Concerned About the New Subscription Direction

SgtSilock · March 4

You know, when I see something cool on another player now, my first thought isn’t “I wonder how they got that?” - it’s “I wonder how much that cost?”

Because of that, I honestly couldn’t care less about how much more they want to monetise the game. I already feel completely defeated by the whole thing.

majulook · March 4

I am so unsure about this whole new subscription thing. Seems like ESO+ is dropping value.
Looking at the cost of it all I can drop ESO+ not do the new Sub still play ESO, and get 2 or 3 new games for the price of the 1 years ESO sub.

Ravynmagi · March 6

I've enjoyed this game for years. But I don't know what ZOS is doing here. The game is just getting way too expensive. They need to pick either a subscription model or season pass, not both. I wish them luck, because I can't imagine new players being able to figure out what the heck is going on now.

Frayton · March 6

Just when I thought I had Tomes figured out...

I thought the premium version of Tomes was going to be a part of ESO+. No? Is premium Tomes a separate thing we have to pay for? Also, premium Tomes and premium plus Tomes is confusing.

Emeratis · March 6

Frayton wrote: »

Just when I thought I had Tomes figured out...

I thought the premium version of Tomes was going to be a part of ESO+. No? Is premium Tomes a separate thing we have to pay for? Also, premium Tomes and premium plus Tomes is confusing.

It's a little confusing but imo the stream slides did the best job at an overview and the articles and further talking was a bit more convoluted:

There are three tiers. Free is accessible to everyone and is supposed to give comparable rewards if not slightly better than the old endeavor system. Premium gives the paid track which is a lot of cosmetics and bonus premium currencies such as seals. Premium+ gives faster pass xp as well as bonus cosmetics bundled and related to the theme. You can see some of the bundle cosmetics in slide two. If you buy either premium version you can unlock things on the reward track permanently at your own pace, but free tomes will have a sesaonal duration.

ESO+ will gain additional pass xp and after 12 months of ESO+ you earn credit to get one Premium+ pass for free. Personally this is where I get annoyed with the new system and I think they could afford to be more generous since ESO+ has bled value in recent years but it is what it is. Price points for tomes are $15-30usd per season. 2026 is going to have three I think? So eso+ players should get one for free if they are a yearly subscriber.

agelonestar · March 6

In summary, ESO+ has been steadily devalued - it started with 2025's miserable (and apparently now entirely forgotten) move to Seasons and will continue this year.

Those of us who have funded ZoS by buying chapters and subscribing are also devalued - as above, this started with last year and seems set to continue.

The "new" content isn't new at all either, so the idea of new content has been devalued. What we're actually getting is what would have been called base game improvements back in the Chapters era. This is Seasons Zero, apparently - new Seasons - not the Seasons from last year, as we won't mention that ever again. Presumably that was Seasons -1.

Having played since 2014, I can totally see why I'm the last guy standing from my original friendship group and guilds. I've never been so disappointed and depressed in the "new" direction of game developer.

ADarklore · March 6

I'm actually excited about the new direction. They are modernizing ESO to compete with other current and upcoming MMOs. And let's be realistic, a large portion of gamers don't want to pay for anything and want everything handed to them, they have no idea how much an MMO costs to maintain, nor do they seem to care... which if they did, they might realize exactly WHY MMOs constantly seek additional revenue. Look at New World... it's done the end of 2026 as they didn't make enough money to maintain itself BECAUSE they didn't really have any type of constant revenue stream. ZOS stated years ago that ESO+ doesn't make enough to maintain the game, which is why they added more store items and crates. Many players claim they want ESO to continue for years, but then complain about having to pay additional for things or complain when ZOS adds more sources to increase revenue. ESO isn't free to maintain, it costs a LOT, and obviously they need to make a profit, otherwise risk going the way of New World. If Microsoft determines that ESO isn't making enough to justify continuing, then that's exactly what's going to happen. I have personally spent thousands on ESO since 2015, I feel I've gotten my money's worth because of the number of hours I've spent playing. I don't mind spending more IF the game continues in a direction that keeps the game fun for me... which last year it didn't. I think with the change in leadership, it seems to have brought new life to the game... and based on last PTS, they actually seem to be listening to player feedback- which was missing for so many years. So I have hope for the future, as long as they continue in this current direction.

