Yeh, I've only had time to play this one now even though I've had it for years mainly because people said it was extremely long so I held back until I had some time. Before I start let me say that I'm a Bioware fan and absolutely loved Dragon Age and Mass effect and apparently there's some hate between both fans because of different tastes so just wanted to get that out there incase maybe thats the problem. I've played the game for about 3 hours so far and it has been absolutely horrendous, After having played Duke Nukem forever I didn't think games could me more boring or annoying.

From the get go, the animations, voice acting and facial animations simply destroyed immersion for me, guess I'm spoiled by mocap?. Then came the awfully slow walking, probably the most annoying part. Combat wasn't too bad, although those pesky mages damaged me hard. The main storyline started off quite bad too, I mean I'm in a jail and all of a sudden I'm suppose to save the world because some king had a dream of me. The UI has also been a tremendous pain as it's quite hard to navigate through and has very weird key bindings, I want to press M when I wasnt the map not press tab and go find the map there.

As you can probably tell, it hasn't been much fun for me at all so far but I want to see what I'm doing wrong since the amount of people that rave about this game is quite large. So please help me in making sense of this game.

I never enjoyed the game "as is"....it felt clunky to me.  If your playing on PC, there are lots of mods for the game, might want to check FilePlanet or something...they have just about everything there.  I'm not talking about mods to make the game itself easier, but as far as UI, graphics go...theres some nice stuff out there.

Well, seeing as the game got a 95% average from all major outlets (without any leverage from Bethesda) and PC Gamer named it the best PC game of all time... Maybe free-roaming RPG's just aren't your thing?

The animations can be a bit clunky, but the quest is solid although the guild quests are even better. Hell, Shivering Isles expansion's questline is absolute genius and is the best part of all ES games so far IMO.

Also, if you're playing on PC, go to TESnexus and get some mods. They're easy to install and there's fixes for almost everything that people didn't like in Oblivion.

The problem is your playing an outdated game. Go play EQ2 and that will feel wayyyy dated even know its updated constantly. Same goes for games like Oblivion. Amazing game back when it was out because it was one of the first on the 360. The new one will be epic as well. 

Oblivion is suppose to start slow. You are afterall just a prisoner. However, if you have only played 3 hours you probably have not gotten into much of the better parts of the game. Unlike those Bioware games, Oblivion starts much slower and then builds to a great finish. Also, if you haven't already done it, make sure you patch up the game. A number of things were added/fixed that make the game better from a play standpoint.

Personally, I think Oblivion is a sort of MMO with the M or O part. World is pretty big with lots exploration. Lot's for room for RPG style play. Lots of varition depending upon what type of character you build.

Oh, and in regards to the "slow movement", you can instant travel to locations and you can get a horse for speed travel if you wish.

Just means you dont like a sandbox game. You want a game to hold your hand and tell you what to do. STAY far away from Fallout as well cuz you will hate it .  Both are great games and once you beat them the mod commuity is outstanding and you replay it again and again with all the different mods that are available.

different strokes for different folks, is all. nothing you're doing wrong... just isn't for you.

I couldn't stand Mass Effect or Dragon Age, and I loved Oblivion. We just have different tastes in games, this is a big market ... there's room for everyone :)

Originally posted by WINGCLIP

Just means you dont like a sandbox game. You want a game to hold your hand and tell you what to do. STAY far away from Fallout as well cuz you will hate it .  Both are great games and once you beat them the mod commuity is outstanding and you replay it again and again with all the different mods that are available.

No need to be insulting. Just because someone doesn't like a particular game doesn't mean that entire genre is out of the question for them. My lord, you fanbois are amazing. God forbid someone doesn't like something you do.

As for Oblivion, it's slow and boring as shit in the beginning, but it picks up quickly. The leveling system takes some getting used to, but as you continue using the skills you enjoy and see yourself growing stronger, you get a feel for what you should be doing pretty quickly. The wide openness can take some getting used to if you're not used to a sandbox, but if nothing else, the game DOES NOT END when you 'beat it' (meaning finish off the big baddie and save the day). Most of those side quests are still there, so if you feel overloaded, you can just stick to the main quest which basically shuffles you along from one destination to the next just like any other RPG, and play with the extra stuff after. If you even care to, by that point.

Oblivion was one of those games I really didn't understand people's love for, until one day I found myself bored with nothing else to play. I promised myself I'd stick with it for more than a few hours, if only to kill some time, and I found once the plot started to unfold, it became much more interesting. You may want to look at the mod community and see what is available, there are mods that fix the game's bugs better than the company itself managed to, and you can also update the world to be prettier than it started with some player-made meshes and landscape. That might make it feel much newer, and fresher.

