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This will change RPGs forever.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 9 / 38
Date: April 13, 2002
Author: Amazon User

Elder Scrolls Three:Morrowind is going to change the RPG world forever. It has a HUGE world where anything can happen. Not one person will act the same every time you talk to him/her. They might even get anoyed and try to attack you. You can get an assaisans guild after you, but impress them and you will be asked to join this guild. This game has many outcomes and not once will you come to the same ending as before. Personly i think this game is the best rpg that will come to PC and Xbox. If you are a fan for RPGs, this is the game for you, and if you havent already, RESERVE IT.

An Oldtimer Speaks On Morrowind

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 10
Date: May 12, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I'm a veteran roleplayer with several decades of experience in face-to-face, MUSHes, MUDs, MMRPGs and CRPGs. For a heckuva long time I said that no computer game would ever be able to replicate the freedom of choice and meaningful context necessary to play a role properly. Most CRPGs rely on more or less scripted paths and a great deal of meaningless combat filler. CRPG roles are defined in terms of battle effectiveness not in terms of intrinsic outlooks, motives, techniques and goals.

There are some exceptions - games like Darklands, Arkania, Planescape: Torment and Morrowind's predecessor Daggerfall tried to offer more interesting settings or a greater degree of freedom. Ultimately, though, setting seemed to come at the price of freedom - well defined NPCs and carefully constructed stories limited how much latitude a designer could grant a player. When freedom was stressed, the story appeared nebulous and a huge cast of walk-on interchangeable NPCs tended to blend together. MMRPGs, MUDs, and MUSHes all have their own weaknesses and issues as real roleplaying vehicles but that's a very different topic than the single player game.

Morrowind is the first solo player game, ever, to truly reconcile setting, story and the freedom to make the kinds of decisions that really define a character. The setting of Vvardenfell is a complex world - an unwilling member of a multicultural Imperial commonwealth much like Rome. The factions and factions within factions both amongst the natives and the colonists is Byzantine and dramatic. Both Imperial and Dunmer cultures are explored in detail with not only articulated NPCs using a very sophisticated dialogue system, incredible graphics and architecture, but entire libraries of books written by folks holding quite a few divergent opinions. Even theology, ecology, and economics are considered as part of the background and often form the basis of the conflicts your character gets drawn into.

So who is your character that gets drawn into the world of Morrowind? A nameless prisoner convicted of crimes left vague, released by fiat of The Emperor to complete a unknown mission. Upon disembarking from the ship, and after stopping to oogle the gorgeous world from shore, you're ushered through character creation in the guise of answering the local provost's questions. You have three options. Answer a series of 'psychological' profile questions that result in a character class tailored to your style of problem solving. Pick a class from a list of premade types that should each work rather well. Lastly, you can define a character from scratch - picking out individual skills and statistics to invent your own vision. In addition to picking a race, you also can pick sex, facial features and hairstyle. Combined with a dizzying array of clothing and armor options eventually available you'll likely end up with a very striking persona.

You're unceremoniously ushered out with the directions to look around town and equip before setting off to meet with an Imperial agent in another city.

That's where the roleplaying begins. You'll run into all sorts of characters with different agendas and agendas at cross purposes. A decision you make concerning one may affect your relations with a whole cross-section of folks associated with him. Are you a thief? Steal anything you want but expect the law to chase you if you're spotted. And don't try selling stolen goods to merchants that know the previous owner. Scout? Perhaps you'll talk to the bartender of the local tavern and get your bearings on the local geography. Do gooder? Plenty of decent folks need help. Thug? The criminals need help too. Over time, as you learn more about the setting, you'll find yourself taking sides with one or more of the dozens of factions represented.

But time is on your side. Witchhunter, enchanter, archer or alchemist your skills will improve as you use them and as you explore ruins and lairs or simply complete missions for your factional patrons. What skills you chose, how you improve them and whom you make as an enemy or a friend really do allow a player to roleplay. A rogue will be more successful charming or swindling his way around challenges. A crusader will likely take a more direct approach. But a crusader affiliated with the Triumvirate Temple of the local Dunmer will have very different missions and goals than a crusader allied to the Imperial Cult. And there are even darker patrons one can serve as the mysteries of the world are slowly rolled back including demon lords and vampire clans.

