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I have never played Morowind but watched much of it, is it really better than Skyrim, I mean really. I don't want any stuck-up fan boys either. Just some opinions.

I have no idea...
I played it after Oblivion and preferred Oblivion over it quite a bit. I like Skyrim more than Oblivion.

Who knows, maybe if I'd played Morrowind first, I would have liked it more. Probably just what people are used to.

Elegost wrote:I have never played Morowind but watched much of it, is it really better than Skyrim, I mean really. I don't want any stuck-up fan boys either. Just some opinions.

By almost all logical acounts? no
The game had a really anoying combat system, and then you get in to things it did not have

things it did not have Moving NPC's, horses, a way to get around whem your in the middle of no where, houses you could buy, it's quest whee very much do this and that generic.
things it did have that where bad: it had bad directions, the game had a learning curve that was unreal, leveling was kind of hard, many things in game where broken.

I could go on and on, and yet most of us liked it, why? Well some would say it had a better story and "grabbed them" and had a feel, but really I think its cause its what we first played, I mean what did it have over the others?

I cant think of a single thing and those that say "feel" I cant help but feel like its someone saying they put their soul in to a song when its two copys of the same song, it sounds better cause they want it to.

Now it did have some good things but most of those are either in Skyrim or where replaced by something better.


I have a feeling if all of us where to try morrowind right now we would not like it as much, it was right place at right time.
Of couse its a great game for all its flaws and its up to evrey one to decide on their own.

As Wolfie said, Morrowind is a great game, but no doubt had it's flaws. IMO, until the Skyrim newness wares off, Morrowind is my favorite TES game.

And this belongs in TES general, by the way.

honestly, I can't say how it compares to Skyrim, because I have yet to actually play Skyrim, but I can tell you how it compares to Oblivion. Morrowind is immensely popular for a reason. It is epic and huge. there's just so much more content. let me put it this way. I like to compare the Imperial City from Oblivion to the city of Mournhold from Morrowind's Tribunal expansion. mind you, that's THE main capital city and seat of power for the Empire as compared to just an expansion for Morrowind. for that matter, compare just about any aspect of Morrowind to Oblivion. there are as many "Regions" in Morrowind, consisting of major cities, towns, settlements, etc, as there are major cities in Oblivion. for the sake of fairness, I'll admit there are regions in Oblivion (Gold Coast, Niben Bay, Jerall Mountains, Valus Mountains, Colovian Highlands, Blackwood, West Weald) but they aren't broken down and detailed anywhere near the extent that the regions of Morrowind are broken down, detailed and discussed on the wiki. for that matter just compare the number of factions from each game or the amount of quest content, and that should give you a fairly rough or vague idea of how the in-game content of each game stacks up and compares.

ok, guys. I don't want to see this degenerate into a fanboy flame war any more than anyone else, but several responses were posted in the time I was composing my first reply. in the sake of FAIRNESS, let's be HONEST. I have to take exception to a few claims made disparaging Morrowind, because frankly, they seemed pretty biased in spite of claims to the bias residing with the Morrowind fans. that's simply not a true statement.

Wolfie wrote:By almost all logical acounts? no
The game had a really anoying combat system, and then you get in to things it did not have

wolfie, you cite "logic" and then make a completely subjective observation. "annoyance" at Morrowind's combat system is not based on "logic". the combat system was different, yes, but whether a person finds it "annoying" or not is completely subjective. I found it was actually more "logical" and realistic in that sometimes you simply miss, and the unskilled combatant misses a LOT, as compared to always hitting your target no matter what your skill level is in the subsequent games.

