As a preview, I had the opportunity to spend an hour listening to Kye Sutton (PR Manager) and Rich Lambert (Creative Director) present the future chapter of The Elder Scrolls Online. A content addition that will be released on June 6 on PC and June 12 on consoles.
It all starts with a little retrospective. The MMORPG is doing well, despite the fact that the team has been working from their homes for two years. It was difficult at first with this new organization, but the rhythm is now established, and High Isle should not suffer. Like all other chapters, this new addition is intended for all players, not just veterans. Even after eight years and six chapters (and a story that includes thousands of lines of dialogue in each language!), TESO wants to keep what makes it strong: the possibility of discovering the game in its own way, without having to follow an order. pre-established.
The explorable area is much larger than it appears on the map, a size similar to previous chapters. The advantage of this region is that it has never been seen before, there are no sources to consult and everything must be made up. The team worked from scratch, which offers a challenge that is both exciting and different. The objective is to promote the Breton people and their feudal society largely inspired by Arthurian legends, the archetype of the medieval par excellence. Île-Haute in particular is the seat of nobility, where the rich and important people of the kingdom go on vacation. The second explorable island, Amenos, is a much less welcoming place. Its caldera serves as a prison, hidden in the middle of the lush jungle, a resort for political prisoners, criminals, and other dissidents. A small contingent keeps these luxury guests on high ground.
The story told will be very different from that of previous opuses, based on political intrigues and the latent mysteries of the court. To sum up, the objective will be to help the Society of the Steadfast, a humanitarian organization founded by the philanthropist Bacaro Volorus, to stop the War of the Three Banners. Facing him, the Order of the Ascension, a secret group of separatists, who want to abolish the alliances and free Tamriel. The small group is led by two leaders whose identities are kept secret, known only by their titles of Ascending Magus and Ascending Lord.
Players who like to play in a group will be able to venture into the new raid (trial) for twelve players, Doomsail Reef, content on the same scale as Rochebosque (Rockgrove). Here, the theme changes, switching to a pirate atmosphere. The Doomsail pirates have recently become so reckless that the noble houses decided to end their threat by attacking their base directly, with the objective of capturing (or killing) Queen Taleria. Here below is the hold of the Empyrean of the waves, the boat chartered by Admiral Galvendier for the attack.
A major addition to the chapter is the brand new Tales of Glory feature. This Tamriel-style tavern game is a new indie activity that doesn't require killing or questing, mixing PvP (with ranking) and PvE (with story elements) elements. Concretely, it's a turn-based card game with collectible decks. Eight sets of thematically linked cards are playable, each with twenty cards, complete with mentor, starting card, and special mechanics. Each opponent brings two decks of cards which are then shuffled. I'm not going to try to explain the rules to you in detail because, even after a few games in the tutorial, I'm still only trying to understand the subtleties with four types of cards (start, action, agent , contract), resources (prestige, attack points...) and two victory conditions. Many rewards: consumables, crafting materials, crafting boosters, materials for furniture, cosmetics, recipes (kitchen or furniture), patterns, transmutation crystals, emotes, furniture...
In addition, some quality of life improvements: Mundus stones in the armory, ranking improvements, a new quick selection wheel and AMD FSR support.
After this general presentation, questions were asked to Rich Lambert, I have organized them for you by category!
- General
- History
- Companions
- Tales of Glory
- Doomsail Reef
Will there be a prologue?
Yes, it will be made available to all players prior to the release of the chapter.
Does the chapter include the base game?
Yes
Does the level cap increase?
No. But the limit in equipment level goes further (even if there are not many people at the limit).
How has the team changed from dark Blackwood to the more colorful surroundings of High Isle?
Refreshing for the artistic team! As often, working too long on the same thing quickly becomes boring. The team appreciated the opportunity to explore something completely different.
The Bretons don't have much lore. Does it facilitate or on the contrary complicate the work for your team?
A bit of both. It's simpler because it's not tied to things you've already done. But also harder, because the team must use their judgment on each element, in order to decide if it will contribute to make this culture interesting. You should know that among the Bretons, being born noble in no way guarantees that you will remain so... This opens up a lot of possibilities!
Will new players be able to understand the world easily or is prior knowledge better?
No need to have played previous chapters. There is no "correct" order to discover the content of TESO and High Isle is a start like any other.
How big is the zone compared to the previous ones?
It's similar to previous chapters, with lots of places to explore. Of course, High Isle is bigger than Amanos.
