The Elder Scrolls Online

Churn in MMOs is inevitable. The best way to combat it is to add content, drum up interest, and find hooks to keep players interested.. That, or to be Blizzard...

SWTOR might be a good model for TESO after a few months. Offer limited free to play, but gate the really fun stuff behind a sub.

The wild card really will be how the MMO translates to PS4 and Xbone.

Tuco_sl said:

Box sales might recoup some of the initial investment, but the cash cow is with a steady income from monthly subs and microtransactions. You don't get that from pumping up a dumb game that everyone leaves after a month.

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Get your box fee+3-6months of sub from 30-50% of accounts.
Then go ftp at 9m-12m, to reinvigorate income decline.


Its the player behavior that is so strange. Every single one of those mmos abandoned is FAR better NOW then, they were for those first 6 months. Bugs fixed, classes rebalanced, content added. Most of them are practically entirely new games from when you quit them probably.
Why is everyone so inclined to play buggy, unfinished messes? People clearly don't actually like playing these games. They just like the culture of the content rush, it seems.

Gecko_sl said:

SWTOR might be a good model for TESO after a few months. Offer limited free to play, but gate the really fun stuff behind a sub.

The wild card really will be how the MMO translates to PS4 and Xbone.

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Seems like ESO is extremely well suited to flip to a profitable F2P model ala SWTOR imo.

A lot is instanced just like TOR, so that means you can essentially shut people out of whole areas("Like PvP? Want to see Cyrodil? For only $5 monthly you can be part of the largest..."). The game is pretty compartmentalized from what I saw, granted it was only a weekend. They are already starting off with the paywall (Imps) as well as a cash shop so doesn't take much to tweak it heavily in the other direction. (Soul gems, finite number of skills, etc)

This seems to be the mentality of ZOS from what I gathered:



More like "Yeah we don't PLAN to crash the plane, but if we fail to plan for a plane crash..."

I don't think console holds much hope and I'm not sure they do either though. A $60 game (even if they drop it down to $40) console players are used to. But if you tell them pay $15/month to PvP after that, or skulk around in caves where the loot and danger is already gone, good luck. Most of them squawk about paying the PSN or Xbox gold fees which gives them FREE games for $50 a year. No way in hell they get even a token amount of subs if those people are able to do basic math averaged out over a year. You can't get blood out of stones.

Even SOE learned that from DCUO and soon, Planetside 2. Only FFXIV can put up a sub game on a console and not really care if too many people sub through it or not; their fanbase isn't really going anywhere. ArcheAge just turned F2P from P2P in Japan which shows people there will not really support much of anything outside of a Final Fantasy mmo's sub.



I really do think they could get people to pay $5/month to PvP, while restricting most of the other functions (and some basic things in common areas). As people said here, there aren't too many other choices for people to do that other than GW2 these days, and a lot of people don't think $5 is out of the ordinary.

Utnayan_sl said:

As much as I am thinking about it anyway, because yes, people are right - I am a gamer... I just can't do it. If I knew the servers were going to work correctly, the bugs were fixed for sure, etc - I would honestly probably go ahead with it to join in RvR fun for a while and even take you up on your offer because I love Shenanigans like what you just said. It * is * fun doing what everyone describes. Being on that first few weeks of an MMORPG launch and having a blast with people you know. If after Tuesday this thing is relatively stable and the character progression copy sysatem is functional and I do not see a lot of complaints about queue times, I'll spring 40 for GMG 20% off, grind it out to 10, and latch on with PRX because that always sounded fun.

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nothing wrong with being patient

Tuco_sl said:

Yup. Worlds are new and exciting when they're just released. When you're the pioneer exploring content with other people.

Joining up after 80% of the active population is max level is lonely and boring.

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I got it. Next big thing in mmos. Iterate. Stop even trying to make a new game, with long term appeal. Just wipe characters, and create a new landmass, and minor skll revisions and changes, with each yearly release. then within 3 years, have 2 or 3 "versions" so you can release 2-3 games yearly.
Its clearly what people REALLY want.

Everquest'15
Everquest'16
Everquest'17
Everquest:black ops.
Everquest:Black ops 2
Everquest:Medieval warfare

esloan_sl said:

Kate Beckinsale is gorgeous but you wanna talk about dialing it in.

I really never understand why you would spend all this money on named actors for these parts.

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Remember when I said ZOS should have just spent $200m or whatever on generic mmo #15 and not used it in conjunction with the TES IP and it would have gotten just as much money and none of the flack, but you said it was the 'brand name' that sells it?

Same principal.

People heard "John Cleese" and went into Wet Panty mode. You kind of proved it with your statement there. You said 'she's gorgeous' as if that had some bearing on how her voice would sound. They could have gotten a fat phone sex girl to do the voice a helluva lot better, but they know people have a reaction to what Kate LOOKS like, not what she sounds like.

Which is funny because people still go "Kate Beckinsale is doing the voice.. mmmm". Classic.

Jackdaddio_sl said:

Remember when I said ZOS should have just spent $200m or whatever on generic mmo #15 and not used it in conjunction with the TES IP and it would have gotten just as much money and none of the flack, but you said it was the 'brand name' that sells it?

Same principal.

People heard "John Cleese" and went into Wet Panty mode. You kind of proved it with your statement there. You said 'she's gorgeous' as if that had some bearing on how her voice would sound. They could have gotten a fat phone sex girl to do the voice a helluva lot better, but they know people have a reaction to what Kate LOOKS like, not what she sounds like.

