The MMORPG The Elder Scrolls Online has been suffering from performance issues for years. This is particularly severe in Cyrodiil, the PvP area. Extensive live tests are now expected to take place there. Zenimax also communicated ideas to improve performance. However, these ideas have sparked heated discussions: some players foresee a broken gameplay.
Update July 29: We have added a counter-position from players in the article who are happy about the adjustments or at least neutral towards them. Additionally, some players have proposed other solutions, which we have also included for balance of opinions.
What is ESO’s problem? About a year ago, in July 2019, the developer Zenimax announced that they would address some technical issues of ESO. Among these was performance, which is particularly problematic in Cyrodiil, the place where 3 factions fight against each other.
Meanwhile, initial updates have been released that have, for example, overhauled memory management and the combat system or made the bloated client 25 gigabytes lighter.
What has happened now? The next step is to specifically improve performance in PvP. To this end, Game Director Rich Lambert has published a detailed post explaining the problem and providing 4 proposed solutions, which are to be tested live in the game (via ESO Forum).
However, none of the proposals seem to convince. Some players fear that their beloved MMORPG will become less dynamic and that classes will lose their uniqueness.
AoE abilities are the big problem
Why are there performance issues? Lambert explains that a major issue in Cyrodiil is that players frequently use many AoE abilities. This was not originally intended and places a heavy load on the servers.
In principle, resources like Magicka and Stamina should limit the use of abilities by players. However, over time, new content like the Champion System, new equipment, and new skills were added to the game.
Players are now capable of continuously using AoE abilities in larger groups without running out of resources.
What do the proposed solutions look like? Lambert presented 4 solutions in his post that are to be tested live in the game:
- Solution 1: A global cooldown of 3 seconds – This change aims to ensure that every player has a 3-second cooldown on all AoE abilities upon using one.
- Solution 2: An individual cooldown of 3 seconds – With this change, each AoE ability receives a 3-second cooldown after use.
- Solution 3: Increased costs – In this step, there is no cooldown; instead, all AoE abilities should consume more resources.
- Solution 4: A combination of 2 and 3 – Abilities should have their own 3-second cooldown and adjustments in costs.
The basic code for these tests has already been deployed to the test servers and is set to be released with Patch Update 27 on August 24. The tests are expected to last for a week and will be announced in-game. They are also directed only at the PC version of the MMORPG.
Patch 27 will also bring the new dungeon DLC Stonethorn, along with the performance tests.
Less dynamism strengthens performance – but at what cost?
How do players respond to the solutions? Many comments have already gathered under Rich Lambert’s statement. However, most of them are rather negative. They fear that many mechanics and the dynamism of the game will be lost in favor of performance:
- MasterPleb: “This would probably look good in the data, but I pray this isn’t permanently adopted, as it would destroy the game for anyone who plays small group PvP.”
- NirnStorm: “This test is basically: ‘Let’s see, if we make the dynamic combat system less dynamic, it will improve performance.’ Of course it will. But at what cost?”
- Alienoutlaw: “A 3-second cooldown for AoE abilities will destroy the game for many PvP fans. 3 seconds in PvP is an eternity […]. Increased costs have no effect in large groups, as they use many buffs to never run out of resources, and would primarily hurt solo players …”
Especially with the Templar, many readers see problems as “their job basically consists of spamming AoE”. This class could suffer under the changes.
According to Rich Lambert, however, an adjustment to the AoE abilities must be made because these performance problems exist, despite many other bugs having already been fixed:
Over the years, we have found and fixed many performance issues in Cyrodiil, and we continue to do so. We have resolved significant problems, uncovered new ones, and find more with each update.
But a fundamental problem remains. At some point, we crossed a threshold where most players in PvP were able to cast unlimited AoE abilities without ever running out of resources […]. That was not what we intended…
Are there also positive voices? Yes, some players agree that performance adjustments in the areas are more important than cooldowns or higher costs for AoE abilities. They look forward to the tests and also appreciate that Zenimax is not simply implementing one of the options but is openly discussing the reasons and the tests:
- Rahar: “Everyone knows that organized ‘ball grouping’ with AoE spam is a problem. If no change is made, players are angry. If potential changes are brought up, players are angry. But honestly, although I view number 3 (with reservations) as the best solution, why was it not possible to revise the skills themselves?”
- Gatekeeper13: “The best news I have heard for this game in a long time. If these changes are actually implemented, not only will performance improve, but we will also see the end of the atrocious ‘ball grouping’.”
Additionally, there are players who may not agree with Lambert’s solutions but are posting their own constructive suggestions to improve performance, including:
- A buff for single-target abilities to provide more incentives for their use.
- Adjustments to visual effects or the number of targets hit by AoE abilities.
- Adjustments to some classes instead of “all AoE abilities”.
- A stricter cap on players on the maps.
- Dedicated servers just for Cyrodiil.
If not only the performance but also the interface or some basic functions of ESO are bothering you, we at MeinMMO have compiled 18 mods for PC that may help you.
