massively.com said:PAX East 2013: Hands-on with The Elder Scrolls Online, round two
by Matt Danielon Mar 22nd 2013 10:30PMBetas, Fantasy, Classes, Events, real-world, Game mechanics, Previews, PvE, Opinion, Hands-on, Races, Massively Hands-on, Massively Event Coverage, The Elder Scrolls Online0
Last October, I paid a visit to the ZeniMax Online studios in Maryland in order to get some hands-on time with the studio's upcoming MMO, The Elder Scrolls Online. Well, today at PAX East I got to pay the lands of Tamriel a second visit to see how far the team has come since my first look at the game. Honestly, I was initially dreading writing this because I was sure that I wouldn't have anything to say that I hadn't said in my previous review, but thankfully, I was worried for nothing.
The game was hardly recognizable to me because of the sheer amount of attention that's been given to it since I first played it in its alpha stage last fall. Gone was the functional-but-barebones UI with which I was familiar; it's been replaced with a sleek, polished interface leaps and bounds above the (notoriously awful) interfaces seen in the single-player entries of the series. On top of that, I got my grubby paws on a different faction, swapping my Dunmer of the Ebonheart Pact for a Breton of the Daggerfall Covenant. After character creation (which, by the way, is insanely detailed with dozens of appearance sliders and customization options), I was dropped into Stros M'Kai, the starting zone for members of the Daggerfall Covenant. From there I was let loose to roam, explore, quest, and fight for a solid two hours.
Let me start by saying that everything I said about the game's combat system in my previous hands-on still applies. It's still crisp, responsive, and most of all, fun, which is more than I can say for combat in the single-player TES titles. You won't find any of Oblivion or Skyrim's swing, backpedal, swing, backpedal combat here. You have to be on your toes, especially in fights against multiple enemies, unless you want to get your face well-acquainted with the ground. Blocking power-attacks, dodging AoEs, and interrupting enemy abilities are all integral aspects of the game's combat system, and frankly it just works.
My analysis of the game's progression and character development system, however, is now null and void. The devs have completely overhauled the previous progression system, and I happen to enjoy the new version exponentially more. In the system's previous iteration, investing points into the core attributes (Health, Magicka, and Stamina) would unlock a variety of bonuses such as increased run speed and the like. That's been nixed, and while you still get one point per level to invest in your core attributes, they're no longer tied to any bonus abilities.
Here's how it works: Upon each level up, you're granted a single attribute point and a single skill-point (skill points can also be earned by completing certain tasks within the game and not just via level-up). The attribute point, as previously mentioned, can be used to boost health, magicka, or stamina. The skill point, however, can be invested into any number of skills that you've unlocked. In turn, skills are unlocked through a skill-based progression system. If you want to unlock new two-hander abilities, you simply have to use a two-handed weapon, which will slowly increase your skill level with said weapon (ditto for armor and class-based abilities).
For example, during my demo time, I played as a Breton Sorcerer, and thus I began the game with a destruction staff as my weapon. As I played and began to amass more weaponry, though, I decided I wanted to try for a battlemage style of build, so I swapped out my staff for a big honkin' two-handed sword. Since my Sorcerer had never used two-handers before, he began with a two-handed skill level of 1. After a few quick fights, his skill increased to level 2, unlocking the cleave ability for purchase. Likewise, you increase your skill level in light/medium/heavy armor by wearing armor of that type. The system provides a great deal of flexibility, and by the time my two hours were up, my Sorcerer had gone from a fireball-shooting, robe-wearing finger-wiggler to a heavily armored battlemage who could interweave powerful arcane magic with devastating sword strikes.
I do have one gripe, though, and it's that I feel the game's progression is a bit too slow. Even the gap from first to second level seemed to be a bit tedious, made moreso by the fact that you begin the game with absolutely no abilities, so you're stuck with basic attacks until you unlock your first skill point at level 2. I don't think that progression should be fast, necessarily, but as it stands, it takes four or five levels for the game to really pick up steam. For reference, at the end of my two hours I was somewhere in the neighborhood of level 7 or so. I think not starting characters off with a couple of basic skills is a poor decision, and it's really hard to appreciate just how fun the combat really is when you've got only basic attacks and maybe a skill or two at your disposal.