Wolfie wrote:things it did not have Moving NPC's, horses, a way to get around whem your in the middle of no where, houses you could buy, it's quest whee very much do this and that generic.
things it did have that where bad: it had bad directions, the game had a learning curve that was unreal, leveling was kind of hard, many things in game where broken.

again, I think your own bias is coming through and showing itself so again, let's be fair and honest. "a way to get around whem your in the middle of no where". simply not true. if anything, Morrowind had MORE ways to "fast travel" and get around. they just didn't involve horses. they were more magic-based. there was Mark and Recall, Almsivi and Divine intervention, boats and silt-strider services, and the one single thing I absolutely missed the most was the ability to Levitate and fly. in morrowind, you had flying creatures in the way of cliff racers, as annoying as they could be, they were kinda cool. I can't recall a single flying creature in Oblivion, with the possible exception of the will-o-wisps, and in Skyrim, with the introduction of dragons, it's the one feature that should have been brought back and incorporated for aerial combat. now THAT would have been COOL! another feature I sorely missed in Oblivion was the ability to set a Mark and Recall out of Oblivion rather than having to hoof and lug loot back and forth, in and out. in Morrowind, I set a Mark at Creeper, went and did my business clearing whatever cave, ruin, etc., gather all my loot together, grab it, Recall, sell ... wash, rinse, repeat. as far as "houses you could buy", no, you couldn't "buy" a house, but there were more than enough places one could take up residence, so that's really a non sequitur, unless you simply found the lack of an actual purchasing mechanic to be a drawback. as for the rest of your complaints, all the same could just as easily be said for Oblivion. the fact is, as I previously stated, morrowind had MORE of everything, factions, quests, etc. so again, let's be fair and honest here.

*edit*
oh, and almost forgot to mention the Mage guild guides offering teleportation services between almost all the major cities in Morrowind. wtf happened to THAT in Oblivion?

I never played Morrowind aswell, and in these days I was wondering the same thing that the OP asked.
I hope this thread will not degenerate, and to be able to get some objective and constructive explanations about Morrowind.
I will eventually start playing it

Morrowind is an old game, so it will NOT be as much of an eye-candy as the newer ones, nor will it move as smooth, the combat is based on calculations instead of your moves (which for ME makes it better, even with the worse animations, because I CAN'T really fight, but in Morrowind, my character CAN fight for me, as it should be for an RPG). Anyone going into it now though should consider this, and not get disappointed because it doesn't look like a 2011 game. If someone wants min-maxing, likes the challenge in combat, they will be VERY disappointed by Morrowind.

I did not play Morrowind first though. I started with Oblivion, because that one was new when I got my first playing PC, capable of running games. I loved it very much, spent 200+ hours in it, mostly just exploring and taking pictures. Then I got bored, and looked for something else to play, and couldn't get into any other series with new games... so I tried Morrowind. It was UGLY. I died to a mudcrab ten minutes in. Let it sit for a week, tried again. Died again, after a little longer. Ragequit. Another month, tried again... and somehow managed to play to where the main quest really starts up... my character's flaws started to show again, but I just could not stop playing. The story, when it starts going (after around the 6-7th of the quests in the main line, once they stop testing you and send you on a real mission), is awesome. The Dunmer you start out hating will somehow grow on you, to the point where I just... felt like they were MY people (I never played a Dunmer in Morrowind, nor do I plan to). When at the end you have to swear you will protect them, I was every bit a fool -he- called me, because I actually meant it. I finished the main quest the first time sometime in the morning hours, while I had to go to work without actually sleeping afterwards... because I could not stop. It felt like a good book to me, and I realize that most gamers will hate books and scoff at the lore, but then it's simply not for them. It's also not for those who want black and white choices, you don't actually get to know which side is playing you, you can only guess. If someone is concerned about things being OP, Morrowind is horrible, you can become a god on lvl one, if you know what you are doing, with millions of gold. The exploits are endless, it completely relies on you regulating yourself.

IMHO, Skyrim is a much better -game- but story wise and with the joinable factions conflicting in awesome ways, nothing I've seen beat Morrowind.

Oh, for the first few hours I played Morrowind, I was annoyed by the odd combat system, amused by the silly movement... But, once you penetrate into the core of that game, it was just so magical. The amount of dialogue is ridiculous... And I know this sounds petty, but I love the way NPCs call you by name. It just makes things feel... Awesome.

