Is Elder Scrolls Online Still Worth Playing In 2025?
As a MMORPG with more than a decade of game history, there must be a reason why Elder Scrolls Online is still popular with players. Whether it is its stunning scenery or immersive soundtrack, it is an important factor that makes players linger here.
But after all, more than 10 years have passed since ESO was first released, and many players want to know whether it is still worth playing in 2025, and whether it can still catch up with the old players who have been here and really enjoy it. But to know the answer to this question, you still have to ask yourself what you are pursuing. Let's discuss it from all aspects.
Diverse Gameplay
First of all, ESO has achieved a good balance between single-player games in Elder Scrolls series of games and more traditional MMO elements, allowing you to play games continuously.
If you don’t like typical MMO gameplay, you will be happy to know that the world of Elder Scrolls Online is very large and single-player and casual games are very welcome, although there are some parts of the game that you need to bring others to play with you.
That being said, the main contributor to ESO’s success is the game’s engaging and helpful community, but it also encourages you to find your own rhythm and interact with others when you want to. However, ESO is an MMO, so there is no way to turn off viewing other players, but you can choose to ignore social activities.
Contradictions Caused By Level Scaling
Unlike many MMOs, ESO has level scaling, and equipment will always drop with your level. Combat is the same as enemies, and even your own damage numbers scale with your level. And since there are no level restrictions, you can go anywhere and play with friends from the beginning, regardless of level differences.
Combat in ESO does not have the feel of a single-player Elder Scrolls series game, but instead utilizes traditional MMORPG elements such as combat timers, ideal rotations for using skills, and global cooldowns before using other skills. It also utilizes the typical tank, healer, and damage dealer group dynamic.
To be honest, ESO does offer a lot of freedom, but because of the freedom the game offers it is easy to accidentally get equipment or skills that don’t match what you want for your character. Therefore, most players have very extreme attitudes towards the combat system, either loving it or hating it.
Another common complaint from players is that combat throughout the land area content feels too easy. While this provides a better initial game experience for new players, if you only complete the land content, your character may start to feel weak or unable to cope with the team content.
Character Customization
There are many options for customization in ESO, such as housing and designing character clothing. For many people, fashion is the real end goal!
Of course, you can customize your character at the beginning of the game, but after the character creation is over, you need to spend ESO Gold to change their physical characteristics, such as eye color, height or face shape. However, you can add items to your collection, such as hairstyles and skins that can be applied directly from Collection menu.
You can add items to your collection through Crown Store, or by completing achievements, participating in monthly or seasonal events, and simply logging in. These features all provide a foundation for players who like to customize their characters and show their own style and charm.
Huge Content
For pure lore lovers, ESO has a lot to offer. There are peaks and valleys in the storytelling, and some areas really stand out in that regard.
However, the game is massive, and if you like to play games in the order they were written or intended, ESO might be hard to navigate, as there are 10 years of content to explore, and there’s still a lot to do!
And while Elder Scrolls Online lets you join 5 player guilds at once, and there’s a player trading system, it doesn’t offer a traditional auction house, instead requiring guilds to bid for control of physical trader locations around the world. As a result, shopping in the game often requires traveling to different towns to find what you want.
While PC players currently have the option of using add-ons to improve the user experience in various aspects, console players don’t have add-on options. So you need to consider whether your device is suitable for this.
Pay-To-Win?
Finally, let’s look at the paid elements in ESO. First, its base game is a good deal, usually given away for free, but only includes hundreds of hours of base content. But you can also choose to get a collection version of expansions, which includes the base game, the current expansion, and all previous expansions.
If you hold off on using these expansions, you’ll essentially get a ton of content as a reward when you finally make up your mind to get them, a payment model that’s very new to the game. However, expansions and DLC are different, and these smaller DLCs aren’t included in the collection version, but they’re included in the optional subscription, which can cause confusion when players are deciding what to order.
