The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

 PC
User Score
8.3

Generally favorable reviews- based on 3846 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3,010 out of 3846
  2. Mixed: 542 out of 3846
  3. Negative: 294 out of 3846
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  1. SiE
    Mar 28, 2006
    9
    I don't usually like RPG's but after reading a few reviews I thought i would try this game. I'm pleased i did as this is an excellent game, one of the best i have played. The plot line so far has been very involving and the graphics stunning. As others have said I think the interface ciuld be better but other than that there are no gripes from me. The sheer amount of I don't usually like RPG's but after reading a few reviews I thought i would try this game. I'm pleased i did as this is an excellent game, one of the best i have played. The plot line so far has been very involving and the graphics stunning. As others have said I think the interface ciuld be better but other than that there are no gripes from me. The sheer amount of content must embaress other developers who seem to feel its fine to put oout a game which can be completed in 10 hours. After 20 hours playing i seem to have barely scratched the surface of the main story.… Expand
  2. JamesH.
    Mar 29, 2006
    9
    This game is like crack, extremely well done, the pinnacle of game design. I won't dote on more than the others have, but rest assured, if you are an RPG fasn and more specifically a fan of the seldom seen first person type of RPG, then this game is for you. The game is so massive that one hardly knows where to begin. This game will keep you occupied for a VERY long time.
  3. Roee
    Mar 31, 2006
    9
    Excellent game. The world is extremely immersive, the graphics gorgeous, and plenty of quirks from Morrowind are streamlined now (hurrah to fast travel!). Not perfect, but amazing nonetheless.
  4. JonathanS.
    Mar 31, 2006
    9
    No doubt... This game is the best single player RPG ever! You have so many choices. The graphics are amazing the AI is good (But not to good) and the gameplay is really great! I just wish the game world was bigger! Hail Bethesda!
  5. BoogerNugget
    Apr 4, 2006
    9
    Great game, best single-player RPG ever. Would be a 10 if the PC interface was customizeable - as it stands now it's awkward and clunky. Why can't I open map by pressing "M", or inventory by pressing "I". Damn you XBOX!
  6. hcarter
    Jun 9, 2006
    9
    I haven't played an RPG this good since the Baldur's Gate series. The endless play is amazing, let alone the great main quest arc. The amount of variation you can play in this game is just amazing. The graphics are wonderful. Back when CIV4 came out I had upgraded my video card--so I was easily able to play Oblivion with no modifications whatsoever.
    There are a few glitches    I haven't played an RPG this good since the Baldur's Gate series. The endless play is amazing, let alone the great main quest arc. The amount of variation you can play in this game is just amazing. The graphics are wonderful. Back when CIV4 came out I had upgraded my video card--so I was easily able to play Oblivion with no modifications whatsoever.
    There are a few glitches here and there--but nothing too major---the first beta patch is sincerely a take or leave install--which means the version you get in your box was tested well. Still, I'm eager to see what the full exp. patch will entail when it's released. The only thing that would earn a 10 from me is multi-player--same party capabilities like Baldurs Gate. Otherwise, bravo to Bethesda--well done.    … Expand
  7. ColbyA.
    Mar 23, 2007
    9
    Okay, I won't waste your time rephrasing everything everyone has said here. Great Graphics, Great gameplay (imo), but the scaling system is seriously flawed, yes. My suggestion? If you buy this for the PC, find a modding site and download a scaling modification for the game. Oblivion for the PC was -made- to be modded, so find mods that fix the game how you want it, and play. Okay, I won't waste your time rephrasing everything everyone has said here. Great Graphics, Great gameplay (imo), but the scaling system is seriously flawed, yes. My suggestion? If you buy this for the PC, find a modding site and download a scaling modification for the game. Oblivion for the PC was -made- to be modded, so find mods that fix the game how you want it, and play. It's definitely worth the money and the time.… Expand
  8. AdrianL.
    Jul 4, 2008
    9
    One of my favorite RPGs of all time with a great modding community. At first, male characters look horrible in my opinion and the game doesn't really pick up until you install some mods to fix up some of the characters.
  9. DerekL
    Aug 12, 2008
    9
