Morrowind was better than Oblivion

I loved Morrowind and was REALLY pining for Oblivion, but despite the much better production values, mind-blowing graphics, more thought-out quests, I spent nearly 3-4 times as much time with Morrowind as I did Oblivion. 
 
Why? 
 
1. I could make my own fun. Virtually all of the stuff you could accomplish with Oblivion were tied to Achievements. When I played Morrowind, I did crazy stuff. I stole lamps from towns and stashed them in my house, eventually dragging the frame rate down to a 'seconds per frame' format. I was encouraged to explore the map because it unlocked colored tiles as I wandered around. No such luck in Oblivion. 
 
2. I could choose any house I wanted and take it as my own. I could run into any structure, kill the inhabitant(s), and store stuff in it. Permanently. Try that in Oblivion and your shit gets erased unless it's The House You Could Purchase because you did The Special Quest. Lame as shit. 
 
3. Thieving was much more profitable. I robbed people blind as a thief and barely made a living in Oblivion. Morrowind? Rich as fuck. 
 
4. Diversified terrain. So wandering around Morrowind, I often thought 'why the fuck aren't there ANY trees?' and then in Oblivion, they brought me that! A lot of it! In fact so much of it, THE ENTIRE DAMN WORLD IS A FOREST. In Morrowind, you had marshlands, you had deserts, you had molten areas, craggy shorelines, snowy areas (with Bloodmoon) and so it really felt like you were going places. Oblivion? DAMN FOREST EVERYWHERE FOREVER. 
 
5. Towns weren't locked away as separate zones. In Morrowind, they blended in with the world zone, in Oblivion, you had to visit a whole new load zone, ruining the illusion of a living world in a lot of spots. Was really lame. 
 
6. Oblivion didn't fix some of Morrowind's problems. So I go through the hassle of learning a shopkeeper's routine because of the crazy-ass AI in Oblivion. I break in while he's at the pub and start plundering his goods. As I'm turning to leave, HE'S RIGHT THERE IN THE DAMN DOORWAY and I FREAK THE FUCK OUT. So what happens? He tells me I shouldn't be there and I walk out with thousands of gold worth of his shit. I come back the next day and walls once-filled with valuables are stripped barren and the tone of his conversation hasn't changed a note. What the hell? This despite Bethesda claiming that Oblivion was supposed to be a more realistic and living world, but it actually felt more game-y in portions than the roughshod Morrowind did. 
 
7. Morrowind didn't have Oblivion gates. Oblivion gates BLEW ASS, especially as a Khajit thief, how the hell was I supposed to advance the main quest? No chance.  
 
NEW 8. Fast travel killed exploration in Oblivion. Sure, you had mass transit in Morrowind (silt striders, boats, etc.) that allowed you to skip around the landmass easier, but they were pre-determined routes. Wnat to flash half-way across the map as soon as you exit the initial dungeon in Oblivion? YOU CAN DO IT. Fuck that shit.
 
Anyway, there you go Vinny.

From the sounds of this post, I'm assuming Vinny thought that Oblivion is better than Morrowind. Anyways, of course he's going to think that. Oblivion is meant for people that want games that our easier. Something more locked down. Welcome to the new generation. Where no one, but us appreciates the games back then.

No, he was trying to explain that Morrowind was better, but couldn't come with any reasons and of course, I was pawing at my keyboard to come up with my treatise on why.

You know, it pretty much boils down to this: If you liked the older style of PC RPGs, you like Morrowind better. If, like me, you find a lot of those older systems infuriating (skill based hit chances, static NPCs), you like Oblivion better. Can we PLEASE stop having this discussion now?

NO.

I liked reading this.  I didn't play either, but was still entertained by your writing, thanks.

" You know, it pretty much boils down to this: If you liked the older style of PC RPGs, you like Morrowind better. If, like me, you find a lot of those older systems infuriating (skill based hit chances, static NPCs), you like Oblivion better. Can we PLEASE stop having this discussion now? "

The problem I had with Morrowind was that every time I went back to playing the game a game breaking bug occurred EVERY SINGLE TIME.

I agree, Morrowind had 10 times the content that Oblivion had. I probably played Morrowind for more than 500 hours, and I still had stuff to do. 
 
I also didn't like the fact that you could buy houses in Oblivion, in Morrowind you had to EARN your house, by completing a whole set of quests. It made the houses seem a lot more important and valuable. 
 
Oblivion was just a dumbed down version of Morrowind.

If they bring back pillow forts, the option to make objects stay where you place them by greatly reducing physics,
Beards
Throwing weapons
Spears
Rope climbing
Levitation, and all the other dumb spells from morrowind
Crossbows...And so much more, I'll be very happy.
I liked morrowind because you could break the game.
You could break the game in oblivion as well, but you couldn't break it in nearly as exciting ways. 

