Do you think that ESO is primarily an ES game or primarily an MMO? How does it affect your choices

newtinmpls · February 2015

I did not make this a poll because 1-I'm not sure how to do it, and 2-I'm looking for discussion not just numbers either way.

I'm here for an ES game that I can share with friends. My first choice would be a live RPG for social and an ES game for solitary; this gives me the best of both worlds. That being the case for me, things I value are things that enhance immersion, role-playing and social stuff.

I don't care for PvP; it's counter to the reason(s) I'm here. I don't "grind" or "min/max".

I look for cool scenery, interesting NPCs, story lines, ways to craft or develop my characters.

If/when updates change things, I'm more worried about immersion and continuity than losing power or ranks.

Iago · February 2015

it still feels pretty Elder Scrolls like although not as much as I would like it too.

the fact that it's an MMO almost made me not buy it.

in the end the only reason I did buy it was because I figured it was my best shot to ever see all of Tamriel in one map.

Soulshine · February 2015

I have been a TES series fan for a very long time, and have also loved and played many MMOs.

For me this game doesn't add up to the best elements of either; too much is missing from both sides to sway the pendulum in one direction over another.

In essence, it has become one of the weirdest game experiences I've had.

Perhaps in another year or so, if they ever finishing changing the darned core systems of the game and actually get on with the development of content and story beyond revamping skills, bugs, and fixes, it will look differently to me.

AshySamurai · February 2015

Did you start out first as a TES fan or an MMO fan?

newtinmpls · February 2015

I started as a TES fan; really a Morrowind fan. Didn't care for Oblivion, never played Skyrim.

Panda244 · February 2015

It's definitely more of an MMO inside TES world. I like the game, but I don't continue playing because it's an ES game, I continue playing because it's fun.

Iago · February 2015

I'm here because I'm an Elder Scrolls fan the Elder Scrolls series are the only video games I even bother to buy anymore

Mercutio · February 2015

I actually never played any of the ES games. I mainly play MMORPGs, with a very rare single player game, maybe one every year or two (Telltale's The Walking Dead seasons are great). I simply don't have the time to play both.

I think this actually put me at an advantage in that I went into this MMO with zero preconceived expectations and a pretty wide variety of former Shared Online Worlds to compare it to.

So for me I only look at it as an MMO, and under my criteria it is a pretty good one. Not perfect, I give it 8/10, but many of my issues with the game, such as the aggravating storage shortage and lack of an appearance change once in game, will soon be resolved thanks to the Crown Store I suspect.

kongkim · February 2015

Mostly here for the TES part. But like MMO aswell. And i like the hybrid of both games.

Brittany_Joy · February 2015

It is neither, instead ESO is more like The Dark Age of Camelot 2. Elder Scrolls is supposed to have an interactive world that encourages exploration and traveling around the map is seamless without loadscreens. The lore of Elder Scrolls has potential for new races and continents, just what a long lasting MMORPG needs.The world of Nirn is full of potential for an epic MMORPG.

The main reason people criticize ESO is not because it is a bad game but the worst Elder Scrolls game. It is the worst Elder Scrolls game because it ignores the lore and the gameplay features unique to Elder Scrolls.

I like ESO for what it is but I do not think it should be called Elder Scrolls.

ShadowDisciple · February 2015

Creating a single player TES game in an MO setting that is seamlessly intergrated and perfect in both aspects is IMPOSSIBLE...

Compromises needs to be taken, and that they did...IMO this game is MMORPG setin the world of TES....

But also for me, even if i play it as a single-player game its still good enough for me to enjoy it... some of the core features of ES series are here...not to an extent that it can be compared to oblivion or skyrim but at least a good amount of things...

That said, as an MMO this game is something that stands out from the rest of MMO's...

I played tons and this one is ONLY MMO that doesent have 10+ quest every 5 steps that wants you to kill 12 boars and collect 15 haunches of deer meat...but instead every "location" has a small quest line and an interssting story that end up with a mini boss fight which is awesome...its like you are playing and SP game in an MMO enviroment...

I personally think this is the best MMO out there even with its flaws which i dont mind

Snowstrider · February 2015

MMO first then TES.

KhajitFurTrader · February 2015

TES first then MMO.

(cue the Fable of the Three Blind Men and the Elephant)

Tandor · February 2015

I see it as both a TES game and an MMO, but I don't seek to over-analyse it. I'm having enormous fun playing it, and it's the best of the games I'm currently playing by a long way. That's good enough for me!