There are shortcomings.

Combat can be less realistic or action packed. In true fantasy RPG mold, you spend most of your time in combat juggling buffs, hitpoints and pausing to move items into slots or bring up spells. Some have complained about the lack of feedback concerning how damaged a foe is. However, you'll spend alot of time with sweaty palms trying to pull a tough fight off.

You really need a strong system to run this on. I use a Dell Dimension 8200, 2g Pentium4, 512 megs RAM, and an Nvidia GeForce3 ti 500, with Turtle Beach/Altec Lansing surround sound. GeForce3 and GeForce4 cards seem to be the best to get a bang out of your buck with Morrowind. There are reports of lower end systems doing well but this is the game to upgrade for if you're a roleplayer.

There are also reports of miscellaneous bugs and CTDs but I haven't experienced them.

A True Virtual World

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 67 / 105
Date: November 04, 2001
Author: Amazon User

The Elder Scrolls 3 continues the Elder Scrolls tradition of providing a true fantasy virtual world for you to create an alternate life in. Set in the exotic island of Vvarvendell, the developers have truly defined an entire culture, with such nuances as clothing, housing styles, food, and architecture being unique to each game region. You can do anything you want, from running a mercantile business to being a mass murderer. Be a powerful mage living high in your own tower, or be a shadowy thief jumping across rooftops at night. Create your own spells from scratch, concoct mysterious potions, enchant your own weapons. It's totally up to you. In addition to all this, Morrowind ships with the easiest-to-use game editor to date, allowing you to create your own game content such as quests, characters, items, spells, and sharing them over the net with your friends. You can't go wrong with Morrowind!

A great role-playing game!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 35 / 37
Date: June 01, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This is a great game for those that are wondering: I've seen all these great fantasy games, like Everquest, Ultimata Online,and other things, but what should I get? I try one and it is disappointing! I was one of those people until I saw Morrowind. I categorized The Elder Scrolls 3 into 4 things.

1) Graphics. I really haven't seen better graphics on a computer game in all my life. If you have a good graphics card, the weather, thunderstorms, swamps, and water will simply blow you away. The sky looks like real life! Clouds move, also. Your character squints when looking at the sun. There is shading and polygon figures. I repeat, I've never seen such graphics in my life.

2) Realism. This is one of the most enjoyful parts of the game. There is a good storyline, no extremely powerful artifacts, spells, armor, or weapons. There is an insane amount of items you can find. People walk away from you when you're naked. People treat like kings when you wear majestic clothes. Weapons wear out after long use. Gaurds carry torches at night, some bad NPC's sneak around, and people are more suspicious. Clean out realistic.

3) Combat. There are tons and tons of creatures that roam the world of Vvardenfell. You can attack in three different swings, chop, slash, or thrust. Daggers are good at thrust, swords at slash, and axes at chop. There are dozens of weapon styles, and you can learn them all. Magic is also an interesting concept. There are hundreds of spells. In addition, you can create your own spells by mixing them. You can enchant items to make them, strong, you can use critical hits when sneaking, and another array of devasting ways to destroy monsters. This is an exciting combat game.

4) Freedom. There are no guidlines to this game. There is a storyline, but you do not have to follow it. You can be a roaming hero, a sneaky thief, a great spellcaster, or all three! Following the storyline is very fun, but you don't have to. I find this game most fun when I just roam the hillside, looking around for adventure. There are thousands of off-road adventures, caves, dungeons, and seperate storlyines that you don't have to get involved in, but would enjoy trying.

I strongly advise that you get this game if you are looking for a real quality role-playing game. Do not have doubts in Elder Scrolls. It will simply blow you away.

