Except that Bethesda made the game to be modded and thus it MAKES it a sandbox because that is one of the things a sandbox is. A game that provides the tools players need to shape the game in a way they want. Funny how that little part of the game keeps being left out by those calling TES a themepark.
No Elder Scrolls game has been a sandbox. In the last three games, Bethesda has provided tools players can use outside the game to make mods for the game but there has never, in any game in the series, been an in-game content creation system as part of the gameplay.
Landmark is going to be a sandbox. Minecraft is a sandbox. SWG included some limited sandbox elements. Shadowbane included limited sandbox elements. Every game ever made by Bethesda has been a themepark.
Thankfully no where does it state in the definition of the word sandbox that a creation system must be in a game for it to be a sandbox. Nor is the word limited to being 100% sandbox, all a game needs is some of the main elements to become one and the last 3 TES games have had them.
"People who tell you youre awesome are useless. No, dangerous.
They are worse than useless because you want to believe them. They will defend you against critiques that are valid. They will seduce you into believing you are done learning, or into thinking that your work is better than it actually is." ~Raph Koster http://www.raphkoster.com/2013/10/14/on-getting-criticism/
I dont like teso so far, the game feel like a cheap version of skyrim, everything in the game that looked like something from skyrim was only there for the show nothing in the depth. Yes i know its an not easy to make an MMO out of a game like skyrim, but i think they never should make elder scrolls to an mmo the game loses so much of the brilliant gameplay.
Many of those can be answered by Wildstar much more so than TESO can.....
5: Breadth of World
You're basically saying it'll have content, tons of it to keep players addicted to the game to play it. I'll go into those in the lower sections, but suffice it to say that Wildstar is showing far more long-lasting content than TESO is.
4: Immersion
Hmm, trying to call yourself an "Elder Scrolls Game", yet not allowing players to kill NPCs or freely kill other players (even those of your own race/species)...not really immersion in context of what's talked about, right? Sure the 'any weapon' thing is cool, but becomes pointless when you've specialized in one but not the other, making it moot to try to use the other. Wildstar's immersion is going to be...well shit, it's going for the "cartoony comedy about a war in space"; there's tons of that so the context of the IP really shines in the show.
3: Social Aspects
Here's where Wildstar really shines and TESO really smells like something the devs are shoveling (the term "bullshit" comes to mind). Wildstar is going to have individual player housing that friends and guildmates can visit/view. WS will also have guild/friend based PvP with it's War Plots system. Guild PvE content? 20 and 40 man raids answers that bitty up. A 'seamless world' (TESO) means nothing if there's not much content to fill it in and enjoy socially with. Having only 5-man dungeons and such race-restrictive PvP will split guilds and friend lists left and right.
2: Features
"Dungeons, raids, crafting, meaningful three-faction PvP, mounts, quests, discovery, achievements," aren't really "features" if they're generic things that's nearly industry standard. The only one there that can be listed as a semi-unique feature is the 3-faction PvP, which as mentioned above is split by race selection and thus will lead to a guild/friend split based on race and lore decisions. And I'm pretty sure that there are no raids in TESO (isn't that what the developers said?). The previous point's Wildstar mentioned features of housing, PvP War Plots, are something more noticeable as well it's Pathing system. The combat system can be seen as "feature" with the way they're handling CC breakout events, telegraphing, and other more interactivity for the player.
1: Story
Elder Scrolls universe in an online game.....good story for single player universe doesn't translate to good for multiplayer. YOU are not the hero of the game: everyone is. YOU cannot become the Daedric lord of the Mad Realm (if it even exists in the game at all). Becoming the Emperor is more or less a grind out title for PvP (so blood or divine right has nothing to do with it). They're using the intellectual property of Elder Scrolls, but it just doesn't fit at all. With Wildstar, they're creating a uniquely designed IP to fit the content that is being made to go with it; the content fits the context and vise versa.
