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Elder Scrolls Online Mechanics Video

Burt

Member
Searched, didn't find anything, but lock if old.

Just saw this video over on Massively, and it gives some interesting insight into TESO, figured it was worth a share for anyone interested:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=GqRfyfaY-Tg#!

For anyone interested but who doesn't want to sit through 10 minutes of (pleasant) b-roll game footage with voiceover, here's a rundown of what's said:

- "Immersive" story with lore continuity from TES console games
- Real time combat that gets rid of rotations
- Focus on making it a premium service, aka there's probably gonna be a subscription
- Exploration based content - tasks can be solved in a variety of ways and have choices
- 16 launch zones, each with a 4-player dungeon, and each dungeon having a max-level alternate version
- Enemies use synergies - e.g. one enemy lays down a tar that slows you, another can light it on fire
- Players also have synergies - e.g. one player uses the Nova skill, another player can interact with it to turn it into the Supernova skill
- Combat is similar to single player TES games - tap left mouse for a light attack, hold it for a heavy attack, hold right mouse to block.
- Also has double tap to dodge, a 5 slot skill bar, 1 slot for a consumable, and 1 slot for an ultimate skill
- Leveling up allows you to improve health, stamina, or magicka, like Skyrim
- Stat points can be respecced
- Abilities don't have cooldowns, but each ability uses a resource (martial abilities use stamina, magical use magicka)
- You can select skills from skill trees when you level up.
- Each tree has active and passive abilities
- Active abilities can be slotted in your skill bar, but you only have 5 slots so you have to make decisions as you accrue more and more abilities
- Initially, you'll only have 3 trees: Class, weapon, and armor.
- Each skill tree has subsections, for instance, the sorcerer class tree has dark magic, daedric summoning, and stormcalling skill lines.
- While you only start with 3 trees, around 15 total will be available at launch, including world (which has a vampire line), guild (as in mages/fighters/thieves), racial, alliance vs. alliance, etc.
- Skill points cannot be respecced, but players will have enough points to fill every tree.
- Items called Skyshards will be placed around the world, collecting 3 of them will grant you a skill point.
- Using skills ranks them up, and at rank 4 you get a morph choice that alters the way the skill works. The example given was a fireball that could either add AOE or sacrifice initial damage for increased damage over time.
- Morph choices can be respecced
- "Finesse" is a way of getting players to pay attention to the game.
- In combat, finesse will be rewarded based on well-timed blocks, accurate attacking, and skillful dodging.
- Finesse adds a positive modifier to experience and loot drops.
- Swinging your sword wildly means you won't get any finesse.
- There will be mounts in the game but they're not ready to talk about them.
- No player housing currently planned.
- Eliminating the holy trinity is not one of their goals.
- Healing spells are AOE/conal.
- Some skills may cause guards to attack you (vampirism?), but the devs won't discuss that because they want players to find out themselves.
- Mac OS supported at launch.
- Racial crafting styles exist.
- No dyeing system.
- No official controller support, but the game works well with a pad and free software.
- Full add-on support.
- Disguises are dropped by enemies and allow you to avoid being attack by certain enemy types.

I bolded the stuff that renewed my interest in the game a little bit. Real time combat should be standard in MMOs nowadays, and something I think will definitely be really enjoyable. I'm also in love with their class system. Not just the fact that you have so many choices between 15 different skill trees, but that they make you choose only 5 actives out of all of those trees. I hate playing an MMO, seeing another player, and knowing exactly what skills they have except for 3-4. With this, you'll never know what the other player is bringing to the fight, especially because there are no armor/skill restrictions.

No housing is a bummer, they haven't talked about PvP (although I'm sure it'll be a major component of the game) or crafting, and there hasn't been any real gameplay footage, but having a better idea of the uniqueish things they're trying to do class and combat-wise has definitely backed me off from saying this game is DOA, if only a little bit.

Edit: Just realized there was a companion interview for this video, gonna edit in some quotes:

I asked Sage to describe ZeniMax's strategy for keeping players occupied once they hit the level cap at 50. His reply included four main activities: questing in enemy alliance zones, four-player dungeons, adventure zones, and the PvP alliance war in Cyrodiil.

The last pillar in ESO's endgame is the Alliance War, which is designed with the PvP player in mind. Players of all three factions will meet in Cyrodiil (a zone roughly nine times the size of a normal map) to wrestle over keeps, resources, and bragging rights.

I was able to witness a live demonstration of a keep assault in Cyrodiil, and it looked incredible. Trebuchets launched huge boulders at the fortress while defenders scurried along its walls in an attempt to pour boiling oil down upon the manned battering rams. The Q&A team was engaged in a 30v30 skirmish that ran with smooth frame rates, and we got to see the carnage that ensues once a keep wall is breached.

