AGodDamnTRex
41530
635
42
I am once again asking for new ideas from the broken video game industry
Jun 27, 2024 1:49 PM
AGodDamnTRex
41530
635
42
I am once again asking for new ideas from the broken video game industry
Illithidbane
Even when ES6 comes out, you know it will still be Skyrim 2.0 in the design philosophy (like Starfield) and will be riddled with bugs. In time, modders will try to finish the game development, but the bones will be firmly rooted in 2010 game design at best. I respect the world building they do, but I think Bethesda just isn't for me.
DiracsDelta
Skyrim is older than GTAV, and that’s saying something lol
Beathoven70
I used to be very excited for a new elder Scrolls game, until I heard it would run on the same engine that was already old and extremely buggy back in 2011... Now Im bracing for a huge disappointment.
SuperDAN189
I work in industry, it's hard to get people to invest millions, In something unknown or unproven.
alwaysupvotefuturama
I don't even want another Fallout from Bethesda, they just can't tell intereting stories
Leaga
Wtf do you mean you're "once again asking for new ideas"? This meme is literally asking for a 6th version of a 30+ year old idea. And then it caps off by making fun of a game that was actually built on new ideas. I mean, I agree that it wasn't what we wanted. Im not a fan of 76. But they certainly didn't just put out the same thing again. They at least tried a new approach and yet gamers somehow are using it as an example of them NOT innovating?
ReallyFastSloth
Those "gamers" are probably just someone hopping on a bandwagon to shit on something, yes it's not great, but I do like 76, 300hours. It's frustrating that you have to buy ton of shit if you want more content, but there's a shit load to do without that. Also not 6th but 7th
AbsolutelyNotBacon
At this point, I have zero hopes of TES6 to be good.
Wolfwod
Now let's see how they ruin the next Elder Scroll with micro transactions.
AtmaDarkwolf
yea but no. fo76 was originally going to be a DLC for fo4. Except someone realized they had already sold the 'season pass' at the time that had ZERO future limit (IE it was ANY AND ALL dlc's made, even future ones included) so they did a little jig inhouse and instead tried to release a 'fortnight' style arena game. FO76 was the result. Since then they have all but eliminated most pvp(Nuclear winter, the arena mode they had, is gone.) - It really is still just a stand-alone DLC as it is.
AtmaDarkwolf
(IE Point was, it took nearly ZERO coding or effort to just slap it out as a 'game' where as ES6 will take years of development. And in their defense, even with it still being a buggy mess today, it has come a LONG, LONG way.)
nevets767
After starfield? This might be a hot take, but I think Microsoft liquidated the wrong company when they shut down the hifi rush guys
ThePastmaster
I was hoping that Microsoft would slap some sense into Bethesda to make better games.
Jagshusband
If it just going to be the same janky engine though…meh.
Ornado
AAA (Triple A) titles are a scam title made by game devs to make their game sell better because its got the title of being "the best" even without earning it. They simply have to say "we're making a triple A game!" and bam someones (or many someones) are going to buy it. The new dragon age game....it just looks fucking offal. Why do you have cartoonish, xbox 360 graphics in a darker fantasy styled world that you've had years to develop. Not to mention the gutted loot system that it will have....
Ornado
the shit tier combat mess that it is, 2 companions, hub/mission based story telling, yellow signs pointing you everywhere you need to go, no crafting system, random jars that have healing items in it, 3 FUCKING COMBAT SKILLS, a neuters tactics system, your companiosn damage is 1/10th of yours and are only their to set up combo for you and sometimes the other companion....i could keep going, but im too mad and what could have been, but what isn't going to be a good game.
williamvanauger
Bethesda was always a little bit shit but was a lot better at hiding it. They can't be bothered to even try now.
Spoonland
https://imgur.com/VlTtXt9
KiwiStag
Half Life 3 confirmed?
KafkasKarma
Try Outer Worlds it's nice
DurendaI
Elder Scrolls Online is fun, but at the end of the day you gotta have the stomach to play an MMO.
GenuinelyCurious
I wanted to like TESO so bad, but, as you said x_x
algoritham
I played it, I really tried, but I couldn't really continue. It just felt generic from the get go.
hahway
I play it like a single player game and ignore everyone and it's awesome
DurendaI
My brother and I have a good time just questing around the world.
RockKickass
76 is trash and instead of making a new game they just keep adding dlcs like that’s the freaking problem
TheAccursedHamster
Lotta people in here who don't have a fucking clue what they're talking about. Unsurprisingly.
