Bethesda to unveil an MMO called "Elder Scrolls Online" some time in May

[Black Panther]

Bethesda and ZeniMax are hard at work on a new MMO, and it's taking you back to the world of Skyrim, Oblivion and Morrowind.

While details are still few and far between, Tom’s has learned that ZeniMax Online Studios and Bethesda will officially announce Elder Scrolls Online in May 2012.

An industry source that wishes to remain anonymous revealed the name of the new MMO to us, and confirmed that the game would take place a full millennium before The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Using the Elder Scrolls Wiki timeline as a guide, Elder Scrolls Online will likely take place during the “Second Era,” or several hundred years before any of the other Elder Scrolls games. This information was corroborated by two additional sources before publication.

Elder Scrolls Online will have three playable factions, according to the tipster. Not much is known about the factions, except each is represented by one of three animals: A lion, a dragon, and a bird of prey (either a phoenix or an eagle, we aren’t sure).

A May 2012 announcement would likely be followed by some sort of presence at E3, the annual Los Angeles video game convention. The game would also be shown at Quakecon 2012 in August, along with id Software’s Doom 4 and several other titles.

The fact that ZeniMax and Bethesda are working on an MMO is hardly a secret, as related job postings have been on ZeniMax’s website for quite some time now. What remained unknown until now was the universe in which this MMO would take place. While some were certainly hoping for a Fallout MMO of some sort - a game that ZeniMax and Bethesda control the publishing rights for – that is not to be the case.

When Tom’s reached out for confirmation, the response from ZeniMax and Bethesda was a “no comment.” We will update this article as more information comes in.

Source.

 

[Sir B. Fannybottom]

Yesssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[erocker]

I'm kind of expecting this to be a run of the mill MMORPG, just in the Elder Scrolls universe. Now if they could get Skyrim working with MP much in the way Minecraft works, that would be a big win.

 

[Sir B. Fannybottom]

I'm kind of expecting this to be a run of the mill MMORPG, just in the Elder Scrolls universe. Now if they could get Skyrim working with MP much in the way Minecraft works, that would be a big win.

That's what I hope it is Theres already a skyrim multiplayer mod being made much like the GTA SA one. I look forward to FUSRODAHing crazyeyes

 

[Mussels]

lets just hope its not all random fetch quests.

 

[1Kurgan1]

lets just hope its not all random fetch quests.

MMO's are moving away from that, playing through SW:TOR felt a lot like a SP RPG, not as open as something like Skyrim, kind of felt like Mass Effect without the Squad work, I had a lot of fun with the storylines. And each zone had it's own storyline as well. I would expect Betheseda to set out with a good story telling goal in mind since they are known for it.

 

[Black Panther]

I hope it won't be a pay-per-month game. I'd rather pay €100 (or even €200...) once than have a monthly rent. It's the reason why I never gamed MMO's like WoW. I detest monthly bills... the utility ones are enough for me.

 

[1Kurgan1]

I hope it won't be a pay-per-month game. I'd rather pay €100 (or even €200...) once than have a monthly rent. It's the reason why I never gamed MMO's like WoW. I detest monthly bills... the utility ones are enough for me.

I haven't ever seen an MMO with a good F2P model... ever. Infact there is only one F2P game that I enjoy playing (once again ever) and thats League of Legends. We'll see how Guild Wars 2 shapes up, hopefully it will go the LoL type route. Only issue with that is they need to make content you want to buy (but that is only aesthetic), if they don't and no one buys it, how do they make money to keep servers up and pay employees to keep working on patches? All the F2P MMO's on the market right now are complete crap, some of them you can't get mounts, some of them lock out tons of zones, most of them lock classes (and some even lock key ability's for the free classes), there's just so much locked out it's not even worth it. If they do F2P they better do it right and not like the crap thats on the market now, otherwise it won't even be worth it.

But you mentioning large sums of money, many MMO's before release have allowed a lifetime subscription. I'm not sure if that trend will continue to the future. Eitherway all I'm saying is, having played most MMO's out there, if theres one I truly have my eye on and want to pick it as my MMO of the future, I always hope it's pay to play, because every F2P offering out there has been garbage so far.

 

[KainXS]

F2P usually = cash shop horrors so I would rather pay money monthly, really . . . . . .

Guild wars was one of the only ones that tried to get away from that though

 

[Wrigleyvillain]

Yeah I hate the idea of a subscription fee as well but the F2P model has yet to produce anything worthwhile it seems like K said, at least on the MMO side. Effed if you do...effed if you don't.

 

[WhiteNoise]

Yeah $15 monthly is win IMO.

GW did it right though....

If they keep it a first person and third person gameplay just like it is now then I'll be all over it. Look forward to more news!

 

[Ahhzz]

Uh-oh.... I'm gonna be in SO much trouble with the fiance.... She'll never let me get this one.... *sigh*

On a diff note, DDO did a F2P that wasn't TOO bad... you could, over time, build up enough points to earn your way into the higher dungeons.... Same with Tribes:Ascend. Earn enough XP, and you can unlock pretty much any thing you want....

 

[WhiteLotus]

Oh no. What a waste. It's far too close to Skyrim to even be considered as anything. What about the expansions on skyrim?

Oh and Elder Scrolls: Online...?

Talk about poor marketing.

 

[JC316]

Here lies Bethesda. Last developer of open world single player RPG's. Twisted and corrupted by greed.


No matter how much I love a series, I refuse to pay a monthly fee. You can rape me with DRM, you can give me 5 hour stories, you can give me crap multiplayer, but I will not pay monthly for my game.

 

[Kreij]

Wow ... doesn't anyone in the gaming section do anything but bitch these days?

