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Bethesda will release a massively multiplayer online version of its popular The Elder Scrolls series next year for PC and Mac, Game Informer reports today.

Set a millennium before the events of Bethesda's last The Elder Scrolls game, Skyrim, The Elder Scrolls Online will take place across all of Tamriel during a time when daedric prince Molag Bal is wreaking havoc on the realm. The game will feature three player factions and PvP combat. Presumably you'll be able to travel across the entire world of The Elder Scrolls—Game Informer mentions recurring areas Elsweyr, Skyrim, and Cyrodiil as locations in the MMORPG.

"We have been working hard to create an online world in which players will be able to experience the epic Elder Scrolls universe with their friends, something fans have long said they wanted," director Matt Firor said in a press release. Firor previously worked on fantasy MMORPG Dark Age of Camelot. "It will be extremely rewarding finally to unveil what we have been developing the last several years. The entire team is committed to creating the best MMO ever made – and one that is worthy of The Elder Scrolls franchise."

This is the first project from developer ZeniMax Online Studios, which was founded in 2007.

Rumors earlier this year suggested that The Elder Scrolls Online would be unveiled this May and that Bethesda would show more about its upcoming MMO at this year's E3 gaming conference. An earlier rumor also suggested that the game's three factions are represented by a lion, a dragon, and a bird of prey.

Game Informer promises more details in its upcoming June issue, which goes on sale next week.

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b0red5tiff said:
looks like WoW.

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UPDATE: Images removed due to copyright infringement, however, Bethesda has released their Debut Trailer for the game.

Only hours after the first announcement of the Elder Scrolls Online coming from Gameinformer, the full feature has been leaked to the internet, in which Zenimax Online speaks of the “bold new direction” they plan to take the franchise.

Creative Director Paul Sage explains that it is important to capture the essence of previous Elder Scrolls games, namely weighty combat, richly interactive environments and a world reactive to players actions, albeit “this does not translate easily to the MMO genre”.

“We’ve really got to create a compelling game first,” Sage explains. “It needs to be comfortable for people who are coming in from a typical massively multiplayer game that has the same control mechanisms, but it also has to appeal to Skyrim players. You want to hit those touchstones, but more important than that, you’ve got to create an experience that’s unique and fun.”

The main story focuses on the war on the continent of Tamriel taking place 1000 years before the events of Skyrim. Nerevarine’s battle against Dagoth Ur in Morrowind, fractious lords desperately fight against the invasion coming from Oblivion and a civil war rages in the land of Skyrim.

Within the world of Tamriel there are 3 alliances users can join, each consisting of 3 three races to chose from. The Nords, Dunmer (Dark Eves) and Argonians make up the Ebonheart Pact. Forming the Aldmeri Dominion are the Altmer (High Elves), Bosmer (Wood Elves) and Khajiit. Finally the Daggerfall Covenant consisting of Breatons, Redguard and Orcs make up the third available alliance.

The main villain of the story is the King of Worms, Mannimarco who plans to take control over the mortal realm together with the Daedric prince of domination, Molang Bal.

Making sure the entire lore is kept canon, Todd Howard of Bethesda Game Studios “checks in every once in a while” to work together with the development team’s loremasters.

Much of the levelling experience is based around the “core fantasy presented by traditional Elder Scrolls games”. Taking place in a third person environment this time around, players will be utilising a hotbar for various attacks and actions. Skilltrees seem to be more MMO oriented, where players must chose a direction, as they “can’t master everything” this time around, nonetheless joining every guild is still possible.

Random events are also supposed to play a major role, featuring NPCs interacting with each other in occurrences, such as robberies or random dialogue (players can supposedly still slaughter civilians to their liking during these events).

Creating an open world, tied in with random events and quests being taken on by various individuals, allows for a richer experience, as players take on their own adventures and interact with others along the way. This feeling is explored in a werewolf quest the article runs through in fine detail, where decisions play a key part. The Elder Scrolls Online also plans to “bring back” the public dungeon, allowing for more organic group building instead of entering instances. Heroic modes will also be available for small-group instanced dungeons, as well as raids.

The in-game world will feature the entire environments from Skyrim to Morrowind, however the map will not be entirely open for exploration, as certain areas are planned to be used for future expansions. Cyrodiil will make for the main capital of the raging war, where players can engage in endgame PvP.

Considering the world of Tamriel is so vast and player interaction plays such a key role, the developers behind the MMO are still looking for an optimal solution to make sure that “hotly contested areas” aren’t overpopulated.

Gameinformer’s spread also features a massive “What’s in, what’s out” list comparing what elements have made it in, from the original Elder Scrolls games. It must be noted that the list includes a lot of “we can’t say right now”-ishness.

The feature finally acknowledges the fact that The Elder Scrolls Online must prepare to face a large amount of criticism, as die-hard fans won’t agree with many of the liberties Zenimax is taking. However, when reminded by the fact that Bethesda, as well as talent from Ultima Online and Dark Age of Camelot, are standing behind this project, we just might have the next big fantasy MMO waiting for us.
http://xbigygames.com/the-elder-scrolls-online-screenshots-and-details/

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SneezingPenis said:
has potential to be the best MMORPG to date, but chances are they will fuck it up. large scale game design has shit the bed since the core base of gamers are now old enough to have kids that game as well... trying to bridge the divide and make everything immersive, yet palatable to all ages.... such bullshit.

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anunnakian said:
Well, your argument fails anyways as all Elder Scrolls should be played in Single Player mode.
This is not the Elder Scrolls you are looking for.

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anunnakian said:
Well, your argument fails anyways as all Elder Scrolls should be played in Single Player mode.
This is not the Elder Scrolls you are looking for.

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