![]() The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Review / Off The Path.Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Wildlands Review.Whatever happens over the full lifespan of this next expansion, at launch, High Isle is a fantastic addition to the Elder Scrolls universe. For new players considering giving ESO or any other MMO a go in earnest, they would be hard-pressed to find a better offering than this. Instead of an enormous land mass that feels relatively barren, this dense land feels exciting and populated to every corner. Working in a more confined overground space has forced the developer to get creative with their explorable areas, and the expansion is better for it. The new trial Dreadsail Reef is still being felt out by players but looks, on early inspection, to be a sound rendering of thematic endgame content, and there are a couple of new companions to add to the existing options.įor returning players who were worried that High Isle may not be worth the outlay, there is plenty to get involved with at launch, with more updates expected on the horizon. Tales of Tribute is a great change of pace. Providing players with choice is an underrated skill in the MMO genre in 2022, with so many turning to compulsory grinds in an attempt to encourage players to spend as much time online as possible. Its great strength lies in its ability to be taken as seriously as the player likes, from those who never decide to try it to the truly committed at the top of the PvP leaderboards. Tales of Tribute is perhaps the most radical addition, and the game is undeniably a better place for it. Although pick-up-and-play is decidedly more difficult than other card games due to its unfamiliar design, it's not so complex that it becomes a chore.īeyond the story is more of a mixed bag, but there's a lot to enjoy, even for the most cursory or casual player. Resource management can be confusing initially, and learning card combinations and counters is largely up to the player, with little guidance in the meantime. It doesn't have the initial draw of The Witcher's Gwent, and there are areas to improve. These are then mixed together, and players can build hands. Each player is tasked with bringing four "patron" decks (with a total of eight able to be unlocked) into the game. For a feature so outside of the usual purview of the developer, it looks to be a remarkably complete addition to the game. Tales of Tribute has taken a different approach to many CCGs in that it tasks players with resource management and deckbuilding on the fly during any given game. If players ignore the fact that this game has never previously been mentioned or shown, it does seem to effortlessly slot into the preexisting pantheon of activities. Though they are lovely to look at, none of the individual zones feel especially stunning in isolation, but with one another, they make for memorable and complete areas Zenimax Online Studios have added to the world. ![]() It is the contrast between these areas that provides intrigue once the story allows the player to travel from the relative calm of High Isle to the deeply foreboding jungle climate on Amenos. The archipelago where the expansion is set is made up of two different islands, High Isle and Amenos, with a third island in the form of a dormant volcano. What they have chosen to do with that space, though, has been undeniably successful. In actuality, the expansion to the game world has turned out to be no less significant than many previous entries, with the developer noting that there is the same amount of explorable space for players to enjoy. When the expansion was first announced by the developer, players both new and old voiced concerns that a new, full-price chapter would seemingly offer so little (based on previews of the map). Stick with it, though, and the character interactions and story progression on show here are something the game has been yearning for. Though there is still plenty of combat to enjoy, the change of pace may prove underwhelming for some initially. The writing team has undoubtedly managed to strike that delicate balance between the inclusion of shocking twists while at the same time not straying into the territory of the ridiculous or unfounded. There are also several flagship moments in the narrative, which come out of the left-field, that genuinely prove jaw-dropping. The lack of existing lore and context for High Isle as a whole helps here, offering a lack of predictability which makes each new quest line become the equivalent of a new episode in an ongoing drama. Peeling back the layers to understand the conspiracies at play feels like uncovering a genuine and significant mystery. Though shady organizations and powerful aristocracy have all played a part in previous Elder Scrolls stories, they haven't been able to achieve a narrative that allows for such intricate player involvement as ZOS has here.
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