I would only if I have enough money.

I hate MMOs but if there was no single-player TES5 I would probably give it a try at least so I voted maybe. However I really, really don't want an MMO.

I'm not playing games to socialise in the first place and I don't want other people in my game unless I specifically invite them. Besides that having to many real live people in my TES game would destroy the RPG facet of the games for me. If everyone is walking around in glass or ebony armour with eltonbrand and goldbrands by the dussin it wouldn't feel special and magical anymore and if they limited the number of special items less skilled players (like me) would never even see a special item because they'd be long gone.


That said I also don't want to pay a monthly fee or just spend most of my time grinding levels.

Yes I would play it but I'm not sure if it would do well on the market. Elderscrolls has quite a big fan base but you need a massive and I mean massive fan base for the material in order for it to work. One of the reasons why WoW is so successful is because blizzard had a giant fan base even before wow. WoW got many people into mmos that never gave them another glance. For anyone who started mmos before WoW we understand how hard it is to leave your first mmo. The reason many left their first mmo is due to many changes they dislike. So unless WoW screws itself over Elderscrolls likely won't be stealing Blizzard's fanbase (I don't play WoW so using the really devoted fan card won't work this is the truth I know how the industry works.). You can say who needs them? I completely agree but the problem is that money speaks. The population for an elderscrolls will definitely be adequate but unfortunately, not having WoW's numbers, regardless of financial success it'd be seen as a failure in many players eyes forcing both the good and bad players to leave it behind as "Dead."

What I'm saying is between the fanbase Bethesda has which is pretty great I'm not sure if it'll work. Why? You can't have an mmo with oblivion's mechanics or morrowind's mechanics even. That's too advanced for a game that needs to sport thousands of players in a single world. There'd be so many changes made that it likely would turn off many Elderscrolls fans. This is what I meant about the "Fanbase being too small" which I probably expressed inadequately above. If they can't steal blizzard's fanbase, and the majority of their own fanbase won't touch it because it's too dissimilar from the original, what's left? Already you have morrowind fans that hate Oblivion for simplifying certain mechanics to appeal to the more casual players and make the game more accessible (not knocking oblivion) if they did this on a completely mass scale.. I foresee both morrowind and oblivion players shunning it.

Look at some of the posts in this thread. Many of those that are saying "Yeah!" to elderscrolls then compare to how oblivion would be if it transitioned to an mmo but it wouldn't resemble oblivion. I'm telling you. You'll end up with a game where some casuals will play it tired of what else is on the market. Some people so dedicated to Elderscrolls and enjoy the lore so much they'll play it for that reason alone. Some who genuinely like the world and style and.. end up with another game on the market sitting on life support. The game will be completely different. So in the end. Yes, I'd try it out. No, I don't think it'd last or do well on the market.

There is a way around this and it's something a few companies tried and failed at so far and others refuse to do. Stop copying the existing formula. Try something completely new and support that idea to the end and don't try to change it mid way through or after release (SWG NGE and Darkfall I'm looking at you.).

Depends. I love the idea of an MMO (as a genre, not a TES game) but I've never found one that I really liked. For one, I hate turn based combat. For two, graphics are sacrificed for processing power (necessary) but annoying when done in the style of WoW where everything is bright and cartoony. The one game that solved both of these issues was Age of Conan, which has an AWESOME background, and despite not falling for it overall I still think about creating a new account every once in a while. However, that game was never fleshed out in terms of content (so I hear) and it was still plague ridden with skill trees and although the real time combat was an improvement, I didn't quite like the way it was implemented.

I'm still waiting for an MMO that plays more like an action game. In terms of art style and setting, I think AoC nailed what I like, but it still fell a little short on gameplay, it would have been better with a combat system along the lines of Mount and Blade (which does support online play.) Despite shattering several hurdles, it still was thinking like an MMO, when it should have been thinking like a whole new genre. Yes, grind grind, minimal improvement, slightly improved equipment, grind grind is a tested formula, but it's boring and a waste of time. I really hate how WoW has made so much money because it's essentially set the bar for everyone else. Also, you get classes which are different because of highly specified skill trees, which closes the door on playing an original class. For instance, in AoC, Barbarians had the ability to throw their weapon at fleeing opponents. Why not Assassins? Would the two classes become too much alike? No, because maybe the Barbarians start off with a higher skill in Axes, which would do much more damage than a thrown dagger or other Assassin weapon.

