Why do people think Morrowind is so superior to Oblivion?

[Jovip]

I got into the elderscrolls, ah, wait for this. Arena. Thats right, the first game. I completed that game (granted with little to no understanding of what the hell was going on when i was 6) Then i beat daggerfall few years later.

Then came morrowind, oh morrowwind. Now, it is understandable to those who picked up the series at this game to become truely in love with the whimsical settings and surreal area. But for me it just didn't do it. The terrible interface made me want to viciously punch myself in the head with a running belt sander and the open world was something of a Tolkien-esque acid trip. That is to say i didn't enjoy it. I was dreadfully bored the entire time and sure there was alot of stuff, and i mean alot i could be playing this from the second i picked it up back in 2002 and still be finishing off sidequests today. However, i wouldn't because it would be a waste of time.

Then oblivion came and i fell back in love with the series. But let me explain to you why this is, and it may just be my preference. I enjoy the role playing, and deep immersive gameplay as much as we all do. The ability to do things almost any way you can think of. it's great. i love it. But the weird thing i find about immersion is you cannot be immersed in something that is completely foreign. Which is why to me morrowind never works. however in oblivion there was a inkling of relatability. there were deer and wolves, things we could see. the world felt medievil not complety fantasy based which i loved, i enjoyed being a hunter running around the forests killing animals skinning them and hopefully bringing enough back to buy a room for the night. it was awesome.

However, whenever i was forced to go into a cave or oblivion gate i instantly remembered i was playing a game. I didn't like that. granted i still had a shitload of fun killing daedra and skeletons, casting my magics everywhere. i was just aware i was playing a game.

My point is this, morrowwind is most likely nostalga. As when i compare morrowind to oblivion i see quality over quantity. This is just my oppinion, but i believe oblivion is the better game, and hopefully skyrim will surpass that. While morrowwind is just an acid trip on medievil realism in a dark alley.

I find this really interesting seeing as you have played them all starting with Arena, I don't think many people can say that (I certainly can't). You seem like the type of player who'd back up Morrowind no question for this very reason. Which I think lends my nostalgia idea at least a little credit, by no means am I saying that's all it is, I just think it plays a role. You found Daggerfall and Arena easier to pick up than Morrowind? I would have figured it would be even harder to play those ones, interesting.

Well i'll be honest, your reply has me rather confused. But my ultimate point is i guess what you enjoy in the elderscrolls is based on where you got in and what you want from it. If you started at morrowwind then your going to be keen on that and have that stapled in your mind as what the series is, however playing arena and daggerfall i found oblivion to relate alot closer to what i enjoyed in the series with morrowind being the odd one of the patch.

But as always, it's more oppinion. i just wanted to make the point that not all oblivion fans started at oblivion. i played them all and still found that one to be the better and more enjoyable game. plus, no one plays a "do what you want, choices" game for a linear coherant story, it's a playground with alot of rides, then lets you craft the tale with a bit of guidance.

 

[RuinsHand]

Hmmm. Morrowind and Oblivion. I technically played Morrowind around when it came out, and Oblivion around a year or so after it came out. I will honestly always like Morrowind more. It's just so...big. There's so much more to do in Morrowind. Even the starting city has a number of quests here and there that were fairly easy to pull off. Sure, entering the first dungeon (its right near the strider) would utterly kill you if you had just started, but that was half the fun. Exploration in Morrowind was largely fruitful and worthwhile. In Oblivion, there's very little point to exploration, and you could just fast-travel from one major city to another to get your quests done. Another point I'll bring up is the expansions. I have both GOTY versions. Shivering Isles was a great expansion, but Knights of the Nine was very lackluster on Oblivion's part. Tribunal and Bloodmoon for Morrowind both added an entirely new area with a ton of quests, new items, new enemies, etc. Technically, a proper use of being completely evil and knowing how to do things in Morrowind did technically allow you to join every guild in the game (yes, I've done it before; no, don't ask me how). One of the major reasons I like Morrowind over Oblivion, however, is the complexity. I love table-top RPGs (like D&D, Exalted, Shadowrun, etc.) and Morrowind feels more closely related to those than generic fantasy RPGs of today. Sure, Morrowind did suffer somewhat from being generally brown-tinted in most places (some places weren't, Solstheim especially). I could keep going on and on about the topic, but I think I'll end with one thing. The Elders Scrolls Construction Set for Morrowind is infinitely superior to Oblivion's, if only because you could make whatever the heck you wanted and actually be able to get it in game. And in relation to factions, Oblivion was way too easy to burn through all the faction quests. And you could do so no matter what class you were. So long as you could kill things, it worked.
Sorry if this is a bit long, and there's still more I could add, but that's some major things I have about this debate.

