The Elder Scrolls series is constantly praised for its rich lore and players' freedom of character development and choices. Each entry has its strengths and weaknesses but put simply there is a reason people hold this series with such regard.
Morrowind seems to be the gold standard among longtime fans and is regarded as a cult classic.
The modding community has kept it alive all these years but for newcomers, it's hard to discern between the praise coming from the strengths of Morrowind and the praise from nostalgia. I'm one of the newcomers who like to discover old gems and I haven't played it before so nostalgia won't cloud my thoughts.
Morrowind's legitimate veins of gold and the parts that stand the test of time:
• The biggest strength of Morrowind is its world remains completely distinct. The most common setting for books, RPGs, movies and TV series is that fantasy world heavily inspired by medieval Europe - European-style castles, flourishing forests, nobility, dragons, etc. Examples: Robin Hood, King Arthur, Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, The Witcher, Dragon Age, Oblivion, etc. etc. It's a great setting but not very creative at this point. Morrowind is where classic fantasy meets surrealism. All the different flora and fauna are bizarre in this world. The architecture and the culture are rich and complex, like a mix of H. P. Lovecraft and H. R. Giger. Can't think of another game world that's so filled with originality.
• "Freedom" has become a buzzword in video games. Many games let you do what you want and go where you want but most never bother to test it. In truth, many games don't recognise many of your actions. Newer Bethesda titles suffer from the same thing. Most of the time is to prevent you from breaking a quest. In Morrowind, the game doesn't stop you from killing any NPC or doing whatever you want to do. It will only warn you that this action might break the game.
• There are no lengthy tutorials or narrative intro. The developers assumed the player is going to take the story in its direction. You arrive, build your character and go. It's easy to forget there is a main quest. There are so many other things to do and choices are so much meaningful.
• Stats and skills matter. They are the only thing that can stop you or change your story. In other games, you can have a wrong build or simply unlock everything and be praised by every guild simultaneously (cough Skyrim cough). In Morrowind, your skills determine which guild you can join or can stop you from getting a promotion once in a guild. When your skills pay off to your unique build, there is nothing more rewarding in an RPG and adds even more replay value.
The parts that do not hold up and might be hard for newcomers to tolerate or enjoy:
• Morrowind didn't age well. The combat is so clunky that it makes me appreciate Fallout 3 and the New Vegas combat system.
• Limited fast travel system might be off-putting to a lot of players. I like fast travel limitations but I understand how tedious sometimes this can be.
• There is A LOT of reading in Morrowind. There is almost no spoken dialogue which can be a big problem in a potentially hundred+ hour game. Conversations are long, sometimes several pages of text and if you don't read it - you won't know what to do and where to go. There are no quest markers. It's the other extreme of modern titles. I'm definitely against games holding your hands or putting a giant floating marker to follow. Games should make you think to progress, it also helps to get immersed. Developers should try to find a middle ground where they don't hold your hands but should make you read pages of text.
Morrowind seems to be the gold standard among longtime fans and is regarded as a cult classic.
The modding community has kept it alive all these years but for newcomers, it's hard to discern between the praise coming from the strengths of Morrowind and the praise from nostalgia. I'm one of the newcomers who like to discover old gems and I haven't played it before so nostalgia won't cloud my thoughts.
Morrowind's legitimate veins of gold and the parts that stand the test of time:
• The biggest strength of Morrowind is its world remains completely distinct. The most common setting for books, RPGs, movies and TV series is that fantasy world heavily inspired by medieval Europe - European-style castles, flourishing forests, nobility, dragons, etc. Examples: Robin Hood, King Arthur, Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, The Witcher, Dragon Age, Oblivion, etc. etc. It's a great setting but not very creative at this point. Morrowind is where classic fantasy meets surrealism. All the different flora and fauna are bizarre in this world. The architecture and the culture are rich and complex, like a mix of H. P. Lovecraft and H. R. Giger. Can't think of another game world that's so filled with originality.
• "Freedom" has become a buzzword in video games. Many games let you do what you want and go where you want but most never bother to test it. In truth, many games don't recognise many of your actions. Newer Bethesda titles suffer from the same thing. Most of the time is to prevent you from breaking a quest. In Morrowind, the game doesn't stop you from killing any NPC or doing whatever you want to do. It will only warn you that this action might break the game.
• There are no lengthy tutorials or narrative intro. The developers assumed the player is going to take the story in its direction. You arrive, build your character and go. It's easy to forget there is a main quest. There are so many other things to do and choices are so much meaningful.
• Stats and skills matter. They are the only thing that can stop you or change your story. In other games, you can have a wrong build or simply unlock everything and be praised by every guild simultaneously (cough Skyrim cough). In Morrowind, your skills determine which guild you can join or can stop you from getting a promotion once in a guild. When your skills pay off to your unique build, there is nothing more rewarding in an RPG and adds even more replay value.
The parts that do not hold up and might be hard for newcomers to tolerate or enjoy:
• Morrowind didn't age well. The combat is so clunky that it makes me appreciate Fallout 3 and the New Vegas combat system.
• Limited fast travel system might be off-putting to a lot of players. I like fast travel limitations but I understand how tedious sometimes this can be.
• There is A LOT of reading in Morrowind. There is almost no spoken dialogue which can be a big problem in a potentially hundred+ hour game. Conversations are long, sometimes several pages of text and if you don't read it - you won't know what to do and where to go. There are no quest markers. It's the other extreme of modern titles. I'm definitely against games holding your hands or putting a giant floating marker to follow. Games should make you think to progress, it also helps to get immersed. Developers should try to find a middle ground where they don't hold your hands but should make you read pages of text.