So anyway...of course I'd buy a TES MMO, but only if they were to break the bonds of what are traditionally thought of as MMOs. I'm not gonna play WoW just because I can be a Khajiit, or have that familiar background. AoC already had what was, in my opinion, the best possible background setting for an MMO, and it still fell short because of gameplay. And although I like the tone of TES lore, being more realistically political rather than fantasy epic, I'm not particularly attached to the history or setting itself. The gameplay has to be different.

Every MMO I play is great for the first 20 levels or so and then the intro story line ends and you're left with trying to find people to group up with, and for an advlt with a full time job and other responsibilities that's not easy to do. If I want to play a game with others I'll run a D&D campaign. At least then my wife can get amusemant out of a 33 year old nerd telling his other 30+ year old nerd friends they were just wiped out by a clan of hill giants. So long story short, no I would not play an ES MMO because at their core you depend on others to experience a lot of the content and I just can't do that.

I would NOT play it as an MMO for several reasons:

(1) The quality of the game experience in an MMO is largely dependent on the other players, which can vary tremendously from one time to the next. I don't want to have a bad day at work, then go home to relax and get into an online session with some jerky player who makes me wish I was back at work. As for finding a "regular group" that meets online to game and socialize, I have enough trouble getting together once a week at a scheduled time for the local historical miniatures wargaming group, much less a daily thing. The interaction can be good, but it's hard to keep it that way with an uncertain schedule.

(2) The ongoing subscription cost of an MMO is something that I refuse to deal with, and the few "free" schemes I've seen with "subscriber advantages" make me want to toss lunch.

(3) My "game PC" at home isn't hooked up to the internet, and the phone lines aren't even routed to that part of the house, so it's not happening anytime soon.

(4) How do you balance an MMO for both solo characters and multiple player parties with both high and low level members? If you thought that there were issues with play balance over the span of the game in MW or OB, think of how much worse the problem will be in an MMO.

(5) How do you collect all of the "unique" artifacts in a MMO? There are multiple issues about divvying up loot, availability of rare and "unique" items, and having to join massive parties so ONE of you can get the "Golden Sharpened Screwdriver of Malfunction" from the guardian.

(6) How do you mod an online game to suit your tastes?

This right here. I think they might do a few unique twists but break the bonds? That's what I'm sadly doubting. I foresee simplifying and dumbing things down on a massive scale to "Try to steal casual players from wow" which won't work and in the end have a game with a few diehard fans barely keeping the server afloat.

hehe ya I can only stand them for so long then I leave school and I never want to see a kid until thew next day .

Many MMO has pretty complex crafting, enchanting and magic systems, and often pretty advanced combat systems to. However its major differences think Morrowind to Oblivion increased a magnitude; most of the changes in the magic were to avoid exploits and to balance things. In a MMO where you have player against player you can not have exploits.

You also have level restriction on everything so high level characters can not give low level players equipment. So yes you could get elven armor and strong restore health potions at level 1 if very lucky (someone droped it or gave it to you) but you could not use it until level 10 some use skill level here.

I find that MMO's are incredibely competitive in nature. With a game like the elderscrolls you are able to move at your own pace without the pressure that someones gonna player kill you. I also like to be suprised by what I find and work towards my goals rather than following a raid party or seeing some high level player flaunting his stuff in a low level town.

The elderscrolls is about me, or you, or that one individual person playing it. An mmo would break my concept of the elderscrolls entirely.

I'd play it anyway but I still would PREFER single player

One thing people need to remember on here is that if there was an Elder Scrolls MMO it would be made by Zenimax or some other studio that makes MMO's. It would be made from Elder Scrolls LORE, and I don't think it would try to maintain many (if any) of the same features the main games in the series have had. Think of even the offshoot Elder Scrolls games like Redguard and Battlespire, did those have modding? No, because they're not part of the main Elder Scrolls series. It's a different type of game based off of the Elder Scrolls lore. That's what an Elder Scrolls MMO would be like.

I voted 'no' as to me it would only become a pale reflection of a truly remarkable series.

Next to that I enjoyed the Elder Scrolls *because* it was a singleplayer experience created for me personally; not something I would have to share with millions of other players like so many other production-line-MMO's.

Lastly I have no intention to pay monthly fees of $10-$15 for 3 online games. World of Warcraft already milked my purse of $500 over the course of 3 years before I said 'enough is enough'.

So please forgive my egotistical nature when I say that I want The Elder Scrolls games to be my own preciousssss.... And I'm not going to share it with the millions of Hobbits jumping around wanting to duel me all the time in front of the tavern in Bruma.