    This gets 9.5 from me. It's an insanely good game, it lets a complete idiot modify the game making new levels, items, spells, etc. The first month or two is fun, adding Shivering Isles gives it about another 2 weeks to 1 month, small mods give about 35 more hours, and large mods give it another week or two (or three), and mods you make get about another couple hours to 3 weeks. But This gets 9.5 from me. It's an insanely good game, it lets a complete idiot modify the game making new levels, items, spells, etc. The first month or two is fun, adding Shivering Isles gives it about another 2 weeks to 1 month, small mods give about 35 more hours, and large mods give it another week or two (or three), and mods you make get about another couple hours to 3 weeks. But after that we get a repetitive game full of boring side quests and dungeons you've already searched. However, if you play a different game for a while Oblivion regains all 100% playability.… Expand
  10. RC
    Aug 1, 2009
    9
    This is a great game. Hell I don;t even need to mod it in order to have a good time. Ive played this game exactly 48 times over and each time was fun. The graphics are a little outdated now, but it's still not bad for today's generation. The quest are fun, but are lacking meaning, you're mostly doing it for money so you can buy new stuff. Some of the quest are just not This is a great game. Hell I don;t even need to mod it in order to have a good time. Ive played this game exactly 48 times over and each time was fun. The graphics are a little outdated now, but it's still not bad for today's generation. The quest are fun, but are lacking meaning, you're mostly doing it for money so you can buy new stuff. Some of the quest are just not interesting. The AI is great (when it came out) today it's ok, considering this was made in 2005. Overall though the game is long and you have a massive modding community to help keep it fresh all in all this game is great and can't wait for the next elder scrolls.… Expand
  11. JulesP.
    Mar 22, 2006
    9
    Great game just played it for five houres amazing. Sets a new standard for rpg's
  12. DavidM.
    Mar 22, 2006
    9
    I don't like to attack people in these reviews. However Aelius is completely off-base. First of all let me address one of his points: The NPCs do sometimes talk in non-sequitors or change voice pitches depending on topic. 95 percent of the time however, they are great and a HUGE leap forward over Elder Scrolls 3. That's really the only thing in Aelius's review with merit. I don't like to attack people in these reviews. However Aelius is completely off-base. First of all let me address one of his points: The NPCs do sometimes talk in non-sequitors or change voice pitches depending on topic. 95 percent of the time however, they are great and a HUGE leap forward over Elder Scrolls 3. That's really the only thing in Aelius's review with merit. The world is beautiful. The game has an incredible physics engine. Also, they made the combat much more intense and immediate than the wack-a-mole hits of ES3. Other points: What the heck does "cannot scale back like D3" mean? I don't even know what Aelius is talking about. Aelius's point about Doom 3 and Half Life 2 being technically better than this game is purely objective. This game's interiors match up well with Doom 3. There is realistic shadowing and great texture/animation work. Now against Half Life 2, that is an unfair comparison as HL2 has no free-form outdoor areas. A better comparison would be Far Cry and Oblivion holds it's own there as well. There is a 2 mile draw distance in this game and it looks great. The quests are also interesting and varied. There are problems but is this a 6/10 game? Absolutely not, and only a bitter over-hyped maniac would rate it as such.… Expand
  13. JoshV.
    Mar 27, 2006
    9
    words can not properly describe my love for this game, it is a world into its self. no person can describe this world to someone who hasnt played it. so expansive that i played 45 hours the first weekend that i had it and i completed the main series of quests. it would have gotten a 10 but i tend to stand to close to doors when i open them and on a rare occasion when the door opens tword words can not properly describe my love for this game, it is a world into its self. no person can describe this world to someone who hasnt played it. so expansive that i played 45 hours the first weekend that i had it and i completed the main series of quests. it would have gotten a 10 but i tend to stand to close to doors when i open them and on a rare occasion when the door opens tword me i get smashed into the wall and end up clipping through into a giant ocean below the level also the menu was a pain, i dont need to elaborate on that the only other gripe was that there where too many people that looked too much like martin and i couldnt seem to get my person to look just right.… Expand
  14. C.Leitch
    Apr 14, 2006
    9
