Probably one of those people who thinks it all started with the films...

There's books for Lord of the Rings?

There's books?

Yes.

I don't know enough about TLotR as I have not read The Silmarillion. I do however own "Unfinished Tales - The Lost Lore of Middle-earth" and "The Lays of Beleriand" but I haven't read either. I also know there's the Book of Lost Tales 1 and 2. So I can only imagine how much lore there is in all of the those, not counting TLotR/The Hobbit.

The Elder Scrolls lore, to me, only got REALLY interesting when looking into Vivec and his sermons, CHIM, and Dagoth-Ur and anti-CHIM. Most of which is discussed outside of the games (lore forum), if I'm not mistaken. And, again if I'm not mistaken, most of the really good stuff was written by Michael Kirkbride, who isn't working for Beth any more.

Wha at?

I'll admit right off the bat that the only TES games I've played are Oblivion and Skyrim, and I'm just reading the Lord of the Rings for the first time right now(nearing the end of The Two Towers); so I'm not very knowledgeable of the lore of either collection.

From what I've experienced so far though, Middle Earth feels like it has a lot more history to it then Tamriel. Interacting with characters in those games made me feel like someone was trying to force me into learning a backstory, everyone wanted to spew their personal information at me as soon as I approached them. I admit that this is a common trope among RPG's, but there's ample proof that it can be handled far better then it was.

So far in the Lord of the Rings though I've found at least one major difference: characters don't feel like they have "just" a backstory, they feel like they have a life. Every time I meet a new character in that book I feel like I'm meeting an actual person that has lived before and will(barring death) live after this story is over. No one I have met in Oblivion or Skyrim feels as real to me as Barliman Butterbur, Tom Bombadil or Treebeard.

It's like the Internet made from a tree.

Tolkien.

Tolkien is fantasy.

Is this a serious question?

Tolkien.

Lame fantasy at that. LotR is overrated

There is far more to Middle Earth than just Lord of the Rings. That story was just a drop in the water.

Explain while I'm sharpening my pitchfork.

And Dragonborn was highly underwhelming.

I just borrowed the LOTR series form a friend. I started watching it last night and was sidetracked. I will try to watch them today. However, I did notice how the whole Dwarven culture was so similar to TES and Dragon Age. I mean with the construction style and the concept of them being master craftsman and what have you.

Who started that?

I'm too lazy at the moment to do any research on release dates.

EDIT : I realize his writings predate TES and Dragon Age by 60 years, I mean form a visual standpoint. They all three look amazingly alike. It's obviously an adopted art style, but who is coping from who?

Moorcock.

I don't think that it is possible to even compare the two for a wide variety of reasons. Not the least of which is the fact that a huge portion of TES Lore is "non-canon".

Tolkien had complete control over the development of his legendarium, while TES is influenced by the games PLUS fan lore PLUS developer lore PLUS exdeveloper lore. Because of this, when reading Tolkien's works you feel as though you are in a "complete" world, while TES feels like an "incomplete" world we are discovering, almost as it happens.

Middle Earth is way thought-through and deep. Pick a totally random name from Tolkien, and I bet you his/her whole background has been fleshed out. Not only his name or occupation, but also wich clan he belongs to, where they're from and what his ancestors did in the past.

Tolkien invented a whole new language wich he called elvish, all by HIMSELF.

Even names of forrests, mountains, rivers has some kind of backstory to them. Heck almost as if you couldn't even mention an open area full of grass, without it some thoughts behind it.

The Elder Scrolls wouldn't be without Tolkien

Maybe so but I'm only aware of what I've read in LotRs and I just found it meh. Nothing really stood out for me throughout.

I'm not saying TES is better, [censored] that. I don't find TES all that impressive either.

I was about to say something similar.

OP i'm willing to bet that TES was inspired by Tolkiens works as the similarities are there and Tolkien came first. Tolkein has started genres and a following that only the likes of Jedi and Trekkies can compare to so he wins by a landslide

TES lost as soon as you typed "Tolkien"

I rather struggled with his poetry readings on Warrior on the Edge of Time.

While I agree that it's not the BEST STORY EVERR (mostly because I despise the ending), but Tolkien pretty much single-handedly created the modern fantasy genre. Tolkienian(?) fantasy is the very definition of "default" or "stock" fantasy which serves as model for any aspiring fantasy setting. If it wasn't for Tolkien, modern fantasy would be nothing like what it is.

It's also pretty damn complex. I don't think there are any fictional settings as thorough as MIddle Earth.

Silly boy, trees don't have screens.