Base game needs a serious coat of paint.

Narvuntien
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With next-gen consoles coming out this year and ESO moving onto them, will the base game ever get a visual update?

Compared to the expansions the base game is a huge drop in quality, the textures are just trash and surely it isn't that hard to update them compared so say changes to the geography or the number of trees so it's not all this flat boring green pallet.

Just looking at all the unnatural polygonal rocks seems like we have gone back in time 15 years not just 6 years. I get that back when this game came out it was competing with the horrifyingly ugly WoW but there is a new wave of MMOs on their way that this game still has to compete with. I am also sure perhaps there was some corner-cutting and crunch going on considering how bad this game was on launch.

It is time to go back and clean up the base zones with all you have learnt about using the game engine when building the new expansions plus there are great features from the expansions like daily world boss dailies that are missing.
  • ArchMikem
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    Nope. Official confirmation that all Art that has been pushed to the Live Server is permanent. That decision was made after the community got all hot and bothered over an Armor Style was changed.
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  • asuitandtyb14_ESO
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    ArchMikem wrote: »
    Nope. Official confirmation that all Art that has been pushed to the Live Server is permanent. That decision was made after the community got all hot and bothered over an Armor Style was changed.

    The hell?! The old armour looks like hot garbage.
  • Ysbriel
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    Yes indeed it does, and it’s a shame they won’t do it.
  • craybest
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    There are some base zones that look better than others. For example the right looks much better than the boring generic high rock.
  • Narvuntien
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    ArchMikem wrote: »
    Nope. Official confirmation that all Art that has been pushed to the Live Server is permanent. That decision was made after the community got all hot and bothered over an Armor Style was changed.

    Well, that is an MTG reserve list level of short-sightedness.

    They don't have to change the armour styles (even though they suck) But they really need to change the rock and plant textures. Valenwood makes my eyes bleed with its ugliness. Although that is also due to the stupid rock formations that are so unnatural.
  • Luke_Flamesword
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    They should at least fix ugliest and most blurred textures. If they only make the same textures (same colors, same art style, etc) but in higher resolution, is more than enough. It's difference between completely changing visual of something and making only better resolution. I can't imagine people complaining about higher resolution textures...

    You can look at some visual mods for other games. When modders create complete new textures, it's changing game visuals completely and often it's not good (when original style was good). But when someone creates textures similiar to original as it's possible, only in higher resolution - it's always good change.

    I can imagine base game zones looking exactly the same as always, but with one difference - beautiful, high resolution textures everywhere :)
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  • danno8
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    ArchMikem wrote: »
    Nope. Official confirmation that all Art that has been pushed to the Live Server is permanent. That decision was made after the community got all hot and bothered over an Armor Style was changed.

    There is a difference between overworld assets and armour on your character though. One is far more personal than the other.

    That being said I don't see this ever happening. It is a tonne of work for old dated content. Better to just keep improving the newest content.
  • WeerW3ir
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    I tell you they should not keep their Word. Not like they did before. Ehem. But yeah. Old zones and assets MUST be updated
  • JoeCapricorn
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    Maybe in a few years when the assets really start to look dated, but I don't see it happening now.

    It is possible that it might be updated for PS5/Xbox-SX
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  • MinnesotaKid
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    It would cost a ton of money to update the current game and now that M$ is buying them everything not already in the pipes is probably frozen until after the transition.

    I would prefer M$ put time, effort, and money into something like an ESO 2 with a new engine / mesh / textures...
    MinnesotaKid

  • Synthwavius
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    ArchMikem wrote: »
    Nope. Official confirmation that all Art that has been pushed to the Live Server is permanent. That decision was made after the community got all hot and bothered over an Armor Style was changed.

    Lol if that's the case then they are hurting themselves. It's like keeping half of the restaurant ruined with mold because somebody in the past didn't like new chair color.
    If anything I think it's an excuse because it wouldn't bring them any direct profit
  • alanmatillab16_ESO
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    It would cost a ton of money to update the current game and now that M$ is buying them everything not already in the pipes is probably frozen until after the transition.

    I would prefer M$ put time, effort, and money into something like an ESO 2 with a new engine / mesh / textures...

    oh please, the only reason MS grabbed Bethedsda and the games that came with it is to get hold of them before Sony or Disney did so they can have some console exclusives. The chances of MS actually making an ESO2 are slightly less than Stuga finally getting an answer to her question.

    The most likely outcome is ESO will continue as it has been for a while, maybe another expansion or two to cash in on XBOX exclusives before the devs get redeployed somewhere else and ESO goes into maintenance.
  • MinnesotaKid
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    It would cost a ton of money to update the current game and now that M$ is buying them everything not already in the pipes is probably frozen until after the transition.

    I would prefer M$ put time, effort, and money into something like an ESO 2 with a new engine / mesh / textures...

    oh please, the only reason MS grabbed Bethedsda and the games that came with it is to get hold of them before Sony or Disney did so they can have some console exclusives. The chances of MS actually making an ESO2 are slightly less than Stuga finally getting an answer to her question.