I'm just matching the article in statement that there are many reasons why a non-Elder Scrolls fan should play Wildstar instead of ESO....as well as reasons why an Elder Scrolls fan shouldn't play ESO and instead should play Wildstar. Hmmm, how about them apples?
Many of those can be answered by Wildstar much more so than TESO can.....
I'm just matching the article in statement that there are many reasons why a non-Elder Scrolls fan should play Wildstar instead of ESO....as well as reasons why an Elder Scrolls fan shouldn't play ESO and instead should play Wildstar. Hmmm, how about them apples?
Your apples are great if they fell off the WoW tree, and it seems they didn't fall far from it.
Wildstar will be fun, but imho it isn't a game to compare TESO to.
edit: snip
Death is nothing to us, since when we are, Death has not come, and when death has come, we are not.
But seriously, ESO could appeal to any MMO fan; it's a pretty standard MMO. If you use the third-person view the only thing different than any other "WoW-clone" is the more minimalistic UI.
That being said, it's a fun game and I will definitely be playing (at least until Wildstar comes out).
There is no reason for a PC Skyrim fan to play ESO. None. All you are getting is an inferior products. I am assuming your game is heavily modded. It's not even the same game, does not even look the same. You just cannot compare a fully modded Skyrim to ESO. Whether it is graphics or sound or gameplay....what modders have done totally out classes what any developer did or can do.
If you played Skyrim on a console, go on ahead. It looks about the same, vanilla is a bit better looking with a bigger draw distance but basically the same.
Whether or not the game has the MMO stuff to make it last is a question that cannot be answered yet.
There is no reason for a PC Skyrim fan to play ESO. None. All you are getting is an inferior products. I am assuming your game is heavily modded. It's not even the same game, does not even look the same. You just cannot compare a fully modded Skyrim to ESO. Whether it is graphics or sound or gameplay....what modders have done totally out classes what any developer did or can do.
If you played Skyrim on a console, go on ahead. It looks about the same, vanilla is a bit better looking with a bigger draw distance but basically the same.
Whether or not the game has the MMO stuff to make it last is a question that cannot be answered yet.
The graphics for an mmorpg have a more intensive requirement than a single player game. This game has the same general races, crafting, UI, movement, lore, world and much more as Skyrim. It is basically the same game with PvP, but because the graphics can't be as intense you are saying fans shouldn't play it?
Death is nothing to us, since when we are, Death has not come, and when death has come, we are not.
The graphics for an mmorpg are way more intensive than a single player game. This game has the same general races, crafting, UI, movement, lore, world and much more as Skyrim. It is basically the same game with PvP, but because the graphics can't be as intense you are saying fans shouldn't play it?
Yet Newish MMOs like Archeage have graphics far better so you can keep your copout, one that wouldn't even work because Skyrim was made with a 2 freaking gig cap and low rez textures. As for you stating ESO has the same crafting and movement as Skyrim, that is complete BS. The lore was altered to fit its DaoC design and who the EFF wants Skyrims UI? It was the first thing modded and the SkyUI is one of the most popular Skyrim mods made with over 5.6 MILLION downloads just from Nexus, ONE site!
"People who tell you youre awesome are useless. No, dangerous.
They are worse than useless because you want to believe them. They will defend you against critiques that are valid. They will seduce you into believing you are done learning, or into thinking that your work is better than it actually is." ~Raph Koster http://www.raphkoster.com/2013/10/14/on-getting-criticism/
will be buying and looking for lifetime sub option if possible.
I played about a day's worth of each Skyrim and the one before it, and was bored. This MMO style left me wanting a lot more. Way more than the borefest Wildstar
The graphics for an mmorpg are way more intensive than a single player game. This game has the same general races, crafting, UI, movement, lore, world and much more as Skyrim. It is basically the same game with PvP, but because the graphics can't be as intense you are saying fans shouldn't play it?