And, as mentioned before, ESO also has an in-game store with a special currency available for use called Crowns. You can use them to unlock more content for permanent access after your subscription ends, or redeem them for cosmetics, horses, houses, furniture to decorate your house, and other timesaving extras. But the game doesn’t force a real-world economy on you, and it’s completely optional.
Some players aren’t happy with the amount of cosmetics that end up being sold for Crowns versus the amount of rewards you get, but the game is definitely not pay-to-win, it’s just pay-to-win for convenience and to look particularly fancy. While the timesaving crowns option does include things like upgrading skill trees, it’s important to point out that you do need to organically upgrade those skill trees once before the option is unlocked for your account.
Some players will notice that there are also Experience Scrolls for sale in the store, which may fall into the “pay to win” category, but ESO also offers free XP boosts, usually in items you can earn when you log in each day, as well as craftable drinks. So do your research before you use crowns, should you do it? If you don’t need them, don’t waste crowns!
Will ESO Continue To Be Updated?
As for how long the game will be updated, only the developers know the proper answer. However, with a new class added last year, the game is still making money, and this live service game is still rolling out updates. Therefore, I think this game will still be around for a few years to come.
Also, the game currently has no cross-platform play or cross-platform progression, and any in-game items are locked to the server you choose. Although the number of console players is considerable, the number of PC players is even greater. So think carefully when choosing a device to start the game.
Final Thoughts
In summary, ESO is very friendly to new players, the play style is very flexible, and there is still a lot of content to come. If you are interested, it is definitely worth continuing to try it in 2025, no matter which platform you choose.
However, ESO’s biggest problem right now is player retention. While there are tons of new players, the end-game community struggles to maintain player numbers, because of severe nerfs, skill gaps, large meta changes, or an inability to find and form a group of like-minded players.
If you do give the game a try, don’t burn yourself out by rushing to level up just to catch up with the old players. If you want to speed up your game progress, you can keep an eye on the giveaway channel in iGMeet Discord, where there are often some sweepstakes. As long as you are lucky enough, you can get some coveted game resources for free. Regardless, focus on the adventure, lore, and world building in the game, and relax, because in the end it’s all about your journey and exploration!
Jan-22-2025
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Elder Scrolls Online: What ...
The much-anticipated ESO Anniversary Jubilee Event has finally arrived! We can continue to join this event until April 23rd and receive a 100% XP boost and a lot of cakes. Here, we’ll share how to get boxes, event tickets, and other cosmetics scattered around the world during Anniversary Event. Start Event First, to start the event, you need to complete the mission, For Cake’s Sake, and get this year’s Jubilee Cake. You can find chefs near the docks in Auridon, Stonefalls, and Glenumbra, or you can get the starter quest for free in Crown Store, which will take you directly to them. How To Get An Anniversary Cake? Then, you also need to collect some ingredients and complete some interactions. These can be found near the quest giver, and upon completing the quest, you’ll receive 2024 Anniversary Cake! It’s worth noting that XP boost is passively applied to anyone who logs in during the event, so you don’t have to eat cake every few hours to get the bonus. But you still need to use cake every day to get 3 Event Tickets, so don’t forget to grab it and use it! Gift Boxes This year, you can get Gift Boxes from a few alternative sources, but as always, any daily quest in the game will net you a Gift Box. This includes Daily Writs, so there’s no better time than now to get them done! You can also get boxes by killing and looting the last boss or world boss in dungeons, trials, and any incursion event. In Rewards for the Worthy mail, you have a chance