ESO -- Top 5 Things To Fix --

scorpius2k1 · June 2019

** PLEASE ESO FAM, LET'S TRY TO KEEP THIS THREAD CONSTRUCTIVE AND NON-TOXIC **

TL;DR
It just feels like there should be better systems in place to track and fix problems within ESO. Players need to be included in this as well with constant communication and updates to what the plans, even on a weekly basis or some sort of ORGANIZED updates to all of us would be nice; a "todo" list of sorts. That way we know what to expect! The game is obviously growing and hopefully the employees are too, their support is greatly needed to get this game back on track before it spirals out of control to a point where it's too much of an undertaking and after every update it just becomes worse, not better.

As a long-term player myself, and to new players alike, I would say these are the top 5 major issues with ESO that for some reason never get fixed or are seemingly low-priority when it should be on the critical list. These, to me, are the reasons long-term and new players wont stick around if they aren't fixed, sooner than later hopefully but I feel this is wishful thinking at this point. I really hope something within the company is restructured because the current order of operations internally is not working anymore. ESO seems to have grown to big for ZoS to manage with the current way (out of control) or employees may be on other projects, putting ESO on the second priority list. It's all speculation of course, but this is how it feels to players which creates a toxic environment which is very unhealthy for any game's ecosystem and longevity. I as many others want ESO to thrive and succeed, not the opposite.

MAJOR ISSUES:

#1 Loading Screens - Self-explanatory to 100% of the players in ESO. Loading screens have only gotten worse and worse, it makes no sense why this is happening. Not even 6 months ago, you could visit a wayshrine and travel within the same zone and it was almost instant; now, it sometimes takes 10-60 seconds. This is also happening in dungeon and trial groups now when entering other areas within. Not a good thing when the rest of your group has to wait for one or more players to load in, or already wiped due to this. It's horrendous. Zone to another zone transfer has taken almost 2 minutes at one point. Sure, these aren't technically "that long", but when you are in-game trying to do something it feels like an eternity and a waste of time.

#2 Lag - This is another self-explanatory problem to 100% of the players in ESO. Random glitching, movement, using skills, bar swaps. It's great right in the middle of fights, causes group to wipe (happened personally to me on Scalecaller peak last boss VET HM, we were down to 3% - just the other day). Sure, it's a complicated matter with networking, but the majority of players have decent internet connections and gaming hardware nowadays. The blatant and obvious issue is server capacity/performance.

#3 Group Finder - How can a MAJOR feature of an MMO be so neglected and non-functional. It has only gotten worse over time, devs have seen and commented first-hand about the problems with it. Yesterday, I sat in que as a healer for 40+ minutes yesterday, joined up with 2 other DPS and it still took over 10 minutes. This was during prime-time on a weekend! That was a first for me. Since I can remember (3+ years), it's either completely broken or not functioning properly. More recently, I was even booted to the login screen for repeatedly clicking the join button because it kept saying "cannot que at this time" (which ZoS said, we should do until they can get a FIX for the LFG tool). D*mned if you do, d*mned if you don't.

#4 Gameplay - Something just feels "off" since the latest update, especially when in combat trying to do rotations and bar swap. It has seemed slightly better over the last week however, so who knows, maybe just server performance/capacity issues.

#5 Bugs - I'm not even going to list anything specific here, especially when some are 5+ years old and still in the game since release. The list is simply too long. The good news however, is none seem to be entirely game-breaking which is good. The downside here is it takes a lot away from the game's immersion and overall playability, which in itself is a big deal to players.

There are surely many more things that need fixing and tweaking (some class balances, etc), but overall, I would rather deal with any other issues in-game than what is listed above.

Sindrik8x · June 2019

Sorry, bugs need to be #1. Necro is busted and a lot of us can't even enjoy the class right now.

I agree lag and load screens hit the majority of the population, but you have a primary SELLING POINT of this chapter basically getting ignored from the QA stand point.

I think those are top 3 for sure.

thermatico · June 2019

I would just like for them to tells what, if any, bugs they are currently working.

Sergykid · June 2019

all ur points are around performance. Me, among many others, don't have serious performance problems outside CRyodill in prime hours.

you could have rated "#1 - performance" and be done with the wall of text. I would say the big amount of useless sets, not all specs being viable, or pvp balance.

