Once, I was a devoted fan of the previous Elder Scrolls game, Morrowind. That poor little island province soon felt my wrath as my character level soared beyond all mortal inhibitions, and even entire cities would be laid to waste lest they cross my path.
Soo, the day came when Oblivion was released. I noticed very soon that I was dealing with a much different creature this time around. The graphics were absolutely beautiful... as someone who has been playing CRPGS since the very early years on Apple IIes, putzing around with "The Magic Candle" and "Eye of the Beholder", this is how I always dreamed that games would end up like one day. A beautiful, enormous landscape that would take you a good hour or so to navigate from one end of the world map to the other, in which you are free to roam wheverever you want. Thousands of (Sort of) unique NPCS to interact with, and so many sidequests and interesting mechanics like being able to become a vampire, that I was sure this was the ultimate incarnation of the computer RPG.
Well, at first anyway. After the initial awe dies away, you begin to notice some rather unsettling things. First of all, the leveling/skill system. Throughout the game, the enemies will automatically adjust to your LEVEL, and not your actual skill at killing anything. If you find yourself pumping up some ridiculous stats in an exploitative way and zooming up through the levels, you'll soon discover that the enemies will be quite able to rip you into peices. This game does take some planning as far as character development goes and it is essential that you manage your skills so that you don't level up too quickly, wait until you are good and ready.
Most of the rest of the game is dealing with side quests, which are almost always intriguing and fun to deal with. (A wizard who's experiments have turned an entire village invisible) And then there is the main quest, which features some very epic quests, battling your way through hellish dimensions and fighting to save Tamriel itself from destruction. There are many ways to approach each situation, based on what your character is best suited for, and this makes the game more rewarding.
Ultimately, this is a very open-ended, exploration oriented RPG in the classic style, with the most modern graphics and technology available. It lacks the very story driven, character drama that many of the console RPGs tend to favor, so that may put some off... But still, if you're a fan of RPGS in any way, I highly recommend this as an addition to your video game collection.
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