Elder Scrolls: Blades Beta/Early Access discussion |OT|

[Cornbread78]

Q & A

Q: What is The Elder Scrolls: Blades?
A: The Elder Scrolls: Blades is a classic dungeon crawler reimagined. Create and customize your character, accept quests from your townspeople, rebuild your city, and unravel clues to an ancient mystery. Or venture into the Abyss to see how far you can go in an endless dungeon.

Q: What is the story of The Elder Scrolls: Blades?
A: The Blades, the Empire's top agents, are forced into exile. On the run, you return to your hometown to find it destroyed.

Q: When will I get into Early Access?
A: We're inviting players into Early Access on a rolling basis. Keep an eye on your email for the invite—and update your email preferences to make sure that we can reach you! We are doing our best to get everyone who signed up for Early Access into the game as quickly as possible!

Q: Is Early Access available on iOS and Android?
A: Yes, Early Access is available on both iOS and Android. The full device list can be found below, and we will continue to evaluate additional devices on an ongoing basis.

Q: What languages does The Elder Scrolls: Blades support?
A: Blades is available in English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, and Russian.

Q: Is Early Access under NDA?
A: Early Access is not under NDA. Once you're in the game, please take and share as many screenshots and videos as you'd like!

Q: Will Early Access progress and purchases carry over?
A: All progress and purchases made during Early Access will carry over into the final game when it launches.

Q: When are you adding The Arena / PvP mode?
A: We have a lot of new features that we will add to Blades after launch, including the Arena. Stay tuned to our official channels for more details in the future.

Q: Can I still sign up for Early Access?
A: You can still sign up for Early Access now! Sign up at PlayBlades.com.

Q: What devices will Early Access support?
A: Our goal is to support as many Android and iOS devices as possible, and we will evaluate additional devices on an ongoing basis. The list of supported devices follows:

• iPhone 6s and newer
• iPhone SE
• iPad Pro
• iPad Mini 4 and 5
• iPad Air 2 and 3
• Samsung Galaxy S8/S8+
• Samsung Galaxy S9/S9+
• Samsung Galaxy S10/S10+
• Samsung Galaxy Note 8
• Samsung Galaxy Note 9
• Google Pixel 2/2XL
• Google Pixel 3/3XL
• OnePlus 5 and newer
• Moto Z2 and newer
• Essential Phone
• HTC U11/U11+
• HTC U12+
• LG V30
• LG G7 One
• Xiaomi Mi 6
• Xiaomi Mi Mix 2
• Xperia XZ Premium
• Xperia XZ1
• Razer Phone
• ZTE Nubia Z17
• Nokia 8
• Sharp Aquos R
• Asus ZenFone 4 Pro
• Huawei P20/P20 Pro
• Huawei Mate 20 Pro
• OnePlus 6T

https://elderscrolls.bethesda.net/en/blades

Reveal Trailer:
https://youtu.be/E9gGPR6wOQo

This quick & dirty OT thrown together for discussion purposes for those that have received early access can discuss the game, post screenshots and help provide feedback to other ResetEra members questions..... Is it worth the download? We shall see!

 

[Darryl M R]

Nice. I want to see how the town/home progression.

 

[daybreak]

Signed up for the beta the second it was a possibility, and yet I'm still waiting to get in.

Meanwhile, my coworker downloaded the game yesterday without signing up previously and is immediately playing.

Cool.

 

[anastiel]

Perfect, thanks for share

 

[Cornbread78]

Signed up for the beta the second it was a possibility, and yet I'm still waiting to get in.

Meanwhile, my coworker downloaded the game yesterday without signing up previously and is immediately playing.

Cool.

Click to shrink...

I signed up a long time ago and suddenly got a message from Google play that I was selected for early access.


Sounds like selections was random....

 

[ElizaOnTheShore]

The worst part is that there is a timer to open chests (5s for normal chest, 3 hrs for silver, etc.) and you can only open 1 chests at a time so unless you upgrade your chest holding capacity (10 at start and you can pay gems for 10 more spaces) you gotta stop playing or risk missing loot.