to win a box from Tales of Tribute rewards. Note, however, that this chance increases based on the number of opponents defeated during Tribute daily and their difficulty. You’ll get a gold reward box the first day you complete it, but all subsequent drops will be purple boxes. There are 2 new items in this year’s Gift Box, Earthbone Ayleid Style and Jubilee Steed, but both only appear in the daily gold box. Note that Jubilee Steed requires 25 fragments, and these fragments are bound when picked up. Obtaining this mount will result in an achievement, but you won’t be able to complete it with what the event offers. This means if you want to complete it, be prepared to spend your ticket. Drops The drops in purple boxes compare favorably to last year’s boxes, and include drops familiar to long-time players, as well as guaranteed materials, some of which are profitable. You can make a decent amount of ESO Gold just by selling some of your excess materials. Currently, I’ve opened around 300 boxes to test drops and can tell you that new motifs appear to have been added to the drop pool! New Cosmetic Replica Rewards Besides Gift Boxes, you can also earn new cosmetic replica rewards by doing specific things, but these items are bound when picked up. Also, you have a slight chance of finding Outfit Style Pages for Trueflame Sword Replica at any fishing node during the event. This is a very rare drop that can be obtained while fishing in Stonefalls in 2014! All Dolmens Loot Chests have a chance to drop Style Pages for Staff of Worms Replica. Any World Boss in Vvardenfell may drop Style Pages of Sunna’rah Replica or Barbas Helmet Replica. Any Geysers in Summerset may drop Style Pages for Ul’vor Staff. Event Merchant For this event, Impresario also has a huge inventory, including the return of cake furnishings for all cakes! Every year you participate in Jubilee, you can buy matching cakes to keep at home. There will also be slices of cake for sale this year, so you can buy whatever you played that year. Earning each slice is associated with an achievement, and each slice is a ticket. So if you are an achievement seeker, keep this in mind! For those paying close attention, you’ll need around 25 Event Tickets to complete the achievement, depending on how long you play. Besides her usual stock of items, new Jubilee Steed Mount fragments, Earthbone Style Pages, and the first 2 fragments of Master of Schemes Personality are also on sale. She will also carry a Jubilee Grab Bag containing old items that are no longer dropped. Note that you will only get items you don’t already have. If you’re new to the game and want to get your hands on some of these items, check out guild traders before picking them up to minimize the potential loot pool. Additionally, other merchants have also changed their inventories. Philius Dormier will provide Deadlands Scorcher Skin fragments this time, while Indrik Vendor has been replaced with 2 different mounts and non-combat pets. In short, these are the items you can get during ESO Anniversary Jubilee Event! Hurry up and get involved! Enjoy your anniversary celebration!Apr-06-2024
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Elder Scrolls Online: How T ...
By now, you’re all aware of the exciting news. The developers recently launched ESO Plus Free Trial event, which will last until Wednesday, June 19, 2024 at 10:00 AM EDT. ESO Plus includes some significant features, but if you don’t normally subscribe because of price or game time, you might be wondering which quick or important feature unlocks you should focus on during the current Free Trial. This guide has everything you need to know about instant unlocks, including what they are and where to get them so you can get them during ESO Plus Trial! We’ll also show you the best uses for ESO Plus Trial, what things you should prioritize during your trial, and what will and won’t work after Free Trial is over. Before we get into the details, remember to activate it from Crown Store under ESO Plus tab while Free Trial is available. Keeping And Refining Your Materials If your character has a Craft Bag, make sure to log in and move their stuff into Craft Bag. This way, anything in the bag will stay in the bag even after Free Trial ends, so use it while it’s available! You can also use this Trial to refine your raw materials, preferably on a character with the best Refining passive skill and Meticulous