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Review Shivering Isles reviews overload

Vault Dweller

Commissar, Red Star Studio
Developer
Joined
Jan 7, 2003
Messages
28,024
Tags: Bethesda Softworks; Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

The moment we've all been waiting for is finally here. The Shivering Isles has been released and reviewed by the captains of gaming media. Let's take a look:
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<blockquote><a href=http://xbox360.gamespy.com/xbox-360/the-elder-scrolls-iv-the-shivering-isles/777720p1.html>GameSpy still insists that it's da bomb - 90%</a>:
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While the Shivering Isles are big, reportedly a quarter the size of Oblivion's playable province, most of the Isles aren't worth taking a trip to. Sure, generic fantasy is boring, but fantasy this weird is stressful. Like the cliffracers in Morrowind (small, easily defeated flying enemies who were everywhere, making travel bothersome), the wilds of the Isles are full of clever ideas that don't gel well. The biggest culprit here are the dungeons, which are more irritatingly random than intriguingly chaotic...</blockquote>Noobs. Everyone knows that half-assed implemented ideas are Bethesda's trademark.
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<blockquote><a href=http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/rpg/elderscrollsivshiveringisles/review.html?mode=gsreview>GameSpot is certain that Oblivion is now better than evar! - 86%</a>:
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The quests, characters, and world in Shivering Isles are all as creative and intriguing as in the rest of the game. Oblivion was huge before, but now it's bigger and better than ever.</blockquote>That's all we needed to know, thanks.
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<blockquote><a href=http://www.gamepro.com/computer/pc/games/reviews/107950.shtml>GamePro assures you that the expansion is filled with "the same great gameplay that made Oblivion such a huge success" -90%</a>:
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Even the side quests are inventive and interesting, such as helping a depressed citizen of Dementia commit suicide and finding an NPC named "Big Head" his magical fork. ... In short, the expansion delivers on the best parts of the core game: imaginative and immersive quests that really take advantage of the immense, open setting.
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We should note, however, that while the vast majority of the quests are a lot of fun, there are a few that seem forced and out of place. This is especially true in the latter stages of the main quest, when you encounter a number of tasks that were plainly added to simply stretch out your playing time.</blockquote>You mean there are quests that are not as imaginative and immersive as looking for a magic fork? How disappointing.
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<blockquote><a href=http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=74995>Eurogamer boldly claims that Oblivion has flaws. LIES!!! - 70%</a>:
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But anyway, there's a rather more significant problem trotting along behind all this madness stuff, one that does degrade the entire experience. It's this: if you're going to use madness as your core fictional motif, then it suggests you're going to pull out the big guns in terms of story-telling. You know the stuff - paranoia, hallucination, betrayal, trickery, illusion, misdirection, and outright weirdness. A realm of pure madness shouldn't be, well, a teeny bit dull. And that's the problem: The Shivering Isles is mildly eccentric and quite pretty, but it's definitely not ecstatically, brain-boiling insane. As such it's a wasted opportunity. All the characters you meet are supposed to be loonies, but instead they generally just say something a bit odd when you meet them. They have over-the-top character traits, but isn't that a bit like all videogame characters, ever? Instead of making us want to take a step back with this screaming lunacy, or putting a chill in our bones with their grotesque fantasies, they're just a mildly weird. One guy is interested in meat (who isn't?!), another is a bit patronising. One person believes she's going to die, another is worried about diseases. One guy is hungry. Are mad people just hungry? It would explain a lot. One guy - get this - wants a house. The crazy fool!
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All this might be excusable with a grand turn from the prince himself, but he's just vaguely amusing. It's a childish portrait of a lunatic. He's like the evil madman might be in a children's TV show - all camp and without substance. He never really seems threatening, in the way that the truly disturbed do. It's all an act, and thank goodness he's got quests to dispense so you can get back into that exquisite world...</blockquote>Well, it *is* a game for kids after all...
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<blockquote><a href=http://www.gwn.com/games/gameinfo.php/id/43113/platform/xbox360/title/The_Elder_Scrolls_IV_Shivering_Isles.html>GameWorld Network's user rating - 53%</a></blockquote>'Nuff said.
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stargelman

Scholar
Joined
Jan 21, 2006
Messages
337
Location
Funky Bebop Land
Yay! IGNspySpotPro gave it 90%! I must own it at once! :D

Seriously though, I stopped reading here:

"To gain ranks, you'll have to complete tasks for certain higher-ups within the society; as you gain ranks you'll gain achievement points, [...]"
 

