Has this game aged well?

[Isa]

My first Elder Scrolls was Oblivion. Recently completed Skyrim. I was interested in Morrowind but looking at screenshots it looks very heavy on the reading...(and I can't help but TL;DR) Not to mention the whole game itself doesn't quite well thoughtout in terms of UI. Just my opinion from a few gameplay videos and screenshots.

If you've played it before, would you say it aged well over these years? Could a more modern Elder Scrolls player pick this game up?

[medibite]

TL;DR

;D

[DEATH TO S-T-E-A-M]

no, but it has some decent books in game.... Oh and Vivec

[DEATH TO S-T-E-A-M]

its good for Skywind or Morroblivion mods tho at 6$

[leperkhaan]

I googled these Skywind and Morroblivion mods but it's a bit confusing. Are these mods for Skyrim and Oblivion, respectivly, to make them more like Morrowind or the other way around?

[Lechuck's Beard]

Originally posted by leperkhaan:

I googled these Skywind and Morroblivion mods but it's a bit confusing. Are these mods for Skyrim and Oblivion, respectivly, to make them more like Morrowind or the other way around?

The mods take morrowind and run it on the engines of Oblivion or Skyrim. Better with the morrowind overhaul imo but to each their own.

[ShocksVR #AirLink]

Use this:
Morrowind Overhaul – Sounds & Graphics 3.0
http://www.ornitocopter.net/morrowind-overhaul/mgso-release/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=d69wYi3_LWo

[Gorith]

well ignore bronies hes just our troll for the day. The game has some good graphical mods that should solve the looking old problem. Reading? yes the game requires you to read a fair bit as there are no quest markers or anything of that matter so you need to read the clues given to you to find places. However the biggest shock to most people comming from oblivion and skyrim is that the combat system is stat driven. That and no fast travel.

[Silvan]

You probably won't enjoy this very much if you skip the reading. That's how information, stories, and directions (no GPS marker here!) are conveyed in Morrowind.

I like the UI. Compared to Oblivion and Skyrim you have relatively quick access to your stuff via the inventory and you can even put notes on the map. For 11 years now I think it aged well, but keep in mind the combat is nowhere near the later games and animations are ridiculous sometimes.

[Nuclear1980]

Originally posted by Isa:

My first Elder Scrolls was Oblivion. Recently completed Skyrim. I was interested in Morrowind but looking at screenshots it looks very heavy on the reading...(and I can't help but TL;DR) Not to mention the whole game itself doesn't quite well thoughtout in terms of UI. Just my opinion from a few gameplay videos and screenshots.

If you've played it before, would you say it aged well over these years? Could a more modern Elder Scrolls player pick this game up?

It has aged well. If you got spoiled with the "friendliness" and "casualness" of Skyrim and Oblivion, Morrowind is way different. You have to look at when the game was made and what the technology was available to the devs...released in 2002 when the fastest Nvidia card was a Geforce 4 series (AGP). People ran this game on Win 98. I ran this on Win 98 when it was released in 2002.

This game is very open-world. Yes there's a lot of reading involved, and lots of mouse-clicking on highlighted text within the conversation script. You need to work to enjoy this game. Like others have said, the combat system here is stat driven, and mobs do not adjust to your current level. No fast travel unless you pay for a silt strider, and it depends on your destination. I think Morrowind was the last Elder Scrolls game, in my opinion, that was a true rpg, in a sense that there's your stats really determined how combat functions. There's no action-rpg style combat. Unlike Skyrim and Oblivion, Morrowind doesn't point you where the quest NPC or dungeon is located. The map is simply a map that opens up as you travel. Accepting a quest will not show point A to point B on your map (if I remember correctly, have not played this game for so long). You will have to read the quest journal and figure out for yourself how to get there. Your first quest as soon as you land will require you to go to Balmora. You'll have to follow the signposts and these signpost can be very confusing where they are pointing to.

You should really try this game. Just have to remember the period when this game was released. If you get hooked into this game, you should then try Elder Scrolls Adventures: The Redguard. The game runs in DOS and will require you a fast Voodoo 2 graphics card..hehehe ( I have a dedicated PC here running Win 95 with a Voodoo 2 card).

[stereoblind]

it's still (imo) the greatest game in the series. if you're into the elder scrolls in the slightest and haven't tried this, you're missing out on a lot. i believe there's some sort of graphics mod that brings it up to HD standards. but this game is definitely worth it. the desire for exploration in this game is a lot greater than in the others because there's no super fast travel, no mounts, etc. you pretty much walk everywhere and you get to take in a lot of the real beauty in the game.

[Isa]

Actually, it's not really the reading itself it's just the amount they throw at you at once. Each NPC has a load of dialogue and it'sannoying to have to sit on down and read all of it. Each person is like the books.

I like visual novel games, but those are visual novels...and this is Elder Scrolls..I'm not expecting to read so much hoo-ha and I am certainly not prepared to deal with the tiny UI and try to find out what to do next.

About the exploration, ...sure, I like to explore. I spent a lot of gameplay hours in Oblivion just running around and seeing what wackiness I could find next...However, that's my choice. I don't want myself being so restricted all the time. If I want to get to Anvil, I want to get to Anvil then and there without having to look for a mode of transportation in-game. I'm not looking for such senseless immersion. I play videogames for relaxation, and I don't find so much obnoxious gameplay relaxing.

