The Elder Scrolls: Arena

As someone new to CRPGs, Arena was a decent introduction to both the genre and its franchise for me. Several aspects of the game have aged like cheap goat milk, yet it is playable and enjoyable enough to see through to the end. The open world and dungeon designs are impressive and complex. It is clear that the development team had some sophisticated generative tools at their disposal to create both hand-crafted and randomized maps. This complexity prompts the player to take full advantage of the included guides. The township environments lack depth but are often charming. The gameplay remains a passable first-person dungeon crawl. The combat system is underwhelming, as it is rarely satisfying to dispatch foes. The game also places a signficant bias on Mage-based classes, such as the Sorcerer. It seems best to max a character to earn one-hit kills and overpowered shields early in the game. There also remain several game-breaking bugs in the latest version. The graphics are a mixed bag. One moment there can be scenic backdrops of townships and arial views of forboding dungeons. Next there can be enemy designs that look like cheap Halloween costumes and wall textures that look like fresh garbage. The cutscenes are often just looped animations with voiced text. The story itself is barebones but suffices to motivate the player to have a full tour of Tamriel and pace out its main dungeons. The soundtrack has a few memorable tracks, specifically the daytime town themes and dungeon ambiance. Some annoying songs are present, such as the music played at town inns. In terms of sound design, the game fares rather poorly. Sound is often uninformative and almost absent during combat. There are also sound mixing issues, especially during cutscenes. Given that Arena is free and very playable on DOSBox, I recommend it to those interested in the series' roots or the underlying tech that made the franchise successful.

If you're like me, you gotta start at the beginning of the story right? Arena was my first foray into the Elder Scrolls worlds. I had some fun playing the game, but it required patience at times as well. I don't mind a linear storyline, I grew up playing crpg's where they were pretty much all linear. But the formula being exactly the same every time got a little tiresome. The game also had a very regular habit of waiting until I walked through a room to populate the monsters, so inevitably I was getting hit in the back multiple times before I could start fighting. Overall it was fun and worth the time to kick off the series, I'm hoping Daggerfall has some improvements.

It runs like a paraplegic with asthma. The balancing is that of a toppled brick wall. Control scheme was clearly designed for tentacles rather than human hands. Inventory capacity is equal to that of women's clothing. All 8 main missions are the exact same. All artefact quests are a copy of the main missions. Sidequests are a complete waste of time with laughable rewards. Graphics are fit for the blind. Sound is fit for the deaf. Gameplay is obtuse like your mother in law. Soooo.... why am I still playing this hot mess after almost 40 hours? It's not nostalgia, never played this before. 2025 is my first run. Not my OCD, got that one in check ages ago. Not a lack of options, got a ton of other games on my pile of shame. Dear lord, I'm having FUN with this game. I don't know WHY or HOW I'm having fun with this clusterf***, but the fact is undeniable. It's free, it's easy to install, give it a go. You might just be a weirdo like me and actually enjoy this madness.

For its day, this game set the bar for RPGs (along with Bard's Tale). Even now, with Skyrim and Dragon's Dogma, Arena is still a game worth playing. Open world, great action, graphics - old but still entertaining. If you're looking for a decent old school RPG, Arena is a great bet. Plus, you get to see the foundation of all the future games getting laid out. They did GOOD.

Complete with voice acting!