A Perfect Expansion for a Perfect Game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 28 / 28
Date: November 18, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I haven't gotten too far in Morrowind's expansion pack, Tribunal, yet - I don't even think I have played a whole hour yet - but already I have played matchmaker for 2 lonely souls, partaken in a play, and purchased a pack rat - literally, a rat who will carry 100 pounds of my loot. This expansion pack has exceeded all of my expectations, and I've barely played it! If you are a fan of Morrowind, this expansion pack is a MUST-have. It still has the same old bugs (be careful while jumping, because you may fall through the ground....again) but the journal (its unorganization made most people crazy) is a little easier to handle, with an added "quest" list to make tracking your progress a little easier. New weapons, new armor, new people, new places to explore - the expansion has it all. You will not be disappointed.

Morrowind is quite simply breathtaking...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 24 / 25
Date: June 18, 2002
Author: Amazon User

It surprises me that I'm seeing all these bad reviews. I don't understand how you cannot be impressed by this game. Anyhow, just a reminder... Morrowind has some fairly steep system requirments. If you have a low-end PC, then theres no way your gonna get any enjoyment out of this game.

Graphics 10/10: I've played it on two systems... one with a Geforce 2 Ultra, another with a Geforce 3. And I've seen plenty of shots of this game on a Geforce 4. Believe me when I say that this game is beautiful. Everything is so detailed... the side of a brick house, the ground, everything. But my god, just look at the water. No game has ever showed such realisitc water effects like Morrowind has. The character models are also very nice.

Gameplay 7/10: A lot of people have been complaining about Morrowind's combat system... and I definently can see why, however, it's still enjoyable enough for me. You can fight with a variety of weopons, ranging from swords to daggers to bow an arrows, etc. It can be a bit dull, however, as far as I'm concerned... it's good enough for me.
Then, theres the other aspects of the gameplay such as traveling, joining guilds, talking to people, doing quests, buying items, and trying to become better at different things . Morrowind is a game where you choose what you want to become by doing what you want to do. For example, if you wanna steal items from a store without being noticed, then you need to become better at sneaking around and being quiet. If you wanna be better in combat, then you must get stronger, more agile and faster. You get the point. It's a great system that offers freedom to the player. Then theres the guilds. This, I admit, is a bit flawed. The idea is cool, but basically it just consists of doing quests for your guild and gaining money in the process. But hey, it's a easy way to gain quests.
What really amazes me about Morrowind is how I can travel and just be amazed by the beautful landscapes and long, neverending land. I know you heard this before but you should here it one more time... Morrowind is HUGE. VERY huge. If you ever wanted to live in another world, then this is probably the closest your gonna get for a while. It's THAT amazing.

Sound 9/10: Fine and dandy. The voice-acting is pretty good and definently isn't anything to complain about. The sound effects from weopons, running, everything... it's all there and it's good.

Music 9/10: I simply love the music in this game. It's very well done, however, the only problem is that there isn't enough songs. Considering that this game has hundreds of hours worth of gameplay, I would of hoped for a little more songs. But still, the quality is great, so can't really complain there.

Control 8/10: The controls are completely configurable. As far moving around and fighting. It CAN be a *little* sluggish. If only the battle system was improved upon.

Story 3/10: You see, there really is no story... and that's where Morrowind fails. Because while the world is insanely huge, theres just no story to keep some people interested. Basically your a guy that gets dropped off at a town and you control his life from there. That's why a lot of people find Morrowind to be "bad". However, for me, I could really care less. The sheer freedom I have in this game is amazing, and it is still keeping me totally hooked.

Replayability 10/10: You want replability? How about hundreds and hundreds of hours of gameplay. Yeah, if you can like Morrowind like a lot of people do (including me), you'll get totally hooked and keep coming back for more every chance you get.

Overall 10/10: I love this game, period. No matter what you say about it, theres no denying how impressive it is. Morrowind is definently not for everyone... and I really mean that. But theres just so much to like here. So if you think you'll be able to enjoy Morrowind, then PLEASE, buy it! Don't wait, buy it now.

WHY Are You Playing This Game?

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 24 / 26
Date: July 17, 2002
Author: Amazon User

... Morrowind is NOT a hack and slash CRPG like Diablo or Dungeon Siege, and it was never intended to be like those games. Morrowind is primarily an adventure game, and as one, it sets a new standard for the genre.

