So, Bethesda went and did it, the mad lads, they dropped The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered during the game's official reveal livestream - as had been rumoured might happen - and we've already chewed through the opening tutorial to bring you some very early impressions.
First things first, this "hands on" is based purely on the Xbox Series X version. There's a Quality and Performance mode to choose from here, although the game doesn't seem to alert you to this during initial setup. We will say as of right now, performance is 100% the way to go though, as although it's not perfect with some stuttering as you run across open terrain, it's much better than the currently subpar quality mode, which is very stuttery in comparison.
The game itself kicks off with the tutorial you may remember from the original, as you lead the king and a squad of troops through the sewers. All of this seems fairly close to what we've played before in how it unfolds - although it's definitely lengthened - and the main point of interest, really, is just how much better everything looks and feels!
The combat now has real heft, the animations and detailing are far better, you can sprint (!), the 3rd person camera is better (hooray) and the action feels far less stilted in these opening hours of rats and fragile skeleton foes. As you can see from our screens, the game really does look quite different, too, with quite muted, natural colours compared to the original, and a take on NPCs that makes them look sort of photorealistic in places. Which is a bit unsettling.
In terms of open world navigation, we're still early doors obviously, but we can say that the compass has seen some nice tweaks that make finding new locations, hidden caves and all that stuff feel a lot easier. We're sure you can turn some of this new helpfulness off if you like, too.
The HUD has seen changes that makes it more helpful and concise, as well, and we get the feeling as we dig in here that there have been loads of little nips and tucks and balances to stuff like sneaking and archery. It all feels really slick. There's also a new levelling system that we're just getting to grips with, that sits somewhere between Skyrim and the original Oblivion, and the menus in your inventory are much more user-friendly and detailed than before.
Oh, and speaking of detail, there's a realism that's been gone for in how the world itself has been redone that makes it seem so much more alive, dangerous and interesting to pass through. It's amazing to go hunting for ingredients and gear you've picked up a million times over back in the old game, for example, as it now all looks so much more unique and full of individual personality thanks to the graphical overhaul.
The draw distance has definitely seen a big upgrade, we reckon - we were able to pick out some far-off buildings on a distant mountain, for example, and clothing fabrics, the glint from your blood-spattered sword and so on are all hugely enhanced, adding up to a game that looks 100% bang up to date and modern.
Of course, it's never plain sailing, and we have had some issues thus far too, it must be said, besides the stuttery wobbles in both available graphical modes. Indeed, there is some weird artefacting - we're assuming upscaling of some sort at work in the image - especially around objects as you move around at times, that could do with being way less noticeable.
However, small technical issues aside, and wow, we are psyched.This really does feel like starting out fresh in a brand new RPG, there's been so much work done. We're sure there's lots of cool new surprises to be found down the road, alongside the pure delight of rediscovering old friends and places that have been totally revamped. So, if you'll excuse us, we're off to Kvatch to sort some stuff out for Jauffre. Bye!