifications which you can upgrade as many times as you like. The gear system in SWTOR was really very good.

Thanks for saving me having to explain that one.

Cogo wrote:

Arn't you forgetting a few?

Yes sir you would be correct. This is not an exhaustive list.. as stated simply a few examples for people to get an idea of what I was asking for. I'm sure theres a lot of other features out there we could list, really just trying to see the ones about ESO in this thread though.

Cogo · June 2014

Tannakaobi wrote: »

And by the way, ESO was marketed as a PVP game, very much so. Take a look at the video trailer for a start, three players er.. fighting each other...

There are several marketing releases from Zenimax regarding ESO, which you can read on the homepage.

Lets look at what major games sites described ESO before launch:

http://www.cinemablend.com/games/Elder-Scrolls-Online-Level-50-Veteran-Content-Includes-Adventure-Zones-Trials-63002.html

Please show me anywhere, on any ESO site that says ESO is a PVP game. They dont even call it PvP, and PvP is a PART of what you can do in Tamriel. Not my words.....Zenimax statement about PvP in ESO.

What Zenimax HAVE stated is that you can choose to PVP for levels even, from level 10!!! Or you can choose to not pvp at all.

Rylana · June 2014

Star Wars Galaxies did the SWTOR thing long before TOR was even an itch in George Lucas pants, js. It was called the a-tab. (appearance tab).

So dont be giving tor credit for something it did not innovate.

Tannakaobi · June 2014

Cogo wrote: »

<snip>

Please show me anywhere, on any ESO site that says ESO is a PVP game.

<snip>

What Zenimax HAVE stated is that you can choose to PVP for levels even, from level 10!!! Or you can choose to not pvp at all.

I don't need to show you, you pointed it out yourself, I'll take your word for it.

I'm not sure where you are going with this. I was merely pointing out that the mega server was not this so called revolutionary thing because server have a purpose. That purpose is to put like minded players together in terms of PVP/PVE/RP, why change what works? and it does work, as you said, you think PVP players are jerks. I'm not sure why. I have never had any abuse from PVP players, plenty in dungeons and raids though.

Now if they had three mega servers... or even servers you could move too and from, that would be more revolutionary.

Going back to the comment about PVP from 10 onwards, it is possible, but not well implemented. Playing PVP in eso as a low level character is just not an enjoyable experience. You can be easily one shot killed and it's a long walk back to the fight.

Morbus2 · June 2014

For an MMO, Eso offers nothing new or groundbreaking to speak of. Every single aspect of this game has already been done, way better, by another game.

Actually, it's more like MMO amateur hour over at ZoS. They struggle with even the most basic MMO issues.

The only good thing this game has going for it is it's Lore.

JinShepard01 · June 2014

I see a few peeps comment that phasing is innovating but Wotlk did phasing already..

fromtesonlineb16_ESO · June 2014

LordEcks wrote: »

Oh wait.. I've got one! Mega-server tech!

I do have to admit this is the first time I've ever played an MMO and didnt have to worry even slightly about what server my friends were on or server selection in general.

Thats kind of cool....no?

Nearly true, however GW1 had servers you could jump to freely at any time so that in some ways was even better .. and I won't mention how phasing will mean much of the time you can't play with them even on the same server, nor why the many forced-solo quests mean many times you need or want to give help you can't.

Yes, the mega-server format is handy, but many other aspects of the game mean that convenience is lost.

wrlifeboil · June 2014

Tannakaobi wrote: »

Makarion wrote: »

ESO has probably the best voice acting and among the best quest dialogs. In that regard, it's on par with or superior to many single-player RPGs.

You must play some really poor single player games, or maybe you have not played any for over 10 years...
I'm not saying eso is bad, only most single player games are much better these days.

I don't really get why people go on about this in eso, I think it's pretty lame. There is what, less than ten voice actors? take John Cleese away and what have you?
Often they are cast really badly, an example is the talking tree man thing in Valenwood. A big old tree that has lived for years and years yet has the voice of what sounds like a 15 year old school boy.