Rosveen · February 2015

It's an MMO with TES lore. But I came here for TES (stayed for the entirety of this weird blend ESO turned out to be)

kevlarto_ESO · February 2015

Feels like an elder scrolls game to me, with mmo elements, one of the best things for me was being able to play in the elder scrolls world with my friends. I have played all the single player elder scrolls and an mmo player since the late 90's, I find ESO a nice break from the cookie cutter mmo's on the market.

Vahrokh · February 2015

It's an ambitious project that wanted to be both a TES game and a MMO and sadly came short of both.

Mikoto · February 2015

Brittany_Joy wrote: »

It is neither, instead ESO is more like The Dark Age of Camelot 2. Elder Scrolls is supposed to have an interactive world that encourages exploration and traveling around the map is seamless without loadscreens. The lore of Elder Scrolls has potential for new races and continents, just what a long lasting MMORPG needs.The world of Nirn is full of potential for an epic MMORPG.

The main reason people criticize ESO is not because it is a bad game but the worst Elder Scrolls game. It is the worst Elder Scrolls game because it ignores the lore and the gameplay features unique to Elder Scrolls.

I like ESO for what it is but I do not think it should be called Elder Scrolls.

You obviously never played redguard or even the mobile games with tossing around "worst elder scrolls" title around. Infact most of this is rather lulworthy as ESO -does- expand on the lore. You claim that to be a TRUE tes game it has to be a seamless world without load screens which exploration is a huge part of tes which ESO does capture in a mmo way but because there's load screens its not a true game in the series? Last I check all the tes games have loading.

You are correct in that the PvP is like daoc but it does fit since it was always said that second era was a time of bloodshed due to the lack of the emperor until Tiber Septim united Tamriel. If anything ESO should be more PvP focused than currently due to this.

To get on topic, the game is a hybrid of both which is still working on adding more of the tes elements since mmorpg and tes mechanics can't go hand in hand in just about everything. Just take what works and adapt it into the mmorpg setting.

Psychobunni · February 2015

I waited for and came because it was a TES game first, MMO second.

I can say without a doubt that I would already be out the door on the MMO aspect if it were just some random company's MMO I tried out for a time. Some core aspects I look for in an MMO are simply missing and others are just really poorly done.

The TES side, well I create toons. I know the heavy RPG people hate that word, but for me thats what they are. They aren't characters with a life story, people playing different from me don't break my "immersion"(men in wedding dresses, jokers and other dumb skeever sh** will tho), the lore/story comes second to the fun of actually playing the game. This has always been the way I felt playing TES games( I did hate Skyrim tho).

Now....as it stands the whole experience has left a sour taste in my mouth. Bethesda(don't bother the blah blah blah ownership between Bethesda/Zenimax, I know already) went from being my favorite gaming company to slowly sliding down to the trash pile with R2games being the worst I've come across. I voted LOTRO over this pre 1.6 and B2P announcements, hahaha I stand by that decision soooo much more now. I'm still hanging in for love of my husband whom I play with and some great people I've met along the way, but I don't recommend it or even talk about it outside this game anymore.

Rosveen · February 2015

Mikoto wrote: »

Brittany_Joy wrote: »

It is neither, instead ESO is more like The Dark Age of Camelot 2. Elder Scrolls is supposed to have an interactive world that encourages exploration and traveling around the map is seamless without loadscreens. The lore of Elder Scrolls has potential for new races and continents, just what a long lasting MMORPG needs.The world of Nirn is full of potential for an epic MMORPG.

The main reason people criticize ESO is not because it is a bad game but the worst Elder Scrolls game. It is the worst Elder Scrolls game because it ignores the lore and the gameplay features unique to Elder Scrolls.

I like ESO for what it is but I do not think it should be called Elder Scrolls.

You obviously never played redguard or even the mobile games with tossing around "worst elder scrolls" title around. Infact most of this is rather lulworthy as ESO -does- expand on the lore. You claim that to be a TRUE tes game it has to be a seamless world without load screens which exploration is a huge part of tes which ESO does capture in a mmo way but because there's load screens its not a true game in the series? Last I check all the tes games have loading.

You are correct in that the PvP is like daoc but it does fit since it was always said that second era was a time of bloodshed due to the lack of the emperor until Tiber Septim united Tamriel. If anything ESO should be more PvP focused than currently due to this.

To get on topic, the game is a hybrid of both which is still working on adding more of the tes elements since mmorpg and tes mechanics can't go hand in hand in just about everything. Just take what works and adapt it into the mmorpg setting.

Did you just imply Redguard is a bad Elder Scrolls game? Or just that it's different from the main series, more different than ESO in fact?

