What PC RPG should I buy?

[Selka]

Fuck both of those and get Tetris and an original gameboy!!

But with all seriousness, oblivion has a much larger replayibility potential because of things you might have missed. Plus the mods for ovblivion are numerous and amazing. But a very nice option for you to get instead of either of those is Bioshock off of steam since it's thirty dollars less or you can get the first KOTOR.


But it's entirely up to you, plus these are four amazing games so whichever one you'll choose you'll love or no money back!!

Or save up some moneys for L4D

I've played Bioshock, and I'd say it's the best game to come out in the past 5 years that I've had the pleasure of playing. I've also played KOTOR, which is also excellent. It was wonderful to see BioWare put out a product that was really quality after the disappointment that was Neverwinter Nights. I'm really looking forward to their MMO and their other upcoming RPG, which they've said is returning to its roots (i.e. Baldur's Gate 2, my favorite Western RPG of all time!)

I adore Mass Effect, and while I loved Morrowind, I found I couldn't even make it through one full game in Oblivion.

As others have mentioned, Mass Effect's strength lies in story and characters. It's a game for people who enjoy classic space operas and BioWare games in general. It boasts the same dark humor and epic storyline of Baldur's Gate, which it bears a strong resemblance to in tone (though it will always be compared to KOTOR because it's SF instead of fantasy). I can't believe some people are calling Oblivion superior in terms of replay value. I've clocked 200+ hours on this game already, and I'm not sick of it yet. The choice system in the game works better than any other RPG out there, mostly because the choices tend to be subtle and there are actually consequences for your actions. And taking the truly heroic path at times is just dumb. Yes, I love this game.

On the other hand, Oblivion bored the crap out of me. Gone is the variety of Morrowind, replaced with a bland map and characters who don't blink nearly enough. Mass Effect shows how great voiced dialogue can be by also ascribing actions and movement to their models. In Oblivion, everything stops so that people can talk. And what they say isn't even interesting. The quests are repetitive and dull, reminiscent of the grind you get in MMORPGs. Except its single player, so why are we grinding again? And the leveling system is broken. Unlike in Morrowind, where you can pick skills you're going to use in your class, Oblivion works best if you level only the skills that AREN'T in your skill set. Go figure. If you try to play the game another way, you can only get so far before the monsters are ridiculously overpowered. I might have struggled on if I weren't so bored. So yeah. Go with Mass Effect if you liked Baldur's Gate and Neverwinter Nights and the best of the Elder Scrolls: Morrowind. Go with Oblivion if you've never played the other games I've mentioned and thus don't know what you're missing out on.

You might have just convinced me. I've been told about the subtlety of the choice system in Mass Effect, and from what little I played of it I got the sense that it's fucking excellent in that regard. I had a problem with the fact that being a hard ass was synonymous with being evil in Mass Effect (at least at the very start) so... meh. I was never really a fan of Neverwinter Nights or Morrowind, because they were too repetitive and just too fucking ugly respectively, but damn is BG2 an excellent game. Also, I've been told of the problems you mentioned in Oblivion's leveling up system, which would probably detract from the overall experience. The one time I played it I tried playing a weird priest/monk hybrid character that focused on hand to hand and curative/buff spells, and at level 5 I couldn't kill a fucking wolf. I've heard of mods which help to alleviate the problem (goblins won't level up with you beyond lvl 5, and wraith you see before level 8 will instantly kill you and so on) but having to download a mod to make a game playable implies that there are probably other problems lurking around the corners.

Thanks for your input all, it's incredibly helpful and a lot of fun to see so many diverse opinions.

 

[V379]

I played mass effect and I loved the story, because it was story driven and so your actions have an effect on what happens and how your superiors think of your actions, also I liked the witcher because it also had an amazing story that gets you enthralled if you let it, but neither you can replay much in my opinion because once you've played them once you will know what is going to happen, and there are some things that you can't change. I have played fallout 3 and it was fun, but it just didn't offer the same immersive ability of mass effect and the witcher, and your choices didn't affect the story as much.

 

[Halfbreed13]

Get Mass Effect if you want a good story, or Oblivion for it's huge replay value.

I concur.
I beat mass effect, it was a fun 20 hours, but now it sits untouched on my steam account T.T

 

[j0z]

I have nver played Mass Effect but I have Oblivion and love it. Lots of replay value, plus the great mods for it.
My advice: Oblivion, more replay, cheaper (I think)
Plus isn't their a Bioshock/Oblivion bundle?

 

[LewsTherin]

Oblivion/Bioshock bundle for $30. Might have been GOTY Oblivion (which has most of the expansions) too.

 

[Grampy_bone]

Well on the one hand, if you liked Fallout 3 then Oblivion is the obvious choice, since the games are cousins.

But on the other hand Fallout 3 and Mass Effect share more thematic traits as Shooter-RPGs.

Mass Effect has better characters and plot but Oblivion has loads more content; especially if you get into the mods. With your new rig you can install all the pretty upgrade packs people have made and play Oblivion with even more gorgeous graphics. But Mass Effect looks pretty damn good as well.

Gah, it's like Sophie's Choice. Well whatever you pick I highly recommend playing both games eventually.