Elder Scrolls Online is a... comfy game.

[Kalentan]

So for context I've owned ESO on consoles for a long time but for well, a while now, I've been just collecting login bonuses just in case I started playing it again. I've done this for awhile, long periods of downtime followed by periods of lots of playing.

And I get that ESO is not everyone's favorite game (combat depending on class/skills/weapons can be really meh/bad, art style isn't for everyone, can be pricey to start if you don't sub, etc), but... one thing I love about it is how no matter how long of a break I take. I can always jump right back in and pick up exactly where I left off and not worrying about if all of my gear sucks. I'm not a raider so I'm not exactly min maxing but since the max gear level is still Champion Points (CP) 160, all my gear is still good for doing all the content I enjoy and I still get CP levels here and there I still feel like I am progressing. And in one of the few cases of actual good leveling scaling, since everything scales to you, it actually feels like you can put your skills to the test and also not just rolling over everything, helps to not make it feel like I'm just mopping up leftover content.

So tonight I decided I actually wanted to play a bit, finish up content I had left hanging in Vvardenfell (Which is uh, most of it haha). Well, first in usual MMO fashion, I created well, a new fashion set. After that I set out to complete what I believe was the next main quest of the expansion. But along the way I spotted a side quest on the fork in the road. I intended to ignore but decided to just check it out. It started simple enough (save a guy's father from bandits) but then grew from there until I was eventually taking the cowl of essentially Elder Scroll's Batman, called the Scarlet Judge. The questline was far longer than I expected and in the end I was even given the outfit the guy wore (even refers to it as his cowl).

I don't think It looks half bad! And my character is also normally wearing very red outfits so that makes me happy.

It wasn't some amazing storyline or anything but it was just comfy nice fantasy schlock. Fought some folks, discovered corruption in a town, took over as Batman, took down the baddy and got their conspirators arrested. All in a days work I suppose.

Playing it on PS5 the 4K native mode runs a lot better. Unsure if it's 60 but it feels consistent, I'd play the 1080p mode for more frames but it also drops the graphics quite a bit too. One time I'm willing to get less frames for better graphics. I am looking forward to seeing what the native PS5 (and also XBSX|S for those who play on there) does to improve. I'd love if it took advantage of dualsense in a meaningful way to make 2 hander weapons feel more meaty.

So yeah, I liked that I could just login and do a quest for an hour or so and get some enjoyment out of it without needing to worry about a million other things. I'll try to make an effort to do that more often. There's zero rush for me to do everything nor a need to do everything. Sure it's not a game that's going to win any awards anytime soon but I'm also happy to see that the game's population is quite stable, even in years old content I still saw frequent other players just doing their things.

 

[LossAversion]

It's a very cozy world to explore and hang out in. I haven't played ESO since I started XIV this year but I really enjoyed my time in ESO. The main story was actually a lot better than the story in Skyrim and it's really cool getting to explore places that you've only read about in the mainline Elder Scrolls games.

 

[Slayven]

It is a game that you can pick up and put down and not feel like you are behind.

 

[Massicot]

I've always wanted to give eso a fair shake but I just don't know when I'd find the time to dedicate to it. Thanks for sharing a cool little snippet.

 

[Kalentan]

It is a game that you can pick up and put down and feel like you are behind.

Click to shrink...

I guess I disagree with that haha.

Sure most people will be doing the current content but considering the sheer scale of the game it would seem at a glance people just do whatever they want to do whenever. I could stop doing Vvardenfell stuff and jump straight to the new Skyrim content and not need to regear or anything.

Hell, unless I'm mistaken you can do the Skyrim content the first moment you're out of the tutorial due to the scaling. You can even start in Morrowind with a whole new intro if that's your thing too.

 

[Joffy]

I've picked it up and put it down a fair bit over the years but the sheer size of the thing is now a bit tooo overwhelming for me. It is an obscene offering in terms of content, the sort of thing you could never see all of, which is great proposition when money's a bit tight.

 

[Slayven]

I guess I disagree with that haha.

Sure most people will be doing the current content but considering the sheer scale of the game it would seem at a glance people just do whatever they want to do whenever. I could stop doing Vvardenfell stuff and jump straight to the new Skyrim content and not need to regear or anything.

Click to shrink...

It's early and forgot the "not". That is what i meant, you can play it as a single player game and just do your own thing when and how you want too.

 

[Kalentan]

It's early and forgot the "not". That is what i meant, you can play it as a single player game and just do your own thing when and how you want too.

Click to shrink...

Oh yeah, haha. But yeah, you can totally play it as a Single player game if you want. I think the dungeons are decently fun but totally optional.

 

[Lashley]

Yeah, it's an underrated game imo

 

[DefiedFaith]

How solo friendly in ESO?

 

[GasProblem]

Waiting for the next gen patch to jump in.