Disassembly CP passive slotted. Unlocking Instant Dungeon Collectibles First, let’s look at Dungeon collectibles, all of which are unlocked by entering 1 of the 2 dungeons included in each Dungeon DLC. You don’t even need to complete the dungeon, just enter it! Visit Ruins of Mazzatun or Cradle of Shadows and you’ll get Heroic Personality. Enter Falkreath Hold or Bloodroot Forge to get Bull Horns Emote. Enter Fang Lair or Scalecaller Peak to get Renegade Dragon Priest Mask. Unlock Werewolf Hunter Hat by entering Moon Hunter Keep or March of Sacrifices. Enter Frostvault or Depths of Malatar and you’ll get Ayleid Royal Crown. Step into Lair of Maarselok or Moongrave Fane to unlock Dread-Aurelian Mask. Visit Unhallowed Grave or Icereach to get Wickerman Mishap Emote. Enter Castle Thorn or Stone Garden to get Energetic Dwarven Shock-Spider. Enter Cauldron or Black Drake Villa to use Fire-Forged Maul Weapon Style. After entering Red Petal Bastion or Dread Cellar, Scorion Pyreling Non-Combat Pet will be added to your collection. After entering Coral Aerie or Shipwright’s Regret, you will get these Abyssal Embrace Face Markings. After entering Earthen Root Enclave or Graven Deep, Mulberry Hermit Crab will be added to your collection. However, Scribes of Fate and Scions of Ithelia Dungeons do not offer any Exploration Achievements. Unlocking DLC Zone Collectible DLC zones also have their own treasures, some of which are as easy as visiting a major city: Wrothgar You can get Echalette Pet by entering Orsinium in Wrothgar. Thieves Guild In Thieves Guild DLC, you can unlock Jackal Pet by entering Abah’s Landing. If you take the time to complete the first zone story quest, you’ll also get Thieves Guild Leathers. Dark Brotherhood Dark Brotherhood unlocks Assassin Personality by entering Gold Coast zone, and completing the second zone story quest will add Shrouded Armor Costume to your collection. Clockwork City Dovah-Fly pet is unlocked by entering Brass Fortress in Clockwork City. There are also 3 side quests available from Outlaws Refuges that will give you supply recipes. You can also rebuild Precursor Target Dummy, but this is a bit time consuming and not worth the effort. This Target Dummy won’t give you accurate numbers when parsed, but it’s a nice cosmetic addition. Murkmire This colorful Haj Mota pet is unlocked by entering Lilmoth in Murkmire for the first time. Southern Elsweyr Entering Southern Elsweyr for the first time unlocks Topal Corsair Hat, and you can also complete zone side quests to unlock additional pages if you like that style. If you complete the zone story quest, you can unlock Mask of Alkosh Hat and Za’ji’s Dragonguard Uniform. Markarth Entering Reach Zone for the first time unlocks Arkthzand Anfractuosity Shroud. There is also a side quest in Karthwasten called After the Storm that grants you Reach Rebel Face Markings. The last zone story quest has matching Body Markings. And you can unlock Witchwise Headdress Collectible Hat by completing the 4th zone story quest. Deadlands In Deadlands, you will unlock Oblivion Explorer’s Headwrap when you enter Fargrave for the first time. Firesong When you first enter Galen, you’ll unlock Firesong Obsidian Mask. You’ll also unlock matching Face and Body Markings and Phoenix Moth pet after completing the zone story quest. Other Uses For ESO Plus Trial In addition, other simple and worthwhile things you can do during ESO Plus Trial include: If you take the time to complete Daily Crafting Writs, stock up on Craft Bags! You can get basic style Stones, Potency Runes and Ta Runes, Alchemy, Ingredients, and any other long-term materials you might need from Crafting Vendors for 15 ESO Gold each. Unlock Thieves Guild, Dark Brotherhood, and Psijic Skill Lines for each of your characters. Collect Skyshards, Lorebooks, and unlock exploration, questing dyes, and achievements in areas you wouldn’t normally be able to access. Dye your clothing! This is something that you do for every character, so the same clothing may dye differently on different characters. If you have a companion expansion, you can also dye their clothing. On top of that, take advantage of the 2x furnishing limits in your home to complete treasure maps in areas you wouldn’t normally be able to access. If you have Antiquities rank, dig for clues that would otherwise be inaccessible. Finally, let’s talk about the more time-consuming uses of ESO Plus