Bethesda said they were trying to bring back the feeling of being a stranger in a foreign land like Morrowind had, and get rid of the typical high fantasy feel that Oblivion had, so I'm really excited to be walking around and find something really fucking weird, like the strange shrines and graves that were hidden all around the map in Morrowind.

Yeah, Morrowind was great. 

I have so many memories of Morrowind that I don't in Oblivion just because of the rich and extensive lore. There was so much more to do and find as well (Did anybody else kill lots of Ordinators and then sell their armor to the Talking Mudcrab?). There were so many more unique NPCs with their own stories. I really hope that maybe in Elder Scrolls VI they'll have enough disk space to record voices to fill in all these stories.

Is Morrowind free yet? Daggerfall is though right?

" Bethesda said they were trying to bring back the feeling of being a stranger in a foreign land like Morrowind had, and get rid of the typical high fantasy feel that Oblivion had, so I'm really excited to be walking around and find something really fucking weird, like the strange shrines and graves that were hidden all around the map in Morrowind. "

" Bethesda said they were trying to bring back the feeling of being a stranger in a foreign land like Morrowind had, and get rid of the typical high fantasy feel that Oblivion had, so I'm really excited to be walking around and find something really fucking weird, like the strange shrines and graves that were hidden all around the map in Morrowind. "

Yeah Oblivion pales in comparison to Morrowind in so many ways, although it's still amazing in it's own right. For Skyrim, I've set my expectations on it being another Oblivion, which I'm still really hyped over.

Anyone noticed how good the animations are? Seems like after so many complaints Bethesda is going to make sure that the animation is good, but I won't hold my breath for all of the complainers of the past to start heaping on the praise.

I've never really liked these types of games (even though I've only played Oblivion in the Elder Scrolls series) because I hate high fantasy, at least the way it is in these games. It's just so plain and boring and it didn't help that Oblivion was practically broken at spots. I'll try Skyrim out, though, and hopefully I'll enjoy it.

I loved how alien Morrowind was, and how you NEVER felt like you knew what was gonna happen.  And how fucked up some of the monster designs were, and how the game never held your hand.  I really, really hope that comes back.

" I've never really liked these types of games (even though I've only played Oblivion in the Elder Scrolls series) because I hate high fantasy, at least the way it is in these games. It's just so plain and boring and it didn't help that Oblivion was practically broken at spots. I'll try Skyrim out, though, and hopefully I'll enjoy it. "

 I have to agree that Morrowind was fantastic in such a strange way. 
 
The start was the most iconic part i remember; shipped in from a foreign land, you choose your race, steal some various crap and be on your way. The story was much more interesting in my eyes than Oblivion's in that you are the latest incarnation of a deity and get to interact with the Gods of the world.
 
It has some frustrating parts though - cliff racers, the back tracking in the quests for those tribes, those fucking grub enemies and the mines full of them.. ugh. I never really liked Vivec as a city either, though that orbiting prison they had was awesome.
 
For Oblivion the story was pretty predictable, Oblivion gates were beyond repetitive and level scaling sucked.
 
That said, if Skyrim turns out like either game I will love it, and any issues mods will probably iron out.

In terms of mechanics and combat, Skyrim will likely be the strongest offering in the ES series by far.  The rest is still up in the air at this point, but the main other things that'll matter for me are what it's like to wander the world and what kind of content there is, both of which Bethesda is pretty consistent with across their games.  Unless they really mess something up unexpectedly, Skyrim should end up being my favorite ES game of all, from what info they've put out about it so far.

I completely agree with you TC.
 
Morrowind's fiction and plot alone made it much more enthralling than Oblivion.
 
Then Oblivion didn't lend itself with the same generic cave/dungeon/ruins design followed by the atrocious auto-leveling system...
 
Here's hoping Skyrim lends itself more towards Morrowind.

In this thread: blah blah blah Oblivion sucks blah blah blah Morrowind is better blah blah blah.
 
Just kidding, but you have to agree that Oblivion was way more accessible to the average gamer and that's what I loved about it so much.

