The Elder Scrolls Online

[calapine]

And we pretty much hate everything between birth and death.  

Actually no. General rampant negativity is more fitting for RPGCodex. The "Hivemind" strawman gets thrown around here way too liberally (especially in politics), but sometimes it does exist. When something seems to be cool to hate suddenly everyone loves to pile on.


Which leads to situations were something that is "Quite OK, but not really inspiring" gets depicted as the biggest fuckup since the British retreat from Kabul in 1842.

[Stormwaltz]

FWIW, I've been baffled by the complaints about graphics. I do have issues with the game (I won't discuss), but I was always happy with what the engine and the artists put out.

It could be that ESO's style of "simplified realism" simply agrees with my own taste, or that I'm unusual for expecting something that looked like an MMG rather than Skyrim.

[calapine]

FWIW, I've been baffled by the complaints about graphics. I do have issues with the game (I won't discuss), but I was always happy with what the engine and the artists put out.

It could be that ESO's style of "simplified realism" simply agrees with my own taste, or that I'm unusual for expecting something that looked like an MMG rather than Skyrim.

Yes. I think the graphic complaints stem mostly from the offical large scale pvp trailer. Which looked like something from 2007. As someone (Lantyssa?) said a page or two ago "The PR team should be fired".

[rk47]

The fact that Warhammer MMO had better trailers made me even more sad.
TES is big IP though, it'll sell but the subs - the breath of giant MMOs, will grow short so quick and it'll die an excruciating death months into the game.
That's when they start selling player skin mods and go F2P route. Khajitt tiger stripes anyone?

[Bhazrak]

Well, I had fun, more than last time actually. But man, 11 weeks is just.... dumb.

[Modern Angel]

Yes. I think the graphic complaints stem mostly from the offical large scale pvp trailer. Which looked like something from 2007. As someone (Lantyssa?) said a page or two ago "The PR team should be fired".

That was me. There's a gulf between what the game is/looks like and what's being presented by their marketing team. And it's not just the pvp trailer. Remember that picture with the weird looking dude with his mouth open at a weird angle? We were all laughing at it when it came out? Yeah.

[Fabricated]

But since I'm going to talk some TES lore this doesn't count. The advertised bigbad of the game is Molag Bal.

Given the recent upswing in talk about 'insensitive' content in games I'd like to point out they basically picked the worst Daedra lord next to the one I can't remember who is basically the fertility/sex god.

The name Molag Bal is most known by after well, Molag Bal is "The Lord of Rape".

I have funny feeling you won't be seeing that title in this game, nor any reference to what his more devoted followers have to do to get his boon.

[rk47]

How is there even a bigbad since the whole frigging game is centered around factions warring each other?

[Fabricated]

The factions are fighting eachother over the Imperial City, which is owned by crazy Molag Bal worshipping Imperials if I recall. Molag Bal steals your soul and throws you in coldharbor; you escape and not having a soul is the ingame canon reason you can come back when killed in game.

[Paelos]

I don't really care for lore, but there are three things that drive MMOs. Gameplay, Lore, and People.

One of them you have no control over. The other two, well...

[Modern Angel]

I think they've walked back the Lord of Rape thing drastically over the years. He seems much more general enslavement, vampires, and domination now. Which still isn't pleasant but it is way less in your face.

http://elderscrolls.wikia.com/wiki/Molag_Bal

I've actually always loved the Elder Scrolls lore and world. Not enough to read every book or anything but I'm a real sucker for it.

[Ingmar]

I think they're just retconning him basically, which is perfectly fine with me.

[Sir T]

Well in Dawnguard the story of the first vampire is recounted and its hinted darkly that it wasn't concentual. Serena hints that her ascension was "degrading"

[Fabricated]

Appropriate post number.

[Sir T]

*sharpens pitchfork*

[WayAbvPar]

I think they're just retconning him basically, which is perfectly fine with me.

"Now with 99% less rape!"

[Falconeer]

This is the newest official video, where the Devs show off their PvE group content. Supposedly, this is the best example of PvE in TESO at this point, if they are confident enough to release it with commentary and all and considering the negative buzz already surrounding the game. Well, judge it for yourself...

[Nebu]

This is the newest official video, where the Devs show off their PvE group content. Supposedly, this is the best example of PvE in TESO at this point, if they are confident enough to release it with commentary and all and considering the negative buzz already surrounding the game. Well, judge it for yourself...

