The first Elder Scrolls Online season is upon us, but I'm already more excited for the second

After 12 years, The Elder Scrolls Online is changing. The introduction of a new seasonal model is set to overhaul the very structure of the MMORPG, starting with Season Zero on Thursday April 2. To guide us into this brave new world is the 2026 ESO Seasons Direct, where executive producer Susan Kath and game director Nick Giacomini walk us through what Zenimax Online Studios has been cooking up for this first step into a new world. As good as the initial few months are looking, it's Season One that's actually got me lacing up my adventuring boots, with the promise of some proper old-school questing.

In case you missed out on the original announcement, seasons are "roughly 90-day windows that give us space to focus on what you've been asking for, like meaningful updates to combat, systems, and rewards, while still delivering the rich stories and exploration that make ESO feel like home." Seasonal content will be available for free to anyone who owns The Elder Scrolls Online, whether through a direct purchase or services like Game Pass.

For the rest of the year, that means we're looking at three of these cycles in total, fittingly branded Season Zero, Season One, and Season Two. The pair are also quick to emphasize that community discussion is at the heart of this new model. "Your feedback has shaped this year's features, like solo dungeons and our first version of challenge difficulty," Giacomini remarks. "And we're pushing boundaries with new, experimental offerings that expand ESO in ways you haven't seen before," like Season Zero's Night Market group PvE zone.

The Night Market is a limited-time event zone in the Daedric realm of Fargrave. It will be available for seven weeks, although associate design director Mike Finnigan notes that there are plans to bring it back if it proves popular, "or maybe add it permanently." The focus is on group play, although you don't have to squad up with others to take part if you don't want to. The zone is broken up into three distinct districts, with the Starlit Plaza acting as its central hub, and you'll need to uncover specific relics to access them.

You'll need to pick between three distinct NPC factions to serve while taking part in the Night Market, and your rewards at the end will be impacted by their overall success. The Ruckus are bruisers who rule through strength. The Glittering Goad runs the Night Market's stalls and auctions, pulling in grand sums of wealth. Finally, undercover group the Thousand Eyes specialize in being "the small, the insignificant, and thus, the unnoticed."

Season Zero will also introduce 'challenge difficulty' options, which allow you to manually crank up the challenge of overland experiences for your character, affecting the likes of delves and public dungeons, with more experience and gold up for grabs. Elsewhere, ZOS has introduced a new 'player experience' team, led by Kira Ross Schlitt, who says its main goal is to ensure "outdated systems and bugs" don't get in the way of your enjoyment. This was seen as part of the huge ESO Update 49, which rolled out for everyone at the start of March.

Action is at the forefront of the improvements coming in Season Zero and beyond. Combat design director Brian Wheeler says the new update will include "one more test" for large-scale PvP mode Vengeance. Towards the end of the season, a new Veterancy rewards system will reward you for taking part in PvP activities including Cyrodiil, Imperial City, and Battlegrounds. Level this up to earn "new titles, perks, unique weapon and armor visuals, and a few skill styles you won't get anywhere else in ESO."

You can expect updates across all classes over the coming seasons to "round out and modernize them in relation to the current state of the game," as seen for Dragonknight in Update 49. A new 'class mastery' skill line will be added for everyone that's designed to reinforce your capabilities across the tank, damage, and healing roles if you're someone who doesn't want to dip into subclassing.

The Season Zero event schedule starts on day one with the Anniversary Jubilee, which will run from Thursday April 2 until Wednesday April 15. The Night Market kicks off on Wednesday April 29 and lasts through Wednesday June 17, and it'll be followed by the return of Zeal of Zenithar, which is penned in between Wednesday June 24 and Wednesday July 8. Schlitt says the goal moving forward is to strike a balance between regular staples, all-new offerings, and refreshes for old favorites.

