So Oblivion is my first Elder Scrolls game, and I love it. This and the Thief series are simply some of my favorite action/adventure/RPG-esque games that I've ever played. I noticed that the Morrowind forum on this site is still active, which makes me think that it's a really good game ... is it worth it to pick that game up if I've already played this one? I guess what I'm worried about is that Oblivion is so good that maybe Morrowind might not be as good when compared to Oblivion.
I love the way Oblivion looks, I love the immersiveness of the world, and I love the open-endedness of how the game unfolds (or doesn't unfold if you don't care to follow the quests). In your opinion, does Morrowind stack up to Oblivion? Keep in mind that I'm new to the series.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts.
Comparion with Morrowind?
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GenghisJohn
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AnimaMortis
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Morrowind is better in a few ways and Oblivion is better in a few other ways. Morrowind is not a leveled as Oblivion, which makes you feel more like you accomplished something after so many levels. Plus, the need for controlled leveling is less..
However, the combat system is quite a bit worse than Oblivion's, blocking is done automatically, with you having a CHANCE to block a blow based on your block skill. Spells have to be cast while youre in magic mode (no hitting while casting spells, first need to sheathe your weapon). Magic skill determines the chance of a spell succeeding (ugh, mean), instead of the cost of the spell and the spells you can cast.
The menu's in Morrowind are better i think, and look cooler.
So, what do you prefer, being it about leveling and completing quests, or killing things with skill? (controller skill, that is)
However, the combat system is quite a bit worse than Oblivion's, blocking is done automatically, with you having a CHANCE to block a blow based on your block skill. Spells have to be cast while youre in magic mode (no hitting while casting spells, first need to sheathe your weapon). Magic skill determines the chance of a spell succeeding (ugh, mean), instead of the cost of the spell and the spells you can cast.
The menu's in Morrowind are better i think, and look cooler.
So, what do you prefer, being it about leveling and completing quests, or killing things with skill? (controller skill, that is)
A single dedicated mind can cause about the greatest destruction. That, or goblins, goblins work too.
Morrowind has better almost everything but graphics.
Some bugs/problems of Morrowind got fixed in Oblivion. Underpowered magic got ballanced thanks to Magicka regeneration. Some ultimately overpowered skills like Alchemy got put back in check somewhat.
Some solutions created more problems than they solved. In Morrowind after a while you'd become a demigod, making the last battle a moot. The game was meant to be finished by level 10 and usually you finish it around level 30, meaning no battle is ever a challenge after certain point. But Oblivion "solved" that by levelled everything, meaning some (most?) things are easier at level 1 than 20.
But ultimately the game got dumbed down. Expect about 4 times as much of actual content in Oblivion - plus each of the expansion packs - Bloodmoon, Tribunal - provide almost about half the Oblivion size content. Skills, items, spells, factions, dialogue richness, lore, even UI features got cut, removed, simplified, dumbed down. Oblivion was a BIG step backwards in the means of gameplay.
Some bugs/problems of Morrowind got fixed in Oblivion. Underpowered magic got ballanced thanks to Magicka regeneration. Some ultimately overpowered skills like Alchemy got put back in check somewhat.
Some solutions created more problems than they solved. In Morrowind after a while you'd become a demigod, making the last battle a moot. The game was meant to be finished by level 10 and usually you finish it around level 30, meaning no battle is ever a challenge after certain point. But Oblivion "solved" that by levelled everything, meaning some (most?) things are easier at level 1 than 20.
But ultimately the game got dumbed down. Expect about 4 times as much of actual content in Oblivion - plus each of the expansion packs - Bloodmoon, Tribunal - provide almost about half the Oblivion size content. Skills, items, spells, factions, dialogue richness, lore, even UI features got cut, removed, simplified, dumbed down. Oblivion was a BIG step backwards in the means of gameplay.
