Do you hope to see more Solo Content?

Bobargus · November 14

I want everything in ESO to be soloable.

So yes, i hope to see more solo content.

peacenote · November 14

Personally, no, based on the reference to arenas specifically. I will expand a little on my answer; obviously I can only speak for myself so I'm not saying other people might not like more solo content. But here's the thing, for me:

I love IA. On that we can agree! But I love it for its flexibility to be solo, duo, or with a companion. Because.... boy am I not into arenas. I especially am not into arenas because the absolutely last thing I want to do in this game is farm frustrating content, alone, and arenas over the years often have the best end game weapons. To have the "best" gear for group content, I have to spend hours alone in forced solo content. Rarely, if ever, am I in the mood to do this.

Another thing I greatly dislike? Farming leads for mythics which also are great for group gameplay via an activity that can't really be done as a group - like a lockbox lead. The leads in dungeons and trials or even world bosses I don't mind so much, because I can do them with friends.

I do sometimes adventure in Tamriel alone, and I like that there are lots of ways I can do this in ESO. I am 100% a fan of content that can be done solo or in a group, and often with that type of content I'll sometimes be solo, and sometimes in a group. But I am not a big fan of content that must be done solo, especially when it rewards items that are most valuable in group play. I like it when I can do it alone if I happen to be by myself. To me, there's a big difference.

PS. I know a lot of people also don't like content where you have to be in a group, and I get that. That's why I support things like leads dropping from multiple sources, or the elimination of mechanics in dungeons that can't be done by a single person. There's a line between encouraging people to try other content vs. getting close to "forcing" it by placing high value items behind inflexible content. I'm all for group and solo content in ESO but the combination of length, challenge, and RNG for drops at the end means I'm not at all interested in seeing another arena anytime soon.

Necrotech_Master · November 14

DenverRalphy wrote: »

Necrotech_Master wrote: »

DenverRalphy wrote: »

Necrotech_Master wrote: »

VouxeTheMinotaur wrote: »

Necrotech_Master wrote: »

archive is more "fresh" than vateshran and maelstrom, because it has variable boss fights, trash fights and stages, and the variable buffs in the form of the verses and visions

maelstrom and vateshran are the same predictable fights every run and never change

yeah you're right, i didn't think of it that way. i suppose that's why i enjoy IA so much.

I would say maybe future solo content could be similar in providing different variables as well, but i imagine that would be frowned upon, and may as well be an IA re-mask too.

i expect if we get other arenas they will be more structured like maelstrom/vateshran, or they could include solo versions of existing group dungeons

i would be basically OK though if they just kept expanding and improving the archive (more enemy types, arenas, bosses, visions, verses)

I don't know that I ever want to see IA expanded again. Even if I could get past the fact that the u43 changes aren't much more than the same content wearing a different dress, there are just too many rewards tied to it now. There are too many leads gated behind IA now, resulting in far more runs than many players would like chasing after them. The rewards you can purchase are just too numerous and at prices that take too long to acrue. Drops from within the Archive are so numerous now, that curated sets now share curation with a 2nd set dragging it out even longer.

I keep trying to like IA, but constantly feeling like I'd have to sacrifice all other ESO activities to farm IA into what looks like perpetuity.

I get that IA is supposed to be Infinite. But it shouldn't be Infinite At The Expense of All Other Activities.

i agree it doesnt need any more leads

i didnt mention gear either but i could see them adding more class sets in the future though

there really isnt that much you can buy from the archive, i have like over half a million fortunes right now because the only things i buy are some occasional things from the rotation vendor (leads and monster style pages) and provisioning satchels

if your only running arc 1, then yes the fortunes are going to take a really long time to save up, as arc 1 is ~2-3k fortunes (even less if you miss scamps and bonus portals)

Provisioning boxes from Filer Tezus for the Aetherial Dust, Perfect Roe, and the War Torte primary ingredients. Furnishing materials trunk has some real goodies in it. As well all the others. To name a few.

yeah i know, ive bought dozens of them, but its extremely tiring when you can only buy 1 box at a time because all of those freaking boxes are marked as unique items

i have 500k fortunes, i would spend them more if i could buy 10x or 20x of the provisioning boxes at once

I_killed_Vivec · November 14

Has nobody said it yet? I suppose I'll have to...

"It's an MMO, you're supposed to group up!"