KoultouraS · June 2019

thermatico wrote: »

I would just like for them to tells what, if any, bugs they are currently working.

None. They would be fixed by now, or at least some of them would be, if, for every time they said they
"are working on it" or they "are killing it" , they did something related to the aforementioned issues .

scorpius2k1 · June 2019

The "Top 5 issues" I've listed also really aren't in any particular order -- just really the top 5 things listed with examples that are seriously wrong with the game that need fixing. Nothing new to read of course, but I feel we should always bring it up to ZoS as a constant reminder until it's hopefully fixed.

Sergykid wrote: »

all ur points are around performance. Me, among many others, don't have serious performance problems outside CRyodill in prime hours.

you could have rated "#1 - performance" and be done with the wall of text. I would say the big amount of useless sets, not all specs being viable, or pvp balance.

Trying to be detailed is all, hence the TL;DR for those who don't want to read. Again, nothing really in a particular order just a top 5 list in general.

hellcatlizzieb16_ESO · June 2019

Kicking out to menu on loading screens with error message is number 1 for me, lost my chance to get a guild trader after losing a bid coz of this 😑

Second would be invisible enemy/damage bug. Been slogging through vet maelstrom and some rounds have been a nightmare due to taking invisible damage before round even activates. Not like scenery damage or anything. Like seth flywheel I hadn’t even walked forward to activate the round as was fixing gear and buffs and I died from ‘damage’ before starting round 1 ??! 😂

Panomania · June 2019

The biggest issue IMO for ZOS is the lack of communication with the community. I understand they dont want to stir the pot, and thats fine, but they have taken it too far to the other extreme. Give us a bit more feedback on game issues we bring up. Maybe take some time to actually EXPLAIN why some things are the way they are, and why a fix that may SEEM simple is anything but. Honestly? I'd feel fine paying a couple bucks more a month in plus fees, or increased crown prices to see a dedicated staff that hadles communication with the players, because atm its severely lacking. I think you'd see a lot less whining and complaining about a lot of these issues, and a FAR greater CSI if you had something like this in place, ZOS!

Durham · June 2019

PEFORMANCE OF THIS GAME IS HORRID!

PVP is unplayable after 6pm until 1am

scorpius2k1 · June 2019

Durham wrote: »

PEFORMANCE OF THIS GAME IS HORRID!

PVP is unplayable after 6pm until 1am

Definitely agree with this, peak times are the absolute worse.

Osubaker33 · June 2019

Main two that effect me are latency (lag and random disconnects) and the bugs (Necromancer especially)

I don't get FPS drops. I think that is mostly related to how good your system is.

Group finder always works for me. You just have to spam the button now and after about 5 seconds of spamming you will que in.

MartiniDaniels · June 2019

All 5 points valid and are most critical, completely agree, though I'll place lag on 1st place over loading screens.

zaria · June 2019

Sergykid wrote: »

all ur points are around performance. Me, among many others, don't have serious performance problems outside CRyodill in prime hours.

you could have rated "#1 - performance" and be done with the wall of text. I would say the big amount of useless sets, not all specs being viable, or pvp balance.

This, yes loading screens are getting worse, part in my fault for not getting eso on to an ssd.
Planning an new system so.

Not much issues on non cp PvP think its less company level fights there so less server load.

casparian · June 2019

1. Bugs. Too many skills just don't work; too many functionalities just don't function. I won't belabor the point; this seems to be common knowledge to everyone but the devs at this point.
2. Performance. Even before the recent massive uptick in player numbers, this game has run poorly in almost all of its best and most interesting content (Cyrodiil PVP, trials, major cities) for years, and it's only getting worse. Again, this seems to be common knowledge to everyone but the devs at this point.
3. Communication about problems. A ZOS rep or community manager should publicly acknowledge (here on the forum or elsewhere) every bug they know of, and give us status updates on progress toward fixing each one. Same for major, ongoing performance issues. As is, ZOS routinely goes 8+ months without even acknowledging the existence of major bugs and performance issues, apparently because they don't affect the majority of players (i.e., new players). This has been their style for years.
4. Communication about direction. What does ZOS want the classes to be? What is ZOS' vision for specs that the community is disappointed in? What is ZOS' vision for the difficulty of the various game modes (vet group dungeons, trials, overland, etc.)? What kind of experience does ZOS hope new players have? What kind of experience does ZOS hope vet players have? What place does ZOS want the stamina/magicka dichotomy to have in the game? Are they happy with they way (fill in the blank) is being experience by players? We will never know because they do not talk to us. It's no exaggeration to say that half the reason I left the game is because the devs/community managers communicate so infrequently on such a narrow range of topics.
5. QA. Maybe they are expecting us to do more on the PTS than we are doing, maybe they don't have the right internal procedures in place, maybe there's something weird about their internal testing environment, I don't know. But whatever the reason, too much is released in a broken, buggy, or unbalanced state (or often a combination of the three). That this is true for their flagship offering of 2019, the Necromancer class, shows just how deep the problem goes. No one has any reason to expect new products from ESO to work out of the box -- at best, you're looking at a six-month wait before new offerings that aren't Crown Store baubles function as one would expect. That's just not okay.