There are sooooo many factions, sooo many people... The world is just so massive, I got happily lost in it, both figuratively and subjectively.

Plus, once you level your combat skills a bit, you can actually cause some serious damage in combat, making it bearable.

Really, tell the absolute truth, I spent fifteen hours on level one, just exploring and doing courier quests and whatnot. I was terrified of fighting for so long, when all of a sudden, through paranoid training and incremental rat and cliff racer kills, I somehow became competent at combat. There really is, just so much to explore in this game, I love it so much. I live the distinct culture, I love the diverse regions, the varied factions... Love it all.


PS, most people on this forum are bookworms and loremasters, NLN

Eltee wrote: PS, most people on this forum are bookworms and loremasters, NLN

Pretty much all the Morrowind fans I guess. But the new ones with Skyrim as their first game? I don't think so. I think we will just have to accept that now with the better combat system, there are different kind of gamers in the series who will not want to look through the strange combat Morrowind had because they are not interested in the lore. I for one want my lore in big heaps and will scoff at any combat-based game if it doesn't have that. And even I play Morrowind with graphics extenders, new textures and at least 50 mods, on around 25 fps...

Those who like TES enough to join a forum, I'm sure, are just as hungry for lore as you or I.
The majority, at least.

I've only played Morrowind for a few hours. The graphics were old. There was very little voiced dialogue. I got owned by everything that wasn't a scrib or mudcrab. I had no idea where to go. Pretty much everybody saw me as a dirty no-good outlander.

But, no game has made me get FRICKIN' GOOSEBUMPS like that before. Amazing.

I think I finally found the word I was searching for to sum up my morrowind experience, and that word is "variety". that was morrowind's greatest strength. it had more variety. more content, more factions, more quests, more skills, more options, more of just about everything in general. the only thing it really lacked was hand-holding and polish. the old spit and shine, which is fine by me because I was never overly impressed by the "ooohhh shiney!" factor anyway. I'm more "substance over style".

Thanks for all the replys, its just alot of peole around the forum say that Morrowind is far better than Skyrim. I have not played it but it looks so boring.

I know looks arn't everything but they sure as hell help. also the combat for instance is far better in Skyrim than in morowind, where it looks like two wooden dolls bumping each other. The world looks empty, no fine detail like grass, butterflies, I often stand just gazing at rocks, tree bark the beautiful world is just amazing, its not about eye candy its about imersion, and good graphics help imerse you in the game, not to mention things like cutting wood, cooking, the 3d books, looking at each object in your inventory, thats a huge improvment. The list just goes on

As for lore I can't say as I havn't played it. I love lore but I have the uesp for that so thats not really a bother for me.

I think that maybe the reason I can't understand why MW is loved, is the style of game, I HATE high fantasy, I hated the SI add on for Oblivion I like things that are rooted in low fantasy and Skyrim for me is heavan, I love its culture! Being a fan of vikings.

I'm not saying MW is a bad game its proberbly an amazing game for its time, and I'm glad some people like it, but saying its better than Skyrim is just mad I think.

Anyway thanks for all the opinions I respect everyones reasons for liking it and one day I will give it a try.

Elegost wrote: I think that maybe the reason I can't understand why MW is loved, is the style of game, I HATE high fantasy, I hated the SI add on for Oblivion I like things that are rooted in low fantasy and Skyrim for me is heavan, I love its culture! Being a fan of vikings.

