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Morrowind: Game of the Year Edition (Xbox)
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4/5 |
For hardcore gamers
(April 23, 2008) |
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Well, there's not really much I can add to what's already been said about this game. It is hands down the most open ended game I've ever come across. Whatever character you want to play you can and if you don't see the character class you want on the list you can create your own.
I've just finished playing the main quest with a Nordic Mage who wears armour and carries a sword and now I'm moving on to the expansions Bloodmoon and Tribunal. This game could make you forget you have any other games, it's that huge.
However it's not perfect (but then what is?). The graphics are now somewhat dated and don't really animate at all naturally, however this is easilly forgotten after a few hours. The landscape varies in quality. The grassy plains tend to look painted onto polygons but the cities can, even now, take your breath away. A big glitch, however is that very occaisionally the game will forget to load a building and you'll see a big space where it used to be. This is easily remedied by reloading the game, but when that initial first loading screen takes about a minute and a half, you're probably better off just playing on as long as it's not a building you need to enter. Honestly though I've been playing non-stop for months and this has only happened 2 or 3 times. I've heard many rumors of the game constantly freezing or locking up but this has never happened to me and may only be the case with US versions of the game.
I started out playing japanese RPGs like Final Fantasy, but as the level of customization has been phased out in favour of big budget cutscenes and linear storylines I've started to lose interest. Morrowind has brought all of it back and then some with the level of freedom it gives you. Yes there is an epic storyline to engage in (And it is well worth doing so) but it's up to you. You need never touch it. For that it deserves high praise indeed.
However it should be noted that deep down it is still an RPG and a pretty hardcore one at that. Every time you swing your sword there's essentially a dice roll determining whether or not it hits, and at early levels that won't be often. So if you don't like RPGs you may still want to try before you buy. If you find it cheap, however, give it a go, it may convert you. I got my copy 2nd hand for £15 and I certainly can't complain about the amount of game you get for that price given that I've played it pretty much constantly since then pausing only for a couple of weeks to rip through Baldur's Gate (what can I say, I like older games).
So after that incredibly dis-jointed review I'll finish by saying that anyone who loves RPGs should check this out. The only reason I didn't give it five is because of the few bugs present. And if you don't like RPGs you may want to give this a go anyway, as you'll never find a game that allows you more freedom. Not even it's sequel, Oblivion. |
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5/5 |
Mesmerising.
(April 12, 2008) |
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Where to begin? The same question I asked myself when I first played this game. It is quite simply breathtaking. Recently I've been reading reviews on Morrowind and have noticed that the graphics of the game get mentioned alot. i.e "Brilliant game, but the graphics are a bit dated!" ect. 1) Of course the graphics are dated, the game was released in 2002. 2) Look at most other titles of the same year and you'll realise this game was miles ahead of it's time. When you look at the sheer scale of the game, the size of the world, the things you can do and the people you can meet it dawns on you that no world in gaming history has seen so much detail. For example, enter a shop or a house or any building and just look about. The book shelf is full of books which can be taken individually, any item in your inventory can be placed where you please, meaning house owners (like myself) can spend ages just putting items around your house to show off/make it look more lived in. So what I'm trying to say is that though the graphics have since been surpassed by Oblivion, Morrowind can still awe in a way like no other.
The music in this game has been done on an epic scale. Differnet themes for when you are fighting creatures/monsters, subtle changes depending on the weather. The battle sounds are good and some main characters have voice-over.
What this game does best though is give you a world where you can go out and do whatever you want, whenever you want. Whether it be helping Damsels in distress or maybe killng some noble or merchant. Or maybe you just want to go out and dicover all that you can. Maybe you just like hitting things with big heavy weapons. Go ahead, hit that guy, make him fly.....the choice is quite simply yours.
Graphics 9/10
Sound 9/10
Gameplay 10/10
Longitivity 10/10
Replayability 10/10
OVERALL 10/10 |
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5/5 |
huge
(February 21, 2008) |
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I got morrowind and then this years ago. It works on the 360 but now the graphics are rather poor.. They were great at the time though.. its weird!.. The game is still in the top 5 all time greats though. I still have not done everything in it; If you do just the main quest you miss out on a lot. It is better than Oblivion, mainly because there's more freedom. You can enchant items a lot easier (I paid a NPC to enchant a ruby so that it could open just about every locked door/chest etc in the game). You can fly as fast as you can run, and by the time I got to Bloodmoon, I could run faster than a werewolf.
At the start of the game I found it difficult killing a rat, which would put a lot of people off. I persevered though since this was the 1st RPG I'd ever played, and after some training, finding some armour and a decent blade, I was off. It still took about 2 years to get through but I was at the stage of being quite confident I could take any enemy.
Once I got up North though, I got a really tough fight off a spriggand and a polar bear.. I think you need to be quite good before you venture onto the island.. Its this sort of thing however that makes it a great game. You can get over confident and then beaten up. The Bloodmoon part was my favourite; the atmosphere is pretty good and its a decent challenge.
So basically it seems some people hate the game and others think its the best thing ever. On the 360 at the moment, the emulation isn't spot on (I think) because it takes longer to load etc than the original xbox. The graphics (on the 360 anyway) look really dated too and this would put off a lot of people. So too does the fact that you start off with no skills.. thats a bit like life though, you need to learn/practice something to become good at it. After playing this it made me more open minded about RPG's - some of them are good! If I hadn't played this I wouldn't have played KOTOR or Mass Effect (both are good, but KOTOR's better).
I'm not writing off Oblivion- I got that on the back of this game (actually before I even had a 360!) and I still have it. I've finished it, but not all the side quests. It too is a good game and most people would say, more 'accessable' than Morrowind but if you've played through the latter, you will find Oblivion to be.. missing.. something.. |
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5/5 |
Brilliant game
(July 07, 2007) |
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Though it throws you in at the deep end, you float to the top quite quickly, though I have only played on it for 2 days the gameplay is exceelent, however the same can't be said for 3rd person and combat, however most of my combat skills haven't reached 30 yet, the surprising thing is the merchants, if your skill is good enough you can get items like med. armor for 150 instead of 200, don't take my word for it try it out yourself and be amazed.
Unlike other games their is no good or bad points, only rank, reputation and bounty, you gain a rank in each guild you join, and this increases as you perform duties. gd luck choosing your game |
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4/5 |
Not the best choice for a light hearted gamer
(April 14, 2006) |
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I bought this game after reading all the good reviews it's got. This is definitely the biggest rpg game ive ever played and there is an unlimited things to do, but the graphics arent half as great as everyone says they are, especially for xbox. The first person view and controls are rather frustrating at first but after a while it becomes easier and smoother to play as your own skills increase along with your character's.
This is definitely not ideal game for a light hearted gamer and can be disappointing, but if your prepared to put in the hours it can be very rewarding. |
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