There once was a Prince named Mehrunes
Whose buttocks sounded sonorous tunes
‘Twas an odiferous song
People sang before long
They had enough of his full crescent moons.
Whose buttocks sounded sonorous tunes
‘Twas an odiferous song
People sang before long
They had enough of his full crescent moons.
Hmm
Morrowind is definitely worth a go if you enjoyed Oblivion. When it is all said and done Oblivion is just slightly more accessible than Morrowind was. They are similar in most ways but Oblivion is more polished and is enjoyable for a larger audience, however sacrafices content in order to pull this off. Morrowind is a bit more rough around the edges but more than makes up for it in other ways.
There are a few things you will need to get used to, but you will probably enjoy Morrowind if you liked Oblivion.
There are a few things you will need to get used to, but you will probably enjoy Morrowind if you liked Oblivion.
Re: Hmm
You say accessible and wider audience, I say dumbed down and idiots.i9ub wrote:Oblivion is just slightly more accessible than Morrowind was. They are similar in most ways but Oblivion is more polished and is enjoyable for a larger audience
There once was a Prince named Mehrunes
Whose buttocks sounded sonorous tunes
‘Twas an odiferous song
People sang before long
They had enough of his full crescent moons.
Whose buttocks sounded sonorous tunes
‘Twas an odiferous song
People sang before long
They had enough of his full crescent moons.
Re: Hmm
Yeah I didn't have too much of a problem with what was done to Oblivion, however I hope they don't continue to take their games in this direction.Vook wrote:You say accessible and wider audience, I say dumbed down and idiots.i9ub wrote:Oblivion is just slightly more accessible than Morrowind was. They are similar in most ways but Oblivion is more polished and is enjoyable for a larger audience
the combat system is better in oblivion. and i like the evironment. forests instead barren wastelands (Dagon Fel anyone?).
the leveling is okeyish but i don't like the leveled "good" loot. there shouldn't be so many glass, ebony, daedric artefacts around. i would've wanted more unique items, theoretically available from the beginning if you're good enough to get them.
i'd want the legion back as faction. i want the spears back. they look cool on guards.
quests are easier beacuse of the pointer. it should help you find certain locations instead wandering around like a fool (like Ma'iq used to say) but some things shouldn't be so obvious. it's clearly a tribute to the "target audience adjustment". otoh. people need to make a living and if they don't sell enough then goodbye. anyone rembers "the looking glas" with "system shock 2"? or ionstorm with "thief"? both are really great games, i'd say milestones, and both are gone.
RPG purists will have to accept they ain't numerous enough so that RPG-producing companies could commercially survive with only them as customers. that being said, i'm glad that there are still games like oblivion and that maybe through this "dumbing down" some kids are being exposed somewhat to the RPG-world which might ensure that we can expect that even in the future not every game will be another CS, battlefield or starcraft clone.
however, game producers could do 1 important thing. making the games as modder friendly as possible, so that even RPG purists can adust the gaming experience to suit their gusto.
the leveling is okeyish but i don't like the leveled "good" loot. there shouldn't be so many glass, ebony, daedric artefacts around. i would've wanted more unique items, theoretically available from the beginning if you're good enough to get them.
i'd want the legion back as faction. i want the spears back. they look cool on guards.
quests are easier beacuse of the pointer. it should help you find certain locations instead wandering around like a fool (like Ma'iq used to say) but some things shouldn't be so obvious. it's clearly a tribute to the "target audience adjustment". otoh. people need to make a living and if they don't sell enough then goodbye. anyone rembers "the looking glas" with "system shock 2"? or ionstorm with "thief"? both are really great games, i'd say milestones, and both are gone.
RPG purists will have to accept they ain't numerous enough so that RPG-producing companies could commercially survive with only them as customers. that being said, i'm glad that there are still games like oblivion and that maybe through this "dumbing down" some kids are being exposed somewhat to the RPG-world which might ensure that we can expect that even in the future not every game will be another CS, battlefield or starcraft clone.
however, game producers could do 1 important thing. making the games as modder friendly as possible, so that even RPG purists can adust the gaming experience to suit their gusto.
