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. DavidM
    Jun 23, 2009
    10
    Unmodded the game became tedious with the scaling levling system and I quickly put it down. Months later I modded out the scaling and over 100 hours of play.
  2. NikitaG
    Jun 19, 2009
    10
    This game is arguably the best game I have ever played in my life. The graphics are amazing, there are many revolutionary features, such as the voice overs, but the thing that really won me over was the depth. I bought this game in 2006, and I still play it today. Unmodded, the game has so much content its just mind blowing, and with along with mods, this game could easily last you This game is arguably the best game I have ever played in my life. The graphics are amazing, there are many revolutionary features, such as the voice overs, but the thing that really won me over was the depth. I bought this game in 2006, and I still play it today. Unmodded, the game has so much content its just mind blowing, and with along with mods, this game could easily last you several years. I have noticed that most people either love this game, or hate it. Oblivion's nonlinear and lack of 'in your face' action makes it boring for some people. But you owe it to yourself, give it a try if you have not.… Expand
  3. JonathanR
    Jun 18, 2009
    4
    I'm confused again and again as to why this game is held to such vaulted heights. The biggest flaw are the economics of leveling. It's nearly impossible to raise a skill (or it's ridiculously simple, take your pick), which means you are either underdeveloped on stats or overdeveloped on an uncompetitive basis with the mobs that level alongside you. Magic is my favorite I'm confused again and again as to why this game is held to such vaulted heights. The biggest flaw are the economics of leveling. It's nearly impossible to raise a skill (or it's ridiculously simple, take your pick), which means you are either underdeveloped on stats or overdeveloped on an uncompetitive basis with the mobs that level alongside you. Magic is my favorite class, and without mods the magic system is so unrealistic as to be unusable.… Expand
  4. GordonP
    Jun 18, 2009
    1
    Worst RPG I ever played. Nice scenery, but....: 1) Huge motivation killer: All enemies are leveling up with you. So you dont have a motivation to level up and improve your character, in order to be able to travel to more diffiult regions, to fight more difficult enemies. => Even the opposite happens: In reality you you are relatively leveling DOWN with each level-"up" you gain, because Worst RPG I ever played. Nice scenery, but....: 1) Huge motivation killer: All enemies are leveling up with you. So you dont have a motivation to level up and improve your character, in order to be able to travel to more diffiult regions, to fight more difficult enemies. => Even the opposite happens: In reality you you are relatively leveling DOWN with each level-"up" you gain, because the monsters are better leveling-up than you (unless you are very very carefull, that you are leveling up only very very slowly). This is the most stupid motivation killing concept you could ever image. To be successfull in this game, you have to think extensive about the leveling-system and rouls. And thats definitely not what I want. If I like such stuff, then I go buying a strategy game. Because of this game mechanic I can not give more than two stars. 2) Small motivation killer for me:: A allways accessible difficulty slider in the game. Instead that improving your character is the only possibility to have a chance against very strong enemies, with that slider you can kill from the first second on the strongest enemies. Of course, I dont have to use this slider - but anyway, I dont like its presence. I like the old games, which were hard and with only one difficult-setting. So you know exactly what you have to do, if you want to succeed. No pain, no gain :-) For this difficulty-slider 1 point discount. Thats why I give a 1 .… Expand
  5. AnonymousMC
    Jun 17, 2009
    0
    Boring, unintuitive. This game was hailed as a masterpiece, I'm glad I tested it before buying - it's like a really poorly done version of a King's Field console game, and I LOVE first-person sword/magic fighting games. Why this received such rave reviews, I will never understand. You would have to pay ME to play this game, and again, I love RPGs, I love first personBoring, unintuitive. This game was hailed as a masterpiece, I'm glad I tested it before buying - it's like a really poorly done version of a King's Field console game, and I LOVE first-person sword/magic fighting games. Why this received such rave reviews, I will never understand. You would have to pay ME to play this game, and again, I love RPGs, I love first person swords/bows/magic type games. This game suffers horribly from repetition, lack of meat to the story beyond the initial jailbreak, and awful AI. How every guard on earth knows I stole a dinner plate from a house at 3 AM is beyond me. Travel is tedious aside from admiring the pretty countryside, which is suffering from a lack of variance in types of vegetation as well. Leveling is pointless. It actually gets harder to kill things as you gain levels.… Expand