Another thing that I noticed during this playthrough that somehow didn't register with me before is just how beautiful the game is. Each new zone brings with it a new and varied aesthetic, and there were more than a few occasions when I simply had to stop and admire the scenery. From
strange, curved Orcish longhouses to massive, towering Redguard fortresses and mysterious ancient ruins, the art style of the game remains true to the source material and brings environments last seen in the old-school Elder Scrolls games (in this case, Daggerfall) to life. The animations, likewise, are fluid and lovely, and overall the game is simply gorgeous. It may not employ the same ultra-realistic style seen in, say, Skyrim, but the balance between stylistic and realistic art is well struck.
As Massively's Richie noted in his hands-on with the game last week, TESO features certain quests that, if completed (or not completed), will alter your gameplay in the future. For example, the opening questline for Stros M'Kai involved recruiting crewmen for a pirate captain who recently lost her crew to mutiny. You're given a list of potential candidates, and you have the choice of recruiting one, two, or all of them as you so desire. Depending on how many of them (and which ones) you choose to recruit, there will be some kind of effect in the future. I went through the trouble of recruiting a particularly cheeky rogueish character whom I was sure I would never see again after I got out of the starter zone, but as I was meandering about the second zone, whom do I come across but said cheeky rogue. He proceeded to provide me with a bit of advice and some assistance in my quest, which was very much welcome. I was later informed that if I hadn't recruited him during my opening questline, he would never have shown up in the second zone. Initially, I thought ths was a brilliant idea, and I guess it still is, but the more I thought about it the more I realized how meaningless it really is (oh, the existentialism).
Look at it this way: TESO is, at its core, a themepark MMO. Sure, it's set up in such a way that makes the questing feel more organic than rigidly structured, but when it comes right down to it, it still follows the formula of finding a (usually static) questgiver, accepting a quest, completing a quest, turning a quest in. So what does it matter that he wouldn't show up if I didn't recruit him? Who wouldn't? That's how themepark MMOs work, especially if you're a completionist (as I am). You follow the questline through the zone until all the quests are done and then you move on to the next area, so there's really no reason not to recruit said characters, and therefore there's nothing super special or interesting about the fact that they show up later down the line other than that initial reaction of "Oh, neat." I think this would be a much more interesting feature if it were tied to some kind of special, out-of-the-way event rather than the main questline that everyone ever is going to complete, but maybe I'm just nitpicking.
Overall, I still think TESO is shaping up to be a solid game that will please fans of The Elder Scrolls' setting and run-of-the-mill MMO junkies alike. I'm not ready to say that it's "innovative" or "revolutionary" or anything of the sort, but it seems that ZeniMax is putting enough of a twist on the traditional MMO formula to make the game worth a try whether you're a fan of the series or not. Now, if we could just get that beta test going...
Massively's on the ground in Boston during the weekend of March 22nd to 24th, bringing you all the best news from PAX East 2013. Whether you're dying to know more about WildStar,DUST 514, or any MMO in between, we aim to have it covered!
Tags: bethesda, bethesda-softworks, bethsoft, con, convention, daggerfall, elder-scrolls, elder-scrolls-online, eso, event, event-coverage, events, expo, factions, featured, hands-on, massively-event-coverage, morrowind, oblivion, pax, pax-2013, pax-east, pax-east-2013, penny-arcade-expo, preview, previews, pvp, rvr, sandbox, skyrim, tamriel, tes, teso, the-elder-scrolls, the-elder-scrolls-online, three-faction-pvp, three-way-pvp, zenimax, zenimax-media, zenimax-online, zenimax-online-studios
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GW2 is fun and all, but TESO has a lot of potential.
Pretty Graphics, Heroic Speeches and Instances?
Have we not seen this all before, i want to see open world activities, like a 100 (not 5) people kicking the shit out of a dragon.