I could imagine a co-op system though, where 2-4 guys (max) could join up on a LAN and go around questing together. Guess that would also work with the XBox360 and Playstation as they had those 4-player connections (I think).

EDIT: Oh, and I wouldn't want something like http://img66.imageshack.us/img66/135/multiplayermwhj8.jpg (that image never gets old)

Greetz,

Milt

That's my point. If it contains none of the gameplay elements or very little it won't appeal to most of the Elderscrolls fans except those desperate enough for every piece of lore. Unless they break the mold they end up in the same rut as every mmo that has done poorly since wow. "I'm confident that we can steal some of WoW's player base." and then end up with a few die hard people who like the world and a few small population servers and a game on life support. Either way Elderscrolls or not. It must break the mold or end up in the bargain bin with the rest. Not that breaking the mold has any guarantee of success either.

No, Probably not. I prefer the idea of ES as an immersive single player experience rather than a multiplayer one, i think that there's a danger it could become too WoW-ish, And if there's one game i could never bring myself to play, It's WoW.

No - why do I need an MMO when I can hang out with my friends at the forum for free?

I would no play it, but if it there a switch to turn off the MMOness i might play it because it would be cool if there were capture the flag mini games or full outright war with armies of archers firing volleys at the enemy. But I think it would be better to have the minigames without the MMO.

In my opinion Fallout would make a better MMO as Sword & Sorcery games have been done to death.

If you were to look at all the RPGs around I think that Mass Effect would be the most interesting, Everything is set up in that game to make a great MMO.

No, I would have to pass.

Finances aside, I have watched some play online in many games from free ones to those with subscriptions, and they don't resemble anything even remotely fun. Lots of competition, lots of attitudes, and worse, the constant need for many to advance through working as a unit, team, or band. Plus, there is that issue such as level based terrain, like in WOW. I want my game world accessible from the minute that ship makes port. I want the freedom to either make my own way, whether pauper or prince, knight or killer, and not dependent on if I can get a group to facilitate that. One of my sister-in-laws is on Wizards101 and the constant antagonism and clique behavior is just too petty. Just give me a good standalone game with scripts made or inspired by our great modders.

I remember the kinds like the ancient "Active Worlds", and the other one, Second Life. With my pedestrian computer my graphic would come out looking like a nvde, gray, female, not the Drow male that my sister-in-law crafted. 3 minutes in, I was beset with guys pressing the digital equivalent of "A/S/L" CONSTANTLY. Got so bad, I had to have the character hide in the bushes until she logged on and got me some clothing.

Absolutely not. I detest the genre.

MMORPGs are all judged by WoW. Honestly, I've played a lot and WoW's community is by far the worst. In some, people can be extremely polite and kind. And I wouldn't be surprised if Bethesda made a TES MMORPG, so they can have a cashcow. They stopped being a gaming company in '06, won't be long until they're working on a cashcow.

I'm going to cut you off before you say they stop being a game company. Bethesda, like Blizzard is still a game company, it's a business like any other(in laymans terms) and the ultimate goal is to make money.

A TES MMORPG would help stabilize capital or an MMORPG of any form would since they take so long between games.

Fixed.



It would only stabilize capital if people chose it from the lengthy list of mediocrities being passed off as games under the "MMO" header, and continued to play after the inevitable realization that it's just like every other MMO out there. It's not companies that make them pretty much all the same experience- it's the MMO junkies out for their latest level-grinding PvP-ego-strutting fix. Like a horde of locusts, they rip through anything with MMO in the name...and leave about as much behind.

No, but a MMO based on elder scrolls maybe. Could you even call it TES V if it came out as a MMO?

I would much rather design my own turn based strategy game based on TES and play that instead, as apposed to playing TES V if came out as a MMO.

Why is this even a topic? Was there some kind of rumor that I missed?

Apparently, that same horde of locusts that rip through every MMO and leave nothing worthwhile behind have been spreading rumors, perhaps in hopes of planting seeds of greed and being proven true.

In my opinion, it would be a short-term marketable item which would last a matter of a couple of months at best, then fall apart like the vast majority of other MMOs, for the same reasons. They'd be VERY lucky to recover their development costs. Once the novelty wears off, all but the most diehard TES fans will bail, and a lot of the original fanbase won't even make the switchover to it in the first place. Besides not having the proper facilities to game online, I'd boycott it even if I did.