Elder Scrolls Online Launches On PC And Mac, Cinematic Launch Trailer Begins The Siege

Today The Elder Scrolls Online officially launched for PC and Mac gamers across the world.

The Elder Scrolls Online is an MMORPG set on Nirn, the same world seen in single-player RPG's like Skyrim, Morrowind and Oblivion. TESO takes place several hundred years before those other games, though. Players will travel across the continent in Tamriel to stop daedric prince Molag Bal from taking over the world. In their journey from level 1 to 50, they'll face many enemies including cultists, werewolves and the undead.

Players will also battle each other. The three game's three alliances are constantly fighting for control of Cyrodiil, the province at the center of the continent. Players can dive into the war starting at level 10. By prevailing on the battlefield, an alliance can earn bonuses for its members that can be helpful in and out of Cyrodiil.

"Development doesn’t stop here," game director Matt Firor said in a letter to players today. "Soon we’ll be unveiling Craglorn, our first Veteran-level, end-game zone tailored for small and large groups which offers lots more hours of gameplay and new areas to explore– and we’ll continue to add new systems and exciting content regularly."

Craglorn, one of the adventure zones planned for level 50 characters, offer new quests and dungeons. They also contain Trials, timed challenges for groups of 12 players. Other end-game content includes

Firor added that the development team is "still hard-at-work" on the Xbox One and PS4 versions of the game. The console versions are expected in June. ZeniMax is planning a beta test for those platforms but hasn't announced the schedule for that yet.

Elder Scrolls Online is available in a few different editions. The Standard Edition, available in physical or digital form, costs $60. The next step up is the $80 Digital Imperial Edition, which unlocks an Imperial race and horse in the game among other things. The $100 physical version of the Imperial Edition contains a statue of Molag Bal, an artbook and a map in addition to the in-game extras of its digital counterpart. The physical Imperial Edition is only available in limited quantities though so you might have a harder time tracking it down.

The game requires a monthly subscription but each edition comes with 30 days of free game time. The subscription can be paid for with credit or debit cards as well as alternate services like PayPal and WebMoney. Select retailers will also sell game time cards. Players can get a discounted rate on the subscription by setting 90-day or 180-day payment cycles.

If you're new to the game, be sure to check out our newbie guide before you dive in. In the guide, we answer many of the most common problems that new players will encounter during their journey. For example, we'll explain how to pick locks or keep your bags from overflowing with trash.

ZeniMax celebrated the launch of the game with another cinematic trailer. This trailer, entitled "Siege" continues the storyline from the first and second cinematic videos for the game.