So what can I really say that other people in this particular camp haven't about this fucking hilarious, broken, enthrallingly charming game? Bethesda will (likely) never make a video game that is as good as Morrowind again. Oblivion is my favorite.
Walk into a damn tavern in the Imperial City in the evening and just sit down. It'll take approximately 5 seconds before you're in tears. Those mudcrabs are filthy creatures. Also, those boycotts led by those syndicates of wizards on those Imperial goods. This is a game where so much has aged 'terribly' great. I do not get the same sense of amusement in any other Bethesda game that I do from this one.
This is also a game that aged ... terribly awful even on release! I don't have the patience to explain the Leveling + Level Scaling but just google that and you'll find threads dating back to the stone age in bewilderment that certainly the team was cracked out making this one that they didn't take into account how horribly fucking awful it is. There's various ways to mitigate it but it sucks.
This is also a game where it feels quest after quest generally has a real interesting concept/narrative around it. Yeah, the guild quests are often seen as the games highlight and yeah, I do feel they suffer from the Skyrim problem of wanting to give players no opportunity to miss out on content so you kinda become the master of all, but when they are as compellingly interesting as they are, it's hard to be too bothered. Add in a bunch of super amusing Daedric quests, and general MISC quest around the world that rival any game. There's a particular side quest involving a painting that to this day, I might be out buying some groceries or at the bar grabbing a drink and it 'pop' into my head and I'm like aahhhh, that Oblivion. What a game.
The world gets flak for being more 'generic LOTR-inspired fantasy' and sure, it's not the volcanic alien wasteland of the former but the almost atherial quality of the lighting, the high-saturated pallete of the world lends a real charm to the rolling hills and forests. There's an almost soft haze to everything and I adore it. God-awful potato faces and all.
Another favorite is, while I love the slow-burn deliberate pacing of the narrative of Morrowind, I also really appreciate in Oblivion that you're not the 'Chosen One'. Sir Patrick Stewart certainly saw you had a very important role to play in the days ahead, but it's not you who is ultimately the big hero. I have only about 5 hours in Arena and around 20 in Daggerfall so I'm unsure, but I feel Bethesda has never really done that before this and certainly not after. Praise be to Martin!
Add on top of that, one of my all-time favorite expansions to any game with Shivering Isles. If you ask someone who their favorite Daedric Prince is and they answer back in 0.5 seconds SHEEEEOOOOGORATH! There's a damn good reason for it. It involves cheese.
It's a game for people in the chess club. Who's laughing now?
Walk into a damn tavern in the Imperial City in the evening and just sit down. It'll take approximately 5 seconds before you're in tears. Those mudcrabs are filthy creatures. Also, those boycotts led by those syndicates of wizards on those Imperial goods. This is a game where so much has aged 'terribly' great. I do not get the same sense of amusement in any other Bethesda game that I do from this one.
This is also a game that aged ... terribly awful even on release! I don't have the patience to explain the Leveling + Level Scaling but just google that and you'll find threads dating back to the stone age in bewilderment that certainly the team was cracked out making this one that they didn't take into account how horribly fucking awful it is. There's various ways to mitigate it but it sucks.
This is also a game where it feels quest after quest generally has a real interesting concept/narrative around it. Yeah, the guild quests are often seen as the games highlight and yeah, I do feel they suffer from the Skyrim problem of wanting to give players no opportunity to miss out on content so you kinda become the master of all, but when they are as compellingly interesting as they are, it's hard to be too bothered. Add in a bunch of super amusing Daedric quests, and general MISC quest around the world that rival any game. There's a particular side quest involving a painting that to this day, I might be out buying some groceries or at the bar grabbing a drink and it 'pop' into my head and I'm like aahhhh, that Oblivion. What a game.
The world gets flak for being more 'generic LOTR-inspired fantasy' and sure, it's not the volcanic alien wasteland of the former but the almost atherial quality of the lighting, the high-saturated pallete of the world lends a real charm to the rolling hills and forests. There's an almost soft haze to everything and I adore it. God-awful potato faces and all.
Another favorite is, while I love the slow-burn deliberate pacing of the narrative of Morrowind, I also really appreciate in Oblivion that you're not the 'Chosen One'. Sir Patrick Stewart certainly saw you had a very important role to play in the days ahead, but it's not you who is ultimately the big hero. I have only about 5 hours in Arena and around 20 in Daggerfall so I'm unsure, but I feel Bethesda has never really done that before this and certainly not after. Praise be to Martin!
Add on top of that, one of my all-time favorite expansions to any game with Shivering Isles. If you ask someone who their favorite Daedric Prince is and they answer back in 0.5 seconds SHEEEEOOOOGORATH! There's a damn good reason for it. It involves cheese.
It's a game for people in the chess club. Who's laughing now?
Piparooni
3 months ago