How to prevent burnout/boredom in ESO?

MagicalLija · July 2020

I don't want to quit, because I overall love ESO, it's just been increasingly hard to log on every day and play.

I'm an end game PvE player which dabbles in PvP. I've also just hit 810 CP and I really don't know what to do anymore. I've got most classes up to level 50, kitted them out etc.

I just don't know what I can do anymore.

logarifmik · July 2020

A weird question. Just stop playing and find other activities to amuse yourself. That's what I do. Personally, I play TESO mostly when new content arrives.

UPD: Will you love ESO less, if you'll stop logging in every day and play? I guess no.

Hämähäkki · July 2020

I know you said you don't want to quit, but how about a break?
Come back in a few month and till then there will be new stuff to do. Thats how I do it

There is no point in logging in, if you're bored.

Danikat · July 2020

What do you want to do? You say you don't want to quit because you love ESO but can you be more specific than that? When you think about playing ESO what is it that excites you and makes you want to play? What do you look forward to doing?

Then do that. Even if it's something you've done before or don't "need" to do again (like repeating quests you've already done) if you enjoy it then that in itself is a reason to do it.

And if you're not sure or nothing really seems to excite you right now take a break. If you've done everything you want to do there's no need to log in every single day just because you used to do that. You don't have to out-right quit ESO either, just play something else for a while which does interest you and come back to ESO when you feel like it, or when there's something new to do.

Alidel · July 2020

Try to push for achievements or scores. If you find nice party either grouping up with friends or joining pve guild - it could be really good time spending.

Hurbster · July 2020

Just take a break, or try building up a different character. Doing Hack the Minotaur's solo builds has kept me engaged after I finished with the rather lacking (imo) Greymoor.

tsaescishoeshiner · July 2020

Dabble further in PvP, especially on a weird build? I've been having a blast with an unarmed Stamden build in battlegrounds lately lol. I also really like ganky burst builds in PvP because they feel so different than PvE.

Or consider the social element. Maybe find a few dueling buddies to try stuff out with? See what your guildies are up to? Housing?

I would try to think what you would enjoy doing with having a goal. For me these days, it's being a nuisance in Imperial City Flame Clenching people like when orcas play catch with seals for fun.

A break can be best honestly. Not gonna have too much fun if you're trying really hard to find stuff fun.

stevenyaub16_ESO · July 2020

I don't understand why anyone needs to feel obligated to play a game. It's not a job. Move on, come back or don't it's your spare time.

KappaKid83 · July 2020

Take a break, an extended one. I am on about 6 months of not playing and I don't miss it. Try coming back when you feel the itch to play and if it doesn't grab you back then you have just moved on and that is OK too.

VaranisArano · July 2020

WouId you prefer to try new aspects of ESO?

Or would you prefer to do the same type of content you currently enjoy, just taking a break until ZOS releases new content?

Personally, if you do take a break, don't overdo it with following the meta when you return. There's nothing that saps the enjoyment of fresh content quite like grinding out new gear for multiple characters.

Lysette · July 2020

There is no obligation to log in every day - and you are still playing the game even if it is just a couple of times per week or even per month. You basically just miss out on daily log in rewards, but then again, pretty much nothing of what is offered there is something useful for you at your level anyway.

Try to see games like food - you don't want to eat the same food every day, variety is key to enjoy it in the long run. You can do that with games as well like this - play different games in parallel, but none of them on a daily basis - it doesn't hinder you of course to play a game several days in a row, if you are enjoying it - stop feeling obliged to log in every day - you aren't.

Maxx7410 · July 2020

I started to learn magic, i have some problems with levitation spells but i am close now!!!

Elwendryll · July 2020

Taking a break is healthy. Learning a new role is fun.

Personally I manage a guild, and we run dungeons. We get triple achievements like Mountain God, Apex predador, etc... And we help newer players get their achievements, yesterday we got the beast personality for someone who only had the veteran clear. I'm also doing trials 3 times a week. I have a really busy schedule overall.

I'm having my fun playing in good company and pushing for hard achievements

I just love getting better, and then teaching to other people.