While keep sieges can involve hundreds of players, Sage stressed that there were also activities in the Alliance War geared toward small groups or even solo players. Smaller parties can snipe any enemies that lag behind or wander too far from larger battles. There are also small goals like overtaking enemy farms and mines to secure resources for your alliance.

Sage emphasized that ZeniMax built ESO with the goal to have 200 players on the screen at once without performance issues or culling. He told me that testing on minimum spec machines has proven that it can be done and that ZeniMax is extremely focused on metrics and getting this right. Given studio head Matt Firor's Dark Age of Camelot pedigree, it's easy to see the source of that confidence.

http://massively.joystiq.com/2013/03/19/the-elder-scrolls-online-interview-paul-sage/

There's a hands-on too, but it didn't really have anything unknown, other than some tidbits on questing and first person perspective being available at launch and looking really good in action.
 

Chromie

Banned
Screw what everyone is saying. I'm excited for this. Matt Frior and Zenimax looks like they're really trying unlike Bioware. Hell some of the stuff mechanics for ESO definitely need to find their way into a regular Elder Scrolls game. Especially the AI and combat. Elder Scrolls has never had great combat.

I really hope there is a subscription.
 

Tyrax

Member
I really hope there is a subscription.

why? Don't you want to pay real money per health potion?

in all seriousness, I would not be opposed to a Diablo 3 auction house if I got to sell weapons that I craft. Its like running a blacksmith shop.
 

M.D

Member
why? Don't you want to pay real money per health potion?

in all seriousness, I would not be opposed to a Diablo 3 auction house if I got to sell weapons that I craft. Its like running a blacksmith shop.

NVM
 

Dunlop

Member
Still won't bite on a Hero engine game (unless a lot of my buddies jump in) but

- Healing spells are AOE/conal.

As a healer, this is awesome. Loved it in AoC where you are actually part of the action and not playing whack a mole on a raid panel
 
Screw what everyone is saying. I'm excited for this. Matt Frior and Zenimax looks like they're really trying unlike Bioware. Hell some of the stuff mechanics for ESO definitely need to find their way into a regular Elder Scrolls game. Especially the AI and combat. Elder Scrolls has never had great combat.

I really hope there is a subscription.

Bethesda?

Unfortunately I am not that excited by this footage...sounds like your typical bullet-point features list, and the art-style is much more cartoony than I hoped. Is there first-person combat?
 

Durante

Member
I've become more interested in this game since they did a 180° on supporting first person perspective. Now, if they were to force first person and really design the game around it, I'd truly be hyped.

IMHO, first person view needs to be the future of
VR
MMORPG gaming.
 

wwm0nkey

Member
Looks really good, just hope its a B2P MMO.

I'm not sure if they've come out and said for sure, but they mention building a "premium service" in this video which makes me think they're going to try the subscription model.

Sounded more like something like Premium in a F2P MMO which is a sub that gives you extra stuff but the base game is free. Thats what I got out of it though.
 

Burt

Member
Still won't bite on a Hero engine game (unless a lot of my buddies jump in)

Why? Does the Hero engine have performance issues, or is it just graphical quality you're talking about? I was worried about how the game would look from initial videos, but most of the "b-roll" in this one actually looks pretty good relative to other MMOs, and hopefully keeping the visual fidelity toned down a little bit will allow them to set up some really massive PvP.
 
Of all the things I was hoping they would change going to an MMO, Combat was on the top of that list. I just can't imagine pulling two triggers(or similar mechanics) for combat in an MMO being very fun.
 

Chromie

Banned
Still won't bite on a Hero engine game (unless a lot of my buddies jump in) but


It's NOT being built on the Hero Engine. Why do people keep spreading this shit?


Q: Have you developed a new engine (how is it called?) from scratch instead of utilizing the "Hero"-Technology to fit all the requirements like streaming, renderer and lighting but also client, server and social features?

A: Yes, we licensed it to start with and it was a useful tool for prototyping in the early days... but even then we were simultaneously developing our own engine. Having our own engine gives us greater ability to change, add new content, etc. I don't think anyone would really be happy long-term in an MMO unless it evolved over time. So our own engine is an investment in that ability to change and grow.
 

Deitus

Member
- Real time combat that gets rid of rotations
- Combat is similar to single player TES games - tap left mouse for a light attack, hold it for a heavy attack, hold right mouse to block.

Doesn't really sound promising that they'll find a way to make TES combat actually fun, but at least they aren't just going full WoW with the combat.

- You can select skills from skill trees when you level up.
- Each tree has active and passive abilities
- Active abilities can be slotted in your skill bar, but you only have 5 slots so you have to make decisions as you accrue more and more abilities
- Initially, you'll only have 3 trees: Class, weapon, and armor.
- Each skill tree has subsections, for instance, the sorcerer class tree has dark magic, daedric summoning, and stormcalling skill lines.
- While you only start with 3 trees, around 15 total will be available at launch, including world (which has a vampire line), guild (as in mages/fighters/thieves), racial, alliance vs. alliance, etc.