Yet Newish MMOs like Archeage have graphics far better so you can keep your copout, one that wouldn't even work because Skyrim was made with a 2 freaking gig cap and low rez textures. As for you stating ESO has the same crafting and movement as Skyrim, that is complete BS. The lore was altered to fit its DaoC design and who the EFF wants Skyrims UI? It was the first thing modded and the SkyUI is one of the most popular Skyrim mods made with over 5.6 MILLION downloads just from Nexus, ONE site!
It's not a "copout" its a fact and games are developed at lower levels so users with slower systems can still play. You are cutting your own throat if people can't play.
I said it has the same general crafting and movement and it does.
The lore was altered? Lore is a type of history and things change. There are now 3 factions fighting one another and so history/lore is different.
I want the Skyrim UI, it is what fits the game and what I am use to.
Great for the SkyUI mod, I was one of those that downloaded it but it is still generally the same UI as I stated before.
Death is nothing to us, since when we are, Death has not come, and when death has come, we are not.
I think the real question is why would a Elder Scrolls gamer play this game? To play another generic themepark that just has an Elder Scrolls skin over it?
You are trying to push your version of sandbox on people. No one said that this game was or is a full blown sandbox whatever that is, but it has many elements of it. Many believe a sandbox is a game that allows freedom to do what you want (no rails). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandbox_Game There are many versions of a sandbox and there is no need to act like Professor Know it all picking the thread and people apart.
If by "my version" you mean a version that is actually consistent with the word being used, sure. It's not my fault if other people use words in ways inconsistent with their meaning. And that link doesn't even go to a page about sandboxes, it redirects to a page about open world games, which is not the same thing.
Also, even if we use your no rails definition, that still isn't Skyrim. Companions quest line? On rails. Main questline? On rails. Thieves' Guild? Rails. You get the idea. There being a bunch of different sets of rails is not the same thing as there not being rails.
Originally posted by JJ82
Thankfully no where does it state in the definition of the word sandbox that a creation system must be in a game for it to be a sandbox. Nor is the word limited to being 100% sandbox, all a game needs is some of the main elements to become one and the last 3 TES games have had them.
Looks like there are more confused people writing for those sites.
It's only a sandbox element (in whatever percentage) if it's in the game. All the creation tools available for Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim exist solely outside the game. If you only play the experience as it comes on the disk/in the original download, you are playing Bethesda's themepark game. To be fair, their games are really sets of separate themeparks, all dropped into an open world with some random monsters wandering between parks, but there is still no sandbox inside that open world.
Originally posted by koboldfodder
There is no reason for a PC Skyrim fan to play ESO. None. All you are getting is an inferior products. I am assuming your game is heavily modded. It's not even the same game, does not even look the same. You just cannot compare a fully modded Skyrim to ESO. Whether it is graphics or sound or gameplay....what modders have done totally out classes what any developer did or can do.
What modders have done outclasses what any developer can do? Do you also read fan fiction instead of novels, and watch youtube videos instead of movies in the theater?
It is not an inferior product. It is not a superior product. It is simply a different product, and depending on what it was a given player liked about Skyrim, it is possible to either love or hate TESO on that basis.
Peace is a lie, there is only passion. Through passion, I gain strength. Through strength, I gain power. Through power, I gain victory. Through victory, my chains are broken. The Force shall free me.
I loved Oblivion. Didn't play Skyrim because I'm an mmoRPG fan - though I liked what I saw of it. I played some Beta in TESO - and I will play this title and cast aside anything else I did for mmorpg fun because for the first time since Dark Age of Camelot (and Vanguard, Saga of Heroes before they killed the faction server), I feel like I am once again, playing an mmoRPG. Not an mmo video game with E-Sport battleground pvp and goofy cash shop gimmicks.
After play in beta last weekend i can say that ESO have everything that i have been look in mmmorpg for long time and that is freedom of do what you want when it come to build char talents and go out and explore world and carfting system in game was really fun and main stroyline was really good.