I will leave that kind of gameplay to the players with the nerve to do those things.

I've looked and read about the pre-Oblivion. I don't care about much of the older Elder Scrolls, because to me, they're not what I think are Elder Scrolls. They don't provide as much fodder for adventure as Oblivion and Skyrim, and they restrict the player in so many areas it's simply bothersome. The game has changed. Elder Scrolls isn't some lousy Wolfenstein rip-off game anymore.

[Clocky]

Originally posted by Isa:

Not to mention the whole game itself doesn't quite well thoughtout in terms of UI. Just my opinion from a few gameplay videos and screenshots.

The UI is miles ahead of Skyrim and Oblivion's actually. You can even resize the boxes by draggin them with the mouse.

Originally posted by Isa:

Actually, it's not really the reading itself it's just the amount they throw at you at once. Each NPC has a load of dialogue and it'sannoying to have to sit on down and read all of it. Each person is like the books.

The game uses a keyword dialogue system, which means you don't need to ask everyone about everything even though they might have loads of dialogue available. It's also recorded on your journal in case you forget. For example, the scout at the bar in Seyda Neen can talk for hours about Morrowind's geography, but so can every other "Scout" NPC. You don't have to read everything in one sitting. Just ask her what you're interested in at the time, and move on.

[Crix]

Originally posted by Gorith:

well ignore bronies hes just our troll for the day. The game has some good graphical mods that should solve the looking old problem. Reading? yes the game requires you to read a fair bit as there are no quest markers or anything of that matter so you need to read the clues given to you to find places. However the biggest shock to most people comming from oblivion and skyrim is that the combat system is stat driven. That and no fast travel.

wut? No one here is being a troll

To the Op though as far as the engine no it's pretty dated now but least the majority though can run Morrowind Overhaul and it helps a lot. Graphics do help with the gameplay experience imo. There is a lot of options to choose during the MO setup though. I wouldn't reccommend though using the town sounds it really gets annoying hearing the looping background noises. People laughing and stuff when everyone is serious in the cornerclub is really out of place.

[Ninja Destroyer]

"My first Elder Scrolls was Oblivion."

There lies your problem.

[feralgal]

i still like morrowind more than skyrim or oblivion. i think the story and characters in morrowind are much deeper and more interesting. the atmosphere is also better and more varied. the graphics are dated but, even without graphic mods, (IMO) the trade-off is worth it in order to be able to explore all the political machinations, the societal conficts (racial, economic), religious conflicts, etc. the quests are also more interesting IMO (though there are still more fed ex quests than i'd like). but if you don't like reading, you may miss most of the depth and a lot of the interesting conflicts and intrigue.

i like the stat-based combat in morrowind. since your success (in combat, dialog, etc.) is more dependent on your stats than your personal reflexes, replays are more interesting. if your PC doesn't have the skills s/he needs, you will probably fail, no matter how skilled you (as the player) are. i greatly prefer that to having your PC's success in battle matter more on how fast you can aim and swing a sword/fire bolts/spam spells/block attacks. (unfortunately, even with a stupid character, you, as a player, can somethings figure out things that your PC shouldn't be able to. but that's true in all three games and in most other rpgs.) OTOH, if you don't like relying on your PC's stats instead of your own reflexes, you're likely to hate morrowind combat. (your opponents don't level up with you in morrowind like they do in oblvion or skyrim. i prefer that but i think there are advantages and disadvantages to both systems. also, fatigue affects your combat, magic, and other skills in morrowind. it doesn't in oblivion or skyrim. i prefer that bc, to me, it makes combat and travel more interesting. ymmv. OTOH, enemies don't pursue you through door in morrowind, unlike in oblivion and skyrim. i prefer skyrim's way of handling that.)

i liked the wide variety of characters i could create in morrowind and how different it felt to play those characters. in skyrim, unless i severely restricted my use of the available powers or perks (e.g., alchemy, enchant) the game was far too easy and all the PC characters tended to be minor versions of the same character: enchanted armor-wearing, alchemy-abusing chosen one with at least some skills in sneak, magic, and weapons. IIRC oblivion was better than skyrim in that respect but still more limited than morrowind. in morrowind, it felt really different to play an illusionist/restorationist mage than even a spellsword. a finesse/skill warrior felt different than a brute strength warrior. (and you need separate weapons skills for, e.g., short blades vs blunt weapons vs spear vs long blades, all of which have different advantages vs disadvantages.) it didn't in skyrim IMO. to me, that's a big plus but other ppl don't really care about that aspect of a game.

also, even if you play the same character in Morrowind, it's often beneficial to think how you will use your skills against a specific opponent. e.g., if you're a mage, should you use destruction, blind, paralyze, damage (skill or attribute), burden, chameleon, or some other spell in this situation? which custom spells would be most useful in this situation? in many situations? (you don't have many of those options in oblivion or especially skyrim. you could make spells in oblivion too but not in skyrim.) in oblivion and especially skyrim, i just spammed the same spells (or generally used the same weapons) over and over. it was really boring IMO. it would have been even worse if i'd abused (or even used much) the enchanting and alchemy systems to create super armor (and, hence, a fairly invincible PC) or super potions.