Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

100 or More Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Instant classic"

STORY: 10
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Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is probably one of the greatest games of all time, and no doubt the best game on new generation consoles, and this can be attributed to its story telling. Not only does the main story captivate, but so does all the other 500 ones. Whether you are searching for Mankar Cameron in his paradise, stopping the King of Worms from destroying the Mages Guild, or even planning a heist to take the Elder Scroll itself, all the stories in Oblivion are crafted and written to perfection, and it is highly doubtful you will ever find yourself disinterested in Oblivion.

CHARACTERS: 7
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Elder Scrolls IV has crafted some of the coolest and most under appreciated antagonists in gaming history. Mehrunes Dagon, Mankar Cameron, Manemarco. The list goes on and on. The same can't be said for the protagonists, however. For every great villain, there is a bland ally. generic Jauffre, boring Baurus, and my personal favourite, monotonous Martin. Fortunately, the score 10 villains overpower the score 4 protagonists in memorability, which really saves the overall feel of the game.

GAMEPLAY: 9
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The gameplay in Oblivion is nothing more than innovative. Although it has already been done in Morrowind, the mechanics of the game still feel fresh and new. Watching you enemy succumb to physics when you kill him with your sword, or push them of a cliff is one of the many joys and wonders on Oblivion. You may sometimes find yourself accidentally stealing stuff, or mistakingly striking an ally, but these are minor problems.

GRAPHICS: 7
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One of the small setbacks in Oblivion is the graphics. It's not that they are terrible, they are just distracting. Little things like texture pop-in and people having different coloured heads than their bodies can sometimes catch your eye, and sadly it is all to noticeable to be just a small problem. But, when those textures finally pop-in, the landscapes are gorgeous and full of detail.

MULTIPLAYER: N/A
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Not needed.

SETTING: 10
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The most gorgeous and mesmerizing land you will ever step foot in is Cyrodil. Every dungeon, ever city, ever blade of grass was given the utmost care and dedication to create. No doubt the greatest living location and country ever created in any game ever.

AUDIO: 8
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Score is amazing, voice acting is amazing, sound effects are amazing. One problem. They use four voice actors for thousands of characters. Everyone having Jauffre's voice is distracting, and you will actually find people who's voices change halfway through a conversation. The score would have been a 10 if they had more voice actors.

TECHNICAL: 6
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This is the quality that holds is back from perfection. Freezing, pop-in, random glitches. You name it, Oblivion has it. Most of the glitches deter greatly from the game, and one of them actually forced me to start over. That it why you absolutely have to save every five minutes. Don't just shrug that off either, actually listen and do what I say! You will thank me later.

RE-PLAYABILITY VALUE: 10
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With over hundreds of character combinations, I guarantee that you will play another 200 hours of Oblivion with another character. So much to do, so little time.

FUN FACTOR: 10
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You will have absolutely no life when you begin to play this game. I have had this game for 3 years, and I am still playing it. Sucks you in, never spits you out.

SCORE: 8.5 (A)
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Oblivion is the largest, most innovative, and definitely most detailed game of all time. Multiple technical issues can really make your play through frustrating however, and take this game from being the greatest game ever made, to being only one of the greatest games ever made. That being said, you must buy this game. Not rent, not borrow. Buy.