I have play many mmorpg before and this is one of better one and i know it wont kill WoW but i think it will gave serious blow to there subscribe number and i hope the ESO wont trun in to F2P game like SWTOR and other hybrid mmorpg out there for i think ESO really have chance to be good mmorpg.
Good part, but not enough to hook a player. Prppably will be there.
4. Immersion
Would be a point, but what, if the do it wrong with this one? And it is not an easy task.
3. Social Aspects
Already lost on this on. Races are vital, what char to play and only three in a realm and no ever cross-realm groups to play together. Imagine a 20-50 people guild which can't mix as people want to. No mentoring system either. The games lacks deeply in social aspects.
2. Features
Well yes, you named features, common to nearly all of todays MMOs. Where is the point? ESO shows nothing new, nothing innovative nothing so much MMO, that you could believe, it will be something refreshing new.
1. Story
Yes, they have to shine on this one and I believe they will. ESO without good quests and story need not even try to launch. They will have good stories, no doubt. But is this enough to hook hundreds of thousands of player (I doubt there will be millions after 1-3 months left)
Am I planning? Don't know. They have to show in the next months that they can do more than story, that the really can MMO. I am not convinced so far.
I liked what I played of ESO so far. How high a level did you all get during the beta? I thought leveling seems slower and getting slower with each level gained to me this is a good thing. I found ESO to be fairly close to SKYRIM with some small restrictions. My only complaint is t is to solo friendly and mobs lacked much challenge.
ESO is the first game I can say isn't a WoW clone. No, it's a SW:TOR clone, and we all know what happened to that. It'll appeal to people who enjoyed SW:TOR with its heavy reliance on solo gameplay, voice overs and quests where you run somewhere to click an object or kill a mob. Don't get me wrong, it looks beautiful and has great sound, but as an MMO I predict a failure on par with SW:TOR.
Originally posted by fantasyfreak112 Kind of a silly Column. TESO is nothing like TES. I think the more appropriate question is why would a Skyrim fan play TESO?
This after the fix.
The word "Non-" should be removed from the title because that is one of the biggest questions being asked on every TES related site. The quality of the story is low with a heavily restricted themepark design leading to a PvP focused area that appeals to few of the many fans of the IP.
No amount of articles pushing the game is going to change that and doing it on this site that is swarming with former DaoC fans is just preaching to the choir.
That'd be my question too. There will be folks who like it just fine, happy to be running around in any ES type enviornment. At least for awhile. But I just don't like the Devs distrust of the players.
They don't trust us to choose alliances, tieing alliance to race. Simplest fix would be to allow any race to be a member of any alliance. But apparantly, that's too hard. I guess they don't trust people in the PvP zones to be able to tell the factions apart either.
Still think it'll do gangbusters at release. I wonder about down-the-road though.
its not only about the devs not trusting the players its the players lack of trust of the developers. Many times have we the players paid for a Beta access to a game..( those of you who actually paid are idiots btw...), and then been burned by the games total lack of epicness..
The promises made then found to be untrue are staggering against the Developers.. and I know its not always the Developers fault.. they have the publishers who are complete morons when it comes to understanding a player base.
Now in the case of this article I have only one question...
What does ESO actually bring to the player base thats revolutionary? What makes it different than say WoW? remember folks even WoW had the lore of Warcraft to set it up and that one took off... however I dont think that the Elder Scrolls console IP will have the same benefit for its MMORPG counterpart.
There are games in development that are bringing new innovations to the front. So far I have not seen anything groundbreaking with ESO, Wildstar, EQN, hell even FFXIV:ARR failed to do anything ground breaking.
Its been over a decade since EQ, and 10 years since the first players had access to the alpha/beta of WoW.. and though we have integrated card games, Pokemon and other 12 year old range crap.. there has been no real innovations in MMORPGs.
