Cancelled & Uninstalled - My Letter to ZOS

samthedagger · January 2015

I said I would cancel my subscription and uninstall the game if ESO ever went F2P. Well, Tamriel Unlimited is technically "buy to play" but the difference between the two is not that great in practice. It is not difficult for gold spammers and other malicious parties to get a hold of copies of the game. So for all practical purposes this would be F2P. The moment I heard the news I cancelled my sub and uninstalled the game (which still has 104 days remaining btw). As I said, this was a decision I had made prior to the announcement. Anyway, I wrote a letter to ZOS explaining the reasons for my decision and wanted to share them with the community.

"I want to voice my extreme displeasure at the decision to change the profit model for Elder Scrolls Online to Tamriel Unlimited. I made a conscious decision to seek out a quality game from a reputable publisher and developer with a subscription-based service to ensure high quality of service. I cancelled my subscription the moment I learned of the decision. I have logged hundreds of hours into this game. I love this game. But I will not play a game where all it takes to create an account is a single purchase. It is just short of a free-to-play profit model and it is unacceptable. I recognize that it was a business decision, but I want your company to know exactly why I cancelled my subscription. I will not be returning to this game. I will not come back to see if the change in accessibility improves the game. I believe it is a mistake, and I believe the game will be worse off for it.

I remain steadfastly loyal to other Bethesda and Zenimax Media products such as The Elder Scrolls series (such as Skyrim), as well as Fallout 3 and Fallout New Vegas. I have purchased some of these titles on multiple platforms (PC, console, etc.) because I enjoy them so much. I also saw subscribing to ESO as a way to support future development of such titles. But I have compromised too much enjoyment in so-called "free to play" or "buy to play" MMO games over the years to ever have the desire to go back. I enjoy MMOs and so I will find another one with a subscription-based profit model to pay for because it is those, in my experience, which deliver the most fair and enjoyable gameplay experiences.

I am very disappointed to have to write this. I was hoping ESO would be go-to MMO for years to come, and I have played it with incredible devotion since its release. But even though I have 104 days remaining on my subscription, I have deleted the game from my computers and do not intend to log in ever again unless this policy is reversed, something which I do not expect. If the policy is not reversed, I wish ESO the worst failure possible. I hope the servers will be forced to close and Zenimax Media will be forced to re-evaluate their customer base. If the new model succeeds, I will ignore it because with the new profit model come compromises I am no longer willing to make. It is a damn shame that the subscription-based model is viewed as so toxic in a gaming environment where steady income is required for the servers to stay on. But relying on large numbers of microtransactions from a minority of gamers has led to low quality content and customer support in dozens of games I have played over the years. I no longer wish to be a part of it.

Farewell forever, ESO. I look forward to The Elder Scrolls VI and Fallout 4."

Iago · January 2015

in before close

Ackwalan · January 2015

It is the cash store I worry about, not the sub model. When a cash store becomes a cash cow, the quality of the game goes down.

Ourorboros · January 2015

Mods love these threads. Likely deleted before it gets many views. You're a man of your convictions, good for you. I'm more of a wait and see. It may not be as awful as people are saying. But you only get to find out by staying.

Micallef · January 2015

I for one will not remain loyal to ZOS or Bethesda due to their complete lack of ethics, business or otherwise. Not another rusty cent.

ben_ESO5 · January 2015

This thread in a nutshell.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoENoMhMjqQ&spfreload=10

renton1x1x1 · January 2015

byeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!

EQOAnostalgia · January 2015

It's your choice man, good luck. But i wouldn't waste that subscription time... it hurts no one but you by paying for something and letting it rot. They DO NOT care if you play or not, typing up some goodbye breakup letter isn't going to change anything, this isn't a highschool girlfriend it's a business. It's a sad fact. Most likely you will return if only for a little while, most people do when they quit an mmo. This was quite innevitable really and idk why it's some sort of shock or deciding factor to people. I knew this would happen before the game even launched and then the 6 month sub cards vanished and it was sealed in my mind.

WraithAzraiel · January 2015

I had to re-post my response to another thread like this, because it's just too perfect not to use.

Best of luck in your future endeavors!

WraithAzraiel · January 2015

Why do people INSIST on airing their baggage about their likes and dislikes and their decisions?

"I shant be participating in this mockery of yadda yadda blah blah any longer! Fare thee well, mortal beings! Alas I shall take myself elsewhere! MOURN ME NOT, sweet flowers....mourn. me. not."

Pretension - these types of post have it.

And if I'm not mistaken there is a rule against "Goodbye" threads in the Code of Conduct.

Expect to see this thread locked and deleted.

Bon chance!

SFBryan18 · January 2015

Bye, have a beautiful time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cepZIk0PlvM

folklore · January 2015

Have a good time, m8!

EinionYrth · January 2015

Shame he's deleted the game; I was going to ask if I could have his stuff.

Mathius_Mordred · January 2015

EinionYrth wrote: »

Shame he's deleted the game; I was going to ask if I could have his stuff.

You could always ask for his account details LOL

Jasonn · January 2015

Well said and respect for sticking to your principals.

martinhpb16_ESO · January 2015

My experience is that as the cash shop grows the content output and quality of the game diminish.

tryia3b14a_ESO · January 2015

I just want to say that I work nights, so I play at 1:30am PST or later. I rarely see any other players. I cannot do boss fights, dungeons, dolmen or anything besides solo because there are just not enough other players during my play time.

Some nights, I actually see chat in the /zone chat and I remember that I'm not playing a single player game. No other online game that I play during my night hours feels so completely empty as this one.

Their decision was probably based on a lot of people who are paid a lot of money to make these kinds of business decisions, and was probably made with the intent of bringing in more players.

I'm sure they won't miss the one or two hyperbolic "this upsets me personally, even though it's better for the business and for the game" type of players.

Personally, I'm looking forward to being able to do non-solo content when more players arrive.

ZOS_EveP · January 2015

We understand and respect that sometimes people will leave The Elder Scrolls Online community. @samthedagger we thank you for taking the time to share your feedback with us and we wish you the very best. We're closing this thread now per our Code of Conduct policy on quitting/goodbye threads.