Prof_Bawbag · July 2020

Only sensible thing to do is move onto something else. In the last 2 years, I've barely played this game. When i go back I last around 2 weeks tops before bailing again. Not a slight on the game, simply played the game waaaaay too much and probably persevered playing it when i should have taken a few months off. Keep at it and you'll eventually just get outright bored of it.

I think the problem for me, the content is more or less just rinse and repeat of the same things we've had for years now. Had i not helped build an active guild I'd have left the game for good. I only go back to help out as and when I'm really needed. Had my money's worth so ain't complaining.

I doff my cap to those who have stuck with pvp because that particular part of the game has been the same for years.

Destai · July 2020

Breathers are ok. It's a game, not a marriage. I found myself getting cranky about the little things here because it was the only thing to do, so I took some nights off, watched TV, and play when I feel like. Despite the daily rewards and other incentives, you don't really have to play daily. There's so much content in this game that it's hard to get bored in, unless you're burned out. If you're burned out, then yeah take a break.

In game, I think trying new things helps. It's nice to do your crafting dailies, but routines can become stale. This is why alts help. I have toons for crafting, others for antiquities, some doing specific expansions, some for thieving, etc.. If you do quests all the time, stop and do skyshards hunts or something.

mairwen85 · July 2020

Do some things that are totally off-the-wall or just plain fun every now and then. Naked dungeon runs, or mass group nordic bathing towel public dungeons--just do something for the lol and silliness to break the routine.

I killed ESO for myself the first weekend of Greymoor. I did 26 back-to-back vMA runs for my perfected bow and inferno... it killed all enjoyment for the new chapter and pretty much burnt me out for 2 weeks. I couldn't face the whole new antiquities systems or doing any group content; just everything felt like a chore. So I logged in for shorter and just spent my time bimbling around and chatting in guild. Essentially ESO became a pretty chat room I could kill stuff in for a while, with my main focus being a bit daft and joking around.

Izanagi.Xiiib16_ESO · July 2020

MagicAndrej wrote: »

I don't want to quit, because I overall love ESO, it's just been increasingly hard to log on every day and play.

I'm an end game PvE player which dabbles in PvP. I've also just hit 810 CP and I really don't know what to do anymore. I've got most classes up to level 50, kitted them out etc.

I just don't know what I can do anymore.

Most people set self improvement goals like doing the best DPS you can / learning PVP and doing really well in it.
Some set story goals, such as finishing zone storylines / chapters etc..

The thing with ESO, especially with the PVP is that there is a lot of variety, for example you have cp & nocp gearing and then on top of that whether you are solo/small group or in a raid group or even just zerg surfing. Each of them can make use of different gearsets to be optimal.

I suggest finding a group to pve / pvp with at regular times during the week and then if you are really finished with gearing/upgrading everything and performing the best you can with them just play something else until the next group day.

Vevvev · July 2020

For me it's roleplaying and PVP that extends the life of a game. Find good guilds willing to do PVE and PVP activities as well as a pretty friendly roleplaying guild. The social interactions, story telling,and PVP competition can really keep you invested for a long time.

Sure there are times where even I get a bit bored, and people in my guilds busy with other things. When that happens I pop into Cyrodiil and try to help my faction out. Sometimes I arrive just in time to stop the AD from taking our Scrolls, EP from securing Emperor, and maybe at a time where I can assist my faction in securing an area. Despite the lag and issues present in Cyrodiil it is the gift that keeps on giving.

You could also go achievement farming for the awesome dyes and stuff. My main is still unlocking stuff after I've had them for 2 and a half years.

Jaimeh · July 2020

MagicAndrej wrote: »

I don't want to quit, because I overall love ESO, it's just been increasingly hard to log on every day and play.

I'm an end game PvE player which dabbles in PvP. I've also just hit 810 CP and I really don't know what to do anymore. I've got most classes up to level 50, kitted them out etc.

I just don't know what I can do anymore.

Are you bored because you've run out of things to do, or because you've lost enjoyment in the game in general? These are two different things: in the case of the former I would say, to try out new roles in PvE, and get more seriously into PvP since you've only dabbled so far. In the case of the latter, probable best to take a break, and come back after a while when there's new content to see if you might enjoy the game again.

