The Imperial City is one of my favorite places in Oblivion. When the Remastered Oblivion was released in April, I went straight into the city, trying to see what had been changed by the people renovating the game. I was happy to see that the Imperial City got a much needed change in its style and I was taking screenshots everywhere I was walking in the metropolis of the Septim Empire.
There was another aspect of the city that I enjoyed from the original game. This was the sewers of the Imperial City, which Bethesda had put so much effort into. In comparison to most games, Bethesda seems to remember that cities have infrastructure and have an inner life beneath their streets.
While the Imperial City Sewers may seem like a boring place, I think it makes a big impression on me. That Bethesda would spend their time putting effort into the Imperial City sewers, and give it a sense of verticality and not just make them into linear areas, is a great way of giving more depth into the Imperial City as a character.
When one thinks about cities in Video games, they tend to revolving more around the player and do not seem like livable places. However, in Bethesda’s games, they have managed to build cities that seem inviting to the player without revolving around them.
The sewers are a city onto themselves and that is saying something about the design of the Imperial City. When one enters through the gates of the sewers, one is treated to underground world where sewage and all various creatures and bandits are coexisting with one another in the bowels of the empire.
Some people say that the game starting in a sewer hurts the game; I actually say that it improves the moment when you exit the sewers and see the Elven ruins in front of you. It shows great contrasts in the colors and the mood there. You go from a place of confinement into a place filled with the possibility of adventure. It that feeeling which makes us want to explore the world and not follow the main quest.
Bethesda is really great at getting us to care about such environments and Oblivion Remastered could give us a taste of what’s to come with The Elder Scrolls VI.
This is what was missing in a game such as Skyrim. The cities in that game were simply too small and I felt like even the big cities were lacking an inner nature. The sewers of the Imperial City seem to imply a history beyond the player. There is infrastructure which keeps cities running and Bethesda manages to simulate it.
The sewers beckon to the player like an underground realm of Hades. It is remarkable how the developers made such an effort at bringing to life a place that people do not go to. It is important to understand how the nooks and cranies aspect of Bethesda’s games is what makes them special as role playing games.
Their environments is their strength. When I go into any Bethesda game, I notice how they tell great stories through the cities and environments in those games.
Oblivion Remastered gave me what I wanted to have in a game. I did not want a linear experience that was on rails. I want a living, breathing world full of possiblities.
Bethesda knows how to scratch that itch that no other developer can. That is why the Elder Scrolls series is a truly special among gamers.
My Game Reviews 