The one thing I thought Oblivion lacked was a more involving world. Yes, it was pretty, and there was plenty of lore, but where was the life in the world I was investing so much time in? What did we have in regards to non hostile life in Oblivion? Deer, sheep and a few dogs. I want a more realistic ecosystem. Herds of herbivores grazing and packs of predators on the prowl motivated by hunger. What else would you like to see in the world of Skyrim going on around you as journey through it.

I agree

As an additional to my initial post, would it not make sense to have a lot of the wildlife motivated by hunger. In Oblivion every wolf attacked me on sight. How about if wolves only attacked if their hunger was desperately low. You'd still have things like trolls attack on sight because, well, they're just mean, but other wildlife is always motivated by how hungry they are. And would a wolf attack me on its own? They're pack animals, right? So perhaps a lone wolf would not attack.

They could just have a random aggression level assigned to some wildlife, making each encounter a little different.

I think an aggression level could work well in tandem with a hunger level.

Hopefully wolves won't always be hostile. Looks like they travel in packs now, and they look pretty skeery

They do? Source?

OMG, I can't believe how few of you are actually interested in this aspect of the Elder Scrolls world. I have to say I'm really disappointed that I'm on my own as far as these aspects of the game world are concerned.

Totally agree ... got quite excited by video on Hub about natural sound effects...gave me hope for a more natural world! Given the northern settings---could even have swarms of black flies, mosquitos and other bothersome insects. Finding a honey bee hive would be fun. Being occasionally startled by a grouse bursting out of its hiding place. A rabbit crossing the road in front of you or being chased by a fox or wolf. And ravens, please, ravens. A rich wildlife environment would so increase immersion.

Absolutely. This would add a lot to dynamic play whilst out in the world on the way to a quest. It's all about the journey, right?

IIt is all about the journey.

Even in the cities and towns...imagine the random sight of a rat, dodging into the crates and barrels or popping out when you open one. Cats chasing rats, knocking into NPCs. You might change street sides if a flock of pigeons were roosting above you, ha.

Flocks of geese migrating to announce the coming of winter. Spring songs and bird nests in spring and summer. Fawns! Even Heidi the opossum could hang from tree.

Ah, for interesting journeys.

The magazine, of course!

As for this if you got GI it mentions it somewhat here is a quote from page 54. The caption by the Mountain Giant reads: Enemies now have unique behavioral patterns. Not every monster you meet in the wilderness will immediately jump to the attack."

I agree. There aren't enough docile creatures, and the carnivores are far too aggressive. Some animals should always flee, others should be more territorial and attack only when the player nears them. Predators should only attack when hungry or when you get too close. Animals such as deer should flee, but fight to the death if wounded - for example if you shot a leg with an arrow, they would not be able to run and be forced to fight for their life.

I don't know anything about the Radiant AI... but I hope it's used for creatures as well. So that they look for food when they're hungry, rivers and lakes when thirsty, some return to their lairs at night while others only come out when the sun goes down. And they should also stay away from fires.

Some excellent ideas there, and surely a lot of those behavioural patterns can't be hard to program.

I don't role play, but this would help with immersion and perhaps inspire people to role play a bit more in Skyrim's world.

I want to see it as Lore-correct as possible.

I believe it is written in one of the Elder Scrolls that anyone who singlehandedly tries to change the world will be the bane of the wildlife's existence and the various fauna will try to slaughter him or her at every possible opportunity. :tongue:

some great ideas there, hope Beth has incorporated some like these. I too would like a more role playable sandbox with the npc/creatures existing for their own sake, not just to attack lil' ol' me. Oblivion showed a little of this when you stumbled upon a legion soldier fighting a troll on the road, or legion foresters culling deer or 'disturbed' indivifduals like Bralsa Andaren running around the imperial reserve finding animals to kill for sport or some sadistic pleasure. so, yeah, more natural stuff just going on around you would be great. seeing deer drinking from a pond, finding a bear just sleeping, shoals of fish, and like in 'O', some people just going about harmless activities - horse riding/farming/weapons training/arguing with neighbours etc. heard lots of bird twittering in 'O', never saw any birds!!!

Big Arctic Owls, just sat in trees watching you, for no reason other than to make you feel you are being watched.

All great ideas.

I sort of doubt we'll be seeing acutal seasons, but I'd like migratory birds etc as a hint of seasons changing nonetheless.



Very nice!

I'd like a much more invovled world... The only thing I didn't like about Oblivion is that you never forgot you were playing a vidoegame... I like forgetting for atleast 20 minutes.

The birds being heard but never seen was a big bug bear for me in Oblivion. Love your ideas.

Badprenup kindly quoted some info from Game Informer that seems to hint that Bethesda may be addressing some of these issues.

The aggression level will do fine. It might seem more realistic in theory, but in practice, the player will not notice the difference between aggression and hunger.

I am all for this. And fish. Dammit, the only thing I ever saw in the water were Slaughterfish and they were scant. It's like the waters are highly acidic due to pollution, and most aquatic life is dead. Birds fluttering about would be nice to. Especially ravens. I know ravens have a big place in real Scandinavian mythology, hence Hugin and Munin, the eyes of Odin. I'd like to see dire wolves, heh.

Definitely agreed

As a joke, I think a minor side quest would be funny involving mosquitoes.

A mosquito bites you and you become infected "By the nines, that damn mosquito bit me" and then a quest counter would pop up of finding a cure.