Final Fantasy 14 lost me with Dawntrail, but The Elder Scrolls Online promises to mend my broken heart with a return to Skyrim and more

As a longtime Warrior of Light, I've clocked over 5,000 hours in Final Fantasy 14 – and, yes, I'd benefit from touching grass. Hundreds of those hours have gone into hardcore raiding, while hundreds more have been spent tending to my cozy virtual home in the Lavender Beds. Since the ill-received Dawntrail expansion dropped, though, I've felt myself losing interest in Eorzea and all its previously enthralling charms.

With "Mostly Negative" reviews nearly two years post-launch, the DLC failed to pull me in (and apparently, many others) the same way its predecessors did – but my MMO fatigue may have found a cure in another genre gem: The Elder Scrolls Online. Although it never quite managed to lock me in for years at a time like Final Fantasy 14, it's a game I've come back to sporadically since first playing it as an Elder Scrolls-obsessed teen back in 2014.

I've timed my recent comeback perfectly, it seems. ZeniMax Online Studios' big 2026 roadmap is finally beginning to come to fruition – smaller updates, the new seasonal model, and all – and I'm afraid I've found myself properly "locked in," so to speak… the very way I was with Square Enix's own MMO for so, so long. I'm logging in daily without fail, finishing zones to 100% completion, and most importantly, looking forward to the future.

I used to be an adventurer like you

The Elder Scrolls Online is beginning to feel like an entirely new MMO, following Update 49 and the ever-exciting Season Zero: Dawn and Dusk commencing April 2. After attending an early preview of the 2026 Seasons Direct, I'm all the more certain of this – heck, I've spent the last few weeks grinding out my dailies in anticipation of the new Night Market event, set in the surreal Daedric realm of Fargrave.

Finally, there's something new to look forward to. As ZeniMax says, the studio wants "to get away from" just "sticking to the same formula" it's used for over a decade now. It's not simply another paid zone-themed expansion with some quests and side dungeons thrown in anymore; there's real incentive to do PvE content with events like the Night Market – one inclusive of all players with rewards dependent on choice – and PvP, too.

I'm not a Cyrodiil frequenter myself, but my more combative pals can't wait for the new Veterancy PvP progression gimmick. Meanwhile, Season Zero is keeping me on the edge of my own seat with more than just the Night Market. I'm hungry to explore Solo Dungeons, a coming system that has me especially intrigued as a fan of the Trust feature in Final Fantasy 14, and the first Elder Scrolls Online trial to grace the base game in 12 years.

I fight… because I must

Yes, 12 years. The Crimson Veldt, as ZeniMax is dubbing its new 12-player trial, is set in Hircine's Hunting Grounds. It's shaking up the usual lush forest we'd expect with canyons and savannas, though, further carving out The Elder Scrolls Online's future content as something unique – something even longtime fans of the RPG series (like myself) wouldn't expect. Best of all, much like the Night Market, it's accessible to every base game player.

Part of my move away from The Elder Scrolls Online came down to my inability to enjoy harder or more "late game" content with friends who didn't have ESO Plus memberships or every expansion ever unlocked. ZeniMax says it wants to make the MMO a game for all, and that's evident through the coming updates. Not only is much of the seasonal content open to the community in its entirety, but it also caters to every flavor of fan.

Take the High Seas of Tamriel event, for example – it offers something entirely new, a pirate experience of sorts with undersea exploration, swashbuckling, and naval combat reminiscent of Sea of Thieves. It's a delightful throwback to The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard (except, you know, hopefully fun), with a modern twist that leaves me wanting more out of areas like The Ruby Sea in Final Fantasy 14.

Wait, I know you

The reveal that most has me in an Elder Scrolls Online-shaped chokehold now, however, is its new zone – because, yes, ZeniMax states developers "still want to do new zones" and "still want to do content" akin to past great releases despite the seasonal update system. It's a return to Skyrim, and I couldn't be more thrilled. "There's definitely something very iconic about the area we're going to that you'll notice," the studio teases

What is that? ZeniMax doesn't say. Is it Whiterun? "We're not going to answer." There's no telling just where in Skyrim we'll be going in this mysterious new zone, and that's a big reason I'm so excited. Thoughts of a potential Second Era Winterhold, Mage's College and all, have filled my mind for days now, and I can't get enough of speculating.

I'm enjoying myself in The Elder Scrolls Online, and there's more to look forward to than only a zone this time around. This is different because it's not just Skryim – it's the Night Market, it's the Solo Dungeons, it's The Crimson Veldt, it's the High Seas of Tamriel event, and it's the mystery of what the new zone might harbor amid all of this other content. I might return to Eorzea someday, but for now, I'm happy being the Vestige again.

If you're excited for future Bethesda Game Studios gems, here's everything we know as of now about The Elder Scrolls 6 – whenever it may come.