by Eric Abent

Created on: August 26, 2009

A word to the cautious: The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is not a game to be taken lightly. As it is such, do not expect this to be a game that you will only play casually. This game carries with it a high probability of addiction, but it is of a glorious nature. In fact, there is really only one world in the English language that can accurately describe this game, and that word is "Epic."

The province of Cyrodiil has fallen into disrepair. The Emperor, Uriel Septim VII, has been assassinated by the villainous cult the Mythic Dawn, and you, a prison escapee, were the last person to talk to him alive. In the absence of a king, the daedric prince of destruction, Mehrunes Dagon, wages war on the province, opening up gates that lead to his realm of Oblivion. It is up to you, a single warrior, to find the heir to the Septim throne, halt the invasion of Dagon and his hellish minions, stop the Mythic Dawn, and close the gates to Oblivion.

Throw in a completely open-world and give the player the option to do pretty much anything they want, and you've got one huge and awe-inspiring game.

The inherent problem with writing a review about Oblivion is not knowing exactly what to write about. After all, a certain player may never experience the storyline described above, yet still log many hours of play and have a simply wonderful time while doing it. Writing about all of the different aspects of the game, with its dozens upon dozens of side quests, various guilds, and (literally) hundreds of places on the world map to visit, could go on for pages and pages.

For the sake of starting somewhere, let's start with the character creation; the first step to making this warrior's story your own. First, the player must choose what race their character will be; they have the option of choosing from a High Elf, Redguard, Wood Elf, Imperial, Dark Elf, Orc, Breton, Argonian, Khajiit and Nord, each one bringing different skills, strengths and weaknesses. Next is where the true customization of the creator comes, within the appearance editor. Oblivion's character creation offers players a plethora of options, from changing the thickness and shape of their avatar's eyebrows, to deciding how pursed or puckered they would like their lips to be. There are a number of different sliders for the player to manipulate, each one changing, however subtly, their character's facial features.

When you're finished deciding how your character will look, along with deciding on an appropriate name,

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