  6. JackL
    Jun 17, 2009
    10
    Oblivion isn't perfect, no game is. But I think a 10/10 score is for when it ticks the all the boxes for the player and it certainly does for me. It is surely a step down from Morrowind from an RPG perspective, but I think the game makes up for it with a simplified control system from that which is found in Morrowind and blinds you with copious amounts of bloom. The dialog is Oblivion isn't perfect, no game is. But I think a 10/10 score is for when it ticks the all the boxes for the player and it certainly does for me. It is surely a step down from Morrowind from an RPG perspective, but I think the game makes up for it with a simplified control system from that which is found in Morrowind and blinds you with copious amounts of bloom. The dialog is hopeless but you have to admit that it's alot better than having to read a novel each time you inqure about something. Graphics? Good on the consoles and better on the PC even by 2009 standards. The leveling system is fine and if you don't like it then reduce the difficulty, unless you don't dare to stoop so low as to do something like that. On the whole I think Oblivion tries appeal to a wider audience but ends up alienating some fans of older TES', but is still a very good game and should be tried at least.… Expand
  7. Bor
    Jun 16, 2009
    10
    The Best Game!!!
  8. MatthewM
    Jun 12, 2009
    10
    likely the single best game i ever played. I shall admit that there were bugs and the sort. I shall admit that after three years the graphics dont hold up. But the sheer thrill of ignoring the main quest, the sides quests and avoiding the guides to track down and become a vampire made Oblivion the most fun i have ever had. On top of the stupidly brilliant free roam structure, the game likely the single best game i ever played. I shall admit that there were bugs and the sort. I shall admit that after three years the graphics dont hold up. But the sheer thrill of ignoring the main quest, the sides quests and avoiding the guides to track down and become a vampire made Oblivion the most fun i have ever had. On top of the stupidly brilliant free roam structure, the game includes the best and most innovative quests i have ever played. A small few of these are the Goblin war quest, The BRILLIANT Dark Brotherhood questline and the oh so killable 'annoying fan'. Sheer gaming gold.… Expand
  9. Xavier
    Jun 11, 2009
    9
    Great, no brilliant game, leveling system gets annoying some time, love the addons. Great graphics, though it seemed to be missing something, and the few odd glitches got annoying.
  10. KevinR
    Jun 10, 2009
    10
    People need i grow up and stop your crying, and if you really do not like the game go play something else... its not that hard to do people, or even if you think you can do better make your own game and stop putting down a game that was made for gamers like YOU!!!
  11. ET
    Jun 9, 2009
    5
    I don't know why people love this game so much. The only good thing about it seems to be nice scenery. That's it. If you like green meadows, hellish landscape, and dungeons, buy this game. Mabye a few fun quests here and there too. They're rare. The copy-paste scenery, along with the copy paste weapons effects, along with the scaling level system and fast travel effectively I don't know why people love this game so much. The only good thing about it seems to be nice scenery. That's it. If you like green meadows, hellish landscape, and dungeons, buy this game. Mabye a few fun quests here and there too. They're rare. The copy-paste scenery, along with the copy paste weapons effects, along with the scaling level system and fast travel effectively means you're just playing the same 5 minutes of the game over and over again. All the spells of the same class look exactly the same. The realisim is completely borked too. What, throw a physics engine in and you get to call it realistic these days? You can fire 20 arrows into a guy's head and he'll lose 1/2 his health. Hrm, mabye make the arrows bounce off instead based on armor class? Or decrease their accuracy/power based on skill? No, let's just make them do less damage. Kudos, Bethesda.… Expand
