The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind GOTY Edition

The atmosphere created in this release of Elder Scrolls was the most engaging for me out of all of the games. That is not to say that it hasn't aged or even aged well. I have not played this title in years. However when I did play it the sounds, sights and stories sucked me in like little else has done since Ultima Underworld. I was fully invested in my character. So much so that I remade my character many times after leaving the starting town to get it "just right." I don't think I've cared to that degree about my toon in any other RPG. Once I was satisfying the rest of my many hours in this game we're engrossing. I never felt like my hands were held playing this game but that was in a positive way. I read every book or scroll I found in the game and there were a LOT of them. They were all well-written and interesting. I actually found myself seeking certain thing or areas out in the game just based on the interest piqued by the in-game flavor texts. Over time my character evolved into a sort of rogue conjuror. I kne how to summon all sort of horrible creatures (the more horrible ones being possible only after practicing summoning skeletons over and over. If my monsters and beasts were not enough I could summon whole suits of armor to Don and enchanted weapons. One paralyze spell and me slicing madly with an Eldritch dagger and my crocodile demon going to town were usually more than enough to finish anyone that caught me robbing their house blind.

No generic quests like in Skyrim! Lore and the feeling of your place in the world is just right. Great guild quests. You can be very creative with builds, magic, skills, weapons and armor.

It's really good. Yes, it is, really and i mean it, really, really good. I love role-playing as a charming knight

The gameplay is good (and there are plenty of mods to fix issues), the story is amazing, the characters almost without peer, but the metaphysics -- is divine. Drawing influences from Sumerian myth, Hindu cosmology, Crowley occultism and many other sources, a deep and consistent mystical worldview is built. The Creation Myth is omnipresent, and its reinterpretations from different perspectives serve to give insight into those perspectives. The order/static matter versus chaos/pure change theme plays out from creation to the actions of gods and mortals in the present day - yet it also gives birth to higher-level interplays, such as seeking to stop entropy (succeeded), achieve immortality(that too), godhood(yup), and levels of existence above mere godhood(partial, flawed success). This is always present but hidden throughout the main story, and I never felt it was forced: sure, the gods may preach, but they are also inherently flawed, stricken by guilt at past crimes and mistakes. Vivec, the philosopher-poet-god most involved in the main story, wrote 36 sermons, which present themselves as short books in the game; some of them have been forbidden to the public by the enforcers of the very religion s/he's leading, and can be found only in secret libraries; the contents themselves often serve as revelations, providing new interpretations of past sermons and facts. While the sermons themselves are great, I'd also advise listening to a very good reading of them: https://soundcloud.com/rottendeadite/sets/the-36-lessons-of-vivec

Morrowind has to be my favorite RPG of all time, and I've probably got 5,000 to 10,000 hours into it over more than a decade of playing. The real star of this game isn't one of the heroes or villains, it's the world itself, and the deep and involved culture that Bethesda managed to create. There are better "video games" out there, but I have never found another "world" that comes close to matching what Morrowind offers. Despite the dated graphics (mods can do wonders to replace the graphical "textures", but the underlying animations are still clunky), the 24/7 standing or pacing back and forth by the NPCs, the primarily text-based dialog (with a few spoken greetings and taunts), and the "all or nothing" die-roll based hit or miss combat system, it's still a fantastic piece of work. Depending on your tastes for RPG elements versus "First Person Slasher" mechanics, you'll either love or hate it; there are few people who find it "so-so". Be aware that it takes a while to get past the initial 3-6 level "grind" to see what the game really offers. The deeper you dig, the more it seems there is to uncover, and what you THINK you know often proves to be only one heavily biased side of the story. The game frequently leaves room for different interpretations and perspectives for role-play. I have yet to tap this game out and see everything after more than a decade. The mods available for this game have to be seen to be believed: there are literally thousands, and many of them are of professional quality. Examples range from expanding the game world from the small island of Vvardenfell to cover almost the entire Morrowind province piece by piece (and still in progress), adding more NPCs and expanded dialog, introducing new races and factions, adding huge numbers of additional items such as clothing, weapons, armor, and alchemical ingredients, providing the ability to gather materials to craft weapons, armor, household items, edible food, and furniture, introducing hunger and thirst requirements, adding new magical effects and options, and generally altering the game do practically anything you want it to do. If you loved Oblivion and Skyrim for their combat, perhaps you should skip Morrowind, but if the open world and involved background lore was what drew you in, this may be just what you're looking for.