Elder Scrolls Online Beta Announced

Written by: Jason Winter (@winterinformal) | January 22, 2013 7:21 am

55 Comments

ZeniMax Begins Elder Scrolls Online Beta Signups

It’s (almost) time for you to get your hands on The Elder Scrolls Online.

ZeniMax Online Studios today started taking signups for The Elder Scrolls Online beta, opening up the floodgates for thousands of gamers to experience, first-hand, an MMORPG set in the popular Elder Scrolls universe.

You can now officially sign up for The Elder Scrolls Online beta program starting today. If selected, you will be one of the first people to embark upon the newest Elder Scrolls adventure, and help us beta test The Elder Scrolls Online. Please be aware that this is just beta sign-ups. Once our first beta test begins, we’ll make sure everyone knows—watch our official website, Facebook, Google+, and Twitter for an announcement about the first round of invites.

Thank you all for your enthusiastic support. We’re thrilled to share this very important day with you.

But let’s be honest — MMO betas are only a little bit about actually testing the game, for most people. Chances are, you’ll be checking the game out to — well, check the game out. Do you think you’ll get much “testing” done, or will you just be in the game to try it out and see if you’ll want to spend money on it later?

In any case, you can expect that the GameBreaker crew will be in the beta and that we’ll talk about — well, whatever we can talk about. Which, being a closed beta, probably won’t be much at this point. Remember the first rule of TESO beta…

The Elder Scrolls Online was originally announced last May 3 and has been met by gamers with both eager anticipation and wary trepidation. ZeniMax insists the game will be ready by the end of the year, and it won the GameBreaker Award for most anticipated MMO of 2013.

0:34

MMO

New Elder Scrolls Trailer Takes A First Look At The Wamasu

Elder Scrolls online reveals a new monster, the wamasu.Read more »

10 comments
1:34

Elder Scrolls Online

Elder Scrolls Online Releases A New Trailer: Gathering And Exploration

The newest trailer from Elder Scrolls Online gives us a look at gathering and exploration.Read more »

28 comments
2:05

Elder Scrolls Online

Elder Scrolls Online Trailer – Journey to Coldharbour

The God of Schemes plans to merge Tamriel and Oblivion!Read more »

21 comments

http://twitter.com/AmythielOMG Kamil

Most definitely beta = check the game out. Who the hell bothers ‘testing’ in a beta these days. Sure people might give critical feedback on the forums, but that’s mostly due to the game not being up to par in a certain spot.
Depravity

Website down;/
http://twitter.com/MrJairusLaude Jairus

Signed up!
http://www.facebook.com/jason.jenkins.73 Jason Jenkins

zombie werwolves, oooo scary
- Joseph Gabrielli
  
  Better than most bad guys…
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002038208867 Dan Winborne

Completely awesome, badass cinematic for an MMO = You will be able to do NONE of this…
- CheveyoSD
  
  We’ll probably be able to kill zombie werewolves.
http://www.facebook.com/norbertas.tamosaitis Norbertas Tamosaitis

Just wow amazing trailer lovded it signed up right away.
http://twitter.com/AisarGaming Aisar

Hmm I would love to get into this Beta (and I hope it’s awesome!). I can’t go back to WoW anymore and GW2 just isn’t doing it for me. I’ll be trying to keep low expectations though, I should know better by now lol.
Clifford Dutka

When I sign up for a beta for a beta then get invited I take it serously. It is more then just checking out the game, I am signing up because I want this game to replace WoW as my main MMO. Yes it allows me to check out the game and have fun; however I really want to help make the game be the best it can be.
- http://profile.yahoo.com/F2XRQU4GOV52OTKES2ZLGRBOOE rusty
  
  I take the same approach when it comes to beta testing. I have been desperate for years for a MMO to replace wow. Not only that but in cases where the MMO comes from a brand that we love I feel like people have a vested interest that drives them to try and help make the game better. On several occasion in SWTOR while i was grouped with people we frequently stopped whatever we where doing to send in reports because we all wanted Star Wars to be the best it could be. That’s rare that you find complete strangers in beta that are willing to wait like that. Granted it didn’t turn out they way we wished, but I’m positive that this beta will have a community that wants to protect the brand by helping make the game better in whatever way possible.
http://profile.yahoo.com/W76UOX2IDTRMMYTPASSJDLXLRM Bob

Yawn. I remember the SWTOR cinematic trailers being awesome too…
- Joseph Gabrielli
  
