This is largely because, in many respects, the games get redesigned from the ground up. Skyrim has a totally different skills and stats system to Oblivion. Some thing fit with that new ethos. Some don't.

There's also Lore to consider. There are certain creatures from Oblivion that just wouldn't LIVE in the cold mountain regions of Skyrim. As a species they woldn't survive the conditions. Daedra also. I know folks complain, but the gates to Oblivion were closes shut 200 years ago. The only Daedra who logically CAN get through into the mortal plane are the Princes of Oblivion themselves and a select few ominions they might bring with them. But the likelihood of Scamps or Clanfears randomly wandering through? Just not realistic.

It's not JUST as simple as 'Bethesda couldn't be bothered to make them/add them for Skyrim,' despite what forum posters might claim in their rage.

But a summoner could summon a scamp or a Clannfear or a Daedroth if he currently can summon a Daedra Lord. They may not be everywhere, but mages should be able to bind them to this world just like atronachs or bound weapons (that are daedra in weapon form).

I dont know, but the series has bled so many features I do not consider Skyrim to be a TES RPG.
It just has lost too much.
Customisation, options, freedom, storytelling, fun.

I had to laugh at this when I read it, especially when it followed this:


Unique model, texture, animations, skills....but it's "not all that unique". And I don't see how you would say it only plays slightly different than a two handed sword. Seems the one handed sword would play much more similar to a two handed. I haven't played too much with 2h weapons, but how many times to you thrust with a 2h sword? I would assume power attacks with a spear would be much different than a 2h or 1h powerful swing.

Light armor only plays slightly different than heavy armor so why add both?

Eventually TES will be back to the original games when Elf was a class and you had three skills, melee, magic, health. Stealth will have been cut too by then because it was unbalanced and broken.

There philosophy of completely redeveloping the game each time is the source of its many criticisms. However, since the game always sells good, they won't change it.

In Morrowind you could also shoot thirty odd arrows through somethings face and miss it regardless.

More or less, they started using an actual physics engine for the combat, not some statistical dice rolling. Presumably, at some point, they might get to putting in crossbows/throwing things, which would have entirely different physics from a longbow. Much as Spears are kind of pointless to put in without a much better range mechanic then the current melee has.

Now, why you can't enchant your own bloody staff, especially considering the profusion of ones you find, I don't know. (At least in Skyrim you can eventually manage to find one for all the spells)

my favorite new bow mechanic is the one where you can be practically falling off an edge while leaning over it and still managing to fire your arrow into the ground.

no blocking in exchange for an unreliable bash that doesn't get any bonuses from perks is also a noteworthy design blunder.

Mass audience does not appreciate many features of older RPG's that some of us still wish existed. Certain aspects of old school design seriously just would not sell well enough for these big budget games.

Mass audience makes New Kids on the Block 1,000,000+ record sellers. [censored] the mass audience.

They wanted 10 different models for meat so they took our pants and left out half the game.

Probably true to some extent, but it's very easy to underestimate a mass audience. A couple of years ago I don't think many people would have predicted that Demon Souls' difficulty would become one of its major selling points.

Things left out while the rest remain largely the same since Arena Game mechanics wise.

Leveling is the same, raising skills hasn't changed, Enchanting still does exactly what has always done, bonuses are still personified by skill boosts and magical effects etc etc

effectively this -Skill- System is pretty stagnant, has only gotten smaller while barely changing what it does at the core and is now being used for near 95% of character upbringing.

Your light armor example doesn't directly influence combat like weapons do, nor does it have its own animations. As for two handed vs 1 handed they don't play that much differently. However they're a a staple of RPGs no matter the geographic location. Western RPGs in particular focus more on swords, axes, and hammers than they do spears. While Eastern RPGs like Final Fantasy had lances, or Dragoons who use lances in combat. As for spears I believe spears were more accustomed to fighting cavalry.

That aside my only guess as to why they were excluded was because of their somewhat limited uniqueness and that people may not be used by a wide audience. If more of your audience uses swords over spears then why take the time to please that 20%, or 10%?




How pretentious. Things evolve over time, a lot of those older RPG elements are nothing more than fat that doesn't need to be in the game. If you truly want to play an older styled RPG then go play Dungeons of Dredmor, or non Western RPGs. As it is though it seems like you need to appreciate the newer features, or at least you should stop blaming a mass audience when it's more that things change over time.

hardcoe mode, proper companion control, companion content, naming one's saves, horse combat/horse system, quality object manipulation/house decoration, the setting control options for video/audio are too simple, choices effecting the world around the character, number/diversity of armor/weapons/enemies, high level enemies, difficulty slider bar, strong ai mechanics, use of racial characteristics/immunities, unarmored/unarmed, a quality economy, speech skill alternatives and pacifist ability, ability to fail a quest, text dialogue, journal and more quality quest directions vs handholding markers, an unwanted quest menu, ability to drop side quest items, degrading weapons/unused skills/potions over time, all the spellmaking/spell type issues, deep vampire/necro builds(from what i've seen), weather effects on character, shovel/hammer/embalming tool/linen wrap (necro) use, more complex puzzles, more painful traps/lockpicking penalties, in-game mechanics use for dodge/acrobatic/athletic/encumberance/climbing etc, character sheet menu (i want to SEE my character beth), achievement for completing the mq and guilds on master throughout (lol), faction depth

as you can seem, for me, it's more about CUSTOMIZATION AND OPTIONS. that kind of stuff they cut irritates me so much. the leveling and balance and storytelling aren't as important. though, having the game challenging throughout at high character levels on the highest option, i feel, is beth's obligation/duty.

just things i'd like to see. and, have seen from beth and other games in the past and so i feel they could have been implemented. regardless, i really like skyrim and it's graphical, living world and roleplaying capabilities.

This is a beautiful post and everyone should read it.

This is why Skyrim doesn't feel as much like it's own little universe unlike Daggerfall and Morrowind, the features are scrapped or added based on how many people would use them, not on how much it would add to the world.

I didn't even realise some of the features that were in those games until my third or fourth playthrough.

I don't think that's a fair assessment though- on the contrary, I strongly feel they STARTED with what would make this world a unique place all its own, before adding the elements that were in previous games. The architecture, the weapon/armor designs, the flora and fauna, all feel as if they belong in Skyrim. I think they created Skyrim, populated it with Skyrim's design elements, then went on to work on game mechanics, plot points, etc.

The world feels real aesthetically, but in terms of the mechanics and functions of the world everything is accesible and practical.
In Morrowind thrown weapons, spears, crossbows, unarmed, unarmoured, medium armor and other things added to the feeling that this is a world with features and weapons that take more work to use and aren't neccasarily useful in every situation. They aren't added because they will help the player become a better warrior/theif/mage, they are just there and they flesh out the world whether the player uses them or not.

Crossbows and staves don't amputate and behead causing gallons of blood and body parts to be thrown dozens of feet, so the effect isn't good enough to warrant them in this type of hack and slash game.

One of the reasons they probably cut both crossbows and spears out of the game is because, like me, a lot of people hate them. There may be other perfectly logical reasons as to why such content was cut, however. Perhaps they were choosing between revamping the archery system altogether vs adding in crossbows. Perhaps they were more interested in adding finishing moves rather than adding spears.

They may also have spent that development time making Stuffed Mud Crabs mounted on walls, different models of Mud Crabs, or possibly even new and innovative ways to make Mud Crabs burrow into mud. Did you ever think of that? I'm pretty satisfied with the outcome, personally.

Exactly!

tails, they go thru chairs! That [censored] was down in oblivion, wtf happend?

I agree. Conjugation spells are awesome.