Emeratis · March 6

"Mmo's take a lot of money to fund" and "ESO has been excessively greedy with monetization for many years" can both be equally true statements. Either way, there is an article saying ESO has made 2 billion in revenue in it's lifetime. While some of the article is dated and last year was rough for ZOS, I still would wager a guess that ESO is financially sound unless they have grossly mismanaged that revenue/funds.

AzuraFan · March 6

agelonestar wrote: »

I
Those of us who have funded ZoS by buying chapters and subscribing are also devalued - as above, this started with last year and seems set to continue.

Do you mean them giving away a lot of paid stuff for free? For the older stuff, I don't mind. If they start accelerating that and give away zones and DLCs that are only a couple of years old, then that will irritate a bit.

As for ESO+, it's still good value for me as it is right now. I'll obviously re-evaluate if things change.

I saw a comment on social media yesterday about making Wrothgar, Thieves Guild, etc. base game. The person said that they won't be buying anything anymore, since it looks like everything will eventually be free anyway. I do see his point. When the Gold Road collection was on sale a couple of weeks back, I considered buying it for my second account, but I don't play that account much, so I figured I'd just wait because they'll eventually add everything to the base game, anyway.

Posters here are already saying that the collectibles in the premium tomes will eventually be available in the bazaar for everyone to buy, which is making me think twice about buying any of the tomes. I can wait for collectibles. It would be nice if ZOS would say whether the items in the premium tomes will pretty much be given away after a time, given away in the sense that real-world money won't be required to get them.

SummersetCitizen · March 6

My guess is they’re gonna flash up all those paid benefits you are missing out on as you progress through your “free” tome. (Much like the frequent crown store pop-ups.)

You’re gonna want those extra currencies when you see what they tempt you with in the Gold Coast Bazaar.

It just seems like they are manipulating us into spending more money while simultaneously dialing back the quality and quantity of content.

ZOS_Kevin · March 6

BretonMage wrote: »

spartaxoxo wrote: »

All new content is free so if you're paying for content the game is a lot cheaper now.

Are we even getting new content this year? I know Kevin said that we're not getting a new zone this year. So far the only content I'm hearing about is the TG and Sheogorath quests, which seems pretty sparse.

We do have new content this year. We will have a stream in a few weeks to go a bit more in-depth. We have some new gameplay systems, more quests, new quality of life systems, a new trail, and adding solo dungeon variants of two existing dungeons. You'll hear/ see some of this stuff off in the coming weeks and coming months as things get to a semi-presentable state. That's for the teams to show off.

BretonMage · March 6

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

BretonMage wrote: »

spartaxoxo wrote: »

All new content is free so if you're paying for content the game is a lot cheaper now.

Are we even getting new content this year? I know Kevin said that we're not getting a new zone this year. So far the only content I'm hearing about is the TG and Sheogorath quests, which seems pretty sparse.

We do have new content this year. We will have a stream in a few weeks to go a bit more in-depth. We have some new gameplay systems, more quests, new quality of life systems, a new trail, and adding solo dungeon variants of two existing dungeons. You'll hear/ see some of this stuff off in the coming weeks and coming months as things get to a semi-presentable state. That's for the teams to show off.

Looking forward to hearing about it! Thanks for the response, Kevin!

marcbf · March 6

Does anyone at this point know how these "Tomes" are to be purchased? Will it be via Steam and the ESO Store only? Also, under the old system you could buy stuff like chapters at a later date and even discounted. Will that still be a thing with the new system?

Orbital78 · March 6

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

BretonMage wrote: »

spartaxoxo wrote: »

All new content is free so if you're paying for content the game is a lot cheaper now.

