Preview: Gates of Oblivion
Two weeks ago, I’ve had the pleasure to join the digital press event that was organized by Bethesda. We got a look at the next chapter of The Elder Scrolls Online and eventually got hands-on with the current build of “Gates of Oblivion”. I would lie if I said that I wasn’t excited about what’s coming… Let me talk you through it!
First things first, if you’ve read the title, you probably could guess in what direction ESO is going. Yes, the title will remind you of the glory that The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion brought with itself. Elder Scrolls Online is going back to this period of time but they’ll give it their own twist, so the chapter will fit the ESO timeline perfectly. Veteran players will call it home and new players will want to stay.
The expansion for the Elder Scrolls Online we’re talking about is “Blackwood” and it will take us to a place where two cultures are blended with each other: the Imperials and the Argonian. With this expansion, Bethesda tries to give us some more quality of life improvements as well as some new features along with the normal expansion stuff like a new main social hub, new items, new areas, enemies, etc. In other words, this will be a true expansion just like previous ones.
Blackwood will introduce the players to 2 new social hubs: Leyawin and Gideon. Leyawin will feel familiar for those who played The Elder Scrolls and gives the players the option to buy equipment from the vendors, store some important items in the bank, etc. It’s an Elfish kind of hub with a lot of green mixed with society. Gideon is another hub that’s more of a mix between the Imperials and Argonian. The hub will be alien-like runes meshed with the Imperials style during their occupation. However, the Imperials were driven by the Argonians and the place is fully blended with Imperial and Argonian style. These hubs will play an important part in your story.
Talking about the story, the expansion starts with a murder mystery and it’s up to your hero to figure out what’s going on. It quickly becomes known that this isn’t your ordinary murder in the woods but has more of a “pact with the devil” kind of tale. Next to this main focus, you’ll see a lot of betrayal and deceit. Like the cinematic presented itself, the story will also feature a demonic creature with 4 arms, a Daedra Prince as you will, that’s called Mehrunes Dagon. Of course, our hero will be confronted with his Daedra Prince and it’s up to our hero to save the world from thousands of gates opening in the regions of Tamriel.
You won’t be doing this alone as you’ll meet up with different major characters along the way. You will meet Eveli, a wood elf that wants to be an investigator just like one of the protagonists that she reads about in all of her stories. There will also be Lyranth, a mysterious Daedra that’s curious about mortals. A very strange and yet humorous character. Of course, there are a lot more characters coming your way but you will have to find these ones yourself.
Battling a Daedra Prince will be a hard task to manage but thanks to one of the newly introduced features of Blackwood, it will almost be a walk in the park. The expansion will come with different companions that’ll help you along the way. They’ll help you with doing quests and confronting enemies. These companions can activate skills and can be equipped with weapons and armor. These characters can also fulfill a role like a tank, damage dealer, or healer. You will have the ability to build up a relationship with one another but only story-wise. In the end, they will only give reactions based on the foundation of your relationship. If you disagree a little too often with their way of thinking, they’ll resent you for it but they won’t alter their actions. They will still fight along your side, as best as they can.
Blackwood introduced 2 companions at launch, an imperial and a dark elf. They can help you with dungeons and trials but they won’t be as good as a normal player. The theory behind these companions is all about the experience of doing group quests. There are still players who like MMORPGs but haven’t figured out to be social yet. These companions are great for progressing your story but if you want to do hard trials and dungeons, it’s better to group up with a real player. Companions can be downed during a fight but will be rezzed automatically after the battle. You will also be able to collect outfits for your companions and they can also ride along with you with their own mount.
Companions will also have their own gear dropped, so they won’t steal your thunder as it comes to dropped items during dungeon runs. They will also have a skill system that they’ll use. This skill system will be activated in a certain order. The first ability in the skill bar will also be the first skill they’ll unleash when it’s ready. As the real hero, you’ll be able to arrange their skills so that they’ll battle as you see fit. I truly like the companion system as it will immerse you even better in the game and can be collected by just playing the game.
Blackwood will also have a new 12-player trial called Rockgrove. Rockgrove is a small village that has been overrun by cultists who want to summon demonic armies from beyond the portal. It will have 3 unique bosses that can be altered in difficulty and it will also give the player a new mount that can be unlocked through achievements during this trial. More trials will be added along the way.
Blackwood will of course improve their base game as well. All of the improvements will be available for all players who play ESO. For example, the console game will be enhanced on the 8th of June for the next-gen consoles. You will be able to choose between a performance and fidelity mode. The performance mode is Full HD at 60 fps and the fidelity mode will be true 4K but only with 30 fps. Whatever mode you choose, it will be enhanced. There will be a higher resolution, more ambient occlusion, better shader textures, improved draw distance, and more important… the load times will be halved!
Another improvement will be the tutorial zone. The tutorial zone will be revamped for new players. The theory behind this new tutorial zone is all about the player’s choice. You will learn how to play the game on short notice and at the end, you’ll be able to choose where to start your first adventure. There will be portals and it’s up to you to choose where you want to begin.
Also a new daily and weekly event system will be introduced which will be called the endeavor system. The endeavor system will give you daily and weekly missions that’ll reward you with seals of endeavor. With these seals, you’ll be able to purchase crown crate items without spending real money. This will definitely motivate veteran players who don’t have a lot of cash to spend.
Other Quality of Life improvements will be introduced such as improved voice chat, updated combat performance, action duration, ability tracking, … In other words, the next expansion will update the game into something even better.
Some interesting facts were discussed during the Q & A after the presentation. First of all, Blackwood’s map will be about the same size as Elseweyr. Companion items will most of the time be “bind on pickup” but other items will be tradeable. With the Blackwood expansion, you’ll also be able to combine “perfected” and “non-perfected” item sets. You will receive the bonus of the perfected item set as long as you’re equipped with 5 pieces of this set. Otherwise, you will only get the “non-perfected” bonus. In the end, you will also be able to romance with your companions but not at launch.
Conclusion:
Blackwood is definitely an expansion to look out for. Not only does it bring back a lot of good memories of Elder Scrolls 4 but it will also bring a lot of improvements to your standard game. The companion system is an exciting new feature that’ll definitely bring out the best experience you can have with the story while all of the other Quality of Life improvements will bring out the entire game a lot better. Either way, veteran or new player? Now is the time to (re)start The Elder Scrolls Online to prepare you for another great adventure! Blackwood will launch on the 1st of June for PC and on the 8th of June for consoles.
