Review for The Elder Scrolls Online. Game for PC, Mac, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Google Stadia, the video game was released on 04/04/2014 The version for PlayStation 4 came out on 09/06/2015 The version for Xbox One came out on 09/06/2015
On May 26, the PC version of The Elder Scrolls Online updated with the new expansion titled Greymoor. After completing it in its entirety, in this review we will analyze all the new contents (avoiding any possible spoilers). Let's start with specifying that this expansion is the first, full-bodied, part of the so-called annual experience called "The Dark Heart of Skyrim"; therefore it serves above all, but not only, to lay the foundations for future expansions.
The Dark Heart of Skyrim Part 1
Once again we will return to explore the vast region north of Tamriel known as Skyrim, but in this case we will be able to visit its western territories (other areas further east are already present in the base game). In particular Greymoor adds Hjaalmarch, with Morthal as its capital, and Haafingar, at the center of which stands the capital of Solitude. In addition we will be able to explore the vast underground cave known as Blackreach.
In case we enter the world of this vast MMORPG for the first time, our adventure will start on a cart (not at all self-referential) near the city of Solitude. Here we will be captured and we will end up discovering a strange ritual performed by a mysterious cult known as Icereach; we will also meet Fennorian, a vampire who wants to unravel the mystery of the cult. Otherwise we will be able to access the relative Wayshrine and from here start the main quest, side missions and so on.
The city of Solitude is temperamentally very different from what anyone who has had the opportunity to play The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim can remember. These events take place, in fact, 1000 years before the events of the fifth chapter of the series, and the danger is much more serious than a "simple" war between the Empire and the peoples of the North.… In fact, the Icereach Coven is only the tip of the iceberg of a threat that has been lying buried since time immemorial. Vampires, werewolves and ancient Dwemer constructs will be the real highlight of Greymoor!
The entire main plot of Greymoor will therefore unfold, for a total of about 6 hours, through a total of seven main missions that will allow us to explore far and wide (and in depth) the region.. Fortunately we will not be alone: in fact we will meet several new comrades who will fight alongside us; among these, in addition to the aforementioned Fennorian, there is also Lyris Titanborn, a character that we may already know due to the main plot of the game.
The new story, conceived and written in such a way as to be very enjoyable and captivating, manages to give an excellent prominence to each new character introduced. Unfortunately, however, as stated at the beginning, Greymoor is to be considered as the first part of the annual experience known as "The Dark Heart of Skyrim". For this reason it cannot be considered as a properly self-contained questline, and therefore we will necessarily have to wait to find out what follows.
Secondary .. but not too much
The Elder Scrolls Online: Greymoor also includes a large number of side missions that can significantly increase the longevity of the expansion. Each of these integrates perfectly into the game world and, especially some, are built in an excellent way to the point of looking like real main side quests. To these are then added new types of daily missions that we can receive in Solitude.
Many secondary missions will take place within the new "Delves" and Public Dungeons which will turn out to be more or less complex by extension and enemies. In both cases we will face new enemies and bosses, with traps and puzzles to hinder our path. Although the missions and the different types of dungeons turn out to be well thought out, more work on environmental puzzles could certainly have been done in order to make them more complex and interesting.
The game world will then be accompanied by the classic World Boss and collectible items such as lorebook, skyshard. In addition we will have one new category of unique items to be collected and hidden throughout Western Skyrim, i.e. musical instruments to complete the museum created within the Solitude Bard Academy. This is similar to what happens for other museums located in other regions of Tamriel.
Antiquity under the storm
The new expansion of Greymoor also introduces two new mechanics: let's talk about Harrowstorms and the search for Antiquity. In the first case it is essentially about new cyclical events linked to the territory with a functioning similar to that seen in the Anchors. The difference between the two lies in the fact that these new events are slightly more difficult to complete due to the enemies present. Once completed we will still receive some rare loot that you can take advantage of, as well as a good amount of experience.
