The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind Review

Making your living is also entirely your decision. You can be the sword of justice, striking fear into the hearts of the unworthy; a seemingly meek stalker of the shadows, unnoticed until the moment a dagger is plunged into the back of the unsuspecting, or pilfering the shops of their wares, or a master of magic with more than 300 spells at your disposal (pre-made - more if you use the Construction Tools!), or any combination of the three. Good, evil, virtuous, opportunistic, mage, rogue, warrior, it doesn't matter. The tools exist for any combination of class to win and work his way through the game. For example, my Nord Warrior happened upon another Nord on the side of the road, standing naked. Upon speaking to him, I learned that a magic-wielding witch had stolen all of his belongings, including his prized axe.

Now where's ol' Yoda off to now?

Now's your chance to help the poor guy.

They were traveling together, and she took it from him after she had used her magic to render him unconscious. He swore revenge, and asked for my help to find her. Together we traveled until we came upon her a ways later. Upon meeting her, we asked to get his axe back. She refused, so we took it the hard way. He asked for the axe back - a magical double-bladed axe that not only swings hard, also delivers a nice punch of electric damage on top. I gave him his prized possession back to him, and he rewarded me with some training in the use of axes and strength. Since my Nord was an axe specialist, I then decided that I was better suited for owning such a fine weapon, so I took it from him. The Hard Way. I ate my cake, and had it too. No one else was around, so no one was the wiser. This type of opportunistic behavior is available, and does not get punished. If you can get away with it, you can do it. Of course if you don't get away with it, be prepared to accept the repercussions.

Oh, did I mention there's a main quest, too? Since the game falls 10 years after the completion of Daggerfall, you learn that the Emporer is still in power, but for the most part, it doesn't matter since Vvardenfell is an island pretty much unto itself. A good while back, a nasty Dunmer Elf by the name of Dagoth Ur betrayed his people and allied himself with the Dwemer dwarves. Together he and his minions ran roughshod over the countryside. He was finally defeated and bound to the volcano at the center of the island. The Dunmer prophesied his impending return, as well as the coming of the Nerevarine, a hero from the outlands who would ultimately defeat Dagoth Ur and his Sixth House. Just where in that quest you fit is entirely up to you and your travels.

So that being said, there's easily at least 150 hours of gameplay in this game. I've played it now for about a week straight, and I've barely scratched the surface of the surface of this game. It allows for near-infinite combinations of character types, play styles and solutions to various quests. And with a complete construction set that comes with the game, any and every part of the game can be modified - including creating all new areas, items, monsters, NPCs, classes, and races. This, effectively, makes the game as big and as long as you want it to be.

(Jeez, for someone who doesn't know what to say about this game, I've sure said a lot.)

Now - the drawbacks. (Yes, there are drawbacks.)

Bethesda has done a phenomenal job on creating the engine that drives this game. State-of-the-art. Top of the line. Which means you need a high-powered machine to run it in its full glory, or else you will crawl through the game slower than molasses running uphill in January. (The game will run on the slower machines, but I wouldn't recommend it.) And since most of the power went into creating the world around you, the character models look a bit stiff. The walking pace of your character is roughly translated to dog slow, so going from town to town by foot can be a pain in the ass. Also, all of the quests your character undertakes on his travels are entered into a journal, which can get pretty cluttered as the game progresses. It takes a minute or two to remember where you are and what you need to do if you come back to the game after a break.

Fortunately, Bethesda has learned from their mistakes of Daggerfall and released a game with a minimal amount of bugs. The game crashed to the desktop a couple of times on me, however, which tells me that the game isn't entirely bug free, so beware. It goes without saying, but save early, and save often.

The only other drawback that I can figure is the complete lack of social life you will encounter once you start playing this game. It will suck you in, making you cut yourself off from the outside world, but I'm already used to that - I'm married. (Wocka wocka wocka!)

That being said, Morrowind is an excellent game. In terms of gameplay, there's very little more that can be offered by such a far-reaching endeavor, and Bethesda should be proud of such a fine effort.