The Elder Scrolls Online was announced on May 3rd, 2012 and had been in development for over five years before it was announced. Since that announcement, a number of details have surfaced that shed some light on the MMORPG, but gamers are still a bit cloudy on the specifics. Game Director Matt Firor subjected himself to a media scrum in an effort to clear up some of the gray areas. That said, it's apparent what ZeniMax Online Studios' clause is on discretion, as the answers Firor comes up with turn more towards development and away from gameplay.
In between the discussion concerning first-person action, development and other parts of the game, brand new gameplay clips are displayed. While none of them are particularly revealing, some of the environments shown are absolutely dazzling.
One of the more interesting points Firor makes is in response to a question fielded regarding how The Elder Scrolls Online would take away from the results of other MMOs. In a summarized version, Firor states that because their development team comes from such a wide and varied background, that they really didn't need to take any one thing from a specific MMO. He continues, discussing the fact that building the game has been based on The Elder Scrolls franchise and their creativity alone. Whether or not the title will prove to be as unique as Firor says won't be known until the game comes out, but the series definitely has a rich lore to draw from.
The Elder Scrolls Online is currently slated for a late 2013 release, but with MMORPGs, things can change very quickly. Keep your eyes on Gameranx for the latest.