The search for so-called antiques turns out to be a real addition to the gameplay. It is in fact an interesting mechanic that will allow you, after completing the related secondary mission, to search for ancient objects not only within Skyrim, but in all the territories of Tamriel. All to allow you to get new unique items to sell, items to decorate your home, customizations for the character or even extremely rare pieces of equipment. The objects of common rarity will be unlocked for everyone immediately, while for the others you will first have to find the relative "Lead" (and will have to be found a second time to find the object again).
It is simply a document (obtainable from defeated enemies or as a loot from crates, barrels and so on) that allows you to discover the object in question and search for it. At this point, using the new object you will get from the mission, you will have to perform the so-called Scrying; that is a simple minigame that will allow you to discover the search area of the object you are looking for. Once you have found the exact spot to look for, you will have to dig using a brush (and leveling up other tools) until the relic is brought to light. Each relic will also feature a specific lore that enriches Tamriel's story.
Noxiphilic Sanguivora
Alongside Greymoor there is also a new update aimed at modifying and improving vampirism. This mechanic until now has not been exploited to its full potential, in fact the vampire skill tree consisted mainly of passive skills presenting only two active skills and one ultimate. With the new expansion, however, we have several interesting additions to the skills that make the vampire much more performing; all of them are very interesting to use and integrate well into different types of builds (as well as paving the way for a pure vampiric build).
Starting from the basics you can become vampires in three ways: by getting bitten by another player, by paying in the shop or by finding rare NPCs who will attack you and make you contract the "disease". Then you will have to complete a related mission to permanently unlock the related skill tree for your character. This consists of 10 levels that will allow you to progressively unlock new active and passive skills. In addition we have four stages of vampirism that guarantee you some bonuses but at the same time more or less serious penalties.
Although all the new skills appear to be very valid in theory, in practice there is a feeling that they could still receive a few small improvements to optimize their efficiency. (for example previously the drain also caused stunning, now you have to use mesmerize to do so) each):
- Gutted: Strikes an enemy with a claw strike that deals additional damage based on the amount of health lost.
- Blood Frenzy: Consume health to increase the damage of weapons and spells; the amount of health required increases over time and it is not possible to be healed by other players other than ourselves.
- Vampiric Drain: Drain an enemy's health by recharging a percentage of your own.
- Mesmerize: Stun an enemy in front of you.
- Mist Form: Turn your character into a fog, in this form it takes reduced damage and does not suffer some types of debuffs; at the same time, however, you cannot heal yourself and the regeneration of magicka is prevented.
- Blood Scion (Ultimate): Transform into a fearsome creature of the night with increased stats and progressively regenerating health based on damage dealt.
Iron and blood
The element that has always characterized the great work done by The Elder Scrolls Online development team is certainly the beauty of the landscapes, as well as the level design and the design of the enemies, and the new Greymoor expansion is no less.. Each place we will explore will have its own peculiar identity and will be made unique compared to the others, each new boss will have its own distinctive characteristics and particular skills to be exploited in combat; the main focus and novelty, however, is given above all by the Gothic style of some settings. Similarly the music too has the distinctive “epic” character that has always accompanied each chapter of the series.
Unfortunately, however, we have been able to find some bugs such as a block in the rendering of some environments not too frequent, which end up presenting some areas not fully loaded (even in patches). In a particular secondary mission there is also currently a bug that does not allow it to be completed due to an object that for many players does not appear. However, these are very isolated cases and of which the developers are already aware.
Overall with The Elder Scrolls Online Greymoor we are facing a respectable expansion! In fact, it shows us how a game already in itself extremely vast (with 6 years of content behind it) can continue to grow and develop, introducing new (albeit small) gameplay mechanics, and improving others. All while maintaining a plot that in its small way manages to be interesting and engaging as only one chapter of this series is able to do and laying the foundations for something even greater that will arrive during the year to complete the "Heart dark of Skyrim ”.
► The Elder Scrolls Online is an MMORPG-type game developed by Zenimax Online Studios and published by Bethesda for PC, Mac, PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Google Stadia, the video game was released on 04/04/2014 The version for PlayStation 4 came out on 09/06/2015 The version for Xbox One came out on 09/06/2015