Are we even getting new content this year? I know Kevin said that we're not getting a new zone this year. So far the only content I'm hearing about is the TG and Sheogorath quests, which seems pretty sparse.

We do have new content this year. We will have a stream in a few weeks to go a bit more in-depth. We have some new gameplay systems, more quests, new quality of life systems, a new trail, and adding solo dungeon variants of two existing dungeons. You'll hear/ see some of this stuff off in the coming weeks and coming months as things get to a semi-presentable state. That's for the teams to show off.

I look forward to more details on the solo dungeons.

Overall I think the direction is fine, as long as mythics and gear are no longer pay walled. Cosmetics being bling for premium seems fair.

AllenaNightWood · March 7

ZOS_Kevin wrote: »

BretonMage wrote: »

spartaxoxo wrote: »

All new content is free so if you're paying for content the game is a lot cheaper now.

Are we even getting new content this year? I know Kevin said that we're not getting a new zone this year. So far the only content I'm hearing about is the TG and Sheogorath quests, which seems pretty sparse.

We do have new content this year. We will have a stream in a few weeks to go a bit more in-depth. We have some new gameplay systems, more quests, new quality of life systems, a new trail, and adding solo dungeon variants of two existing dungeons. You'll hear/ see some of this stuff off in the coming weeks and coming months as things get to a semi-presentable state. That's for the teams to show off.

A new Trail for hiking lol you mean Trial

majulook · March 7

I still don't get why ESO+ is still giving a stipend of Crowns, if cosmetics and stuff is going to be gotten with the Tomes currency and you cannot use Crowns to get Tomes, what are the Crowns good for?

Why make the tomes so confusing with premium Tomes and premium plus Tomes? it seems like a FOMO of tactic.

ADarklore · March 7

majulook wrote: »

I still don't get why ESO+ is still giving a stipend of Crowns, if cosmetics and stuff is going to be gotten with the Tomes currency and you cannot use Crowns to get Tomes, what are the Crowns good for?

Why make the tomes so confusing with premium Tomes and premium plus Tomes? it seems like a FOMO of tactic.

Because not ALL 'cosmetics and stuff' is going to be available with Tomes, Tomes are for the battle pass items... Crowns are for the in-game store items. You can't buy Crown Store items with Tomes and vice-versa.

SummersetCitizen · March 7

ADarklore wrote: »

majulook wrote: »

I still don't get why ESO+ is still giving a stipend of Crowns, if cosmetics and stuff is going to be gotten with the Tomes currency and you cannot use Crowns to get Tomes, what are the Crowns good for?

Why make the tomes so confusing with premium Tomes and premium plus Tomes? it seems like a FOMO of tactic.

Because not ALL 'cosmetics and stuff' is going to be available with Tomes, Tomes are for the battle pass items... Crowns are for the in-game store items. You can't buy Crown Store items with Tomes and vice-versa.

Correct, but in the past you could buy event tickets with crowns.

The new currency for the new storefront cannot be bought with crowns. With the new Battle Pass, the value of Crowns has gone down along with the value of ESO+. They want you buying premium tomes every quarter to essentially elicit a double sub for $25 a month. In exchange you get extra exclusive currency, largely recycled cosmetics which are reskinned and temporary event zones. 🎉

As a veteran player just wanting content, the new system is not for me. It gives away for free what I already paid for while offering nothing other than FOMO seasonal sales opportunities.

It seems designed to hook new players into the subscriptions rather than provide enjoyable, permanent content for those who have been around supporting ESO for years.

SpiritofESO · March 7

Frayton wrote: »

Just when I thought I had Tomes figured out...

I thought the premium version of Tomes was going to be a part of ESO+. No? Is premium Tomes a separate thing we have to pay for? Also, premium Tomes and premium plus Tomes is confusing.

