Elder Scrolls Online's First Microtransaction Is a Horse

[ShakerSilver]

Y'know what's funny about that whole Horse Armor thing? That shit would be acceptable today. Pointless cosmetics are the norm for DLC nowadays, not to mention how ludicrously overpriced DLC has become in recent years. It just goes to show how shitty our standards have become when no one bats an eyelash at Sims 3's DLC costing over $400 in total, but everyone still shudders at the mention of Oblivion's Horse Armor.

 

[grey_space]

Spoiler: BUT GUYS

IT'S SOOOOO CUTE!

Fail all you want, TES Online, as long as I get my single player titles.

I agree. I couldn't give two royal fucks how badly this games goes.

They lost me at 'MMO'.

Just hurry up and bring me Fallout 4 or Elder Scrolls 5.

And there had BETTER be an Elder Scrolls 5.

Or there will be slaps.

 

[Elfgore]

Are you telling me I have to pay real money to get a mount in the game? If that is the case, fuck zenimax. Because that is just messed up. It's almost like they want to ruin their IP with this game.

And this isn't dangerously close to horse armor, it has surpassed it. A mount is a must have in most MMOs, I'm assuming this game isn't any different.

You don't -have- to pay real money to get a mount in the game. Buying a horse in game will set you back a few pretty denariis, yes, but you can buy them with in-game money without too much difficulty.

This is no different than WoW, where some mounts can be bought from the online store, but the game gives you plenty of chances to not do that.

Except mounts in WOW don't cost you an arm and a leg. You now get you're first level of mount training for free and pay about ten gold for a mount. Which every player should have at level twenty. The purchasable mounts for WOW are purely cosmetic as well, as mounts you earn in game do the exact same thing. And the mounts require you to have a mount of the same level to use it.

So my options are spend a long ass time getting money to buy a horse or pay them money, great choice.

 

[Roxas1359]

Just hurry up and bring me Fallout 4 or Elder Scrolls 5.

And there had BETTER be an Elder Scrolls 5.

Or there will be slaps.

You mean Elder Scrolls 6 right? We already have an Elder Scrolls 5, and it takes place in Skyrim.
Personally I want my Fallout 4 already, with both Obsidian and Bethesda working together on the story and atmosphere.

 

[TheIceQueen]

Are you telling me I have to pay real money to get a mount in the game? If that is the case, fuck zenimax. Because that is just messed up. It's almost like they want to ruin their IP with this game.

And this isn't dangerously close to horse armor, it has surpassed it. A mount is a must have in most MMOs, I'm assuming this game isn't any different.

You don't -have- to pay real money to get a mount in the game. Buying a horse in game will set you back a few pretty denariis, yes, but you can buy them with in-game money without too much difficulty.

This is no different than WoW, where some mounts can be bought from the online store, but the game gives you plenty of chances to not do that.

Except mounts in WOW don't cost you an arm and a leg. You now get you're first level of mount training for free and pay about ten gold for a mount. Which every player should have at level twenty. The purchasable mounts for WOW are purely cosmetic as well, as mounts you earn in game do the exact same thing. And the mounts require you to have a mount of the same level to use it.

So my options are spend a long ass time getting money to buy a horse or pay them money, great choice.

I think the time needed is greatly exaggerated. I had 10,000 gold by level 12 and the required 17,000 by level 15 without even trying. Within three days of playing, I had more than enough money, and that was when I was playing to quest, gather, and explore, not to actually make money.

If you're smart about it, by the time you're level 20 you'll have more than enough money to buy a mount and you don't really need the mount until then.

 

[Flutterguy]

Queue the gamer misanthropy!
Honestly, I can't think of the last multiplayer game I played that didn't have pay shop of some kind.

WoW, Tera, Neverwinter, Borderlands 2 etc etc.. It is a common theme of games these days.

 

[grey_space]

Just hurry up and bring me Fallout 4 or Elder Scrolls 5.

And there had BETTER be an Elder Scrolls 5.

Or there will be slaps.

You mean Elder Scrolls 6 right? We already have an Elder Scrolls 5, and it takes place in Skyrim.
Personally I want my Fallout 4 already, with both Obsidian and Bethesda working together on the story and atmosphere.

Arargh! This is what happens when you leave comments at 3am. It makes you look like you can't count.

Fallout 4 be great though. I recently played through both 3 and las Vegas. Both were awesome.



Particularly I'd be interested with what they'd do with the next-gen consoles.

Could we be finally saying goodbye to the dreaded uncanny valley of Bethshedas' NPC interactions?

 

[Shamanic Rhythm]

Considering that horses in this game can be 'leveled up' once per day to give them more stamina, speed or bag space, you're at a definite disadvantage if you opt to grind for the horse rather than just throw cash at one. This game is pretty scummy.

 

[Roxas1359]

Arargh! This is what happens when you leave comments at 3am. It makes you look like you can't count.

Fallout 4 be great though. I recently played through both 3 and las Vegas. Both were awesome.



Particularly I'd be interested with what they'd do with the next-gen consoles.

Could we be finally saying goodbye to the dreaded uncanny valley of Bethshedas' NPC interactions?

Ah don't worry, I've been known to post typos and things like that when I'm tired too. It's worse for me though because I'm usually typing the late night messages from an iPod Touch.