Ifekinlovesauerkraut
One of the reasons why there is no ES6 is that BGS shits their pants. Deserved or not, people will measure the success of ES6 on Skyrim. And even at BGS no one has the slightest idea why this husk of a game (also known as sandbox) was so damn successful.
noWhiteHorseHereJustBatturuPrinsu
The elder scrolls 6 has been in development since 2016. Last update to the outside world for as far as I know was in 2023.
TheAccursedHamster
pre-production, not development. They were clear from the get-go that proper ES6 development would begin after starfield. It isn't their fault no one knows how to read.
noWhiteHorseHereJustBatturuPrinsu
Pre-production is the second stage of game development. (Planning, Pre-production, Production, Testing, Pre-Launch, Launch and Post-production) I think you are confusing development and production.
Sulexar
Curious how yet another sequel constitutes a new idea to you.
alexstamat
Compared to releasing Skyrim for the 5th time?
Sulexar
I'm afraid I lack the traumatic brain damage necessary to bitch about adapting a game to new systems, as if it is at all difficult compared to creating an entirely new game.
imgurmage
At least I still have Morrowind...
drdorman86350
I'm greatful they put some polish on FO4, which already looked good on consoles.
alwaysupvotefuturama
Now if they could make the quests, character system and exploration interesting, that would be great
CorvidPrime
It was the better written game anyway.
DurendaI
Thank Kirkbride for a lot of that.
imgurmage
There were a lot of talented writers besides kirkbride involved too.
tinydog
Has anyone recreated Morrowind on a modern graphics engine?
imgurmage
There's the Skywind project that is recreating Morrowind in Skyrim's graphics/combat system... But that's hardly "modern" at nearly 13 years old now. There is the OpenMW project that created a brand new open source engine for Morrowind and it's compatible with existing mods that don't require the Script Extender. Some of the combat mods for the game are pretty good.
Repost to fix typos
Shaddak
To put it into perspective, Skyrim is older than Morrowind was when Skyrim came out.
cheesedogs
Mainstream video game companies are dying out. Indie is the future.
Noodlesocks
There have been more versions of Skyrim than mainline Elder Scrolls games.
bookpimp
Cleopatra is closer to our present time than to the times of Elder Scroll next release. Or something like that.
STGxDante
We got closer to Cleopatra's era before gta6 T.T
OrangeFlavours
Also for perspective, fo76 was released in 2018. This is a 6 year old meme.
HandiCaptain
For further perspective, we just recently passed the 6 year anniversary of the Elder Scrolls VI teaser from June 10th, 2018. There was less time between the release of Morrowind and Oblivion, and Oblivion and Skyrim than from the ES6 teaser and today.
OaksParcel
It's only about 2 years away from being as old as Daggerfall was, too.
CaveCanem
play the Elder Kings 2 mod instead, it's already better than TES 6 could ever be
DiracsDelta
Now that is perspective. Goddamn.
drinkthederpentine
Godamn
iDontBelieveInIsms
Morrowind will always be one of the best games ever made IMO.
SangVis
It'll always be one of my top favorites.
porphyre1e00
Always updoot Morrowind. Fallout: New Vegas fanbois have no idea what they're talking about
Zoroasterisk
Why does it have to be one or the other? I love both
FlyYouFLCL
It was magic playing that as a high school/college kid. I go back to it just to fuck around from time to time.
houghten
There was a new idea in the video game industry last year. Well, a new IP, anyway, which is nearly the same thing. Rhythm games aren't new, but Hi-Fi Rush was, and it released to critical acclaim, and despite Gamepass obviating the need for many users to buy it on Xbox, it netted an estimated 6.9 million dollars on Steam (source: https://steam-revenue-calculator.com/app/1817230/hi-fi-rush ). That wasn't enough for Microsoft, and they closed Tango Gameworks, the studio that made it.
ZySoua
No, Hi-Fi Rush was not even the first, Crypt of the Necrodancer was brilliant before it, but since it has been released almost 10 years ago, it now is old news and Hi-Fi Rush just was good in picking up the mantle. And I am not saying it is bad. Some old ideas could come back, could be refreshed, but f*ck me if it needs a lot of brilliant mind to make a fantastic game out of it. And these days there is very few people, who can do this
houghten
Be honest: how many of the words I wrote did you actually read?
ZySoua
I read your post, that’s why I said that idea wasn’t new.
houghten
Did you read the second sentence? Where I said it wasn't actually a new idea, just a new IP, but that was close enough? Because if you did, then why are you under the impression you're telling me anything new?