All complains are quite valid, but I don't think Morrowind is high fantasy. Oblivion was high fantasy, Skyrim is... somewhere in-between, with world being realistic, main quest fantasy, Morrowind, for all the otherwordly details, was hardcore real life. Everything happens for political reasons or because otherwise not evil characters will get a desire for some shiny and/or power... there's no real Evil in it. Not even Dagoth Ur, he'd be... idk, maybe mad, I actually believed he wanted good for Morrowind, in his own twisted way. And nobody is "Good" either, maybe a little less selfish, but even the good characters act because they want to -look- good (Redorans, anyone?), and they help you because they will gain from it. It did wonders for my immersion in game

ok, you guys got me thinking a lot about this. hopefully, I'm not getting too deep, but I really think this is a generation thing. this is not meant to be an insult. please don't take it that way. I don't blame the younger generation. I honestly don't think it's anyone's fault. I think it's more the way our culture and society has changed and the differences in the way we were raised. when I was a kid we played D&D, and RPG was paper and pencil. there were no graphics or computer games, or even computers for that matter. my first computer game was "Pong". an RPG back then was about the storytelling, and we relied on and used our imaginations. we read books, and to this day I still try to encourage my kids to read, but the RPGs seem more like first-person shooter ports to fantasy settings. it's more about the action. again, please don't get me wrong or misunderstand. I've watched the trailers and found myself marveling in amazement at the sheer beauty of the game world, but Oblivion was much more polished than Morrowind, yet I still found myself getting quickly bored with it. seen one Oblivion Gate and plane, you've pretty much seen 'em all, and going from Morrowind to Oblivion, finding the nerf to the magic system, unable to fly, levitate or teleport, it felt more like a noose. the collar got tighter and the leash got shorter. that's what left a bad taste in my mouth more than anything. it felt more restrictive for someone who enjoyed the freedom and independence that Morrowind offered a character.

You get more freedom to do what you want in Morrowind, even Oblivion was reduced from all that was available in Morrowind but it still had more freedom than Skyrim. There are a few other things too, like to gain a rank in a guild you need skills and attributes at certain levels, so no level 4 arch mage with no magical abilities. Also you could interact with just about every npc even if it was mostly text based. The whole game just feels bigger like there is more too do, and it doesn't hold your hand like current day games.

I played Oblivion as my first Elder Scrolls game and absolutely loved it, I remember first leaving the prison and seeing the whole world just waiting to be explored. My first day in the imperial city, getting arrested for stealing a steal sword, going to jail then getting invited to the thieves guild from all the wanted posters around town. The game was epic and unlike any other game I had ever played, quickly becoming my favorite game and racking up well over 100 hrs on multiple play throughs.

Then I went to Morrowind, mostly to see what all the fuss is about but I was also very interested to see the lore and stories the land had to offer. The graphics where the biggest issue to me, the combat didn't really feel that much different to Oblivion. Once I got over everything not being shiny and smooth I found the game had just about everything I though was lacking in Oblivion. Its really hard to say what is so good about it you have to experience it for yourself, it bought back that feeling of innocence and getting lost in the game. It had secrets and stories that need to be uncovered and offered little guidance, you just figured it out yourself. The whole thing feels much bigger.

The things I found the most disappointing in Skyrim was how fast the game was, it was over before it began. Each questline was much shorter than its oblivion counterpart which just felt so dull to me, as soon as I get drawn in the story is over. I do still like Skyrim so don't get me wrong there.

MY POINT - for those that could be assed reading all that - just one thing I want to show people how haven't seen this, When they "simplified" Skyrim and removed certain skills and all attributes, you can no longer do anything like this

Keep in mind it was done without mods or cheats, just something I though was fun and creative.

Hope my rant helps at least one person.

Thanks for the comments, I think I understand what the difference is, I mean I have noticed how in Skyrim the quests are very short, mind you I have not done any yet as I'm taking my time but still they have very few quests acording to the wiki.

I loved Oblivion, I LOVE, LOVE Skyrim so in short, do you guys whom have played Morrowind think it would be worth getting Morrowind for the Xbox 360?

Morrowind? Great lore, great lore. The atmosphere was amazing. Man, nostalgia.

And Morrowind set the main theme of the Elder Scrolls. Just sayin'.

What makes Morrowind great was that it's so original and old-school. I haven't played Morrowind nearly as much as some of these other hard-core ES fans, but I can tell you that Morrowind was (and is) undeniably revolutianary.