 

[Blubberburg]

This is my experience with morrowind:
Friend: "ohyeah just jump lots cause it lvls you up
Me: Ok, *jump jump jump, slash a citizin in the face and go nuts on him with my sword*
Then the citizen punched me, and in one punch i was knocked out, fell into a river and drowned...

 

[zombie goat fetish]

It all comes down to preference and personal taste.

 

[HoradricNoob]

I spent hours in both Vvardenfell and Cyrodill and can say that I enjoyed returning to Vvardenfell far more.

 

[Stainlesssteele4]

To some people, it's just quantity over quality. I enjoyed Morrowind a lot, but I found Oblivion superior. Just read some of the reasons people have been giving, it's simply the fact that Morrowind had more features.

 

[mercenator3000]

I'm glad I came across this thread. I definitely prefer Morrowind to Oblivion, although I've never really thought about why. I think it had something to do with the clear tensions between various factions in the region. In Oblivion there was certainly animosity between factions like the Dark Brotherhood and the Empire, but in Morrwind there was the whole Great House system, Ashlanders and Imperials, etc. There was also more of a story, which was rooted in a ton of lore.

Although I will say this for Oblivion: it doesn't have Shalks. God I hate those things.

 

[Right Hook]

Well i'll be honest, your reply has me rather confused. But my ultimate point is i guess what you enjoy in the elderscrolls is based on where you got in and what you want from it. If you started at morrowwind then your going to be keen on that and have that stapled in your mind as what the series is, however playing arena and daggerfall i found oblivion to relate alot closer to what i enjoyed in the series with morrowind being the odd one of the patch.

But as always, it's more oppinion. i just wanted to make the point that not all oblivion fans started at oblivion. i played them all and still found that one to be the better and more enjoyable game. plus, no one plays a "do what you want, choices" game for a linear coherant story, it's a playground with alot of rides, then lets you craft the tale with a bit of guidance.

What surprised me is that you considered Oblivion more close to what you expected given your previous experience, what I mean is a lot of arguments I've heard is that Oblivion gets too far away from what an Elder Scrolls game should be and yet you say Morrowind is the odd one. I'm not calling you wrong and I feel a lot of these people haven't played through all the titles in a linear way to have such a perspective. What exactly confused you about my reply? I'd be more than happy to clear it up.

 

[Char-Nobyl]

No, Morrowind could have focused itself tighter and had more spoken dialogue, less but better functioning skills, etc. and that's just going off what I've seen from other games of that time. Would that been the right choice? Probably not. I feel for it's time, that's what Oblivion did, they focused it more and some people preferred that, others did not.

Wait...does "focused itself tighter" mean just making the game shorter?

How can you assume that? Generally speaking, you might be right but it certainly isn't true for absolutely everyone. Like I've said, it isn't just about graphics or engine. I thought it was more focused, I didn't feel lost, some people like that, I don't. Preferred story is just an opinion, you can't say one is better than the other.

Okay. Then show me exceptions to my statement. You opened your post by saying that the first Elder Scrolls game you played was Oblivion, so you're clearly not referring to yourself. Do you have actual people in mind, or are you just appealing to the laws of probability?

When I started this, it wasn't meant to be an argument. It was an opinion poll, I simply stated mine.

Alright...so where's the poll, then?

The reason you find holes in my argument was because I wasn't making one, you are the one who started fighting with me over this. I was just curious and trying to get a friendly thread started, that's it.

That's in direct contrast to your previous sentence. You weren't trying to tally the number of Morrowind > Oblivion fans versus Morrowind < Oblivion fans. You were asking, outright, how people could possibly like Morrowind better than Oblivion, while simultaneously saying that having played Morrowind yourself, you had no idea how they could have come to this conclusion.

Sorry, mate, but those are fightin' words, whether you intended them to be or not.

This is just pure rude, so because I didn't feel the need to apologize for how I worded something, I'm the one with a problem?

Ah, so it didn't feel sincere because there wasn't any sincerity in it. That clears that up.

If I did that every time someone criticized me for something I said that they didn't like, I'd be doing that constantly. I'm sorry, truly sorry you don't like the way I write or that I don't apologize at the drop of a hat.

Right...look, man, there's a difference between faulting someone for not apologizing and faulting them for making a blatantly insincere apology. I was on your case about the latter, but you seem to think it was the former.

Nobody else took offense to what I said, they realized I was asking all of this out pure curiosity and not some feeling of superiority.

If only one person notices something, does that necessarily mean that it doesn't exist?

I really didn't want to get into an argument, say what you want and turn it back on me if you must but I'm not replying again because I don't think we will see eye to eye, so it will just be a waste of words on both our parts.

No problem. Being able to walk away from an issue is a valuable skill of the internet that a lot of people don't have. I'm gonna wander off to the Imperial Library and read some of the more entertaining Lore books. If nothing else, we see eye to eye on Skyrim, and frankly, that's more than enough.

