Simply outstanding, this game is.
Character creation. Beautiful graphics. Game's interface very friendly, and intuitive. Hundreds of believable NPCs. Wonderful main quest. Several addictive side quests. Terrific sound; from running on snow, grass to NPC voice acting. Open-ended gives this game hours of reply value.
Cons:
Far and few technical glitches, including NPCs and environment. Loading times are too frequent. (One major issue I've found while playing the game was after installing add-ons, then playing the game while connected to LIVE, save, restart game, play while not connected to LIVE, I experienced TREMENDOUS drop in in-game performance--to the point where it would take minutes to open chests, menus, etc.)*
*Despite the con factors, there will be patches, and clearing game cache to improve game performance.
I've played many so called "next-gen" Xbox 360 games and I can honestly suggest this game to anyone, both RPG lovers and non-RPG lovers. After having played the game for hours, I am very impressed. Elder Scroll 4: Oblivion definitely is a next-gen game. Rent if you must, but, buy you will do.