Location based damage makes no sense from a melee standpoint when you can't be accurate in where you place your strikes. In a game where you have, say 7 directional attacks, and these said directional attacks can all be aimed (Looking up your character is seen swinging his weapon upward and looking down your character is seen swinging his weapon downward plus anything else in between), it makes far more sense.

I'd prefer something more akin to how Jedi Academy handled directional striking.

I'd prefer something more akin to how Jedi Academy handled directional striking.

Ah, yes. I didn't think of that. I think I'd like to see a little more weight to the attacks, slow things down just a little bit. In JA I often felt like I was just flailing.

I was speaking of control scheme. I personally preferred how some of the JKA mods handled combat better than base JKA.

Any recommendations on those mods?

The combat's fine. If you want super refined combos and blocks and other button mashing, go play Tekken.

Combat is incredibely boring and repetative in this game, it has little substance to it.

Elder scrolls games have never been hailed for rich and engaging combat engines.

Well, that's fine. Elder Scrolls games are SUPPOSED to be about exploration, right?

Right?

The problem with that is that combat is essential in these games. It's highly recommended that you have at least one combat skill in each game to specialize in. You can't just be a diplomat and talk your way through the game; eventually, you're going to HAVE to fight for your life.

And it's not even "eventually." You're thrown into combative situations from the very start, even if you're just fighting off animals.

Combat is so important in this game that it NEEDS to be fun! If you're not going to make the combat fun, you should make the combative situations few and far between. Or, at the very least, you should have the OPTION of diplomacy, instead of merely having to choose between magic, combat, or stealth. Actually, I'd prefer that anyway. Even if I wouldn't use it, at least it would more fully realize the ambition of "do what you want, play how you want" that Bethesda ultimately wants to do.

Thoughts?

Why does everyone you meet in a cave or ruin or barrow or temple have to be an enemy? That's all I want to know. There should be an option to talk or negotiate with them, cause we might be on the same side right?

This.