The rag doll animation when you kill someone are pretty funny.

 

[Dunlop]

It's a weird system that let's you download the game but then stops you from actually playing it unless you are part of their early access list (which I signed up for a long time ago)

 

[flyinj]

So it's a dungeon crawler that is constantly gated by timers that you can pay real money to remove?

I assume the whole building a town aspect is entirely tied to free to play timers designed to annoy you into paying?

 

[Mik2121]

It's a weird system that let's you download the game but then stops you from actually playing it unless you are part of their early access list (which I signed up for a long time ago)

Click to shrink...

The game can be downloaded? I don't see the client on the JP App Store (iOS).

 

[ItWasMeantToBe19]

People I've talked to about this game hate it soooooo much.

Timers on chests...

 

[ElizaOnTheShore]

So it's a dungeon crawler that is constantly gated by timers that you can pay real money to remove?

I assume the whole building a town aspect is entirely tied to free to play timers designed to annoy you into paying?

Click to shrink...

The only timers so far are to open chests and building timers (I think the smithy was 30 mins and the houses have a timer of 8 mins). Anything else you can do multiple times since there is no energy/stamina bar.

Taking aside the timers it's an okay ES spin off. The maps could use some work since I'm level 6, done like 20 quests and I have seen like 4-5 different maps.

 

[Midnight Train]

People I've talked to about this game hate it soooooo much.

Timers on chests...

Click to shrink...

I hate that I got a notification to download the game, and now I have it on my phone and can't play it....

 

[DaiJyoubs]

Been playing for a couple hours and it's not too bad! The dungeon crawling is good (for mobile) and it's a great looking game on the iPhone XS. The timers are a little ehh but letting them stack to then wait to open big ones while you're sleeping isn't awful. I do hope they add an "Are you sure?" Button to quick opens of chests. I hit one on accident for a wood one and it took it. But a good start, I'll probably be playing for awhile.

 

[Tayaya]

Got the email from Apple that the pre-order was good to go, checked my phone and sure enough the app had downloaded.

Went to play, signed in with my Bethesda account, and got the "sorry chump, we didn't say you could play yet" message.

 

[ElizaOnTheShore]

Been playing for a couple hours and it's not too bad! The dungeon crawling is good (for mobile) and it's a great looking game on the iPhone XS. The timers are a little ehh but letting them stack to then wait to open big ones while you're sleeping isn't awful. I do hope they add an "Are you sure?" Button to quick opens of chests. I hit one on accident for a wood one and it took it. But a good start, I'll probably be playing for awhile.

Click to shrink...

Damn, that same thing happened to me just now on a wooden chest. Good thing it was only 1 gen but damn and no prompt.

 

[Spider-Man]

Thanks for automatically downloading this iOS and then I can't even play it.

What a stupid system.

 

[Edge]

Really liked what I've played so far. The whole town rebuild aspect is great and fun with your own placement of stuff together with the quest system and character development with different skills and attacks. Quite addicting.

Chest need a shit ton of time to open tho. Normal wood 5 seconds and silver 3 hours. Of course you can pay to skip time.
You get a lot of chest but you can only hold 10 until you buy more space with premium currency. First extension is 10 PC, which is nothing and second 40, you can easily get this through main quest. First extension let's you hold 20 chest instead of 20. You need the space.

Same for the inventory. Use the premium currency for these 2 things.
Already have 2 gold chests, 1 from the underground. Needs 6 hours to open.
Buying chests with pc is expensive. A legendary chest costs around 21 bucks, or 2500 premium currency.

 

[Thizzles]

Thanks for automatically downloading this iOS and then I can't even play it.

What a stupid system.

Click to shrink...

Thats on Bethesda. Not apple. My s8 did the same thing

 

[Aardvark Barber]

Downloaded but still can't play, unfortunately.

 

[Deleted member 9479]

Yep same boat. Did the dumb preorder thing months back so it would download automatically and I'm not let in yet. Ugh.

