ZeniMax Online Studios has delayed The Elder Scrolls Online: Waking Flame and Update 31 on consoles to, "ensure a smooth and stable launch." Fans playing on PC, Mac, or Stadia can still expect big changes on August 23, but everyone on Xbox and PlayStation will need to wait until September 8.
Waking Flame is the next big update to ZeniMax's sprawling MMO, bringing plenty of new Blackwood-related content to its millions of players. Delays for big releases are nothing new to the gaming community this year, and it doesn't come as much of a surprise that the team wants a bit more time to perfect its launch.
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"By separating our PC/Mac/Stadia and console releases by an additional week, we hope to publish a more stable build, potentially allowing us to include additional fixes before the new content goes live," ZeniMax announced. "This change will also help alleviate stress on some of our support teams, allowing us to better focus on each individual release."
The Elder Scrolls Online: Waking Flame might get all the fanfare, but Update 31 is rather impressive, too. Specifically, players will see further graphical improvements on new-gen consoles – making Tamriel look better than ever on Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5.
If you're thinking about jumping into the MMO, you'll be happy to hear it's on sale across a variety of storefronts. It's possible to find the base game at a massive 60% discount, while the brand-new Blackwood Chapter is also seeing a price cut of 35%.
The Blackwood Chapter didn't radically change up ESO's expansion format – that is, you still have a new zone, a new questline, and plenty of auxiliary activities to conquer – but it did offer up the new Companion System. This gives players an NPC follower that will assist in battle and can even jump into Dungeons and other content if your party isn't full. They're not about to help you conquer Trials by yourself, but they're a great addition to the game and a boon for solo players.
The Waking Flame and Update 31 have been delayed on console until September 8 – so knock out as much content in Blackwood as you can before even more challenges are thrown your way next month.
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