The Elder Scrolls Online drops subscription

[MightyJordan]

 

Raise your wands if you didn't see this one coming. Okay, that's no-one. Yes, like night following a particularly reliable day, The Elder Scrolls Online is dropping its subscription. Rumors of the switch have been around for a while now, fuelled by the elimination of the six-month subscription option in December, followed by the removal of TESO boxes from EB Games shelves in Australia earlier this month. Now, finally, it's confirmed: Bethesda Softworks has announced that the game's subscription will cease as of March, at which point it will be known as The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited.

 

It won't be fully free-to-play

[HawkMan]

Well we all saw this coming, the surprising thing is that it happened before Wildstar. 

[+Asmodai MVC]

I hope this thing fails miserably.

 

They took an amazing sandbox series and slapped the lore on a theme park MMO.  It's a shame because before this was announced many (myself included) were super excited about a possible sandbox Elder Scrolls MMO.  We just assumed Elder Scrolls meant sandbox but oh were we wrong.  Really I still think an MMO is the only way multiplayer could be implemented in an Elder Scrolls game but this is not it. (Battlespire was a horrible attempt to make a (non-MMO) multiplayer version of Elder Scrolls previously)

 

Normally it wouldn't be such a big deal.  I mean it's not my thing but if others like it then good for them, to each his/her own.  The thing is the Elder Scrolls are probably my favorite games... ever (Morrowind was the best though) and I'm TERRIFIED that if this MMO starts printing Zenimax Media (the parent company) money they'll kill off Bethesda Game Studios (makers of Elder Scrolls and Fallout single player games) in favor of Zenimax Online Studios (makers of ESO).

 

If this thing crashes and burns maybe Zenimax Online Studios will just go away and we can go back to Elder Scrolls being just the amazing single player sandbox games they've always been.  Oh and they should release a PS4/Xbox One version of Skyrim if they aren't going to get Fallout 4 or Elder Scrolls VI out by next year.  Doesn't have to be anything special, just bundle up the expansions, allow it to run a 1080p and include the high rez texture pack and I'm sure it would sell just fine.

[HawkMan]

Why would you hope it fails ? just don't play it and let those who enjoy it, enjoy it, seriously.

 

It's actually a pretty awesome MMO, which is pretty much as close to Elder Scrolls as an MMO can be. If you want full sandbox, go play Archeage... with the other 3 people who still play it...

[+Asmodai MVC]

Why would you hope it fails ? just don't play it and let those who enjoy it, enjoy it, seriously.

I believe the entire paragraph starting with "Normally it wouldn't be" explained exactly that pretty well. I really don't know what else to add or where your confusion on the matter could lie in order to try to clarify further. I thought that pretty much covered it.

It's actually a pretty awesome MMO, which is pretty much as close to Elder Scrolls as an MMO can be.

It's apparently not that awesome of an MMO or they wouldn't have to drop subscriptions. I'm pretty sure it's subscriber base is well below what their projections for it were. As for being pretty much as close to Elder Scrolls (in mechanics) as an MMO can be I don't even know where to get started on that. All the Elder Scrolls mainline games are sandbox, it's not. The ONLY thing Elder Scrolls about it is the lore. It could be A LOT more similar in mechanics to the Elder Scrolls single player games.

[HawkMan]

it is pretty awesome, but the amount of MMO's that can survive and make good money on subscriptions today are, well it's basically one. 

 

it's not that it can't survive on subs, but it will simply make more money with F2P and their in game real money store, like every other MMO today. 

[+Asmodai MVC]

the amount of MMO's that can survive and make good money on subscriptions today are, well it's basically one.

I'm not convinced that's true. I think a quality MMO with a strong IP could survive on a reasonable subscription. Playing $60 for the disc and then $15/month is not going to work though. I think you could get away with something along the lines of a free client download and $5/month or $50/year as a sub. You could then sell the game on discs in stores for $50 for people who don't want to download it or impulse buys or whatever and just say that includes a year free. You could also still have collectors editions that cost more and also included statues or other physical rewards and all that. You do need a good existing IP though to get people to buy a sub upfront but Elder Scrolls has that. You're right though that some unknown developer isn't going to come out and get people to drop down a subscription to a brand new MMO based on a never before seen IP.

it will simply make more money with F2P and their in game real money store, like every other MMO today.

You mean like just about everyone told them before they launched and they insisted it wasn't the case? That's why the OPs quote started with "Raise your wands if you didn't see this one coming. Okay, that's no-one."

[LaP]

Even free i'm still not interested.

[trag3dy]

I was reading about this the other day. I think that I will check it out again once the sub drops for good since I already own the game. I'm interested to see what has changed since I last played it.

 

That being said the game was so generically bad that I don't think going b2p can save it.

[123456789A]

Is it less boring than Destiny?

