THE ELDER SCROLLS 4: OBLIVION

Let’s start with an obvious choice, shall we? Bethesda made a big deal of their new Radiant AI system before Oblivion’s launch, and to be fair, it definitely did add quite a lot to the game. Each NPC having their own unique schedules and patterns meant that the world felt dynamic and lived in- but then again, those NPCs were also dumb as rocks. From overreacting in the most hilarious way possible to someone getting attacked in front of them to walking right into an obvious deathtrap to turning a blind eye to blatant crimes being committed to so much more, Oblivion’s NPCs were a very special brand of stupid. Combined with the hilariously bad voice acting, that definitely made for some memorable moments- though not, we’re sure, the way the developers would have been hoping for.

The Elder Scrolls Online will be releasing for PCs this April but will also be heading to next gen consoles in June. ZeniMax Online Studios director Matt Firor recently spoke to Examiner about how this will affect the interface. It seems the Xbox One and PS4 interfaces will be similar to Skyrim and Oblivion in that they focus more on the world rather than on excessive details.

“After next-gen consoles were announced, our community continually asked us to bring the game to those platforms as well. We based our UI look and feel on Skyrim and Oblivion – simple, out of the way, with an emphasis on having the player look at the world, not the UI.”

Considering the reception for both games on consoles, that doesn’t seem like a bad idea. Now how about removing that paid subscription, Bethesda?

The Elder Scrolls Online will be out on PC and Mac on April 4th.

Now it looks like the Elder Scroll series is finally making the leap into the online universe, with Elder Scrolls Online. They’ve done expansions and recently with Skyrim they’ve accepted the modding community with open arms and have thousands upon thousands of community made innovations for Skyrim, but of course there is nothing like Elder Scrolls Online.

This is a big step for the franchise as well, there hasn’t been any online components for any of the Elder Scroll titles before and it looks like the franchise isn’t even bothering to get it’s feet wet and is just jumping right into the deep end. The question is whether this online title is going to sink to the bottom or become an amazing online title that rises to the top?

As it stands, Elder Scrolls Online certainly has some stiff competition to live up to. With so many MMO games out there now, with developed environments, worlds, characters, gear and player bases already well established getting a game like this off the ground is a tough nut to crack. If that isn’t enough to deal with, ZeniMax has to fill the shoes of some of the most in-depth, single player experiences that have ever been created.

"As it stands, Elder Scrolls Online certainly has some stiff competition to live up to. With so many MMO games out there now, with developed environments, worlds, characters, gear and player bases already well established getting a game like this off the ground is a tough nut to crack."

With so much riding on this game, it’s no wonder they’ve kept it under wraps for so long and have been very careful about who has beta access and what information gets out to the public. As much as people try, some simply don’t get beta invites to the game.

At first, plenty of people were interested, but weary of the announcement of Elder Scrolls Online. Some folks viewed it as a simple “cash-in,” for a game that people all over the internet had been wishfully asking for, for years.

Once that announcement was made people’s tunes suddenly changed, fearing the worst with plenty of them expecting to just turn the game into another World of Warcraft clone.

While there have been plenty of developers who’ve made this mistake, it’s always something gamers worry about; especially when it’s about about a franchise that many people love. After the demos at E3 and QuakeCon this year though a lot of those worries have been put to rest, with a great twitch-based combat system and even the ability to quickly switch between third and first person views.

Luckily for us, ZeniMax has made this game a labor of love that they have, so far from what we’ve seen put a boatload of time into it. Elder Scrolls Online is going to have all the same classes we’ve enjoyed throughout the series.

"There is going to be plenty of sneaking, pick-pocketing and lock-picking too. So there is definitely more to this game than just grinding your way to the top and hoping that we’ve got some friends to play with along the way."

The setting of the game also takes place about a thousand years before Skyrim, so all those ruined cities, villages and those old Dwemer will be pretty lively this time around. ZeniMax is also paying very close attention to all the lore of the Elder Scrolls universe. They really have to with this particular title, people aren’t going to accept some half-baked online spin-off. ZeniMax knows this and they are taking it very seriously.