    The most likely outcome is ESO will continue as it has been for a while, maybe another expansion or two to cash in on XBOX exclusives before the devs get redeployed somewhere else and ESO goes into maintenance.

    whoa chill man, that's just what I would prefer... I didn't say ESO2 is what was going to happen.


    MinnesotaKid

  • asuitandtyb14_ESO
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    Let me just say, we are now in the purely hypothetical, as I agree that ZOS is extremely unlikely to ever update the base game zones. That being said, I think it's a near catastrophic mistake for their management to decide that.

    Some games, like WoW, have an aesthetic that are less photo realistic, and can get away with this. ESO does not fall in that category. As time goes on, these zones are increasingly garish. And even then, WoW, from time to time, goes back and updates textures. They also pace themselves, so whilst they never do it all at once, they're always doing a bit at a time. That just goes to show how necessary it is, and also how easy it is, if you plan it out and phase it in with a workable schedule.

    ESO's graphical quality is not a roller coaster. I do not see each zone getting progressively better, and if it is, it's marginal. Instead, their seems to be more of a "step" category. Most of the base game is at step one. Then, most of the dlc is at step 1, above it, with a possible exception being made for Summerset at step 3. There is a dramatic, but consistently higher level of quality between all of the dlc, that is more or less comparable. Sure, everything might have an aesthetic preference, but objectively that is how the zones stand. I would also add that this does not include weapons and armour, just zones. The weapons and armour have no consistently in quality.

    Therefore, and because at this point half the game is step one, and half is step two, it would be way better for the long-term health of the game to bring all the zones to the same consistency of quality. On a final note, the base zones need replayability. All of the dlc zones have daily quests. These daily quests are not nearly as motivating or interesting as world quests in WoW, or meta events in GW2, but they are the best attempt this game has made at encouraging players to return to a zone, and those base game zones suffer because they miss this feature.

    Edited by asuitandtyb14_ESO on October 31, 2020 1:00AM
  • Linaleah
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    textures can be changed and updated without completely changing the look. IMO - they SHOULD be changed and updated.
    dirty worthless casual.
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  • essi2
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    The game in general needs a graphics pass, but yes, the base game needs alot of work.
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  • AinSoph
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    My only peeve is base game dungeons because they never changed how you have to talk to npc's to further the quest so I just stand there for 20 unskippable seconds waiting for the next objective and mash E on dialogue.
  • MajThorax
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    I always thought Grahtwood, Greenshade, Malabal tor and Reaper's march were rushed. Meshes and textures are boring and very rough. I would like an update version of these region. Daggerfall covenant is still awesome. EP is ok.
    Edited by MajThorax on October 31, 2020 1:31PM
  • Araneae6537
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    I disagree. I love Valenwood and was exploring Auridon on a new character last night, just enjoying the scenery. Yes, a region like Elsweyr does look more polished, and while tocuh-ups here and there could improve the older zones, I don’t think that they look bad at all as they are. As for motifs, my Dunmer DK is rocking the original Dark Elf motif. :sunglasses: There are lots of choices if you don’t like some motifs — well lots of choices except in more subtle shoulder guards, but that’s another topic! :lol:
  • Linaleah
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    no, I honestly don't think they should change design aesthetics. just textures. I don't know if any of you ever seen what some modders do for single player games, but its literally just HD texture replacement, so that leather looks like leather, rather then pixelated mess, etc. a lot of the newer stuff has better textures, which only makes it more apparent when older designs... do not.

    and there is a hell of a difference between changing the whole look, and just taking that same look, changing NO design lines and just updating the textures to make it look more crisp.
    dirty worthless casual.
    Reputation is what other people know about you. Honor is what you know about yourself. Guard your honor. Let your reputation fall where it will. And outlive the ***
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  • GrimTheReaper45
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    ArchMikem wrote: »
    Nope. Official confirmation that all Art that has been pushed to the Live Server is permanent. That decision was made after the community got all hot and bothered over an Armor Style was changed.

    The hell?! The old armour looks like hot garbage.

    hey, high elf motif still gets me complements to this day tyvm! Just had someone ask me about it this week!
  • Nomadic_Atmoran
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    ArchMikem wrote: »
    Nope. Official confirmation that all Art that has been pushed to the Live Server is permanent. That decision was made after the community got all hot and bothered over an Armor Style was changed.

    That was years ago. The community and its needs change over time. Nothing wrong with updating the textures to give the base game a more improved look without significantly changing the layout or overall appearance of these locations.
    ArchMikem wrote: »
    Nope. Official confirmation that all Art that has been pushed to the Live Server is permanent. That decision was made after the community got all hot and bothered over an Armor Style was changed.

    The hell?! The old armour looks like hot garbage.

    For some reason there was a vocal minority of players in the early days of the game unrealistically worried that ZOS would Asian Anime up armor going forward. At the time there was less than 15 motifs in the game and the core group of motifs were racial. There was a whole lot of "this doesnt look realistic and no one in real life would ever expose themselves like this in battle" "heres an image of an actual female wearing plate armor" going on in the early days of the forums. For some god awful reason ZOS took these complaints seriously and changed the base game armor for Redguard to reflect this.

