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[lazygecko]

That's a little too hyperbolic even for forums imo.

Is it really? You see people use terms like GOAT all the time. You just tune it all out after a while.

 

[GlamFM]

Clickbait threads - worst trend.

 

[SomTervo]

I have an almost identical story, OP, although it's about Red Dead Redemption. Identical story because it was my most anticipated game of all time and their videos suggested it would be more deep/dynamic than it was. I expected an evolution of GTA in a rural Western frontier setting, but I got a GTA clone, a basic action game, in a world which wasn't that big or fun to explore. It felt dull, superficial and empty, when I expected something giant, compelling and deep. Objectively I know RDR is a good game, I know my complaints about it are ridiculous on several levels, but I just can't enjoy it because of my expectations.

We all have to have this experience some time, OP. If you played Oblivion with low expectations/no hype, you might have felt completely differently.

FYI I'm not a big Oblivion fan either. Tbh I'm not a big Elder Scrolls fan. I was bored with Skyrim after about six hours, and same goes for Oblivion. The worlds are fantastic but I just can't get behind that gameplay. Morrowind I never had a PC good enough for, and Daggerfall was just... Daggerfall. I enjoyed Fallout 3 more than any of them and look forward to playing New Vegas some day. I think VATS may have helped Fallout 3, it's easier to simulate gunfighting than close quarters battle – similarly why arrows are the only option in Elder Scrolls that feel tangible and real.

 

[Imp the Dimp]

Clickbait threads - worst trend.

Huh? The gist of the thread is entirely clear by reading the title. Not sure what exactly surprised you once you entered the thread.

 

[JoeNut]

9/10 from me

 

[epmode]

You forgot those who played Daggerfall first (or, hell, Arena - though I can't see someone arguing in favor of that one).

Arena's soundtrack was pretty great! And at the time, being able to fast-travel from the middle of a Skyrim snowstorm to the shores of Summerset Isle was pretty incredible. It took me a while to get bored of wandering around.

 

[SerTapTap]

It seems kind of like the majority of people defending oblivion both played it first and played it on console. As a pc player of both games op isn't all that off. It does not have to be a terrible game to still be incredibly disappointing after playing the prior game. There was something very uniquely wrong with oblivion in that context that disappointed in almost every level despite arguably not being completely terrible viewed on it's own.

 

[Moff]

I didn't like it at all, it had great graphics but as an RPG it was much worse than morrowind. what bothered me the most the was bad quest design (with the exception of the brotherhood) and the incredibly copy & pasted dungeons.

 

[g11]

On the one hand, the main quest and especially the Oblivion gates were absolute garbage. On the other hand, I put probably 100-150 hours into the game and loved most of the side quests.

I'm probably the only one, but I liked Oblivion more the first time I played it than I did Skyrim. It'll be interesting to go back and play them both on PC with all the mods.

 

[AntiFacebook]

It's not nearly as good as Morrowind and Daggerfall,but still very good.

 

[LeBart]

I was disappointed as well when I played it, but it isn't that bad, and Morrowind isn't that perfect.

 

[TheSpoiler]

I dunno. If the dude didn't like Oblivion and loved Morrowind he probably thinks it is one of the worst sequels. It's obviously in his opinion anyway.

I've played worse, but Oblivion did start to wear me down pretty fast. The AI wasn't as cool as touted, the faces looked like butt, and while the combat was better, those gates nearly ruined it for me.

So I can see wh-STOP THIEF YOU'VE VIOLATED THE LAW

 

[jem0208]

One of my top 3 games of all time if you don't include the Halo series.

I love the world design, I adore all the tiny details which fill the world. I love the quest design, and I find each of the factions story lines to be fantastic (especially the dark brotherhood). I've spent hundreds of hours exploring Oblivion and I could probably spend hundreds more. I really need to reinstall that game...

 

[magnetic]

You must be fun at parties.

I´ve seen this response pop up more and more recently and it always make the poster sound like a preschooler.

