Non-stop action, world-changing surprises and a "giant rhino beetle" characterize the new Markarth DLC for The Elder Scrolls Online.

The Elder Scrolls Online's year-long Skyrim saga is almost over, but it's not going to come out smoothly. According to Creative Director Rich Lambert, the action “boils” from the moment you start looking for the prologue. This one is available now for free before the Markarth DLC releases on November 2nd for PC, Mac, and Stadia, and on November 10th for PS4 and Xbox One.

The one-year Dark Heart of Skyrim event ends with a new DLC pack with The Reach as a new zone, a new solo arena and an action-packed narrative ending. "The story begins immediately with the plot. Out of finding the prologue, we're bringing back a character you knew and loved from the base game. He's got a secret he's not very proud of, and it's nice of changes . Your world turned upside down, "jokes Lambert.

"The main story of this DLC is the culmination of the Dark Heart of Skyrim story," says Lambert. “That being said, a lot of the side story of this DLC is focused on the reach and the people ... Up until this point we've only portrayed the people in reach as the villains. So now you can see the other side of learning about theirs Culture, they learn a little about what they do and their beliefs. "

As you may have guessed by now, the new area featured to Markarth is The Reach, one of nine wineries in Skyrim, the capital of which is the title town of Markarth. Of course, you can recognize Markarth's foundation and structure in The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim, but Lambert says the creative team "doubled the dark, Gothic vibe" that set the tone for the Stonethorn DLC. So expect the same horror vibe to color the ESO version of The Reach as well as the Markarth DLC more generally. Lambert tried to remember the exact name of one of the new monsters in Markarth, but gave in and proudly called it "a giant rhinoceros beetle," which sounds terrible.

"The Reachmen themselves are a very wild people. So when you step into Markarth, the first time you'll think, 'hey, this is very, very different from what I saw in Skyrim.' The main structures don't change because it's this gigantic stone fortress built into the side of a mountain, but The Reach decorated it to their liking (I'll say "decorated" in quotation marks) so there are fetishes everywhere now very wild looking place And that theme carried over to the entire DLC, "says Lambert.

The new solo arena is called Vateshran Hollows, whose multiple boss fights, unlockable paths and "powerful and hidden secrets" serve to push the players to their limits. After thinking about it a little, Lambert tells me that Vateshran Hollows is going to be his "favorite piece of content we've done." And as if that weren't exaggerated enough in itself, he describes the last wing of the arena as "that really cool, epic, wacky boss fight".

Lambert also took the time to preview a new in-game event that will arrive at ESO on September 23rd. Focused on the Antiquities system that was added to the game in Greymoor, Lost Treasures of Skyrim tasked players with digging up treasures and rewards players with a new house as the grand prize. I don't know about you, but my ESO gold house is smaller than the closet in my old dorm, so you can bet I'll be there at the next event. Later in October we will see the in-season Witches Festival, followed by the intrepid celebration in November and finally the New Life Festival to usher in the New Year.

Expect 10 to 15 hours of new story content in Markarth, on top of the new arena and world bosses. Of course, there is also a long list of common bug fixes and quality of life improvements. The most important of these is a new system that allows you to deconstruct and recreate raw item sets to your liking.

What's next for The Elder Scrolls Online after The Dark Heart of Skyrim, I don't know. But you can always follw G4mmo.com to know more latest news. Lambert simply told me that the studio "is already working on next year's chapter". Until then, one last adventure of the snowy, gothic and vampire kind awaits you.