*Image Credit: ZeniMax Online Studios, The Elder Scrolls Online*

Since it launched back in 2014, The Elder Scrolls Online (ESO) has steadily grown into one of the MMO world’s most beloved (or sometimes hated if you aren’t a fan of the combat) games. Bethesda Softworks and ZeniMax Online Studios recently updated the official website with some big news: ESO has now crossed the 25 million player mark. That’s right, over 25 million adventurers have jumped into Tamriel to explore, fight, and carve out their own story in this beautiful but dangerous world.

On their website, Bethesda warmly invites newcomers to “join over 25 million adventurers” and dive into the unique Elder Scrolls experience where “you can go anywhere, do anything, and play your way — no subscription required.” It’s this approach that’s helped set ESO apart from the crowd. Unlike many of the most popular MMOs that rely on a subscription model in order to get a decent experience, ESO has kept things open with a buy-to-play system. Want to just buy the game and explore without any recurring fees? You can, and with loads of content available at that (hundreds of hours). And while there are paid expansions and an optional subscription with some perks available (like unlimited storage for crafting materials and some small 10% XP buffs), the core game remains subscription-free.

This new milestone didn’t happen overnight; ESO’s journey has been full of player milestones and expansions for almost a decade now. Here’s a look at the major points along the way:

10M players: November 2017
11M players: June 2018
13.5M players: June 2019
15M players: January 2020
18M players: March 2021
20M players: January 2022
21M players: July 2022
22M players: April 2023
24M players: January 2024

In less than a year, ESO jumped from 24 to 25 million players, and it’s no mystery why. Over the years, ZeniMax Online has kept players engaged with tons of new content, updates, and expansions — and all while preserving that classic Elder Scrolls vibe, at least for the most part, that fans love. From exploring different areas of Tamriel to partaking in thrilling in-game events and epic PvP sieges (a personal favorite aspect of the game for us), players always have something new to discover.

What has made ESO so successful?

First off we have to say up front that the Elder Scrolls is just simply a huge IP with loads of lore behind it, so naturally this MMO had a huge head start compared to others on that front with a loyal fanbase built up over many years, but outside of that it has managed to stand out by doing things its own way, and while some aren’t a fan of things like the combat system and animation canceling which does admittedly take some getting used to, a huge part of its appeal is the “play your way” design, where players aren’t limited by rigid class systems or locked paths. There’s no mandatory monthly fee either, setting it apart from games like World of Warcraft, which combines both a subscription and regular paid expansions. In ESO, you can explore, quest, and get lost in Tamriel without needing to constantly pay just to keep up.

If you were to take it from us, there is not a better time to play than now whether you’re a die-hard Elder Scrolls fan or just someone curious about exploring a huge online world without monthly fees alongside loads of cool expansions.