They fixed the tree voiceover in Grahtwood last week. Now the voiceover sounds more like an ent (a la Lord of the Rings: Two Towers).

Back to topic. What new features did eso bring to the mmo table? Hmm, probably the phasing. If they ever get that perfected, that would create so many possibilities with branching quests over a single quest line provided everyone in the group made the same choices or going to the other extreme, inconsequential if you're carrying someone through the quest line that they are doing for the first time.

MW2K · June 2014

JinShepard01 wrote: »

Maybe the first MMO with movie star voices?

EQ2 had Christopher Lee as Lucan D'Lere and Heather Graham as Antonia Bayle at release back in what? 2005?

Renuo · June 2014

"Ultimate Online" had many more unique things too.

I think the class system here is unique, and has taken the good part of RvR from DAoC.

Other than that the end game PvE is unique-ish, although most of the PvE is blatant copy paste from previous titles with the Elder Scrolls flavour required to make it their own.

LordEcks · June 2014

PeterRJG wrote: »

EQ2 had Christopher Lee as Lucan D'Lere and Heather Graham as Antonia Bayle at release back in what? 2005?

A valid point.

Fleymark · June 2014

@LordEcks

Negative. EQ2 had housing at launch but it was all instances. I was in the beta, played at release and off and on for years after.

And speaking of EQ2, whoever called it a sandbox game is entirely mistaken. Atlaunch content was as entirely on rails theme park as this game is now. Just like here, you could grind if you wanted to but it was even slower than here. Thevast majority of people had quests pulling them around the world from the first moment on.

It did open up a lot eventually when the expansions started releasing because they generally put in parallel quest lines and content for all levels, but it was still a theme park...you just had a choice of which wings of the park you played in at a given level. Or you could do it all of you were a completionist.

Original EQ was an actual sandbox. Just you, the world, other players, and content to explore and level in. Questing was entirely optional although key quests at different levels offered class defining items for some classes and eventually epic weapon quests went in. Then high level armor quests. And it built from there to varying degrees depending on what expansion era, but it always maintained its sandbox core. Questing was almost always for gear and, with notable exceptions, rarely for experience.

It turned 15 in April and is still kicking. There is also a classic EQ emu that has had a more than healthy population for several years now. There still to this day isn't a better raiding game regardless of the era you prefer.

Fleymark · June 2014

I did not like WoW at all and I hate what it did to the MMO genre, but the one thing I always thought was remarkable about it was not just that it made content available to the masses but that they did more with less in terms of graphics and made a robust and visually interesting world with 2d graphics. It was lightweight for most systems at the time. You could, literally, go to Wal-Mart and buy a 500 dollar computer and a game box and go home (to your trailer ;p) and play on your dial up internet with no problems.

Again, not a fan of the lasting effects of this but there's definitely something to be said about that.

tordr86b16_ESO · June 2014

Nothing.

MW2K · June 2014

Just to add to this: Anarchy Online invented instances. So if you wonder where your instanced dungeon hails from it, blame it.

Skjlvald · June 2014

The free combat feel, maybe.

Tabbycat · June 2014

Sheogorath.

LordEcks · June 2014

Skjlvald wrote: »

The free combat feel, maybe.

Kinda wanted to say something about ESO's combat being revolutionary.. but to be honest I cant point out exactly what aspect of it is.., or how to describe it.

steveb16_ESO46 · June 2014

LordEcks wrote: »

Skjlvald wrote: »

The free combat feel, maybe.

Kinda wanted to say something about ESO's combat being revolutionary.. but to be honest I cant point out exactly what aspect of it is.., or how to describe it.

If it worked as intended it'd be pretty good. But GW2 has done all the movey, weapon swappy stuff already. But with it working properly.

dennissomb16_ESO · June 2014

No mention of Secret World. Pretty sure this was first where one toon could learn and use every single ability in the game, and then set up builds from there

Falmer · June 2014

For me... Layering.

