http://www.pcgamer.com/the-elder-scrolls-online-drops-subscription/
Raise your wands if you didn't see this one coming. Okay, that's no-one. Yes, like night following a particularly reliable day, The Elder Scrolls Online is dropping its subscription. Rumors of the switch have been around for a while now, fuelled by the elimination of the six-month subscription option in December, followed by the removal of TESO boxes from EB Games shelves in Australia earlier this month. Now, finally, it's confirmed: Bethesda Softworks has announced that the game's subscription will cease as of March, at which point it will be known as The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited.
It won't be fully free-to-play—you'll still have to purchase the game if you want in—but once you own it, you'll be able to play online to your heart's content, with full access to all previously-released updates and content, including the new Champion and Justice systems. Those who already own The Elder Scrolls Online will need to do nothing, as all existing accounts will be automatically updated to the new version.
Dedicated fans will have the option of ponying up for "ESO Plus" memberships. Available in 30, 90, and 180-day durations, these will offer access to all future DLC, which Bethesda said will consist of "game packs with optional adventure content," like zones and quests. Access to these optional areas will be lost if and when your membership expires, but any items or rewards earned from those areas will be kept.
ESO Plus memberships will also provide "character progression bonuses," and an allotment of crowns, the new in-game currency that will be used to purchase "convenience and customization items" like pets and mounts, as well as the aforementioned DLC, which will be available separately from ESO Plus memberships on an a-la-carte basis.
Current TESO subscriptions that extend beyond the changeover will be automatically transitioned to ESO Plus memberships, and TESO players who have previously cancelled their subscriptions can leap back into the subs-free action using their old account info (and will be given 500 complimentary crowns for doing so). Refunds on existing subscriptions will not be offered.
As we hinted, ever-so-subtly, at the beginning of this post, this is an entirely unsurprising outcome. There are plenty of quality free-to-play MMO options already on the market—and while the realm of Tamriel looks to be an ideal setting for an MMO on the surface, there's a big difference between experiencing a game world as the Nerevarine, and experiencing it as Rando Battlemage #22627. I don't think The Elder Scrolls Online was ever able to shed its reputation for being over-hyped and under-delivered, and generic fantasy MMO experiences just aren't enough to justify 15 bucks a month in this era.
I'm also a little iffy about Bethesda's plans for Tamriel Unlimited. Bethesda hasn't yet indicated what the purchase price will be but the standard edition of TESO is $60, and it's not unreasonable to assume that figure will hold, at least for a little while. Add on the cost of future game packs, mounts, and whatever else catches your fancy, and I can't help but wonder if even the sub-free version of the game might be a little too pricey for its own good.
The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited goes live on March 17. ZeniMax Online Studios will talk more about the coming changes in a Twitch stream starting at 12 pm EST on January 21, and if reading is more your thing, you can get more detail in this handy FAQ.
EDIT // B2P starts 03/14/2015
ALSO // Coming to Consoles 06/09/2015
EDIT// More info below:
http://www.mmogames.com/gamearticles/elder-scrolls-online-buy-play-explained/
Pete Hines, Vice President of PR and Marketing, Matt Firor, Game Director, and Paul Sage, Creative Director on The Elder Scrolls Online took to Twitch to answer questions and go in depth about what you can expect for Elder Scrolls Online’s future.
ESO on Console
On June 9th Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited will launch on consoles. We learned that there will be a console beta but the dates of it haven’t been narrowed down much beyond “April-ish.” Zenimax isn’t sure of the size of the beta yet that information will be released at a later date. Much of the world that has been done on the console version of the game focuses on communication tools and the controls. Menus had to be completely changed with large font to accommodate both using a controller and the fact that people sit further away from their TVs than they do their PCs.
ESO DLC
Zenimax also announced that Elder Scrolls Online would be adopting a buy to play model and releasing DLC that can be purchased. The DLC will include new stories, new areas of the world to explore, and more. Perhaps most important to note is that the DLC will level scale. So, if you aren’t at max level you won’t have to wait until the end of the game to play the DLC, you’ll be able to jump right in from the moment you get it. Anyone who is part of ESO Plus will get the DLC free.