Matt Firor should know this already wihile working on Darkage of Camelot, but all i have seen so far is somthing being masked by a big IP and Great Graphics.
Dont wont to sound negative, but this is all you see theses days when a MMO is being made, and then after the first month its back to DaoC.
http://www.elderscrollsonline.com said:Ask Us Anything: Variety Pack 3
04.08.2013
Get the answers to more of your questions about The Elder Scrolls Online in this new Ask Us Anything.
In every Ask Us Anything, we answer questions submitted by you and other ESO fans. We have answers to queries about a wide variety of topics this week, and we hope you’ll enjoy them.
Our next Ask Us Anything will focus on Cyrodiil and PvP in The Elder Scrolls Online. Send your questions to community@elderscrollsonline.com, and don’t forget to check out our latest article on the subject, Conflict in Cyrodiil, Part 1. Come back in two weeks to see more answers.
Will your level be scaled up when joining a PvP zone, or will you remain the same level and be a part of a level "bracket"? For example, if I am level 16 and enter a PvP zone, will I be scaled up to max level along with everyone else, or will I remain level 16 and play with people in the 10-19 bracket? – By Yousef AlQattan
You will be scaled up to approximately level 50. You’ll be able to remain competitive, but a true level 50 will have the advantage of having more skills and abilities than you.
How much emphasis do you put into designing quests that pop up dynamically or require you to decipher their hints, rather than being tied to any specific NPC quest giver? Will we be able to initiate quests through a variety of natural triggers (like entering an area or killing a given mob), or will most quests be centralized to NPCs handing them out? – By Ronnie Solbakken
This is a good question. Our quests are designed with purpose in mind, or “context,” if you prefer. We feel very strongly as a team that quests need to make sense and quest granting should be done in a way that is grounded in the world. While we do have various methods for granting quests, most are given by various NPCs. There are still many that are done in other ways, such as finding books, notes, corpses, etc.
It’s also important to keep in mind that there are many activities that aren’t quests. We feel it is just as important to explore, craft, and do various other activities.
With such an expanse of playable area, will the player be able to fast travel from anywhere so long as certain conditions are met (i.e. not in the middle of battle)? – By Douglas Ownbey
As long as you have visited a Wayshrine, you will be able to travel to it. Travel between Wayshrines is free. Fast traveling to a Wayshrine from anywhere will cost you gold, and there are limits how often you can do this.
Will I be able to make/eat sweet rolls? I must know! – By Luke Clarkson
Yes. And Fishy Sticks, of course.
I read that you can loot items from houses, crates, barrels, etc. How fast will these items respawn? If someone looted the area some minutes ago, will I find only empty boxes? – By Dennis Mull
It is possible that you’d find empty containers, but we hope the rate at which these things reappear will be frequent enough for you to find items in many cases.
You mentioned that there will be permanent character choices that affect the phase of an area—for example, saving a village or not saving a village. Let's say I did save the village and my friend did not. We are not in the same phase; how will we be able to play together in that specific zone? – By Pavle Vivec
In some areas, phasing (or “layering” as we call it) is not based on a choice, but on whether or not you’ve done a certain thing yet. In this case, separation from another player would be temporary. In other areas, it can be based off of a choice you’ve made. Those choices tend to come at the end of the activity for an area, reducing separation.
There are other mechanisms we use to reinforce choice that have nothing to do with layering. You may experience something completely different than someone else based on your individual choices, but the ways we show this don’t separate you from others at all. The latter techniques are used far more frequently than layering. And finally, there are still other solutions we’ll discuss later that enable you to better stay together with others even if you’d normally be in different layers.
Also note that layering and channels are not the same thing. The megaserver places players intelligently into channels to make sure your gameplay experience is good and to prevent overcrowding. So if you’re in Glenumbra, but you can’t see your friend, you may be in a different channel. You’ll simply be able to join your friend in their channel or vice-versa. Channels, however, will be largely invisible, as we’ll try to put you in the best channel with the highest preponderance of your social connections.
