In a statement to the fans, Matt Firor, the lead developer behind the fantasy MMORPG The Elder Scrolls Online, has now addressed the problems plaguing his baby. There are many issues, most notably bugs, dupes, gold sellers, and bots. However, Firor is optimistic. While he acknowledged difficulties, he stated that the game is on a good path.
Gold Sellers and Bots as the Main Problems
Firor made it clear in his statement that he is not an out-of-touch armchair general who only hears about player complaints through emails or reports, but he and his staff also play The Elder Scrolls Online. They have also noticed the bots camping in caves, making it difficult for honest players to have fun. Zenimax is doing everything in its power to combat bots and gold sellers.
And the fight is already bearing fruit: First, gold sellers were in the chat, then in in-game mail, and now they have started fake guilds to invite players and harass them with their offers.
In the meantime, many bots have already been banned, and more are being banned. The fight against bots and gold sellers is not a sprint but a marathon.
The gold sellers are also responsible for some players being dissatisfied with support. Bots and gold sellers make up 85% of the support’s workload. Other issues sometimes fall by the wayside.
Firor Comments on the Dupes
Firor also addressed the two most recent dupes. Items in the game could be duplicated by exploiting a faulty guild bank mechanic or by errors in the system mail. In the first dupe, they reacted immediately, closed the guild banks, and removed involved players from the game. Wrongfully banned players were able to log in again after eight hours. According to Firor, they have contained the problem and it is not widespread enough to massively damage the in-game economy. The second dupe bug, which has to do with apprentices in crafting professions, was also resolved quickly and occurred in a much smaller dimension.
However, the two fixes for the dupes led to significantly more maintenance work than originally planned.
In conclusion of his letter, Firor also addressed the announced first content expansion Kargstein. The adventure zone for the endgame will soon be deployed to the test server and go live in 7 to 10 days. Firor attested that The Elder Scrolls Online is in generally good shape, which can only improve in the future.
Mein-mmo says:
Yes, this is the statement everyone has been waiting for, and it turns out as one could expect. The critical question will be whether the impact of the dupes on the in-game economy is really as minimal as Firor suggests. It would be very much in the interest of the game and its community.
Apparently, the first major blow against botters has now occurred with the internal loot timer for cave bosses. This is definitely a step in the right direction. The consequences of the dupes could probably only have been fully resolved with a massive intervention in the game—a rollback. That there is no talk of this was actually to be expected. One would have had to exorcise the devil with Beelzebub.
The game is now entering a decisive phase. Players face the choice of allowing their subscription to expire or renewing it. The prospect of new content with Kargstein is much more appealing than the prospect of a rollback.
