Cubbage

Loving it so far. The art design is something to behold. Some great quality of life tweaks, a revitalised score without changing the iconic tracks. Carefully expanded areas so as not to lose the essence of the original. A night-day cycle that breathes more life into the world and characters (they now walk around and feel more alive). Gameplay feels tighter as well. I've played this game loads throughout my life and I'm enjoying it like I'm playing it afresh. Great remake, the visuals and amplified atmosphere alone are breathtaking enough to keep me invested. I especially enjoy how the world and character models look straight out of a puppet-theatre play, like wooden models breathed to life. Only thing I truly do not like is the lack of a master quest/hero mode, the game is far too easy if you've played it before. The voice acting is super cringe imo as well, the VA cast is from every generic modern anime dub nowadays. The performances make everything feel very cheesy and it kills the immersion and contrasts negatively against the whimsical nature of the game. I never associated Zelda with anime for teenagers so that is a huge disappointment to see. Thankfully, there are options to play it in another language.

"I hate sand"

@integral Loads of games today still have amazing & iconic music.

Classic

No idea what this means. I'm expressing my passion for the game. You asked me for a response, I gave you one.

Art direction>visual fidelity

Great video. FYI I played Morrowind after I had exhausted Oblivion and Skyrim. I fell in love with that world over time, so I cannot be blinded by nostalgia as I never even played it at launch. My favourite part of that game was the Bloodmoon DLC. The atmosphere is dense in that. I remember the majority of RPG's more for the artistic impact they have on me, rather than how "fun" the systems are. If I wanted to have fun, I'd play something mechanically rich and instantly satisfying like the Devil May Cry games. Morrowind is the gaming equivalent of reading an in-depth book that you slowly but surely connect with. There is an inherent reward within that type of experience that you can't replicate in modern Bethesda, hence why their games feel so boring to me.

The low-dopamine style gameplay makes the world feel indifferent to your existence, rather than designed around your entertainment. Skyrim is all about glazing the player and keeping you stimulated with flashy bits. You clearly don't resonate with the game that's cool, but claiming myself and everyone else who can actually get into that game as nostalgia blind elitists is a strange take. People are discovering Morrowind right now and falling in love with it, your argument falls short there. The lack of constant stimulation forces you to slow down, observe your surroundings and become genuinely invested in exploration. You rarely find that in RPG's anymore, outside of maybe Pathologic (a game you would dislike as it is designed to be tedious). If you can't see the value in the tediousness and slow-burn satisfaction, fair enough.

This is such shallow reductionism. Oblivion & Skyrim sacrificed Morrowind's artistic depth for relatively decent gameplay. There is not much in modern Elder Scrolls' gameplay to keep coming back to imo, they are exceptionally flat and boring. Morrowind wouldn't be a better experience if it played like those two whatsoever. Inventing a narrative to explain why others hold the game in high regard is bizarre. You can get lost in a world like Morrowind's and forget about mechanics, that's how richly designed its world is. Who is playing Elder Scrolls for the moment to moment combat? I have not met them if they exist.

I mean it's true. How are you gonna fully appreciate high tier art if your consciousness is dense af and your artistic palette consists of low-brow works? You're not gonna be able to see the value in arthouse films with a shallow mind for art. Same goes for games. I'm not saying anything radical here. Put a kid on Morrowind in today's dopaminergic obsessed gaming world, course they're not gonna enjoy it. Also, nobody likes Morrowind cause the combat is hard as nails, I have never heard anyone say that. The core enjoyment is in the games immersive experience.

Fully agree.

Awakening to me feels like I'm a protractor that just realized its 180º experience is a boxed in illusion that is constructed from the real experience of being 360º. You extend back around yourself to discover the real YOURSELF.

