Off Topic Discussion Megathread

[Kolsykol]

Imo the Elder Scrolls games haven't aged well, they get carried pretty hard by nostalgia and '' first bias '' for a lack of a better term.
They were the first big open world games a lot of people myself included played.*
I think Skyrim especially was the first for a lot of people, gaming had become more mainstream.

Imo I'd say that Skyrim is more fun to play, but I'd describe it how Totalbiscuit described it.
It's an ocean with the depth of a swimming pool.
And imo I also think that the RP elements were simplified too much the dialogue in particular felt really dumb and unnatural and the voice acting isn't very good.
Morrowinds writing was way better imo and you had far more options and the world also felt a lot more interesting and varied it got me more excited to explore.

I never rly liked the whole '' you can be/ do anything '' in ES games that they pushed either, I prefer to have more defined and focused classes.
It kinda feels like the games wants you to be everything at once like a plate wearing spellcasting dual wielding alchemist priest archer werewolf lol.

I rly feel like it hurt the classes a lot in ESO, it feels like all of them play almost identical.
Sometimes literally the same.

The setting is also a tad too generic for my taste but I do get the appeal of it too.
But it's sorta like DnD to me it's a bit meh and uninteresting feels kinda bland and too safe.
But I also still like some DnD games and I actually do want to replay Morrowind at some point too.

Edit: Altho in fairness I actually find most Western fantasy to be pretty bland at this point.
I guess I am just overexposed to it.
Like I really couldn't understand why dragons in Game of Thrones were so incredible to people, I actually felt like they detracted heavily from the show and books.

[Caurcas]

The fun in Morrowind is how you are encouraged to break it. Also it's world and the Dunmer culture is so unique. It would considered problematic by many today sadly.

[Kolsykol]

The fun in Morrowind is how you are encouraged to break it. Also it's world and the Dunmer culture is so unique. It would considered problematic by many today sadly.

Imo I just like how alien the world feels in Morrowind in comparison to Skyrim, it feels a lot more fantasy.
Skyrim to me feels like what people who are not from Scandinavia think that Scandinavia is like, I rly liked the early seasons of Vikings but it sorta reminds me a bit of that show.
Hollywood and stereotype Vikings basically and everything is dirty and bleak.

Then there was a lot of other cool stuff like the flying '' fortress ''.

[Vyrerus]

The only way Morrowind hasn't aged well is graphically and mechanically. It looks bad by today's standards, and the idea of missing a hit due to an accuracy roll in addition to your aim is a foreign concept to many of today's gamers.

It has a radically amazing setting that was literally written by a guy drunk off his rocker with benzodiazepines out his dumper. He also wrote Oblivion. Morrowind's setting is so unusual that the only reason it would seem banal is if you've experienced it dozens of times since you were a kid. It's also very brutal and real. The Dark Elves have their own word for foreigner. The setting doesn't 100% explain itself to you right off the bat. You have to look, read, think, and puzzle your way through.

I prefer SsethTzeentach's video on it the most.

Its main plot is actually some what reminiscent of Xenogears. Reincarnation involving other god-like beings, all intent on being or surpassing or killing other Gods. It's not a 1:1 but the Nerevar == Fei Fong Wong and Dagoth Ur == Krelian. Miang == Almalexia. It's still not quite as strange as Xenogears' plot, with the Zohar, Wels disease, all humans actually being synthetics, and Deus etc. But damned if the comparison can't be made.

The reason people give the current/later Elder Scrolls games guff is generally because they clip and compress the skills with each iteration, compressing/eliminating playstyles. For instance, there's no longer an, "Unarmored" skill that would let you build defense rating while wearing clothes not considered armor. As of Skyrim there's no longer attributes like STR DEX etc.

The first people to get interested in Elder Scrolls and cause it take off were more dedicated gamers, and/or kids who didn't know anything else, who liked/grew to like crunching numbers. Figuring out how to break the system. Reduce the player's ability to that, and they will naturally deride the entry that does it. It's that brand of fun that's led to modding being such a hot thing(you know, other than tiddy mods).

[Kolsykol]

The only way Morrowind hasn't aged well is graphically and mechanically. It looks bad by today's standards, and the idea of missing a hit due to an accuracy roll in addition to your aim is a foreign concept to many of today's gamers.

Personally I just don't find it to be a fun gameplay mechanic.

I think that it could be if the feedback was better, for example if instead of hitting your opponent and hearing that sound effect you do you instead hit the armor and there was proper feedback for it.
Because it ends up just feeling frustrating and like your character is a dumbass who can't hit what's in front of them.
It's the same in Pathfinder Kingmaker too, I do love the game but I think it'd be better with that kind of feedback or proper dodging animations.

It could be fun in Morrowind but it just makes me feeling like my character is blind.
I remember this was a thing I realized when I played the first Assassins Creed game because based on what I remember at least the enemies still blocked attacks when they got hit but there was a stagger animation so it was clear they took damage.
Morrowind is obviously extremely old at this point but I still think there were ways of doing it better especially with audio.

