The Elder Scrolls Online had not received the same attention in 2022 as in previous years. Although it had the usual 4 major updates with new content, players felt something was missing, and there was a lot of criticism. In this article, we at MeinMMO look back at the year 2022.
What happened in 2022 in ESO? The Elder Scrolls Online released a total of four major updates in 2022 in its familiar rhythm. Each year is tied together in the story, and this year it was about the narrative “Legacy of the Bretons”. The updates were released every 3 months as usual:
- The first patch in 2022 was the dungeon DLC “Ascending Tide” along with Update 33 of the base game.
- In June, Update 34 brought the new chapter “High Isle“, which must be purchased in addition to the base game to access the story content and the area “High Isle and Amenos”.
- With Update 35 came the dungeon DLC “Lost Depths” with 2 new dungeons and some changes to the combat system.
- Lastly, Update 36 and the zone DLC “Firesong“, which connects to the story of High Isle and introduced the new area “Galen and Y’ffelon”.
The amount of updates was in line with previous years, as ESO has a fixed schedule for releases. However, some changes this year were not well received by all players, leading to significant criticism.
Players criticize the ongoing overhaul of the combat system
What is being criticized? Already with Update 32 Deadlands last year, the developers started changing the familiar combat system in ESO. This continued in the following patches and was not well received in many parts of the community.
The first update this year already brought changes under the guise of hybridization, as the developers call it. The term refers to the attributes Magicka and Stamina in ESO. With Update 33 Ascending Tide, several changes came that eliminated specialization in either of the two attributes.
Especially the reactions to the changes in Update 35 Lost Depths caused a stir, with critical voices emerging, even within the ESO Stream Team. This patch particularly upset long-time players.
With the new chapter, no comparable feature like in previous years came
So far, players could look forward to a new feature in every chapter of ESO, which was very involved in the game itself. With Clockwork City (which was only a zone DLC), the Transmutation came into play, allowing players to change properties of weapons and armor.
With the chapter (now just DLC) Summerset, jewelry crafting was introduced for the first time, which had a direct impact on playable builds. This made sets for DDs interesting, whose jewelry had the property “living” (meaning increasing maximum health). This includes, for example, the set “advancing Yokeda”, which can be obtained in the trial “Citadel of Hel Ra”.
With the chapter Greymoor, the base game was expanded with the antiquity system and the Mythic Items. Mythic Items are particularly powerful items that have only 1 set effect. Because they are so strong, players from all areas of the community were interested in acquiring these through the antiquity system.
In the subsequent chapter Blackwood, the companion system was introduced. Since then, players can summon one of these companions into battle as soon as they have unlocked it. While they do not replace a player in strength, they still provide good support, especially for beginners.
With High Isle came the card game “Tales of Glory”. However, this feature is completely independent of the rest of the game. There was therefore not the same incentive for players to engage with it.
In the chapter High Isle, however, no unique feature was added. Instead, the feature from the previous year was expanded with two additional companions with High Isle. This resulted in disappointed reactions among ESO players.
The PvP has not seen any innovations for years
What has happened in PvP? Essentially nothing. Last year, some tests were conducted regarding performance in the PvP area Cyrodiil, but players are still waiting in vain for adjustments or new content.
Instead, a live stream caused considerable irritation, in which PvP players were mocked, as their frustration was visibly apparent in the stream chat. Following this, on January 12, an official statement regarding the issues in PvP was made in the ESO Forum.
In the post, the developers stated that they understand the players’ frustration; however, they also mentioned that they would not be addressing the issues in PvP throughout 2022. They justified this by saying that they would need to fundamentally rewrite the server code.
However, this seemingly did not appease the players. Many PvP players have since abandoned ESO. This can be noticed in the PvP area Cyrodiil, as the campaigns currently feel quite empty.
Here you can find out how the performance in PvP in ESO is doing.
New sets, dungeons, 1 trial and the new areas as highlights
What was well received in 2022 in ESO? Not everything was bad about this year’s narrative “Legacy of the Bretons”. Particularly, the 4 new dungeons were widely well received by players. It was noticeable that the developers put a lot of effort into the visual design of the new dungeons.
For ESO veterans, the 2 dungeons from Ascending Tide provided a cool new challenge. The dungeons “Gram of the Shipbuilder” and “Coral Horn” were praised by many players for both their visual design and gameplay mechanics.
What awaits you in the world of ESO, you can find out regularly through our ESO Event-Ticker. We update this continuously so that you always know when a new event is expected and how to best obtain the rewards.
ESO is likely in a rather shaky state at the end of 2022
Last year, there were already a few weaknesses that led to negative reviews. You can read more about this in our ESO review of 2021. Unfortunately, the MMORPG did not especially score well with players this year either.
The downward trend is also evident on Steam. It is only ranked in the “Silver tier”, somewhere between 25th and 50th place. Read more about this in our article Steam shows the 12 games that made the most money in 2022 – We look at the best MMORPGs. The previous year, the MMORPG was still among the top 24.
For the upcoming year 2023, fans and ESO players hope for innovations that will also excite veterans and changes that are better thought out.
Currently, you can play the New Year’s festival in ESO. Throughout the year, exciting events await you, where you can score interesting rewards. If you want to stay updated on events from us, make sure to check our ESO Event-Ticker regularly.
There, we always inform you about current events in the MMORPG.
