Some odd, to the degree of shocking, news has come out from Zenimax Online Studios. From an interview with Digital Spy it has become apparent that Elder Scrolls Online might have less to do with the franchise than previously thought.

Game director Matt Firor has told Digital Spy that while players can zoom in and out from third person to first person perspective, there will be no weapons and hands shown in the first person mode. As explained by Matt "The main difference here is that in an online RPG, enemies can spawn in a 360 degree radius around you, especially in PvP - so third-person view mode, if you use it, will give you a far greater ability to see enemies behind you. In many situations, this will be the difference between living and not surviving a combat sequence."

This is indeed sad news for those wishing for an MMO to come along and change the MMO genre, as Zenimax seems to be sticking to the classic MMO game design. How they expect to succeed then where so many MMOs have gone before and failed is anyone's guess. Regardless of odd design choices, the beta is still on-going and those who want to can sign up for the beta here.