Elder Scrolls Online - Morrowind Review

[HiddenX]

Twinfinite has reviewed the Morrowind addon for the Elder Scrolls Online:

The Elder Scrolls Online: Morrowind Review

The Elder Scrolls Online: Morrowind on PC

Disclaimer: This review is being written from the perspective of a new player. The Morrowind expansion to The Elder Scrolls Online (TESO) is fairly unique that it can be the starting point of a new player and its main quest can be completed by anyone at any level unlike other MMORPGs. Thus, our review score will be focused on the new player experience in TESO: Morrowind and its story content. Any impressions of high-end content geared towards returning, experienced and well equipped players will be done separately and will NOT factor into our launch day review score.

[...]

The release of TESO: Morrowind is the perfect time for fans of the Elder Scrolls single player games to jump in and give the MMORPG a try if they’ve been hesitant so far. Even if you just play as a lone wolf and want to experience the game’s stories and quests as well as explore past Vvardenfell, it’s worth the price of admission. Whether you stay for the long haul, or convert from a different MMORPG is going to depend on how much you enjoy the game’s PvP and end game structure, which has both its strengths and weaknesses. If you’re already playing, you’ve likely figured that out already and don’t need this review to tell you. If you’re playing something else, the only way to know for sure if you’ll like it is to try, and TESO: Morrowind is an expansion worth giving a shot.

Score: 4/5 – Great - Editor's Choice

Pros:

• Main quest has both steak and sizzle.
• Quests and characters overall have the quality of main numbered Elder Scrolls games.
• Warden is fun to play.
• Vvardenfell is worth exploring. It’s beautiful, full of surprises.
• Lovely soundtrack and ambiance.

Cons:

• Leveled content made combat a bit dull.
• Group play never felt needed.
• Battlegrounds felt out of place and probably won’t convert anyone that doesn’t already enjoy its PvP.

More information.

 

[ikbenrichard]

If it was a single player game (no MMO) then i would buy it in an instant.
For me a MMO is something without an end, and games need to have an end.

 

[HiddenX]

The 3 embedded campaigns have an end and can be played solo.
Ca. 400 hours playtime.

 

[buckaroobonzai]

"Main quest has both steak and sizzle.
Quests and characters overall have the quality of main numbered Elder Scrolls games."

So one really long fetch quest with sub-mediocre linear path writing and many fetch quests with only one way to complete them?
And no modding to make the game a whole lot better.

However, with even those tropes they use, still good games for scenery, exploration, discovery, character progression and action.

 

[NewDArt]

For some reason, I got the Morrowind "expansion".

Well, the Warden class is definitely not for me, but I kinda expected that. Vvardenfell looks very much like it always did, which is great I suppose. I never cared for the environment - which was always too weird and too brown for my tastes.

The music is very, very good though - and the quests seem even better than before.

ESO is my second favorite MMO in terms of quests (Secret World dominates) - so that's saying something.

I'm trying to get into it again, but I'm still playing Freelancer (enjoying it more than I thought I would) - so it will take a while before I dive in proper.

 

[booboo]

The 3 embedded campaigns have an end and can be played solo.
Ca. 400 hours playtime.

I'm curious about that...I dislike MMOs intensely, mainly because you have to (or are expected to) team up with others, they're dominated by fedex quests etc, and then you have people running around doing questswhen you're busy exploring your world (if not instanced). I might try something if I could solo, but a) how easy its it to do this without powergaming/muckinising (not my thing) b) can I avoid other people entirely? c) is there are 'decent' story to keep me going? If its all combat - and to be honest TES* was also a lot of combat, which became tedious, but had great exploration - and nothing else engaging, I'd just get bored. I also refuse F2P stuff where you "have" to buy things in game to have a reasonable chance of success. I considered DDO, because it is instanced, then read all about that and threw it out. I even looked at a guide to build a solo character...why would I need a guide if it really works solo!? I dislike the genre...but it there's a fun solo game lurking in their I'd try it.

 

[HiddenX]

a) how easy its it to do this without powergaming/muckinising (not my thing)

The main storylines are easy to play, powergaming is only necessary for extra-multiplayer-dungeons that are not part of the main game.

b) can I avoid other people entirely?
Yes - but I recommend to fight world bosses in groups, but they are optional.

c) is there are 'decent' story to keep me going?
The storylines are on par with Oblivion/ Skyrim.

There's no need to buy extra things, but a greater inventory comes handy later on.

 

[crpgnut]

I played solo in it for a couple months booboo. There is quite a lot of content that is solo-able. Some of the dungeons require grouping to complete, but you can get by with just tagging along with groups in the evening. You don't have to group up yourself, per se. If you get in one hit on a boss monster you will get quest credit for that dungeon in most cases. I didn't renew for Morrowind, but if I go back to the game, I'll pick it up.

 

[booboo]

@hiddenx and crpgnut, thanks for the info...I may look at the original eso first and see if that appeals.