Every time I play a TES game or watch a "Let's Play" episode on youtube, I always can't help but think just what an awesome series this has been and will be. Skyrim
is almost here, and it'll add to the legacy. There may be more popular games out there, but a Call of Duty game will never get you the same feeling that 100+ hours on
an Oblivion character will. And every time I hear the guards yell, "Stop right there criminal scum!" or see the Adoring Fan, and think back to all the times I went through,
I always remember that one thing was always the same: The Elder Scrolls.

Do you ever feel that feeling that I can best describe as Elder Scrolls pride?

No offense meant, but not really. These games were made by development teams that changed over time, for a company that went through many owners. I don't find Oblivion very much like Morrowind, and the changes overall were detrimental to the result. (Which doesn't mean you're wrong. After all, this is only a matter of opinion, and you did ask for those of other people who have played through the games, right?) In my opinion, what deserves a whole lot of praise are the modders who work for nothing, do elaborate projects, and also provide gamesas with some of the more beneficial directions they've chosen to go into for successive releases. Call it mod pride, if you want. I'm all for that.

As for other games, there are several I play with fondness over time for their qualities. I'm glad you enjoy something as much as Oblivion, but have you tried other games of a similar kind to see if you just might enjoy them, as well? Morrowind? Gothic 1 and 2? Arx Fatalis? Two Worlds II? The Might and Magic series? Ultima VI and VII? The Magic Candle series? I would never diss your enjoyment of decent entertainment, but I am curious how broad your experience is, and what makes Oblivion special for you.

I agree its the modders that make this enjoyable. Lets face it while the Elder Scrolls is a good game. But other games that are like the Elder Scrolls such as World of Warcraft, Everquest, and other great games are just as good. But in my humble opinion its the mods for the Elder Scrolls that improve on things that should have come with the release of the game. Like a example of the clothes that came with Oblivion seem like they were rushed through programming to complete. Robes only seem to come in 4 colors and with mods mages have more to choose from. For the bow and arrow users because of the mods they have more types of bows to choose from. Even the fighters have more armor and weapon designs to choose from. But we also have to thank the Bethesda Softworks for allowing the tools and makeing a game where the modders can do their magic with mods.

I would like to say a very special thank you to the modders that work very hard on trying to improve the gameplay. Without everyone of you this game would have very little replay value and even roleplay value........
Also a special thank you goes to Bethesda for allowing everyone to help improve the game....

TES is the opium of the masses. :tes: I find that playing TES is almost a zen like experience at times. :angel:

I wholeheartedly disagree. I′ve played vanilla all these years (except for Spell Delete and Forest Friend) and I find it has very much RP value without mods. I do agree that the modders deserve credit, but without the vanilla game they would have nothing to work with :thumbsup:

I have to agree with this. Since it's release I have always played Oblivion vanilla due to the fact that I only play console. I feel like i'm not really missing out since I have Lissa's personality and spirit, which makes the game too much fun
However, once I decide to get it on PC (if ever) I am sure to use a few RP engancing mods, texture pack mods and other little things, but nothing to overly change the game. I find its perfect how it is

But with respect, how can you tell that you aren't missing out unless you're aware of the range of mods, and tried them? I mean, if you played a heavily-modded game for, say, ten hours at least, then decided to go back to vanilla Oblivion, stating that you weren't missing anything, I would disagree from my personal point of view, but understand and agree you were entitled to your own perspective on this. But you can't know what you're missing, if you've never tried what you're missing--and in this case, we're talking about 6000+ mods with remarkable depth that cover the gamut of everything in the game. I'm not suggesting you do this, only that you can't factually know what you're missing.

All I′m saying is that I′ve played Oblivion for over four years unmodded, and I still continue adventuring without them. That has to indicate RP value in vanilla OB.
I′m not saying I don′t want mods, just saying you don′t need them to RP

Complete agreement. I'd say as much about a number of other non-linear RPGs, too. Have you tried Morrowind, or the Gothic games?

Morrowind was classic and awesome, Oblivion lost about half of that but was much more modern. You can't say Oblivion was bad but Morrowind cannot be equalled. I've only played the Vanilla of Morrowind and Oblivion, as I'm on console :turtle:

What I would give for the MGE mod and the animation mods on console you don't even know...

I disagree. I like Oblivion more than I like Morrowind, and before someone gives me flak (not you, Renix), no, I'm not a brain dead, FPS-playing casual action junkie who's never played an RPG, before. The truth is actually quite the opposite and I've played all four of the Elder Scrolls games in the main series... of which I think Oblivion is the best. My experience with RPGs ranges through all different types and this broad, nearly undefinable genre is my favorite of all game genres. I've never even touched an FPS and I know I wouldn't care to play most of them.

To the OP, yes, I am proud of the series, sometimes, but these forums have a funny way of being about bashing another Elder Scrolls game and insulting other members of the same fanbase, which does not reinforce pride but invokes anger (again, not referring to anything involving you, Renix; it's just a thought that came up the moment I saw Morrowind/Oblivion comparisons in this thread). Needless to say, such divides definitely diminish what I think of the series even though it's the fanbase, not the games, themselves, that spoil it, for me.

:biggrin: Can we give you the official title of "Oblivion's Defender".