The goal of this game is not to wear out your thumb hacking and slaying, the goal of this game is to allow a gamer to step into a massive world filled with adventure and places to explore, ruins to wander in, items to examine... to learn, to test, and to enjoy the game for many weeks, if not MONTHS.

The game is not designed to be over in 20-40 hours of gameplay.

Morrowind is simply an incredible accomplishment. I play the game an hour or so a day to relax, and expect to be doing so for a long time. It seems as if every region I enter has a hundred new things to try out and explore - its not just hack and slay and run errands, there are real stories here that play themselves out if you invest the time and effort.

Yes, it is easy to get lost - but good. And yes, your character grows strong and doesn't die a lot unless you do something stupid - but you're not supposed to die a lot in this game. Killing lizards is not the goal, unraveling storyline after storyline is. And in this, the game is awesome, and well worth the pricetag. I doubt if any game I own can return as much gaming bang for buck as this game does!

Expansions don't get much better

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: August 06, 2003
Author: Amazon User

The Elder Scrolls: Bloodmoon is essentially a new landmass, situated north and west of the main continent in the game. You need Morrowind but don't need Tribunal to play it, and it does add the very important Tribunal journal fixes to Morrowind if necessary. The new landmass is Solstheim, and it's both large and detailed. The developers clearly put a lot of time and effort into this expansion, with a host of new objects and a frozen landscape that is truly a sight to behold.

The Bloodmoon story is separate from the other plot in Morrowind and Tribunal, and can be initiated and continued at your leisure. In case you haven't figured it out from looking at the box, it has to do with werewolves, and you do get the chance to become one. For those that want to be a monstrous villain but found being a vampire too much a pain, rest assured you will have that chance. There are multiple ways to get the werewolf disease- fighting werewolves, the main quest, and the Ring of Hircine. The last two will work even if you've played the main Morrowind quest and have disease immunity.

Bloodmoon is clearly designed for higher level characters. I would recommend being upwards of level 20 to start, and probably around 40 by the time you complete the main quest. Aside from the central story, there's plenty of side quests and normal exploration to be done, and tons of treasure to find. Much of this treasure is unique- there's a whole new set of silver weapons that are especially good against werewolves, new Nordic Mail heavy armor, Bear medium armor, and Wolf light armor. There's also some primitive stone, iron, and monster weapons that look cool but aren't that good unless you play with the editor. Additionally, there are a few unique weapons and armor to acquire, including a full set of Stalhrim ice gear and (possibly) the most powerful spear you'll see in the game. As with Tribunal you have the chance to make custom armor- Snow Bear or Snow Wolf, both of which require a certain number of pelts and a visit to the Thirsk Mead Hall. Lastly, a good number of new monsters are added, including pig-riding Ricklings, bears, and Spriggans. Some of these are quite tough, hence the level 20 recommendation.

The plot is interesting and has some non-linear features that make replay fun. You can join a new faction- the East Empire Company- and either build a colony or work to destroy it. You can also lay claim to a Nord mead hall by proving yourself in combat. In all, there are no less than three new houses you may call home, and added to your Great House stronghold this makes you quite the property owner in Morrowind.

The first thing you should do when you get Bloodmoon is to patch it. There are a few bugs fixed in it- one of them quite serious and that I had the misfortune of triggering. Other than this, I've had no technical problems with the game. Another possible issue arises with the number of trees on Solstheim. The Morrowind graphics engine isn't the most efficient, and all those fir trees require a huge amount of power to render. The recommended system requirements are an 800 mhz CPU and 32 MB video card. I can assure you that this won't get you the performance you want. If you don't have a good PC and graphics card, you'll probably have to turn down the view distance and resolution to get things running smoothly. Since Morrowind is all about looks, this can be a bit of a disappointment.

The short of it is, Bloodmoon is a killer expansion and anyone that enjoyed Morrowind shouldn't think twice about picking it up. Aside from the new areas and items, it opens up a whole lot of possibilities if you're acquainted with the Elder Scrolls Construction Set, and adds immensely to Morrowind's great replay value.

