Elder Scrolls Online: Gates of Oblivion is the sequel to Dark Heart of Skyrim’s adventure last year, with the massive Blackwood expansion taking center stage in June with 30 hours of new story content, a new zone, the Companion system and much more more. And despite the name calling it a beloved game, Gates of Oblivion is much more than a massive multiplayer version of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion.
Creative Director Rich Lambert, himself a producer of The Elder Scrolls 4, joined me on a video call to talk about everything coming to Elder Scrolls Online this year. As you would expect, you will be able to explore some famous sites as they were 800 years before the events of Oblivion, but Lambert describes most of the new content as ZeniMax’s “own mindset”. There is also a greater focus on the hellish domain of the oblivion of the Oblivion Mehrunes Dagon, the Deadlands, and we will even explore a new version of the city of Gideon, which has not appeared in a game for 27 years.
“It’s not going to be a direct one-on-one,” Lambert says. “Mehrunes Dagon is still trying to figure out the science behind the Oblivion Gates … But there will be familiar undertones. So Leyawiin is the capital. So Leyawiin is still about the same shape, the same size as it is in our time.”
“So there’s Leyawiin in the West, and then in the East, we have Gideon, who’s not been seen in Arena since 1994. And then of course Dagon’s empire. But then everything in between is our own thing. And even Dagon’s empire is kind of our own take, we’ll have that kind of fire and brimstone part, especially in the fourth term, when you’ll spend all your time there and really explore [Dagon’s] realm, you’re going to see more of what’s rich than just what you saw in TES4, ‘says Lambert.
When I ask about Lambert’s favorite Oblivion memories, he goes back to Mehrunes Dagon, which explains why he focuses more deeply on the character and his world outside of the title Gates of Oblivion.
“Mehrunes Dagon is therefore probably my favorite Daedric prince of all. So it was the biggest thing for me to explore more of him and find out a little more about who he is and what he’s about. He’s a kind of being. for himself, where he is the prince of destruction, change and ambition and whatnot, so he can not really imagine himself that much, but we need to spend more time focusing on it and telling more of his story, which was a lot of fun for me, ‘says Lambert.
The Gates of Oblivion story is told throughout the year, starting with the Flames of Ambition DLC, which will add context and set up the events of Blackwood. I asked Lambert about some of the moving parts that hatch in front of the starting line.
‘The Longhouse Emperors entered into an agreement, or an agreement with the devil, essentially with Mehrunes Dagon, where they would help him invade Tamriel for as long as they ruled. [Tamriel] to his image. So it was their offer to him. He addressed them about it and gave them the power they needed to essentially create four weapons of mass destruction, ‘Lambert explained.
“One of the neat aspects of this is that you start in our time, ESO, after the last of the Longhouse Emperors was killed. So their line is no longer there, but the agreement is still in place. And someone is around this whole thing. story moving forward. And that’s one of the great revelations, how and why, “he teases.
When Blackwood launches in June, it will not end the story of the Gates of Oblivion, but it will play a significant part leading up to the latter half of the year. It will also introduce a new 12-player trial, new world events called Oblivion Portals (which effectively replaces Dark Anchors), and most importantly, the new Companion system that lets you recruit and play with NPCs. Lambert says the idea behind Companions is to allow soloists and small groups to tackle dungeons without worrying about them being overwhelmed. As a self-player, I unequivocally asked Lambert what took so long to add something like that.
“I think we’ve learned a lot over the years. And one of the most important, recurring themes we’ve heard from players, especially our more hardcore Elder Scrolls people, is that people are scary. And there is content that they do not. ‘it’s not necessarily comfortable within a large group, but they’ll do it with some close and trusted friends. And the beauty of this system and one of my hopes is that you and a buddy four-player dungeons can do because you have two companions to help you. ‘
Lambert hopes that another benefit to the upcoming Companion system is that it will give people the confidence to tackle stricter dungeons and thus get the chance to mix more with the ESO community.
“It will help players to A) develop stronger social bonds in their game with their peers, but also, B) help them a little more in the group content and to meet other players possibly, which is really exciting. For me. , because that’s where the magic of MMO happens, you know, to meet and talk to other people and develop the right close social bonds. ‘