Just like a member of the Mythic Dawn emerging from a hidden chamber to assassinate the emperor, an unexpected remastered edition of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion has appeared, and I’m more than willing to embrace all its enhancements. Given that it ranks among my top RPG experiences, it comes as no surprise that within just one day, I’ve dived deep into the game once again: thwarting dozens of Oblivion invasions near Kvatch, sealing pacts with various Daedric deities through Faustian deals, battling for dominance in the Imperial City Arena, and steadily progressing along several faction quests. So far, I find the numerous improvements in this updated release truly impressive. Having replayed the initial version not long ago, the current issues stand out starkly against the enhanced user interface, refined dialogue recordings, and particularly stunning visual updates which breathe fresh life into what was previously considered almost two decades old. However, despite encountering some familiar glitches such as awkward character movements during mount interactions, flawed missions, and occasional frame rate drops, overall, these do little to dampen my enjoyment. Even though I tend to be less swayed by mere nostalgic appeal, diving back into this charmingly quirky sandbox world remains thoroughly delightful.
The significant enhancement in Oblivion Remastered lies primarily in its graphical upgrades. Although these visuals do not meet contemporary benchmarks, comparing this updated edition with its 2006 counterpart reveals an astonishing leap forward. Every aspect of the landscape appears sharp, offering vistas far beyond what my adolescent imagination once envisioned. Notably, improvements such as lighting effects, shadow rendering, and facial animations for characters stand out remarkably; however, some elements seem oddly overlooked—like NPC faces, most of which appear grotesquely caricatured and often exhibit crossed eyes nearly half the time. Interestingly enough, perhaps the unsettling appearance of character models mirrors the genuine feel of playing Oblivion from back then. Despite lacking the visual polish seen in modern high-budget titles released in 2025, the overall transformation remains noteworthy. This remake manages to evoke memories of exactly how games appeared during the mid-2000s era, despite clear evidence suggesting otherwise, highlighting a successful preservation of both essence and aesthetic of the initial release.
The inclusion of sprinting has significantly reduced the tedium of the experience.
One of the most significant changes affecting gameplay in Oblivion Remastered is undoubtedly the addition of a sprint function. For those who last played Oblivion over ten years ago, it’s important to know that sprinting wasn’t available then—quite surprising indeed. And for newcomers, consider yourself fortunate as you’re experiencing something akin to receiving a blessing directly from Akatosh. Personally, I’m not too bothered by the fact that sprinting drains my stamina; this aspect doesn’t bother me much compared to how frequently characters run around in many RPGs today. The trade-off feels worthwhile because exploring locations such as maps and dungeons becomes significantly faster than before. Now they take roughly half the original duration, which sometimes gives an illusion of reducing their size. Additionally, this modification motivates me to invest more effort into enhancing abilities and enchantments related to increasing stamina, seeing as this resource plays a critical role across various activities. Despite these adjustments adding some complexity, swiftly navigating familiar territories greatly diminishes boredom during play sessions.
There are also a bunch of major changes to the UI, skills, and leveling system, as well as an entirely new feature called Character Origins, which seem to further modify starting stats. The UI has been modernized with today’s design sensibilities, so there are lots of appreciated additions you might not even notice. The compass has moved to the top of your screen and provides way more information; the health, magicka, and stamina meters are now spaced out across the screen instead of being shoved into one corner together; and the menus are much more intuitively placed, so you can toggle between your spells and character stats a lot faster. Some elements still feel pretty old timey – like the quest log popping up right in the middle of the screen anytime you’ve reached a new milestone in one, awkwardly interrupting whatever you were doing – but most of these annoyances haven’t bothered me much just yet. I also just need to spend more time with the altered leveling system and skills to understand if those changes were for better or worse.
It’s disappointing that twenty years weren’t sufficient to address the glitches.
Even though Virtuous Games led the development of this remastered version, it remains very much a Bethesda title, complete with numerous glitches. During playtime, I encountered some peculiar occurrences such as an Oblivion Gate vanishing right before my eyes and NPCs walking off without allowing interaction, although these didn’t completely halt progress since quests could still move forward despite lagging logs. Performance hiccups have also plagued gameplay sessions; specifically on Xbox Series X, frame drops occur whenever auto-saves activate or during intense battles involving multiple filthy rat-like creatures in Kvatch. These typical oversights haven’t significantly marred enjoyment so far, yet it’s disappointing that after twenty years, fundamental problems persist within this quirky fantastical realm.
That’s all I’ve got for now, but am hoping to have a full review before too long. First I want to wrap up the main quest line, pay a visit to the Shivering Isles, and maybe go on a rampage across Cyrodil just to hear the Imperial guards give me their arrest monologue a few hundred more times. Okay. That’s it. Gonna go catch vampirism or something now. Goodbye.
If you liked this tale, make sure to follow
Viral Buzz News
on MSN.
