So I've been known to make a thread or two criticizing certain aspects of the game, but for as much as I love ESO, I've never made a thread talking about WHY I like the game. I think it's a pretty safe assumption to say that those who are left playing ESO, about six months after launch, generally feel the same way. It's why we've been playing (and paying) for it all this time.

I wanted to kind of vent (if you can call it that), and share some reasons why I think ESO is a step in the right direction for MMOs in general, despite its few shortcomings.

Questing

When most, if not all MMOs rely on the "go here, do this" objective system, ESO changes it up a bit. I often compare ESO to both GW2 and SW:TOR because of the voice acting, and engrossing (mostly) quests. If there are standard MMO quests in ESO, ZOS has done a great job in at least disguising them. You never feel like your actions are without reward and consequence.


Dynamic World

This goes along with questing - but when I save a town from ransacking bandits, then much later in the game, hear someone say "That's the hero who rescued that town!" I feel good. ESO does a great job in making the players feel like they're actually making a difference in Tameriel. For example: Everyone remembers the Daggerfall quest line where you save the king, right? Well in a later quest line, completely unrelated, a dog named "Giblets" shows up beside a solider, the same dog that helped you in Daggerfall. When you inquire about the dog, the soldier tell you that Giblets wouldn't stop following him when he mentioned your (the players name). Nice touch.

ALSO ON A SIMILAR NOTE

While venturing in Glenumbra, I saw a couple in the wilderness arguing about how to lite a campfire. I listened to the exchange for a few minutes, then lit it for them. They both turned to me and thanked me and it gave me some EXP! NOT a quest, COMPLETELY off the beaten path. That sort of made me day in a strange way.

We can pound sand all day about end-game and Craglorn (god knows I like to), but at the end of it all, these problems are bound to be addressed. I feel like it's my job to spread the word that ESO got a bad wrap from critics.

Grinding levels 1 to max, then make reports on the end-game during the first week of the game's launch is not how MMO reviews should be done. Sadly IGN, Gamespot, Game Trailers, all follow this formula when reviewing MMOs.

I know it's a cliche but if there is ONE MMO out there that is more about the journey than the destination, it's ESO.