For the 10th anniversary of The Elder Scrolls Online, we had the opportunity to speak with two developer veterans from the Zenimax team about the MMORPG. It was mainly about the lore, story, and characters from Tamriel.
On April 4, 2024, The Elder Scrolls Online will officially turn ten years old. As the console launch only took place in June 2015, the anniversary party is set to last an entire year – recently, for example, you could secure a stylish oasis home just by logging in three times.
The Zenimax development team looks back on ten turbulent years:
- Like almost all MMORPGs, Elder Scrolls Online also launched with some issues and unfinished aspects.
- The developers not only fine-tuned the game with the first updates but also addressed fundamental issues with character progression and the endgame. An important milestone was the One Tamriel update, which introduced flexible level scaling in the open world.
- The decision-makers adjusted the payment model (elimination of mandatory subscriptions) and introduced a clear update structure with DLCs, free patches, and the annual chapter.
- New features like companions, glory stories, or the Endless Archives expanded the existing offerings of quests, dungeons, and the like.
- With the console launch, Zenimax was able to attract many new players to Tamriel.
Through these and other measures, Elder Scrolls Online established itself alongside WoW and Final Fantasy XIV as the third major theme park MMORPG – with 24 million players and more than two billion US dollars in revenue.
The Gold Road chapter of ESO will be available starting June 3, 2024:
The Lore Experts in Interview
To celebrate the anniversary, the MeinMMO editorial team had the opportunity to speak with ESO lore master Michael Zenke and narrative director Bill Slavicsek about the story and lore of the MMORPG.
Right at the beginning of the interview, they discussed the remarkable development the MMORPG has undergone over the years. Only Final Fantasy XIV and the team led by Naoki Yoshida have invested comparably (or even more) to fundamentally improve the gaming experience post-launch.
It’s fantastic to look back and see what we’ve accomplished during this time and how well the team has worked together to achieve all of that. Our method of storytelling is, I believe, a key feature […]. We are very proud of all this.
Bill Slavicsek in interview with MeinMMO
Michael Zenke adds that part of the success lies in the developers’ willingness to further develop existing systems like glory stories or companions and expand them with new content.
As for designing stories and characters, the lore master emphasizes that the relationships between NPCs and the player character noticeably change over time. In his opinion, this is rarely seen in games and even less often over a period of several years.
How far ahead is the story planned?
In the next part of the conversation, we want to know from the two lore experts how far in advance the authors work on the story of Elder Scrolls Online – does Zenimax have a concept that is comparable to what is currently happening with Blizzard and the World Soul saga of WoW?
Bill Slavicsek explains that the team is always working on content that’s set to release within the next 18 months – thus, current content focuses on 2025. Additionally, regular discussions and pitches occur about where Tamriel adventurers could go after the next 18 months (starting from 2026).
With the Daedric War, ESO already had a storyline arc that was told over several years, featuring key events in Morrowind, Clockwork City, and Summerset. Recently, in Necrom, there was a genuine cliffhanger that will be resolved with the upcoming Gold Road chapter. Michael Zenke also sees this as a major strength of the MMORPG:
The fun part that people can rely on: we never do the same thing twice. […] We’re talking about ten years; that’s a long time to tell stories. By ensuring that things happen a little differently, we keep the player experience fresh – not just for the players, but for us too.
Michael Zenke in interview with MeinMMO
The developers adhere to this principle in the upcoming chapter as well: at the end of Gold Road, there won’t be a cliffhanger. The starting point for new story pitches is the map of Tamriel: in which zones have the players not been, what stories can be told there? Or conversely: the authors have a cool story idea, where does it fit, which factions should be involved?
Although Elder Scrolls Online is an MMORPG, with a game world that must adhere to MMO rules (and which are not applicable to single-player RPGs), the lore team, according to Bill Slavicsek, has actually never discarded an idea for a story, character development, or decision-making.
The Birth of a Daedric Princess
The cliffhanger in Necrom came about thanks to Ithelia. The team was convinced that the revelation of a completely new Daedric princess was such a significant and important event for Elder Scrolls lore that they wanted to let the moment and realization sink in first. With Gold Road, they now have the time to tell a sufficiently long and exciting story around Ithelia.
To create and introduce Ithelia, discussions with the Bethesda team were necessary. They then approved the basic concept but imposed certain requirements – for example, that the authors must explain why the Daedric princess appears only now, and why she is never mentioned in future lore events.
Once the concept was approved, Zenimax’s lore team plunged into research and design for the character, aiming to create a foundation for Ithelia that aligns with other Elder Scrolls games.
There is currently no TV series in the works for Elder Scrolls. However, Fallout could set a precedent:
Full Voice Acting vs. Quest Interaction
In the last part of the interview, we wanted to know from the two Zenimax veterans how the question was discussed more than ten years ago about whether to offer fully voiced dialogues in ESO – similar to SWTOR – or not.
Michael Zenke remembers well, as he had worked on Elder Scrolls Online for seven or eight months before the decision was made to fully commit to voiced dialogues. Until then, quests were conveyed through text, as seen in the WoW quest log.
The entire writing team was excited about the upcoming switch, as it allowed for the creation of a modern MMORPG following in the footsteps of Skyrim (which had been released a few months earlier). At the same time, this switch changed a lot.
I believe that at a certain point we hired every English-speaking voice actor in the Western Hemisphere to complete the game. Once the decision was made, everyone on the team became excited because everyone saw the potential.
Michael Zenke in interview with MeinMMO
Bill Slavicsek adds that full voice acting has greatly improved the quality of stories in ESO. When a legend like John Cleese gives life to a character, it can only turn out well, the developer adds.
By the way, the two interview partners could very well imagine that the Elder Scrolls franchise will eventually be expanded with live-action series or films, similar to the very successful recent developments with Fallout: The Fallout series is a huge success – But the boss has bad news for all those hoping for more
Bill Slavicsek adds that full voice acting has greatly improved the quality of stories in ESO. When a legend like John Cleese gives life to a character, it can only turn out well, the developer adds.
By the way, the two interview partners could very well imagine that the Elder Scrolls franchise will eventually be expanded with live-action series or films, similar to the very successful recent developments with Fallout: The Fallout series is a huge success – But the boss has bad news for all those hoping for more
