Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

[alhoon]

You need a very good computer for Oblivion.
Had it come out the next year, its recommended hardware would still be hard to find.

[Ronia Sun]

For the record, I have now picked up a copy of Oblivion. My computer can *barely* manage it, and then only on the lowest graphics setting. I plan to save money and buy a card that can handle it...

My review: Thus far, it is a great game. It does not have the slow start that turned me off Morrowind, which is a plus. You can jump right into the main storyline.

Horses are back. Halleluja. The other main factor that really annoyed me about Morrowind was the tedious means of travel. Instant travel between main cities is back, too, which is nice if you dont' feel like making the trek in "real time".

It has Patrick Stewart's voice in it, albeit only for a short time and, even better in my book, it has Sean Bean in it. Two voices I could listen to reading *anything*, even shopping lists...And Sean Bean's character is pretty cool, too, even if, so far as I can tell with the low graphics setting, he doesn't look a thing like Sean Bean. (Which is, to my mind, a real pity... )

PC customization is MUCH better than it was in Morrowind. Even on the lowest graphic setting I can still get a character that looks pretty much as I want it to. They also improved on the facial features/body structure, which means that your PC looks like a proper sort of person in everything except jumping.

The combat system is interesting. Not as visually pretty as, say, Knights of the Old Republic, but better than the "whack, whack" of earlier Bethesda games. Since it doesn't rely on digital dice, you can actually block a blow with your shield rather than praying you made the roll so you can block with your shield...

Overall, a lovely game, with an interesting storyline. I'm not done yet by a long shot, but what I've seen thus far impresses me. Alas, that it's almost to much for my computer--which is not obsolete by any means...Kudos to Bethesda, though, for giving you a broad range of graphics settings so that most recent machines have a shot at handling it. (Unlike, say, Lucasarts, who make life very difficult for those of us with computers more than a year old...)

[Coan]

For those few who don't know, you can also buy Oblivion for the Xbox 360 (which avoids the PC upgrade issue to some extent).

I'd just like to point out that after playing Oblivion for a while my enthusiasm for it has worn down. The battles seem to be fairly similar throughout the game (no doubt due to the scaling system). NWN2 is the 'new thing' for me now.

[Jack of Tears]

I love the game's new stealth system - it feels very remniscent of Thief. (which makes sense, seeing as one of the thief developers worked on it - as an aside, if you haven't played Thief III: Deadly Shadows, you must! It is a superb game with a fantastic setting and some very dark elements. This is one of my favorite games of all time. [falling behind Planescape: Torment, Balder's Gate 2, American McGee's Alice and the KotoR series])

The assassin guild quests are some of the most interesting and enjoyable in the game. My only problem is, since the monsters scale to your level, should you find yourself up against a fight you can't overcome, it does no good to go out and train up a few levels before coming back, since it will be just as difficult the next time. This is actually what killed the game for me. As an assassin thief I am not a combat powerhouse and some of my later missions became unconquerable - a situation which will never be remediable by gaining more experience.

Otherwise, the world is huge and there is a great deal to do. The guilds all have missions one may engage in, so you always have some direction. I also hear the main plot is pretty interesting ... though I never really got myself involved with it.

The social interaction system is very interesting as well ... I love the fact that you can gain missions just by overhearing people discuss something and that while your social skill level is important, there is still the mini-game to make it interesting. (though after a few hundred uses the social and lock picking mini-games start to lose their luster)

[Ronia Sun]

I just finished the "main quest" of Oblivion. The story, especially it's conclusion, is fantastic, full of drama and very cinematic. It ranks up there with Hordes of the Underdark or KOTOR for "Damn Cool Story."

I have to agree, though, that the monsters leveling with you is a definite pain. My character is an acrobat, not a tank, and finds many fights difficult because her experience does her no good. Overall, though, still a very enjoyable game.

(And how cool is it that, if you're sneaky enough, you can actually end up with a unicorn for a mount [albeit temporarily, since the damn thing tends to wander off.])