INTRODUCTION
The Elder Scrolls Online is a massively multiplayer online role-playing (MMORPG) video game developed by ZeniMax Online Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. It was originally released for Microsoft Windows and OS X in April 2014. It is a part of The Elder Scrolls series, of which it is the first multiplayer installment.As with other games in The Elder Scrolls franchise, the game is set in the continent of Tamriel and features a storyline indirectly connected with the other games. The Elder Scrolls Online had been in development for seven years before its release in 2014. It initially received mixed reviews, but these improved significantly with the re-release and rebranding as The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited, with critics praising the changes.
Similar to other MMORPGs, The Elder Scrolls Online originally used a mandatory monthly subscription model, until it transitioned to a buy-to-play model with microtransactions and an optional subscription in March 2015. The game was then renamed as The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited, and released for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles in June 2015. As of 2017, the game had around a million monthly active players, with over 8.5 million players in total since release.
GAMEPLAY
As in previous The Elder Scrolls titles, gameplay is mostly nonlinear, with a mixture of quests, random events, and free-roaming exploration of the world. The game does not provide a mode for single-player offline play, although the developers stated that there would be "plenty of content" designed to accommodate players who prefer to play solo.The player is able to play as ten different races; four different varieties of humans: Nords, Redguards, Bretons, and Imperials; Elvish varieties: Dunmer (Dark Elves), Altmer (High Elves), Bosmer (Wood Elves) and Orsimer (Orcs); and more bestial races: the Khajiiti and Argonians. Players must choose one of four classes when creating their character. Each class gives the player various different attacks, spells, and passive effects. The game has other character choices beyond those of race and class, such as the player character also being able to become either a vampire or a werewolf, each of which grants its own skill tree.
SETTING
As with other games in The Elder Scrolls series, the game is set on the continent of Tamriel. The events of the game occur a millennium before those of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and around 800 years before The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. It has a broadly similar structure to Skyrim, with two separate conflicts progressing at the same time, one with the fate of the world in the balance, and one where the prize is supreme power on Tamriel. In The Elder Scrolls Online, the first struggle is against the Daedric Prince Molag Bal, who is attempting to meld the plane of Mundus with his realm of Coldharbour, and the second is to capture the vacant imperial throne, contested by three alliances of the mortal races. The player character has been sacrificed to Molag Bal, and Molag Bal has stolen their soul; the recovery of which is the primary game objective.Many parts of the continent of Tamriel are available in the game, with most zones being accessible based on faction. Some zones are accessible with DLC-only from the Crown Store, while others are accessible to players of any faction when they reach a certain level. Players have the opportunity to join any of the three factions warring over the Ruby Throne of the Emperor of Tamriel: the First Aldmeri Dominion (represented by an eagle) led by Queen Ayrenn, composed of the Altmer (High Elf), Bosmer (Wood Elf), and Khajiit races; the Daggerfall Covenant (represented by a lion) led by High King Emeric, composed of the Bretons, Redguard, and Orsimer (Orcs); and the Ebonheart Pact (represented by a dragon) led by Jorunn Skald-King, composed of the Nord, Dunmer (Dark Elf), and Argonian races. Players may also unlock an additional race, Imperial, which may be a part of any of the three factions. The other major ruling faction of Tamriel is the Empire, led by Empress Regent Clivia Tharn, which has fallen into instability and disrepair, and serves as a non-joinable faction. Pre-ordered copies of the game included the "Explorers' Pack", which allowed all races to be played in each of the factions, and this feature is available in the Crown Store.
The game begins in the Wailing Prison in Coldharbor, where the player character's soulless husk has been enslaved. This opening continues another The Elder Scrolls tradition, of beginning the game with the player as a prisoner. After escaping, the base of operations becomes the Harborage, a cave found at each of the starting cities, and is where the Prophet opens portals to the locations of the main questline. Once the Amulet of Kings is retrieved, the headquarters shift to the Hollow City, a location in central Coldharbour blessed by Meridia. Civilians saved from Coldharbour's prisons arrive in the Hollow City, and it is from there that attacks on Molag Bal's controlled areas are orchestrated.