  I remember the Skyrim cinematics being awesome too… I remember the WoW cinematics being awesome too… I remember the assassins creed cinematics being awesome too…
http://profile.yahoo.com/RWIT5R23ILQZE2UU55R2ERBP2E Michael

I hope to be testing, I love the previous games so I’ll likely buy this game anyways.
Keigh

Signed up and Im hoping to get in, the trailer was awesome.
kid2digit

Your first link is wrong, should be http://elderscrollsonline.com/
Dekin

When are we going to get a High Fantasy Movie done like this trailer….ZOMG I would throw money at it.
http://www.facebook.com/quientinhuckeba Quientin Huckeba

I was completely blown away by this trailer. The visuals had me questioning: are these real people? The Mists of Pandaria trailer was very visually appealing as well but, I think Bethesda/Zenimax wins. Congrats, ’tis no small feat!
http://www.facebook.com/djlanders020 Dave Landers

Did he just curb stomp that werewolf?
http://www.facebook.com/jonathan.hornsby.7 Jonathan Hornsby

Hmm…a fully pre-rendered cinematic with absolutely no gameplay of any kind, that showed off lots of cool action moments you probably won’t be able to do in game, and didn’t even reflect the game’s final art style. Typical MMO trailer, and one that in my opinion was completely meaningless.
- http://www.facebook.com/evan.miketon Evan Miketon
  
  Because It makes sense to make a trailer of the gameplay while said game is still in beta, right? The game is most likely going to change a lot before It’s actually released.
  
  I don’t normally say this, but haters gonna hate. Sounds like you just need something to be mad at.
  - Jeremy Keat
    
    It is right and wrong to feel that way. Games these days usually make many trailers. Not often do you get epic ones like Skyrim that are simply one and wholesomely display everything. So there will be many trailers many probably wont show gameplay or UI/player perspective but there should always be one or a few that does.
    
    It is whatever the potential playerbase needs to get familiar with what the game offers. A mere ten years ago it was much harder to tell what games had in it before it released or you bought it. Now, it is pretty much customary.
  - http://www.facebook.com/jonathan.hornsby.7 Jonathan Hornsby
    
    It does. Guild Wars 2 was putting out gameplay trailers back when it was in alpha. In fact they never had a trailer that didn’t include gameplay in some form. Think what you like, but to me a trailer without gameplay is used when they know their gameplay isn’t worth promoting.
http://twitter.com/Ricksterness Rick

HOLY SHIT THIS TRAILER! I loved the mix of real life and CG. It looked AH-MAY-ZING.
zilvis78

Totally was on the fence as the Elder scrolls games barely kept my interest over the years and it may simply be the whole “Lets put things in our trailer that you can’t do in-game” syndrome but it’s an impressive and well put trailer. Undead werewolves-sold/ whatever class that is that looks like a ninja/assasin’s creed clone-sold/ obvious large scale pvp-sold it’s either a well done game or well done marketing but i’ll definitly be giving it a try
http://www.facebook.com/juan.a.sanchez.927980 Juan Abril Sanchez

Its that u, Ezio Auditore ?
MysticLlamaMan

Okay…so that trailer was badass.
- Joseph Gabrielli
  
  Most trailers are
http://www.facebook.com/evan.miketon Evan Miketon

I dislike all the preconceptions going around.
1. “cinematic looks just like SWTOR, and we all know how that turned out.” Yes, It looks awesome. Why is that a bad thing? This logic frustrates me…all it means, is that the people making the game are actually trying their best.
2. “It’s just a WoW clone.” If you mean an MMO, then yes, it is SIMILAR to WoW. This kind of comment only proves one thing: your sheer narrow mindedness. You haven’t even played the game yet.
3. “It’ll be F2P within X amount of time.” Do you think this makes you sound sophisticated? It’s a baseless statement, which means nothing.

I am looking forward to the beta, or if I don’t get in, the actual game. I am looking forward to having fun, because that is what games are about. They are not about whether or not you can psychically predict what the game will be like.

Get off your high horse, and enjoy the mud with the rest of us.
- Jeremy Keat
  
  Deal with it, turds will be turds and you can’t fix it. Like all those people that go “gee, this game is broken! Servers and down it is sooo buggy!” – and the game is still in early beta stages.
  
  Those ignorant and arrogant folk will always be around to voice their selfish or witless opinions.
  
  I tend to be one who doesn’t like games for being “like WoW” in gameplay, because I am sick of seeing the same hotkey gameplay which too many thinks is the only way an MMORPG can be made.
  
