The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion 5th Anniversary Edition PlayStation 3

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion 5th Anniversary Edition Product Details

Released on 23-Sep-2011

• The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim - Preview

  Dragon age

  The follow-up to the brilliant Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Skyrim is the latest role playing game from the team also responsible for the much-loved Fallout series. Set 200 years after its predecessor, the events of Skyrim take place in the northernmost province of Tamriel, a massive open world with a chilly Nordic flavour to it.

  You play as Dovakin (literal meaning - Dragon Born), a hero destined to rid the world of an ancient, evil Dragon God and bring peace to a land suffering at the hands of civil war. According to the game makers, you can expect to spend about 30 hours completing the main quest, but for explorers keen to see all the fantasy world has to offer there's roughly 300 hours of content to experience.

  World of beauty

  Skyrim world is as beautiful and varied as it is vast. From cities to hamlets, marshland to open plains, secret forests to snow-capped mountains and over 150 dungeons, most players are unlikely to see it in its entirety given its epic scale.

  Subjected to every weather system conceivable, the environments are stunning, from the rocky landscapes to the swaying grass and leaves on trees, all of which capture the light perfectly and create a deep sense of immersion, while fast-flowing rivers and tumbling waterfalls display some of the best water effects wee ever seen.

  Just as impressive are the overbearing mountains that make up the background to Skyrim, each of which is completely scalable. You can travel anywhere the eye can see and the biggest mountain has 7,000 steps carved into it on the way to its peak.

  Day-to-day life

  Skyrim world is populated by hundreds of characters living their own lives, with their own motivations and loyalties. Wee introduced to day-to-day happenings in a small town called Riverwood, where one worker goes about his work in a lumberard. It suggested to us that, unlike in most games, character actions won follow a simple loop. Instead, theyl carry out natural, realistic daily routines.

  Everything you see Skyrim characters do, you can do too, if it takes your fancy. You can befriend others by offering your services to the community, or opt to be a destructive force by sabotaging their work for your own ends, negatively impacting the economy. As in previous games, townsfolk are also a source of mission starters, offering up quests for you to pursue.

  Getting physical

  From sword-wielding, armour-clad hulks to werewolves, vampires, giant spiders and mystical beasts, Skyrim serves up many hostile foes. Not everyone out to get you, but some characters you encounter on your journey will take exception to you just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, meaning youl need to master a combination of weapons and magic to survive.

  Traditional combat feels meaty as you trade blows with your sword, batter opponents with your shield and pepper them with arrows from your bow. Thankfully you can now dual wield weapons and spells, with an impressive range of approaches on offer to suit your chosen play style. You can summon a circle of protection, turn invisible, send enemies flying with lightning strikes, torch them with charged-up fireballs or freeze them with ice bolts.

  Promising to take players on a journey from lowly beginnings to powerful dragon tamer, wee seen only a mere fraction of what Skyrim has to offer, but even from guarded showings it clear this is a world many will be willing to invest months of play time in. It may be releasing at the busiest time of the year, placing it in direct competition with the likes of Battlefield 3, Modern Warfare 3 and Uncharted 3, but it will be tough to prise this jaw dropping game from your disc tray once youe booted it up for the first time.

  Preview by: Tom 'Dragon Slayer' Ivan
  Platform: Xbox 360
  Release date: 11/11/2011
  Preview Published: 13.10.10
  

  Published: 13/10/2011

• Gaming Past to Present - The Elder Scrolls

  One of the biggest games of 2011 is almost upon us and we can't wait to get our hands on it. So, what better time to take a look back at one of gaming's favourite series, The Elder Scrolls? Morrowind is remembered for its extraordinary size and depth, Oblivion for it's ground-breaking visuals and music, and Skyrim is shaping up to be every bit the classic that we've all been hoping for.

  Here, there be dragons.

  Morrowind's cliff-racers brought a tear to the eye of many a gamer, but those worrying about the same thing happening with Skyrim's dragons can rest assured. Todd Howard, executive producer, has explained that those random city attacks will be very welcome indeed. Taking down these fearsome creatures will allow you to absorb their souls, powering the dragon-shouts that players will harness on their journey throughout the game.

  Level UP!

  Oblivion's levelling system left a lot to be desired for many. Dressing up in the finest armour, only to stumble across bandits equipped with equally powerful armour, it left progress feeling a little unsatisfying. The good news is that Bethesda has promised a levelling system for Skyrim that's much more like the one in Fallout 3. You'll still meet powerful enemies as you level up but they'll be within a similar level range to you, giving you the chance to have the upper hand.

  Rather than being forced down one route of play as a warrior, mage or hunter for example, Skyrim will also feature a perk system that allows you to augment your play style with bonus effects. If you get tired off throwing out fireballs and fancy some time with a blade and shield, you can level up those combat tools just fine as well.

  Music to my ears

  Legendary composer Jeremy Soule is back for soundtrack duties and we couldn't be more excited. Oblivion's regal epic score added so much depth to the atmosphere of the games. What can we expect from Skyrim's soundtrack? A few re-workings of favourites no doubt, along with a striking mood to suit the Nordic setting.