 

[martyrdrebel27]

snip

hey did you get your name from the Zombies! board game?

 

[Right Hook]

snip

hey did you get your name from the Zombies! board game?

Oddly enough I have played the Zombies! board game but have had the name "Shotgun Guy" for a bunch of different locations well before I played it. I just came up with it on my own randomly.

 

[userwhoquitthesite]

Then add to that the expansion packs, wherein you confront a dark god and a murderous Daedra... wait. Oblivion didnt even have original ideas for its DLC! Anyway, Solstheim is a living environment where things are just familiar enough to get your bearings, and so massively different you never feel like you are just retreading the same ground as elsewhere in the game.

Oh dear, you just reminded me of how I whipped Almalexia's ass because I had both expansions; Just behind the big "cabin" in Thirsk, there's a hollow tree stump with 2-3 enchanted arrows that do 5000pts of Damage Health... Needless to say I made her regret her previous murder.

lol, i never use those, i prefer to sell them to some crappy shopkeep in places like seyda neen or pelagiad, where they'll never be identified and get into unknowing hands

 

[Mekado]

I preferred seeing and being in Morrowind but i preferred playing Oblivion.

Yes, it's generic fantasy world, pretty much just as i expected Cyrodiil to be.Also cliff racers are definitely not a boon, i hated these with a passion (they were much more annoying than dangerous).

 

[Vuljatar]

To put it diplomatically, Oblivion simplified things too much.

To put it offensively, Oblivion took everything that was great about Morrowind, dumbed it down to an incredible degree so that the kiddies and consoletards could understand it, and attempted to drown the player in style over substance with physics and shiny graphics.

For another good example of similar dumbing-down, compare and contrast Supreme Commander 1 with Supreme Commander 2.

 

[Signa]

This is my experience with morrowind:
Friend: "ohyeah just jump lots cause it lvls you up
Me: Ok, *jump jump jump, slash a citizin in the face and go nuts on him with my sword*
Then the citizen punched me, and in one punch i was knocked out, fell into a river and drowned...

I laughed out loud, because I know exactly what happened. Your first mistake was listening to your friend. Your second was attacking a random civilian for no good reason (at level 1, no less).

See, jumping, running, swinging your sword all costs fatigue. When it comes to performing those actions, you can have 0 fatigue, and still do them, but things like landing blows with your weapon is going to be a lot harder when you are exhausted. Now here is where things get really noob-unfriendly: every time you punch some one, they lose fatigue points instead of HP. If you are struck at 0FP, you will go negative, and then pass out. You will stay passed out until your FP regenerates to 0FP. While you are passed out, any punches you take will damage your HP instead of your FP.

In addition to all those rules, being knocked out drains any oxygen you have in your lungs, so diving underwater instantly will make you start to drown. Being level 1, that gives you about 3-5 seconds of drowning before you are dead. Add in the still-agro NPC, and you were completely fucked.

 

[Adultism]

I just didn't like morrowind because its combat system was boring, and it generally didn't get interesting for me fast enough. Maybe if it had oblivions combat system it would have been better

Also, Incoming hate.

 

[sumanoskae]

Oblivion was better presented and more fun on a second to second basis, Morrowind had an interesting world and more atmosphere.

Oblivion is more fun but Morrowind is more involving.

IMO, Oblivion is better, but only because it's newer. If the games were reversed, Morrowind would be leaps and bounds ahead.

 

[Blubberburg]

I laughed out loud, because I know exactly what happened. Your first mistake was listening to your friend. Your second was attacking a random civilian for no good reason (at level 1, no less).

See, jumping, running, swinging your sword all costs fatigue. When it comes to performing those actions, you can have 0 fatigue, and still do them, but things like landing blows with your weapon is going to be a lot harder when you are exhausted. Now here is where things get really noob-unfriendly: every time you punch some one, they lose fatigue points instead of HP. If you are struck at 0FP, you will go negative, and then pass out. You will stay passed out until your FP regenerates to 0FP. While you are passed out, any punches you take will damage your HP instead of your FP.

In addition to all those rules, being knocked out drains any oxygen you have in your lungs, so diving underwater instantly will make you start to drown. Being level 1, that gives you about 3-5 seconds of drowning before you are dead. Add in the still-agro NPC, and you were completely fucked.[/quote]
yeah after i was like oh wow that was gay and stopped playing my friend was like 'ohyeah thats right you get knocked out for having no stamina' but it was too late to go back, needless to say looking back it was hilarious and thought some escapists would love to hear my misfortune

 

[Bishop99999999]

Morrowind: amazing atmosphere, horrid gameplay.

Sorry guys. I don't mind getting my ass kicked by some horror when I'm level nothing, but if it takes me fifty swings to hit a rat for the barest fraction of its health, well, that just doesn't fly.