5 Logical Rebuttals To Illogical Criticisms Of Elder Scrolls Online

3. "It Looks Bad" - It's Beautifully Different

This complaint is a sympton of the dreaded "This game isn't like Skyrim" syndrome. The statement is absurd no matter which way you slice it. This game looks great. In fact, it looks better than most (all?) MMOs on the market today. The armor is polished, the particles are radiant, and best of all, the cardboard-cutout NPCs from Skyrim all got facelifts and now look like they could each win the "Mr./Miss Tamriel" beauty pageant. Regarding looks, Elder Scrolls fans were definitely spoiled with the verdant beauty of Skyrim. The feast-for-the-eyes was both a blessing and a curse in the sense that all Elder Scrolls games will be expected to clear that benchmark set by Skyrim. ESO doesn't look as polished as Skyrim, and there's not a real physics engine (this means no ragdolls and no using Unrelenting Force to send all of Jarl Balgruuf's table settings into the atmosphere). To many angry critics, this was a deal-breaker. This game doesn't utilise the same Creation Engine/Havok Physics that Skyrim did. MMOs are meant to be accessible; there wouldn't be a market for them if they required everyone to go out and spend huge amounts on a new laptop or processor. My girlfriend could run this game on her 4-year old Sony Vaio on low settings with almost no issues, and that's exactly what MMOs aim to do. They choose accessibility and depth over earth-shatteringly good graphics. Now, let's shift from "ESO vs. Skyrim" to "ESO as an MMO". As an MMO, it looks exceptionally good. It might not have the same outrageous style as Final Fantasy XIV, but it's not meant to. It's a fantasy game that's grounded in realism, if that makes sense. Weapons look sleek and gleam brilliantly in the sunlight, spell effects are rendered beautifully, and the combat skills look downright badass. The environment looks great too, and you'll definitely stop to take in the sights when you reach a mountain vista or the titan-sized mushrooms of Morrowind.

Elder Scrolls Online is exceptionally beautiful. Fans will have no problem getting lost within its landscapes and cities. At the end of the day, ESO expertly marries the look and feel of an Elder Scrolls game with the vastness and openness of an MMO environment, which is a tremendous feat to even attempt.