The Elder Scrolls (abbreviated as TES) is a role-playing video game series developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks.
The Elder Scrolls games can be safely categorized as role-playing games, although they do include elements taken from action and adventure games. In Arena, as in many RPGs, players advance by killing monsters (and thereby gaining experience points) until a preset value is met, whereupon they level-up. However, in Daggerfall, Morrowind, and Oblivion, the series took a skill-based approach to character advancement. Players develop their characters' skills by applying them, and only level-up when a certain set of skills have been developed. The flexibility of the games' engines has facilitated the release of game extensions (or mods) through The Elder Scrolls Construction Set.
The world of the Elder Scrolls is known for its attention to detail, attempted realism, and the vast number of names, dates, and places that constitute its history and the interconnected structure of its various societies, cultures, and religions. There is no one compilation of all information pertaining to the Elder Scrolls world, and, within the games, historical references are often vague or unclear. Players are encouraged to draw their own conclusions about situations and events for which the records are sparse, contradictory, or incomplete.
I've a confession to make, I've played both
Morrowind and
Oblivion but I've never finished them. But you know, considering I spent 100+ hours on each, I think it's safe to say that I got a lot out of both games even without finishing the main story.
It's safe to say that
Elder Scrolls V : Skyrim is one of this year's most anticipated games. And rightly so, it's been a while since a new Elder Scrolls game and the ones that have come before i.e.
Morrowind and
Oblivion have been stunning games in concept and execution. I know both have had their issues with technical bugs and what have you, but I can forgive that if the games are ambitious and it's mostly executed well. The cool thing is that you can mess about in these worlds, do your own thing and engage in side quests and still have a blast. I know I did. I'll maybe share some of my experiences later but for now, here's a breakdown of the games that I've played:
The Elder Scrolls III : MorrowindLooking back now, I had some great moments with Morrowind. It's probably the glitchiest game I've played, the console locked up a couple of times, but I'm so glad I tried it because it's one of the most atmospheric and daunting game environments ever in terms of scope and scale. It wasn't your LOTR type fare either, the world really did feel quite alien, like the Daedric ruins, the Ashlander camps, the fishing village of Gnaar Mok, they were all different and interesting to explore. And when I was out there carving my own destiny, it had a rousing soundtrack to keep you going, such as the song you can hear in the trailer above. Also, fuck cliff racers.
The Elder Scrolls IV : OblivionOblivion was more of a LOTR knock off than anything and probably was...'dumbed down' from what came before in Oblivion, but it didn't take away from the experience for me as it made a lot of other necessary and beneficial improvements to make it a better gameplay experience. It was one of the first games I had for the 360, and probably the best looking one I had. Even now I'm still in awe at the sunset, or the stars in the sky.
The Elder Scrolls V : SkyrimDue in November, I am so excited for this to come out. The previews have sounded amazing and this will be one of the few day one purchases I've made in my life. Bring it on.