" In this thread: blah blah blah Oblivion sucks blah blah blah Morrowind is better blah blah blah.  Just kidding, but you have to agree that Oblivion was way more accessible to the average gamer and that's what I loved about it so much. "

" @President_Barackbar said:

" In this thread: blah blah blah Oblivion sucks blah blah blah Morrowind is better blah blah blah.  Just kidding, but you have to agree that Oblivion was way more accessible to the average gamer and that's what I loved about it so much. "

A lot of things are accessible to the average gamer... "

I don't know about anyone else, but I'm definitely already getting a huge Morrowind vibe from Skyrim based on one thing alone: Devahkiin.  It almost sounds like a similar plot device as the Nerevarine was to Morrowind and I thought that the mystery and lore behind the Nerevarine was one of the things which made that game so interesting. If they can strike a similar chord (but, not similar enough to make it feel like the same story) then Skyrim will be a huge success over Oblivion in my eyes.

Morrowind is one of the best games I've ever played. Playing it as a 10/11 year old kid was an unbelievable experience. The biggest draw for me wasn't the quests, storyline, combat, or anything of the sort, it was about wandering and exploring the world, finding all sorts rare items in hidden tombs and such. I actually don't think I ever progressed with the main story beyond where you first meet that guy in Balmora and he trains you or something. Wandering around the world with that theme music playing was really awesome. Only downside was all the fucking cliff racers. They raped my character so many times. 
 
I just hope Skyrim gives an experience even half as unique as Morrowind. Oblivion was amazing when I first played it but it got old pretty fast. It was improved in a lot of ways but all the personality was gone and it just wasn't very exciting exploring all the generic forests and stuff. Glad to hear they're not using the Gamebryo engine. That engine is ass. 

" @Doctorchimp:  Uhh, I don't recall Oblivion having enchantment failure chances and stuff like that. Also, I don't recall having to stat grind in Oblivion at all. "

" @Hourai:   At least tell me you did the Bloodmoon and Tribunal main quests...for the love of god. "

" @Doctorchimp:  Uhh, I don't recall Oblivion having enchantment failure chances and stuff like that. Also, I don't recall having to stat grind in Oblivion at all. "

" @Doctorchimp:  @President_Barackbar:   FOR ALL I CARE, I hope they KEEP A LOT of the gameplay improvements THAT CAME IN Oblivion (minus level scaling). IT WAS A much more enjoyable game TO PLAY. WHERE THEY dropped the fucking ball--andwhat I THINK A lot of PEOPLE HERE are complaining about--was the FUCKING ATMOSPHERE, MAN. OBLIVION WAS boring as fucking shit IN TERMS OF THAT. OH WANDER THIS WAY and look more FUCKING trees isn't THAT COOL?  MORROWIND had such a UNIQUE ATMOSPHERE GOING for it. So varied. I REMEMBER HAPPENING upon Vivic and BEING BOTH confused and in awe; I REMEMBER JUST RUNNING to the east for no reason AND SUDDENLY FINDING THIS cities in tree like STRUCTURES ON some islands. THE VARIATION OF the landscape and THE WAY THE game really ALLOWED YOU TO stumble into IT WAS FUCKING FANTASTIC. IT REALLY felt like I was slowly discovering some NEW WORLD. OBLIVION DIDN'T really have that. GREAT GAME, JUST boring ass world and A LITTLE TOO much "go here, NOW THERE, now here!' when I THINK IT should have just turned YOU LOOSE A little more.  ALSO, FUCK instant map fast TRAVEL. THERE I said it. SILT STRIDERS WERE fucking awesome AND THE FIRST time you come upon one IS A VIVID MEMORY for me. "

Yeah, Morrowwind was mysterious and fun.  Oblivion was generic and boring. 
 
Hard to say what Skyrim's going to be like at this point, but I'll hold my judgement until we see gameplay footage.

Can someone please explain what was so atrocious with the Oblivion leveling system? I've never had any gripes with it. 
 
Also,  I've played Morrowind and Oblivion in about equal amounts and I prefer Oblivion (although Morrowind is still fantastic). What turned me off the most about Morrowind was the brokenness of a lot of the game's aspects (e.g. I believe completing the core game's main quest line rendered a part of the Bloodmoon expansion unplayable). Also, the lack of any sort of explicit directions in many quests was also a pain in the ass. Say all you want about "but itz so much more betterz that way immersion and stuffz," but from the standpoint of game design it was kind of broken. But yeah, I can completely understand people's issues with Oblivion's genericness and cookie-cutter dungeons. That was inexcusable.

"Can someone please explain what was so atrocious with the Oblivion leveling system? I've never had any gripes with it. "