It´s basically on the same level as "get a life" or "try getting laid".

 

[bomblord1]

When I played Oblivion I had never heard the term Elder Scrolls before. It was the best open world RPG I had ever played when I finally got my hands on it.

 

[giancarlo123x]

Not even close, has it not aged well? Probably, but it was so good the first few years.

 

[WanderingWind]

I've put more than 100 hours into each Elder Scrolls. I will say that Oblivion was the first to really use level scaling and loot scaling on the scale that they did, and it was terrible, through and through. Still, it had a certain charm to it that was undeniable. It is certainly the worst of the Morrowind-Oblivion-Skyrim trifecta. Skyrim at least tried to fix some of Oblivion's scaling problems, and introduced more RPG elements, but it then also streamlined skills and got rid of classes. Oblivion's guild questlines were better, but they all sucked in comparison to Morrowind. Then again, Oblivion made major steps in fixing Morrowind's janky ass combat and that game removed all sense of verticality from Daggerfall.

Every iteration of TES has been a prime example of two steps forward, one step back in design. They've all been really enjoyable games, despite their flaws.

 

[SolarMystic]

And a an incredibly poorly designed RPG.

I consider Morrowind one of the most impactful and memorable gaming experiences I've ever had and as soon as Bethesda started promoting Oblivion (which was in mid to late 2005 I think), the game blew my mind. I remember things like "Radiant AI" (which didn't make it into the game to the extend Bethesda showed us at all) and other fancy stuff.

Ultimately, I think vanilla Oblivion (I played the 360 version) is one of the worst sequels I have ever played and actually a fucking awful game. I'm talking a 3/10 turd that would have gained little attention had it not been the sequel to Morrowind. The mechanical issues are well known and I won't go into detail as to why the gameplay sucked but even in terms of graphics it wasn't as good as people expected it to be with textures in the distance being hilariously low res on PC and 360 alike. Characters looked awful, the art design was utterly generic and everything just fucking glowed because of an inflated use of HDR or bloom or whatever. It was just ugly as hell.

On top of that there were scaling enemies, scaling loot, scaling quest rewards, copy and paste dungeons, repetitive Oblivion dungeons and frankly, I can't think of a single thing this game did well. Maybe I'm overly bitter because I consider it my most anticipated game ever and was let down like never before or after (in terms of gaming) but I don't see how vanilla Oblivion could have possibly been developed by the same people that managed to create Morrowind (which I replayed multiple times after Oblivion and it is still outstanding).

It was so bad.

That glow was bloom. HDR on the PC was much better.

I disagree entirely and hold Oblivion as one of my most memorable gaming experiences. Granted it was my first Elder Scrolls game, I did go back and play Morrowind and still find Oblivion to be amazing. It really hasn't aged well on console, but mods on PC still keep it current and is a real beauty to look at.

EDIT: My first experience with Oblivion was on the 360 with a 20inch tube TV. Blew me away at the time.

 

[PeskyToaster]

I thought it was pretty good. The combat in Morrowind was goofy as shit when you're swinging like a madman and missing all the time.

 

[Solidsoul]

Strongly disagree OP.

Great game. I love Oblivion.

 

[El Topo]

I played through most of Morrowind again a while ago. As much as I like the game, it is far from perfect.
I recall Oblivion being disappointing, but it's been a long time since I played it, so it's possible I was just put off by the interface and design changes.

 

[GavinGT]

I think you're overblowing things, but it really was a step back in a ton of ways.

 

[SolarMystic]

I thought it was pretty good. The combat in Morrowind was goofy as shit when you're swinging like a madman and missing all the time.

I hated how it was always a dice roll. I get the reason, but in a first person combat style, if it looks like I made contact, then it made contact.

One of the first mods I looked for was a combat overhaul.

 

[Venom Fox]

OP, you seriously made this thread in retaliation to the "Oblivion is one of the most unique settings" thread? Also, like someone else said, you waited 9 years to tell us?