Take Citadel of Sorcery from MMOMagic... they are talking about a revolutionary AI and intergrated massive scale world... This is something that the companies today can do and have been able to do and have not even attempted.
Or how about Star Citizen with tens of millions of polygonal immersion and detail? Combining the rpg/sim of Wing Commander of fame which is called Squadron 42 and integrating it into the MMOSS (MMO Space Sim) and even then making it a continuously growing dynamic universe with so many things for players to do its mind numbing.
All the current companies that have games out or are releasing this year are just feeding us canned crap that is stale. Expect more players! Demand it! We are the ones that pay the developers to make the games, we should expect more!
ESO is the first game I can say isn't a WoW clone. No, it's a SW:TOR clone, and we all know what happened to that. It'll appeal to people who enjoyed SW:TOR with its heavy reliance on solo gameplay, voice overs and quests where you run somewhere to click an object or kill a mob. Don't get me wrong, it looks beautiful and has great sound, but as an MMO I predict a failure on par with SW:TOR.
I don't think SWTOR would have been a failure if they provided subscribers with significant content updates post release. People left because they were bored. It doesn't matter how awesome a game is if the developers sit on their asses, eventually people will get bored and leave.
I do think ESO has a bit of an identity problem. Is it a PvP game? A solo TES game? Really for players looking for the ultimate TES experience, you aren't going to get that online, the anal jokes in chat and other player asshattery will guarantee that. The lack of raids show they aren't really serious about being a traditional PvE MMORPG.
I think there is a market for an online solo-ish RPG and as long as it gets monthly updates actually worth the sub fee for these players, I suppose that is not a problem. But at $30 every two months, I would expect a decent expansion pack sized update every 2 months(or half of that monthly) That seems a fairly expensive proposition. If they expect end game to be PvP for everybody, I think they are going to lose a lot of those TES fans that sign up.
Seems to be just another theme park with little innovation.
The quality of the world and the story however seems to be what stands out in this coming MMO.
It is easy to get a feeling of the game from already published videos on youtube.
The character customization is elaborate, it is a good thing but I never felt it to be all that important. The power customization seems a little limited however. I like it when I actually have to think about how I want my character to work. Its good that the game is using the mouse for directions hough, tired of the querky moves from older games.
I think its worth the purchase, however I dont think it is a game that for most players will last more than a few months.
Comments
Thankfully no where does it state in the definition of the word sandbox that a creation system must be in a game for it to be a sandbox. Nor is the word limited to being 100% sandbox, all a game needs is some of the main elements to become one and the last 3 TES games have had them.
http://lorehound.com/news/skyrim-and-the-sandbox/
http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/104439-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim
Or how Oblivion and Skyrim are listed in the top 5 sandbox games here.
http://www.squidoo.com/top-ten-sandbox-games
"People who tell you youre awesome are useless. No, dangerous.
They are worse than useless because you want to believe them. They will defend you against critiques that are valid. They will seduce you into believing you are done learning, or into thinking that your work is better than it actually is." ~Raph Koster
http://www.raphkoster.com/2013/10/14/on-getting-criticism/
Many of those can be answered by Wildstar much more so than TESO can.....
You're basically saying it'll have content, tons of it to keep players addicted to the game to play it. I'll go into those in the lower sections, but suffice it to say that Wildstar is showing far more long-lasting content than TESO is.
Hmm, trying to call yourself an "Elder Scrolls Game", yet not allowing players to kill NPCs or freely kill other players (even those of your own race/species)...not really immersion in context of what's talked about, right? Sure the 'any weapon' thing is cool, but becomes pointless when you've specialized in one but not the other, making it moot to try to use the other. Wildstar's immersion is going to be...well shit, it's going for the "cartoony comedy about a war in space"; there's tons of that so the context of the IP really shines in the show.