Morrowind is amazing. Some points of difference:
Good
- very involved main quest, with a good sense of "prophecy" - you feel more special and integral to the plot
- very atmospheric, dark surroundings
- Levitation spell
- realistic transport system (boats, mage guide teleports, silt-striders). No quick travel but there are Mark and Recall spells
- Selling stuff to a Merchant increases their money, allowing you to sell something much more expensive. But merchants only have a fixed amount per 24 hours (see below)
Bad
- Journal/quest log system is an absolute nightmare (I'd highly recommend keeping a notepad to write down new quests, otherwise later on you'll be slowly scrolling back through hundreds of unordered journal pages)
- repetitive conversation system; also you can't tell what you've already asked someone, it doesn't get "marked off" like in Morrowind (except for the Blades trainers info, which is irritating, because then you can't remember who/where they are, unless you remember enough keywords to search your journal index)
- rubbish random loot. It's really, really bad. There are unique items strewn about, but even some of these are just rubbish. The most disappointing for me was a miniquest to find a dead Viking's magic axe. It was about power 20 - by then I had Daedric weapons of power 70 or so
- dungeons are a bit dull, and don't have much stuff in them
- cliffhangers. If you get the PC version, mod these out, or at least reduce them. They're so boring
- selling stuff is a nightmare, merchants keep running out of gold
- you never feel that anyone likes or trusts you, even if you become really famous and work for the public guild. You are always this hated outsider . Some may feel it adds to the atmosphere, I found it a bit over lonely
Good
- very involved main quest, with a good sense of "prophecy" - you feel more special and integral to the plot
- very atmospheric, dark surroundings
- Levitation spell
- realistic transport system (boats, mage guide teleports, silt-striders). No quick travel but there are Mark and Recall spells
- Selling stuff to a Merchant increases their money, allowing you to sell something much more expensive. But merchants only have a fixed amount per 24 hours (see below)
Bad
- Journal/quest log system is an absolute nightmare (I'd highly recommend keeping a notepad to write down new quests, otherwise later on you'll be slowly scrolling back through hundreds of unordered journal pages)
- repetitive conversation system; also you can't tell what you've already asked someone, it doesn't get "marked off" like in Morrowind (except for the Blades trainers info, which is irritating, because then you can't remember who/where they are, unless you remember enough keywords to search your journal index)
- rubbish random loot. It's really, really bad. There are unique items strewn about, but even some of these are just rubbish. The most disappointing for me was a miniquest to find a dead Viking's magic axe. It was about power 20 - by then I had Daedric weapons of power 70 or so
- dungeons are a bit dull, and don't have much stuff in them
- cliffhangers. If you get the PC version, mod these out, or at least reduce them. They're so boring
- selling stuff is a nightmare, merchants keep running out of gold
- you never feel that anyone likes or trusts you, even if you become really famous and work for the public guild. You are always this hated outsider . Some may feel it adds to the atmosphere, I found it a bit over lonely
In Oblivion it got pulled in opposite direction too far. The journal is obnoxious. You could have ran most of Morrowind without peeking into the journal even once, or with a journal scribbled on paper. In Oblivion journal entries push themselves to the screen, instruct you about the next step (where's the puzzle? You're TOLD what to do!) and often reveal much more than you'd normally know (sneak-kill an enemy and you'll get the entry with contents of dialogue that would have occured if you didn't kill them). It's extremely disruptive, contains lots of redundant information ("I have killed 3rd bear. Need to kill 3 more") and generally spoils the experience - but because of haphazardly written dialogues, it's necessary - you won't learn enough to finish the game from talking to NPCs, you NEED to read the journal to get info that should have been said. Same about compass - no more following directions, the directions are sometimes vague, often wrong, the compass is a necessity because spoken directions are broken.istara wrote:Morrowind is amazing. Some points of difference:
Bad
- Journal/quest log system is an absolute nightmare (I'd highly recommend keeping a notepad to write down new quests, otherwise later on you'll be slowly scrolling back through hundreds of unordered journal pages
But you can ask the same thing again. In Oblivion if you missed something, you often can't ask to repeat it. Besides, the dialogue is simply meaningful. You get actual info. In Oblivion you can click through dialogues, follow compass and read journal, and simply never paying attention to what is being said. The actual RPG thing - interacting with people - has been made redundant.- repetitive conversation system; also you can't tell what you've already asked someone, it doesn't get "marked off" like in Morrowind
And Oblivion is better how?- rubbish random loot. It's really, really bad. There are unique items strewn about, but even some of these are just rubbish. The most disappointing for me was a miniquest to find a dead Viking's magic axe. It was about power 20 - by then I had Daedric weapons of power 70 or so
Through the Nightmare, Darkly. Big, atmospheric, cool quest. Revarded with a 7gp scroll.