Dusk_Coven · June 2019

#1 should be trolls and thread-derailers on the forums. Clear out that noise and we'd get more focussed, useful threads. Every now and then do a little bump post or additional-info post to refresh the issue thread up to the front page again. Instead of having to restart threads because they get derailed or become TLDR because they get swamped with useless posts.

You think the devs want to wade through our crap to find useful, actionable information? Or to deal with our toxicity and biting their hand while they try to help us?

Blinkin8r · June 2019

Great post. I've played this game for years without a break. Did most of the Elsweyr content and canceled my sub until they get Cyrodiil to the point where it's playable again.

danthemann5 · June 2019

casparian wrote: »

1. Bugs. Too many skills just don't work; too many functionalities just don't function. I won't belabor the point; this seems to be common knowledge to everyone but the devs at this point.
2. Performance. Even before the recent massive uptick in player numbers, this game has run poorly in almost all of its best and most interesting content (Cyrodiil PVP, trials, major cities) for years, and it's only getting worse. Again, this seems to be common knowledge to everyone but the devs at this point.
3. Communication about problems. A ZOS rep or community manager should publicly acknowledge (here on the forum or elsewhere) every bug they know of, and give us status updates on progress toward fixing each one. Same for major, ongoing performance issues. As is, ZOS routinely goes 8+ months without even acknowledging the existence of major bugs and performance issues, apparently because they don't affect the majority of players (i.e., new players). This has been their style for years.
4. Communication about direction. What does ZOS want the classes to be? What is ZOS' vision for specs that the community is disappointed in? What is ZOS' vision for the difficulty of the various game modes (vet group dungeons, trials, overland, etc.)? What kind of experience does ZOS hope new players have? What kind of experience does ZOS hope vet players have? What place does ZOS want the stamina/magicka dichotomy to have in the game? Are they happy with they way (fill in the blank) is being experience by players? We will never know because they do not talk to us. It's no exaggeration to say that half the reason I left the game is because the devs/community managers communicate so infrequently on such a narrow range of topics.
5. QA. Maybe they are expecting us to do more on the PTS than we are doing, maybe they don't have the right internal procedures in place, maybe there's something weird about their internal testing environment, I don't know. But whatever the reason, too much is released in a broken, buggy, or unbalanced state (or often a combination of the three). That this is true for their flagship offering of 2019, the Necromancer class, shows just how deep the problem goes. No one has any reason to expect new products from ESO to work out of the box -- at best, you're looking at a six-month wait before new offerings that aren't Crown Store baubles function as one would expect. That's just not okay.

Nailed it (almost).

It's not that the devs don't know about the issues. It's not even that they don't care, although that is what outward appearances suggest.

The issues is they cannot or will not touch any issue that doesn't affect the game's financial performance.

This game is printing money for ZOS's investors, their real customers, the people that really matter (to them).

For the people at the top, the game is running perfectly. Unfortunately, that's not the game the rest of us are playing...

scorpius2k1 · June 2019

Blinkin8r wrote: »

Great post. I've played this game for years without a break. Did most of the Elsweyr content and canceled my sub until they get Cyrodiil to the point where it's playable again.

I have done the same thing unfortunately. It was a tough call since I *really* want to support this game but in return the game needs to support us, the players, with what we are asking for. As frustrated as I and everyone else are nowadays with the longstanding issues, I know all of us want our game to succeed and it's the #1 reason why we are even here. I think ESO has huge HUGE potential, far past what it is now. With a more streamlined and communicative process all around, it would be a big start. The players want this, the community managers want this, the devs surely do to. Change can and should happen, it just takes that first step. ESO is such a unique experience bringing people together, #ESOFam is exactly why even just a little bit of change from the "norm" of operations internally would be huge to everyone, from the players all the way to the execs.