Well, at least the character customization/builds sounds pretty robust...

- Skill points cannot be respecced, but players will have enough points to fill every tree.

Oh, well there goes build variety.


Some of this stuff sound pretty interesting, and much less like the WoW clone it sounded like when they announced the game. Still don't think it really appeals to me though.
 

Burt

Member
It is not fun, you are 100% correct.

Meh, I'll admit that I never really loved Elder Scrolls combat, but games like Mount and Blade, Dark Souls, and Chivlary all have fairly simple timing based combat that I do really enjoy. It's all about getting the feel down.

Oh, well there goes build variety.

Sounds like build variety will be determined by your active skills. I'm assuming you'll have to make decisions with which passives you use too. Doesn't matter if you have the skill points in the skill if you can't use them. I guess it depends on what the barrier is to swapping out active skills.
 
Sounds like a hodgepodge of various mechanics throughout the MMO genre. I'm not digging it.

Also, it's impossible to not have rotations just as it's impossible for their not to be cookie cutter builds. People WILL find a specific skill order to use to maximize their effectiveness and that becomes a rotation. Well maybe I shouldn't say impossible but the only way to eliminate these things is to make everything equal and variety for flavor only, which is boring for combat imo.

Sounds like build variety will be determined by your active skills. I'm assuming you'll have to make decisions with which passives you use too. Doesn't matter if you have the skill points in the skill if you can't use them. I guess it depends on what the barrier is to swapping out active skills.

As is seen in other MMO's (TSW for example) with similar ideals, if you're able to skill up everything, then there will be cookie cutter builds depending on the role you play. If you're not forced to pick from specific skills that vary on things like class, race, role.. then it all comes down to the role you're playing. This typically leads to high performance players all having the same builds.
 
I would not be positive about anything till a month after it hits. MMO's are notorious for sucking hardcore. WoW was lightning in a bottle everything else has been pretty bad for one reason or another.
 

Burt

Member
Sounds like a hodgepodge of various mechanics throughout the MMO genre. I'm not digging it.

Also, it's impossible to not have rotations just as it's impossible for their not to be cookie cutter builds. People WILL find a specific skill order to use to maximize their effectiveness and that becomes a rotation. Well maybe I shouldn't say impossible but the only way to eliminate these things is to make everything equal and variety for flavor only, which is boring for combat imo.



As is seen in other MMO's (TSW for example) with similar ideals, if you're able to skill up everything, then there will be cookie cutter builds depending on the role you play. If you're not forced to pick from specific skills that vary on things like class, race, role.. then it all comes down to the role you're playing. This typically leads to high performance players all having the same builds.

That's actually a really valid comparison. As much as I love TSW, there definitely are optimal builds. Hopefully the lack of cooldowns, the no-targeting combat system, dodging/mobility, and some focus on regular attacks instead of just skills will help mitigate that.
 
I've become more interested in this game since they did a 180° on supporting first person perspective. Now, if they were to force first person and really design the game around it, I'd truly be hyped.

IMHO, first person view needs to be the future of
VR
MMORPG gaming.

Yeah, after watching Sword Art Online I believe it's the future of gaming as well.

I might jump on this if there's a beta to test it.
 

DTKT

Member
Jesus, that combat sequence at the end look so bad. No one moving, everyone standing in one spot repeating the same animations over and over.

This is not going to be good.
 

2San

Member
I would not be positive about anything till a month after it hits. MMO's are notorious for sucking hardcore. WoW was lightning in a bottle everything else has been pretty bad for one reason or another.
I've enjoyed MMO's before and after WoW. I didn't even like WoW. That said I'm not one to buy a MMO on blind faith.
 

Izayoi

Banned
Double tap to roll is the absolute worst. Hopefully there's an option to disable that and replace it with a dedicated button.

Should launch b2p like GW2, just can't see a sub based game that is just another theme park MMO lasting
Yeah, guaranteed to struggle if it's P2P. B2P or F2P is the way to go for all future MMOs.
 

Dr.Acula

Banned
I like player housing. It was great in UO 'cause the housing was limited, and so expensive that it really created a class divide. I was homeless for over a year when I started, gave me a sense of accomplishment when I got a small house. I think the cost in gold when converted to cash valued the house at $90 USD at the time.

But UO was hardcore :(
 

TrutaS

Member
Not wanting to open up a kotaku thread I was fascinated over how this game looks now, after the initial backlash.

It finally looks like a legitimate Elder Scrolls game, and if this turns out to be true and well thought-out way to play the game, they just regained my interest!

link
 
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