No change here.- dungeons are a bit dull, and don't have much stuff in them
Cliffracers- cliffhangers. If you get the PC version, mod these out, or at least reduce them. They're so boring
Yep, mod them out. Simple. Agreed, that was a big mistake of Morrowind. Not disqualifying though. You can't say Oblivion is better because there's no cliffracers
Haggling is easier though. And no need to click "OK" for each item you sell. Sure the amount of gold available is a problem... selling few really expensive items was a nightmare in Morrowind. In Oblivion, selling lots of cheap items is. And for expensive items you simply don't get full price, that's it. In Morrowind you could have worked around this.- selling stuff is a nightmare, merchants keep running out of gold
Well, your factions like you. With enough factions, that's a lot of people! In Oblivion some people will keep hating you even with disposition maxed out.- you never feel that anyone likes or trusts you, even if you become really famous and work for the public guild. You are always this hated outsider . Some may feel it adds to the atmosphere, I found it a bit over lonely
There once was a Prince named Mehrunes
Whose buttocks sounded sonorous tunes
‘Twas an odiferous song
People sang before long
They had enough of his full crescent moons.
Whose buttocks sounded sonorous tunes
‘Twas an odiferous song
People sang before long
They had enough of his full crescent moons.
Oops yeah. RACERS. SorryVook wrote:Cliffracersistara wrote:cliffhangers. If you get the PC version, mod these out, or at least reduce them. They're so boring
Yep, mod them out. Simple. Agreed, that was a big mistake of Morrowind. Not disqualifying though. You can't say Oblivion is better because there's no cliffracers
I actually thought they were quite inspired and atmospheric, there were just too many of them. Perhaps if they had been nocturnal, or confined to mountain areas (like eagles) it might have been better. While you're weak it becomes boring taking ages to kill them all the time, and when you're strong they're just irritating like constantly buzzing flies.
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Akela
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Morrowind is wonderful - on PC. IMHO it's the mods that make the game. Better bodies, better faces, houses, banking and real estate etc etc. What [&@%!] me off when I just started playing MW was the fugly characters. Then I discovered the mods. What a change that was.
I have played Morrowind for a few years without beating the game even once. I don't feel the need to. Morrowind is a world to live in and if I beat the game I'd feel as if I had died. No hurry there.
I have played Morrowind for a few years without beating the game even once. I don't feel the need to. Morrowind is a world to live in and if I beat the game I'd feel as if I had died. No hurry there.
Are you kidding me!? Morrowind is great even without mods! It's mostly the storyline that make it better. I don't really understand why you need better looking people. Doesn't make any sense!Akela wrote:Morrowind is wonderful - on PC. IMHO it's the mods that make the game. Better bodies, better faces, houses, banking and real estate etc etc. What [&@%!] me off when I just started playing MW was the fugly characters. Then I discovered the mods. What a change that was.
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GrayMouser
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