Does anyone here think that the combat in this video looks fun and interesting?  

In case I'm not being transparent... I don't.

[Ingmar]

This is the newest official video, where the Devs show off their PvE group content. Supposedly, this is the best example of PvE in TESO at this point, if they are confident enough to release it with commentary and all and considering the negative buzz already surrounding the game. Well, judge it for yourself...

I'm not actually sure there's a ton of negative buzz. For some reason almost everyone talking in general during both the beta sessions I was in was super fired up about how great the game was.

[Ginaz]

This is the newest official video, where the Devs show off their PvE group content. Supposedly, this is the best example of PvE in TESO at this point, if they are confident enough to release it with commentary and all and considering the negative buzz already surrounding the game. Well, judge it for yourself...

I'm not actually sure there's a ton of negative buzz. For some reason almost everyone talking in general during both the beta sessions I was in was super fired up about how great the game was.

Is that not the case with most betas, though?  Everyone is usually eager to claim an MMO is great while beta testing but we all know that enthusiasm doesn't last into live.

[Fordel]

This is the newest official video, where the Devs show off their PvE group content. Supposedly, this is the best example of PvE in TESO at this point, if they are confident enough to release it with commentary and all and considering the negative buzz already surrounding the game. Well, judge it for yourself...

I'm not actually sure there's a ton of negative buzz. For some reason almost everyone talking in general during both the beta sessions I was in was super fired up about how great the game was.

Maybe the game is great and YOU are the problem! 

[Rendakor]

I think that might be because the people who dislike it didn't come back from subsequent beta tests.

[Draegan]

That doesn't look awful.

[Mithas]

Yeah I was expecting much worse. That earlier PvP video looked worse.

[Lantyssa]

Did it look $15 a month though?

[Nebu]

Did it look $15 a month though?

Yes... 10 years ago.

[Hawkbit]

It's pretty.

However, it looks like they took the parts of GW2 that I thought I would like, but didn't and smashed it together with a feature-starved WoW. 

Shouldn't we expect more from online games in 2014?

[KallDrexx]

I guess  I'm going to be the odd person out and say that that actually looked fun.  It doesn't look like you have to juggle 25 abilities like a lot more recent games.  It looks very action oriented and GW like but with the trinity (which as GW2 proved is a good thing).  Combat flow looks good.  I could see myself enjoying it, even with a monthly fee.

*shrug*

[Ingmar]

It doesn't look like you have to juggle 25 abilities like a lot more recent games.

Hmm. It seems to me rather like MMOs have been stampeding away from having lots of abilities, rather than how you make it sound.

[KallDrexx]

It doesn't look like you have to juggle 25 abilities like a lot more recent games.

Hmm. It seems to me rather like MMOs have been stampeding away from having lots of abilities, rather than how you make it sound.

Which MMOs except for GW2 and TSW actually don't have more than one bar of abilities?  As far as I can see from reading posts both FFXI and SWTOR have a good number of abilities you have to juggle and those are really some of the more recent ones. 

I don't feel like there's been enough releases of MMOs to say there's a trend towards active ability reduction.

[Sjofn]

Neverwinter doesn't have a bunch of hot bars either.

I haven't tried everything that's come out recently but SWTOR is the last one I've touched that had a lot of ability juggling ... and that's not really in the "recent" category in my eyes any more. I haven't tried the latest FF one though.

[Ingmar]

It doesn't look like you have to juggle 25 abilities like a lot more recent games.

Hmm. It seems to me rather like MMOs have been stampeding away from having lots of abilities, rather than how you make it sound.

Which MMOs except for GW2 and TSW actually don't have more than one bar of abilities?  As far as I can see from reading posts both FFXI and SWTOR have a good number of abilities you have to juggle and those are really some of the more recent ones.  

I don't feel like there's been enough releases of MMOs to say there's a trend towards active ability reduction.

Wildstar, TESO, Guild Wars 2, Neverwinter, TSW.  I might be missing some I didn't play. I didn't play FFXI but I also don't really think of that as new.

[Nebu]

GW2 technically has two bars on many classes if you count the number keys and the function keys for Elementalist, Mesmer, etc.

[Stormwaltz]

Also, LotRO's recent "NGE" robbed some classes of up to a third of their abilities.

[Triforcer]

M rating for ESO.  That worked out all right for Conan!

Zenimax has already said they won't change anything. or challenge- must be something deeply baked in, otherwise you would think they would just cover the nipple on the statue.