Interview Oblivion interview at Geek.com

[Vault Dweller]

Tags: Bethesda Softworks; Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

Some moron from <a href=http://www.geek.com>Geek.com</a> has asked one of the Bethesda boys these <a href=http://www.geek.com/news/geeknews/2007May/gee20070531005676.htm>awesome questions</a>:
<br>
<br>
<blockquote>I have read that the game took you four years to make. Do you think it will be easier to make the inevitable fifth game in the series or do you think it could take even longer since you pushed the envelope in IV?
<br>
<br>
The face modification system is great in the sense that you can create any face you want--probably a clone of yourself. However, people can play most--if not all--the time in First Person mode. What was thinking behind the face mapping?
<br>
<br>
There are hundreds of hours of gameplay, plus infinite replayability. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of characters who all talk to you and talk amongst themselves. It's like an MMO in many ways. Do you ever see your company going in the MMO direction?
<br>
<br>
Regarding additional content, some gaming sites criticized you for charging for horse armor. Later, you pretty much made everyone eat their words, by giving ten or more hours of extra content for a quite reasonable price. After about a year of experience with Xbox Live Marketplace (and a few months with Sony's PlayStation Store), what are your thoughts on DLC? </blockquote>Here is one of the answers:
<br>
<br>
<blockquote>We were fortunate enough that the game we wanted to ship was the version of the game we shipped for the 360. We were very happy with how Oblivion turned out on Xbox 360 and felt strongly that we wanted to bring the same game to the PS3. So the extra time was spent insuring the conversion was of the highest quality since we were already happy with the original game itself.</blockquote>Why admit that the game had tons of flaws when you have sites like Geek.com?
<br>
<br>
Edit: Here is the Geek.com's <a href=http://www.geek.com/hwswrev/game/oblivion/index.htm>Oblivion review</a>:
<br>
<br>
<blockquote>This game is--bar none--the best looking, best sounding, deepest, most innovative, and completely overwhelming title I've ever played.
<br>
...
<br>
The story opens in a prison cell, with a fellow prisoner insulting your appearance. You can walk around and pick things up if you'd like. Then Uriel Septim VII (voiced by Patrick Stewart) comes in with a few of his personal bodyguards. Without spoiling <u>the amazing story</u>, I'll just tell you that you wind up in the prison's underbelly in a dungeon crawl.</blockquote>Unbelievable.
<br>

 

[Balor]

*blinks*
It's a tough to live without a flamethrower!

 

[Globbi]

This game is--bar none--the best looking, best sounding, deepest, most innovative, and completely overwhelming title I've ever played.

Why writing on a gaming news site when not having played more than one game?

 

[Edward_R_Murrow]

This game is--bar none--the best looking, best sounding, deepest, most innovative, and completely overwhelming title I've ever played.

For a site known as Geek.com, they don't seem to have much "nerdy cred". I'd expect them to at least have played Baldur's Gate....or hell, even Morrowind.

 

[JarlFrank]

This game is--bar none--the best looking, best sounding, deepest, most innovative, and completely overwhelming title I've ever played.

For a site known as Geek.com, they don't seem to have much "nerdy cred". I'd expect them to at least have played Baldur's Gate....or hell, even Morrowind.

If they call themselves Geek.com, they must be freaks living in the basement having played every single RPG since the 80's, fanatically painting maps on paper of the first Ultima and M&M games, having beaten Wizardry 4 and generally knowing a lot of insider shit about the PC gaming genre.

They need to change their name.

 

[JarlFrank]

<blockquote>We were fortunate enough that the game we wanted to ship was the version of the game we shipped for the 360. We were very happy with how Oblivion turned out on Xbox 360 and felt strongly that we wanted to bring the same game to the PS3. So the extra time was spent insuring the conversion was of the highest quality since we were already happy with the original game itself.</blockquote>Why admit that the game had tons of flaws when you have sites like Geek.com?

They don't mention PC there anywhere. Just the X360, and the PS3.
So they finally confess that they don't fucking care about the PC.

 

[sportforredneck]

They don't mention PC there anywhere. Just the X360, and the PS3.
So they finally confess that they don't fucking care about the PC.

Liam Neeson will never be on your PC now.

 

[DarkSign]

I wonder if a site could really be an honest, thoughtful, game review site...with none of the hype...and survive.

 

[Relayer71]

<This game is--bar none--the best looking, best sounding, deepest, most innovative, and completely overwhelming title I've ever played.

Well to be fair he was reviewing the game for the PS3. Makes a whole lot of sense that a console gamer will absolutely LOVE Oblivion since it does play more like a console action/adventure game than anything else.

Looking at Oblivion from my PC RPGer lens I can say I was extremely dissappointed and truly disgusted by it (and by the general dumbing/watering down of PC RPGs lately).