ZySoua
You are a weird one. You yourself mention that it’s not new, but when I write out who was supposedly the first good one, you get angry. You know, forget it.
houghten
Now Microsoft retains the rights to "their" new idea without any of the expensive employees that created it, and can hand the sequel off to a cheaper studio. The key word in "the broken video game industry" is "broken," and new ideas won't fix it.
dreikommavierzehn
That's how it works in general though. Gamedevs work on a per-title basis in most cases and many studios are closed after the work is done similarly to how hollywood productions are financed. Especially big names within the industry are required to jump or at least be able (by their contract) to work for different companies
Of course there are people that stay with some of long lasting studios too - this is just a simplification
Trankia12
Indi games are the future of the gaming industry. Another Crab's Treasure is one of my favorite games this year so far. Hollow Knight is one of my favorite games all time. There are tons of great indi games for us to spend put time and money on. So we don't have to but into the corporations.
UraniumMan
*Halflife 3 has entered the chat*
Gelaticat
I call bullshit. Half-life 3 hasn’t entered anything beyond vaporware purgatory since it was conceived. “Entered the chat” indeed!
DiracsDelta
What, you weren’t happy with alyx? Lol
TheWombatStrikesAgain
Alyx was the test run. Half-Life 3 will come out, once vr headsets are common. Not before.
ThisIsWhyIDontTrustPeople
So, never? VR headsets are the 3D TVs of the 2020's.
eppykaze
Bethesda didn't even make 76, that came from the Zenimax side of the company
confracto
Bethesda bought Battlecry studios which became Bethesda Game Studios Ausin, who made 76 with oversight from BGS.
ThePastmaster
All I can find is that ZeniMax Online Studios made Elder Scrolls Online and Fallout 76 was made by Bethesda Game Studios in Austin. o_O
SangVis
You are correct. Their Austin department was newly set up to develop it as well if I recall corectly.
KingORedLions
I regret to inform you that Bethesda Game Studios did indeed make Fallout 76.
Wolfos
They did. They're still directing it, although most of the updating work gets outsourced. But it's a massive studio.
Sloth53
Cashgrab 76, killed Bethesda for me! Never will buy another Bethesda game!
NauseousPanda
I gave them one last chance with Starfield and avoided any news like the plague, I even upgraded my PC so I can play without it stopping for 5-10 sec every 30 sec... Gotta say I'm so glad that BG3 was also the reason for the upgrade, as Starslop was a disappointment even with 0 hype.. NG+ is in fact kinda fun with you being able to meta-comment, but at this point it just feels like a pinch of salt in a bowl of water soup
NauseousPanda
Gotta clarify - I'm so glad I didn't buy it
AnonKneeMoose
Same, played it via Gamepass
TalkingSnake
FO76 has been out for years, and they've actually done a ton of work on it. It's not perfect but it is fun and the community is great
grsiepka
Yeah but it's boring as fuck.
YouRadicalizedMe
It's like 120.gigs. No dice
JaggedLittleEMTALAViolation
It’s broken since the new update. I deleted it.
ICutRocksOnYoutube
What, the valley expansion? Maybe for like the 1st day... I've logged probably 30 hours on it since then, maybe 1 crash.
Sageypie
And in fairness, people had been salivating for a multiplayer experience in Fallout since Fallout 3. Got especially loud after Fallout 4 and the introduction of settlement building. Just ended up that we got a monkey paw wish out of this, instead of just being able to bring a buddy into our FO4 game runs like we were actually wishing for.
algoritham
You only get one chance to make a first impression.
TalkingSnake
True.
But No Man's Sky has done some great stuff. And while I'm obsessed with Alan Wake II, the recently released DLC massively flipped scripts and made that shit even cooler.
Hell, the difference between Final Fantasy XIV and the post A Realm Reborn renaissance is startling. Videogames are not static art, we should appreciate that they can be improved.
distractedFreek
I'd play it if private worlds were free. I've gotten free months of FO1st and got to play around in them, and with some server tweaks, it feels like a sequel (or at least a huge expansion) of FO4.
DurendaI
Public worlds atm are fun tho. Players who RP for fun and arent assholes are hilarious, like Mothman cultist players. I also enjoy greeting new players just outside V76 and kitting them out. My username is Buckethead3
abion47
I haven't played since it came out so this might be fixed now, but the first time I built a base only on my next login to have the game dump all the materials back into my tiny ass inventory because it had put me in a different server where someone had built a base in the same spot was the absolute deal breaker and that experience alone made me not care to ever give the game another try. They had their chance and they blew it.