While I wouldn't necessarily ask for more specifically solo content, I would like it so that there aren't any mechanics that prevent soloing "group" content. Then at least the group content is there as a feasible challenge, something to aim at even if you can't handle it today.

I also find the argument for "story mode" quite persuasive. It was only when I started soloing dungeons myself that I experienced the stories. I appreciate that there are a lot of people who have no interest in challenging themselves to solo dungeons, and have no wish to group up, but would still like to enjoy the stories.

JemadarofCaerSalis · November 14

SeaGtGruff wrote: »

Technically, the Infinite Archive isn't "solo" content, since it can be run by two players grouped together. It's just "instanced" content, and other instanced content-- such as many of the group dungeons-- can be run by solo players if they wish, although some instanced content requires two or more players due to mechanics, and some instanced content is clearly designed for larger groups (12 players).

Edit: But to answer your question, I play solo at least 95% of the time, and would definitely enjoy more of the "challenging" content that is designed to be clearable by solo players. That said, my main characters aren't even powerful enough to consistently clear the first arc of the IA, because they usually get one-shot by some of the cycle bosses, or knocked off of the platform, and I have a personal rule that I just leave the IA as soon as I get killed-- although in rare cases I might make a second attempt at a boss that just killed me. I've gotten past the first Tho'at a mere couple of times, but most of the time I can't even get to the Tho'at. And I'm okay with that, since I do enjoy fighting the "trash" mobs and the bosses which don't one-shot me or knock me off of the platform.

Are you me? That sounds a lot like my strategy for IA.

I once got past the first arc and haven't managed again, but most of that is because I usually get hit by a dragon or I die to a boss somewhere. (it annoys me when I get the boss ALMOST down, and then get killed and they regenerate)

As for the question, as a majority solo player, I would love more content that can be soloable, though it doesn't have to be *focused* on being solo only content. Though I wouldn't object to more solo only content.

Ingenon · November 14

I like the mix of activities I can do solo or with a companion, and then activities that require a group of people.

I have done most of the overland quests, both solo, and with another person. And I think most of the zone stories are good.

I often unlock companions on multiple alts, and I usually enjoy their stories.

I have done the IA daily quest multiple times with a companion, and other times with another player, and I like it either way. But I leave after finishing the daily, and then sometimes it takes a week or more until I do IA again.

Doing Maelstrom Arena or Vateshran Hollows gets tedious, and I haven't played either of them in months.

Sometimes I do daily random dungeons, and usually they are fun.

Trials can be fun, and I try to clear one or two of them with a group weekly. The veteran DLC trials are challenging, but once the group figures them out, they are fun to do again.

Necrotech_Master · November 14

I_killed_Vivec wrote: »

Has nobody said it yet? I suppose I'll have to...

"It's an MMO, you're supposed to group up!"

While I wouldn't necessarily ask for more specifically solo content, I would like it so that there aren't any mechanics that prevent soloing "group" content. Then at least the group content is there as a feasible challenge, something to aim at even if you can't handle it today.

I also find the argument for "story mode" quite persuasive. It was only when I started soloing dungeons myself that I experienced the stories. I appreciate that there are a lot of people who have no interest in challenging themselves to solo dungeons, and have no wish to group up, but would still like to enjoy the stories.

i like doing stuff like that, challenging group content in solo or small team

one feat that ive done was 2 man the first boss in normal HOF just because lol, couldnt get past the 2nd boss with 2 people due to the upstairs mechanic (need a minimum of a group of 5 to get past this boss)

Erickson9610 · November 14

Bobargus wrote: »

I want everything in ESO to be soloable.

So yes, i hope to see more solo content.

I hope there's still some group content in ESO. It is part TES game and part MMORPG, after all — a bit of both would be fantastic.

Servadei · November 14

I play MMOs so I can play with other people so no I don't want more solo content. I'll play a solo game if I want that.

shadyjane62 · November 14

Yes, because I only play solo. I would play in a group only if I didn't have to play with other people.

spartaxoxo · November 14

Yes, because solo stuff is fun.

Ursadoom · November 15

I think that I would just prefer a hard mode for general content.

PrincessOfThieves · November 15

I hope to see more content in general. It's really disappointing how little we are getting lately.

Gabriel_H · November 15

PrincessOfThieves wrote: »

I hope to see more content in general. It's really disappointing how little we are getting lately.

