I have told my story so many times in other threads, I'll just tell the short version this time. But I've enjoyed reading other peoples' long (or short) versions in this thread.
I was bored one night. October 24, 2008...I still remember the date. I was a Playstation 2 player, and those of you who were also on PS2 know how limited the medieval "RPG" type games were on that system. I didn't want to try the next Final Fantasy, didn't want to play Legends of Dragoon (again), didn't want to play any of the other titles I'd already done (again).
The RPGs and "RPGs" on PS2 are linear, for the most part. I wanted something more like a medieval version of Grand Theft Auto, with swords and magic instead of guns and bombs. But plenty of exploration opportunities. I had previously played GTA: Vice City for awhile. Though this isn't really my type of game, the freedom to roam anywhere is what I was looking for.
So I went on a gaming reviews site and tried to see if there were any new games on PS3. Figured if there was anything that fit the mold of a "medieval GTA" I'd get this game AND a PS3. So that's how I discovered TES4: Oblivion.
Since my discovery of this awesome game, lots of people have told me that Oblivion is actually the worst in the series, but to me it is still several steps up from any game I had previously tried! Oh, and I don't have a fave. I enjoy Oblivion and Skyrim equally, and am finally about to finish the Main Quest of Arena pretty soon.
Hmm.... well, so much for the "short version".