Elder Scrolls: Oblivion

Overview

I’ve been a fan of the Elder Scrolls series ever since a friend told me to try out Morrowind for my brand-new Xbox. The main staple of the series is that you get to do whatever you want, whenever you want to do it, The free ability of the game amazed me. When I first heard the next Elder Scrolls game was coming to the Xbox 360, I planned to get the system immediately. That’s right folks, I planned to spend $400 on a system just for this game - and I’ll do it again for the next. Now you may be thinking ‘This kid's a fanboy,’ but seriously, nonbelievers, go out and play the game for just a half of an hour and see if you’re not soon screaming back for more. The immersive gameplay, the picture-perfect graphics, and the absolutely amazing musical score are merely scraps of what this phenomenal game has to offer.

Graphics

This has to be one of the most detailed games for the 360 yet. The characters may not be as good-looking as other titles such as Fight Night or Rumble Roses, but the environments are the most lifelike I’ve seen in a game to this day. The night and day lighting is extremely realistic and every square inch of the game world just oozes realism. From the petals on a flower to the individual golden scales on Elven Armor - it all creates this great environment that just makes you want to explore the game for its entirety. Each town has a different architectural style, like the hardy snow-capped log cabin building Nords, or the gigantic gray-bricked castles built by the Imperials. Oblivion looks amazing, and is a graphical masterpiece.

Sound

The sound in Oblivion has to be some sort of record. Whether it be the clang of sword against shield or the chirping of birds in a field in the afternoon, everything in the game sounds as it should be in real life. The game has over 100 hours of recorded voice acting (this means no more text-filled conversations, TES veterans!) that are worth listening to. To top it off there must be thousands of different sound effects within the entire game. The sound keeps you immersed to the fullest.

Gameplay

Gameplay has always been the Elder Scrolls games best feature. Many games have tried to make a truly free-roam game, and either got close (GTA) or failed horribly (Scrapland). On the contrary, Oblivion continues where others have fallen. You can be, and do virtually anything you want in the game from becoming an axe-wielding lizard man to becoming a spell-chucking High Elf. You can even be a lowly peasant (if you tried)! The game by no means forces you into the main quest, or any quest for that matter (with the exception of setting up the plot in the beginning). You can take it at the pace you like, or just not even take it at all - its all your own choice, your own destiny. You could make a virtual living by simply farming every day and selling your profits. Then you can move on to buying a house, or several houses even!

The game features a unique character-to-character personality and interest system, to further the gameplay. Some quests will require you to become friends with someone (by bribing them, or even just by interacting). Each person reacts differently to jokes, admiration, compliments, or bribing. The game has you try at getting people to like you, and creates another layer of possibilities that you will see put into play throughout the campaign and side-quests.

Final Words

Oblivion is a great game, and continues the legacy of The Elder Scrolls series perfectly. The graphics are nearly photorealistic, and the sounds and musical score is just as amazing. The gameplay is even award-worthy. For any action fan, RPG fan, or even the general gamer, this game is definitely worth anyone’s money. There is only only one glaring flaw in the game: glitches. There are some gameplay glitches that you may encounter, but one of the main downers about it is that some quests are actually incompletable. I myself have a few quests on hold until some sort of update due to some sort of plot item not being there, a character conversation not working, or the game just freezing at a certain point. But, it’s only three or four missions that actually have these glitches, and in my opinion is worth ignoring anyway. Trust me, you get over it. This game is a must have for your collection.

Gameplay: 4
Graphics: 5
Audio: 5
Story: 4
Replayability: 5
Overall: 4.5/5

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