  Though it may not be how or what others mean when that cray about similarities to WoW or other games it is something people can misinterpret and always have, even lore did on his stream- “that game is not like WoW” when to me I’d say GW2 plays just like WoW with a universal dodge mechanic and no trinity.
- Diequex
  
  I get where you’re coming from. People should enjoy the trailer for what it is but you can’t really blame people for being cynical. I thought the trailer was cool, but I’m still wary about what the actual product will end up like (big fan of the ESO series).
  
  This is with regard to cynicism toward the trailer. “WoW clone” statements and the like are silly.
Razzly

For the love of god, yes, I’m signing up.
Paul Allen

I honestly forgot about this game.
scottsummer

Yea…we can totally do those moves in TESO…

A bit too over the top imo, very cool cinematic none the less.
- http://www.facebook.com/bj.cooper.921 BJ Buddy Bear
  
  Oh didn’t you hear we can do those moves perfectly
http://www.facebook.com/thelethrface Steven Opie Wallace

I definitely signed up for this to bug test. I see nothing wrong with playing the game to it’s fullest and reporting the bugs I see

Also, in reply about the cinematic being too over the top, it’s a cinematic lol. That’s all it is. It’s a little too early to see a gameplay trailer and let’s face it…a cinematic of this quality limiting itself to just things you could do in game would be rather boring
Sharuko

It really feels like Zenimax Online Studios has a tight and legit management team. The trailer was one of the best MMO trailers I have seen, if not the best. My only issue is they didn’t show the Orcs or Khajit.
- Jd Tarancon
  
  Well it only showed the 3 characters we’ve become somewhat familiar with (The 3 that were on the original banner)
  - http://www.facebook.com/bj.cooper.921 BJ Buddy Bear
    
    The are the 3 faction ppl thingys
balen arenas

Nice cinematic although I would have never known this was about the elder scrolls if didn’t have a title for it (in other words, there is nothing in there that distinguishes itself as an elder scrolls game despite that is very well done video).
Krzysztof Kotarba

this cinematic is one of the best ever made… Amazing quality I think it’s mix of cgi and live action…
- http://www.facebook.com/jonathan.hornsby.7 Jonathan Hornsby
  
  Yet had nothing to do with the game itself.
Spammerbam

Epic.
Jeremy Keat

I am applied to like 6 diff betas right now, how is it that some d-bags always get into nearly every beta they sign up to?
Revanhavoc

If you can’t enjoy that trailer than you need to try living in the moment a little bit more.

Absolutely amazing.
http://www.facebook.com/bj.cooper.921 BJ Buddy Bear

Well I just noticed something interesting If I am not mistaken the elder scrolls online logo with lion dragon and eagle are the same as the 3 alliances banners
http://twitter.com/AgeNightroad Adrian Lloyd

3:20 – 3:54

If I can do a fraction of that in game, then I will get TESO for sure!

I hope I get into beta ^^
Key Foster

Epic trailer, lovin it.
http://www.facebook.com/brian.hancock.140 Brian Hancock

Is it me or at time frame 0:15 to 0:17 and timeframe 1:01 to 1:04 is that an Argonian to the right and behind the Nord Warrior?
- SevenFold
  
  It is !
theunwarshed

awesome cinematic, let’s hope the game is too
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=862175353 Gavin Morgan

Epic trailer
http://www.facebook.com/markince Mark Andrew Ince

I’ve been playing The Secret World this month and even tho I love it so much, the game is soo full of bugs to the point where it gets annoying Makes me feel like either the beta testers didn’t do their job or the devs simply ignored them. This is the main reason why I enjoy beta testing, to avoid this from happening. Let’s hope this dosent happen in TESO
http://witkh.tumblr.com/ Michael Swift Ryan

For me? both. Naturally I want to know more about the game… that is my ‘payment’ for testing the game and giving them feedback… I believe that is how all testers should process the game.
Umbradomo

Strange that I cold not complete the sign up through Chrome but had to wait to do it under IE. I so have IE. ewwwwwwwww I feel dirty now!!!

Elder Scrolls Online Beta Announced

ZeniMax Begins Elder Scrolls Online Beta Signups

New Elder Scrolls Trailer Takes A First Look At The Wamasu

Elder Scrolls Online Releases A New Trailer: Gathering And Exploration

Elder Scrolls Online Trailer – Journey to Coldharbour

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Sign in to your account