Here's where Wildstar really shines and TESO really smells like something the devs are shoveling (the term "bullshit" comes to mind). Wildstar is going to have individual player housing that friends and guildmates can visit/view. WS will also have guild/friend based PvP with it's War Plots system. Guild PvE content? 20 and 40 man raids answers that bitty up. A 'seamless world' (TESO) means nothing if there's not much content to fill it in and enjoy socially with. Having only 5-man dungeons and such race-restrictive PvP will split guilds and friend lists left and right.
"Dungeons, raids, crafting, meaningful three-faction PvP, mounts, quests, discovery, achievements," aren't really "features" if they're generic things that's nearly industry standard. The only one there that can be listed as a semi-unique feature is the 3-faction PvP, which as mentioned above is split by race selection and thus will lead to a guild/friend split based on race and lore decisions. And I'm pretty sure that there are no raids in TESO (isn't that what the developers said?). The previous point's Wildstar mentioned features of housing, PvP War Plots, are something more noticeable as well it's Pathing system. The combat system can be seen as "feature" with the way they're handling CC breakout events, telegraphing, and other more interactivity for the player.
Elder Scrolls universe in an online game.....good story for single player universe doesn't translate to good for multiplayer. YOU are not the hero of the game: everyone is. YOU cannot become the Daedric lord of the Mad Realm (if it even exists in the game at all). Becoming the Emperor is more or less a grind out title for PvP (so blood or divine right has nothing to do with it). They're using the intellectual property of Elder Scrolls, but it just doesn't fit at all. With Wildstar, they're creating a uniquely designed IP to fit the content that is being made to go with it; the content fits the context and vise versa.
I'm just matching the article in statement that there are many reasons why a non-Elder Scrolls fan should play Wildstar instead of ESO....as well as reasons why an Elder Scrolls fan shouldn't play ESO and instead should play Wildstar. Hmmm, how about them apples?
Your apples are great if they fell off the WoW tree, and it seems they didn't fall far from it.
Wildstar will be fun, but imho it isn't a game to compare TESO to.
edit: snip
Death is nothing to us, since when we are, Death has not come, and when death has come, we are not.
who hasn't played Skyrim?
But seriously, ESO could appeal to any MMO fan; it's a pretty standard MMO. If you use the third-person view the only thing different than any other "WoW-clone" is the more minimalistic UI.
That being said, it's a fun game and I will definitely be playing (at least until Wildstar comes out).
There is no reason for a PC Skyrim fan to play ESO. None. All you are getting is an inferior products. I am assuming your game is heavily modded. It's not even the same game, does not even look the same. You just cannot compare a fully modded Skyrim to ESO. Whether it is graphics or sound or gameplay....what modders have done totally out classes what any developer did or can do.
If you played Skyrim on a console, go on ahead. It looks about the same, vanilla is a bit better looking with a bigger draw distance but basically the same.
Whether or not the game has the MMO stuff to make it last is a question that cannot be answered yet.
The graphics for an mmorpg have a more intensive requirement than a single player game. This game has the same general races, crafting, UI, movement, lore, world and much more as Skyrim. It is basically the same game with PvP, but because the graphics can't be as intense you are saying fans shouldn't play it?
Death is nothing to us, since when we are, Death has not come, and when death has come, we are not.
Yet Newish MMOs like Archeage have graphics far better so you can keep your copout, one that wouldn't even work because Skyrim was made with a 2 freaking gig cap and low rez textures. As for you stating ESO has the same crafting and movement as Skyrim, that is complete BS. The lore was altered to fit its DaoC design and who the EFF wants Skyrims UI? It was the first thing modded and the SkyUI is one of the most popular Skyrim mods made with over 5.6 MILLION downloads just from Nexus, ONE site!
"People who tell you youre awesome are useless. No, dangerous.
They are worse than useless because you want to believe them. They will defend you against critiques that are valid. They will seduce you into believing you are done learning, or into thinking that your work is better than it actually is." ~Raph Koster
http://www.raphkoster.com/2013/10/14/on-getting-criticism/
not a fan of ESO RPGS
will be buying and looking for lifetime sub option if possible.
I played about a day's worth of each Skyrim and the one before it, and was bored. This MMO style left me wanting a lot more. Way more than the borefest Wildstar
It's not a "copout" its a fact and games are developed at lower levels so users with slower systems can still play. You are cutting your own throat if people can't play.
I said it has the same general crafting and movement and it does.
The lore was altered? Lore is a type of history and things change. There are now 3 factions fighting one another and so history/lore is different.
I want the Skyrim UI, it is what fits the game and what I am use to.
Great for the SkyUI mod, I was one of those that downloaded it but it is still generally the same UI as I stated before.
Death is nothing to us, since when we are, Death has not come, and when death has come, we are not.
This
www.90and9.net
www.prophecymma.com
Smile
If by "my version" you mean a version that is actually consistent with the word being used, sure. It's not my fault if other people use words in ways inconsistent with their meaning. And that link doesn't even go to a page about sandboxes, it redirects to a page about open world games, which is not the same thing.
Also, even if we use your no rails definition, that still isn't Skyrim. Companions quest line? On rails. Main questline? On rails. Thieves' Guild? Rails. You get the idea. There being a bunch of different sets of rails is not the same thing as there not being rails.
Looks like there are more confused people writing for those sites.
It's only a sandbox element (in whatever percentage) if it's in the game. All the creation tools available for Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim exist solely outside the game. If you only play the experience as it comes on the disk/in the original download, you are playing Bethesda's themepark game. To be fair, their games are really sets of separate themeparks, all dropped into an open world with some random monsters wandering between parks, but there is still no sandbox inside that open world.
What modders have done outclasses what any developer can do? Do you also read fan fiction instead of novels, and watch youtube videos instead of movies in the theater?
It is not an inferior product. It is not a superior product. It is simply a different product, and depending on what it was a given player liked about Skyrim, it is possible to either love or hate TESO on that basis.
Peace is a lie, there is only passion.
Through passion, I gain strength.
Through strength, I gain power.
Through power, I gain victory.
Through victory, my chains are broken.
The Force shall free me.
I loved Oblivion. Didn't play Skyrim because I'm an mmoRPG fan - though I liked what I saw of it. I played some Beta in TESO - and I will play this title and cast aside anything else I did for mmorpg fun because for the first time since Dark Age of Camelot (and Vanguard, Saga of Heroes before they killed the faction server), I feel like I am once again, playing an mmoRPG. Not an mmo video game with E-Sport battleground pvp and goofy cash shop gimmicks.
After play in beta last weekend i can say that ESO have everything that i have been look in mmmorpg for long time and that is freedom of do what you want when it come to build char talents and go out and explore world and carfting system in game was really fun and main stroyline was really good.
I have play many mmorpg before and this is one of better one and i know it wont kill WoW but i think it will gave serious blow to there subscribe number and i hope the ESO wont trun in to F2P game like SWTOR and other hybrid mmorpg out there for i think ESO really have chance to be good mmorpg.
5. Breadth of the World
Good part, but not enough to hook a player. Prppably will be there.
4. Immersion
Would be a point, but what, if the do it wrong with this one? And it is not an easy task.
3. Social Aspects
Already lost on this on. Races are vital, what char to play and only three in a realm and no ever cross-realm groups to play together. Imagine a 20-50 people guild which can't mix as people want to. No mentoring system either. The games lacks deeply in social aspects.
2. Features
Well yes, you named features, common to nearly all of todays MMOs. Where is the point? ESO shows nothing new, nothing innovative nothing so much MMO, that you could believe, it will be something refreshing new.
1. Story
Yes, they have to shine on this one and I believe they will. ESO without good quests and story need not even try to launch. They will have good stories, no doubt. But is this enough to hook hundreds of thousands of player (I doubt there will be millions after 1-3 months left)
Am I planning? Don't know. They have to show in the next months that they can do more than story, that the really can MMO. I am not convinced so far.
