I have an embarrassing statistic to confess, and for once it’s not related to anything sexual: I have spent 133 hours playing a single video game. (Which could perhaps explain why I have no sexual statistics to speak of.)
That game is The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, last year’s epic, open-ended and deliriously addictive fantasy role-playing adventure. It’s a game that essentially hands you a huge swords ’n’ sorcery world populated with thousands of characters and creatures, gives you an overarching storyline to follow, and turns you loose to lead your virtual life as you choose.
In my defense, those 133 hours were spread out over the course of a year, playing the Xbox 360 version of the game to completion. But it says something about Oblivion’s artful design that I was so easily recaptivated when starting from scratch on the recently released PlayStation 3 version of the game.
While the story and gameplay are identical, the PS3 iteration of Oblivion is slightly better than its Xbox 360 cousin from a visual and technical standpoint. Standing on the top of a tall hill and gazing at the landscape below is even more breathtaking than before, thanks to a greater level of distant detail in the environments. Loading times have also been shortened a bit, making transitions between areas a little smoother.
The PS3’s Oblivion also includes the “Knights Of The Nine” side quest that’s available as a separate, paid download for the Xbox 360 and PC versions. It’s a nice perk that adds even more meat to an already jam-packed game, but the unfortunate downside is that none of the other downloadable content (including the excellent Shivering Isles add-on released last month) is currently available on the PS3.
The subset of gamers who own a PS3 but have never spent time with a gaming PC or Xbox 360 might be relatively small right now, but Oblivion is aimed squarely at them, and ought to help them feel better about their $659 purchase.
That said, if you’ve played either of the earlier versions, there’s not enough here to warrant buying the game a second time, unless (like me) you’re looking for an excuse to start from scratch and you want to check out the slightly improved visuals and load times.
You don’t have to invest 133 hours in Oblivion, and you might not even completely finish it.
But it’s basically like being handed an entire world on a single, shiny disc. What could be better than that?
Huh? Sex? Never heard of it. Obviously.
Bottom Line: An absolute must-have for PS3 owners who’ve never played the PC or Xbox 360 iterations of the game. Although the PS3 version looks a little prettier and runs a little more smoothly, the trade-off is there’s no downloadable content available yet.
WHAM! Rating: |
9 out of 10 |
ESRB Rating: |
M (Mature) |
Official Web Site: |
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