1) In May they will announce it. Who knows when it will go live. It could be a year or more out yet.
2) No one mentioned anything about what pricing model they will use. It could be monthly, F2P, P2W, etc. I'd suggest not going postal on Bethesda until we at least know a little about the game.
3) The SP games and the MMO would be two separate teams, they will not abandon Skyrim patches, DLC or expansions. It would not be in their best financial interest as it would alienate their biggest fanbase.
4) If they eventually built the entire world of Tamriel into an MMO on a similar scale to the SP games with good graphics and stories, it would be an awe inspiring game.

As far as monthly subscriptions go, I'm not nuts about them either, but if you play an average of 5 hours a day for 30 days a month, that 150 hours for what ... $15.00? That a dime an hour !
Where else can you get entertainment for a dime an hour?
You have to admit that as long as the content is good and regularly updated, a subsciption MMO is one the cheapest forms of entertainment around.

As long as they make a lot of it solo-friendly so I don't have to group or raid if I don't want, I'll pony up $15 a month.

 

[JC316]

Wow ... doesn't anyone in the gaming section do anything but bitch these days?

1) In May they will announce it. Who knows when it will go live. It could be a year or more out yet.
2) No one mentioned anything about what pricing model they will use. It could be monthly, F2P, P2W, etc. I'd suggest not going postal on Bethesda until we at least know a little about the game.
3) The SP games and the MMO would be two separate teams, they will not abandon Skyrim patches, DLC or expansions. It would not be in their best financial interest as it would alienate their biggest fanbase.
4) If they eventually built the entire world of Tamriel into an MMO on a similar scale to the SP games with good graphics and stories, it would be an awe inspiring game.

As far as monthly subscriptions go, I'm not nuts about them either, but if you play an average of 5 hours a day for 30 days a month, that 150 hours for what ... $15.00? That a dime an hour !
Where else can you get entertainment for a dime an hour?
You have to admit that as long as the content is good and regularly updated, a subsciption MMO is one the cheapest forms of entertainment around.

As long as they make a lot of it solo-friendly so I don't have to group or raid if I don't want, I'll pony up $15 a month.

The announcement means that Skyrim is likely the last single player RPG they made, unless the online version flops. Aside from guild wars, name one MMO that is F2P. I don't really care about patches or DLC, I care about new games and once a company goes MMO, they don't focus on the single player games. As for the pay scale, I still refuse, as it stands, I have well over 400 hours into the last three Elder Scrolls games without paying any more than the base price. I probably have 600 hours into Starcraft and I don't have to pay a subscription.

 

[happita]

No matter how much I love a series, I refuse to pay a monthly fee. You can be free of DRM, you can give me EPIC stories, you can give me the BEST multiplayer, but I will not pay monthly for my game.

I think that sounded like the opposite of what you were trying to say, so I fixed it for you

 

[Frick]

Here lies Bethesda. Last developer of open world single player RPG's. Twisted and corrupted by greed.

Too bad they're not very good. Also not very RPG.

The announcement means that Skyrim is likely the last single player RPG they made,

Oooohhhh good point! Then maybe people will stop jacking off to their games, and I can stop whine about it.

But seriously, an Elder Scrolls online? Skyrim already is an MMO (which means grinding and fetchquests which pretty much is what Skyrim is but with a nice world) but without other people. Yawn.

I probably have 600 hours into Starcraft and I don't have to pay a subscription.

You can't really compare an MMO to SC imo. Very different beasts.

 

[JC316]

I grew up on Daggerfall, so it's an RPG to me. I wasn't comparing an MMO to SC2, I was simply saying that I can have plenty of fun with SC2 without paying ten cents an hour.

 

[TheMailMan78]

Damn it I wanted a Fallout MMO. I'm sick of fight dragons and throwing spells as random NPC.

 

[1Kurgan1]

Wow ... doesn't anyone in the gaming section do anything but bitch these days?

1) In May they will announce it. Who knows when it will go live. It could be a year or more out yet.
2) No one mentioned anything about what pricing model they will use. It could be monthly, F2P, P2W, etc. I'd suggest not going postal on Bethesda until we at least know a little about the game.
3) The SP games and the MMO would be two separate teams, they will not abandon Skyrim patches, DLC or expansions. It would not be in their best financial interest as it would alienate their biggest fanbase.
4) If they eventually built the entire world of Tamriel into an MMO on a similar scale to the SP games with good graphics and stories, it would be an awe inspiring game.

As far as monthly subscriptions go, I'm not nuts about them either, but if you play an average of 5 hours a day for 30 days a month, that 150 hours for what ... $15.00? That a dime an hour !
Where else can you get entertainment for a dime an hour?
You have to admit that as long as the content is good and regularly updated, a subsciption MMO is one the cheapest forms of entertainment around.

As long as they make a lot of it solo-friendly so I don't have to group or raid if I don't want, I'll pony up $15 a month.

It's all just discussion, what else to discuss in a thread based completely off the smallest amount of information. Everything is all just speculation, if there was no one throwing any out there and discussion of the speculation, then there would be 0 posts in the thread

But odds are it'll be more than a year away if it's an mmo. I doubt they will announce a pricing model anytime soon. And I do agree a full Tamriel could be awesome, MMO's are getting better and better at story telling.

And until G2 comes out and I see it's F2P model, I will stick to my guns on MMO's being P2P. If GW2 manages to pull off a good model, it might change my mind.

 

[BumbleBee]

come back wasteland

 

[Black Panther]

come back wasteland

True, I got homesick of the wasteland and ended up playing FO3 again.

 

[BumbleBee]

Who's going to shutdown the bottle cap counterfeiters!

 

[Frizz]

Looks interesting, but I am wondering if it will be done right so I've got mixed feelings... I don't mind pay to play, as long as they use their resources to expand the game further and keep their servers in top shape just like Blizzard does.