I have ESO on Gamepass, and it says the Morrowimd expansion is included. But I can't make a Warden. Do you have to buy the Warden seperately or is it part of the expansion?

 

[Kalentan]

How solo friendly in ESO?

Click to shrink...

Incredibly. Dungeons still require players but everything else in the game can be solo'd, though some will be harder (such as public dungeons) but not anywhere near impossible.

Waiting for the next gen patch to jump in.

I have ESO on Gamepass, and it says the Morrowimd expansion is included. But I can't make a Warden. Do you have to buy the Warden seperately or is it part of the expansion?

Click to shrink...

Hm... I got the Warden class with the expansion. No additional price.

 

[Evolution of Metal]

I don't understand the premise of this thread.

How many MMOs cannot be played like this?

Unless you are raiding/pvp/events, the activities of questing/exploration/leveling are rarely removed/reworked to the point where you cannot play it at your own pace. It is usually the year 1, perhaps up to 2, where the large MMO is finding the roots and reworking progression/gear/core of the game. After that, it shifts the gears into expanding and all the previous content remains locked.

 

[supercommodore]

I've been tempted a few times as it is on game pass. How newcomer friendly is it?

 

[DrewyMcK]

I really need to get back into this. I think I played through the starting area a year or two ago, and then dropped it for something else. Are all the old expansions / DLC still full price?

 

[Deleted member 21875]

It's a great game, easy to jump back into even when you've not played it for months. Incredibly solo friendly too.

The recent Skyrim addition felt a bit half baked though, a shame as the Morrowind expansion was superb.

 

[Kalentan]

I don't understand the premise of this thread.

How many MMOs cannot be played like this?

Unless you are raiding/pvp/events, the activities of questing/exploration/leveling are rarely removed/reworked to the point where you cannot play it at your own pace. It is usually the year 1, perhaps up to 2, where the large MMO is finding the roots and reworking progression/gear/core of the game. After that, it shifts the gears into expanding and all the previous content remains locked.

Click to shrink...

Originally I had a larger response but I think I was able to simplify it, to an extent.

The biggest difference is you have a choice. you could start playing the game and instantly go from the tutorial to Skyrim, the latest expansion, do all of it's content and DLCs and then go do the other expansions in whatever order you want. No matter what order you do them in, it's all content scaled up to you, it's all your "endgame". Hell with the Morrowind Expansion you can start an alt that begins in Vvardenfell rather than the typical starting zone and use Vvardenfell as your beginning zone.

Hell, you can even have a new player and a 160 CP player doing a zone together and scaling actually makes it work so you're both getting good exp and loot/resources.

Whereas in other MMOs such as WoW and FFXIV, you're still limited to an extent based on your level (WoW has scaling but only through ranges, Loch Modan will always be a 5 - 30 zone, meaning at level 60 all the content will be piss easy).

So yes, in other MMOs you can do all the old content at your own pace. But it's never viable, and ultimately starts feeling more like you're just checking stuff off a list. You're not going to be gathering end-game materials in Elwynn Forest or Ul'dah, nor will quests give you loot of your level. This isn't even mentioning the fact that Quests in ESO themselves are generally much bigger than the typical (there's always exceptions) side quests in those games. Like I spent an hour doing a single quest (not an entire series of them) that was just a side quest.

 

[garion333]

Cozy? That's a good description.

 

[Deleted member 11370]

I'd love to sit down and devote a massive amount of time to this game... But the Emperor Trophy has created a mental block that I don't know if I'll ever be able to overcome.

It's a problem I have with the vast majority of MMORPGs, really.

 

[Kwigo]

ESO is really great when you look at it like a solo (or co-op) ES game.
The MMO aspect is a bit lacking imo, which is why I stopped playing it. Maybe that changed in the meantime? I played it around the release of the Morrowind expansion.

One thing is sure tho, it's a really unique MMO.

 

[Kalentan]

I really need to get back into this. I think I played through the starting area a year or two ago, and then dropped it for something else. Are all the old expansions / DLC still full price?

Click to shrink...

At least on PlayStation you can get the Greymoor Edition which is normally $59.99 and is on sale for $19.79. You get the base game, Morrowind, Summerset, Elsweyr, and the Skyrim Expansions.

However you don't get any of the smaller DLC contents which range from 1500 to 2000 Crowns which is about $15 - $22 dollars depending on the content size. (Some are pretty meaty). You can either buy them all individually (which is a lot) OR you can sub to the game for $15/month which gives you a bunch of benefits including all the smaller DLC packs.

 

[afrodubs]

Almost tempted me into getting back into this... It can be a hell of a time sink tho.

 

[4 Get!]

One thing is sure tho, it's a really unique MMO.

Click to shrink...

To me, it's open world Guild Wars 1(In a good way) but way more solo-friendly. There's tons of 'Build Wars' esque sites for it in the same way depending on what you want to do. I'm actually hoping one day that they experiment with the idea of dual classes like with what Guild Wars did.