Moving into Season One, the Thieves Guild is back. The story will continue on from the original arc, but following a new cast in Glenumbra. Familiar face Quen is looking to expand operations into Daggerfall, but you'll quickly find yourself clashing with rivals the Koldane Cartel. There are plenty of new hiding spots, an item called Somnel Powder that can be used to stun guards and NPCs, and a mythic item that will gradually evolve as you progress. While you can jump straight in here, you'll get unique dialogue and options if you've completed the old questline.

Fan-favorite Daedric Prince of Madness Sheogorath also returns for Season One, and he's looking "to experience life as a mortal." Putting his powers down, he'll be found strutting around the world, visiting cheese festivals and engaging in "normal" activities that inevitably go awry. His appearances are essentially ESO's equivalent of the FF14 Hildibrand adventures, so you'll know if it's up your alley, but it's already sounding like a good time.

Favors are "a new take on daily quests," associate design director Jason Barnes reveals. These are a wide range of activities tied to specific characters and guilds, including some old faces. Each of these chains of favors has an ongoing story attached to it. For each day's quest completed, you'll push the quest forward, earning "something personal" upon finishing an arc. "They're kind of an homage to the old Hireling letters," Barnes says.

On top of this is another new system that I'm particularly enthusiastic about, Rumors. These can be thought of as "optional narrative scavenger hunts" that you'll encounter scattered across the world. You'll need to follow the trail laid by a series of clues in order to reach your prize. "It's old-school in the best way possible," Barnes teases. "There's no UI telling you exactly where to go or who to talk to." He compares it to the classic questing of Morrowind, which is right up my alley, although those who modded in quest markers for Skyrim's Stones of Barenziah will probably want to wait for the wiki update. Some even have secret endings, so don't assume you've finished them.

Dynamic world events are the next highlight of Season One. These are multi-stage activities that will scale in difficulty depending on how many people join them, and this one will be sticking around and evolving for the long term. Then we have the Sage's Vault, a "space between realms" that you'll learn about during the new Thieves Guild story. Getting inside requires finding Nowhere Keys, and the three rooms inside are randomized each time you go in. Expect a raid-like mix of puzzles, traps, stealth, and even traversal challenges.

"I know people are wondering if we're still doing new zones," Barnes acknowledges. Alongside everything listed for Season One, Zenimax is "really hard at work on a new zone that's built around a stronger sense of exploration and discovery, and not just a templated list of things to do."

Still not enough? On the more experimental side, we have the High Seas of Tamriel, an event scheduled for Season One that combines "naval combat elements, undersea exploration, and various oceanic encounters." That includes the likes of ship battles, deep-sea fishing, puzzles, and confrontations on the ocean floor. "No matter your playstyle, solo or group-based, this is poised to bring you fun and challenge," senior content producer Amethyst Begley remarks.

If you prefer going in alone, solo dungeons will take long-established favorites and reimagine them to work for single players (or those who bring NPC companions). The first two, Moon Hunter Keep and March of Sacrifices, will give you the opportunity to experience their stories and environments without the pressure of group play. If you're still a fan of ramping up the challenge, there will be optional extras you can toggle on to spice things up.

Speaking of tougher content, the last 2026 addition shown today is Crimson Veldt, the first base-game trial added to ESO in 12 years. It takes place in Hircine's Hunting Grounds, and will include the option to flip it to Hard Mode if you want to add even more wrinkles to this high-end test of group coordination and skill.

Kath and Giacomini couldn't leave us without one final teaser, however. Towards the end of the year, you'll see storms gathering across "some of the coldest, most wintery regions of Tamriel." These will build into early 2027, and as many guessed from teasers, "these disturbances will sweep through portions of Skyrim." Look forward to the first season of next year, when we'll be heading to "an iconic region never before explored in ESO." My money is on Winterhold.

The Elder Scrolls Online Season Zero, 'Dawn and Dusk,' begins on Thursday April 2. I already love how transparent this roadmap is, helping you keep track of exactly what's coming and when for the rest of 2026. There's a huge amount to look forward to, and I'm certainly curious to see whether Zenimax manages to strike the balance between keeping long-time players satisfied and finding ways to entice newcomers to Tamriel without them feeling too overwhelmed.