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Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (for Playstation 3)
by Jon Liu
General Gameplay
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is the one of the first completely successful role-playing games of the High-Definition console platform era. It is definitely one of the most comprehensive RPG’s of this generation and though it spent months on the Xbox 360 and the PC, it finally made its way to the Sony Playstation 3 console. The attention to detail overall as well as the variation in character combinations for character creation along with the varied path’s and quests you can play ultimately leads to a game with quite a bit of replay (or even play) value.
Overall Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is designed to cater to casual and hardcore RPG gamers. For gamers who want a quick game to play, Oblivion may last only 15 hours to breeze through the main quest only. For those who want to take their time and complete all of the side quests, the amount of hours you might accumulate before you finish the game could be upwards of a couple hundred.
The game controls are very intuitive and can be learned very quickly. I was worried switching from the Xbox 360 version to this one, that the controls wouldn’t transfer over as well, but they indeed do. I was able to pick up the Playstation 3 controller without looking at the manual and figured out what each button did very quickly.
Tech Specs
Visually, there’s no two ways about it- this game is awe-inspiring. The graphics and textures are fantastic and the amount of detail spent on some of the different armors, especially the Daedric Armor will astonish you. What’s more, with the amount of detail present, the draw distance (the distance you can see) is absolutely phenomenal.
I playing all the way through and logged over a hundred hours on the Xbox 360 version of Oblivion, so I have some comparisons to mention here. The Playstation 3 version had the advantage of being release quite a bit later than the Xbox 360 version, so naturally there is some additional polish to the game. The graphics have been improved quite a bit. The actual textures are mostly the same, but there seems to be a bit more refinement and detail in general. The draw distance and the amount of information on screen has been improved upon, and on top of all this, the framerate and consistency has been improved immensely! There are still occasions of stuttering, but the PS3 version seems to have improved immensely in practically every graphical way.
Another fabulous improvement over the Xbox 360 version is load times. The load times on the 360 version used to be pretty distracting at times, but the PS3 version makes these much more bearable! The load times have been reduced drastically and you can really get a feel for it while walking around the open world.
The in-game music is as inspiring as the graphics. The music brings to life the different moods and atmospheres of the game. As vast as this game is, the atmosphere and people never seem to sound the same. It truly feels as though you’re traveling through different cities and towns!
Game Rage
Even though this game does cater to all sorts of RPG fans, casual and hardcore, being an RPG fan is a must. This game does take a lot of attention and you will find that out from the moment you start the game up. Character creation alone could take you hours if you want to tweak all of your settings.
Oblivion requires a lot of invested time to really be enjoyed.
ADD Level
The story line is extremely comprehensive. One thing I find hard to get into with a lot of RPGs is the story. Oblivion is one of the few that I actually enjoy going through again simply for story development.
Bedtime Rating
The game gets a rating of Mature for Blood and Gore, Language, Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol, and Violence. Although that’s a pretty big list of things to worry about, I think it’s pretty tame compared to some games. I wouldn’t worry too much about younger ones seeing this game.
Multiplayer
This game has no multiplayer aspect. It’s unfortunate and if it ever could be implemented, I think it would just be amazing to see. I could only imagine running around Cyrodiil with a partner. This would just add so much to the level of enjoyment of this game.
Conclusion
For RPG fans, Oblivion is an absolute no-brainer. I can’t recommend this game enough. Oblivion is graphically amazing and the comprehensiveness of the game will just amaze you. Playing through for a second time, I’ve been able to appreciate the comprehensiveness and thoroughly enjoyed the game once again. Be warned though, this game can consume hours of your life very easily.
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