Preview uit Electronic Gaming Monthly.
Ik had hier de link naar de thread gepost, maar de text is nu weggehaald door de mods op de ES forums, gelukkig heb ik de text gekopieerd.
Day One: Huzzah! I’m not lost
Emperor Uriel Septim (voiced by that dreamy Patrick “Capt. Picard” Stewart!) has just been murdered before my eyes. Right before he bought it, though, he gave me a tacky necklace and prattled on about my destiny, an ancient prophecy, and some hubbub about opening the gates to hell. (After he croaks, I get my first quest update, complete with a compass pointing me to my next objective.) Oblivion’s core plot centers around these mysteries, but first I just want to explore this sprawling fantasy world.
I lost count of the number of people who told me they quit playing Morrowind after a half hour of walking through the woods and then being killed by a crab. I never had that experience, but I will admit to having had more than one frustrating “What the hell do I do now?” moment. Oblivion avoids this pitfall by holding your hand more tightly: The central plot progression remains front-and-center, optional quests are clearly elective, and unfair difficulty spikes should be largely extinct. Plus, brilliantly streamlined menus replace Morrowind’s jumbled hodgepodge of a setup. Negotiating my inventory feels intuitive, and being able to quickly check my journal (that conveniently logs my quests, conversations, and actions) keeps me on task.
When I go to my world map, I’m thrilled to discover that those creepy, crawly silt strider mounts from Morrowind have been replaced by a far more efficient “fast travel” map. It makes sense without making me feel like I’m being baby-sat. Rather than hoofing it through the great outdoors (and risking death by crab), I decide to give this fast-travel business a try. Right now, I can warp only to areas in the eight main cities, but as I talk to people, explore the land, and accept quests, the map updates accordingly. Since I am a total shopasaurus, I select Imperial City’s marketplace so I can do a bit of shopping, and after a quick loading screen, I’ve warped there.
I find myself smack-dab in the middle of a brightly sunlit marketplace bustling with people. I overhear a man bragging about how retirement has given him more time to read trashy novels. Must be nice.... I decide to head over to the stables to have a gander at the horses. All girls love horses....
Day Two: Murder for fun and profit
Early in the morning, I find a seemingly free pony at the stable and set off on a quest to assassinate someone swarthy. A few hours later, I’m hiding from my pissed-off stolen pony inside the Inn of Ill Omen, thinking that it’s pretty damn aptly named. The pony went bad after I accidentally stabbed him while trying to kill a rabid wolf. If I hadn’t been distracted by the majestic herd of deer springing through the glen along the path, I might’ve been more prepared for the beast. Combat here is much improved over Morrowind’s random die-roll-powered mess. And though I can control the strength and timing of my blows and blocks, my pony clearly thinks I need more practice.
After chugging a lesser potion of healing, I casually slide over to the innkeeper. I ask about the man I’ve been sent for, Rufio. The innkeeper has a pretty high opinion of me, probably due to my slim figure and Run Lola Run–red hairdo. He tells me the old man can be found in the basement and that he’s usually sleeping. This should be easy....
OK, he’s dead. That actually was easy! I shrug off any guilt I might’ve felt over killing a helpless old codger in his sleep and drag his corpse out of the blood-soaked bed to take a quick nap. I wake up to find the creepy Lucien LaChance, the man who sent me to kill Rufio, hovering over me. Pleased with my performance, he invites me to join the assassins’ guild. He informs me of the double-secret location of the guildhall, and in no time I’m carefully playing the minigame that lets me try to pick the lock on the house where I’m told I’ll find the guild. A scary, talking stained-glass window asks me a question I know the answer to, and soon I find myself among all sorts of villains.
Day Three: Makin’ time with Wonder Woman
While wandering through random shops in Imperial City, I hear a familiar voice—why, it’s none other than Wonder Woman! Lynda Carter herself voices a shopkeeper named Jensine. I adore Wonder Woman, so naturally I want her to like me, too. I opt to play the persuasion minigame in order to improve her opinion of me. Using my lightning-fast reflexes while carefully watching her face for mood changes, I can increase or decrease her notion of me. I do a good enough job to be rewarded with a grin. She then asks if I’ll help with an investigation of a local merchant who has been undercutting prices so much that there’s little doubt treachery is afoot. I tell her I will help out, and my quest journal updates itself. After I speak with the shady merchant, I decide that my best course of action is to wait until he closes shop and then follow him to see where he goes. Since I have some time to kill before the market closes, I decide to travel to the waterfront to see if anything interesting is going on down there.
The waterfront is on the bad side of Imperial City, and it’s rife with nefarious rogues with malfeasant minds. I’ve got my guard up, so I’m not really prepared for a pirate who approaches me to sing a randy sea shanty about my fancy pants. He’s charming, but my mother warned me about pirates, so I move on. Who wants to chat up some loser when I’ve got a huge world to explore? "
Then they mention a "spring 2006" release date, but we can guess it is a crap release date.
Ik vond de kritiek dat op Morrowind werd gegeven omwille van zijn ontoegankelijkheid altijd leuk...maar ik vrees dat dat nou niet het geval zal zijn. Ze houden teveel rekening met het grote publiek...zeker de luchtige manier waarop deze gast alles vertelt. Silt Striders waren nou eenmaal iets typisch aan Morrowind. Je kan natuurlijk zeggen van 'er is fast travel, maar je kiest tenslotte zelf of je het gebruikt of niet', maar ik vind het niet thuishoren in deze game.
Laatst bewerkt: 10 feb 2006