    This is a sweet game overall. however, if there was a list of every aspect of a game, and you had to rate it 0-10, there would be several catagories that would receive rather low, while the rest recieved 10. First up would be the system requirements. even the latest top of the range computer can render this beast at 30 fps on full. thats with a crossfire x1900. therefore, people withThis is a sweet game overall. however, if there was a list of every aspect of a game, and you had to rate it 0-10, there would be several catagories that would receive rather low, while the rest recieved 10. First up would be the system requirements. even the latest top of the range computer can render this beast at 30 fps on full. thats with a crossfire x1900. therefore, people with relativly good pci 16s like 6600s are forced to dramaticaly lower the grapic settings, to the point where the game designers desired atmosphere no longer exists because you can only see as far as you hand, whereas the game allows you to see distand mountains. another is the stability. i would be happy to run this game on full grapics, even if i did get a steady 5fps. only problem, is that it will only last about 5 mintues before it blue-screens on me. Im sure this would change if you had a more powerful graphics card, but it forces you to lower your graphics to the point where it runs well AND dosent constantly crash. another, is that much like its predecessor, if you play this game to win, it gets boring very very quickly. you have to from time to time make up your own rules , and not use the idiotic AI system to your advantage. another is the extreemly short main story line. although there is many many city and guild quests to be done, i found it amazing that i had not even been made to visit evey city before finishing the storyline. I was amazed when i found out that i had actually finished the storyline, rather than just a small section of it, probably because of the length of the morrowind campain. Although im sounding very critical, another thing that annoyed me very much was the character animations. Very many of these problems carry over from ES III. The game engne is just too smilar, almost as though they have taken the morrowind engine and added new graphics and features, but more or less left it as it was. if they had delayed for another couple o months to fix these problems, the game would be endless, because evry little thing you do would be enjoyable, with the current release, all these factors leak through the whole "seamless RPG" thing and tend to make it less absorbing. Having said all this, the graphics and world in this game are amazing.… Expand
  15. MercZ
    May 12, 2006
    9
    A great RPG for the ages. There are certain issues I feel, such as the level scaling system which makes it possible to beat the game at level 1. Don't listen to other people that say the game is completely ruined- it is still very fun and is probably the best RPG on the market currently. The graphics are good, the gameplay is great, and everything in the game is good. There are A great RPG for the ages. There are certain issues I feel, such as the level scaling system which makes it possible to beat the game at level 1. Don't listen to other people that say the game is completely ruined- it is still very fun and is probably the best RPG on the market currently. The graphics are good, the gameplay is great, and everything in the game is good. There are issues as I mentioned before, but these can be fixed with patches, expansions, and even mods. Remember, Morrowind wasn't perfect when it was released either.… Expand
  16. PaulC.
    May 22, 2006
    9
    Blew me away when I started. Once I was past the eye candy, though, I did think it was more similar to Morrowwind that I had thought it would be. Not a bad thing. It'sjust that I'd already played that instalment to DEATH. Also, add on improvements to Morrowwind like map notes were backed out of this version. So, in some minor respects this is a bit of a step back. Enjoyed the Blew me away when I started. Once I was past the eye candy, though, I did think it was more similar to Morrowwind that I had thought it would be. Not a bad thing. It'sjust that I'd already played that instalment to DEATH. Also, add on improvements to Morrowwind like map notes were backed out of this version. So, in some minor respects this is a bit of a step back. Enjoyed the hell out of it just the same.… Expand
  17. BL
    May 31, 2006
    9
    Besides occasional lag issues, this is the most immersive and intriguing game I've played all year.
  18. MC
    Nov 12, 2006
    9
    While not perfect (due to a few minor issues with gameplay and a general "emptiness" of the game world), this game is certainly a must-have for all those who like freedom of exploration. Outstanding graphics, excellent soundtrack and the epic scale of the environments (especially outdoors) make Oblivion an excellent sequel to Morrowind. Kudos to Bethesda Software!
  19. JonasH.
    Dec 21, 2007
    9
    It seems that most people voting down this game, are mostly complaining about it being a non-real RPG, presumably because it is a hybrid of a couple of game genres (RPG, sandbox and FPS). As for an introduction I feel like I have to defend this design: Because an RPG is not based on some complex system of chance, defined by a series of attributes, which could not vaguely be understood by It seems that most people voting down this game, are mostly complaining about it being a non-real RPG, presumably because it is a hybrid of a couple of game genres (RPG, sandbox and FPS). As for an introduction I feel like I have to defend this design: Because an RPG is not based on some complex system of chance, defined by a series of attributes, which could not vaguely be understood by anyone who has not played a book or board RPG, does not make it any less of a "true" RPG. And just because the character's ability to aim/time is not only based on "2+1=3 (miss)", but actually is a reflection of the