  12. JonG.
    May 28, 2009
    10
    As I write this, Oblivion has an average user rating of 7.5. That in and of itself is an absolute travisty. This is a great game. What more do you low raters want? You want the game designers to come to your house and stand on their heads for you? An enormous amount of great content was packed into this game. Also, it has an excellent modding community that is constantly changing every As I write this, Oblivion has an average user rating of 7.5. That in and of itself is an absolute travisty. This is a great game. What more do you low raters want? You want the game designers to come to your house and stand on their heads for you? An enormous amount of great content was packed into this game. Also, it has an excellent modding community that is constantly changing every aspect of the game - keeping it fresh (for free!). You can get this game for $20 now and have $2000 worth of content after a few hours online.… Expand
  13. Jamesm
    Apr 12, 2009
    10
    While it does have some issues that come inherent with go anywhere do anything games that have a vast a scope as oblivion (compared to very scripted linear progression rpg's ie jrpg's) oblivion does well as a whole rahter than a sum of it's parts. Throughout the game enemies level as well to sustain a challenge all the way through (Pro tip:complainers who want a cake walk While it does have some issues that come inherent with go anywhere do anything games that have a vast a scope as oblivion (compared to very scripted linear progression rpg's ie jrpg's) oblivion does well as a whole rahter than a sum of it's parts. Throughout the game enemies level as well to sustain a challenge all the way through (Pro tip:complainers who want a cake walk once leveled can just turn the difficulty down). Great looking graphics and artistic design with most towns having thier own building design look. It all comes together very nicely, most dungeosn look the same but these arn't usually required and you'll easily get 80 hours of game play by completing the main missions and exploring the landscape.… Expand
  14. KeithB
    Mar 3, 2009
    2
    Am I crazy? Or is this game 10 years behind a game like Ultima 7? Horrible, broken character leveling system with all monsters and loot leveling up with you? Lame, discount-fantasy-novel story and unmemorable characters and dialogue? This game is even a huge step down from Morrowind and even farther step down from Daggerfall! What is going on here?
  15. Nugget
    Feb 27, 2009
    3
    Anyone who claims this is the best game they ever played is a console only gamer, under 14 years old, or most likely both. Even modded to the maximum its only 'good'. Vanilla its awful and I don't give scores for non-paid modders fixing bethesdas mistakes.
  16. Xslsn
    Feb 16, 2009
    4
    I really wanted to like this game, so it's a shame that it is so flawed that I found it unbearable to finish it. - The level system is widely been criticized and rightfully so. Not only does it kill the fun to have the bad guys level up with you, but it completely destroys the feeling of immersion that is so vital to all adventure games and RPGs. - The voice acting is nothing short I really wanted to like this game, so it's a shame that it is so flawed that I found it unbearable to finish it. - The level system is widely been criticized and rightfully so. Not only does it kill the fun to have the bad guys level up with you, but it completely destroys the feeling of immersion that is so vital to all adventure games and RPGs. - The voice acting is nothing short of a farce. The laughable decision to have 5 people record all the lines is only the start, but these 5 people doesn't even remotely try to resemble different people and you feel like you are talking to the same person over and over and over again. Absolutely horrible. - The game feel so repetitive that it feels more like work than a game. Not my idea of a good time… Expand
  17. AlexB.
    Feb 3, 2009
    10
    Easily the best game of any genre on any system I have ever played. The graphics are phenomenal. The gameplay is solid. The storylines for the main quest and each of the guilds are excellent. There are TONS of side quests that can take you tens if not hundreds of hours to complete, and they are almost all very fun and have very good plots. The world is huge and filled with caves and Easily the best game of any genre on any system I have ever played. The graphics are phenomenal. The gameplay is solid. The storylines for the main quest and each of the guilds are excellent. There are TONS of side quests that can take you tens if not hundreds of hours to complete, and they are almost all very fun and have very good plots. The world is huge and filled with caves and dungeons and forests that are all completely exlporable. And don't forget the thousands of mods that can add many more hours of gameplay. The only flaw that even comes close to ruining the gameplay is that it might be too much for lower end PCs to handle, but its simple to change the settings to make it work better. Overall, there is absolutely no reason this is not in every RPG fan's collection.… Expand
  18. AnonymousMC
    Jan 30, 2009
    10
    I rofled when I read the comment and it said whats the point of buying horse. Well the point of buying horse is that u can fastly travel in wilderness where u cant fast travel...but I do admit that there could be more voice actors. But really someone really play game because it has cool voice actors?
  19. GabrieleAccurso
    Dec 23, 2008
    10
    AH Oblivion! The best rpg of all time (i havn't played with morrowind) come out in year 2006 i have played it all year 2007 (all 1 year) the best graphics before crysis. Simply immense, freedom and fantasy style incredible, kinds and kinds of everything... the next generation of RPG!
  20. AC
    Nov 2, 2008
    5
    A decent attempt to create a open-beautiful-world game The graphics are great. Unfortunately, they made with old style thinking leading to a frustrating leveling system, 90% of the quests is go there and there and kill kill and come back for more. My opinion it is a good game when you have nothing else to do.
  21. AnonymousMC
    Nov 2, 2008
    10
    One of the best RPGs ever made if not the best. Hands down the best RPG for the 360 and i have no idea why this is not the number 1 game for it. It has countless hours of gameplay, though you can beat it in a very short time if you just do the main quest. This is the game that sold the 360 for me, if it wasnt for this I probably wouldnt have a 360 right now.
  22. LeonardoFerreira
    Oct 16, 2008
    10
    Oblivion is from FAR the best rpg game ive ever played on my whole life ,its all about the freedom;you can either follow the main quest or just say "F*CK OFF" main quest and go and explore the world ,doing LOTS and LOTS of side-quests wich are as good or even better than the main quest ,and are DEFINITELY bigger than the main quest.Also ,there are LOTS of mods wich gives like 2 months orOblivion is from FAR the best rpg game ive ever played on my whole life ,its all about the freedom;you can either follow the main quest or just say "F*CK OFF" main quest and go and explore the world ,doing LOTS and LOTS of side-quests wich are as good or even better than the main quest ,and are DEFINITELY bigger than the main quest.Also ,there are LOTS of mods wich gives like 2 months or more of more gameplay.PLUS ,the construction set (cs) wich comes with the game is absolutely amazing ,it lets completely RETARDS do whole new houses/castles/dungeons/quests/items/etc… Expand
  23. g
    Sep 10, 2008
    2
    I can't understand all the 10/10 ratings here. Quests and caves are more interesting than that of Morrowind, but that's where the good parts end. Boring samey world, boring characters, boring story, boring combat and utterly terrible levelling system. Graphics are ok but I suspect they were toned down for actual release to run better on lower end PCs - it takes a while to edit I can't understand all the 10/10 ratings here. Quests and caves are more interesting than that of Morrowind, but that's where the good parts end. Boring samey world, boring characters, boring story, boring combat and utterly terrible levelling system. Graphics are ok but I suspect they were toned down for actual release to run better on lower end PCs - it takes a while to edit the various files and install mods to get it looking great again. Radiant AI is hilariously broken and basically offers the only entertainment this game has to offer, apart from maybe the Dark Brotherhood missions. It's bizarre that they hired Patrick Stewart and Sean Bean to do voices (although both are underused and mostly uninteresting) then hired about three more to do every other voice in the game. Despite all the assurances I'm pretty sure Fallout 3 is gonna end up a massive disappointment for pretty much the same reasons - Bethesda just haven't a clue on how to make a truly engaging and interesting RPG.… Expand