They are certainly doing their very best to bring the full, single player experience from games like Oblivion and Skyrim. There is going to be plenty of sneaking, pick-pocketing and lock-picking too. So there is definitely more to this game than just grinding your way to the top and hoping that we’ve got some friends to play with along the way. The world is certainly complicated too, with three factions all vying for the Emperor’s ruby throne there is going to be no lack of players the fight with as you explore the world. As big as Tamriel already is based on what has be released this far it is just going to keep getting bigger as the developers over at Zenimax unlock more areas in updates and expansions.

 Staying true to the Elder Scrolls series, there will still be plenty of small but interesting quests to send players out into the world, either together or by themselves. The player can choose to be a part of the Fighters, Assassin’s, Mage’s guild and many more. While the player may pick a class to start in, just like the single player games, you will have your choice of what skills and abilities you focus on. So there are plenty of options to make your character different, even if your friends decide to play the same class.

"While the player may pick a class to start in, just like the single player games, you will have your choice of what skills and abilities you focus on. "

There is going to be plenty to do in the this busily populated title with gamer’s who can’t wait to have a chance to get into this game. The game is still a little ways off, and plenty of people are waiting patiently for a beta invite and for a chance to get a bit of a hands-on preview with the game instead of just watching videos.

Even with all these great features though, making a great MMO title is a difficult nut to crack and there will be no shortages of critical eyes looking at this title under a microscope. As long as the Elder Scrolls online can stay true to the series that plenty of gamers have grown to love than we should get a great MMO experience, and finally one that we can also share with our friends, instead of just trading stories. We’re also getting this MMO on our next generations consoles and even OSX, so it doesn’t look like anyone is going to be missing out on this exciting game.

Bethesda’s Todd Howard has admitted that the Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion “sacrificed” some of the magic Morrowind in order to create a “refined and welcoming” world.

Howard commented in a recent interview about the alien and unfamiliar nature of Morrowind’s game world. “It should feel alien, kind of ‘stranger in a strange’ land, with familiar looking elements only rooting you early in the game. The whole tone ends up being one of ‘I’m an outsider, I’m uncomfortable'” said Howard.

“With Oblivion, we’re dealing with the capital province, and we wanted to get back to the more classic Arena and Daggerfall feel of a fantasy world that felt more refined and welcoming…a place that you instantly understood. But in that, we sacrificed some of what made Morrowind special; the wonder of discovery,” he admitted.

Howard was positive about the future of the series saying that “with Skyrim, we’re trying to bring some of that back and walk the line between Morrowind and Oblivion. Where it’s at first familiar looking, but has its own unique culture and spin on it.”

Thanks to OXM for the info.

Bathesda’s parent company, the guys who own the creators of titles such as Elder Scrolls and Fallout 3, ZeniMax, have trademarked the title ‘Oblivion’ under the category ‘motion picture film production.’

Is it possible that ZeniMax are looking to keep possibilities of an Elder Scrolls movie open? This is what the recently filed trademark says: “Motion picture film production; entertainment services, namely, providing motion picture theatrical films in the field of fantasy games.”

So, season of game movies? Halo movie… Red Dead Redemption movie… what next? A Mass Effect movie? Now that’d be cool.

Still Alive

For my money, there is nothing that can instantly alter the mood, warp the setting, and otherwise create a distinct feeling for a game like music. It’s one of those elements that either works or doesn’t, but it never gets in the way. A glitch is noticeable, because it could potentially kill you, and at the very least it’s an irritation that jars you from the experience. Bad voice acting is potentially hilarious, but also ruins immersion and gets in the way (take note, Marvel Ultimate Alliance). Everything from bad level design to poorly placed hit boxes to unbalanced RPG systems are important enough to the core experience of a game that any misstep could turn a great game into a decent, but forgettable one, or a mediocre game into a bad one.

Music has no such issues. You either notice it or you don’t, and even if it’s noticeably bad, it can be turned off, or turned down. But when games get it right, when the music is interspersed with the game in just the right ways, it can turn a game toward true greatness.

The first time I noticed spectacular music was way back in 2002, when Medal of Honor: Allied Assault was one of the few World War II games on the market (remember when they were original?). Not only did it have the now flagrantly overused Normandy Invasion as one of its high points, it also had future Up composer and Academy Award winner Michael Giacchino in charge of the music. Though his soundtrack fairly straightforward, predictably piping in with its sweeping, enervated score when the bullets were thickest, the effect was tremendous. You wanted to charge up the hill when the music kicked in, and the music moved you just as much, if not more, than the level design did. It was at its best in those frenetic moments when you’re wrapped up in a firefight, completely immersed, timing grenade throws and reloads to the music, even if you didn’t realize it. One of the perks of the game was that the music was contained in separate mp3 files, and I still have some tracks kicking around on my hard drive. I give it a listen now and then.