Morrowind came back all the way in 2002 (ten years ago? gasp!) and was for a while exclusive to the PC, and the sprawling, content-filled, 3-dimensional game world had never been done before in such lore-filled detail. It's easy to notice that Oblivion and Skyrim try really hard to be epic, with their high production values, bombastic soundtrack, and big-name voice actors. But Morrowind just... was. It was epic all on its own.

Like Zero-Sum said above me, Morrowind set the theme for all Elder Scrolls game. It wasn't just a game, it was a revolution. Morrowind is the reason that the Elder Scrolls games are so wildly popular. For that, it deserves to be acknowledged as one of the greatest games of all time.

As a last comment, the mods for Morrowind are absolutely amazing, especially the graphical overhaul mods. As a PC gamer, I would recommend getting it on PC (don't worry about system requirements, you can practically play it on your calculator). But either way, Morrowind will be a great experience for you.

Thanks for reading.

For me, I guess it's a nostalgia thing. I fell in love with Morrowind's landscape and the bewildering myriad possibilities of gameplay. I have fond memories of lying on my apt floor (on the rug that brought the room together ) playing through the Telvanni quest line with my Dunmer, which took a good long while, and listening to the Beatle's Magical Mystery Tour as a soundtrack... ahh.. t'was nice. Anyway, though, if you're a fast reader, there is no reason you shouldn't enjoy it. It's a little more taxing to the attention span as well.

Morrowind for 360? no no.. very buggy. Besides it would look a MILLION times better on even the most basic newer PC than it does on Xbox. You can max all the settings and get some amazing mods to help with graphics (if you just can't get past how dated the original ones are).

Also, "stuck up fanboys?" That's a little antagonistic, don't you think?

Morrowind has a lot for you to read, and trust me, the things you read just add to the game so much more, and makes the world seem that much more alive. As for the quests, they are definitely longer than in Skyrim, since you don't have horses, and therefore travel slower but you can still sprint even when you're out of stamina, so that's the good part. The questing is similar to Skyrim in which there is a main quest, and numerous side-quests you can take once you join a Great House or guild. All your equipment have durability levels, and you have convenient access to all your character's stats, since they're all in windows, and the same applies to your inventory and NPC dialogue. I haven't gotten too deep with magic in the game, since I was playing a more weapons based class, but I'd say there's a mind-blowing variety of different spells available throughout the game.

I really don't see many flaws in Morrowind other than the graphics, and the many ways you can make your character overly powerful in the game without using console commands. There is a difficulty slider going from -100 to 100, so basically 200 difficulty levels. I've never played Oblivion, so I can't comment on that, but as for the question on whether or not to buy Morrowind, if you're more a graphics person, or prefer a more realistic experience, then you probably won't see a lot in Morrowind that you haven't seen in Skyrim. But if you're more an RPG person and enjoy deep lore with more freedom in combat and with lots to explore, then Morrowind is for you. If you do choose to get Morrowind however, I suggest getting it on PC, because the hotkeys make it faster and more convenient to execute the many spells and items you'd be using.

I haven't played it, but it seems to me that there are a few things the M-lovers seem to mention a lot, and that is:
1. Everything removed between Morrowind and the two subsequent games (Scroll of Icarian Flight, Safe Fall, Smoker Dunmer, etc.)
2. Politics (Eew)
3. Vivec

Also, inb4 "moved: Morrowind"

Sansreal wrote:I haven't played it, but it seems to me that there are a few things the M-lovers seem to mention a lot, and that is:
1. Everything removed between Morrowind and the two subsequent games (Scroll of Icarian Flight, Safe Fall, Smoker Dunmer, etc.)
2. Politics (Eew)
3. Vivec

Also, inb4 "moved: Morrowind"

I believe 'deep, awesome, mind-blowing lore' falls under the first category?

And big landscape with detailed bits?