We recently had a thread "http://www.gamesas.com/topic/1382424-new-players-opinion-of-oblivion/" in the Oblivion general discussion forum http://www.gamesas.com/topic/1382424-new-players-opinion-of-oblivion/

Basically the OP was curious what newcomers to the TES games for whom Skyrim was their first game, and who had also played Oblvion, thought of Oblivion.

What I want to know is:

What do you 'old-time' Oblivion players who have ALSO bought and played Skyrim, think of it?

I initially posted this as a thread in the Oblivion general discussion, but Hungry Donner locked it up as he thought it best to post it here.

I'm mostly interested to hear from the long-time and still active _OBLIVION_ players about what THEY think of Skyrim.

I have no doubt we could muster some very indepth discussions of the pros and cons of Steam. Suffice to say, that is not what I'm asking about, and not what I hope this thread becomes.

I am just curious about Skyrim. And I don't must mean superficial like 'Its good. You should get it."

I would like to read an indepth and knowledgeable synthesis of what Skyrim is like and how it compares to Oblivion (both good and bad) from someone who really knows and loves Oblivion and also has played Skyrim intensively. I can of course watch Youtube videos of the game until the cows come home, but there is nothing quite like hearing what a seasoned expert has to SAY about a game.

I love all three. Each has it's strengths and weaknesses. Skyrim tends to get more hate then the others though because it's not exactly like the other two.

I like all the modern TES games. Like each one for what it is. Skyrim is my second favorite of the series.

Oblivion > Skyrim

Oblivions just felt more alive.

Well, I started the series with Daggerfall and Redguard when I was 11 or 12.
Morrowind came out soon after, in the stage where I could easily grasp the mechanics of the gameplay, and of course develop a bias towards it.
It remains my favorite game of all time, tied with Resident Evil 2.

I was very excited for Oblivion, although disappointed that it would not take place in Black Marsh, as I had wanted it to.
Playing most games for the first few days is a point where they are exempt of almost any criticism, and this was true with Oblivion.
Sadly, this veneer was shorn away once the main quest quickly developed into running errands for Sean Bean, and the realization of how miniscule the faction quest lines were compared to Morrowind.
Oblivion remains a great game, though not an especially great TES game.

Skyrim has the detriment of being released during my prolonged acension to levels of cynicism hitherto unfathomable by most mortal men, and is thus under a far harsher lens than the past games.
That being said, Skyrim is the shallowest of the series.
Gone are the intricate story telling and intricate gameplay mechanics, replaced with dragons (bcuz thr c00l, amirite?) and a "user-friendly" (users in this case being morons, apparently) interface.
It saddens me, that I once thought Oblivion would be the low point in the series and that Skyrim would be a return to greatness.

Skyrim is the best playing game that Bethesda has created thus far. Its intuitive and exciting, with a relatively good balance of contrast between visceral combat and laid back distraction gameplay.

It's important to take note that playing is the operative word here. While I believe Skyrim is Oblivion's superior in nearly every way, I do not believe it's the best example of interactive art that Bethesda has created. Fallout 3 and Morrowind trump it in these complicated and highly opinionated categories in my mind. Fallout 3 and Morrowind had a unique sense of world identity that you still just don't see in Skyrim. In Morrowind's case, seemingly benign details all lend credit to the world's integrity, feeding back on itself and creating a truly unique and memorable atmosphere. Morrowind had many advantages that ironically, stem from the weak technology used to run the game. Where Skyrim and other Modern games can bring responsive and high-quality combat to center-stage, Morrowind, and to a lesser extent, Fallout 3, had to endear itself in a less obvious, but vastly superior (Again, opinion) way, by overshadowing the gameplay itself with the atmosphere.

I can, and have written many, many responses to similar questions in the past, I'll spare the community another one of my monolithic 80 page responses, and just close up saying as an entire Package, Skyrim is probably the Second best Bethesda game to date. Combining responsive, fluid core gameplay, with a wonderfully detailed (If sometimes missing context) world that's almost always a thrill to explore, even for the 50th time. Morrowind still represents the strongest example of "Interactive Art" The studio has put out, but Skyrim is a step in the right direction (Something I didn't feel with Oblivion, as much as I loved that game), and as the popularity of the series soars, and the new Technological bar is set higher (Durango and Orbiz) the Future of the series looks bright indeed.

wut? By the way bros, here is my honest opinion: Morrowind>Skyrim>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Oblivion

People already know my opinion,

Skyrim/Oblivion/Morrowind.