I agree, though, with you, I'm tired of the stereotyping of Oblivion fans, and it's my favorite as well

Would you agree though that the part that made it good was basically the fact that there were new features from the overall time period it came out in? (I.e. voice acting, animations, graphics, etc.) I mean, in my opinion, Oblivion would've been the greatest game ever if it had kept the features from Morrowind in addition to the ones added in Oblivion.

I suppose I would've been happy if Oblivion just had a market system like Morrowind <3 trading

No, I wouldn't. Do I like those new things? Of course. However, I vastly prefer Oblivion's quest design, the separation of music into proper categories (the same music played everywhere in Morrowind, but Oblivion has songs specifically for towns, the wilderness, and dungeons), buyable houses, traps and darkness in dungeons, fast-travel/running speed (Moving around in Morrowind was not fun, challenging, or immersive, it was tedious and repetitive.), horses, Oblivion's setting (I prefer vibrant, beautiful, and peaceful settings to barren, ash-covered, and desolate ones), and Oblivion's combat, stealth, and magic systems (I don't have the missing problem with the combat, I have the "I only click until they're dead with no requirement to pay much attention or exercise ANY ability" problem; I love not having to switch to a different mode in order to use magic; Oblivion's stealth system actually functions and has the capability of being fun.). There are aspects I prefer about Morrowind, but not enough to make it the better game, in my eyes.

Simply yes. I've yet to try Morrowind or Arena or any other TES, but I'm sure I'd like them, too.

I'd been looking for a decent RPG on console for years and years....an RPG that actually lets you explore and create your own charcter, taht is, instead of use a pre-designed char who walks thru a world full of invisible walls. Found an article on Oblivion in October 2008, and literally bought my PS3 within the hour after reading it, just so I could try this awesome-sounding game. .

Tried Everquest some years back, as well. Everquest is awesome too, especially with customization and materials, plus it has that old-fashioined XP system I grew up with. So I'd have to say that's my 2nd fave RPG. But it's a multiplayer game online, wheras Oblivion is distinctly MINE. When I mess around with Oblivion, I'm not the 26th person that day to take part in whatever quest I'm doing.



+1

Vanilla gamer here 2 1/2 years! :cheers: :clap:

What can I say? I agree to this

I agree with you. I play on console and don't have the comfort of mods, but I still play Oblivion and Morrowind quite a lot. TES is the best :tes:
Also I agree with Seti18 that OB is the best game(IMO), but I love the ash-covered and desolate setting just as much as the vibrant, beautiful, and peaceful setting of OB. I'm also going to love the rugged, harsh settig of Skyrim. Yeah, I'm not very picky with settings as long as it isn't JRPG(just my opinion, I'm NOT flaming or bashing those who like it).

I do feel that pride when I play or hear of a TES game. Mostly its the music that gets to me and brings me back to the land of Tamriel and I want to play it all over again

Oblivion is my favorite game and in my opinion the best game of this generation. Played it for 4 years now and I own it on all systems. Its the only game out there where I feel the need to buy every copy I see. I can't really say I feel pride because it is TES, since I started with Oblivion and the previous games are hard to get into.

I agree with you Seti, the "rivalry" between the Morrowind lovers and the Oblivion lovers.
I myself am firmly in the Morrowind category, but I won't bash Oblivion because it's "not as good". That's merely my own opinion, I will of course, state my opinion and say why I believe it, but I'm not going to shout at someone because our opinions differ.

Theres always going to be heat about which is better...I try to look at it like the developers said...They start over with each game they make and in a sense its a whole different experience. To have a Morrowind vs Oblivion battle seems irrelevant, it would be like judging Fallout3 vs Oblivion....same creators similar gameplay but completely different. The creators are limited to the technology of the time. When you compare for instance Oblivions battle system to Morrowinds, there is no argument that Oblivions is better but when you compare Morrowinds style, atmosphere etc Oblivion doesn't match up. That is because the developers had to make a game that suited its time. Morrowind could not stand a completely interactive world with voice overs a stable and complex battle system etc. So they made it more of a RPG rather than an Action RPG. just my opinion ....

I understand your points, but I still feel it's a matter of opinion.

For example, I disagree with you that Oblivion's combat is better than Morrowind's as I feel it relies too heavily on player skill rather than character skill. I loved the possibility of failure in Morrowind. It made me feel like my characters where actually learning, rather than being great from the start.

Of course, both games have certain features I prefer. I just prefer more from Morrowind, and the setting, lore etc.

Oh I agree both had their charm and to me Morrowind felt more of a DnD style of battling as you said you have the possibility to miss your targets depending on stats. To me thats a great idea I love DnD. My point was though that the argument against the two is futile and pointless giving that they are two completely different games in itself. Yes they are squeals and whatnot but its blatantly obvious the two are different in their own ways.

When I was younger and played Morrowind before Oblivion came out, I was practically screaming at my T.V. wondering why, when the sword clearly touches the enemy, why it odes not hit them. I probably would have enjoyed Morrowind much, much more had it been the other way around. I have an Oblivion map on my wall (Devotion!) and a Morrowind map as well (Pure TES Devotion XD). :intergalactic:

Oblivion is truly an amazing game, I think the only game better is Fallout 3, but because I found the world too depressing I put way more of my hours into the gorgeous rolling hills of Cyrodiil. 1000+ hours of Vanilla Oblivion and I still haven't done it all :thumbsup: