The Elder Scrolls Online has been around since 2014 and is still actively played and developed. But what should be done from the community’s perspective to keep the game relevant as a NextGen MMORPG in 2021 and beyond? We at MeinMMO have asked fans and experts like streamer Alex0s.
The Elder Scrolls Online was released on April 4, 2014, and initially struggled to satisfy both fans of the single-player series and MMORPG fans. With the major update One Tamriel and the console releases ESO finally became the game it was meant to be and still is today.
Since then, continuous updates have continued, including annual new chapters since 2017, each introducing completely new regions and gameplay elements.
However, there is occasional criticism that ESO brings more of the same every year with no real innovations coming. But what does the community actually wish for? And what would be necessary from the perspective of fans and experts to establish ESO as a next-generation MMORPG in the coming years?
We at MeinMMO conducted a large survey in the German Facebook group for ESO, where over 150 comments were actively contributed by many fans. Thank you again to the Facebook ESO community.
For this, we also asked ESO expert and streamer Alex0s (via YouTube) for a statement on the topic. You can find his opinion at the end of the article.
What fans wish for in the future from ESO
In the large German ESO Facebook group, there were numerous comments on the topic. The wishes of the community primarily concern these areas:
- Servers, performance, and bug fixes
- Comfort features like flying mounts, a global auction house, or more inventory space
- A more challenging combat system and more individuality for classes
We will briefly reflect prominent opinions on these topics in the following paragraphs.
Performance and Co.
The most prominent issue on the community’s wish list is clearly performance. Because ESO does not always run smoothly on consoles, and there are often lags and long loading times. User Tanja Burri summarizes many opinions:
I think of better [servers] or new megaservers with more power and capacity.
As a player, you suffer greatly from game performance… loading times are okay, but as soon as there are many effects in raids or PvP, performance drops.
The problem seems to primarily affect consoles, which, according to user Chris Löblein, are not designed for this type of game:
The biggest problem with consoles is not only the servers but also the performance of the consoles themselves. I have played on both console and now on PC, and the difference with more computing power is massive. Consoles are simply not designed for this type of game.
At least the criticized weak performance of the Xbox One and PS4 should improve with the next-gen consoles Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5.
Comfort Features
When you spend a lot of time in a game, you eventually notice what feels awkward and uncomfortable. Thus, comfort features are important. ESO has been steadily improving in this regard over the years, most recently with the new collections menu, but according to players, there are still several things that can be improved to make ESO more enjoyable to play.
More inventory space: The most requested comfort feature by far is more inventory space. Because in ESO, you can collect a lot of items, and eventually, even the extended space is filled with clutter. Therefore, Sonja Kolthof wishes, along with many other things, especially for more space!
– flying mounts
– more space (I’m looking forward to the console update on November 10)
– some way to prevent money carries (e.g., in raids or dungeons)
– MORE SPACE!
– The ability to send messages to players in a group from within the group
– the ability to sort master writs by sets
– stack and bank golden motif style pages
– access to the inventory of all characters on an account/server(!!!!!)
– Oh, AND MORE SPACE!!!!!!
Flying mounts: Also high on the wishlist of many ESO fans are flying mounts, which allow for quick traversal of areas. However, they come with some problems, which is why user FTLF has a concrete suggestion:
I would support flying mounts as long as it means that visually you’re in the air, but the hitbox is still on the ground… more like hovering than flying. Otherwise, no one would ride anymore, and I don’t even want to start about Cyro [PvP] and server load.
Global Auction House: Currently, sales between players occur through special trading guilds that operate stalls in larger cities. While this system is amusing and fits well into a medieval fantasy world, some players would prefer to quickly and easily access goods through a global trading center. User Jessie Vom Beek thinks, “A global auction house would be a dream!”
Additional community ideas: Along with these major topics, there are a few smaller, nice ideas:
- Julia Fraunholz wishes for the ability to create a vegetable garden in housing and grow resources for cooking. A “gardening feature”.
- Benedikt Spiller would like pets that collect loot for him.
