Parents' Guide to The Elder Scrolls Online: Blackwood

While there isn't a ton of radically new content added to this expansion, adding companions that help with your dungeon crawling improves the time exploring Tamriel. Expanding the lore of any MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game) is always a good thing, and having companions to fight with or take the focus off your player in the midst of battle so you can target enemy weaknesses or gain support in a fight is even nicer. Blackwood tracks some familiar territory in terms of game mechanics: the main quest line and side quests help with gaining experience points and acquiring campanions that will fight by your side and can be customized to fit your personal gameplay style. The side chatter from the companions is a nice touch, and, quite frankly, there are elements of the new zones that are candy for the eyes. Plus. the plot of the adventure is very good, and there are enough side quests to keep players busy for hours. Blackwood is the fifth expansion for ESO, and like any expansion, it adds content to keep players engaged. But the downside is the formulaic nature of the content. Blackwood doesn't really offer new mechanics, expand with new classes, or provide a slew of new abilities. At least there are a lot of new armor sets that are nice looking, along with new pets and mounts.

The visuals and sounds of the game are wonderful, and the story arc will pull players through the zones. Blackwood could have offered a bit more instead of the same quest-driven formula, but when you have a winning formula, why change it? This is a worthy addition to the ESO franchise. It gives players more control over their option to explore dungeons by themselves with the help of customized computer driven companions, and provides some additional context to the Oblivion tale.