Trial. You can collect 4-man DLC dungeon set pieces. Remember to bind them when you get any you haven’t collected yet to minimize duplication. You can also fully explore and complete zone maps, completing DLC Trials to earn gear drops and achievements. Completing 2 public dungeon group events in each expansion zone grants 1 skill point. You can also stockpile DLC Daily Coffers on multiple characters. Newer zones have a 20-hour cooldown on Motifs Page drops in the daily reward container, so you can collect a bunch of boxes and stop opening them after you get Motifs Page. Doing this will allow you to continue to earn those Motifs even after Trial ends. What Features Will Continue To Work After Trial Ends? So, what features will continue to work and what will no longer work after Trial ends or you stop paying for ESO Plus? Firstly, Thieves Guild, Dark Brotherhood and Psijic Skill Lines will continue to exist, allowing you to continue to loot Thieves Troves and Psijic Portals, and Blade of Woe will continue to function. You can still assign and unassign skill points in Thieves Guild, Dark Brotherhood, Psijic Skill, Scrying, and Excavation skill trees, but you cannot develop them further, and they are only available on the character you unlocked them for. If you no longer own Greymoor, Antiquities System will stop working after Trial ends. Fortunately, houses acquired in DLC zones will continue to work. The only difference is that when leaving a house, you will not enter DLC zone, but teleport back to the location you were in when you went to the house. Note that since Jewelry Crafting skill line requires Summerset, after ESO Plus expires, you can no longer access Jewelry Crafting Station if you do not own this DLC. So definitely consider completing those valuable research traits when you have access! If you don’t plan on keeping your ESO Plus, remember to set your priorities. I recommend getting the instant unlocks first, then focusing on what you think is most important. Just a reminder, all collectibles are account-wide unlocks! Anyway, hopefully you get all the exceptional free stuff, and this guide will help you find and unlock them! Good luck!Jun-16-2024
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Glide and Gallop: ESO's Dec ...
As Tamriel embraces the festive spirit, Elder Scrolls Online (ESO) unveils a captivating array of mounts and non-combat pets in the December 2023 Crown Store. From the skeletal elegance of Frost Draugr Charger to the adorable Sovngarde Pony Guar, players can ride and play in style. Let's take a sneak peek at these enchanting arrivals. 1. Frost Draugr Charger (Dec 18, 2023 - Jan 4, 2024) - A skeletal horse with origins linked to Ysgramor’s soldiers. - Available for Crown Gems and Seals of Endeavor. 2. Dwarven Spider (Dec 11 - Dec 18, 2023) - A mechanical mount inspired by Dwemer animunculi. - ESO Plus Members enjoy an exclusive discount. 3. Frost Mare (Dec 7 - Dec 14, 2023) - A frigid mount crafted from the icy essence of Skyrim. - ESO Plus Members receive a discount. 4. Solstice Indrik (Dec 21, 2023 - Jan 4, 2024) - A magical indrik born on the longest night, offering a wondrous view of the world. - Limited-time availability for all platforms. Non-Combat Pets: 1. Sabre Cat Cub (Dec 18 - Dec 21, 2023) - Experience the adorable side of mighty Sabre Cats. - Exclusive discount for ESO Plus Members. 2. Snow Bear Cub (Dec 4 - Dec 7, 2023) - Encounter the fierceness of the Snow Bear, embodied in an irresistibly cute cub. - ESO Plus Members receive a discount. 3. Sovngarde Pony (Dec 14 - Dec 18, 2023) - Noble ponies from Sovngarde, drawn to oathmakers and curious about their promises. - Limited-time availability with a discount for ESO Plus Members. 4. Sovngarde Pony Guar (Dec 14 - Dec 18, 2023) - Experience the unlikely but endearing combination of a pony guar from Sovngarde. - ESO Plus Members enjoy an exclusive discount. The December 2023 Crown Store introduces an exciting menagerie of mounts and pets, each with its unique charm and style. Whether you seek the chilling elegance of the Frost Mare or the curiosity of Sovngarde Ponies, these limited-time offerings provide a festive touch to your ESO adventures. Seize the opportunity to ride and play in style, as these items are available only for a limited period. Happy exploring, adventurers!Dec-19-2023
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Elder Scrolls Online Witche ...