Since space on the hotbar will be limited, how will you implement using non-combat spells such as waterbreathing, water walking, magelight, open lock, and persuasion? What is the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow? – By Paul Ballhorn
All spells will be cast through the hotbar or quickslot. European or African?
Besides other class skills, can all skills be acquired in ESO? Will getting the Mages Guild skill line still allow you to get the Fighters Guild skill line? – By Immanuel Ericson
In general, you’ll be able to get most of the skill lines. As you mentioned, class and racial skills are exclusive to your choices. However, there are some mutually exclusive skill lines—for instance, you cannot be a werewolf and a vampire at the same time.
I recently read that there are no raids in ESO. Is that true? Does the dev team have a plan to keep those hardcore PvE players interested in end-game content with something that will take the place of a raid? – By Ernesto Eusebio
The problem here is the definition of the word “raid,” which means different things to different people. When we said we won’t have “raids,” we meant that we won’t have raids in the traditional sense of the word—we’ll have our own way to get large groups together. There will absolutely be large-group PvE activity in the game, but we’re not ready to talk about those systems yet. We have mentioned adventure zones in the past, but we won’t go into details until those systems are finalized.
Discuss this on the official ESO Facebook page.Categories:DevelopmentAsk Us Anything
Yep. Officially leaked. *cough*
massively.com said:First 20 minutes of Elder Scrolls Online gameplay leaked
by Jef Reahard http://data:image/png;base64,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 on Apr 14th 2013 9:00AMBetas, Fantasy, Video, Contests, Game Mechanics, MMO Industry, New Titles, News Items, PvE, The Elder Scrolls Online0
Want an early look at the first 20 minutes of The Elder Scrolls Online? Get it while you can after the cut, as a lengthy snippet of leaked gameplay footage has made its way onto YouTube.
The clip shows off character creation, nine playable races, and a choice between three classes (Dragonknight, Sorcerer, and Templar). You can also see the UI, skill trees, and various quests at different points in the video. There's plenty of combat on display, too, both third- and first-person.
Tags: bethesda, bethesda-softworks, bethsoft, daggerfall, elder-scrolls, elder-scrolls-beta, elder-scrolls-first-20-minutes, elder-scrolls-leak, elder-scrolls-online, eso, factions, morrowind, oblivion, pvp, rvr, sandbox, skyrim, tamriel, tes, teso, teso-first-20-minutes, teso-leak, the-elder-scrolls, the-elder-scrolls-online, three-faction-pvp, three-way-pvp, zenimax, zenimax-media, zenimax-online, zenimax-online-studios
- Via: The Escapist
Source: YouTube- More coverage: Official site
the escapist said:
I was in camelot alpha/beta I remember the game looked like that Still that was in 1999, we are in 2013 now and its hard to improve gfx these days for such a big game that is close to release + - 6 months, i really hope we can play with gfx they show in trailers. Also the movement and animations were horrible, even then camelot @ release.
Bit of a beta whore aren't you, hope you don't get in the beta and have to buy the game instead.Hehe i know
Hope i get in the beta and this game proves me wrong else i wont be playing.
I will also get in this 1 dont worry i got my contacts Looking mostly forward tho on the Internal testing of Camelot Unchained he only betas to look for bugs to keep to himself when it goes live
Yep i have been in all big mmo Alpha/beta's since 1999 or so
<cough> Warhammer maurader bug aoe spam bug <cough> <cough> CM hide in wall and nuke the crap out of mobs spot <cough > Nah ill report them all ofcourse
massively.com said:The Elder Scrolls Online's Matt Firor answers closed beta questions
by Matt Daniel http://data:image/png;base64,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 on Apr 29th 2013 4:00PMBetas, Fantasy, Interviews, News Items, The Elder Scrolls Online0
The interwebs have been all aflutter because of the recently leaked video of The Elder Scrolls Online beta footage, and it's left many people clamoring for more beta details. Thankfully, ESO Game Director Matt Firor has stepped forth to provide just that. In a new interview, Firor didn't care to comment on the leak itself, but he was more than willing to answer a number of questions regarding the game's ongoing closed beta.
