Oblivion had, arguably, better faction stories than Skyrim. But beyond that, Skyrim is a MUCH deeper game than Oblivion could ever hope to be. The idea that they are dumbing down each game is silly notion. Bethesda added many things to Skyrim that people had to mod into Oblivion.

Could you provide some examples, examples of deep things that were added to the series from Oblivion to Skyrim?

We can argue semantics over what's "deep", but duel-wielding, followers and romance were all very popular modding territory in both Morrowind and Oblivion.

Every body always argues over the new bells and whistles but really at the core I would argue that all is the same.

For instance, the premise of this certain game is that you are a destined hero of unknown origin undertaking many quests in a troubled land. This troubled land is a mountainous region filled with a variety of caves and ruins each about an arrow shot apart that are popluated with hostile people, creatures, and randomly placed items.

The land also contains civilized towns and cities filled with up to ten different races of people, each with their own background to some extent or another. Some of these people will have you quest for them, which usually involves diving into the caves or ruins previously mentioned. You can use combat, magic, stealth, or a comination of your choosing to advance your cause. Many of these people can train your skills at ridiculous prices and the best income is earned through killing. You will find yourself battling all too common foes of extremely varied strengths, the later the battle the longer.

You are at firsrt ecstatic over a new structure but fill glum once you see that same structure many times again in different areas. You may take a long moment to find a name for yourself but learn that outside of writing it is hardly used. You may take an even longer moment to make a name for yourself only to find that the world you tried to save was never truly in danger - and it was so for an indefinite amount of time.

And although you have accepted that this place is genuine, you cannot help but feel that everything you observe was there as if placed exclusively for you and your ambitions, yet the end of your destiny is the same no matter the path you took.

You can achieve many things, but never contentment.

Now out of the last three ES games that are wildly debated, which one am I talking about?

I hate Oblivion, but it took Skyrim to make me realise why. Oblivion is actually really close to being what I want from an elder scrolls game. Barring some appalling design choices regarding Cyrodiil and the depth problems inherent with voiced dialogue there's a lot to enjoy in Oblivion. I must've clocked up well over a 1000 hours on that game without mods, I just find the changes frustrating. On the other hand, Skyrim is a great game, but it's not a game I'm interested in playing. The latest TES installment has moved so far away from what I would consider to be traditional rpg that I can't even get angry about it. I played 70 hours, had fun, but I have absolutely no inclination to load up the game again.

Ouch.

Now, to be honest, Morrowind (whether it fits the bill or not) did not leave me feeling that way. Given your description however, it seems impossible to extricate any of the last three from the situation.

Don't get me wrong. I love each of these games in the third, fifth, fourth order. I just wish Bethdesda would actually as they say, 'reinvent the wheel.' Instead it seems they stick to the profitable formula: rearrange the spokes and give it a new paint job (Mechanics and graphics).