ESO is the first game I can say isn't a WoW clone. No, it's a SW:TOR clone, and we all know what happened to that. It'll appeal to people who enjoyed SW:TOR with its heavy reliance on solo gameplay, voice overs and quests where you run somewhere to click an object or kill a mob. Don't get me wrong, it looks beautiful and has great sound, but as an MMO I predict a failure on par with SW:TOR.
its not only about the devs not trusting the players its the players lack of trust of the developers. Many times have we the players paid for a Beta access to a game..( those of you who actually paid are idiots btw...), and then been burned by the games total lack of epicness..
The promises made then found to be untrue are staggering against the Developers.. and I know its not always the Developers fault.. they have the publishers who are complete morons when it comes to understanding a player base.
Now in the case of this article I have only one question...
What does ESO actually bring to the player base thats revolutionary? What makes it different than say WoW? remember folks even WoW had the lore of Warcraft to set it up and that one took off... however I dont think that the Elder Scrolls console IP will have the same benefit for its MMORPG counterpart.
There are games in development that are bringing new innovations to the front. So far I have not seen anything groundbreaking with ESO, Wildstar, EQN, hell even FFXIV:ARR failed to do anything ground breaking.
Its been over a decade since EQ, and 10 years since the first players had access to the alpha/beta of WoW.. and though we have integrated card games, Pokemon and other 12 year old range crap.. there has been no real innovations in MMORPGs.
Take Citadel of Sorcery from MMOMagic... they are talking about a revolutionary AI and intergrated massive scale world... This is something that the companies today can do and have been able to do and have not even attempted.
Or how about Star Citizen with tens of millions of polygonal immersion and detail? Combining the rpg/sim of Wing Commander of fame which is called Squadron 42 and integrating it into the MMOSS (MMO Space Sim) and even then making it a continuously growing dynamic universe with so many things for players to do its mind numbing.
All the current companies that have games out or are releasing this year are just feeding us canned crap that is stale. Expect more players! Demand it! We are the ones that pay the developers to make the games, we should expect more!
Played: UO, LotR, WoW, SWG, DDO, AoC, EVE, Warhammer, TF2, EQ2, SWTOR, TSW, CSS, KF, L4D, AoW, WoT
Playing: The Secret World until Citadel of Sorcery goes into Alpha testing.
Tired of: Linear quest games, dailies, and dumbed down games
Anticipating:Citadel of Sorcery
I don't think SWTOR would have been a failure if they provided subscribers with significant content updates post release. People left because they were bored. It doesn't matter how awesome a game is if the developers sit on their asses, eventually people will get bored and leave.
I do think ESO has a bit of an identity problem. Is it a PvP game? A solo TES game? Really for players looking for the ultimate TES experience, you aren't going to get that online, the anal jokes in chat and other player asshattery will guarantee that. The lack of raids show they aren't really serious about being a traditional PvE MMORPG.
I think there is a market for an online solo-ish RPG and as long as it gets monthly updates actually worth the sub fee for these players, I suppose that is not a problem. But at $30 every two months, I would expect a decent expansion pack sized update every 2 months(or half of that monthly) That seems a fairly expensive proposition. If they expect end game to be PvP for everybody, I think they are going to lose a lot of those TES fans that sign up.
Spent it on famous name actors to do voice overs?
Seems to be just another theme park with little innovation.
The quality of the world and the story however seems to be what stands out in this coming MMO.
It is easy to get a feeling of the game from already published videos on youtube.
The character customization is elaborate, it is a good thing but I never felt it to be all that important. The power customization seems a little limited however. I like it when I actually have to think about how I want my character to work. Its good that the game is using the mouse for directions hough, tired of the querky moves from older games.
I think its worth the purchase, however I dont think it is a game that for most players will last more than a few months.