Firor states that the game's beta is progressing "very smoothly so far" and that the team is now "focusing more on the gameplay exerience" and "getting valuable feedback from beta testers." He goes on to explain that the current beta focus is on "moment-to-moment gameplay," including questing, combat, and the game's progression system. Also on the table are questions about the game's AI, the introduction of guilds, the importance of crafted gear, and of course, when the next round of beta invites will go out (spoiler alert: the answer is incredibly nonspecific). Regardless, there's probably some useful information to be found for ESO fans, so click on through the link below to check it out for yourself.
- Source: ZAM: The Elder Scrolls Online closed beta interview
- More coverage: The Elder Scrolls Online official site
Tags: beta, bethesda, bethesda-softworks, bethsoft, closed-beta, daggerfall, elder-scrolls, elder-scrolls-online, eso, factions, interview, interviews, matt-firor, morrowind, oblivion, pvp, rvr, sandbox, skyrim, tamriel, tes, teso, the-elder-scrolls, the-elder-scrolls-online, three-faction-pvp, three-way-pvp, zenimax, zenimax-media, zenimax-online, zenimax-online-studios
massively.com said:Tamriel Infinium: The Elder Scrolls Online is more than just dungeons and dragons
by Larry Everett http://data:image/png;base64,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 on Jul 5th 2013 4:00PMFantasy, Classes, Game Mechanics, Lore, New Titles, PvE, Opinion, Dungeons, The Elder Scrolls Online, MMORPG, Tamriel Infinium0
Although many fans of The Elder Scrolls cheered at the introduction of The Elder Scrolls Online at E3, the divisions within the fanbase since then have morphed into warring creatures like Godzilla vs. Mothra, and this column is Japan. Although all of our buildings are being smashed by the battling brutes, it makes for great entertainment. I'm cheering both sides on. I love a good debate.
Despite diligently scanning my spam folder every day this week, I am still without a beta invite. I think ZeniMax is playing hard to get. I promised I won't divulge any secrets; I just wanna make my Khajiit Nightblade. Is it asking too much to get a chance to explore the Tamriel dungeons? Obviously, it is. However, we did get a taste of ESO dungeons in a blog this week. And it looks as if we have an exciting combination of RIFT-style classes and Guild Wars 2 combat to look forward to. Hopefully, it's the best of both without the flaws.
Guild Wars 2 claimed to shun the modern tank/healer/DPS trinity. The game is fun, but large scale fights turn into a DPS race and less of a strategic fight to the death. Don't get me wrong; I did find the dungeons in GW2 fun. And they weren't without strategy, but... maybe it's that they were missing the strategy I was looking for in an MMO. The Fractals in GW2 that were the most fun for me were the ones that required a water-specced Elementalist and a tanky Guardian to lead the charge. I just don't think there is a way around the trinity, unless someone invents a completely new system.
Like previous MMOs, The Elder Scrolls Online embraces the tank/healer/DPS version of the trinity. "These roles are still important for a successful dungeon group in The Elder Scrolls Online," ZeniMax said in its blog post, "but our open-ended skill system gives you much more flexibility." What the bleep does that mean? Well, I'm going to tell you.
Just like our friends in Guild Wars 2, we can weapon-swap in ESO. We can carry daggers when we want to stabby stabby, and if we are in a benevolent mood, we can carry a restoration staff. Just don't ask where we put the staff when we are carrying the daggers. (On our backs, of course. Where were you thinking?) And just as in GW2, each weapon can have its own set of skills that we set before the dungeon begins.
Picture this: I'm with my four-man minstrel group. I play the left-handed lute, and we call ourselves the Beetles because we love red vegetables. Then suddenly we stumble on a cave with a giant wamasu lurking inside. We decide to fight it because we love fat loots. Jhon takes lead because he's the front man tank. When the wamasu starts smashing and shooting lightning at Jhon, it's time for Jorge and me to start stabbing. But during the fight, our healer Ryn-go decides to take a dirt nap after being hit by one of the creature's AoE tail strikes. Apparently, he's the fail member of the group because he didn't see the charge-up tell creatures will display before a large strike. Or maybe he was out of stamina and couldn't dodge. Never fear; I can switch my weapon in the middle of combat and take over healing because beforehand I had set up a different toolbar for when I am holding my restoration staff. Granted, we are still at a bit of a disadvantage because we are down a person, but we still might be able to survive the fight.