    The much deserved pushback from this change quickly followed. Plenty of people loved having their characters belly buttons out for everyone to see.
    Edited by Nomadic_Atmoran on October 31, 2020 10:44PM
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  • ArchMikem
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    ArchMikem wrote: »
    Nope. Official confirmation that all Art that has been pushed to the Live Server is permanent. That decision was made after the community got all hot and bothered over an Armor Style was changed.

    The hell?! The old armour looks like hot garbage.

    It was the Redguard light armor in question. Original style on females was pretty revealing. They then changed it to be a full shirt and the community got ticked.
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  • precambria
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    No this game needs bug fixes and balancing before anything else takes place.
  • MaleAmazon
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    Ok so what they said was:
    On the development side, we have a strict policy to never change art assets once they have been in the live game, except – and this is important – if they are obviously “wrong”. Think bad animations, shoulder pads clipping through armor, weapons hanging too far off a character model’s hip – that kind of thing. This “no change” policy has been in effect since the Redguard Female Armor Debacle of 2015. This was where we updated the visuals of one type of Redguard Female armor and pushed it live without thinking of the consequences of players who liked the way it looked and had been using it for over a year. This caused a lot of – very much merited – criticism from players that liked the older style much better. That’s when we started our “no change” policy. Even if we think an asset needs to updated because it doesn’t fit ESO’s established art style or the artist responsible thinks they could have done better, we no longer change live assets because players are used to the way the game and their characters look, and that is more important than what WE think.

    I really don´t see that statement getting in the way of updating graphics. What, "I will quit the game because Coldharbour isn´t ugly anymore"? I mean, they have changed their minds and (sort of) backtracked before ("DLC" isn´t "Chapter", changing every damn set in the game, blah blah).

    And yeah, the vanilla zones are painful. Though IMO what the game really needs is a way to just bloody skip them and give accountwide skyshards and skillpoints, including soul magic, once you have it cleared.

    I am on the vanilla MQ for a new character now and I swear, if I bloody have to do that ever again, I am murdering the person responsible for the Coldharbour quests.

  • dcam86b14_ESO
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    like everyone said it's a no for ZoS for base game assets. That's why they push a lot of the DLC/Chapters bc the art is updated and more visually appealing and the reason people start the game in the current DLC/Chapter zone tutorial.

    I do agree though that the base zones are a little wonky looking after playing for 6 years+ , when I go back to them I cringe a little lol.
  • Tandor
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    A lot of this sort of thing is subjective, so when they made some changes before there were some who liked them and some who didn't. It's also very much down to platform, specs, and game settings.
  • Jeremy
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    Narvuntien wrote: »
    With next-gen consoles coming out this year and ESO moving onto them, will the base game ever get a visual update?

    Compared to the expansions the base game is a huge drop in quality, the textures are just trash and surely it isn't that hard to update them compared so say changes to the geography or the number of trees so it's not all this flat boring green pallet.

    Just looking at all the unnatural polygonal rocks seems like we have gone back in time 15 years not just 6 years. I get that back when this game came out it was competing with the horrifyingly ugly WoW but there is a new wave of MMOs on their way that this game still has to compete with. I am also sure perhaps there was some corner-cutting and crunch going on considering how bad this game was on launch.

    It is time to go back and clean up the base zones with all you have learnt about using the game engine when building the new expansions plus there are great features from the expansions like daily world boss dailies that are missing.

    I think they have a policy in place not to go back and refurbish older content.
  • WeerW3ir
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    MajThorax wrote: »
    I always thought Grahtwood, Greenshade, Malabal tor and Reaper's march were rushed. Meshes and textures are boring and very rough. I would like an update version of these region. Daggerfall covenant is still awesome. EP is ok.

    Oh i can tell you much more. Grab popcorn cuz here we go.

    They started with Dc then EP and then AD. Side. Originally they wanted to start with 3 big starter zone. From that we know AD supposed to have Summerset with a similar storyline with the dlc. But they were out of time and could not start it. Originally also AD would have had Elsweyr in it. (you still can Explore it from grahtwood)
    Since the game was very buggy and there was an end date. They had to replan everything. So Elsweyr and Summerset was scrapped and the little starter islands were born. The zones had to be rushed and because of that. Multiple content were cut from the game. On DC side. There were issues with connection to the war zone. (craglorn), On pact side. Vvardenfell was also supposed to exist. But could not manage it properly because took more time than supposed to and it was holded back for the anniversary.

    Dlc zones: craglorn cut in half for more time. The whole city of Elinhir is scrapped for no reasons (probably time and or too much work because way too big city)
    Summerset lost Sunhold for same reason, also Dusk
    Vvardenfell lost northen islands

    And this could go on... But im out of time

  • Weesacs
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    Personally, I'd rather they fixed the existing bugs that get ignored than upgrade visuals.

    Just my opinion
    Edited by Weesacs on November 1, 2020 5:56PM
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