gamer's abilities, it is not necessarily worse than, say, Neverwinter Nights. Hybriding genres rarely brings anything good with it, right, but in some cases, like this, it brings a powerful combination, that delivers months of excellent gameplay. I, for example, did not go stubborn when the Total War series came out, even though it mixed my favourite genre (RTS) with the genre I found the most boring (TBS), I tried it out, and today it has a place among my most favourite game. Yeah, all genres in a hybrid has to give something up, but just because you can't have your advanced roll-a-dice battle systems doesn't make it a complete non-RPG. In fact, I have never felt as much in the role of a character as I feel playing this game. I guess the above paragraph filled more than the rest of the review will, but here we go: The game is, most definitely, the one that by standard is most customisable. YOU decide 100% how you want to look, much like The Sims 2, only the controls are a bit more advanced and hard to manage, you decide what path you'll take, how you would like for yourself to level up etc. etc. What I found most astonishing was the absolute free choice you have regarding how you make money, fight enemies and form alliances. If you want to make money fighting, join the gladiators and you'll make a swift 5000. Want to make money looting robers? Walk by the roads looking for bandit camps. Even as thief you can make a pretty descent living, as long as you train your Security, Alteration and Sneak skills. The choice is pretty much yours, and the best part is: You can do whatever you want, and are NOT locked to following any history as such. The game itself contains a lot of mini games to take care of things like diplomacy (speechcraft) and lockpicking, so it is, again, the gamer's skill and not a random number that decides whether or not you are successful. (Although you can choose to make an attempt based on your security skill alone). The reason, despite my complete obsession with this game, I only give it 9, is the severe amount of bugs existent. It annoyed me beyond reason being told to pay a fine of 1 gold EVERY time I spoke to a guard in the beginning. Although that bug went away after a while. Considering the graphics, I do not have a powerful enough GPU to run it at high/full quality, so I'll avoid commenting on it.… Expand
  20. Spartan111
    Jul 31, 2011
    9
    Even though this game has a few flaws it is still great. First of all this game is huge and while maybe the world is not varied enough it is still lots of fun to explore. For a game this big the graphics are great for it's time, the game is also a true RPG in the sense that it allows one to do what one wants when one wants, be who you want to be and play how you want to play and has greatEven though this game has a few flaws it is still great. First of all this game is huge and while maybe the world is not varied enough it is still lots of fun to explore. For a game this big the graphics are great for it's time, the game is also a true RPG in the sense that it allows one to do what one wants when one wants, be who you want to be and play how you want to play and has great customization for ones character be it your race, how you look, or what weapons, spells and armour you want to use. The game is also extremely long and has countless side quests for one to partake in and in my opinion holds more of the fun to be had than the actual main story. As said before the game has a few flaws namely the third person view is terrible and basically unplayable, there are quite a few glitches in the game making some quests incompletable (although one cant expect a game of this size to have no glitches what so ever ), the story was not bad but just was not that engaging, the npc's lack emotion and the voice acting is not varied enough and lastly one VERY BIG flaw that ruined a lot of the experience was the leveling system which basically says "screw you, you will never become stronger but will become WEAKER as you level up and progress or should i say DEgress through the game " this flaw most definitely must be fixed for Skyrim. pros : Very long, lots to do, true RPG elements, great game play, great graphics. Cons: Bad leveling system, unengaging story, bad glitches. Overall for it's time it is still an awesome game despite it's flaws. 8.8/10… Expand
  21. LB1900
    Apr 10, 2011
    9
    Peanut butter by itself is delicious, but when you combine it with stuff like nutella, it becomes amazing. So it is with Oblivion and its mods. Oblivion is currently 5 years old and has TWENTY TWO THOUSAND mods on tesnexus alone. Literally anything you want oblivion to be, it can be. It is a great game, but can become bland by itself, but not until you've run through the main quest andPeanut butter by itself is delicious, but when you combine it with stuff like nutella, it becomes amazing. So it is with Oblivion and its mods. Oblivion is currently 5 years old and has TWENTY TWO THOUSAND mods on tesnexus alone. Literally anything you want oblivion to be, it can be. It is a great game, but can become bland by itself, but not until you've run through the main quest and become the head of all the guilds, but the real allure is the open ended gameplay and the mods.