User was nabbed fit

Guest
The people at Eurogamer hate freedom; they're un-American. It's the only explanation.

Edit: wait a minute... Eurogamer. Of course they're freedom-h8ing heathens, those godless Europeans.
 

stargelman

Scholar
Joined
Jan 21, 2006
Messages
337
Location
Funky Bebop Land
ViolentOpposition said:
The people at Eurogamer hate freedom; they're un-American. It's the only explanation.

Edit: wait a minute... Eurogamer. Of course they're freedom-h8ing heathens, those godless Europeans.
But then, over here Freedom is Slavery. Especially in the UK.
 

Section8

Cipher
Joined
Oct 23, 2002
Messages
4,321
Location
Wardenclyffe
Sure, generic fantasy is boring, but fantasy this weird is stressful.

How dare they slight vanilla Oblivion's perfect setting by calling it boring.

The quests, characters, and world in Shivering Isles are all as creative and intriguing as in the rest of the game.

That's objective, almost free of bias, and sums up exactly why I won't even give Shivering Isles a glance.

All this might be excusable with a grand turn from the prince himself, but he's just vaguely amusing. It's a childish portrait of a lunatic. He's like the evil madman might be in a children's TV show - all camp and without substance. He never really seems threatening, in the way that the truly disturbed do.

If it's Mattel, it's swell!
 

DarkUnderlord

Professional Throne Sitter
Staff Member
Joined
Jun 18, 2002
Messages
28,343
Vault Dweller said:
<a>GameWorld Network's user rating - 53%</a></blockquote>'Nuff said.
Don't expect to look at the screenshots at GWN. They have a fucking ad right in the way that you can't close.
 

gc051360

Scholar
Joined
Mar 5, 2007
Messages
256
Bethesda's writing juvenile???? I don't believe them. Anyone who thinks playing as a kitty cat, is something cool definitely knows how to write. Blasphemy to suggest otherwise.

Can't wait for Fallout 3. I wonder how many times "innovative" and "revolutionary" will be used in that games hype. Or what kind of crazy stories they've cooked up.
 

denizsi

Arcane
Joined
Nov 24, 2005
Messages
9,927
Location
bosphorus
Exclusive Screenshots from Shivering Isles!!:

playground.jpg


4616d42a5dee7603561151.jpg


Special-Olympics-team.jpg
 

Volourn

Pretty Princess
Pretty Princess Glory to Ukraine
Joined
Mar 10, 2003
Messages
24,924
I don't care about the SI; but to post positive; I think it's much cooler to bunch multi reviews/previews togther like this instea dof having multiple threads basically ding the same thing.

R00fles!
 

aries202

Erudite
Joined
Mar 5, 2005
Messages
1,066
Location
Denmark, Europe
I'm sorry, but I have long ago stopped reading reviews for games. I know what I like, and I do buy the games that I want to buy. I will probably buy games from Bioware, Obsidian, Pluto 13/Piranha Bytes (the makers of Gothic series) for a very, very long time.

On top of that, I try to buy adventure/puzzle games, I like, just to show the market that there are customers who wants theese sort of games.
And that was also partly the reason behind me buying Jade Empire:Special Edition. If nothing else, customers can vote with their $$$$ (money) to get the message across to devs. & publishers that gaming on the pc isn't quite dead - contrary to popular belief.

The reason, I stopped reading reviews was thas I don't feel they longer do games justice, especially reviews from major game sites such as Gamespot, Gamespy & IGN. The reviewers on these sites
seem to be in agreement that the only games worth playing today are FPS games and online MMO-games. And as such they tend to look down upon the more traditional adventure/puzzle games and the more traditonal approach to rpg games, too.

I also strongly suspect that bribes, threats etc. might have played a part in some of the reviewed games having gotten very high scores - high scores, they actually don't deserve.(imo).
I once read in the Danish newspapers that the EU-commission/EU-parliament now are looking into if there have been bribes etc. to get reviews of certain games to get the game a higher rating.
(at least we now that THQ did try to threathen certain Ukranian? journalists into giving STALKER at least a score of 87/100 points - why it had to 87/100 points beats me??). It also seems that since it was revealed that a certain reviewer at gamespot, I think, did exist at all, but was actually a pr guy from EA? (or something like that) writing reviews (positive reviews, of course), I have felt that I really can't trust reviewers of big game sites anymore.