Did you de Xbox it first with some great mods that make the game worthy to be called a Pc game title? Without those mods the game is falls very short on the Pc. 

Originally posted by gaeanprayer

Originally posted by WINGCLIP

Just means you dont like a sandbox game. You want a game to hold your hand and tell you what to do. STAY far away from Fallout as well cuz you will hate it .  Both are great games and once you beat them the mod commuity is outstanding and you replay it again and again with all the different mods that are available.

No need to be insulting. Just because someone doesn't like a particular game doesn't mean that entire genre is out of the question for them. My lord, you fanbois are amazing. God forbid someone doesn't like something you do.

 

As for Oblivion, it's slow and boring as shit in the beginning, but it picks up quickly. The leveling system takes some getting used to, but as you continue using the skills you enjoy and see yourself growing stronger, you get a feel for what you should be doing pretty quickly. The wide openness can take some getting used to if you're not used to a sandbox, but if nothing else, the game DOES NOT END when you 'beat it' (meaning finish off the big baddie and save the day). Most of those side quests are still there, so if you feel overloaded, you can just stick to the main quest which basically shuffles you along from one destination to the next just like any other RPG, and play with the extra stuff after. If you even care to, by that point.

Oblivion was one of those games I really didn't understand people's love for, until one day I found myself bored with nothing else to play. I promised myself I'd stick with it for more than a few hours, if only to kill some time, and I found once the plot started to unfold, it became much more interesting. You may want to look at the mod community and see what is available, there are mods that fix the game's bugs better than the company itself managed to, and you can also update the world to be prettier than it started with some player-made meshes and landscape. That might make it feel much newer, and fresher.

Lots of TOP rated games I bought and played and hated, but never felt the need to come here and complain about them. They wouldnt be 5 star games if a lot of folks didnt enjoy them. If people dont like a game dont play it, Bethesda isnt loosing any sleep over it.

Op, first of all, you are proably approaching the game "all wrong".

Especially if you said you loved Dragon age. Dragon Age is a storied, somewhat linear game. Now, I like DragonAge a lot but Oblviion and even morrowind are not linear games per se.

They are about exploring, doing what you want to do, creating a character you want to be.

Also, I believe most of the elder scroll games start you off as a prisoner. That is their "shtick".

And you are missing the point. It's not because some emperor had a dream of you. it was a confluence of two happenings: you in the prison, he having dreamt of you, and he suddenly comes upon you at the very time of his death.

This is the stuff of prophecy.

Whether you like that type of thing or not is up to you.

These games are about you creating your own "good time". As a piont of note, my roommate played oblvion and never finished the main quest )barely started it) and never finished any of the guild quests. He just loved  exploring and doing whatever quests he ran into in his travels.

Me? I still actively play oblvion and morrowind. Especially with some of the adventure mods.

But in the end, this is not a game like Dragon Age or Baldur's gate. It's about you being plopped into a world and "what do you do?"

it might not be your thing. But if you change your paradigm a bit and look at it more as a world than a game you might enjoy it.

I have so many stories of just "neat things" that I've seen in Oblvion. there is quite a lot under the hood. Heck, just start the assassin's guild quest and play through some of that, it's very good. Of course you have to "kill someone" i.e. murder someone.

There's the daedra prince who asks you to go to a party and spring a "surprise" or the deadra princess who asks you to free her subjects of the dark by doing away with the church officials trying to convert them.

There are so many little hints and easter eggs hidden in the world. Imagine entering someone's house and it all looks normal but you go into the basement and behind boxes is a circle of runes soaked in blood.

or the league of vampire hunters that asks you to help them out as they believe they have tracked a vampire in the city.

You rescuing a stupid prince who is playing "knight" and who entered into an oblvioin gate because he felt the bards would sing stories about him.

What about the rich high elf who is a collector of his ancestor's antiquities and he asks you to help him find some statues after you sell one of them to "any" local merchant. All seemed innocent enough. Or how about nut case who thinks everyone is watching him so he hires you to spy on them.

Or the lovcraftian village that is hiding a secret.

Or just you exploring a cave and suddenly part of the rock wall drops away and you discover a lost ruin.

I don't want to give too much away but there is quite a lot in this game.

I love both sides of the coin,DA type games and Oblivion type games..

I did get bored of oblivion though towards the end,but it really is a good game imo.

I loved being a vampire and feasting on peoples blood,I also couldnt play the game without the boobie mod!

The elder scrolls series is not for everyone. I loved and played them since marrowind.  I make mods for oblivion or did make mods now i am waiting for Skyrim. I was totally immersed in oblivion. I loved it and it is one of my favorite games. I guess cheezey ness in the sence of the the animations and  voice overs did not bother me at all. I am a big fan of bioware as well. I played oblivion and the shivering isles and founds them awesome.

