The Best Game In History
I was, to be generous, FLOORED. This is the best RPG I've ever played. It sucks you into this world and allows you to pick which path you take towards the ultimate end.
You start off escaping prison via the sewers in pursuit of the rightful heir to the throne. Several different factions have designs upon you and you have to decide what you want to do at what point. You also have Oblivion Gates that seek to plunge the world into chaos, but hey, your plate is full enough without it.
This game is what an RPG should be. There is precious little hand-holding. The game will give you an idea of what you can do, but talking to people in the assorted towns opens up a wide array of different options. Different actions will lead different factions to recruit you. You can create your own spells. You can enchant your own weaponry. You can create your own potions. You can summon your own monsters. There really isn't much you cannot do and there are few places you cannot go. The visuals are mind-blowing. It looks and feels like a real world. The size of the world is easily demonstrated by any attempt to walk across it --- it is not a short trek (probably similar in length to a cross map trek across GTA: San Andreas). There are numerous villages who need help. There are also Oblivion Gates, which are gorgeous to look at. The audio is also terrific. Everybody has their own voice and all the voices are competently done. It is a monument to Bethesda to make something this ambitious so good.
Some of the biggest praise I can give is that I probably spent a solid 30 hrs doing stuff with NO relevance to the central plot --- and never once felt like I was wasting time. I simply had OTHER things to do, which is a great feeling of freedom that so few games can match. Even KOTOR, another fave, didn't give you this level of freedom.
To find negatives in the title requires massive nitpicking. The Oblivion worlds tend to look similar. There is the occasional framerate hiccup. And combat is seldom difficult. None of these negate how amazing the game is, though.
To own this game is to appreciate what gaming should always strive to be.