" @President_Barackbar said:

" You know, it pretty much boils down to this: If you liked the older style of PC RPGs, you like Morrowind better. If, like me, you find a lot of those older systems infuriating (skill based hit chances, static NPCs), you like Oblivion better. Can we PLEASE stop having this discussion now? "

???  Oblivion and Morrowind have a lot of differences but those things you mentioned are the same in both games except for 'static' NPC's.  NPCs in all Elder Scrolls games are dynamic and always have been.  Radiant AI is just a more obvious (and broken "STOP RIGHT THERE CRIMINAL SCUM!") method which allows them to track you.  Still, every NPC has always been dynamic going all the way to Arena. "

" @SeriouslyNow said:

" @President_Barackbar said:

" You know, it pretty much boils down to this: If you liked the older style of PC RPGs, you like Morrowind better. If, like me, you find a lot of those older systems infuriating (skill based hit chances, static NPCs), you like Oblivion better. Can we PLEASE stop having this discussion now? "

???  Oblivion and Morrowind have a lot of differences but those things you mentioned are the same in both games except for 'static' NPC's.  NPCs in all Elder Scrolls games are dynamic and always have been.  Radiant AI is just a more obvious (and broken "STOP RIGHT THERE CRIMINAL SCUM!") method which allows them to track you.  Still, every NPC has always been dynamic going all the way to Arena. "

IIRC from what I've heard, quest giving NPCs as well as shopkeepers are always firmly planted in their one area. "

I enjoyed Marrowind. Though, after a few hours I'd always start over again; I probably did that 20+ times over the years.
I enjoyed Oblivion more because I didn't feel the urge to start over until I played for a couple weeks.

Morrowind was a beautiful island and it had culture. Oblivion is just a large forest with medieval towns.

I loved the setting and music in Morrowind. Oblivion felt really dull in comparison, and exploring the world wasn't much fun. In Morrowind I'd spend hours each day just exploring the map and checking out new places. Fucking love that game. 

The quest to get Goldbrand (An unique daedric katana) illustrates why Morrowind is much better than Oblivion.
 
In Morrowind you first have to find Boethiah's ruined shrine under the water on the west coast which isn't very easy. Boethiah (a daedric prince) asks you to rebuild his shrine and tells you to speak with a sculptor in Caldera. You have to ask around a bit to find him. (no damn compass!) The sculptor wants 2000 gold and he needs a rare book called Boethiah's Glory. When you have everything you need he tells you that it'll take a few weeks for him to finish the shrine.  After 21 days the shrine will be finished and Boethiah rewards you with Goldbrand.
 
In Oblivion have you find Boethiah's shrine, give him a daedra heart and kill some people.

Didn't I already make this thread yesterday?
  http://www.giantbomb.com/the-elder-scrolls-iii-morrowind/61-17367/why-morrowind-is-better-then-oblivion/35-459967/
Do we need 2?

But Oblivion sits well with most people for one simple reason: when you swing your sword, you almost always hit the target, even if it's for nearly no damage. Not so in Morrowind.

Morrowind felt cooler in a way, Oblivion was more well thought out.

" @keyhunter:  Pillow Forts?? Pshaaaww! Book Forts is where its at!  I think Morrowind requires a different type of imagination compared to Oblivion. "

" But Oblivion sits well with most people for one simple reason: when you swing your sword, you almost always hit the target, even if it's for nearly no damage. Not so in Morrowind. "

" Didn't I already make this thread yesterday?
  http://www.giantbomb.com/the-elder-scrolls-iii-morrowind/61-17367/why-morrowind-is-better-then-oblivion/35-459967/ Do we need 2? "

" But Oblivion sits well with most people for one simple reason: when you swing your sword, you almost always hit the target, even if it's for nearly no damage. Not so in Morrowind. "

Oblivion Question:
If I am hero of the world and savior and all that bullshit, why is it that every single guard of every town I come across is a higher level than me and can whoop my ass? Like, why don't they just fucking save the universe?

" Oblivion Question:
If I am hero of the world and savior and all that bullshit, why is it that every single guard of every town I come across is a higher level than me and can whoop my ass? Like, why don't they just fucking save the universe? "

*shrug* this thread would actually be more applicable if the game had just released, but that is not so. So... the answer to all of those points is "mods". If you're playing it on a console, you're playing it wrong. Also I think point 1 is pretty shaky as I did the same thing in Oblivion.  It sucks that the mod community really makes their great for them, but what sucks more is that support for modders is shaky at best.
 
Also in terms of dullness and flavour, I think both games have their dull and interesting moments. Although yes Morrowind  does have a good amount more, I guess thats the only one that can't really be fixed with mods. 