Edit: Also I'd refrain from advertising/presenting it as a co-op Elder Scrolls game. That type of marketing is what got it in trouble when it first launched. The two simply don't play the same and the people who are craving that experience specifically want Oblivion/Skyrim gameplay but multiplayer, not this.

 

[Kalentan]

Almost tempted me into getting back into this... It can be a hell of a time sink tho.

Click to shrink...

I think the mindset to have in the game is that you will never do everything. Once you accept that and just do the content/quests you find interesting, you'll have a lot more fun.

And for those that do like to 100% zones, at least it gives you the tools to know what a zone contains.

 

[afrodubs]

I think the mindset to have in the game is that you will never do everything. Once you accept that and just do the content/quests you find interesting, you'll have a lot more fun.

And for those that do like to 100% zones, at least it gives you the tools to know what a zone contains.

Click to shrink...

I had a great time with this game over 2 years, but online games tend to pull me in for hours a day and tbh I can't afford to do that anymore. I avoid most online games (MMOs, online competitive FPS, etc...) nowadays...

 

[dodmaster]

I tried getting back into this a while back to see how good the gfx update was on the 1X ... and it looked hideous. Like, unplayably hideous. I recall it was a decent-looking game back in 2014, but it definitely has not aged well, visually.

 

[Bizzquik]

Its a very enjoyable pick-up and put-down solo MMO.

Good use of the word comfy. The game is quality meatloaf. It isn't prime rib, but its good. I like it. And its home. Every three months, there are quality of life improvements to enhance the experience in small, subtle ways ... to go with the new content. And that new content adds to what is going on in the game-world, but I don't feel like I'm missing out if I don't follow the story beats; I have no idea what happened in 2019's "Elsweyr" chapter, for instance.

Because its an MMO, there is a constant sense of activity as I watch players run about the towns. People do quests around me, sometimes help me. I may turn on zone voice chat and laugh at the conversations I overhear among groups of strangers. I feel like I make progress as I turn in quests and get new materials for crafting. Or perhaps work on my character's attire and pick out a matching pet.

I will play the game non-stop for three weeks or play it for one afternoon. It doesn't matter. I still enjoy that time with it, and then I put it away. Until next time.

 

[Deleted member 12323]

How solo friendly in ESO?

Click to shrink...

EXTREMELY

 

[Darkstorne]

How solo friendly in ESO?

Click to shrink...

Incredibly. Dungeons still require players but everything else in the game can be solo'd, though some will be harder (such as public dungeons) but not anywhere near impossible.

Click to shrink...

Even dungeons can be solo'd with relative ease once you're a high enough CP level and with purple/gold gear. It's really only trials (raids in WoW terms) that you can't solo. The trouble with reaching that power level though is that the vast majority of the game poses absolutely no challenge whatsoever. Regular mobs all go down in one or two hits. Storyline bosses that get built up over hours of play as formidable opponents die in a few seconds. That, coupled with some genuinely atrocious server performance that they are either incapable of fixing or unwilling to fix is why I quit the game earlier this year.

I'm sure I'll be back at some point, but without real solutions to the dire performance issues I won't be spending more money on the game.

 

[Zaubrer]

Lots of people say it's a great singleplayer MMO. When I started playing it the writing and lame quest design kept me off though... maybe I should give it another try, it's on Game Pass after all.

 

[4 Get!]

Even dungeons can be solo'd with relative ease once you're a high enough CP level and with purple/gold gear. It's really only trials (raids in WoW terms) that you can't solo. The trouble with reaching that power level though is that the vast majority of the game poses absolutely no challenge whatsoever. Regular mobs all go down in one or two hits. Storyline bosses that get built up over hours of play as formidable opponents die in a few seconds. That, coupled with some genuinely atrocious server performance that they are either incapable of fixing or unwilling to fix is why I quit the game earlier this year.

I'm sure I'll be back at some point, but without real solutions to the dire performance issues I won't be spending more money on the game.

Click to shrink...

As far as I can tell they fixed the server issues and that glitch where you load forever, unless there is another issue you're speaking of.

 

[Darkstorne]

As far as I can tell they fixed the server issues and that glitch where you load forever, unless there is another issue you're speaking of.

Click to shrink...

Check your ping. I'm speaking as a PCEU player though. The servers have been a well known dumpster fire for years. 80 ping at the absolute best of times, usually 100+, and frequent spikes to 300+ for a few seconds. Cyrodiil is quite literally unplayable at peak hours. While WoW, SWTOR, FFXIV, and GW2 all give me between 25-40 ping consistently.

 

[Kalentan]

For anyone who read this and is interested...

The PC version is now also on Sale on steam.

Standard Edition is $7.99
Greymoor Edition which includes all expansions (and the base game) is $19.79

Same Price on Xbox and PlayStation, but do note that the base game (unsure about the DLC) is included on GamePass.