Okay, you're going to like this! So, I asked Google AI about this about an hour ago because I am a veteran player who started with the Elsweyr chapter in June 2019 and I have always paid the annual subscription cost in a lump-sum. Here's what Google told me:

~~~

Just like your 19,800 Crowns (the amount was recently bumped up slightly!), ZOS will drop your Tome rewards in one go. Here is what your annual "lump sum" will look like starting in 2026:

12 Premium Tome Tokens: This is the big win. Since 12 tokens equals one Premium+ Tome, your annual sub essentially pays for one full "Battle Pass" season (the $30 tier) every year for free.

24,000 Tome Points: You'll get all 12 months' worth of points (2,000 per month) immediately. This will let you skip a huge chunk of the "grind" and unlock high-tier rewards on Day One of a new season.

The 10% Boost: You’ll have the passive XP/point boost active for the entire year, so any gameplay you do will fill the Tome bars faster than a non-sub.

It’s a pretty sweet deal for veterans who are already committed to the yearly sub. You're basically getting the same Crowns you love, plus a $30 seasonal expansion pass bundled in for "free."

Tamriel Tomes Integration and ESO Plus Expansion of Limits (QoL Buffs):
Transmute Crystal Cap: Doubled from 1,500 to 3,000 crystals.
Antiquity Timer: Your time to scry leads is doubled (up to 360 days for rare leads).
Furnishing Slots: An additional 50–100 slots depending on house size, continuing the "double capacity" benefit as base limits increase for everyone.

~~~

And, we no longer will have to purchase expansion packs.

So yeah, if you're an ESO Plus subscriber like I am, there is a significant expansion to our benefits and I'm pretty jazzed about it!

Frayton · March 7

Emeratis wrote: »

Frayton wrote: »

Just when I thought I had Tomes figured out...

I thought the premium version of Tomes was going to be a part of ESO+. No? Is premium Tomes a separate thing we have to pay for? Also, premium Tomes and premium plus Tomes is confusing.

It's a little confusing but imo the stream slides did the best job at an overview and the articles and further talking was a bit more convoluted:

There are three tiers. Free is accessible to everyone and is supposed to give comparable rewards if not slightly better than the old endeavor system. Premium gives the paid track which is a lot of cosmetics and bonus premium currencies such as seals. Premium+ gives faster pass xp as well as bonus cosmetics bundled and related to the theme. You can see some of the bundle cosmetics in slide two. If you buy either premium version you can unlock things on the reward track permanently at your own pace, but free tomes will have a sesaonal duration.

ESO+ will gain additional pass xp and after 12 months of ESO+ you earn credit to get one Premium+ pass for free. Personally this is where I get annoyed with the new system and I think they could afford to be more generous since ESO+ has bled value in recent years but it is what it is. Price points for tomes are $15-30usd per season. 2026 is going to have three I think? So eso+ players should get one for free if they are a yearly subscriber.

Thanks, I see OP's point now and agree.

So, it's basically a double sub. I think I'll pass on the paid battle pass and plus plus paid battle pass because ESO has cost me a lot already, not just with money, but it's cost a lot of time as well.

SpiritofESO · March 7

Frayton wrote: »

Emeratis wrote: »

Frayton wrote: »

Just when I thought I had Tomes figured out...

I thought the premium version of Tomes was going to be a part of ESO+. No? Is premium Tomes a separate thing we have to pay for? Also, premium Tomes and premium plus Tomes is confusing.

It's a little confusing but imo the stream slides did the best job at an overview and the articles and further talking was a bit more convoluted:

There are three tiers. Free is accessible to everyone and is supposed to give comparable rewards if not slightly better than the old endeavor system. Premium gives the paid track which is a lot of cosmetics and bonus premium currencies such as seals. Premium+ gives faster pass xp as well as bonus cosmetics bundled and related to the theme. You can see some of the bundle cosmetics in slide two. If you buy either premium version you can unlock things on the reward track permanently at your own pace, but free tomes will have a sesaonal duration.

ESO+ will gain additional pass xp and after 12 months of ESO+ you earn credit to get one Premium+ pass for free. Personally this is where I get annoyed with the new system and I think they could afford to be more generous since ESO+ has bled value in recent years but it is what it is. Price points for tomes are $15-30usd per season. 2026 is going to have three I think? So eso+ players should get one for free if they are a yearly subscriber.