But I've also played console games for the last 25 years and can definitely see the appeal in Oblivion for that market. It's an impressive, one-of-a-kind experience as there aren't too many open ended/sandbox adventure/action-RPG games in a fantasy setting. And I can see it as a refreshing change for those used to Japanese or Console RPGs who've never played a western PC RPG.

Still, I hope those PC RPG-specific reviewers who gave it more than a 7 (on a 1 - 10 scale) burn and blister in hell.

Hmmm, that 7 may be too generous though.

 

[Shoelip]

I think they're using the term "Geek" not as we know it now but as it used to be known, "the freak who bites the heads off live chickens at the circus".

Ah, here we go, thank you Merriam and Webster. http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/Geek Wow, it's actually the first definition on the list, that's weird.

 

[Avin]

It's a tough to live without a flamethrower!

It will be worse in a few days...

 

[Micmu]

Nuclear holocaust in one day.

 

[Twinfalls]

Thanks for this newsbit VD, but I ran out of vomit a long time ago.

 

[kingcomrade]

Did you give up drinking?

 

[Jasede]

I wanted to post some snide remark but I could only shed tears.

 

[giantgnome]

The problem is Bethesda never seems to be able to admit that they did anything wrong with Oblivion. Being unable to admit you did something wrong means being unable to correct what you did wrong. That being said prepare for Fallout 3--Oblivion with guns.

 

[kingcomrade]

You mean Oblivion with reskinned magic staffs.

 

[OccupatedVoid]

You mean Oblivion with reskinned magic staffs.

 

[psycojester]

I can't wait till we get M'qai the cat-mutant telling us that people who hate hand-holding and quest compasses are stupid because everybody needs as much help as they can get in the wasteland.

 

[JarlFrank]

I can't wait till we get M'qai the cat-mutant telling us that people who hate hand-holding and quest compasses are stupid because everybody needs as much help as they can get in the wasteland.

You don't know how much this would make me hate Bethesda.

And how fucking silly and arrogant this would be.

And a kind of retarted and totally non-fallouty humor which will make all Fallout fans rip off Toddler's head.

 

[Saxon1974]

I think we are all dumber for having read that interview....was that Billy Madison?

 

[Elwro]

Thanks, Shoelip, for making this thread worthwile!

 

[Black]

This game is--bar none--the best looking, best sounding, deepest, most innovative, and completely overwhelming title I've ever played.

What if this is the future? What if crpgs like FO, Arcanum, Torment will be forgotten and there will be only people saying 'Oblivion is the best crpg'?

There is more and more retards that just KNOW that Oblivion is the greatest example of crpg games... 'cause you play in FPP so you have 'immersion'.

People don't want to read- they prefer to watch action films, so why should they try Torment?
People don't want to hurt their ego, so games can't be too hard- if I leave Vault 13 and go westwards I can't get killed by mutant patrol- 'cause they're scalled to my level.

Why...


Oh yeah.
I've been collecting retarded comments by retards on official FO3 forum but this one guy sure opened my eyes.

By thoraxe_the_armored_orc

"The Fallout fanbase is small"
"Fallout is a very unpopular series to the point people confuse it with a not so popular racing game"
"You went really far by saying Oblivion doesn't have a good story, NPC AI, atmosphere and depth."
"Oblivions more then a year old and it still has the best AI in a game yet. "
"Bethesda will turn this series into a famous Blockbuster like they did to Oblivion. "
"Yet, Oblivion became the first and generally recognized as the best Next-gen RPG from a series that was going down the road of Ultima."
"Fallout only looks big when you go to Fallout forums."

 

[cutterjohn]

"What was it like working with the PS3 compared to the Xbox 360? Do you have a favorite and which one do you think looks better?

Both systems have their own strengths and weaknesses, so it's really hard to choose a favorite. "

And here, I didn't realize that the PS3 had sold enough units yet, that they had to worry about offending teh Sony console kiddies... <skipping>

 

[MessiahMan]

Oh yeah.
I've been collecting retarded comments by retards on official FO3 forum but this one guy sure opened my eyes.

By thoraxe_the_armored_orc

"The Fallout fanbase is small"
"Fallout is a very unpopular series to the point people confuse it with a not so popular racing game"
"You went really far by saying Oblivion doesn't have a good story, NPC AI, atmosphere and depth."
"Oblivions more then a year old and it still has the best AI in a game yet. "
"Bethesda will turn this series into a famous Blockbuster like they did to Oblivion. "
"Yet, Oblivion became the first and generally recognized as the best Next-gen RPG from a series that was going down the road of Ultima."
"Fallout only looks big when you go to Fallout forums."

Part regurgitating what Todd's told him, part regurgitating what the big name gaming websites tell him.

It sure seems like he's incapable of forming his own opinion. You can say whatever you want to a fellow like that. He won't hear you, even if you speak with the silky, golden voice of logic.