Anyway, I don't think Bethesda will ever leave the uncanny valley, they've already set up a manor down there. I'd assume that when they leave the uncanny valley they'd also hire a QA team to fix most of the bugs before the games launch. XD

 

[Falterfire]

Y'know what's funny about that whole Horse Armor thing? That shit would be acceptable today. Pointless cosmetics are the norm for DLC nowadays, not to mention how ludicrously overpriced DLC has become in recent years. It just goes to show how shitty our standards have become when no one bats an eyelash at Sims 3's DLC costing over $400 in total, but everyone still shudders at the mention of Oblivion's Horse Armor.

It really depends on the game. If you're talking about Microtransactions for something like Path of Exile where effectively all microtransactions are a fancy way of donating money to the devs for a game that is otherwise free, I'm more than happy to fork over cash for something that doesn't actually do anything - They charged me $0 for the entirety of the game, so I'm happy to give them $15 to make my fireballs look cool - In my mind that $15 is really my way of saying 'This game is awesome and you guys deserve my money' not 'this animation on these fireballs is worth $15.'

The key point is that Horse Armor type stuff is completely optional - If you think it's shitty and bad and you don't think the devs deserve more of your money, you can not buy it and not feel that you've lost out on something. If you think they're money grubbing bastards for trying to charge you money for cosmetic stuff after you paid them full price for the game, then great! Don't give it to them - You still have the full experience, just minus that particular bit of (fairly minor) shiny.

There will be people who complain about everything because this is the internet and that's what we do, but personally I don't think it's worth complaining about a company giving an option to pay money for extra unimportant things. I do have a problem with cutting out something gameplay affecting (Or making it harder to get) in order to get more money.

 

[grey_space]

Ah don't worry, I've been known to post typos and things like that when I'm tired too. It's worse for me though because I'm usually typing the late night messages from an iPod Touch.

Anyway, I don't think Bethesda will ever leave the uncanny valley, they've already set up a manor down there. I'd assume that when they leave the uncanny valley they'd also hire a QA team to fix most of the bugs before the games launch. XD

Actually I'm typing this on my girlfriend's tablet at the moment. The touchpad is rather unforgiving of my meaty fingers pawing at it. I'm having to recheck almost every second word between my typos and the predictive text's creative interpreting of my use of language.

I've kinda made my peace on the fact that Bethsheda games are going to be buggy as hell. That NPC death-stare though... *shudders*

And more that four freaking voice actors would be nice as well now that we're compiling a wish-list.

Oh and OT:
Having to buy a horse is still wank.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

Bad idea is bad. Paying to get game-changing gear early in a multiplayer game is a good way to divide the game into the haves and the have-nots. I might still pick this game up just to try it for a month or two, but this is seeming like the first crack in a dam, and all the bad ideas are about to come spilling through.

 

[GAunderrated]

My cousin and friend are dead set on getting ESO but everything I see and read tells me its going to be a waste of 75+ dollars. I've played the beta and I was bored out of my mind being a huge Elder's Scroll fan but hate MMO's.

This is one time peer pressure ain't going to work. Focus on making a great game Zenimax before you try and line your pockets, I am not sold on even supporting your game before you pull stupid shit.

 

[weirdee]

Spoiler: BUT GUYS

IT'S SOOOOO CUTE!

Fail all you want, TES Online, as long as I get my single player titles.

tbh, there are a few cute mudcrabs hanging around eso, like a mudcrab trying to get to a rack of fish but it can't reach it because it has stubby arms, and a pair of mudcrabs just hanging out and clacking at each other, but yeah, everything else you said

 

[romxxii]

It's Oblivion's Horse Armor DLC all over again. Memories.

 

[weirdee]

i believe the biggest travesty though is that you can only ask m'aiq for a limited number of ridiculous quips per day, and then he says he's done for now and scurries off

 

[Ldude893]

If the publishers are intelligent, they'll switch to a less monetized model within a year after release. Otherwise, this game's literally going to oblivion.

 

[Remus]

Hey look, I stepped in an Escapist ESO thread again. Guess I better don the riot gear because people are gonna rage about something. Best guess is this horse might run you $5. It's a plain white beginner mount, not a fancy fairy dragon that changes every color of the rainbow. There is no mount restriction in ESO - if you have a horse, you can ride a horse. So all those people getting the special eds get a free beginner mount, not a fast mount, just a little faster than just sprinting. Take a minute to go look at the WoW store, I'll wait
.....
Ok, done? What we have here is a bat for $25, a horse for $25, a goat for $25, a lion thing for $25 and a dragon for $10 (which btw is only $10 because it's from the last expac). I'd rather not go through the pets because there are soooo many.

What this horse presents players is an in-between option for those who want a mount at the start but don't want to pay the full price for the deluxe edition. It's the not-normal-but-not-deluxe option, that is all. WoW has and will continue to do far worse. Just look at the level to 90 option for their latest cash grab, and yet I see nobody, NOBODY complaining about that as much as they seem intent to defacate on this game. If you don't like it, don't play it. I won't miss you. But don't pretend that having a cheap starter mount ready to go out of the gate is somehow a giant affront to some misplaced sense of morality.