ESO Subscription
ESO Plus is the new subscription option. By paying the monthly subscription not only will you get the DLC for free you’ll also get a monthly stipend of Crowns to be used in the in game shop as well as boosts to Experience, crafting speed, crafting inspiration, and gold acquisition.
ESO Store
The Crown store will be focused on customization and convenience. Items you’ll be able to find in the in game store include pets, mounts, and costumes. All of these items will unlock account wide and be placed in a collection system where they won’t take up bag space. It was highly stressed that the mounts available in the store will not be any better than the mounts you can already get, they’ll just look unique and provide the ability for more customization on your characters. Also in the crown store will be convenience items like potions. These potions will NOT be as powerful as the ones that players can craft. They’re simply there for people who don’t have the time and desire to spend all day crafting. On the topic of the game going pay to win it was stressed that this will not happen. Everything you can buy that gives an advantage can be obtained in game. Additionally, crowns and the items purchased in the in game store cannot be traded or sold. So there will be no way for players to “buy gold.”
There were some other surprise changes announced. The tutorial is getting a revamp. This will be put in place by the time console players are able to play so they’ll never experience what the tutorial is currently like. There weren’t many details on how the tutorial would be changed but based on the video showed of it there will still be some of the current tutorial left. There will be an Imperial edition of the game released for console players and one of the most asked questions, will characters still be transferable from PC to console as was previously promised was answered. The answer of course being yes. There is also a change coming to mounts to make it a bit easier when you get a new mount. Skills and abilities mounts have will carry over to new mounts. So you won’t have to start over with each new mount.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?x-yt-ts=1421828030&x-yt-cl=84411374&v=-9hers2rk98
All of this of course comes at the same time as many other big changes that are coming to The Elder Scrolls Online. Current subscribers will be able to see the changes starting next week on the public test shard.
Will you be playing Elder Scrolls Online now that the new business model has been announced? Have you been holding out for the console version? The bigger question right now though, is this the death of the subscription model for MMOs?
Raise your wands if you didn't see this one coming. Okay, that's no-one. Yes, like night following a particularly reliable day, The Elder Scrolls Online is dropping its subscription. Rumors of the switch have been around for a while now, fuelled by the elimination of the six-month subscription option in December, followed by the removal of TESO boxes from EB Games shelves in Australia earlier this month. Now, finally, it's confirmed: Bethesda Softworks has announced that the game's subscription will cease as of March, at which point it will be known as The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited.
It won't be fully free-to-play—you'll still have to purchase the game if you want in—but once you own it, you'll be able to play online to your heart's content, with full access to all previously-released updates and content, including the new Champion and Justice systems. Those who already own The Elder Scrolls Online will need to do nothing, as all existing accounts will be automatically updated to the new version.
Dedicated fans will have the option of ponying up for "ESO Plus" memberships. Available in 30, 90, and 180-day durations, these will offer access to all future DLC, which Bethesda said will consist of "game packs with optional adventure content," like zones and quests. Access to these optional areas will be lost if and when your membership expires, but any items or rewards earned from those areas will be kept.
ESO Plus memberships will also provide "character progression bonuses," and an allotment of crowns, the new in-game currency that will be used to purchase "convenience and customization items" like pets and mounts, as well as the aforementioned DLC, which will be available separately from ESO Plus memberships on an a-la-carte basis.
Current TESO subscriptions that extend beyond the changeover will be automatically transitioned to ESO Plus memberships, and TESO players who have previously cancelled their subscriptions can leap back into the subs-free action using their old account info (and will be given 500 complimentary crowns for doing so). Refunds on existing subscriptions will not be offered.
As we hinted, ever-so-subtly, at the beginning of this post, this is an entirely unsurprising outcome. There are plenty of quality free-to-play MMO options already on the market—and while the realm of Tamriel looks to be an ideal setting for an MMO on the surface, there's a big difference between experiencing a game world as the Nerevarine, and experiencing it as Rando Battlemage #22627. I don't think The Elder Scrolls Online was ever able to shed its reputation for being over-hyped and under-delivered, and generic fantasy MMO experiences just aren't enough to justify 15 bucks a month in this era.