The Witches Festival has returned to The Elder Scrolls Online, bringing with it a plethora of treats, rewards, and festivities for players to enjoy. This guide delves into the heart of the event, detailing how to acquire rewards, event tickets, the contents of reward skulls, what the event stores offer, and provides insights into the 100% experience (EXP) bonus. As ESO adventurers prepare to embrace the spooky spirit of the Witches Festival, let's explore what's in store. The Introductory Quest: To embark on the Witches Festival adventure, players can obtain the introductory quest from the Crown Store. The quest involves interacting with Witchmother Olyve and collecting items such as Pumpkin, Guts, and Essence of Death from delve bosses. These components are integral to the event and initiate the festive atmosphere. 100% EXP Boost Clarification: Previous festivals provided players with a whistle that granted a 100% EXP boost upon completion of the introductory quest. However, in this year's festival, the experience boost seems to be linked to a scroll rather than the whistle itself, possibly due to a misunderstanding on the Public Test Server (PTS). Upon the event's official launch, players are advised to use the whistle to verify if the intended EXP boost is functioning correctly. Skulls, Tickets, and Reward Boxes: Acquiring Dremora Plunder Skulls and event tickets is central to the Witches Festival. Boss kills yield two tickets, while Dremora Plunder Skulls can be obtained from initial boss kills, offering a golden skull, and subsequent kills providing purple skulls. This structure applies to both world bosses and dungeon final bosses. Contents of Dremora Plunder Skulls: Dremora Plunder Skulls house an array of enticing rewards, including runeboxes with mementos, Witches Festival crafting motifs, alchemy supplies, baits, eerie furnishings, recipes, style materials, saleable treasures, crafting writs, treasure maps, and the coveted Ghost Netch Pet. The Role of Impresario: The Impresario plays a pivotal role in the Witches Festival, offering a diverse range of items in various locations. These locations include base game areas like Glenumbra, Auridon, Stonefalls, Craglorn, and Vvardenfell, as well as DLC locations such as Summerset, Blackwood, Northern Elsweyr, Western Skyrim, High Isle, and Telvanni Peninsula. And here is the full list of the store’s items: Passion Dancer Blossom Pet Hoardhunter Ursauk Crowborne Hunter outfit style Vampiric Lamp, Azure Tall Vampiric Lightpost, Azure Single Hollowjack Lantern, Ouroboros Ruby Candlefly Gathering Webs, Cone Specimen Jar, Spare Brain Vampiric Container, Yellow Liquid Ghost Netch Pet (10 Possessed Shred) Tome of Forbidden Appetites (Runebox: Face-Eating Tome Memento) All three pet fragments will be available during the event. And the first fragment for the Mount will be available, too. All you need to do is prepare enough ESO Gold. Also, the Impresario has bound pages for the Crowborne Hunter outfit style for 5 tickets each. Plus, some spooky furnishings and Witches grab bags, that can contain: Passion Dancer Blossom Pet Festival masks Apple-Bobbing Cauldron Fragments Skeletal Marionette Memento Parts Throwing Bones Memento Fragments Marshmallow Toasty Treat Emote Hoardhunter Ursauk Witch’s Bonfire Dust Memento Ghastly Visitation Memento Bonedust Pigment for the Witch-Tamed Bear Dog Bound style pages for the Witchmother's Servant outfit Indrik Vendor's Offerings: The Indrik Vendor, located near Belkarth in Craglorn, brings players the opportunity to acquire feathers for the Nascent Indrik Mount, berries for transforming it into the Crimson Indrik Mount, and additional berries for the Pure-Snow Indrik. The vendor's offerings extend to Crimson Indrik Mounts and two Indrik pets, enriching the event experience. Impresario's Assistant and the Dagonic Quasigriff Mount: Found in Impresario's Tents, the Impresario's Assistant contributes to the event's excitement by selling three fragments for the Dagonic Quasigriff Mount, promising players a unique and alluring reward.Aug-17-2023