Maintenance for the week of December 22:
• NA megaservers for maintenance – December 22, 4:00AM EST (9:00 UTC) - 8:00AM EST (13:00 UTC)
• EU megaservers for maintenance – December 22, 4:00AM EST (9:00 UTC) - 8:00AM EST (13:00 UTC)
• NA megaservers for maintenance – December 22, 4:00AM EST (9:00 UTC) - 8:00AM EST (13:00 UTC)
• EU megaservers for maintenance – December 22, 4:00AM EST (9:00 UTC) - 8:00AM EST (13:00 UTC)
ESO Season of the Dragon system critique (Spoliers)
Iccotak
✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭
NOTE: This was a comment to a post of mine but I think it works as a topic of discussion
(Elsweyr Expansion critique: https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/475780/spoilers-elsweyr-player-critiques )
SEASON STORY-LINES
While I understand that ZOS wants to streamline their DLCs to have a more consistent story that players can engage in every year I don't think they quite nailed it yet. The conclusion to the "Season of the Dragon" story seemed rushed after completing the Dragonhold main story. It felt a bit like a whimper more than a bang.
The final confrontation against Kaalgrontiid just didn't sit right. As a threat to our existence, he never felt consistently present like Molag Bal or Nocturnal did in their stories so defeating him didn't feel like a big pay off but more like; "Oh yeah he exists and we should deal with that".
What might have improved that was:
Personally I really liked the Summerset expansion as a conclusion to the "Daedric War" storyline and I think that story arc was more successful because it had complete first, second, and third acts.
1st Act: Morrowind
2nd Act: Clockwork City
3rd Act: Summerset
Makes me wonder what if they released a DLC Zone in Q2 as a build up to an epic expansion to end the year on in Q4.
Q1 - Prologue + Dungeon DLC
Q2 - Story Zone DLC
Q3 - Season Story Dungeon DLC
Q4 - Epic Expansion conclusion
BOSSES
ZOS is capable of designing more challenging solo content BUT Kaalgrontiid suffers the same problem as Mulaamnir from Elsweyr. The final story boss encounter was not exciting because it was geared to beginning solo players.
Personally I might not mind seeing the final bad guy to a Season Story as an Epic Dungeon Boss Fight.
It doesn’t have to be as hard as a Veteran dungeon but more effort could have been made to make these fights more mechanically interesting, like the World Bosses, as opposed to something that could be beaten by a complete novice.
However, I understand that some of the Solo crowd would rather NOT do that.
Edited by Iccotak on January 9, 2020 10:42PM (Elsweyr Expansion critique: https://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/475780/spoilers-elsweyr-player-critiques )
SEASON STORY-LINES
While I understand that ZOS wants to streamline their DLCs to have a more consistent story that players can engage in every year I don't think they quite nailed it yet. The conclusion to the "Season of the Dragon" story seemed rushed after completing the Dragonhold main story. It felt a bit like a whimper more than a bang.
The final confrontation against Kaalgrontiid just didn't sit right. As a threat to our existence, he never felt consistently present like Molag Bal or Nocturnal did in their stories so defeating him didn't feel like a big pay off but more like; "Oh yeah he exists and we should deal with that".
What might have improved that was:
- Have the Dragons you fight in the open map talk about their Leader (if you haven't beaten him yet)
- Have the Q3 dungeon DLC more closely linked to the story of the Season, as opposed to events that are somewhat related. Drive home that this is a threat to all of Tamriel
Personally I really liked the Summerset expansion as a conclusion to the "Daedric War" storyline and I think that story arc was more successful because it had complete first, second, and third acts.
1st Act: Morrowind
2nd Act: Clockwork City
3rd Act: Summerset
Makes me wonder what if they released a DLC Zone in Q2 as a build up to an epic expansion to end the year on in Q4.
Q1 - Prologue + Dungeon DLC
Q2 - Story Zone DLC
Q3 - Season Story Dungeon DLC
Q4 - Epic Expansion conclusion
BOSSES
ZOS is capable of designing more challenging solo content BUT Kaalgrontiid suffers the same problem as Mulaamnir from Elsweyr. The final story boss encounter was not exciting because it was geared to beginning solo players.
Personally I might not mind seeing the final bad guy to a Season Story as an Epic Dungeon Boss Fight.
It doesn’t have to be as hard as a Veteran dungeon but more effort could have been made to make these fights more mechanically interesting, like the World Bosses, as opposed to something that could be beaten by a complete novice.
However, I understand that some of the Solo crowd would rather NOT do that.