Zange0
It's been awhile since I played, but I would go around and buy all the blueprints I could find and put any duplicates for free in a vending machine. People are pretty good about not just taking them because they can.
JStengah
Doesn't matter. People love to hate on Bethesda. It's a surefire way to get internet points.
Youhavinagiraffe
It's also really easy to hate on Bethesda
TalkingSnake
I play the game, but Bethesda does deserve a ton of it.
JStengah
Half the complaints I've seen about 76 were bullshit that were caused by people hacking or abusing exploits (a lot of the initial server instability was due to people abusing duplication exploits and crashing the server). Now, it's fair to complain that Bethesda needed to do better at removing exploits, but they were situations that simply didn't happen through normal gameplay being falsely represented as normal occurances to push the narrative that the game was a horrible mess.
drinkthederpentine
What? The complaints were they shipped a fallout game with no fucking NPCs. And you wonder why it wasn't popular...
JStengah
There were npcs, they were just robots (and one super mutant). It honestly was one of my favorite things about the first year of fo76. It made the wasteland feel like a proper wasteland and gave fo76 the best main story since the first game. Someone complaining that there were no npcs just lets me know that person never actually played it, or was too dense to uncover the story of why there were no living humans left in Appalachia.
crackajackin
Give up on Bethesda. Their glory days are long over
Imademyselfsquirtle
I'm enjoying Starfield....heavily modded af version tho.
Problemwoodchuck
The main story didn't grab me but I ended up having a lot of fun with Starfield doing the side missions and bounty hunting. The crafting/leveling system seemed unnecessarily clunky though.
Imademyselfsquirtle
Ye. The dog fights in space and bounties is fun.
algoritham
You are right,. I'm not even angry, just...
Cycocidal
Awww peanut - lucy lawless
MatrimBloodyCauthon
They're Bethetic
Jagernot
"Now it's Microsoft's turn to ride the undead pony."
Sfingks
I'll bet if Bethesda hired 50 of the top Skyrim modders, gave them each $100k, in 1 years time they would have probably the best Elder Scrolls game in the series.
Youhavinagiraffe
Maybe but I'd also say that project management is more complicated than that. Taking 50 people who did a great job at a one-person project doesn't automatically translate into a team capable of a great 50 person project
Sfingks
Yeah absolutely. I'm a product manager for a software company. You'd need a PM, a few lead devs, a QA team, designers, etc.
OaksParcel
That's a pretty terrible salary for that, though. Up it to $250k and you'd be set.
Sfingks
I would call $100k extremely generous, considering nothing is stipulated about this being a 9-5 job. This would just be something they could work on as a side gig. Maybe 4 hours per day. Lots of developers would jump at the chance to do something like that for $100k.
ImNotReallyADoctor
But but... I'm excited for the new Indiana Jones game!
drinkthederpentine
Agree, and Morrowind is one of my favorite games of all time. There seems to be no desire or willingness to experiment with anything new in the core loop. They won't even consider replacing an engine from the 90's and keep stapling shit onto it instead because they want to keep shipping the same old features over and over
scuba7jb
Yep that proverbial horse needs to be put out to pasture... [or taken behind the woodshed.]
Ifekinlovesauerkraut
I put way more trust in fan projects. What I have seen (and played) from Skyblivion and Skywind so far is 200 times better than any BGS game ever. Same goes for Fallout London. There is a reason why BGS pumps out so many updates. They don't want those TCs being successful.
STGxDante
The game engine was outdated. Skyrim was about it for it's limits. Everything after that was just being criminally held back. If they continue using the creation engine for any future games just forget it.
autodidacticcortex
After Starfield I formally gave up hope.
Trankia12
As a fan of their older games, Starfeild was a huge eye opener for me. Bethesda will likely never be good again. It's sad, and I hope I'm proven wrong. But as of now I have zero faith in their future. Unless they move to T.V. because the fallout show was pretty good, and I'd like to see more stuff like that.
Vortexhelios320
Give up on them, don't expect anything going forward. If they collapse, good. If they somehow manage a real return-to-form resurgence, then you can be sure we will hear about it regardless.
But until that day comes, we will be free from their special brand of disappointment.