I play again to enjoy the game not to criticize what i do not like about it. i hated the faces in the game  I hated some of the bugs  that it had.but you know i looked past that and enjoyed the game alot

Originally posted by WINGCLIP

Originally posted by gaeanprayer

Originally posted by WINGCLIP

Just means you dont like a sandbox game. You want a game to hold your hand and tell you what to do. STAY far away from Fallout as well cuz you will hate it .  Both are great games and once you beat them the mod commuity is outstanding and you replay it again and again with all the different mods that are available.

No need to be insulting. Just because someone doesn't like a particular game doesn't mean that entire genre is out of the question for them. My lord, you fanbois are amazing. God forbid someone doesn't like something you do.

 

As for Oblivion, it's slow and boring as shit in the beginning, but it picks up quickly. The leveling system takes some getting used to, but as you continue using the skills you enjoy and see yourself growing stronger, you get a feel for what you should be doing pretty quickly. The wide openness can take some getting used to if you're not used to a sandbox, but if nothing else, the game DOES NOT END when you 'beat it' (meaning finish off the big baddie and save the day). Most of those side quests are still there, so if you feel overloaded, you can just stick to the main quest which basically shuffles you along from one destination to the next just like any other RPG, and play with the extra stuff after. If you even care to, by that point.

Oblivion was one of those games I really didn't understand people's love for, until one day I found myself bored with nothing else to play. I promised myself I'd stick with it for more than a few hours, if only to kill some time, and I found once the plot started to unfold, it became much more interesting. You may want to look at the mod community and see what is available, there are mods that fix the game's bugs better than the company itself managed to, and you can also update the world to be prettier than it started with some player-made meshes and landscape. That might make it feel much newer, and fresher.

Lots of TOP rated games I bought and played and hated, but never felt the need to come here and complain about them. They wouldnt be 5 star games if a lot of folks didnt enjoy them. If people dont like a game dont play it, Bethesda isnt loosing any sleep over it.

It's irrelevant what you feel the need to do. This is a forum for discussing games, including both disliking them and liking them. If it's not a topic you want to see, don't click it.

Originally posted by Sovrath

Op, first of all, you are proably approaching the game "all wrong".

Especially if you said you loved Dragon age. Dragon Age is a storied, somewhat linear game. Now, I like DragonAge a lot but Oblviion and even morrowind are not linear games per se.

They are about exploring, doing what you want to do, creating a character you want to be.

Also, I believe most of the elder scroll games start you off as a prisoner. That is their "shtick".

And you are missing the point. It's not because some emperor had a dream of you. it was a confluence of two happenings: you in the prison, he having dreamt of you, and he suddenly comes upon you at the very time of his death.

This is the stuff of prophecy.

Whether you like that type of thing or not is up to you.

These games are about you creating your own "good time". As a piont of note, my roommate played oblvion and never finished the main quest )barely started it) and never finished any of the guild quests. He just loved  exploring and doing whatever quests he ran into in his travels.

Me? I still actively play oblvion and morrowind. Especially with some of the adventure mods.

But in the end, this is not a game like Dragon Age or Baldur's gate. It's about you being plopped into a world and "what do you do?"

it might not be your thing. But if you change your paradigm a bit and look at it more as a world than a game you might enjoy it.

I have so many stories of just "neat things" that I've seen in Oblvion. there is quite a lot under the hood. Heck, just start the assassin's guild quest and play through some of that, it's very good. Of course you have to "kill someone" i.e. murder someone.

There's the daedra prince who asks you to go to a party and spring a "surprise" or the deadra princess who asks you to free her subjects of the dark by doing away with the church officials trying to convert them.

There are so many little hints and easter eggs hidden in the world. Imagine entering someone's house and it all looks normal but you go into the basement and behind boxes is a circle of runes soaked in blood.

or the league of vampire hunters that asks you to help them out as they believe they have tracked a vampire in the city.

You rescuing a stupid prince who is playing "knight" and who entered into an oblvioin gate because he felt the bards would sing stories about him.

 

What about the rich high elf who is a collector of his ancestor's antiquities and he asks you to help him find some statues after you sell one of them to "any" local merchant. All seemed innocent enough. Or how about nut case who thinks everyone is watching him so he hires you to spy on them.

Or the lovcraftian village that is hiding a secret.

Or just you exploring a cave and suddenly part of the rock wall drops away and you discover a lost ruin.

I don't want to give too much away but there is quite a lot in this game.

