The Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion is arguably one of the best games of all time. Set in the fantasy medieval world of Tamriel; in the province of Cyrodiil, only one hero can close the gates of Oblivion and save the Empire from falling into turmoil.

The player starts the game by having to escape from a dungeon which acts as a bit of a tutorial. After this he is given a large range of options that let him create and customize his own character. There are 10 different races to choose from with each one being different. If you prefer melee fighting then the best race for you would be an ork whereas if you prefer to use spells then the best race for you would be a High Elf or a Breton. On top of this, you can choose a birthsign for you character which will give he or she additional attributes. After this you can head out into the wilderness. The play area you get in this game is roughly the size of Grand Theft Auto San Andreas and your only means of transport is walking or on horseback. However it is possible to fast-travel to locations that you have found if you want to get through the game faster.

Combat in this game can be with a melee weapon such as a sword or an axe or from a distance using ranges weapons like bows and arrows. Weapons can be found all over Cyrodiil in caves, dungeons, forts or they can be bought in shops. Spells are the main other form of combat in the game. They can vary in affect from summoning a powerful creature to defend you or from simply firing a spell at the enemy.

Magic plays a key role in the game and can be acquired by gaining levels and being taught by guild members at the mages guild. As you progress through the game you will learn new spells and be able to use more powerful ones. There are 6 forms of magic in the game, Alteration, Conjuration, Destruction, Illusion, Mysticism and Restoration which are all slightly different.

All the quests in The Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion will take over 200 hours of play time. However there is a hell of lot more to do than this. There are over 100 caves, dungeons, forts, mines and ruins that can be explored in great depth and detail, most of which are full of creatures and loot.

There are plenty of creatures and enemies that you will encounter in the game that level up along with you. This means that they will always present a challenge for you. There are several humanoid enemies that you will encounter in the wilderness. These include bandits, vampires and necromancers. However most of the enemies you will encounter will be wild animals and creatures such as brown bears, minotaurs, skeleton warriors and goblins.

There is a crime and punishment system in the game which takes action if you commit a crime. If you commit a crime undetected then you will probably get away with it but if someone sees you they may call the guards. If you do get arrested and confronted by a guard, you are given 3 options, pay a fine, go to jail and resist arrest. I do not recommend you to resist arrest unless you are a very good fighter because the guards are very tough. Your bounty varies depending on the crime. If it is just petty theft then you have a small fine to pay but if it is something like murder then you will have a very big fine coming your way.

In the Game of the Year Edition, as well as getting the main quest and the Nights of the Nine expansion, you also get the Shivering Isles expansion which adds another 50-100 hours of game play.

There are very few drawbacks in the game. The main one being that melee fighting is a bit repetitive and also there are a couple of frame rate pauses from time to time. Apart from this, The Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion is one of the best games available on the PS3 and Xbox 360.

+ A massive world to explore.

+ Hundreds of hours of great gameplay and story.

+ Excellent skill and attribut system.

+ DLC expansions are superb

- Dodgy framerate and technical issues.

9.8/10

By Ian Ratledge Posted Saturday, March 14th, 2009 5:46 pm