Thanks, I see OP's point now and agree.

So, it's basically a double sub. I think I'll pass on the paid battle pass and plus plus paid battle pass because ESO has cost me a lot already, not just with money, but it's cost a lot of time as well.

~~~

I think it's more like:

12 Premium Tome Tokens: This is the big win. Since 12 tokens equals one Premium+ Tome, your annual sub essentially pays for one full "Battle Pass" season (the $30 tier) every year for free.

So, pay for the annual ESO Plus subscription in one lump sum (credit card) and get the premium tokens all together. And that's your free Battle Pass for the year!

spartaxoxo · March 7

SpiritofESO wrote: »

Frayton wrote: »

Emeratis wrote: »

Frayton wrote: »

Just when I thought I had Tomes figured out...

I thought the premium version of Tomes was going to be a part of ESO+. No? Is premium Tomes a separate thing we have to pay for? Also, premium Tomes and premium plus Tomes is confusing.

It's a little confusing but imo the stream slides did the best job at an overview and the articles and further talking was a bit more convoluted:

There are three tiers. Free is accessible to everyone and is supposed to give comparable rewards if not slightly better than the old endeavor system. Premium gives the paid track which is a lot of cosmetics and bonus premium currencies such as seals. Premium+ gives faster pass xp as well as bonus cosmetics bundled and related to the theme. You can see some of the bundle cosmetics in slide two. If you buy either premium version you can unlock things on the reward track permanently at your own pace, but free tomes will have a sesaonal duration.

ESO+ will gain additional pass xp and after 12 months of ESO+ you earn credit to get one Premium+ pass for free. Personally this is where I get annoyed with the new system and I think they could afford to be more generous since ESO+ has bled value in recent years but it is what it is. Price points for tomes are $15-30usd per season. 2026 is going to have three I think? So eso+ players should get one for free if they are a yearly subscriber.

Thanks, I see OP's point now and agree.

So, it's basically a double sub. I think I'll pass on the paid battle pass and plus plus paid battle pass because ESO has cost me a lot already, not just with money, but it's cost a lot of time as well.

~~~

I think it's more like:

12 Premium Tome Tokens: This is the big win. Since 12 tokens equals one Premium+ Tome, your annual sub essentially pays for one full "Battle Pass" season (the $30 tier) every year for free.

So, pay for the annual ESO Plus subscription in one lump sum (credit card) and get the premium tokens all together. And that's your free Battle Pass for the year!

I do think it's ridiculous that it takes a full year to earn one pass.

SummersetCitizen · March 7

SpiritofESO wrote: »

Frayton wrote: »

Emeratis wrote: »

Frayton wrote: »

Just when I thought I had Tomes figured out...

I thought the premium version of Tomes was going to be a part of ESO+. No? Is premium Tomes a separate thing we have to pay for? Also, premium Tomes and premium plus Tomes is confusing.

It's a little confusing but imo the stream slides did the best job at an overview and the articles and further talking was a bit more convoluted:

There are three tiers. Free is accessible to everyone and is supposed to give comparable rewards if not slightly better than the old endeavor system. Premium gives the paid track which is a lot of cosmetics and bonus premium currencies such as seals. Premium+ gives faster pass xp as well as bonus cosmetics bundled and related to the theme. You can see some of the bundle cosmetics in slide two. If you buy either premium version you can unlock things on the reward track permanently at your own pace, but free tomes will have a sesaonal duration.

ESO+ will gain additional pass xp and after 12 months of ESO+ you earn credit to get one Premium+ pass for free. Personally this is where I get annoyed with the new system and I think they could afford to be more generous since ESO+ has bled value in recent years but it is what it is. Price points for tomes are $15-30usd per season. 2026 is going to have three I think? So eso+ players should get one for free if they are a yearly subscriber.

Thanks, I see OP's point now and agree.

