The Elder Scrolls Online Lost Depths DLC is currently in testing on the PTS server, but the community reaction to ESO update 35 and patch 8.1.0 has been heated, to say the least. The MMO game‘s creative director has weighed in on the debate: “I get it, change is scary.”
The reveal of the ESO Lost Depths patch notes on the PTS revealed some big changes coming to the combat system, which the Zenimax Online team says is with the aim of “improving accessibility” and “to quell some of the obscene damage production at the high end.”
However, fans have taken issue with some of these combat changes, especially regarding the substantial nerfs to DPS and Damage Over Time skills. A quick scan of the Elder Scrolls Online Reddit page reveals many threads unhappy with the DPS changes with the patch and update 35.
Zenimax Online creative director Rich Lambert weighed in on Twitter about the response and wasn’t entirely complimentary, calling them “knee-jerk reactions” and “tiresome and disappointing.” “I get it, change is scary,” he adds, requesting that players “experience the actual changes before guessing and going off the deep end.”
Knee jerk reactions… while not unexpected, they are still tiresome and disappointing.
I get it, change is scary. At the same time though, a little trust would be much appreciated. At least experience the actual changes before guessing and going off the deep end…
— Rich Lambert (@SlashLurk) July 9, 2022
Needless to say, fans weren’t impressed by this either, although others are prepared to give the update a chance. Nevertheless, while combat changes are likely coming, as this is all only on the test server at this stage it’s entirely possible that Zenimax Online will revert some of the issues before the patch goes live.
Elsewhere in online Tamriel, the High Isle expansion recently launched with a touch of Lord of the Rings, and Bethesda is currently hosting a streamer charity event in ESO to raise money for No Kid Hungry, which works to prevent childhood hunger in the United States.