{"id":1716,"date":"2025-04-25T09:35:19","date_gmt":"2025-04-25T09:35:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.scubadiscounters.com\/?p=1716"},"modified":"2025-04-28T03:22:08","modified_gmt":"2025-04-28T03:22:08","slug":"the-elder-scrolls-4-oblivion-remastered-review-remaster-of-the-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.scubadiscounters.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/25\/the-elder-scrolls-4-oblivion-remastered-review-remaster-of-the-year\/","title":{"rendered":"The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered review \u2013 remaster of the year"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered \u2013 a new old game (Bethesda)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Bethesda<\/a> remaster the predecessor to Skyrim<\/a>, turning an almost two decade old role-player into one of the most talked about games of 2025.<\/p>\n

The Elder Scrolls<\/a> 4: Oblivion was originally released 19 years ago (as an Xbox<\/a> 360 console exclusive) to almost universal acclaim, and in spite of the copious bugs and jank that Bethesda fans had, by that point, learned to expect. It sold nearly 10 million copies, and while that was later eclipsed by the 40 million sales of sequel Skyrim<\/a>, Oblivion remains a much loved and highly influential action role-playing game.<\/p>\n

Ironically, this remaster was supposed to be a surprise, being announced and released on the same day, and yet thanks to endless leaks and rumours<\/a> it ended up being the most widely anticipated launch of the year. Despite a major graphical upgrade to Unreal Engine 5, Bethesda are at pains to describe it as a remaster and not a remake, as they\u2019ve attempted to ensure the \u2018original game was there as you remember playing it.\u2019<\/p>\n

For those who fully immersed themselves in the original, there\u2019s much that\u2019s been smoothed and reworked in this new version. If you haven\u2019t played it before though the game is, naturally, very reminiscent of Skyrim, except with more varied biomes and less dragons. At the time there was really nothing else like it, with predecessor Morrowind being little more than a cult hit, but Oblivion is the game that put The Elder Scrolls on the map.<\/p>\n

All of the game\u2019s visual assets have been recreated from the ground up and a huge number of the voices have been re-recorded. Where the 2005 version had to get by with a few exceptionally hard-working voice artists, each of whom played multiple characters, this time many more actors were involved, giving Cyrodiil\u2019s population a more variegated feel.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s still unmistakably old school though. Characters\u2019 faces are higher resolution, but most still look either hilarious or mildly disturbing, with eyes far too close together and cartoonishly massive jawlines. They also retain the endearing habit of introducing themselves to you with first and last names, even when you\u2019re unlikely ever to see or speak to them again.<\/p>\n

The HUD\u2019s compass has been moved to the top of the screen and now presents you with considerably more information about points of interest in your vicinity. Health and magicka bars are larger and clearer, and it\u2019s easy to forget that Oblivion didn\u2019t have a sprint button, forcing you to explore its colossal landmass at walking pace. That\u2019s now changed, giving you further incentive to upgrade your stamina so you can run for longer.<\/p>\n

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