I think I've posted this before but it's worth posting again. Beautifully intricate analysis. You could not write something so extensive & profound about any other Bethesda game or many games in general. https://fallingawkwardly.wordpress.com/2010/08/29/the-metaphysics-of-morrowind-part-1/

It is so easy to go overboard with vaping DMT, each trip is unpredictable. My DMT memories are viscerally imprinted in my mind, I truly empathise with anyone who accidentally vapes too much. It is awesome but awesomeness x9000 is absolutely terrifying no matter how experienced one is with psychedelics.

The intelligence & depth in Morrowind's first small area is a sign of nuanced, careful game design that has been neutered as Bethesda becomes more surface-level and spectacle focused. Like Leo said, Morrowind is an art-house type experience. If you have been sucked into the Spielbergian/blockbuster movie approach to gaming, that's totally valid, but don't pretend that it has substantial artistic/narrative depth compared to what's out there. It's pretty clear the majority of post-Morrowind Bethesda fans don't have a clue about what makes a compelling RPG. There is a cult around Morrowind because it is a significant artistic achievement regardless of how outdated it is. Cult-classics form because the love for the art is so strong. You don't see people getting so passionate about Oblivion cause there is fuck all to chew on thematically or artistically. I'm not sure how anyone can even be a fan of RPG's and not recognize what has been lost. It's not about glazing the past. I know friends who just recently played the classic Fallouts and Morrowind and connected with its genius. Pretty clear Skyrim fans do not have the mind for that type of experience, similar to how your average film fan will not be able to connect with arthouse cinema. It's really a consciousness skill issue when you boil ti down tbh.

Certainly not. Morrowind's universe is far more delicately designed and uniquely expressed. You cannot deny the genius world-building that is achieved through masterclass writing and map design (exploring the world is the most crucial element of gameplay imo). If people think Skyrim has better writing, that's worrying 🤣 yes the gameplay isn't exciting, but if it was, this would detract from the experience. I would rather fail at killing a rat 50 times than pick up Skyrim ever again

Because it is designed for mass appeal.

Games like Morrowind are a meditative experience. I always found a lot of peace just wandering around with no objective and taking in the games atmosphere. The story, characters, writing and tone is objectively better in every way as well. If anyone knows of this legendary piece of video game analysis then big ups to you 👊 it is essentially an analysis of Bethesda post-Morrowind as a whole. I think modern, young gen z gamers do not appreciate slow-burn games due to our instant hit dopamniergic culture. No wonder every young person I meet reckons they've got ADHD. Morrowind is a ADHD persons worst nightmare haha.

Morrowind is "fun" in the sense that climbing a mountain with a paper map, getting lost on a route and finding your way back down is "fun". It's not dopaminergic. Too much dopamine-centric mechanics in video games ruins the atmosphere and immersion imo. Same reason I like the Pathologic games, they are not necessarily fun to play from moment to moment but exceptionally rewarding to become immersed in. The most fun I had in Morrowind as a teenager and as an adult now is doing conscious roleplaying. The roleplaying in Bethesda post-Morrowind is cookie cutter and shallow.

I'm 29 and Morrowind is the best by far. Played it when I was 15 and still love it to this day. I'm a big book reader, always have been. Morrowind's writing is leaps and bounds more engaging than anything they've made since.

Most cringe & overused meme template atm. Normie humour 🤪

Definitely true. There was a guy who I was acquainted with in my wider friendship circle 10 years ago who was the most normal, down to earth guy, you wouldn't have suspected a thing. He was eventually done for raping 3 women in our friend group. You'd never have guessed but now upon reflection, he was a master at masquerading being innocent. That whole incident taught me a lot about human psychology. Two of the girls are close friends of mine and it took them a long time to report his crimes.

I'm just hoping for an interesting world to explore, with some engaging, memorable quests. As far as gameplay mechanics go, I doubt there will be anything substantial that will evolve Bethesda's style.

Yeah I use AI to smooth out the workload. I'd rather be creating the cool stuff than optimizing boring stuff.

Also @AerisVahnEphelia are you wary of the backlash against your game when you disclose that it was engineered using AI?