2
-
Taleof2Cities✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭✭I doubt that ZOS is going to change their schedule to release the Chapter content in Q4 (instead of Q2), @Iccotak.
If you are looking for an Epic Dragon Boss Fight, find yourself a group for Sunspire Trial.1 -
Kiralyn2000✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭✭The final story boss encounter was not exciting because it was geared to beginning solo players.
Personally I might not mind seeing the final bad guy to a Season Story as an Epic Dungeon Boss Fight.
It was always disappointing back when I was playing WoW, to follow a storyline through a zone and then not get to see the finale because it was stuck in a dungeon.
If you want your story to end in a dungeon boss fight, start/continue/finish your story in dungeons. So that the target audience gets to see the whole thing, and people who aren't the audience don't get left hanging with an incomplete story.2 -
Sylvermynx✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭✭Kiralyn2000 wrote: »The final story boss encounter was not exciting because it was geared to beginning solo players.
Personally I might not mind seeing the final bad guy to a Season Story as an Epic Dungeon Boss Fight.
It was always disappointing back when I was playing WoW, to follow a storyline through a zone and then not get to see the finale because it was stuck in a dungeon.
If you want your story to end in a dungeon boss fight, start/continue/finish your story in dungeons. So that the target audience gets to see the whole thing, and people who aren't the audience don't get left hanging with an incomplete story.
Agreed. That was one of my major issues with WoW as well. And I had a family guild that meant I could see the finish. Still, it was a problem, because we were separated by "me 'n sis are in the desert SW, daughter/SIL/g'daughters are in Germany, nephew/his friends/fiancee are in PST"....
It wasn't workable - I could log on any time (well, unless husband was being a pook - which he always was, as he doesn't have any use at all for games or me wanting to play whatever/whenever), but everyone else.... it was - problematic.
Still, over the years, I got to play some of WoW's best "endgame" stuff. Honestly? I still snarl at the way WoW (and RIFT, later) went in directions I simply didn't find fun.... *sigh*1 -
Iccotak✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭✭✭Kiralyn2000 wrote: »The final story boss encounter was not exciting because it was geared to beginning solo players.
Personally I might not mind seeing the final bad guy to a Season Story as an Epic Dungeon Boss Fight.
It was always disappointing back when I was playing WoW, to follow a storyline through a zone and then not get to see the finale because it was stuck in a dungeon.
If you want your story to end in a dungeon boss fight, start/continue/finish your story in dungeons. So that the target audience gets to see the whole thing, and people who aren't the audience don't get left hanging with an incomplete story.
I totally get where you are coming from. I'd just like it they could make the final boss fight more interesting - doesn't have to be a dungeon - just don't let a boss fight feel tedious.
My larger issue has more to do with the writing and the lack of build-up to the final fight.
When it came to the Molag Bal & Nocturnal Bosses there was this feeling that everything you had done was leading to that moment, to that point in the story. When you had beaten it there was a feeling of victory because the stakes were consistently present.
In Summerset, when (SPOILERS) Darien sacrificed himself to give us a shot at Nocturnal there was a feeling of urgency and well "Sacrifice".
This is why I think Cadwell should have stayed dead in the Elsweyr chapter, from a player perspective we might have had a personal vendetta with Kaalgrontiid in Dragonhold.
There has to be a way to get a better three act structure with the system ZOS is going forward with.0 -
kind_hero✭✭✭✭✭
✭✭To me the season of the dragon was to long. I played Elsweyr a lot, but even as a casual player, I got bored with the Khajiit theme. This is because I did not get engaged in the story. The world did not really seem to be in danger, like in the main story, where you see everything affected by daedric influence and dolmens everywhere.
My critique is that I would liked to see dragons scorching parts of Rimmen and Senchal from time to time. To log in and find the cities under attack, buildings ablaze or at least some form of conflict taking place at the city gates. Killing dragons became like a chore.
The story did not explain how the Halls of Colossus contained an endless rage of dragons. In the end, fighting one or two more very bad dragons did not feel as much, after all this dragon grind. By the time I put on the mask of Alkosh, my char killed more dragons than the Skyrim dragonborn.
I would have made the several dragons we saw escaping the Halls of Colossus impossible to kill by groups (instead they would resurrect from their ash or leave some trophy after they were defeated and flown away). The only way to kill them would be through story line quests. This way you would remember them, and make them more iconic. Unfortunately these opportunities got wasted.
I hope they will learn from these issues for the next chapter.[PC/EU] Tamriel Hero, Stormproof, Grand Master Crafter1