The Elder Scrolls series has been lauded for a number of reasons, but one of the reasons I consistently return to playing Morrowind is partly because of the fantastic music and sound design. The music is a simple repeat of three or four songs intended to be playing constantly in the background, switching from simple, restrained orchestral tracks to the more adrenaline-injected numbers that come on when the player is in combat. It’s a simple enough gimmick, but there’s a charm to it that is further enhanced by the sound effects themselves. I don’t think any Morrowind veteran is going to argue that any of the sound effects are particularly realistic, but there’s a level of uniqueness to it that for some inexplicable reason has me returning again and again to the rural, empire-resistant land of Morrowind. Though I can’t quite place my finger on exactly why, there is just something about the sound and music in Morrowind that make the game stand out and, I would personally argue, stand above the more recent entry into the Elder Scrolls series, Oblivion.

don't be fooled; that maraca is actually a mace

Half-Life 2, similarly, has nothing much to add to the music portion of gaming (unless you count Portal as part of the Half-Life canon, in which case “Still Alive” delivers in spades), but it certainly has something going for it in the sound department. From the very beginning, after you step off the train in City 17, the Civil Protection forces, with their uncanny-valley face masks and voice-altering helmets policing a debris-strewn nearly empty city, create a palpable atmosphere from minute one in the game. It only gets better as when CP units are gunned down after getting some weapons, each one letting out a two-toned flatline sound in the company of bullets, explosions, or superheated railroad ties fired with a distinct, flat thump (and even more satisfying metallic thunk when the weapon hit against a brick wall with a Combine corpse decorating the end) when fired from the crossbow. Valve’s Source engine was also one of the first in the industry to fully utilize a 3D sound system, which made the throaty boom of an explosion echo off canyon walls, and the lamentable death-scream of a tripod walker ripple out in a city street. From a distance, the effects were changed enough to really make you think that there was a full-on city uprising surrounding you in the later levels.Half-Life 2’s sound perfectly illustrates how exceedingly simple techniques can serve to deeply immerse a player into the world.

All Freeman needs now... is more cowbell

Bioshock took a different, and dare I say, even more immersive approach. Throughout the course of the game, the city of Rapture is as much a character as any of the human or post-human people you encounter in the course of playing. With leaky hallways and the distant groan of Big Daddies, to the mumbling of deranged splicers, every new environment bombards the player with sound, tacitly telling the story of Rapture’s fall. Some of the best moments come when the player enters a room with a scratchy, 60s-era record wobbling around on its player, the voices of bygone singers perfectly underscoring the dying city. The music wafts in from around corners or muffled by doors as a way of injecting a juxtaposition of normalcy for the player. While audibly, the music plays as if to suggest a time before Rapture’s freefall, visually, the player is still stuck in a flooding city with murderous lunatics around every corner. The fact that there is little in the way of normal orchestral scoring, or even a soundtrack worthy of the name, is a perfect illustration of how rich and complex the storytelling in a game can be, with every sensory element lending itself to the crafting of a tale.

Understandably, in my zest to jot down a few of my favorite achievements in music and sound, I invariably missed a few of the great ones. Tell me how egregious my omissions are in the comments.

Apparently, Japanese magazine Famitsu listed several companies who plan to “surprise their audiences with new titles.” What has given rise to the speculation of a new Elder Scrolls game is Bethesda surprise project being listed as secret, which means it can’t be any of their games which are known to be in development, meaning it could very possibly be the next Elder Scrolls game.

Would V be as epic as IV was, given that it releases?

If it is, then it leads rise to some very interesting questions- what platforms will it appear on? Will it support peripherals such as Natal and Move? When is it due for release?

No matter what the answers to those questions might be, I think it is safe to assume that Bethesda would steal the show if this announcement came to pass.

Or… maybe the long ago announced PSP Elder Scrolls game could finally be making its comeback to public consciousness?