Meh. I wasn't expecting lively taverns, just as I wasn't expecting busy cities. People who expect that kind of thing from an open-world game this generation are fooling themselves.

I do wish taverns were more atmospheric though. Like most interiors in the game, the lighting seems all wrong.

I think one issue is that all NPCs are named. They could have more generic NPCs that populate towns and say next to nothing when you try to talk to them, while still keeping plenty of people to converse with. I liked that in FNV, it helped the world feel more real.

Oblivion managed to put enough people in the cities to make them feel lively enough. Sure, the people talked about mudcrabs all day, but the world didn't feel empty like Skyrim does.

Yes because bars in England are all quiet and well mannered.

Lively? How is "Hello" "Bye" "Farewell" better than the fully fledged conversations most NPCs have in Skyrim? Go to the market stall in Whiterun and I'm pretty sure at least one conversation will be happening.

I'd rather have fully conversing NPCs over "Have you heard news from the other parts of Tamriel?" "Good day"

Well, even they do it all it will be a scrip that will pop a fight when you enter, and it will be boring again after a while..

What they nood to do is first assing a ambience sound to it, like little crowed noise you know.. And some fights, drunken people, eating people, speaking people, npc's should be able to order songs from bards, and at least one of these stuffs should be happen when we enter a tavern so it wont feel like it is scripted, and it should be based on a roll on npc's, a disposition system like oblivion would be nice;

Like x npc doesnt like drunked people, so when a drunken marked npc appear he got a roll to atack him, and every npc that hang ou in tavern have a number that detect how will they react to threats. Like if y's number is bigger than x's number than y will fight back, else flee.

Also there really could be minigames in game, like in witcher.. a card game, dice game..

id rather have nice, oblivion-styled chit-chat about mudcrabs than the exact same coversation every 3 days. the first time i hear a stuck-up redguard "noble" in whiterun (who shall not be named!) talk to the people manning the stalls it was sort of lively and interesting...the pure silence (save the mad ravings of a priest) was very very unlively and dead feeling...the second time i hear the conversation i miss the silence, the silence made more sense (although the slience made about as much sense as a mudcrab killing a dovakiin who just slew a dragon). the taverns are okay if you get them at the right time and are very lucky (it was a party in whiterun the other day ) but that usually doesnt happen, something needs to be added to make them interesting

I do enjoy the specific conversations that people have, but I am a little nostalgic for the random mudcrab chats. They did sometimes sound silly, but they made the world feel alive.

I think they've got the right number of people in the towns. but i can easily agree that the taverns need some work. drunk songs would be awesome, along with a couple of npc's brawling prefect.

The lighting are wrong in all the game if you ask me,but isn't a big problem,certainly i don't expect a Caravaggio masterpiece in a videogame; but i sincerely think that even a modest console can handle without problems more generic Npcs in towns and inns

Skooma.