SickleCider · July 2020

Take a break, obviously.

If not, try something completely new. That worked for me. I was disinterested in housing until last year, and now it's given me a whole bunch of incentive to do content I wouldn't have touched before. Gotta get those furnishings.

Dusk_Coven · July 2020

Go play something else for a while. See how other games do things and get a fresh perspective. I took a break to play some Aura Kingdom, TERA, SWTOR swoop racing update, picked up a bunch of free games from Epic Games like Borderlands Pre-Sequel and Sherlock Holmes and others... Tons of stuff to do while waiting for new content or the next event.

Narvuntien · July 2020

The best part of the game is the quests, so when I am feeling burnout I just go quest for a bit or even more esoteric I do some of the exploration quests like the shrines in VVaadenfel, the magic items in Summerset or the wall in Elseweyr or the instruments in Skyrim or the museum pieces in Wrothgar, oh hell even just Skyshard hunting, Make sure you only use the actual in-game clues and no addons or looking it up.

hexnotic · July 2020

N/A

I_killed_Vivec · July 2020

Fishing

Llidoryc · July 2020

I always find that shifting gears to help out new players is satisfying. Creates a positive experience for newbies and helps you create a support network in case you need help with something later on once they get a bit more seasoned

Kaunas · July 2020

Man your post spoke to me personally lmao. I took a 1 year break now i reinstalled the game but yet have found time to actually play it. I do suggest taking a small break. It helped me atleast

Vajrak · July 2020

MagicAndrej wrote: »

I don't want to quit, because I overall love ESO, it's just been increasingly hard to log on every day and play.

I'm an end game PvE player which dabbles in PvP. I've also just hit 810 CP and I really don't know what to do anymore. I've got most classes up to level 50, kitted them out etc.

I just don't know what I can do anymore.

Not teasing at all -- have you done the actual quests, or did you just grind and fight your way up? A lot of players experiencing burnout never actually played the game, they just burned through chasing the carrot, and forgot there is a game.

YstradClud · July 2020

I'm sure they could develop a end game hamster wheel to keep you logging on once you have got your stage. Some other games are getting very good at this kind of thing.

Wandering_Immigrant · July 2020

"If you love something let it go, if it doesn't come back to you it was never meant to be". I've been playing since just before Morrowind dropped, but if you added up all my active playtime I've really probably only been playing about a year and a half tops.

I usually get really into it for while, but then eventually start to lose focus, start logging in just to do dailies and then halfheartedly start working toward some goal until I get distracted and log off. Those sessions become shorter and shorter until one day I don't log in at all.

It might be months before I log on again but I always do because I do genuinely really like the game and eventually start to miss it. Usually I'll come back with a fresh perspective and goals, new or old, that I have a renewed motivation toward.

As someone who's been playing MMOs for near 20 years now I assure you this is perfectly normal and healthy behaviour.

Marto · July 2020

a. Do some quests! The vanilla quests are generally not amazing, but specially Aldmeri Dominion and Daggerfall Covenant have some really solid ones.

b. I've been exploring the Imperial City, and it is a surprisingly cool zone to explore, from a PVE perspective. It is rather grindy and dull, sure, but it kinda reinforces the idea of it being a city under siege from daedra.

c. Take a break. ESO updates are clearly designed to cater to casual players that only log in every 3-6 months, play the new content, and then log off for a while. You really won't miss anything if you just log out until the Q3 dungeons or the Q4 zone come out.

Tandor · July 2020

KappaKid83 wrote: »

Take a break, an extended one. I am on about 6 months of not playing and I don't miss it. Try coming back when you feel the itch to play and if it doesn't grab you back then you have just moved on and that is OK too.

I'm not sure it really qualifies as a break if you're still playing the forum

!

My advice to those bored with a game is to walk away completely for a while, play another game or pursue a different hobby. Put ESO right out of your mind for a while, that way it'll be fresh when you come back, which it won't be if you camp on the forum instead of in the game.