A couple of weeks ago I got the game Oblivion for the XBox 360, and so far I have been pretty happy with it.
Oblivion is the next game in the series of the Elder Scrolls games from Bethesda Software. I remember the first of these games I played, Arena, back in college on Brian’s computer. Soon after we had finished with it, Amy Bremer started playing and came after Brian in a psychotic rage. Whether this was because of Brian or Arena, who can guess?
Oblivion reminds me of Arena in the way it starts. You are a prisoner at the beginning of the game, and through a fortunate set of events, you are able to free yourself and be thrown into a cataclysmic plot. The initial dungeon you must escape serves as an excellent training ground, one that Morrowind was sorely lacking.
Also improved over Morrowind is the ability to involve yourself in any number of intrigues. Oblivion keeps good track of your quests and makes them easy to join. You need not seek out obscure guild halls and trek between provinces to perform a single mission.
The missions are frequently crafty. In one instance while performing a task for a mage guild, I was asked to retrieve a ring from a well that some other guild member had thoughtlessly thrown it down. Arriving in the water-filled well, I found the body of the last guy who tried to perform this task, who just happened to have the ring on him. I took it, and only then was it that I realized why this task was so difficult - it was a ring of burden.
When you are over-encumbered (as one tends to get while holding a ring of burden) you can’t move. So I was left virtually paralyzed underwater as my water-breathing power slowly dwindled. Very nice.
The main quest (dealing with the entrance into this plane of Daedra from the plane of Oblivion) is thankfully completely ignorable. While the main quest sits idle, I continue to focus my character’s abilities in magic and thievery, which I hope will eventually translate into useful skills for the main quest.
There are details in this game that make it like no other. Alchemy can be practiced by picking plants and mixing them. You can make a decent work of trading goods between towns. Non-essential quests are everywhere, and don’t skimp on intrigue just because they’re extra. Even the non-quest dungeons (yes, whole dungeons exist for no reason - don’t even appear on your map until to walk near their entrances) are replete with detail and nuance.
Breathtaking landscapes riddle the game. Standing on mountaintops routinely yield awesome vistas of the cities below. Even the different town’s architectures belie the extra effort of detail spent on this game. Every character talks, and there are thousands of them. Amazing.
I’m looking forward to completing my round of recommendation gathering so that I can attend mage university in the imperial city. Then I will be able to enchant my own magic equipment. Woo-hoo!
This really is one of the best games I’ve played in a while. I’m glad that it was released for the 360.