Reviews from this site, gameboomers, adventure-gamers and other small (indie) game sites, I trust.
 

Drakron

Arcane
Joined
May 19, 2005
Messages
6,326
eurogamer said:
Of course this lack of inspiration (just maybe) mean that Bethesda are pumping all their creative gunk into the newly resurrected cadaver of Fallout 3, which would really be a good thing... Wouldn't it?
 

POD

Novice
Joined
Oct 5, 2003
Messages
7
Oh great, another round of Oblivion bashing from codex. You all obviously love the game and are repressing it, else you wouldn't spend so much time and energy trashing it. Turn off the ihateoblivon bot and put up something interesting on this site for a change. Or not.
 
Joined
Feb 10, 2007
Messages
7,715
POD said:
Oh great, another round of Oblivion bashing from codex. You all obviously love the game and are repressing it, else you wouldn't spend so much time and energy trashing it.
They actually all love Todd and Pete, and are repressing it.
 

Shannow

Waster of Time
Joined
Sep 15, 2006
Messages
6,386
Location
Finnegan's Wake
POD said:
Oh great, another round of Oblivion bashing from codex. You all obviously love the game and are repressing it, else you wouldn't spend so much time and energy trashing it. Turn off the ihateoblivon bot and put up something interesting on this site for a change. Or not.
You know what, guys? He is right. No more Oblibliblious-bashing for me. I mean come ON! I'd much rather read stuff about Jade Empire, Dragon Age, Dawn of Magic, Geneforge 4, some Editorials, Nethergate Resurrection, Fallout 3, Broken Hourglass, intervies with Feargus Urquhart, indie interviews, Legend - Hand of God, Mythos, Avencast or Sacred 2. Your fixation with Olipollylous is really annoying. I am getting a seeping sore on my behind because you constantly bash Occypoccybloiussy. You are all! BOTZ!!!! There is no fun in fundamentalism.
wtf.png
 

Monica21

Scholar
Joined
Oct 16, 2005
Messages
214
Vault Dweller said:
Even the side quests are inventive and interesting, such as ... finding an NPC named "Big Head" his magical fork.
How inventive is that if that was a quest from Morrowind too?
 

Jasede

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Jan 4, 2005
Messages
24,793
Insert Title Here RPG Wokedex Codex Year of the Donut I'm very into cock and ball torture
...Jesus, you're shitting me, VD. You just made those reviews yourself and posted them on those sites under a pseudonym. I mean, "Even the side quests are inventive and interesting, such as ... finding an NPC named "Big Head" his magical fork."? You can't expect people to believe that even double-digit IQ people would call fork-finding interesting and inventive!
 

Fez

Erudite
Joined
May 18, 2004
Messages
7,954
I remember finding a fork as part of a quest in Torment.
 

Vault Dweller

Commissar, Red Star Studio
Developer
Joined
Jan 7, 2003
Messages
28,024
Let's not forget about about single-digit IQ people. One day they will rule the Earth.

idiocracy_002.jpg
 

JarlFrank

I like Thief THIS much
Patron
Joined
Jan 4, 2007
Messages
33,052
Location
KA.DINGIR.RA.KI
Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
Jasede said:
...Jesus, you're shitting me, VD. You just made those reviews yourself and posted them on those sites under a pseudonym. I mean, "Even the side quests are inventive and interesting, such as ... finding an NPC named "Big Head" his magical fork."? You can't expect people to believe that even double-digit IQ people would call fork-finding interesting and inventive!

In Morrowind there was a certain quest given to you by Sheogorath, where you had to kill a giant bull netch with a fork. This fork was given to you by the Argonian named Big Head.

Deja-Vu.
 

AZ

Liturgist
Joined
Feb 6, 2005
Messages
467
Fez said:
I remember finding a fork as part of a quest in Torment.

There was, but it was a bit more complicated - if I remember correctly - you didn't know that the item you need to find is a fork. :wink:
 

Fez

Erudite
Joined
May 18, 2004
Messages
7,954
The picture showed for me after I right clicked on it and selected "view image".
 

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