 

[Dunlop]

The game can be downloaded? I don't see the client on the JP App Store (iOS).

Click to shrink...

I see it on the Canadian app store,

They should make it appear only for those who actually have access, more of an annoyance as I had to create to Bethesda account only to find out I cannot play

 

[Darryl M R]

I'm currently playing the Early Access. I'm glad to hear that my progress will be carried over.

 

[Minsc]

The worst part is that there is a timer to open chests (5s for normal chest, 3 hrs for silver, etc.) and you can only open 1 chests at a time so unless you upgrade your chest holding capacity (10 at start and you can pay gems for 10 more spaces) you gotta stop playing or risk missing loot.

The rag doll animation when you kill someone are pretty funny.

Click to shrink...

The chest thing got popular with Clash Royale I think. It's just how they cap the speed of progression, you get the loot to upgrade your character every so often and need to check back daily for more. It's cumbersome at best, assuming the gameplay is great, but super annoying if the gameplay isn't.

 

[tr1b0re]

Anyone wanna share some shiny screenshots? I'm interested in seeing how the final product looks

Game looks real pretty for a phone game

 

[ElizaOnTheShore]

Not sure if this gonna work since I have never linked to photos but here is the main screen on vertical and horizontal view. I can post more screenshots during lunch. This is on an iPhone XR.

 

[Brandson]

My phone (Sony XZ Premium) is on the supported devices list, but the store says "Your device isn't compatible with this version." and won't let me download the game. Anyone else with this phone able to download the game?

 

[Falchion]

Yeah I logged in and it's a no go.

 

[kodax_shc]

My phone (Sony XZ Premium) is on the supported devices list, but the store says "Your device isn't compatible with this version." and won't let me download the game. Anyone else with this phone able to download the game?

Click to shrink...

Just grab the apk from an external site. I'd link to it on apk mirror but I am not sure that is allowed.

 

[squilliedee]

Just started playing, and I'm enjoying it a lot. I honestly had no expectations for this game, but I can see me sinking some time into it!

 

[Nerun]

Quick footage of the initial quest/dungeons, looks even better in the open world though (running on OnePlus 6T):

 

[KyngKee]

I'm actually having fun with this game. It's a lot more satisfying than other mobile F2P. Although combat is a little too simplistic. Also this game potentially will work on devices not listed. I'm playing on an ipad 2017 and although it looks rough compared to my iPhone 8plus it does run decently...

 

[MattD]

I just signed up but iPad 2018 wasn't on the devices list, so I chose "other." Looking forward to playing eventually...

 

[AuthenticM]

wow the original Pixel isn't supported

 

[Vilifier]

I was able to start playing ES:Blades today before my offical early access email came through. I signed up for the early access right when it was announced. I'm playing on Android with a OnePlus 6.

Game looks great for a mobile game. Combat seems basic so far, but I haven't unlocked any skills yet. I've started to get the hang of the sword/axe swing attack timing and can chain together 3-5 swings per combo.

I wish for movement they went with either a grid based style like Doom RPG or a full on movement control with a virtual joystick. Moving around point and click style is janky. I keep getting caught in the geometry or can't properly see items I want to pick up.

The game also supports app splitscreen which is a must for me. I don't tend to play mobile games for long unless I can have YouTube playing on the top third of my screen.

 

[Trace]

Game burns through battery on my Razer Phone 2, but it does seem to support the 120hz display, so it's probably the best looking mobile game I've seen. Can't see myself playing this for long periods of time due to that alone, but it seems pretty fun aside from that.

 

[Bengraven]

Looks and plays incredibly well on my XSM.

I like the combat for what this is.

 

[THRILLHO]

Plays great on my 2018 iPad Pro 10.5. Spent more than an hour playing and I'm enjoying it so far and looking forward to seeing more

 

[Jacobson]

Still no access for me. :(

 

[LiQuid!]

It's a scuzzy f2p mobile game full of grind and timers and a premium currency you can buy to bypass the tedium, but if you want a super lite version of an Elder Scrolls hack and slasher with pretty quick quests you can jump into (and have a phone charger handy) I could see it being kinda fun in short bursts.

