fail as badly as the french revolution? the french revolution was just bloody, it was quite successful in revolutionizing the government though. There were a few nut-jobs that took power (Robespierre) and there were a lot of torture and murder, but in a videogame that's kinda what i want to see.

Nothing like Robespierre please, that guy was the definition of crazy. Tenth grade European history all over again...I already stated it would depend on the new empire.....but the chance to slaughter dirty lizard people and make some argonian boots..the empire is looking good now.

I'd side with order anyday. (empire)
But I don't think we will be able to pick sides, I reckon the path will be decided for us ala oblivion.
Its like saying if you sided with the mythic dawn, it'd change the world way too much and that would result in a ending like fallout.

they could just pull another alternate endings like in daggerfell and pull another warp of the west (the north in this case)

i wonder if its even still the mede empire ugh it kinda svcks that we gotta wait so long for the game then we play it we got to patch the last 200 years together

I really hope they don't make one side "Evil" and the other side "Good". If they do this i will be extremely disappointed.

Like people have said though, It's too tough to make a decision on which side I would choose right now. Not enough info.

I made a political map of Skyrim. I hope you find it useful.
http://i.imgur.com/eK2lM.png

My first character's a dunmer, so i'll probably gravitate to the east with my kind, and with the rebels my first play through.

Before I get into globalism versus libertarian philosophy, my first point is that the Empire is crumbling - they shouldn't be trying to expand to Skyrim before consolidating Cyrodile into a strong nation again. Over-extention before a nation is ready is a sure way to ensure ruin.


Now, on to the philosophical elements.

Globalist agendas subscribe to the progressive movement's doctrine - that a single, powerful, untoppable government that can lay down thousands of laws can ensure peace and safety. They view competition as wasteful and dangerous, partly because such a thing could threaten the Party in power's rule, which is usually composed of aristocrats despite their advocation for equality. Much of these views stem from a fear of chaos, and that surpressing chaos will lead to safety.
The Empire subscribes to these views to a certain degree.

Libertarian agendas subscribe to a combination of John Locke and Darwinian principles - that freedom, personal responsibility, and competition are all desired attributes in any nation. They view competition as particularly useful, as a rival will force you to push yourself past your comfort zone, and will show you your weaknesss. As such, the Separatists in Skyrim will likely be more in line with these philosophies - more or less. Much of their views stem from viewing chaos as an amenable force - much touted is the fact that the universe would never had collesceled into what we know it as today without that essential chaos, a tiny imbalance that caused a gravitational landslide, eventually leading to the formation of stars. They often view order-imposing forces as the Empire as harmful in the long run - such rule of law may provide temporary safety, at the price of inviting stagnation. Similarly, often pointed out is that smaller, sovereign nations, are more likely to be able to overturn a wasteful and corrupt regime. A wasteful and corrupt empire, on the other hand, is very hard to fix or topple. Any star wars fan knows this ;P

Whichever you tend to lean towards will likely determine which side you will choose in Skyrim - the Unifying Order of the Empire, or the Ever-Adapting Freedom Fighters of the Separatists. Chaos or Control, Evolution or Stagnation, Natural Sovereigty or Imposed Rule of Law.