Better than Tribunal

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 17 / 18
Date: June 20, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This game should have been the first expansion pack. It makes Tribunal look like a joke. True, the game is a little buggy, but not as much as Morrowind was when it first came out. A good gamer saves often. It has lots of new enemies, weapons and armor. You can even influence the growth of a large mining settlement while you watch it grow from the ground up, and get your own estate there.

Graphics: They haven't changed much, but the addition of snowfall is a nice. It isn't like the ash storms, the snow can be blizzard-like or it can be big slow falling flakes, which makes the scenery look great. Some of the Nordic armor looks very sharp also.

Sound: Well, no great changes here. I haven't noticed any bugs either.

Story: In this expansion pack you can work for the enemy for a while, or stay with the good guys. The story has a point where you are infected with the werewolf disease automatically (instead of trying to become a vampire in Vvardenfell by fighting them and getting lucky), then given a choice to either become a werewolf or become one of the "Skaal".

Being a werewolf is different than being a vampire because people will treat you normally as a human, but at night you turn into a werewolf and people will try to kill you wherever you go. After 6 hours you will become a human again. A nice twist to this "infection" is that if anyone sees you turning into a werewolf, you will be known by everyone as the beast and attacked whether you are in human form or not.

This expansion is a great buy for fans of Morrowind.

Finally!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 15 / 17
Date: May 06, 2002
Author: Amazon User

Well, I brought this tiny box home, opened it up, pulled the discs out and installed the game. I then ran the game and my eyes and ears were then treated to some of the best computer-generated imagery and sound I've ever heard.

This game is sterling. I can't think of a better obscure word to use to describe this game. For a more common word, fantastic is my choice.

Back in 1994 I played a game by Bethesda called "Daggerfall", a game in the Elder Scrolls series. It was awesome. You could create any sort of character you wished using various methods of creation. Upon escaping a dungeon you were free to do whatever you wanted. Want to be a thief? Be a thief. Want to be a noble knight, out to do-good? Do it! Want to sling spells around at evil creatures? DO IT!

Bethesda has topped Daggerfall with Morrowind. The controls are better, the sound is better, the graphics are phenomenal, and the combat has been improved as well. They've expanded upon the idea of doing whatever you want by letting you equip any weapons and armor you want, regardless of class. You can ignore people, run around aimlessly, catch a ride on a silt strider, take a swim, pick a lock, pick a fight, jump around, climb things, go to sea, save people from harm; all without following the story line. There is, of course, a story line, but if you'd rather hunt down scoundrels and turn them in for bounties, you can do that instead for as long as you wish. You can join a guild and learn ancient magical secrets or you can be a loner. It's your choice.

Leveling up is flawless. Bettering your skills is balanced perfectly so that the more and intelligently you use them, the more they increase. Weapons and armor need to be fixed occasionally from all of the wear and tear they take.

If you've played Daggerfall, definitely play this. If you're a fan of MMORPG's, give this a try even though it's not one. If you want a challenge but are used to FPS'es, I might even recommend it to you. The only thing is that you're going to need a STRONG computer for this game. I've got a P4 1.5GHz with a 32mb GEForce card, 256mb of RAM and I'm somewhere in the 40's for framerate at 800 by 600 screen resolution. If you want to run this bad boy at anything higher and keep it above 30 frames per second, you're going to have to upgrade. Adjust your mouse, too, and it'll help in combat.

This game is all around worth every penny you pay for it and then some. The discs are encoded with Macrovision SafeDisc, too, so all those software pirates are out of luck. Too bad. Support this company so that they may bring out more games like this! If you have an X-box, definitely pick this up; the PC version is better, however, since you can make your own maps and dungeons to play or send to friends who have it. The "Elder Scrolls Construction Set" program is a bit difficult to learn, but you'll be making your own maps in no time.

I'd give this game 10 stars if I could. If you can get your hands on a copy of Daggerfall, do so. Be warned, though, it isn't very good in XP. =\

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