Which is funny because people still go "Kate Beckinsale is doing the voice.. mmmm". Classic.

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Yeah, I guess I know why they do it. I guess to some people, it matters. Not really to me but I guess some people care.

By the way, I said she was gorgeous because I watched the video and I had forgotten how great she looked. I have not seen a movie with her in it in ages and she's still hot.

Yes, I know I've said this from day one, but I really think some of you jaded old fuckers are going to be pleasantly surprised by this game; it's miles ahead of where most recent MMOs were at launch with regard to depth, immersion, and shit to do at end game.

esloan_sl said:

By the way, I said she was gorgeous because I watched the video and I had forgotten how great she looked. I have not seen a movie with her in it in ages and she's still hot.

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She's no Catherine Zeta Jones, but I wouldn't throw her out for maxing out my credit cards.

I didn't see this posted yet, so if it was, ignore my search failures.Source

Find out the names for our launch campaigns in Cyrodiil and begin devising your PvP plans.

Early Access begins this weekend! Are you looking forward to your first steps in Cyrodiil? We?re preparing the battlefield right now, and before you know it you?ll be on the front lines, driving the enemy forces from their keeps in massive conflicts. PvP is even more fun when you can organize ahead of time, so we?re releasing the names of the North American and European campaigns that will be open when Early Access starts. Each name represents two campaigns, one on the NA megaserver and one on the EU megasever:


Bloodthorn
Scourge
Chrysamere
Auriel's Bow
Wabbajack
Volendrung
Skull Crusher
Dawnbreaker
Goldbrand
Hopesfire

Choose yours and get ready to charge into the fray during Early Access! You can start participating in the Alliance War at level 10, and at that time you?ll be able to select your home campaign. Find out where your guild and friends will be fighting and join up with them! You can become a guest in other campaigns, and you can change your home campaign later for Alliance Points if you wish.

Don?t forget that you can still pre-order to get your Explorer?s Pack and Early Access?it?s not too late yet. We can?t wait to see you in Cyrodiil.

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Utnayan_sl said:

As much as I am thinking about it anyway, because yes, people are right - I am a gamer... I just can't do it.

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Yes you can. There are only so many of these launch weeks in big MMOs. Even when they are a disaster, they are still fun to bitch and kvetch and try and fix things. They are fun to join like minded nerds in new broken places and work to get ahead. Broken games often have fun exploits and crazy things to try. It's a new world to screw with and we don't get enough of those. Even if all it gets you is a month of fun bitching with us in this thread, it's still going to be fun. Come on... it won't be the same without your walls of Screed!!!

Caliane_sl said:

Why is everyone so inclined to play buggy, unfinished messes? People clearly don't actually like playing these games.

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TESO certainly didn't seem buggy and unfinished to me on PTS. I imagine the launch will have some issues but they will be resolved in a timely manner otherwise ZOS will have a major PR problem to deal with.

BTW when you remove the jaded gamers from this board out of the equation, you end up with a lot of players who do enjoy playing these kind of games. Perhaps the problem isn't TESO but your own expectations?

Blackwulf_sl said:

Yes, I know I've said this from day one, but I really think some of you jaded old fuckers are going to be pleasantly surprised by this game;it's miles aheadof where most recent MMOs were at launch with regard to depth, immersion, and shit to do at end game.

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After this, I'm even more jaded. That's just me though.

The more someone tries to sell me something with inflated claims of greatness, I usually start to tune that out and back away.

Hoping the game does well though, I want to play it when the box price drops and stuff is fixed. I really can't take the company's word for it that they did though.. them being a company and all.

Utnayan_sl said:

As much as I am thinking about it anyway, because yes, people are right - I am a gamer... I just can't do it. If I knew the servers were going to work correctly, the bugs were fixed for sure, etc - I would honestly probably go ahead with it to join in RvR fun for a while and even take you up on your offer because I love Shenanigans like what you just said. It * is * fun doing what everyone describes. Being on that first few weeks of an MMORPG launch and having a blast with people you know. If after Tuesday this thing is relatively stable and the character progression copy sysatem is functional and I do not see a lot of complaints about queue times, I'll spring 40 for GMG 20% off, grind it out to 10, and latch on with PRX because that always sounded fun.

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My feelings are hurt. I offered to exchange Rings of Mara with you if you bought the Imperial edition.

Rescorla_sl said:

My feelings are hurt. I offered to exchange Rings of Mara with you if you bought the Imperial edition.

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It's a trap Ut! He'll friend you in game, then use that to track your IP and find your closed beta character.

Caliane_sl said:

I got it. Next big thing in mmos. Iterate. Stop even trying to make a new game, with long term appeal. Just wipe characters, and create a new landmass, and minor skll revisions and changes, with each yearly release. then within 3 years, have 2 or 3 "versions" so you can release 2-3 games yearly.
Its clearly what people REALLY want.

Everquest'15
Everquest'16
Everquest'17
Everquest:black ops.
Everquest:Black ops 2
Everquest:Medieval warfare

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While the forever repeating EQ idea is assinine, ladder resets in games could really breathe fresh life into older mmo's. Unless a game is built around it (like a tale in the desert or something) people would be furious about 'losing' their older accomplishments, though.

InterSlayer_sl said:

It's a trap Ut! He'll friend you in game, then use that to track your IP and find your closed beta character.

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Or find out that UT is Vit?

(not an accusation. Just a play on Vit's title)