AlexDougherty · February 2015

kevlarto_ESO wrote: »

Feels like an elder scrolls game to me, with mmo elements, one of the best things for me was being able to play in the elder scrolls world with my friends. I have played all the single player elder scrolls and an mmo player since the late 90's, I find ESO a nice break from the cookie cutter mmo's on the market.

^This^ it feels very much like Oblivion to me, I like it.

But I have to say I heard the same question in SWTOR a lot too, and it misses the point, the game is both.

Yemeth · February 2015

This game is for me an Elder Scrolls first, with multiplayer in bonus... But seriously I play mainly solo for well written quest and the universe.

I see the MMO part as an option, a plus if we want to play with friends.

LionheartRichard · February 2015

This is definitely a theme park mmo. Anyone expecting another Elder Scrolls game is going to be disappointed.

Demeos · February 2015

I think it's primarily an Elder Scrolls game.

As for the MMO aspect of this game, it doesn't really feel like one. I don't think any game with fast-paced; constantly on-the-move game mechanics is going to do well in an MMO RPG that relies solely on text-based communication and neither is just throwing in unrestricted voice chat that has not been altered.

wafcatb14_ESO · February 2015

I wanted to play a MMO set in the Elder scrolls game world.

This game plays and feels like a single player game with tacked on Co-op,
Which is ok if thats what you wanted , a watered down Skyrim + friends somewhat.

But honestly while the game is mostly solo game aside from the 1 dungen per zone , and craglorn they added and the unduanted the added recently.the entire game is solo 1-50 the phased questing isn`t very group friendly either.

As a MMo its not very good, LFG tools, guild functions, traders , endgame content which is just playing the other factions 1-50 game, and same main story, fighters/mage guilds quests for every class and faction /yawn very poorly done .

I have cancelled my account every month since release, but end up renewing it a day or two later, as theres nothing out yet to replace it .

[Moderator Note: Edited per our rules on Advertising]

Khivas_Carrick · February 2015

The game is fun and has a very strong TES feel to it, it's just been compromised to make it compatible with it being an MMO

Jeremy · February 2015

newtinmpls wrote: »

I look for cool scenery, interesting NPCs, story lines, ways to craft or develop my characters.

.

If this is what you look for then this is definitely the MMO for you. It's miles above the competition out there in terms of exploration, personality and character development.

People who are used to playing Skyrim and other in-depth single player RPGs are so used to this sort of thing they often don't appreciate these aspects of Elder Scrolls Online. I'm glad you do.

Valnas · February 2015

what is TeS ? this isn't DaoC 2.0 ?

Jeremy · February 2015

wafcatb14_ESO wrote: »

I wanted to play a MMO set in the Elder scrolls game world.

This game plays and feels like a single player game with tacked on Co-op,
Which is ok if thats what you wanted , a watered down Skyrim + friends somewhat.

But honestly while the game is mostly solo game aside from the 1 dungen per zone , and craglorn they added and the unduanted the added recently.the entire game is solo 1-50 the phased questing isn`t very group friendly either.

As a MMo its not very good, LFG tools, guild functions, traders , endgame content which is just playing the other factions 1-50 game, and same main story, fighters/mage guilds quests for every class and faction /yawn very poorly done .

I have cancelled my account every month since release, but end up renewing it a day or two later, as theres nothing out yet to replace it .

You make a fair point. Its multiplayer tools are weak - and that's hurt the game and will continue to hold it back until it is fixed. The economy has been ____ed up from the beginning.

It was naïve for the developers to think players wound bind together in guilds and take care of each other's economic needs. And to make matters worse the game design doesn't support players taking the time to farm up the materials they need because the rate of experience is too fast and it will cause players to quickly out-level the content and fight endless waves of enemies who drop bupkis. So the developers really screwed up there.

[Moderator Note: Edited moderated quote]

Snit · February 2015

You can play TESO either way. They both work.

On my main (VR14 Breton Sorc), I play it as an MMO. I do group content, engage in mass PvP and all the other things associated with typical MMO content.

On my alts, I play it as a single-player ES game. I even switch to first person. That's not the optimal way to gear or level, but it has an entirely different feel.

One thing for you to consider -- if you want to play in a small group of friends, more or less multiplayer Skyrim, get started soon. You need to be out of the first two areas when the B2P wave hits. The content does not handle crowds in a particularly immersive or effective manner.

newtinmpls · February 2015

kevlarto_ESO wrote: »

Feels like an elder scrolls game to me, with mmo elements, one of the best things for me was being able to play in the elder scrolls world with my friends.

My main reason for playing ... and staying