Conclusion, final thoughts and a bit of a warning...
So I could rattle on for hours about how great The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is and all the wonderful things you can do and see but to be honest, that’s a bit like trying to describe to an alien what it’s like to live on Earth. So what I guess I’m saying is that The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion should be high on the shopping list for any PS3 owner who hasn’t played it on the other platforms.However, even if this is your first foray into The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion I would advise caution as the heavy RPG nature is not going to be to everyone’s taste. If you’re looking for some hack and slash elves and orcs style action you won’t find it in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, this is a much slower paced experience than your average first person aspect game.
Click for larger imageThe Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion takes time to get into but pays back that investment of your time with simply massive rewards. The combat can be frantic, tipping a nod to you adrenaline junkies, but if you play properly and plan your attacks you’ll find that panicky retreats are few and far between... That’s not to say that there’s not plenty of tension in the game because there is... the AI in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion can be as crafty you think you are.
Speaking of the AI, one downer is that unlike other RPGs where you can level up and then head back to an early area and utterly destroy previously hard to beat baddies, all the AI levels up with you. This kind of takes the edge off the whole experience and improvement system as you’ll always be evenly matched by the AI. However, if you do find the going a bit too tough you can pop into the options and re-adjust the difficulty down a notch or two, do the tricky bit and ramp it back up again.
Click for larger imageSo, there you go, that’s The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion for the PS3. Is it a worthy purchase for PS3 owners? Well, of course it is, it’s bloody The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion for crying out loud! But I do have to add an afterthought to that glowing recommendation, one that you should pay careful heed to. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion most certainly isn’t for everyone, especially those who prefer their gaming hits in short bursts. You have to spend some time in the world of Tamriel to get the best out of it, so if your attention span and need to blatting the hell out of bad guys is more immediate, you might want to pass The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion by. The same goes for anyone who’s played the Xbox 360 or PC versions, there’s nothing new here other than the included Knights of Nine expansion pack, but you’ll have to play a massive chunk of the same game to get to that bit.
So, that just leaves you PS3 owners who like their RPGs to be deep, malleable and intriguing and who haven’t played The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion on any other platform. If you fall into this group then this is a definite no-brainer and worth every penny.
Pros
It’s The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
Masses of interaction with NPCs
Strong storyline and story driven quests
Loads of side missions
Completely free form gameplay
Character develops according to your playing style
Knights of Nine Expansion included
Cons
Can be too deep for some
Still possible to lose the plot
Levelling up countered by AI levelling up too
Nothing new if you’ve played it on other platforms
Another outing for The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and well worth it if you’ve not played before
HEXUS Awards
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion – PS3
