The Elder Scrolls Online Reviews
Elder Scrolls Online is a good, fun game overall, but it's a better MMO than it is an Elder Scrolls game.
Freedom of choice combined with a wealth of content makes for a game that can be a little intimidating to tackle, but the lack of commitment or direction frees you up to explore it at your own pace. ESO can be a very relaxing game to play, and that’s why I continue to return to it after nearly eight years of playing.
The final concern is one that will not be answered until a much later date: Content. Yes Bethesda pulled out all the stops and got professional talent to voice the NPCs. It has a huge impact on the gameplay and I have to say I like it. My concern is that as with all the content that MMO players are used to consuming, Bethesda will either not be able to keep up with the demand, will go broke trying to maintain the star power quality of talent or will end up cutting corners to get it done. Based on the monthly cost of $15.99 on top of the purchase price, players will not be happy with any perceived change in quality. That leads to the inevitable question of can it maintain the subscription for the life of the game. However, Bethesda has invested a lot in the game already and ESO appears to the crown jewel in their product crown so I would wager they will handle it appropriately. History has shown that RPG fans are more than willing to part with their cash when they get the chance to play in the land of Tamriel. With ESO helping migrate these players to the online subscription based model, Bethesda might have a money printing machine on their hands and might be able to continue their streak of block buster titles. We will keep playing and providing updates as we progress in game.
The Elder Scrolls Online is a brave attempt at combining two seemingly polar opposites, but it ultimately fails to build a continuously compelling world, compromising too much on either side. It's an MMO that can't hold a candle to likes of Guild Wars 2 and The Secret World, and an Elder Scrolls game that can't hope to be as deep and rich in content and solo experience as Morrowind and Skyrim. The allure of an online Tamriel is strong, and when the game's disparate parts align, it really is a bit special, but those moments are too few and far between to recommend for a game with this much of an inflated price point.
The core of the Elder Scrolls experience lives on in The Elder Scrolls Online, and fans of series will love discovering never before seen corners of Tamriel, or revisiting favorite locales in a new way. However these experiences are muddled by balance issues, unclear design choices, and technical blips. This MMO is not for everyone, but those who are ready for a deep, consuming experience may find it here if they choose to look past the flaws.
Despite all I've said sound pretty down on the game, I do have a strange compulsion to continue rolling with it a while longer because I do enjoy exploring it. My impressions from the first week may not be so hot on it, but I don't hate it. Yet. I'll let you know if that changes.
All in all, The Elder Scrolls Online is a great game, with one of the most successful MMO launches I have come across, despite some of the well-documented teething problems. As it stands, I can only see improvement here and Bethesda Softworks seem dedicated to making that happen.
Murkmire feels a bit more reserved than Summerset, but as a DLC that's expected -- and that doesn't mean this isn't well worth your time.
All in all, The Elder Scrolls Online is a pretty good game. It's not outstanding, and it's not terrible. Once it's less new and the developer has had time to polish and clean it up a bit, it may be a good game, but I think there was so much effort put into making it feel like an Elder Scrolls title and so much effort was placed in checking off every bullet point on the MMO checklist that they forgot to make the game stand out from the crowd. And when you've paid $60 plus a monthly subscription fee for a game, it should.
So another lukewarm MMO, then. But occasionally heated up a bit by the rare confluence of scenery, music (the majority of which is excellent) and raw atmosphere that can transport you for a fleeting moment to the Tamriel we've grown to know and love.
Yes, plenty of compromises were made to create this hybrid of a traditional Elder Scrolls game and a traditional MMO. Those compromises will leave purists on both sides disappointed, but this is an ambitious and exciting epic that promises to only grow with time. It's a sandbox worth sharing, provided everyone is willing to play nicely with others and Bethesda keeps it clean.
The mini-dungeons are extremely repetitive, almost identical in their layout. What's worse, they're shared with other players, meaning that you often move through areas cleared by someone just ahead of you, to find the boss encounter vacant save for a dozen players standing around,
With better MMORPGs already out there and seemingly more great ones coming, The Elder Scrolls Online is using the name to appeal to its large fan base, and I have no doubt some will enjoy, but for the rest, this game is an vacillating anomaly in a packed market.
Elder Scrolls Online is, by the skin of its teeth and a lot of hard work from Zenimax, a success. Phew.
The Elder Scrolls Online is a solid, meaty title. It has hours of gameplay, satisfying character trees, and a wealth of online role playing experiences to churn through. It's safe and secure. It serves up the classic habitual MMORPG experience, albeit with a "Tamriel Twist". And for many gamers, this will be fine. But Bethesda have created an example - not an evolution - of the genre.
Zenimax and Bethesda have gotten their baby out of the first gate. Despite the flailing and wailing of some impossible to please souls about the downtime and what they were owed, everything has been handled cleverly and carefully.
Whether or not The Elder Scrolls Online is for you will depend entirely on what you're looking for out of it. If you want a true Elder Scrolls experience, with all the freedom, exploration, and immersion that comes with it, you're likely to be disappointed.
A few launch hiccups aside, the issues that are and will continue to dog Elder Scrolls Online are entirely down to perception. If your hope for a sixth Elder Scrolls was always for a sequel set across a hitherto unexplored region of Tamriel; a game in which you could be the focus and aspire to be the sole hero, developing exclusive and ancient powers along the way, then Elder Scrolls Online was never going to cut it. Likewise if you're the kind of veteran MMO gamer who has to hit the level cap as quickly as possible to forever grind raids to attain the best gear, TESO's slower pace and exhaustive content may well feel tiresome and laboured.
Under the surface, not enough has changed to the formula that separates The Elder Scrolls Online from existing free or established properties, and I would find it genuinely hard to recommend to anyone seeking an experience outside of a cosy, well presented, box.
An easy recommendation for any console-based RPG fan. Better with friends. The game introduces console players to the vast world of MMOs in an easy to grasp and approachable fashion with a ton to see and explore.