So, it's basically a double sub. I think I'll pass on the paid battle pass and plus plus paid battle pass because ESO has cost me a lot already, not just with money, but it's cost a lot of time as well.

~~~

I think it's more like:

12 Premium Tome Tokens: This is the big win. Since 12 tokens equals one Premium+ Tome, your annual sub essentially pays for one full "Battle Pass" season (the $30 tier) every year for free.

So, pay for the annual ESO Plus subscription in one lump sum (credit card) and get the premium tokens all together. And that's your free Battle Pass for the year!

After subscribing to ESO+ for a FULL YEAR you have enough to trade in for ONE premium battle pass.

The remaining 3 out of 4 quarters you’ll essentially be double subbed if you upgrade your seasonal battle passes. Which is $45-$90 per year on top of your $15 ESO+ monthly fee.

Emeratis · 12:57AM

SpiritofESO wrote: »

Frayton wrote: »

Emeratis wrote: »

Frayton wrote: »

Just when I thought I had Tomes figured out...

I thought the premium version of Tomes was going to be a part of ESO+. No? Is premium Tomes a separate thing we have to pay for? Also, premium Tomes and premium plus Tomes is confusing.

It's a little confusing but imo the stream slides did the best job at an overview and the articles and further talking was a bit more convoluted:

There are three tiers. Free is accessible to everyone and is supposed to give comparable rewards if not slightly better than the old endeavor system. Premium gives the paid track which is a lot of cosmetics and bonus premium currencies such as seals. Premium+ gives faster pass xp as well as bonus cosmetics bundled and related to the theme. You can see some of the bundle cosmetics in slide two. If you buy either premium version you can unlock things on the reward track permanently at your own pace, but free tomes will have a sesaonal duration.

ESO+ will gain additional pass xp and after 12 months of ESO+ you earn credit to get one Premium+ pass for free. Personally this is where I get annoyed with the new system and I think they could afford to be more generous since ESO+ has bled value in recent years but it is what it is. Price points for tomes are $15-30usd per season. 2026 is going to have three I think? So eso+ players should get one for free if they are a yearly subscriber.

Thanks, I see OP's point now and agree.

So, it's basically a double sub. I think I'll pass on the paid battle pass and plus plus paid battle pass because ESO has cost me a lot already, not just with money, but it's cost a lot of time as well.

~~~

I think it's more like:

12 Premium Tome Tokens: This is the big win. Since 12 tokens equals one Premium+ Tome, your annual sub essentially pays for one full "Battle Pass" season (the $30 tier) every year for free.

So, pay for the annual ESO Plus subscription in one lump sum (credit card) and get the premium tokens all together. And that's your free Battle Pass for the year!

It's really not a win if you subscribe and bought/buy every deluxe/premium bonus thing beforehand and plan to continue to do so. Seasons are at least 3 months. 2026 will have 3 premium battle passes. If you get one for free you're paying $60 this year. If next year has 4 you are paying $90 plus a $140 a year for the cheapest version of eso+ subscription. That's kinda hard to stomach with how bad the economy is right now in general. It also contributes to the problem of longtime/loyal eso fans pay more for less year after year, because eso+ has had several features become free to all.

They really could afford to be more generous with Tomes and eso+, either giving a discount in cost or a premium tome tier for free while you're subscribed or something. It would go a long way to make longtime players feel like they aren't the game's bank. I like supporting the game and will continue to do so but it doesn't change the fact I've gotten less value out of my support since Summerset era and it does get tiring sometimes.

aasterlingb14_ESO · 12:59AM

SpiritofESO wrote: »

Frayton wrote: »

Just when I thought I had Tomes figured out...

I thought the premium version of Tomes was going to be a part of ESO+. No? Is premium Tomes a separate thing we have to pay for? Also, premium Tomes and premium plus Tomes is confusing.

Okay, you're going to like this! So, I asked Google AI about this

Immediately stopped reading. AI lies and kills the environment while doing so. Find real info.