    I recommend playing the vanilla game first, ie unmodded, and then adding in tweaks. You'll go from a great game to a new world as you add new elements to get deeper into the game. I have been coming back to this game for 5 years and I will only stop playing for the same reason I stopped playing its predecessor, Morrowind, because the next iteration has come out and its mods are even better!

    Bethesda is a hell of a game company and their RPG's are bar none the best RPG's ever made due to the fact that you can make the game whatever you want it to be. Don't buy it on console, you'd be cheating yourself, come to the dark side of modding and you will never look back.

    The only downside to Oblivion is that its not quite as vivid as Morrowind was as it was made a tad more mainstream and simplified to release as one of the first 360 games, but on PC you won't have that issue.

    Disclaimer- I am not responsible for your becoming a TES addict.    … Expand
  22. Seamus25
    Dec 15, 2010
    9
    Fantastic Game. The freedom we have to mount classes , magics and our own alternative paths and quests in the game are really unique. Plus , instead of other famous RPG like games, it brings us the experience of good first person combat.
  23. robinjam
    Apr 21, 2011
    9
    The awful level-up system and vast number of unfixed bugs prevent me from giving this game a perfect score. Don't let that dissuade you, though - it's a fantastic game which provided me with over 100 hours of gameplay before I became even remotely bored.
  24. Dethstar
    May 17, 2011
    9
    This was the game that made me finally drop my xbox and buy a decent pc some years ago. I have been modding and enjoying Oblivion ever since and still manage to add fresh new content. This was the ultimate world builder and gaming experience. Since then its costs me thousands in constantly buying and upgrading my PC but if I consider the entertainment I have had out of it and theThis was the game that made me finally drop my xbox and buy a decent pc some years ago. I have been modding and enjoying Oblivion ever since and still manage to add fresh new content. This was the ultimate world builder and gaming experience. Since then its costs me thousands in constantly buying and upgrading my PC but if I consider the entertainment I have had out of it and the hours of fun I have had in Cyrodil. Its been money well spent.… Expand
  25. whitespider999
    Feb 17, 2012
    9
    From when it was released to the release of skyrim, modded oblivion was a 10/10. However a lot of people don't play this game with mods. Which leaves a far more bare journey. It's still a great game, with an incredible amount of quality content in it's vanilla state. It's just not comparable to the masterpiece that is the modded version (For reference, check out the all time tesnexusFrom when it was released to the release of skyrim, modded oblivion was a 10/10. However a lot of people don't play this game with mods. Which leaves a far more bare journey. It's still a great game, with an incredible amount of quality content in it's vanilla state. It's just not comparable to the masterpiece that is the modded version (For reference, check out the all time tesnexus oblivion mods). As an unmodded game it's a 8/10 in the current climate. As a modded game. It's a 10/10. This score reflects the modded version.… Expand
  26. HighwayUK
    Oct 9, 2011
    9
    100+ hours of content before you even added the DLCs, decent graphics for the release year, okay combat system, very atmospheric music and sound, totally moddable so you can get updates to just about everything. Just about the perfect RPG of the decade.
