I know E3 is just around the corner, but honestly, I view E3 as nothing more than a hype fest. So while it may seem obvious to write an E3 predictions article for this week, I can’t be bothered. And it’s all because of Elder Scrolls Online: Elsweyr.
First things first. This is not a review. Our intrepid leader, Bill Murphy, is penning the review for MMORPG.com which should go live this Wednesday. Definitely keep an eye out for that and take a read.
Instead, this article exists purely because I have done nothing for the past four days except play Elder Scrolls Online and its recent Elsweyr expan– I mean, chapter. I cannot stop thinking about it. It is so damn good.
For a bit of background, I played ESO when it originally launched in 2014. In fact, I was part of the beta so realistically, I had played it for almost a full year before its official launch. I put 60 hours into my original character in the Aldmeri Dominion.
Don’t get me wrong, I had fun. But the game just didn’t feel Elder Scrolls enough for me (quick reminder, I’m a full-on single-player gamer and at this point in time, had never played an MMO). Things like level-gated zones and just seeing a bunch of other people running around felt incredibly foreign and created a dissonant wall which I could never climb.
I forgot about the game for years until last week when Elsweyr rolled around. I had heard that ESO had changed drastically since launch, primarily with the “One Tamriel” update in which the player can go literally anywhere and content scales to him. This caught my interest and I took the plunge and bought the upgrade.
Good lord. This is amazing.
Not only do I find Elsweyr as a region extremely interesting — indeed, it is a region I have wanted to visit in the single-player games for so long — the quests are just so damn good. Running into characters I haven’t seen since the original vanilla game was surprising and so refreshing.
One particular quest I completed last night with Bradford involving moon sugar and skooma was just amazing. The writing was top notch, as was the variety of activities performed in that quest line. It honestly felt bigger than standard cookie-cutter side quests.
Playing as a Khajiit Necromancer, I feel like a true badass. Being able to resurrect a skeleton that charges at your enemies and then explodes is deeply satisfying. But on top of all this is the knowledge that there is five years worth of content left for me to explore.
One quick glance at the overworld map was enough to show me the real power of the One Tamriel update. All of these regions are for me to go explore, quest, and discover. As someone who prioritizes exploration and discovery, I became very excited.
And, well, I grabbed the ESO Plus subscription, reveled in my infinite capacity Crafting Bag, and sat down for the inevitable amazing adventures before me. After Elsweyr, I’m going to visit Summerset, and then Morrowind.
…But I should probably check out the Thieves Guild too…
……Oh and the Dark Brotherhood…
……….Oh and also probably Murkmire — nah, Argonians suck.