This is one game I'll never get tired of.
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion has finally made its Playstation 3 debut. Although, this game a sight to behold, it's still pretty far from perfect. There are many improvements since Morrowind, there are still some things that the developers shouldn't have removed from the series. Nevertheless, Oblivion will literally take a chunk out of your life from the countless hours you'll spend assassinating citizens of Cyrodill for the Dark Brotherhood, or finding the holy Relics of the Crusader and resurrecting a long-gone band of knights known only as The Knights of the Nine.
STORY (Nothing REALLY important.)
At the very beginning of the game, you'll find yourself locked in a cell in the Imperial Prison. The one and only Emperor Uriel Septim, the emperor of Tamriel, comes through your the cell with his very small group of bodyguards, the Blades. He says that he knows all his sons are dead. He tells you that he's seen you in his dreams and that you'll be remembered for something great.
You're in luck: you get to follow the emperor straight to his death not ten minutes into the game. He gives you his Amulet of Kings and tells you to go to a prior named Jauffre. Why? Because Jauffre knows where to find Uriel's illegitimate son, Martin, the last heir to the throne. Later on, the Amulet of Kings gets stolen by a man named Mankar Camoran, and you'll have to get it back by working with Martin, doing various quests.
GAMEPLAY (The cream of the crop, if you will. This is where Bethesda messed up on a few things, as well as improved others.)
|- General -|
The physics is one thing that won't go unnoticed in this game. Kill an enemy on a slanting slope, and watch them roll down, their bodies flailing limply around. This is great, and adds realism. But, sometimes, when you brush up against a surface that has movable objects on it, they'll just fly through the air suddenly and uncontrollably. This actually happens pretty often and gets really annoying. The PS3 controls we all know and love fit perfectly and comfortably for this game, making some things easier for those who are more adjusted and used to it.
|- Combat -|
This hardly changed at all since Morrowind. The combat is pretty dull. To fight an enemy, you just have to do a basic attack-block-attack combo nonstop until it's dead. As your weapon skills(Blade, Blunt, Hand to Hand, Marksman) improve, you gain the ability to use new power attacks done by holding the attack button and moving in a certain direction while attacking. To me, this sucks. As your Acrobatics skill improves, you'll be able to do dodge rolls, adding minimum excitement to the combat. Although the combat is boring, it does the job. The magic system helps out a lot, too.
|- Magic -|
Hit the R2 button to cast magic. This actually does add excitement to battles. The great variety of spells help the combat out immensely, but there is a downside: not every type of character you might have will be able to use magic. If your character is a warrior, you'll have to stick to the same old dull combat. In Morrowind, there were spells that you could exploit very easily. For example, you could create a levitate spell that lasted for 500 seconds. You'll just levitate out of reach of your enemies, and just pound them with arrows or attack spells. For Oblivion, spells that could be exploited were removed. Kudos to Bethesda for this.
|- Stealth/Sneaking -|
Probably the funnest part of the gameplay. Sneaking has many benefits. The higher your Sneak skill, the more often you'll get whatever you want. A good stealth character can breeze through the Thieves Guild and the Dark Brotherhood quests with ease. You'll be able to pickpocket easily and, of course, pick locks without sweat. You'll be able to get past almost any obstacle without trouble. There's no cons here.
GRAPHICS (A HUGE improvement since Morrowind.)
Take a look at a screenshot of Morrowind and then take a look at one of Oblivion. Of course you see a huge difference. I'd say something about the difference in graphics between the PS3 and the Xbox 360, but I'm playing in HD. Besides, I don't want to get attacked by fanboys. Anyways, the game just looks incredible. The lighting is perfect, but the thing that bugs me the most is that if you're in a house downstairs and there's someone upstairs, you'll be able to see their shadow through the ceiling. This is just annoying.
SOUND (Get ready. This is a short one.)
The voice acting is superb, especially the voice of Martin Septim. There are even a few celebrity voices taking over in Oblivion. The music is brilliant and fits perfectly for different situations.
END
|-Pros-|
+A huge world with endless possibilities
+Non-linear gameplay
+An extremely long adventure that will take you hundreds of hours(Maybe I just don't have a life. :D)
+Create your character to be whatever you want him/her to be
+The graphics just look beautiful, especially in 720p
|-Cons-|
-Physics sometimes backfires
-Melee combat is dull
|-Final Score-|
4.5/5 Stars - Although far from perfect, Oblivion exceeds all expectations of an RPG and of a video game.