Hayashima
A baffling revelation I had recently: I'd rather play Mass Effect: Andromeda again than Starfield.
swedeonamoose
What really sucked is that bug and performance wise, Starfield was prolly their best release in a very long time, but then they fucked up the content completely instead.
Tyggna
I wouldn't say that. Skyrim's release was similar, except Bethesda made it so the same modding tools for Oblivion largely worked on release day for Skyrim. There were mods on day 1, and good ones too, and after a month you could really turn Skyrim into what you wanted. If they did that with Starfield, rather than waiting 9 months to release the modkit, then it'd be a different story.
I hope they learn from Balder's gate success, make more freedom, and have modding available out the gate
AllMyPain
Skyrim didn't have proper mod tools for months.. you're thinking of Oblivion
Tyggna
Naw, Xilver had a Skyrim mod up within 8 hours after release. He was one of the more advanced modders at the time, but he put up a guide on nexus mod to make mods in Oblivion--he mentioned that he had some help from Bethesda
Tyggna
but, yeah, the official modding tools release was Jan after a Nov release, which is still tons better than they did with starfield
alwaysupvotefuturama
The TV show suffers from simlar writing problems as their modernish games. You can't even begin to apply logic or ask the most superficial questions, or it falls apart instantly.
Trankia12
Then don't ask any questions. Just enjoy. Not everything needs to be solid concrete lore wise, some things can just be for the fun of it. And Fallout has always been like that. It's supposed to be whimsical, not realistic.
InfocalypseRising
I haven't tried starfield yet but it really felt like people wanted to hate it before it even came out so i've wondered how much of the criticism is valid and how much is just bandwagoning
tropicanajones2
Mixed bag. There’s some good things Starfield did. The main issue is that after about 40+ hours the illusion they try to create completely breaks down and once you hit that point, you’re kinda just done. It has the classic Bethesda issues but for me that isn’t why it’s bad. It’s bad because they went too big with an engine that couldn’t support their vision. I personally don’t mind the engine, they needed to adjust their vision. It can be entertaining, but it isn’t fun.
martineb72
I tried since I had game pass for pc for a month. It wasn't worth your time. Worse it was like 150 GB. It took longer to download, than the time for me to rage quit.
Trankia12
I wanted to like it, I wanted to like it so bad, but I simply just couldn't enjoy myself while playing it. Imo it's just a boring slog.
AngryKoboldWithSomeGlasses
The hopes for Starfield plunged after Bethesda announced: 1: they were using the same creation engine, and especially 2: there would be 1000 PROCEDURALLY generated planets. This immediately gave people flashbacks to No Man's Sky. Given how many studios, big and small, had attempted procedural generation and failed, there was no reason to believe Bethesda could do it on an engine that's the equivalent of a Ford Pinto
BossVarriack
I knew nothing about the game before it came out and literally only heard about it existing a week prior and excitedly bought it. The game is boring, tedious, ugly, and incredibly restrictive for something that claimed to be very open-ended. The balancing is beyond reasonable and feels more like random stats were slapped onto stuff for purely arbitrary reasons with zero consideration of how things interact with one another. The game sucks and is hands down THE worst Beth game ever made.
modus0
Both Skyrim Special Edition and Fallout 4 are still in the Top 100 "Games by player count" on Steam. Starfield is not, despite the first DLC trailer coming out along with the modding tools and a paid mods store.
nothingunused
Isn't everyone's? Whose glory days are right now?
Ifekinlovesauerkraut
In addition to the big ones, there is Hinterland Studios, Irongate Studios, Team Cherry (still waiting)... I haven't bought a new AAA game since 2017 and I don't miss anything. At all.
Trankia12
Remedy, Fromsoftware, Larian, Hideo Kojima. Just to name a few. The ones who actually respect the players.
algoritham
You've heard of Baldur's Gate 3, right?
[deleted]
[deleted]
AllMyPain
You better not say they made Doom too ...
ThePastmaster
OH HELL NO! It was Machine Games that developed those titles, Bethesda Game Studios did not. Bethesda Softworks, which Bethesda Game Studios is a division of, published the Wolfenstein games.
Sheldonian
Kind of like valve
algoritham
Valve is just the company that runs Steam, and occasionally pops out a game. What they make is polished to a mirror shine, but damn its annoying that they have so much talent working for them and yet produce so little with it.