They have to balance giving older players something to do while not giving new players a mountain to climb.

Nerouyn · November 15

ESO has always been rightly lauded for its story (mostly solo) content but that isn't cheap to make.

ESO's group content is another matter. For my and I think also many others' tastes, it's just not and never will be fun in its current form.

ZO tried to capitalise on their good story credentials by cramming more story into their dungeons with like the year long story arcs with significant chunks inserted into DLC dungeons but all that did is break the story for players like me who don't touch them.

Infinite Archive was probably an attempt to "teach" players to love mechanics. I'd also judge that a failure.

I think that ESO and other MMOs like Wildstar erred in trying to copy WOW's raid style" mechanics". Yes WOW was super successful but not on the back on those.

For many players, mechanics are fundamentally immersion breaking and boring. Being reduced to a rat in a maze just isn't fun for most people. Some enjoy it so I wouldn't ditch them entirely, but this is one of those occasions where you can potentially please everyone.

Implement an additional mode for dungeons which removes mechanics and throws more and bigger enemies at you instead, and also scales to the number of players in the group. Don't bias the game towards either dungeon style. Allow the same achievements to be earned either way.

Aggrovious · November 15

I want to see stuff spawn faster. Just like Dragonstar, it takes forever. I know its infinite, but I would like for the waves to end and for all of them to spawn at once instead.

The only Solo content I need is to be able to complete dungeons that prevent soloing. The spider in Crypt of Hearts II puts you in a web repeatedly.

PrincessOfThieves · November 16

Gabriel_H wrote: »

PrincessOfThieves wrote: »

I hope to see more content in general. It's really disappointing how little we are getting lately.

They have to balance giving older players something to do while not giving new players a mountain to climb.

I'm all for improving new players experience. But for a live service game like this it is very important to keep players engaged. You can't build a healthy mmo population by ignoring your dedicated playerbase.
And btw, new player experience has been pretty bad lately. I am often helping newbies and they always seem really confused when it comes to game systems and such. I don't see how the lack of new content is supposed to help them.

JemadarofCaerSalis · November 16

PrincessOfThieves wrote: »

Gabriel_H wrote: »

PrincessOfThieves wrote: »

I hope to see more content in general. It's really disappointing how little we are getting lately.

They have to balance giving older players something to do while not giving new players a mountain to climb.

I'm all for improving new players experience. But for a live service game like this it is very important to keep players engaged. You can't build a healthy mmo population by ignoring your dedicated playerbase.
And btw, new player experience has been pretty bad lately. I am often helping newbies and they always seem really confused when it comes to game systems and such. I don't see how the lack of new content is supposed to help them.

Yeah, I would say that new content isn't an issue, however, new mechanic overload can be when it seems to be dumped on a new player all at once.

I know they have changed this since, but I remember when I was new (just over a year ago) and all these quest givers were shouting at me in the starting areas, you had all these different type quests, again in the starting areas, that weren't really given much explanation (such as battlegrounds and the 'for glory!' type quests) about exactly *what* they were, and it can be really easy to just get too much too fast.

I understand that they want to introduce the mechanics and gameplay to new players, and some games go way overboard in dragging out their tutorials, but sometimes, as the saying is, less can be more.

It probably doesn't help when a lot of the guides are written from a veteran player perspective, which means that they often forget that a new player isn't always used to the terminology and intricacies of that system they are talking about.

Just as an example about the guides, a while ago I wanted to find out which public dungeons were the easiest, so I could start trying my hand at them. Nearly every single guide I found was talking about group dungeons and not public. It was nearly impossible to find anything that talked about public dungeons specifically, even when people were asking about public dungeons. Then most of the answers regarding public dungeons specifically were 'well, base game are easiest, then in order of release' with no clue as to the order of release for the DLCs. (Fortunately UESP has a list of that), because many of the people answering were here for all the releases. (I have since figured out public dungeons and just need Necrom ones now, but it took a lot of going back and forth with UESP to figure it out)

I think the more important thing to keep in mind with new content is not so much 'new players have a mountain to climb' but more 'lets be mindful of how we release this for new players'. Info dumps at the beginning of games are rarely useful.