MajBludd · June 2019

1,2, and 3 have been issues for a few yrs. They have tried various fixes that either didn't change much or made things worse. Good luck and dont expect much this late in the game.

scorpius2k1 · June 2019

I wanted to add a link here to this post, which also ties in with what is being discussed here. Performance & Bugs are really the weak point of this game right now and it can do so much better.

ESO Bug Compilation:
https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/482293/fix-it-bug-compilation#latest

MajBludd wrote: »

1,2, and 3 have been issues for a few yrs. They have tried various fixes that either didn't change much or made things worse. Good luck and dont expect much this late in the game.

A few years ago, I might have felt this way but not anymore. The more we communicate the issues constructively the better team ZoS can understand the issues at hand that are bothering players the most. Hopefully they will start moving things up on the priority list, *hopefully*.

kromegas · June 2019

1. PUMMELING GOLIATH BASH
2. PUMMELING GOLIATH BASH
3. PUMMELING GOLIATH BASH
4. PUMMELING GOLIATH BASH
5. PUMMELING GOLIATH BASH

Sanguinor2 · June 2019

I dont know if this would be part of lag, but Zos also really Needs to work on instancing.
In Trials and battlegrounds you can get instances that are completely broken, fps Drops hard, ping increases very much for all Players in it, in case of a Trial you can reset the instance which takes some time but you dont have to deal with it at the very least but in a bg you are either stuck in the singular Digit fps Slideshow with 400+ ping or you get the deserter Penalty. The same might be Happening in Dungeons but since I dont do many Dungeons anymore I cant speak About the Situation in those.

That aside the Points you Mention are Things that should be priority when getting fixed. I would also add communication to those, we hear very Little from Zos on the Forums (I dont have Twitter so idk how the Situation is there) and Topics that require clarification or updates but have unsatisfied Players writing them get closed more often then getting answered.

grannas211 · June 2019

casparian wrote: »

1. Bugs. Too many skills just don't work; too many functionalities just don't function. I won't belabor the point; this seems to be common knowledge to everyone but the devs at this point.
2. Performance. Even before the recent massive uptick in player numbers, this game has run poorly in almost all of its best and most interesting content (Cyrodiil PVP, trials, major cities) for years, and it's only getting worse. Again, this seems to be common knowledge to everyone but the devs at this point.
3. Communication about problems. A ZOS rep or community manager should publicly acknowledge (here on the forum or elsewhere) every bug they know of, and give us status updates on progress toward fixing each one. Same for major, ongoing performance issues. As is, ZOS routinely goes 8+ months without even acknowledging the existence of major bugs and performance issues, apparently because they don't affect the majority of players (i.e., new players). This has been their style for years.
4. Communication about direction. What does ZOS want the classes to be? What is ZOS' vision for specs that the community is disappointed in? What is ZOS' vision for the difficulty of the various game modes (vet group dungeons, trials, overland, etc.)? What kind of experience does ZOS hope new players have? What kind of experience does ZOS hope vet players have? What place does ZOS want the stamina/magicka dichotomy to have in the game? Are they happy with they way (fill in the blank) is being experience by players? We will never know because they do not talk to us. It's no exaggeration to say that half the reason I left the game is because the devs/community managers communicate so infrequently on such a narrow range of topics.
5. QA. Maybe they are expecting us to do more on the PTS than we are doing, maybe they don't have the right internal procedures in place, maybe there's something weird about their internal testing environment, I don't know. But whatever the reason, too much is released in a broken, buggy, or unbalanced state (or often a combination of the three). That this is true for their flagship offering of 2019, the Necromancer class, shows just how deep the problem goes. No one has any reason to expect new products from ESO to work out of the box -- at best, you're looking at a six-month wait before new offerings that aren't Crown Store baubles function as one would expect. That's just not okay.

Sometimes even those have issues lol. But you can bet your sweet azz that will be patched ASAP.

I think your post is pretty spot on; although, I believe the Devs are aware of some of it. They either just dont know how to fix it, are handicapped because people that make all the money dont care, or they dont care either. I honestly feel its a little of all of the aboe.