I'm looking forward to this kind of system. We will have a massive amount of flexibility, and it won't matter that Ryn-go is the weakest member of the band; the other three musicians can pick up his slack by weapon swapping.
Usually debates in the comments scare me, but last week, I enjoyed reading your thoughts about immersion and Bethesda's stepping away from calling the game an MMO, even though it is really an MMO.
First, BrickFrog talked about how upset he is about the lore in The Elder Scrolls Online. I'm not as much of a lore hound in TES as I am in, say, Star Wars, but I can certainly relate to dysfunctional canon. I don't agree with his comments about combat's being boring, but the lore questions did make me wonder a bit. "Why isn't the Ebonheart Nord/Dunmer/Argonian faction being led by the Living God council of Morrowind?" he asked, "or the sentient super-intelligent hist trees of the Black Swamp?" I really wish I had the answer to that one. I suppose the creators decided to take a more secular approach to the pact, but I am interested in seeing what role the rulers of each of those sub-factions plays in the overall story of the game. Although I guess it's possible, I don't think the lore junkies at ZeniMax would let go of that kind of established canon easily.
Dugfromtheearth believes what many MMO vets believe: "Immersive means keeping people in the game 2+ years because you don't want to leave the 'world' you are in." For me, that really hits the nail on the head. Although I did take a few breaks from Star Wars Galaxies, I really didn't want to leave the world that was created in that game. There is something to be said for a company that can create that kind of game, online or otherwise. Although I admit to being a bit of a game-hopper, I do have friends who have been playing Skyrim since its release. They really love that world. I believe it's possible for TESO to suck us in and keep us there even if it doesn't call itself an MMO. I'm cautiously optimistic. (Can I be optimistic as a games journalist? Is that allowed?)
If you haven't checked out last week's Tamriel Infinium, I suggest you jump over there now to read it. The column might get you thinking, but I believe the comments really speak to the concerns of TES fans.
This week, I want to know what you think of group roles. Some would argue that group roles should be solidified with the class. They believe that a good healer cannot also play a good DPS or a good DPS can't tank, too. Are the mindsets required for each role too far apart for one person to effectively be reliable in multiple roles? I especially would like to hear from former RIFT players who might have seen success or failures in that game. See you next week.
Each week, traverse the treacherous terrain of Tamriel with Larry Everett as he records his journey through The Elder Scrolls Online, an MMORPG from ZeniMax. Comments are welcome below, or send a message to larry@massively.com. He promises to keep the arrow-to-the-knee jokes to a minimum.
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The Elder Scrolls Online video reveals character progression
A new trailer detailing character progression in The Elder Scrolls Online has been released, and you can see it below.
The MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role playing game) for Windows is still in beta testing, but due for release in Q1 2014. Zenimax Online has been carefully feeding us information since its announcement in 2012, while keeping a tight lid on the beta testing, to avoid leaks and early reviews.
This latest trailer explains how your characters in the game will progress. Like many MMORPGS, but not Skyrim, The Elder Scrolls Online features player classes and an experience system. You get experience by playing the game, and when you're awarded an experience point, you can spend it on abilities in a skill line. You increase your player level by increasing a particular number of different skills.
There are worries that this might ruin some of the freedom that players loved in Skyrim, but Zenimax Online insists that the new classes and experience system will give you more choice and freedom to do what you want.
You can still sign up for the Beta if you don't want to wait for the full release, but there is certainly a queue to get in and invites are limited. We have high hopes for The Elder Scrolls Online, but it's worrying that what we have seen so far is a little generic, as there's no shortage of fantasy MMORPGs on the market.