In FFXIV we used to be able to miss attacks too but it was horrible for obvious reasons ( Morrowind was obviously not as bad, no combos and not a MMO ).
But I think it could work in singleplayer games but you rly gotta still make it feel like you're actually swinging at someone.

[SturmChurro]

Personally I just don't find it to be a fun gameplay mechanic.

I think that it could be if the feedback was better, for example if instead of hitting your opponent and hearing that sound effect you do you instead hit the armor and there was proper feedback for it.
Because it ends up just feeling frustrating and like your character is a dumbass who can't hit what's in front of them.
It's the same in Pathfinder Kingmaker too, I do love the game but I think it'd be better with that kind of feedback or proper dodging animations.

It could be fun in Morrowind but it just makes me feeling like my character is blind.
I remember this was a thing I realized when I played the first Assassins Creed game because based on what I remember at least the enemies still blocked attacks when they got hit but there was a stagger animation so it was clear they took damage.
Morrowind is obviously extremely old at this point but I still think there were ways of doing it better especially with audio.

In FFXIV we used to be able to miss attacks too but it was horrible for obvious reasons ( Morrowind was obviously not as bad, no combos and not a MMO ).
But I think it could work in singleplayer games but you rly gotta still make it feel like you're actually swinging at someone.

I don't really see this happening, and I usually play with the premade classes on top of it for added roleplay (I like how your "class" has a description - do the same in Oblivion). Are you entering fights with no fatigue left, and/or using a weapon your character isn't skilled with? I'm literally playing a base mage right now - still level one - and have had no issues whatsoever. I suppose the thing about Morrowind is that you kind of have to know what stats and effects do what, to not get too frustrated by it and have no problems. Your character isn't blind, they are just probably unskilled, and out of breath. The game is just simulating this.

[Vyrerus]

Oh yeah... in mildly funny Skyrim news I managed to accidentally make the Dwemer Horse fly.

Flying Dwemer Horse

Wouldn't bother watching the whole of it. Just know that I was able to control it enough to fly from Solitude to Markarth to Whiterun to Windhelm, and then to some high in the mountains Dwemer Ruin entrance/exits lmao

It occurred after I was showing my girlfriend this indestructible horse. I kept jumping off mountains with it. It auto saved when I jumped off the cliff near Solitude.

[Kolsykol]

I don't really see this happening, and I usually play with the premade classes on top of it for added roleplay (I like how your "class" has a description - do the same in Oblivion). Are you entering fights with no fatigue left, and/or using a weapon your character isn't skilled with? I'm literally playing a base mage right now - still level one - and have had no issues whatsoever. I suppose the thing about Morrowind is that you kind of have to what stats and effects do what, to not get too frustrated by it and have no problems. Your character isn't blind, they are just probably unskilled, and out of breath. The game is just simulating this.

Yeah but even if you're unskilled you should still be able to make contact with the enemy.
I think that for the most part it's an issue with audio especially considering the age of the game.

I honestly dunno how to describe it, it almost sounds like you're cutting grass lol.
In DnD AC is meant to simulate a lot of different things, like weapons hitting armor, dodging, parrying etc.
I think it really helps to show that or at least indicate it some other way like with audio.

Otherwise it sorta feels like your character is just slicing the air.

[SturmChurro]

Yeah but even if you're unskilled you should still be able to make contact with the enemy.
I think that for the most part it's an issue with audio especially considering the age of the game.

I honestly dunno how to describe it, it almost sounds like you're cutting grass lol.
In DnD AC is meant to simulate a lot of different things, like weapons hitting armor, dodging, parrying etc.
I think it really helps to show that or at least indicate it some other way like with audio.

Otherwise it sorta feels like your character is just slicing the air.

Not necessarily. The game just lacks the animations. It is simulating the enemy dodging your hits. For example, I was recently playing NWN EE, and NWN2, those games would give visual feedback (dodge animations) of you or the enemy missing by having your character or the enemy literally dodge hits. Your character could still miss for a variety of factors, and I, frankly, think it's more realistic to miss from time to time. Aside from that, there are probably mods that change this for people who want it.

[Kolsykol]

Not necessarily. The game just lacks the animations. It is simulating the enemy dodging your hits. For example, I was recently playing NWN EE, and NWN2, those games would give visual feedback (dodge animations) of you or the enemy missing by having your character or the enemy literally dodge hits. Your character could still miss for a variety of factors, and I, frankly, think it's more realistic to miss from time to time. Aside from that, there are probably mods that change this for people who want it.

Animations would definitely help which was my point, I think if your character is wearing heavy armor tho there should be audio for that too.
It's just that without it the game does a poor job at communicating that visually and audibly and imo at least it makes the gameplay feel bad.

I think that when you visually actually see your weapon land on the enemy then you kinda end up expecting that to be reflected in the visuals and audio, when it's not it ends up feeling bad imo.