IMO oblivion, while hating that "glowing" effect you mentioned, was a perfectly good game with good quest lines (especially the dark brotherhood) that just made me hyped for Skyrim when it was eventually announced.

 

[Taker34]

Oblivion is so bad that I like it more than Morrowind and Skyrim overall. Morrowind was a great game, the atmosphere was stunning. Unfortunately a lot of things got cut in Oblivion - still it had tons of content. It wasn't supposed to be Morrowind 2. It's Cyrodiil; a medieval fantasy province. It's not as alien as the previous game but holy hell was it fun. I consider the quest to be the best and most memorable in the series by far! Skyrim is the worst offender and lacks the everything except a great world.
How long does it take you in Skyrim to become a guild leader? 6-8 quest - what a joke. Oblivion gave me fully fledged 20 sth quest and great character as well. Don't forget the "get item A from dungeon B" quests in Skyrim. If anything then TES V is the worst sequel content and story wise.

 

[Imp the Dimp]

OP, you seriously made this thread in retaliation to the "Oblivion is one of the most unique settings" thread?

What? No.

 

[Acinixys]

SKYRIM IS WORSE

That is all

 

[jem0208]

Oblivion is so bad that I like it more than Morrowind and Skyrim overall. Morrowind was a great game, the atmosphere was stunning. Unfortunately a lot of things got cut in Oblivion - still it had tons of content. It wasn't supposed to be Morrowind 2. It's Cyrodiil; a medieval fantasy province. It's not as alien as the previous game but holy hell was it fun. I consider the quest to be the best and most memorable in the series by far! Skyrim is the worst offender and lacks the everything except a great world.
How long does it take you in Skyrim to become a guild leader? 6-8 quest - what a joke. Oblivion gave me fully fledged 20 sth quest and great character as well. Don't forget the "get item A from dungeon B" quests in Skyrim. If anything then TES V is the worst sequel content and story wise.

+1

The guild quest lines in Oblivion were so good. The Dark Brotherhood was amazing, some of the quests made me feel ridiculously conflicted.

 

[SolarMystic]

What? No.

What was your first Elder Scrolls game that you played all of OP?

 

[Linkyn]

It has its flaws, even if you don't go in expecting Morrowind 2.0, but it's still a really good game, and most of the things I'd leverage against it are issues that plague the TES series in general.

 

[Imp the Dimp]

What was your first Elder Scrolls game that you played all of OP?

Morrowind

 

[IbizaPocholo]

Not for me op.It was one of the greatest rps i ever played.

Did you play Morrowind before?

Yes, i have the xbox version but i never finished.

 

[Imp the Dimp]

Not for me op.It was one of the greatest rps i ever played.

Did you play Morrowind before?

 

[Venom Fox]

What? No.

Ok, just a thought.
You seriously didn't like Oblivion then?

SKYRIM IS WORSE

That is all

Get out. Now.

Spoiler

kidding, a bit, but seriously don't say that ever again...

 

[D3RANG3D]

As bad as it was in some respects...

All of the Guild Quests in Oblivion are better, and you add The Shivering Isles that's nothing to sneeze at, the only thing Skyrim has over it is the Daedric Quests.

 

[king picollo]

There are 2 kinds of people. People who played MW when it came out first. And people who played Oblivion first.

People who played MW first like me were doomed to be disapointed by Oblivion. Others got to experience Oblivion in ignorant HD bliss.

I feel this is the key.

 

[SolarMystic]

Morrowind

I've noticed that Elder Scrolls fans usually find the first one they played the best. A large thread/poll on the official bethesda forums awhile back confirmed my theory. Explains why I myself defend and prefer Oblivion so much.

Goes to show how well Bethesda does in capturing new audiences and expanding their market.

 

[CloudWolf]

The scaling enemies were simply the worst. I distinctly remember goblins at lvl 45 taking 500+ arrows to kill. That's pretty awful design.