MindOfTheSwarm · November 16

The Vateshran final boss is the only boss in the game that made me jump up and throw my fist in the air after I beat her. I didn’t cheese her with Pale Order Ring. I played the mechanics as they were meant to be played and she was tough. More content like this is what I would like.

katanagirl1 · November 18

MindOfTheSwarm wrote: »

The Vateshran final boss is the only boss in the game that made me jump up and throw my fist in the air after I beat her. I didn’t cheese her with Pale Order Ring. I played the mechanics as they were meant to be played and she was tough. More content like this is what I would like.

It all depends on what class you play. On stamblade it was miserable for me but DK or Warden is probably a cakewalk.

Generalized statements like that are not helpful for the playerbase.

DeadlySerious · November 18

The vast majority of the game is already solo content.

What ESO needs is more group content and far more priority put on Cyrodiil.

Tariq9898 · November 18

ESO already has tons of solo content. Now they should prioritize the QUALITY of the solo experience. Such as adding difficulty options for Overland.

alpha_synuclein · November 18

Desiato wrote: »

In general, I don't enjoy solo arenas in eso because I don't play an online game to spend my time in a solo instance.

This. I would rather see more group content. Maybe with some variety with the number of participants, like mini trial for 8 instead of 12.

HazierBlue · November 18

In a game where there's a massive amount of group content, ultimately meaning others can help you achieve the end goal of rewards and such, it's really refreshing to have content where it's just you, and only you.

What you're looking for is called a single player game.

spartaxoxo · November 18

HazierBlue wrote: »

In a game where there's a massive amount of group content, ultimately meaning others can help you achieve the end goal of rewards and such, it's really refreshing to have content where it's just you, and only you.

What you're looking for is called a single player game.

Tons of MMOs have single player and multiplayer content. I actually haven't played an MMO without single player content but I haven't played all of them either.

HazierBlue · November 18

spartaxoxo wrote: »

HazierBlue wrote: »

In a game where there's a massive amount of group content, ultimately meaning others can help you achieve the end goal of rewards and such, it's really refreshing to have content where it's just you, and only you.

What you're looking for is called a single player game.

Tons of MMOs have single player and multiplayer content. I actually haven't played an MMO without single player content but I haven't played all of them either.

Sure. It doesn't have to be either or. I enjoy my solo questing time like a lot of people, but I am kinda tired of the attempts to strip MMOs of the social experience by pushing them more and more into the solo direction.

spartaxoxo · November 18

HazierBlue wrote: »

spartaxoxo wrote: »

HazierBlue wrote: »

In a game where there's a massive amount of group content, ultimately meaning others can help you achieve the end goal of rewards and such, it's really refreshing to have content where it's just you, and only you.

What you're looking for is called a single player game.

Tons of MMOs have single player and multiplayer content. I actually haven't played an MMO without single player content but I haven't played all of them either.

Sure. It doesn't have to be either or. I enjoy my solo questing time like a lot of people, but I am kinda tired of the attempts to strip MMOs of the social experience by pushing them more and more into the solo direction.

The OP isn't asking for anything that strips the multiplayer experience away though. I personally don't find hardline stances against multiplayer or single player to be particularly conducive to creating a good game experience.

Whether or not something should be solo friendly depends on the content, for me.
Large groups, small groups, and solo should have stuff designed for it.

Taril · November 18

HazierBlue wrote: »

I am kinda tired of the attempts to strip MMOs of the social experience by pushing them more and more into the solo direction.

I wish I could find the games you're playing...

Every MMO I've played (Most of them) keeps pushing forced social interactions. So much so that it actually becomes a detriment to social behaviour.

Every endgame must be Dungeons/Raids/PvP, you must keep making new World Bosses and World Events that can't be soloed and you must keep tying many things to such group activites that cannot be attained in any other way.

Then there's things like Guilds which instead of being purely social groups, end up providing tangible benefits by way of things like Guild Banks, Guild Houses, the ability to sell things on a market...

The ironic thing is all this "Forced Group Content" tends to leave more of a "Solo Player" taste because in order to make such things actually palettable, you end up with stuff like "Group Finder" to make it easier for people to actually find groups to do such content. At the cost of groups ending up being less social, with more instances of silent runs and people running off trying to clear content as fast as possible.

As well as people joining Guilds simply to leech the benefits (Thus necessitating stuff like the guild automatically earning gold when any member does stuff such as happens in multiple MMOs and other such methods of enabling leechers to still contribute to a guild) and barely, if at all, interacting with other members.