I'm probably not going to commit very hard to this cause it's just whale bait with an Elder Scrolls skin but it's definitely cool that it looks and plays as well as it does. Really makes you think what kind of good could be accomplished if mobile games weren't so obsessed with predatory business models and just focused on making good, fair games that weren't full of grind.

 

[Edge]

You reach your first end point where you can't progress pretty fast at around level 8-10. You get some main quest there that are way too hard for you.

 

[Lucifonz]

Super promising early look - production values are really impressive. Timers and F2P side of things could definitely use some adjusting though.

Needs more combat possibilities like bows.

 

[Nerun]

played a bit, but yeah, it's to heavy on timers/blockers in it's current state. It's fine to have a shop, but there are plenty of f2p games doing a better job...having to wait for 3-6 hours for a box to open, which is basically the only option for real loot is just way to long. I know mobile gaming is made for short(er) sessions, but still, I haven't played that much and now I basically need to wait a couple of days to open all my chests (and I even upgraded my carrying limit already).

 

[Cornbread78]

I wonder how limited the early access launch was..

 

[friz898]

Not to be a bad message board reader, but I kind of read OP, and then hit reply.

I was looking for the eventual OT/Community thread for this game. Will that be this, or is it this, until the real one stands up?

Just wanted to buy my bus ticket early!

 

[Dinjoralo]

I'm guessing I'm hitting the point where the game wants you to pay up. I don't mind the timers too much, since I'm willing to put the game down and do other things. Treat it as an occasional time-waster and don't let it weigh on your mind.
And huh, this game actually kind of impressed me. There's a quest where it's like, go into a bandit camp and talk to their leader. You can actually opt to not fight any of the bandits and totally complete the quest. I still did kill them all afterwards, because loot, but hey. Maybe this game has actual design consideration put into it after all.

Super promising early look - production values are really impressive. Timers and F2P side of things could definitely use some adjusting though.

Click to shrink...

The production values are so good because the vast majority of the game's assets appear to be lifted from Skyrim. I wouldn't be too surprised if one of the impetuses for the game's creation was simply that phones are now powerful enough to run something using them.

 

[oneils]

I played it the first two quests this morning on my ipad air 2. It doesnt look so hot. It probably looks much better on a smaller screen.

I had some issues with it. Turning is a pain, it seems to take forever. I also dont like the "hold and release" combat. I thought it would be a series of swipes.

Its not that fun to play on ipad.

 

[RestEerie]

I played it the first two quests this morning on my ipad air 2. It doesnt look so hot. It probably looks much better on a smaller screen.

I had some issues with it. Turning is a pain, it seems to take forever. I also dont like the "hold and release" combat. I thought it would be a series of swipes.

Its not that fun to play on ipad.

Click to shrink...

Yah man...I was 'weird out' by the hold & release mechanic..I thought it was swipes like infinity blade in the beginning...doesn't feel good for attacks..

And yah..loot boxes..
Eh

 

[Anuiran]

I have compiled a lot of stuff from the game. Still got a lot to do, but got details on every Skill, Spell, Ability and their rank. A list of every weapon, armor, etc.

Figured I'd share if anyone finds the stuff interesting.

https://www.levelcodex.com/elder-scrolls-blades/spells/1-fireball/

 

[Einbroch]

Combat is really quite poor. Why not do swipes? The hold/release system is clunky with the blocking system.

Timers for chests is a really annoying monetization system as well.

 

[Moose]

I lied the base building to Fallout 4 to an extent, I think they had too many locations and forced radiant quests. I also enjoy the town building in this or at least the concept of it, not the resource/time grind. It would be neat if TES VI had one town you could build and customize a combination of this and Fallout 4's system.

The town's location isn't detailed from some strange reason, but it looks like High Rock Architecture, or it could also be Imperial. I wish they went into that more, the writing in this game is not great which is a shame as the world building in TES games is usually a highlight.