Game Review: The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion GotY Edition (PC / Xbox 360 / PS3)

[Joe88]

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Game of the Year Edition
Review

Developer: Bethesda Softworks
Publisher: Bethesda Softworks/ZeniMax | 2k Games


http://i217.photobucket.com/albums/cc189/Zimnel_Redoran/OblivionGoty.jpg

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Intro:

Here we have the fourth installment of the Elder Scrolls Saga, and probably one of the most anticipated and biggest one to date.
The game of the year edition of Oblivion which I purchased for $59 (USD) which was a bargain compared to buying all the expansion that come with it alone.

Ive got the 360 version but all versions should be the exact same no matter what.

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Notable Awards:

2006 PC Game of the Year (Oblivion)
2006 Xbox 360 Game of the Year (Oblivion)
2006 RPG Game of the Year (Oblivion)
2006 Overall Game of the Year (Oblivion)
2007 PS3 RPG Game of the Year (Oblivion)
2007 RPG Game of the Year (Shivering Isles)
2007 Best DLC Xbox 360 (Shivering Isles)


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Genre:

It is a First Person Role Playing Game (no thats not a joke :p , it pulls it off very well )

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Players:

The game is 1 player only (no multiplayer doesnt hurt this game)

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This edition comes with:

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (main game)
The Elder Scrolls IV: Knights of the Nine (exp pak)
The Elder Scrolls IV: Shivering Isles (exp pak)


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Overview:

You begin the game in a cell and for some reason there is a secret escape way in your cell in which the emperor of all the land comes to use it to escape assassins (mythic dawn) and for some reason he lets you come along for the ride

Anyway the emperor gets asasignatied along the way and now before his last breath he entrusts you with the Amulet of Kings to give to the next heir, you are omitted of all your crimes and set free.

Now out of jail and can virtually go anywhere, do anything, explore, hunt, go on a killing spree, join clans, do side missions, help out people, be a thief, ect... (I spent over 110hrs just doing side missions O_O )

The amount of customization of also very huge.
You will be able to select your race, birth sign, as well as change how your face looks and how your stats are (each race has its own abilities choose wisely...)

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Gameplay:

The Game Play is very smooth, no lag which is surprising for how big the outside world is (like GTA:SA)
The FP controls also handle very well (you can also switch to third person, but its better with 1st person imo)

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Graphics:

The Graphics are Superb:
I mean look at these and tell me there not...?

http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/87/oblivion2it6.th.jpg (http://img61.imageshack.us/my.php?image=oblivion2it6.jpg)
http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/3313/1140829329bs0.th.jpg (http://img61.imageshack.us/my.php?image=1140829329bs0.jpg)
http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/6029/oblivion22ak5.th.jpg (http://img61.imageshack.us/my.php?image=oblivion22ak5.jpg)
http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/4549/obliviongoblinqm1.th.jpg (http://img61.imageshack.us/my.php?image=obliviongoblinqm1.jpg)
http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/8382/oblivion20lijstjetb0.th.jpg (http://img61.imageshack.us/my.php?image=oblivion20lijstjetb0.jpg)
http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/5766/oblivion13kt9.th.jpg (http://img61.imageshack.us/my.php?image=oblivion13kt9.jpg)
http://img61.imageshack.us/img61/7611/oblivionlargejc3.th.jpg (http://img61.imageshack.us/my.php?image=oblivionlargejc3.jpg)

if you still dont get it
it looks amazing, especially for an RPG

[I]More pics can be found here:
http://plume.dk/oblivion.html

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Audio / Sfx:

The audio is also very good featuring a very rich classical score , that you really dont get bored off.

Other sfx are also very well done and sound realistic from swords bouncing off a metal shield to animal noises and well as monster sounds, and voice acting, not the rinky dink acting we usually get from games that they just took people off the street walking by and paid them like $50 to do it. You can tell a lot of time and effort was put into the audio and sfx for this game.

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Replay Value:

I dont think anyone can actually finish the game to replay, though you might be interested if you chose another race and made different choices...

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Conclusion:

Overall this game is amazing, its huge, and just plain epic
From every little detail, including gfx, sounds, missions, items, quests, ect...
(I have plugged in over 180hrs and still havnt beat the main quest (I did finish one of the expansion packs, Nights of the Nine which was very good)

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Pros:

Amazing graphics
Excellent Voice Acting
Open Ended Story
Includes 2 Expansion paks adding 200+ hrs to game play
Customization
Miles and miles of explorable area
Breathtaking landscapes


Cons:

May not be for everybody
A couple of the other small expansions could have been included
Some weird glitches tend to occur sometimes ruining the whole game (must start a new game)


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Final Score:

http://games-reviews.dcemu.co.uk/review/review5.gif

[rbervoets]

i didnt really like this game, but hey! im more into GTA games :) (Although i did like World of Warcraft)

Anyway how is this a con?


A couple of the other small expansions could have been included

[Joe88]

i didnt really like this game, but hey! im more into GTA games :) (Although i did like World of Warcraft)

Anyway how is this a con?


if you look on the DLC

you see there a few small items like fighters stronghold, thieves den, wizards tower, and some other one which adds a special cave which holds a powerful weapon, and horse armor

a lot of people complained they should have been included in the GOTY edition
an all in one pack sort off
only about $10 worth of stuff including the important add ons

[masterchief929]

i still haven't gotten to play this game. i want to so bad. i put in over a hundred hours on the previous release.

[Joe88]

ah yes morrowind

if you play this game and try to go back to the older games, you cant
I got the GOTY edition for morrowind also for xbox and played like 5 mins of it and put it aside and went back to oblivion...