TESO has so much content, new players find it hard to follow the original story and chapters. Any plans to improve things?
There is no real order to play the chapters. The purists will advise to follow the order of exit but, in fact, it is not obligatory. The studio has no specific plans to improve this, but it is an issue that has been identified. This could be studied in the future.
Will the PC configuration change for High Isle? Will this be the last chapter added on PS4 and Xbox One?
No change for the recommended configuration. As it's still hard to get the next-gen machines, the studio has no plans to stop support on PS4 and Xbox One in the coming years.
Since AMD recently announced FSR 2.0, will High Isle support the new version?
I'm not sure if it's version 1.0 or 2.0 that is added. More information will be communicated on this subject.
Will there be any major changes to class abilities or the champion tree?
Some balancing, but no more details yet to share.
What is for you the particular point of TESO in the MMO world, and to what extent do you think this new chapter goes in this direction?
Freedom. You can go where you want, play with whoever you want, without ever feeling behind your friends. The game also offers a very action-oriented game mode, with a very fast pace. TESO continues to make its gameplay ever more accessible, or at least more understandable for the majority.
How long to finish the High Isle story?
30 hours approximately.
What was the biggest challenge for the team when writing the story, with this political plot, and not in the usual "end of the world" style?
Of course, it's easier to keep the player engaged in a simple story, where the threat is obvious. But the political aspect brings more mystery.
You mentioned that the story is more grounded in reality. In terms of the atmosphere, what is the direction taken by L'Héritage des Bretons?
By focusing the scenario on politics, the atmosphere is less magical or fantastic. If tomorrow magic were to vanish from Tamriel, normal people wouldn't notice immediately, and it's this aspect that the studio seeks to explore.
Will it be possible to impact the peace talks and change the politics of the region?
It's a story to discover! That would be revealing too much.
Does the story of High Isle advance the timeline, or does it happen concurrently?
This also remains to be discovered, but time is above all linked to the players, not to the world, everything is a question of point of view!
Will there be new elements added to the general story or to other characters?
Yes, of course, certain known characters return and other points of history are enriched.
Does the Dark Brotherhood have plans in High Isle?
Wait & see !
Does the chapter feature new companions?
Yes, two are added in this chapter. Ember is a talented mage. A former street child, she is a notorious troublemaker, capable of the worst, as well as the best. But she is unparalleled in mystical knowledge... and chaos. Isobel is quite the opposite, wandering knight, brave and courageous, having sworn loyalty to the character. The perfect ally for a just quest and glorious conquests.
What's new with the new companions, Braise and Isobel?
The chapter reveal stream will be very focused on the companions, two very different individuals in terms of personality!
Personally, what is the most exciting feature of the expansion?
Tales of Glory. I always wanted to do that in the game. Besides, I presented the idea of a game of this style in 2009!
Is Tales of Glory inspired by traditional card games, or board games?
Yes, the team plays a lot of TCGs (Dominion or Ascension) and took inspiration from already existing card games, to see how they work and get ideas from them to implement the best in TESO.
Will it be possible to trade cards with other players or sell them at auction?
No
Will new cards and decks be added in the future?
Just look how it went in the past with the added features in TESO. The team systematically added content afterwards, it would be surprising if this was not the case for Récits de Gloires!
Is it possible to buy cards with real money?
No, the cards are only obtained by playing.
Will it be necessary to play Tales of Glory to advance in the main plot?
No, the story is independent.
Is Tales of Glory linked to the account-based achievement system?
Yes.
Can cards be earned by participating in group activities?
Cards and decks are obtained by playing Tales of Glory, via the built-in progression. Some improvements are obtained by walking around the world. But everything is tied to character progression, and nothing tradeable.
How are the opponents for Tales of Glory PvP? Like duels or via the party finder?
It is possible to put yourself on hold via the group search tool, but also to launch duels directly in the world or via the guild window.
You have already mentioned that tournaments are organized within the studio. Could the game become an independent mobile version?
The team works primarily on TESO. That being said, it is always possible depending on the success.
Do you have any examples of new mechanics from Doomsail Reef?
Without giving too much away, there is a boss to fight on an island, and there are a lot of mechanics tied to that island, with a lot of pressure on party members to perform the right action at the right time. Another boss splits the party into two, and asks each party to perform specific things. There are also puzzles to solve...
Is the Trial of Doomsail Reef harder than Rochebosque?
The team tries to avoid speculating about this. But lessons have been learned and normally the difficulty should be adjusted better.