  27. Amorphic
    Apr 26, 2011
    9
    I can't really give it anything less after putting 100+ hours into it and enjoying every minute of it. of course it does have some flaws including repetitive dungeons, not rewarding exploration enough, bad levelling system and game play bugs. overall it is a fantastic game.
  28. nsane
    May 15, 2011
    9
    Oblivion is a classic. There is so much to do and such a big world that it is very liberating. With no real classes, you can do almost anything given enough time and training. The flora and fauna of Cyrodil is diverse and interesting. The graphics, at the time were quite impressive and for a 5 year old game, they're still very decent. Some of the quests are fun and varied, though the curseOblivion is a classic. There is so much to do and such a big world that it is very liberating. With no real classes, you can do almost anything given enough time and training. The flora and fauna of Cyrodil is diverse and interesting. The graphics, at the time were quite impressive and for a 5 year old game, they're still very decent. Some of the quests are fun and varied, though the curse of repetitive quests in rpgs still plagues this game. If there isn't enough game for you, even with the expansions, there are many mods out there to help you tailor the game to your desires.… Expand
  29. Sebster
    May 15, 2011
    9
    250 hours. That is how long I have spent in the world of oblivion. And I don't want a single nanosecond back.

    I have one and one only criticism: The characters are awful, awful, awful and the voice acting is dreaful.
  30. fearless
    May 20, 2011
    9
    A heroic fantasy masterpiece and an RPG modder's dream, sadly flawed by some poor design choices (eg, level scaling) and its reliance on a vague high fantasy aesthetic over the depth of lore and hand-crafted world of its predecessor Morrowind.

    But the scope, potential, and fundamental gameplay value of Oblivion can hardly be overstated, especially when it's considered as a 5 year-old    A heroic fantasy masterpiece and an RPG modder's dream, sadly flawed by some poor design choices (eg, level scaling) and its reliance on a vague high fantasy aesthetic over the depth of lore and hand-crafted world of its predecessor Morrowind.

    But the scope, potential, and fundamental gameplay value of Oblivion can hardly be overstated, especially when it's considered as a 5 year-old game. An imperfect classic.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best PC Game of 2006
2
#2 Most Discussed PC Game of 2006
2
#2 Most Shared PC Game of 2006

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
94

Universal acclaim - based on 54 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 54 out of 54
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 54
  3. Negative: 0 out of 54
  1. Entertainment Weekly
    100
    It’s just so damned big. That’s what you’ll say after playing Oblivion for more than an hour. Or, for that matter, 50 hours.
    Read full review
  2. Game Over Online
    96
    Oblivion is by far the closest I have come to playing D&D Sunday afternoons with my friends (yes, I did that, though I’m on medication now), all wrapped up in a stunning package with tens of thousands of lines of spoken dialog and good music.
    Read full review
  3. Quandary
    100
    I honestly have to say that I am in favour of most of the changes and I think Oblivion is an awesome achievement from Bethesda.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »