Preview: TES VI Oblivion

The Elder Scrolls is a game series that is synonymous with roleplaying, its three games have brought open ended gaming to a new level. In 2003 TES III Morrowind, showed that the term Action/Rpg doesnt have to be 90% action and 10% rpg with a game that had some incredible FPS style combat as well as the Roleplaying that gamers want in a game. My only complaint with the game was that it was TO immense and To open ended. I had a huge world with hundreds of quests and novels worth of text in the form of conversations and books. Despite these problems i would still give the game a 9/10. Oblivion, however, looks like it might be the greatest RPG ever, and considering I still cling to Baldurs Gate, thats saying something. This title was supposed to be an Xbox 360 launch title but it was postponed till early 2006, it will be available on both the 360 and the PC, but be warned, its gonna need a monster comp. The graphics ive seen are amazing, I sometimes cant tell that its a screenshot. Some amazing new features are the forest system, which are randomly generated using a program which creates 100% realistic woods, the new A.I., which will actually have townsfolk get up, eat breakfast, go to work, go home, read/practice skills etc. and then go to sleep, and finally, a revamped physics and combat system. Another cool new thing is the ease with which you can find your way through the game, instead of having to spend hours leveling, then doing a mission. It looks as thought you can progress at a steady pace. This is not to say you are led through the game by a string, just that you arent left on the corner in a cardboard box.

The game looks like it could be one of the best ever.... We'll have to wait and see.