Sheldonian
Yup exactly, would also be nice if one day they learn to count to 3
DrunkKingOfImgur
As a fan of Bethesda's RPGs since Morrowind, yeah this was actually made kind of apparent with Skyrim. I know a LOT of people will not be happy to hear that, but ultimately Skyrim was a gutted version of Oblivion which was a gutted version of Morrowind (did you know unarmed, medium armor, pole arms, thrown weapons all had skills, & flight was am attainable spell?). The loss between New Vegas & Fallout 4 made Fallout 4 look EXTREMELY lazy- having nowhere near as many weapons/perks, and a >
DaMaffers
You crazy.
ThePastmaster
Yeah, last Beth game I bought and had fun with was Fallout 4. But it was shallower than a rain puddle. F76 and Starfield cemented for me that Bethesda will most likely never make another good game ever again.
Alozar
I've been a hater of Skyrim since it came out but I've also come to the unfortunate conclusion that, in terms of gameplay, it really is the best game they've made. I love Oblivion and Morrowind but oh boy those games have some massive issues that I did not miss lol.
Youhavinagiraffe
I enjoyed Skyriim far more than Oblivion. I don't think either of them had good RPG mechanics or quest design but Skyrim was really fun to explore. That was enough for it to be a worthwhile experience... albeit one that I have literally never bothered to finish the main quest for
thepunchline710
I hated new Vegas. It's not as good as everyone likes to believe it is. I much prefer 4, which is also not very good.
Cinammontoastcrunch
Unpopular opinion: Skyrim is an incredibly average medieval fantasy rpg, the only reason it's good is how mod-able it is
DaMaffers
You forget it was one of the first of it kind. So being the first mid RPG, makes it the best. Just how it works. /s
Cinammontoastcrunch
Even with the /s this gets my blood running a bit because I've actually had people argue basically this, ignoring that Skyrim itself isn't even the first of its series let alone genre
thebonesofmyancestors
Hard disagree. The thieves guild/nightingale and dawnguard quests were absolutely top tier. Easily on par with any other best in class RPG.
DrunkKingOfImgur
< Survival mode (that is a complete joke of a failure), that was clearly added in to jealously try and compete with New Vegas's Hardcore mode, which was balanced, manageable & not annoying af, (Survival mode required less time between needing resources, a glitch that caused any use of stimpack to give me a disease, a distinct lack of anything that cures disease, OH, and the absolute most unforgivable thing you can do in a Bethesda game: disables fast travel)
STGxDante
Nothing touches Morrowinds spell crafting. It was bonkers how you could break the game's traveling system or just make a nuke.
BossVarriack
Not to mention it for some reason made enemies require a million bullets to drop while you take two. FONV made everyone physically weaker while dealing more overall damage and brought the player more in line with the NPCs in killability. Which was far more fun. Not to mention all the weapons in FONV are viable through out the game where as FO4 it was a strict weapon category upgrade where you must use the better version of something or get outclassed.
Abyssian
And yet I have 700 hours of unrepentant fun in Fallout 4, and 300 each in Skyrim, NV, and FO3 (FO3 was my first). Not saying you're wrong, but just because a game is worse than the game before it, doesn't mean it's not still fun to a lot of people.
DrunkKingOfImgur
I mean, so do I, across multiple consoles/editions. That said, I have more hrs logged into New Vegas on any platform by itself than all of the others combined, and several 100hrs I'm each.
Wolfos
Sounds like you're focusing on the worst parts of newer games and the best parts of the older ones. Morrowind's combat system, the slow movement and constantly being out of stamina are really annoying.
Oblivion fixed that. It had the interesting idea of opening up the entire game world from the start using level scaling, which got widely criticized but it has its benefits.
Skyrim polished up the formula. It didn't do much new but it's more focused and did a great job tying it all together.
Wolfos
They all have their flaws. But at least there was something of an upwards trend of general quality. Fallout 4 broke that trend. Yeah, it's more polished than 3 but the game design is a bit messy and workshops are half finished.
Starfield feels even more like they don't know what they're doing anymore. The studio is clearly struggling to innovate. Better go back to Elder Scrolls and don't try anything too new.
ArchonIlladrya
Playing Morrowind on PC is a legit chore. Personally, I think Oblivion is the sweet spot for gameplay, even if we did get...those...character models. But that's what mods are for!
Wolfos
Oblivion's main strength is the quest writing. It tried really hard to subvert expectations and succeeds quite often. Much different from the fetch quests that plague so many other RPG's (including Skyrim and Morrowind).
But I'm not sure what you mean about the gameplay. The combat is definitely worse than Skyrim and I don't think the leveling mechanics are very successful either. Thanks to that the difficulty is all over the place with rather extreme spikes.