  The sky's the limit

  One of the things we loved best about previous Elder Scrolls game was the ability to travel to anywhere you could see in the world. Oblivion's mountains and forests were the perfect place to wander through and explore in, even if they a lacked a little of the variety we'd got used to in Morrowind. The province of Skyrim on the other hand is an enormous playground to lose yourself in: tundra, misty mountains, and over 160 uniquely designed dungeons lurking just below the surface.

  Careful how you tread

  One thing that definitely won't be coming back from the previous games is the rather wonky animations. Bethesda has made great improvements to make sure that players and characters in the world not only move and fight better than ever before, they'll also act more realistically. With their own motivations and daily schedules, you'll believe you're in another world.

  There's something in the shadows...

  Remember the Dark Brotherhood quests from Oblivion? After killing an innocent citizen of the world, a mysterious stranger appeared while you slept, offering you an opportunity to join their ranks. These assassins of the night are back in Skyrim, and we can't wait to get stuck into whatever devilish antics Bethesda has cooked up for us this time around.

  There's only just over a week to go until the game releases on Friday 11th November, so clear out your calendar, take the telephone off the hook, and get ready for one of the most ambitious open-world adventures that gaming has ever seen, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.

• Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning - Preview

  Star cast

  Headlined by the Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, last year was a great year for role playing games, and 2012 looks set to kick off with a bang when Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning launches in February. A single-player RPG that challenges players to unlock the mysteries of a magical world filled with strange landscapes, exotic cities, colourful characters and terrifying creatures, expectations are particularly high given the star cast involved in the game's creation.

  Fantasy world Amalur and its 10,000 years of fiction was created by 22-time New York Times bestselling author R.A. Salvatore, and has been brought to life visually for the game by renowned Spider-Man artist and Spawn creator Todd McFarlane. Featuring over 60 hours of story, diverse side quests and exploration, the title's open world, free-roaming design has been developed under the leadership of RPG guru Ken Rolston, formerly lead designer on the critically acclaimed Elder Scrolls games Morrowind and Oblivion.

  Choose your destiny

  Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning gives players great scope for personalising their character, with the freedom of choice extending well beyond just physical appearance. Destinies, which are the essentially the game's version of classes, enable players to develop and master their personal battle style, crafting their character without many of the constraints associated with traditional RPGs.

  The Destiny system is basically a class-switching feature defined by abilities managed and unlocked within Sorcery, Might, and Finesse specialisations. Whether dabbling in all three specialities or pouring every point into one, path-shaping destinies continually evolve and new ones open up. For example, a battle-hardened warrior can incorporate the stealthy quickness of a rogue as well as the magical mastery of a sorcerer, or adopt subtle variations of them all. The choice is yours.

  RPG combat evolved

  From our brief exposure to the game, perhaps its standout feature is its non-traditional take on combat. While most RPGs see fighters trading blows until whoever has the least hit points loses, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning's responsive, lightning-quick combat is more influenced by fluid third-person action series like God of War and Ninja Gaiden. Warriors can roll out of danger, mages can teleport-dodge, and characters perform brutal combos - the lead combat designer happens to be a tournament level Tekken player - while the camera sweeps around framing the action in the most exciting way possible.

  While it's still possible to button-mash your way through duels, chaining skills together and precise timing will pay off and develop your character further. Once you've acquired enough energy from defeated enemies to fill up the game's 'fate meter' you can also unleash 'Reckoning' mode, which slows down time for your opponents, giving you an upper hand that lets you zap around dishing out damage and taking out the more deadly enemies with brutal kills that require you to react to button prompts on the screen which, if your timing is spot on, appear to earn you additional experience as you close in on flashy kills.

  Based on what we've played to date, we're more than a little excited to see more of what Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning has to offer with its gorgeous open world, fast-paced, visceral combat and its interesting take on character creation and development.
  

  Published: 24/01/2012

• Time magazine picks the 100 best games ever

  Respected American journal, Time, has ventured into digital waters to list what it considers to be the top hundred video games ever made. The result is a suitably eclectic mix, presented in chronological order stretching from the 1970s all the way up to the 2010s.

  All the retro arcade classics you'd expect are in there - Space Invaders, Frogger, Pac-Man and more - while Nintendo's core franchises dominate the 1980s as consoles made their way into US homes. Mario and Zelda are among the only games to appear in more than one guise. The original Super Mario Bros and Mario 64 both make the grade, as does the original Metroid and its 2002 first-person sequel Metroid Prime.

  Resident Evil and Tomb Raider join the list in the 1990s, and are still going strong today. Resident Evil 6 launched recently, while Lara Croft is being relaunched in 2013.

  More recognisable names also pop up as the list draws closer to 2012. Bioshock, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Guitar Hero, Wii Sports, Portal, Gears of War and The Elder Scrolls: Oblivion are all held up as examples of classic modern gaming.

  Just two games from the last few years have been deemed worthy of a place. Mass Effect 3 and Batman: Arkham City are the lucky pair. Notable by their absence are current big hitters such as Assassin's Creed, Borderlands and Uncharted.

  Is Time placing too much importance on the past? Would you pick any of these for your top 100?

  Published: 16/11/2012

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