[+Red King Subscriber²]

I hope Bethesda did not give up on single player gaming.

[Raa]

Well we all saw this coming, the surprising thing is that it happened before Wildstar. 

Soon.jpg

 

 

I must admit I didn't see this happening so quickly, but in a way I'm glad it did. I haven't subscribed yet lol, I better get moving!

[+Zagadka Subscriber²]

The depressing thing is that they are moving on to base the game more strongly on microtransactions, which is never good news for anyone.

[spaceelf]

I thought the game was pretty good.  I just have too much other stuff to do on the average month to pay a monthly fee.

[remixedcat]

Theme park MMO.... hahahahaah it is!

[HawkMan]

The depressing thing is that they are moving on to base the game more strongly on microtransactions, which is never good news for anyone.

 

they're basically going the same route as Funcom did and it was great for everyone.

[123456789A]

Theme park MMO.... hahahahaah it is!

 

Sorry but what is the meaning of this? Does it have roller coasters?

[spaceelf]

lol then that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard! Is there a cotton candy vendor?

I'm guessing the sarcasm is strong in this conversation.

[+Asmodai MVC]

Sorry but what is the meaning of this? Does it have roller coasters?

Are you sersiously asking?

 

It's a pretty common term in classifying MMOs.  If you google theme park, sandbox, and MMO you get A LOT of articles about it but the short answer would be it's similar to how "Open World" and "Story Based" terms are used to classify non-MMO games.

 

If that doesn't help then the longer answer is a "Theme Park" MMO is one that is broken into Themed Areas (like a Theme Park).  So maybe there is a "Haven" area that you start at that is for level 1-10, then you progress to "Sylvania" that is for level 11-20, etc.  Within the Themed Areas there are fixed "attractions".  Contact A is always in the same place giving out the same missions to everyone who plays the game.  You go to contact A, you do the mission, then the mission resets for the next guy and you move on to the next fixed mission.  There is no sign you were ever there, nothing changes, everyone does the same thing.

 

In contrast a "Sandbox" MMO is one that is more open.  You can move where you like (not to say you won't get killed) and if the maps are broken down into regions it's likely due to technical issues (graphics engine can only handle so big of a map, servers can only handle so many users per instance, etc.)  Missions aren't fixed and instead systems are in place to generate missions.  Maybe a blacksmith needs ore to make items from so they create a mission to get the ore.  What ore they need and how much depends on how much and what types of items they sell the most so it changes and isn't the same all the time.  Maybe that blacksmith is even another player and the game provides that player with the systems necessary to post missions, determine if it's complete, and issue rewards for other players.

 

It's important to note that Theme Park <-> Sandbox is really more of a spectrum than a game either being purely one or another.  I would say Ultima Online was more Sandbox than Theme Park and World of Warcraft is like the poster boy for Theme Park but it probably has some Sandbox elements in it.  Star Wars Galaxy before the ruined it was another example of a game that was more sandbox than theme park.  Because of the success of World of Warcraft the vast majority of MMOs are trying to copy WoW and thus have been theme park.  Often the ones that do try to go Sandbox are from companies no one has heard of with game worlds no one has heard of so there is no real draw and they fail miserably.

 

The point here isn't that one is better than the other.  It's fine if you prefer Theme Park games.  The point was that the Elder Scrolls games are "open world" games.  One of the big appeals of the series is that you can go do what you want, you are free to completely ignore the plot (which is often weak as stories go anyway) and just do your own thing.  As such many assumed that a MMO would be similar and thus would be a "Sandbox" MMO.  ESO is not however.  It's very much a Theme Park styled game.  In fact many reviews called it WoW with the Elder Scrolls lore slapped on it.  I don't think that's entirely fair as they did try to create some new and interesting mechanics but fundamentally it is a Theme Park like WoW instead of an open world sandbox as many had hoped.  If "Elder Scrolls" didn't mean "open world" so strongly to so many people maybe it wouldn't be such a big deal.

[Bi4me]

I'm afraid it's too late for that move, Bethesda...

[HawkMan]

lol then that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard! Is there a cotton candy vendor?

 

no, there's no rollercoaster, theme park is a common term for an MMO that has a main storyline for the character. it doesn't quite fit ESO though since it implies a single linear route to the end game. with ESO the storyline is mostly optional and you can play most of the game as a sandbox, but if you get stuck there are common areas you can go to pick up quests for your level range. so its actually in between theme park and sandbox MMO.

Edited January 23, 2015 by Andrew

[guitmz]

Bought it yesterday at a surprisingly cheap price ($22 USD). The guy sent me a picture of a retail box with the code (the box was in german). The key worked and I have been playing for 2h or so (took a while to download). I really liked the game so far. The Skyrim elements present (actually the series elements) are attractive. No problems at all here

[+Asmodai MVC]

no, there's no rollercoaster, theme park is a common term for an MMO that has a main storyline for the character. it doesn't quite fit ESO though since it implies a single linear route to the end game. with ESO the storyline is mostly optional and you can play most of the game as a sandbox, but if you get stuck there are common areas you can go to pick up quests for your level range. so its actually in between theme park and sandbox MMO.