For all the flack layering gets for separating players and being an impediment to aiding lower level friends...

I love layering for its ability to shape and change the world to make it feel like you actually accomplished something. I was blown away when villages would go from peaceful to under attack... or the tide of battle would change as a stormed on ahead.

I love the layering!!! Gone are the days where a village under attack from enemies will remain forever under attack even after you finished 'defeating' them in a quest.

Innocente · June 2014

Full blown 'Buy Box, Pay Subscription' to beta test a game for Console release.

Renuo · June 2014

dennissomb16_ESO wrote: »

No mention of Secret World. Pretty sure this was first where one toon could learn and use every single ability in the game, and then set up builds from there

UO did it first by a mile.

Lalai · June 2014

I would have to also say immersive story. That is obviously subjective. I didn't like SWTORs story. I did, up to a certain aspect of it. I think I maybe paid attention to half of the operative one.. and then I stopped. I also couldn't get into any other characters storylines. I don't really care that people (as long as they weren't the same class) could come in with me. For ESO I listen to all the quests, even the side ones. I even read a lot of the books, and find myself attached to some of the NPCs.

Freedom of skill points. Not in such a way that it eliminates best builds.. but there are very few skill trees that are actually restricted to just your character. Only class/racial/vampire/werewolf.. really. Everything else all people have access to at all times, which is pretty unique to this game. Forgot about secret world x.x

As someone else said, Megaserver tech. You may not like it, but some people do, and it is something new they brought. This definitely has some kinks to work out, especially regarding phasing, but all new systems have kinks when first implemented and are then refined over the years.

I don't necessarily like all the new stuff some of the other MMOs have brought to the table, but that doesn't dismiss the fact that it is something new that was brought. Whether we like something or not is completely subjective, and thus shouldn't be used to invalidate things for this particular discussion.

Updated to add:

Entire zones dedicated to grouping I think is also new, or at least I've never played an MMO where that was the case. A few areas within a zone being an "elite" area, yeah.. but not an entire zone with it's own caves to explore, dungeons, and all that.

Shaun98ca2 · June 2014

Im pretty certain EQLive was the 1st MMO with instancing. They were called adventures I think, personal dungeons for a group of 6. At the time didn't care for them, but now looking back didn't realize that would be the actual standard for "dungeons" as EQLives dugneons were all very open.

TheBull · June 2014

Combat and resource management.

Shaun98ca2 · June 2014

Lost Dungeons of Norrath introduces broad-based instanced dungeons to Norrath, revolving around tales of the Wayfarers—an NPC adventuring organization.

Players complete adventures for the Wayfarers in one of five different dungeon themes. Each dungeon theme has about ten different variations of the zone, and players can also chose the type and difficulty of their adventure.

When the adventure is finished successfully, players are awarded Adventure Points which can be spent on items, spells, and "augments" at the Wayfarer camps.

Cybrdroyd · June 2014

Joining 5 guilds and the guild store. Stupid, yes, but at least its different.

Makarion · June 2014

Sindala wrote: »

Blooddancer wrote: »

As with anything, it gets harder to be unique the later you are in evolution. So asking what innovation ESO brings might be a little unfair.
The question might be more constructive if you asked what is ESO doing better and asked after 12 months.
Hopefully they have a few aces up their sleeves for future updates - maybe they have the best ever housing system....

Yup I have to agree with this.
Basically the only 'sandbox' MMOrpg's released were (all over 10 years old):
Horizons (Istaria)
EQ2
Ultima Online
EVE.

Every game since has basically just copied and polished ideas from those original games. Nothing new now for 10 years in this Genre.

Vanguard should be added to that list, if only for their diplomacy system and the faction system attached to that. And the diplo clothing. The fact that the game in general was gorgeous was just gravy! Now, if only it had worked at launch