I'm also a little iffy about Bethesda's plans for Tamriel Unlimited. Bethesda hasn't yet indicated what the purchase price will be but the standard edition of TESO is $60, and it's not unreasonable to assume that figure will hold, at least for a little while. Add on the cost of future game packs, mounts, and whatever else catches your fancy, and I can't help but wonder if even the sub-free version of the game might be a little too pricey for its own good.
The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited goes live on March 17. ZeniMax Online Studios will talk more about the coming changes in a Twitch stream starting at 12 pm EST on January 21, and if reading is more your thing, you can get more detail in this handy FAQ.
EDIT // B2P starts 03/14/2015
ALSO // Coming to Consoles 06/09/2015
EDIT// More info below:
http://www.mmogames.com/gamearticles/elder-scrolls-online-buy-play-explained/
Pete Hines, Vice President of PR and Marketing, Matt Firor, Game Director, and Paul Sage, Creative Director on The Elder Scrolls Online took to Twitch to answer questions and go in depth about what you can expect for Elder Scrolls Online’s future.
ESO on Console
On June 9th Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited will launch on consoles. We learned that there will be a console beta but the dates of it haven’t been narrowed down much beyond “April-ish.” Zenimax isn’t sure of the size of the beta yet that information will be released at a later date. Much of the world that has been done on the console version of the game focuses on communication tools and the controls. Menus had to be completely changed with large font to accommodate both using a controller and the fact that people sit further away from their TVs than they do their PCs.
ESO DLC
Zenimax also announced that Elder Scrolls Online would be adopting a buy to play model and releasing DLC that can be purchased. The DLC will include new stories, new areas of the world to explore, and more. Perhaps most important to note is that the DLC will level scale. So, if you aren’t at max level you won’t have to wait until the end of the game to play the DLC, you’ll be able to jump right in from the moment you get it. Anyone who is part of ESO Plus will get the DLC free.
ESO Subscription
ESO Plus is the new subscription option. By paying the monthly subscription not only will you get the DLC for free you’ll also get a monthly stipend of Crowns to be used in the in game shop as well as boosts to Experience, crafting speed, crafting inspiration, and gold acquisition.
ESO Store
The Crown store will be focused on customization and convenience. Items you’ll be able to find in the in game store include pets, mounts, and costumes. All of these items will unlock account wide and be placed in a collection system where they won’t take up bag space. It was highly stressed that the mounts available in the store will not be any better than the mounts you can already get, they’ll just look unique and provide the ability for more customization on your characters. Also in the crown store will be convenience items like potions. These potions will NOT be as powerful as the ones that players can craft. They’re simply there for people who don’t have the time and desire to spend all day crafting. On the topic of the game going pay to win it was stressed that this will not happen. Everything you can buy that gives an advantage can be obtained in game. Additionally, crowns and the items purchased in the in game store cannot be traded or sold. So there will be no way for players to “buy gold.”
There were some other surprise changes announced. The tutorial is getting a revamp. This will be put in place by the time console players are able to play so they’ll never experience what the tutorial is currently like. There weren’t many details on how the tutorial would be changed but based on the video showed of it there will still be some of the current tutorial left. There will be an Imperial edition of the game released for console players and one of the most asked questions, will characters still be transferable from PC to console as was previously promised was answered. The answer of course being yes. There is also a change coming to mounts to make it a bit easier when you get a new mount. Skills and abilities mounts have will carry over to new mounts. So you won’t have to start over with each new mount.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?x-yt-ts=1421828030&x-yt-cl=84411374&v=-9hers2rk98
All of this of course comes at the same time as many other big changes that are coming to The Elder Scrolls Online. Current subscribers will be able to see the changes starting next week on the public test shard.
Will you be playing Elder Scrolls Online now that the new business model has been announced? Have you been holding out for the console version? The bigger question right now though, is this the death of the subscription model for MMOs?