I don't think any MMO ever has had only a single linear route to the end game. Theme Park doesn't imply a single linear route. It implies "themed areas" with fixed "attactions". So maybe Zone 1 is where newbies start, heck maybe you can even pick from Zone 1, 2, or 3 for newbies in larger games. Inside Zone 1 there is attractions A through F. Now you can do all of A through F if you like, or you can keep repeating A and ignore B-F, or you can jump around... it doesn't have to be linear. The point is that the attractions are ALWAYS A through F in Zone 1 for everyone who plays it and nothing really changes. If Attraction A is "rescue the princess" there can be tons of people doing that and they can each rescue the same princess separately. When you've completed it the princess isn't rescued, you can do it again just like you can get right back on the same roller coaster. Everyone can do the exact same mission and you having done it doesn't mean anything to anyone else, it doesn't change the world in any way. Unless there's been a massive change since launch (I haven't kept up with the patches) that DOES describe ESO.

In a sandbox game If someone rescues the princess she's rescued and no one else can rescue her again. The attractions tend to be generated by the actual events in the world. You need to kill 10 bears because someone actually needs 10 bear pelts to craft the thing they are trying to make. Not just because the same attraction tells everyone they need to kill 10 bears no matter how many bears there have been or how many pelts have been turned in. The thing is that Elder Scroll ALREADY had a system that creates missions like this. They call it Radiant AI and it generates Radiant Quests and that's in a single player game that runs on a PS3/Xbox 360. People were really excited about how much that could be improved when the AI was running on actual MMO servers and other humans were involved also generating quests but ESO doesn't work that way. It's a theme park.

[Descartes]

I'm afraid it's too late for that move, Bethesda...

 

It's not a Bethesda game.

[HawkMan]

I don't think any MMO ever has had only a single linear route to the end game. Theme Park doesn't imply a single linear route. It implies "themed areas" with fixed "attactions". So maybe Zone 1 is where newbies start, heck maybe you can even pick from Zone 1, 2, or 3 for newbies in larger games. Inside Zone 1 there is attractions A through F. Now you can do all of A through F if you like, or you can keep repeating A and ignore B-F, or you can jump around... it doesn't have to be linear. The point is that the attractions are ALWAYS A through F in Zone 1 for everyone who plays it and nothing really changes. If Attraction A is "rescue the princess" there can be tons of people doing that and they can each rescue the same princess separately. When you've completed it the princess isn't rescued, you can do it again just like you can get right back on the same roller coaster. Everyone can do the exact same mission and you having done it doesn't mean anything to anyone else, it doesn't change the world in any way. Unless there's been a massive change since launch (I haven't kept up with the patches) that DOES describe ESO.

In a sandbox game If someone rescues the princess she's rescued and no one else can rescue her again. The attractions tend to be generated by the actual events in the world. You need to kill 10 bears because someone actually needs 10 bear pelts to craft the thing they are trying to make. Not just because the same attraction tells everyone they need to kill 10 bears no matter how many bears there have been or how many pelts have been turned in. The thing is that Elder Scroll ALREADY had a system that creates missions like this. They call it Radiant AI and it generates Radiant Quests and that's in a single player game that runs on a PS3/Xbox 360. People were really excited about how much that could be improved when the AI was running on actual MMO servers and other humans were involved also generating quests but ESO doesn't work that way. It's a theme park.

 

Actually several games, WoW included require you to do if not all, then most missions in order, if you have enough boosts and with later versions giving more XP you can skip sections, but asically you need to go A-B-C-D-E and so on, and your hands are held all the way to make sure you don't get lost and lose your way. 

 

and even on sandbox games, things never change, things where supposed to change with Archeage, they never did, the one island that sort of had player influence change, was nothing more than what you already had in AoC and other games with PVP battleground areas. but the gameworld itself was never changed. WoW which is a themepark has had major changes to the gameworld 3 times. sure it's not player influenced, but at least there's changes. 

 

No sandbox game has ever been like you describe. at most they have had random mission terminals who send people to the same set of semi random dungeons with some crappy semi random text story, (Anarchy online) that's the closest we've ever been to unique missions for each player, and it wasn't very unique. 

 

Truly random unique quests don't work in an MMO because there's to many players. look at Elite Dangerous, even with a universe supposedly affected by the players trading and fighting in the zones not much is ever changed unless thousands of players fight in the same area of space for the same factions for weeks, and the unique mission given to players while uniquely randomly generated and supposedly given to only one person and gone when one picks it up, a new identical one is generated in a few minutes at most in order give enough content to all the players.