"*shrug* this thread would actually be more applicable if the game had just released, but that is not so. So... the answer to all of those points is "mods". If you're playing it on a console, you're playing it wrong. Also I think point 1 is pretty shaky as I did the same thing in Oblivion.  It sucks that the mod community really makes their great for them, but what sucks more is that support for modders is shaky at best. Also in terms of dullness and flavour, I think both games have their dull and interesting moments. Although yes Morrowind  does have a good amount more, I guess thats the only one that can't really be fixed with mods.  "

• Counter Strike
• Team Fortress
• L4D
  
• Portal

" Morrowind was a beautiful island and it had culture. Oblivion is just a large forest with medieval towns. "

" @WinterSnowblind:  No, but it can take a team of modders to make a good game better.
 
Other popular fanfics:-
 

• Counter Strike
• Team Fortress
• L4D
  
• Portal

 Fanfics... LOL  UGH THE CONSOLE GENERATION ARE BLIND I TELL YA! "

As I said before, there sure is a lot of talk about Elder Scrolls now, since the new Fallout came out.  Well all I'll say is both versions of it Morrowind and Oblivion was awesome.  I enjoyed them both and do hope to see another one coming out sometime soon.

" @WinterSnowblind:   Wait, you called mods fanfics and you're calling me names?  Do you actually have any fucking idea how hard it is to mod something like Morrowind to modernise it?  Any dickhead can write a fanfic where Harry and Dumblebum get down and dirty.  Modding is NOT fanfiction.     Respect the work even if you can't respect yourself. "

Morrowind had fantastic art direction and personality, Oblivion had bloom and speed-tree. So obviously Oblivion is better.  
 
Also, mods are better for Morrowind.

" @SeriouslyNow said:

" @WinterSnowblind:   Wait, you called mods fanfics and you're calling me names?  Do you actually have any fucking idea how hard it is to mod something like Morrowind to modernise it?  Any dickhead can write a fanfic where Harry and Dumblebum get down and dirty.  Modding is NOT fanfiction.     Respect the work even if you can't respect yourself. "

I made several mods for Morrowind myself!  Not disrespecting the work they do in general or comparing the quality of the mods themselves to fanfics, what I meant was they feel like artificial add-ons that seem out of place and tend to cheapen the experience.  Not like official parts of the story.  There are some really good ones out there, but I'd still rather play the game in its unaltered state, the way it was intended.  If a game can't be considered great by its own merits, I don't think the developers deserve more credit because of what a bunch of fans can do.  In the same way, you could mod Super Mario Bros. to give it better graphics, more levels and fancy new features..  Does that necessarily make the game any better? "

It sounds similar to the reasons people liked GTA 3 better than 4.  In both cases the developers seemed to be trying to force the player to play the game in one particular way in their sequels, and some long-time players felt alienated when the ways they were forced to play weren't what they liked about previous games. 

god damn, all this morrowind talk made me install the damn thing again... there goes another 150+ hours of my life, now if you excuse me I got some mod hunting to do.

Yup Morrowind is an overall better game.  Oblivion still was very good though.

" @President_Barackbar said:

" @SeriouslyNow said:

" @President_Barackbar said:

" You know, it pretty much boils down to this: If you liked the older style of PC RPGs, you like Morrowind better. If, like me, you find a lot of those older systems infuriating (skill based hit chances, static NPCs), you like Oblivion better. Can we PLEASE stop having this discussion now? "

???  Oblivion and Morrowind have a lot of differences but those things you mentioned are the same in both games except for 'static' NPC's.  NPCs in all Elder Scrolls games are dynamic and always have been.  Radiant AI is just a more obvious (and broken "STOP RIGHT THERE CRIMINAL SCUM!") method which allows them to track you.  Still, every NPC has always been dynamic going all the way to Arena. "

IIRC from what I've heard, quest giving NPCs as well as shopkeepers are always firmly planted in their one area. "

How does that differ for Oblivion or Fallout 3 for that matter?  Aside from a spare few travelling NPCs and sleep times, almost all NPCs being shop owners or quest givers stay within their own areas too. "

" It sounds similar to the reasons people liked GTA 3 better than 4.  In both cases the developers seemed to be trying to force the player to play the game in one particular way in their sequels, and some long-time players felt alienated when the ways they were forced to play weren't what they liked about previous games.  "

I played and loved both, so yeah everything you said is pretty much true in a funny way to me and gave me a good laugh.
 
I loved murdering people's in their homes to steal their cups. I had a house full of cups and they were all mine.
 
Perhaps Morrowind just burrowed into our heads in a better way than Oblivion did.
 
Oblivion sure was shiny though, and I could jump like a motherfucker.
 
@SeriouslyNow: Goddamn I fucking love video games.