- Alyssa Léon has a special request: low-level creatures like skeevers should eventually become “yellow”, meaning not automatically hostile. The forced fights against such tiny creatures annoy her.
- Charlotte Schneege enjoys exploring Cyrodiil but has no interest in PvP. She wishes for a “passive mode” like in GTA5.
- Diverse players, including Trevor Phillips, wish for an option to visually disable animal companions like twilight swings or bears, as they obstruct visibility in large numbers.
Combat System and Classes
Some users feel the combat system is not challenging enough and should be revised. For example, Alrik Rotbart would like to have the system from New World in ESO:
Then there’s the combat system. Most of the time, players just mash some rotation on the keyboard/controller that hardly changes. I would wish for a combat system that requires more, let’s say, “skill.” I’ve watched many videos about NEW WORLD and find it quite appealing.
Players like Nils Brömer would also like a better distinction between classes within the game:
More class identity. I find that classes play quite similarly overall when comparing stamina characters with stamina characters. This could perhaps be addressed with class-specific weapon skills, but that would be a very far-reaching change.
Other Ideas and Wishes
In addition to these major aspects, there are several other ideas on what should change in ESO.
More Relevance in Crafting: Alrik Rotbart enjoys crafting and wishes for more relevance:
The crafts are too “unimportant.” I find it a shame that craftable sets hardly have any use, except for 4 – 5 exceptions.
You often analyze for months until you learn everything, and I find it unfortunate that more hasn’t been made from that.
Crossplay among Consoles: Pia Lupa and other fans would like crossplay, but only among consoles, as PC players would have advantages due to their addons.
Just dare to try something new! While most fans want to improve existing elements, user Benjamin Goldberg advocates for a more radical approach. ESO should finally dare to try something and not just stick to the usual formula:
In my humble opinion, Zenimax should dare something with ESO! Become more innovative. Until now, every addon has been praised by the press, but the famous formula has been criticized repeatedly. It’s always the same process; always the same dish.
– 2 new dungeons
– 1 new area with a new raid – both are well done story-wise, but not always outstanding
– And by the end of the year, another small DLC.It’s all nice and fun, but it’s not innovative. This is the same problem that FFXIV has. Ultimately, you already know how your gameplay year will look.
What about changes? What if well-known places in the world were completely transformed, factions were broken, and suddenly no longer exist? The status quo would be completely overturned.
Just dare to try something and not always just keep riding the same old horse until it eventually dies.
What the Expert Says
So much for the community’s opinion. To conclude our article on the desired changes in ESO, we asked YouTuber and ESO streamer Alex0s for his opinion on the topic.
Are new contents really what keep an MMORPG alive? Does it require ray tracing and other new graphic effects as a sales argument?
MMOs remain relevant through their “Games as a Service” status. This means they thrive on regular updates. It often seems that developers prioritize new, paid contents like quest areas, raids, and new sets over enhancing the base game. With ESO, this is not the case.In past updates, ZeniMax Online Studios has shown how simple “quality of life changes” can significantly improve the gaming experience. They implemented a text search and new filters to simplify inventory management, especially for console players. The new item set collection, which allows for duplicating or restoring set items, was also warmly welcomed by the ESO community.
Thus, future “quality of life changes” could be just what it takes to make ESO the “NextGen MMORPG” hit. Addons like “Dressing Room” or “CombatMetrics” already demonstrate what it takes to keep Tamriel thriving. “Dressing Room” allows for saving different “equipment and skill” setups to be prepared for every opponent.The possibility of short keys for different equipment is also a topic. “CombatMetrics”, on the other hand, is a damage meter for analyzing damage composition. Both essential addons should find their way into the game in a similar implementation. This could be the key to making ESO more appealing on consoles and especially next-gen consoles for potential MMO players.
For him, it’s not really about large, new contents, but rather about keeping the gaming experience enjoyable with meaningful “quality of life” updates. An opinion shared by many other fans.
But what do you think about the future of ESO? What improvements would you like to see? Let us know in the comments!