 

[Starlord 84]

It's alright but morrowind and skyrim are far superior.

 

[asker]

I remember reading a lot of previews raving about the beauty of the vista presented to you when you exit the sewers, to the extent that I wondered if there was something wrong with my game when I got there myself. Even for its time it looked atrocious.

As for the game, the many sacrifices that was made to make the game playable on consoles made the experience cumbersome and unpleasant. I never got into it.

 

[WanderingWind]

I've noticed that Elder Scrolls fans always find the first one they played the best. A large thread/poll on the official bethesda forums awhile back confirmed my theory. Explains why I myself defend and prefer Oblivion so much.

Goes to show how well Bethesda does in capturing new audiences and expanding their market.

Perhaps "usually" would be a better word choice than "always.' Or else you'll get a bunch of argumentative buttheads running in to say "Nu-uh, I played Arena first and can admit that it sucked."

Like me, for example. Morrowind > Arena.

 

[Dio]

The reason I hate Oblivion is mostly aesthetic, but it's kind of a really big deal.

The animation in Bethesda games is never great, but Oblivion suffered greatly. There were PS1 and N64 games with better animations done with a fraction of the polygons. In fact, I'd go so far as to say it's the worst 'big budget game' as far as animation goes that I've ever seen.

 

[maniac-kun]

GAF never ceaser to suprise me with this Bethesda RPG hypebole. First people here hype these games beyond reasoning and after 2 weeks the backlash starts and somehow gets more devastating with each passing week. I think the people that actualy liked it dont post in these threads. I spend more time in Oblivion than any other RPG except WoW. The thing is it was very good at immersion. Unlike Skyrim with the forced thirdperson finishers. Thats probably why I spend less time in Skyrim. And the world in oblivion was more open to what kind of character you want to play. I felt bad to rob people in Skyrim.

 

[Zafir]

Morrowind is the better game but I still enjoyed oblivion. Skyrim I found incredibly difficult to get into though, I could forgive the mediocre combat in Oblivion with it being early 360 but I kind of expected more by the time Skyrim came.

 

[Grassy]

I originally played through Oblivion on PC with Oscuro's Oblivion Overhaul to remove level scaling etc, and the usual UI and texture mods amongst others.
It's not the greatest game I've ever played, but I enjoyed it enough to put in ~100 hours back in the day and in 2011 when I got the GOTY on Steam and modded the crap out of it... the combat is shite though.

 

[kswiston]

I sort of liked how easy Morrowind and Oblivion were to break. Need really powerful destruction magic? Go create a weak spell that takes 1 MP, assign it to a hotkey, and put something heaving on the key while you go make yourself a sandwich.

 

[doofy102]

I'm really tired of this lame Bethesda "criticism."

The last few Bethesda games aren't great "RPGs," you're right about that, but they're still magic whatever they are.

 

[SolarMystic]

Perhaps "usually" would be a better word choice than "always.' Or else you'll get a bunch of argumentative buttheads running in to say "Nu-uh, I played Arena first and can admit that it sucked."

Like me, for example. Morrowind > Arena.

Lol, indeed that is what I meant.

 

[SchrodingerC]

Worst sequel? Not even close OP. Dragon Age 2 will gladly be one of the games to wear that crown.
The worst, butt ugly character models and creator is more appropriate. The environment might be generic as fuck, but at least it's pretty on max settings, yet no high end computer can save those characters.

 

[CassSept]

Oblivion was fantastic for its time. It's aged incredibly poorly. Luckily, there are mods to fix pretty much every one of your gripes with the game should you wish to revisit it. Though even without mods this game looked fantastic for a new-gen RPG. I still remember my jaw dropping when I first saw this screenshot, even though it looks laughable by today's standards:

I played it at launch. It looked pretty, but that was it, it was extremely disappointing. It aged poorly but it simply wasn't that amazing in the first place, it was a huge step down from Morrowind. In nearly every aspect but technical.