I agree with you 100% but oblivion did loose some of its creepy factor lol  so many times in marrowind when things scared the crap out of me.  but for me its about the open worldness and the main story for oblivion was awesome I loved everything about the game. I am an expert at oblivion i was addicted to this game for two years. I played ever quest line i could finds and there are some amazing player created content for this game. http://www.tesnexus.com if your looking for mods for this game

Originally posted by Gabby-air

 

From the get go, the animations, voice acting and facial animations simply destroyed immersion for me, guess I'm spoiled by mocap?.

You are right, I love TES games but facialanimations and voiceacting in Oblivion is a bad joke.

I can still play it though, probably have around 400 hours of playing but spend alot

of time laughing at the involuntary comedy when it comes to the voices.

It is really lousy, over-dramatic and amateurish on so many levels......

Morrowind is still a superior game.....

Originally posted by Sovrath

Op, first of all, you are proably approaching the game "all wrong".

Especially if you said you loved Dragon age. Dragon Age is a storied, somewhat linear game. Now, I like DragonAge a lot but Oblviion and even morrowind are not linear games per se.

They are about exploring, doing what you want to do, creating a character you want to be.

Also, I believe most of the elder scroll games start you off as a prisoner. That is their "shtick".

And you are missing the point. It's not because some emperor had a dream of you. it was a confluence of two happenings: you in the prison, he having dreamt of you, and he suddenly comes upon you at the very time of his death.

This is the stuff of prophecy.

Whether you like that type of thing or not is up to you.

These games are about you creating your own "good time". As a piont of note, my roommate played oblvion and never finished the main quest )barely started it) and never finished any of the guild quests. He just loved  exploring and doing whatever quests he ran into in his travels.

Me? I still actively play oblvion and morrowind. Especially with some of the adventure mods.

But in the end, this is not a game like Dragon Age or Baldur's gate. It's about you being plopped into a world and "what do you do?"

it might not be your thing. But if you change your paradigm a bit and look at it more as a world than a game you might enjoy it.

I have so many stories of just "neat things" that I've seen in Oblvion. there is quite a lot under the hood. Heck, just start the assassin's guild quest and play through some of that, it's very good. Of course you have to "kill someone" i.e. murder someone.

There's the daedra prince who asks you to go to a party and spring a "surprise" or the deadra princess who asks you to free her subjects of the dark by doing away with the church officials trying to convert them.

There are so many little hints and easter eggs hidden in the world. Imagine entering someone's house and it all looks normal but you go into the basement and behind boxes is a circle of runes soaked in blood.

or the league of vampire hunters that asks you to help them out as they believe they have tracked a vampire in the city.

You rescuing a stupid prince who is playing "knight" and who entered into an oblvioin gate because he felt the bards would sing stories about him.

 

What about the rich high elf who is a collector of his ancestor's antiquities and he asks you to help him find some statues after you sell one of them to "any" local merchant. All seemed innocent enough. Or how about nut case who thinks everyone is watching him so he hires you to spy on them.

Or the lovcraftian village that is hiding a secret.

Or just you exploring a cave and suddenly part of the rock wall drops away and you discover a lost ruin.

I don't want to give too much away but there is quite a lot in this game.

Couldn't have said it better myself. In fact, reading your post has filled me with the need to play Oblivion tonight. To the OP, I'm sorry to hear your heart wasn't stolen by one my all time favorite games but I must say that is probably that first time I've heard that opinion from anyone, ever.

A quick reply before i read all messages, to people that think I hate sandbox games that is not the case, I loved red dead redemption and just beat infamous last week. I love all sort of games, and every genre, some more than others but I haven't come across anything I've hated. This is what's irritating me the most, like some people said maybe its not for me but you know I've also come across some games that aren't for me and there rated quite high but I always see the appeal of the game and know that it in fact is a good game which in this case hasn't come up.

@OP

Sorry I can't explain to you why Oblivion is a great game.

(At least it is for me.)

You have to feel it. If you don't that is a personal problem

but don't blame the game for it.

When I first palyed it back when It first came out, I didn't like it much either. But after I sunk my teeth into a while, then I I had a blast as the game opened.  Messing around as a vampire, trying different sorts of combat, hell, trying to get access to the different guilds, mass murdering towns, even running into a shop stealing something and then when it shows the hilarious "hey, you can't do that" minicutscene, blast his entire shop with a chain lightning.

But hey, not all people like that kind of stuff. And if the story and voice acting things are unbearable, thats that.

Oh, and you mentioned the slow walking around the world, you can teleport to spots on the map and get a horse. Idk if thats the issue your talking about, but some guild-mates gave up on the game when they tried walking around the world for everything, so seemed worth mentioning.