The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

The Good
First of all, the graphics are breathtaking. Superb lighting effects, great 3D models, impressive textures. Second of all, the voice acting is just right, transporting you in the virtual world of Tamriel. The next game of the Elder Scrolls series keeps the races and classes from the previous versions, and adds great features such as horseback riding (present in Daggerfall, but removed from Morrowind) and an active cross-hair showing the health of the NPC (or monster), the possible actions with the NPC, and if it's OK to use an object or not (it turns red when you look at an object that's the property of an other NPC). The new combat system is just great, with the option of manually blocking an attack, and being able to cast a spell even if you have weapons / shields equipped. The story (with it's flaws) is perfectly integrated in the world of Tamriel and there's loads of books and scrolls that add to the Elder Scrolls lore.

The Bad
The bad things... The leveling system is a great idea, but it still allows you to turn your character into a "jack-of-all-trades". I mean there's actually no problem for your orcish character to sneak around pickpocketing people and braking into the NPC's houses, or to become a heavy armored, axe wielding wood elf. The requirements for this game are rather high, meaning that you need a high end system to play it. (Kind of restrictive, huh?) The story: You were a prisoner back in Morrowind. Come on, can't you guys come up with another setting for the start of the game?

The Bottom Line
This is like the ultimate single player RPG. If you enjoyed the previous Elder Scrolls titles, you should play this game. As for all of the game's problems, they'll surely be solved by the massive Elder Scrolls community through mods, just like the previous title, Morrowind.

The Good
Welcome to the best RPG released in the last few years. What makes it so great? The prime factor is the freedom of choice. At the end of the tutorial you are left to a world that you are free to do as you will. You can explore the magnificent and extremely huge world of elder scrolls. You can be a fighter in the dreaded Arena. You can join one of the many guilds for the adventurers and be a part of Tamriel's history. You can delve in to deep dungeons and uncover riches you can hardly imagine. Or maybe you should just climb to the next hill and watch the sun rise. The point is the game lets you do anything and everything that you want, any time you want. And of course it lets you breath the atmosphere of Tamriel, a detailed RPG world, in a graphic quality that will not be matched in years to come. These two traits make this game a real classic and a worth game to play. Actually they make it a star in the night sky.

The Bad
Still there are things, in my opinion, diminishes this game. The game on the surface is detailed and beautiful. But that stays in the surface. One of the most important parts of RPGs, the character system is a serious mistake. While it is usage based (To improve a skill you need to use it, The more you use it, the better you become doing it.), the system and the game world does not leave room for flexibility. The only way to gold is through dungeons. The shops does not allow trade opportunities. They are only places to sell your loot. Also thieving is worthless, simply because you would mostly be finding worthless junk inside other NPCs houses. Some NPCs do have a daily routine. Some don't. It is easy to find tavern keepers who stand on the same spot 7/24. One other point is the difficulty level, that is for lack of a better word. The game world (and I mean world) advances in levels according to your progress. The city watch is always a few levels higher than you, thus your character who can beat the proverbial dragon is beaten down by mere town watch. The same is true for the bandits on the roads. While they start with fur armor, in no time they will be wearing mithril or even elven armor and weapons and skills to match. But this has another down side. The loot, the monsters in the world outside, inside the dungeons. They are all leveled according to you. So a first level character can go to any place on Tamriel, enter any dungeon he wishes, and he could finish it. And when he returns there after, say... 10 levels, he will be facing real monsters, but still he will be able to finish the dungeon. Simply said the difficulty is linear at best. The failure that comes with this linearity is the skill system. In this kind of setting you "must" get the best from each level up. Which forces you to power gaming, keeping papers around to write needless stat changes, or for others simply cheat. Still most of these things are design decisions and not flaws. While I prefer a deep RPG environment, maybe other would like to see more action.

The Bottom Line
To sum up this game is a star that shines brightly through all those games in the shelves. However it is a real classic, it is far from sating the thirst of a hardcore RPG fan.

The Good
1. Extended Gameplay. Yes, the main storyline is on the short side (esp. when compared to RPG classics such as FFVII). However, the side quests and faction quests provide 100+ hours of extended game play. As well, purchasing the 'Game of the Year Edition' provides the Knights of the Nine and Shivering Isles extensions to further propel the main quest.

1. Graphics. Simply stated, the graphics are beautiful. It is no longer a monotonous burden to wander through the gaming wilderness.

2. Customization. The character customization is ridiculously expansive. If you don't fall under a pre-made design, simply create your own character.

3. Sound. The score is amazing.
   
   The Bad
   1. Leveling. If you use (and abuse) the character's main skill sets, your character will level insanely fast...and so will the monsters. Good luck to those who prefer to use pure-magic characters.

4. Bugs. Yes, the 360 will lock up if played for 5+ hours. Save often. It is possible to jumble the quest lines. For instance, I forgot to ask for advancement following every quest in the fighter's guild story line and ended up not being able to be promoted to Master rank because of it. Tip: Buy the Prima Guide.

5. Addiction. This game is ridiculously addictive.

6. Oblivion Gates. There are too many of them and conquering them becomes a chore after closing 2 or 3.
   
   The Bottom Line
   I'm a graduate student who recently purchased an XBOX 360 "for fun." Thus, I own the system to play games like Halo 3, Call of Duty 3 & 4, and NCAA Football. However, this game caught my eye in Best Buy one day, so I started flipping through the Prima Guide. I really enjoyed the Final Fantasy series for Playstation 10 years ago, so I thought I'd give Oblivion a shot. What I didn't realize is how immersed one can get in the game. You start on the main quest line, but is so, oh so easy to get off track with one of the Guilds or Misc. quests. A great game, but make sure you clear your social calendar for a while.