As a child, MeinMMO author Ody loved playing MMORPGs, but over the years, that changed drastically. However, the passion is coming back now, as with The Elder Scrolls Online, he is falling in love with the genre a second time.
When I was a child, The Lord of the Rings Online filled a large part of my PC gaming time. Later, Age of Conan: Unchained was added – both MMORPGs that are Free2Play, so I didn’t have to spend any pocket money. I spent more hours on these two games than you honestly want to know.
Over time, however, MMORPGs were increasingly pushed aside by other games until I didn’t touch a single one for several years. Just three years ago, I thought the genre was dead for me – until I gave ESO another chance in December 2023.
Since then, I have really enjoyed again what MMORPGs have always meant to me – namely the RPG part.
ESO makes the “RPG” in MMORPG appealing again
As a child, I loved coming up with backstories for my characters and giving them a personality beyond what the game allows. Whenever I had multiple characters in a game, I liked to imagine how they would interact with each other and what adventures they would experience. I was basically playing Dungeons & Dragons on my own – without even knowing that it existed.
At some point, this connection to my game characters faded away. For over 10 years, I thought I would never have that again in an MMORPG. But with ESO, that has changed again in recent months.
Role-playing is really fun for me in ESO again! This is also because I no longer just click mindlessly through dialogues but consider how my character would behave. And because I can be a bit evil, the game doesn’t push me too much into a predefined role.
Since I started playing ESO again, one character turned into four. So, I’ll take this moment to introduce my current group:
- My character with the most playtime is a nasty High Elf Arcanist (the guy in the title image). Now and then, he gets tempted to do a good deed, which he would never admit.
- A nature-loving Wood Elf Warden who has recently also become a werewolf. To become a werewolf or vampire, you no longer need to spend real money after Update 49 (or talk to strangers, which I am way too shy to do).
- A completely scarred and bitter Breton Templar who is a veteran of an unnamed war (he doesn’t talk about it).
- Brand new is my noble Argonian Dragonknight. Because I forgot to adjust his voice, he now sounds like an old witch – an oversight that has quickly become part of his character. It’s quite funny when such a large, muscular lizard giggles like an evil old woman.
Speaking of the Dragonknight: The class feels really good after its overhaul. I usually don’t like starting over in an MMORPG. But as far as pure fun is concerned, my Dragonknight at level 10 can now already keep up with my Arcanist at max level (plus several champion levels).
The Elder Scrolls Online has actually achieved something I didn’t think was possible – to get me excited about an MMORPG again. I am really looking forward to seeing what the developers have planned for the remaining classes in the game. If they are revamped to the level of the Dragonknight, my lively group should grow with many more characters.
The question of whether ESO is still worth it in 2026 is clearly answered by MeinMMO author Ody with a yes. If you are trying to answer that question for yourself, MeinMMO has just the right article for you. MMORPG expert Karsten Scholz has taken another look at the game: Is The Elder Scrolls Online worth it in 2026?