  24. LiZard
    Sep 4, 2008
    10
    It does not deserve a 10/10 if you play Vanilla Oblivion (no mods), but with enough mods, a nice overhaul, and tweaking a few of the .init files, it becomes a great experience. SO LET ME GET THIS STRAIGHT: I THINK THAT VANILLA DESERVES A 5/10!!! but really, everyone here on Meta either hates it or loves it. I like it, but I would never play it without atleast RealSleep and Alternate It does not deserve a 10/10 if you play Vanilla Oblivion (no mods), but with enough mods, a nice overhaul, and tweaking a few of the .init files, it becomes a great experience. SO LET ME GET THIS STRAIGHT: I THINK THAT VANILLA DESERVES A 5/10!!! but really, everyone here on Meta either hates it or loves it. I like it, but I would never play it without atleast RealSleep and Alternate start, arrive by ship. REPEAT!!! OBLIVION WITHOUT MODS GETS A 5/10!! I wouldn't play it vanilla unless it was on the 360. But just cause a few people's computers can't handle it, and because of the normal, no mod version of it doesn't help matters, everyone hates it. Give it a break. Fallout 3 almost completely ripped I AM LEGEND off. It isn't that good either.… Expand
  25. AnonymousMC
    Aug 21, 2008
    2
    The ridiculous level system means that things will always be an even match with you... so whats the point of even leveling up? The voices are horrible! The beggars have about 4 different voices which keep changing every sentence. Theres probably about 5 voice actors in the whole game. ALL male nords and orcs sound the same! I cant believe this game has a higher score than proper RPG'sThe ridiculous level system means that things will always be an even match with you... so whats the point of even leveling up? The voices are horrible! The beggars have about 4 different voices which keep changing every sentence. Theres probably about 5 voice actors in the whole game. ALL male nords and orcs sound the same! I cant believe this game has a higher score than proper RPG's like KOTOR. The only thing good about this game is the graphics of the countryside when you travel from town to town... oh wait! theres no point! you can just 'fast travel' which instantly takes you from one part of the world to the other. wtf is the point of buying a horse then? In conclusion, bad AI, no immersion, bad combat, bad physics and bland quests.… Expand
  26. 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
  27. WTF
    Jul 11, 2008
    1
    Maybe I kill slef. I didn't really give this game that much of a chance, I admit this, but I just could not get into it. I tried so hard to enjoy it, mainly because a friend of mine said it was good, but this was to no avail. The only moment I enjoyed was creating my character, but even that seemed lacking. I apologize to the people who like this type of game, but I think I'dMaybe I kill slef. I didn't really give this game that much of a chance, I admit this, but I just could not get into it. I tried so hard to enjoy it, mainly because a friend of mine said it was good, but this was to no avail. The only moment I enjoyed was creating my character, but even that seemed lacking. I apologize to the people who like this type of game, but I think I'd rather go play in traffic.… Expand
  28. Josieboy
    Jul 10, 2008
    0
    I hope people have learned a lesson from Oblivion. Fallout 3 will pay the price. RIP.
  29. Vjeran
    Jul 10, 2008
    0
    How can people give this game 10/10. It would mean the game is perfect. Oblivion is far from perfect. From all the bugs, problems with AI where your companions kill eachother, generic world that cannot possibly be compared to the diversity of Morrowind, etc it still gets 10/10 by some people?? And those sites that gave it 100/100?? Just shows what little money can do and how people can How can people give this game 10/10. It would mean the game is perfect. Oblivion is far from perfect. From all the bugs, problems with AI where your companions kill eachother, generic world that cannot possibly be compared to the diversity of Morrowind, etc it still gets 10/10 by some people?? And those sites that gave it 100/100?? Just shows what little money can do and how people can easily be swayed. 0/0 to rectify injustice.… Expand
  30. Hrco
    Jul 10, 2008
    0
    It really is incredible how games have degraded in the last 10 years.
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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.
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  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.
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  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.
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