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Elder Scrolls 3 Morrowind Expansion Pack: Bloodmoon

Elder Scrolls 3 Morrowind Expansion Pack: Bloodmoon

List Price: $19.99
Your Price: $17.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Solid Expansion
Review: Tribunal is a very good expansion with many hours of gameplay in it. I played for about a month just in Mournhold, completing every last quest I could get my greedy hands on. Then I went back to a save game and killed Almalexia! My favorite quest is when the little wood elf asks you to help him beat up a Nord. I did beat up the Nord, but then I killed him, so everyone else attacked me. Thankfully, I saved previously, so I killed both the wood elf and the innkeeper and took their money. Then I went back to a save game.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Phenomenal plotwriting, riveting gameplay
Review: I absolutely LOVED the Tribunal expansion for Morrowind. Some fans complained that the expansion was too "quest-orientated" and provided little opportunity to explore the backcountry. Well, I guess I've always loved the quests and hated aimlessly searching the outback for some obscure landmark, so Tribunal's mechanics suited me just fine.

Tribunal provides many features to enhance your Elder Scrolls experience. Most notably there is now an enemy lifebar, making gameplay much easier and enjoyable. Also, enemies and quests are generally considerably more difficult, and should be pleasantly challenging to the average player who has completed the original game's main quest. Also, now vendors have more money and you can sell some of your more expensive loot.

These are all nice features, but the "killer app" of Tribunal is the same as what set the original game apart from the competition: phenomenal storyline and plot-writing. The plot of the original game was so detailed, immersive, and epic that I often described Morrowind as not a game but a work of fine literature, in the same league as Lord of the Rings. Morrowind's storylines were known for their ingenious and unpredictable plot twists as well generally innovative dramatic development. That said, the plot for the main quest of Tribunal exceeded even that of the original game. If only Hollywood hacks had this kind of creativity and ingenuity; Tribunal is digital poetry. You will be drawn into a web of intrigue that will gradually build in crescendo until an absolutley shocking and thrilling climax that left me speechless, staring at the screen with a gaping jaw. It's similar to the feeling one gets from watching the season finale of your favourite prime-time soap, the kind full of shocking revelations. The surprise appearance and my subsequent killing of a certain end-game character (whom I won't spoil for you) was one of the most thrilling gaming experiences of my life. If all game developers took the same effort to loving craft the plotlines of their games, the movie industry would collapse.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wow
Review: This is truely an amazing game! I will admit that I have the xbox version instead of the pc, but the basic gameplay is the same. When you first pop the game into your console you may be a little dissapointed with the graphics, (asuming that you have the pc edition, considering that the xbox versions graphics are presently unmatched) because it takes a super fast comp to get the most out of the landscape and character graphics, but even then the graphics arent so bad as to ruin the game. If you really dont mind graphics and care more about the gameplay and quests (you'll get more of these than you need) then this is the ultimate rpg for you. The game is entirely open-ended and once your release forms are signed you will be free to do as you please. Strait away you can pick up any weapon (stealing it of coarse) and get a price on your head. You can now either pay your fine, go to jail, or resist arrest. (this being one of my favorites;) Go ahead and slaughter the whole of Seyda neen if you want, no-one's stopping you, (accept the 18 gaurds that are now chasing you). The class selection is huge and very important as to how you complete the main quest, if you ever choose to do so. Your character becomes more intellegent as you go, and grows better at the things he/she practices more. Over 120 hours of gameplay here and never a dull moment. Enjoy!

P.S - I forgot to mention that with your order of morrowind you'll also recieve the TES construction set, which allows you to create, drag, and drop new characters, creatures, and items into any nook and crany of the HUGE world of morrowind. So if you want to add a crate with the best armor or weapons the game has to offer right outside the building where you start, go ahead! You can also create new quests that can be super hard with dismal rewards or the exact opposite with a few clicks of the mouse and a good idea. This is the best feature of the computer version in my opinion, and btw, it is ONLY for the comp version. So pick up a copy today and you won't be dissapointed.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Achieved instant classic status with art alone.
Review: The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (Bethesda Softworks, 2001)

So I picked up Morrowind a few years ago, when I still had a computer that was capable of running most things. I installed it, and the best I could get out of it after all the tweaking I could do was 0.2fps. It says something about the game that I played it for weeks with 0.2fps. I had never seen anything quite like it, and I was willing to take ten minutes to get from building A to building B just to look at the amazing graphics.

I upgraded the computer a while ago, and I dusted off Morrowind and started playing again about three months ago. The new computer actually runs it like a computer game instead of an art slideshow, so I can finally say something about it.

I played, briefly, both Arena and Daggerfall, the first two Elder Scrolls games. I was put off both by the absolutely horrible combat interface, despite having heard so many wonderful things about Daggerfall's gameplay. The first thing I noticed was that Bethesda has made the combat interface far, far simpler now (a simple "use best attack automatically" checkbox will stop you from having to learn eighteen different ways to swing a sword, thankfully). The second was that the character-building interface is much, much better in this one; Daggerfall's was already head and shoulders above that of other CFRPGs (so much so that it was riffed on in the best freeware RPG on the planet, ADOM), but Morrowind expands the character creation interface, allowing for as much or as little detail as the player would like; you can choose one of the premade character kits, have the game choose one for you by answering questions a la Daggerfall, or customize your own. From there, the game just sits at your feet, waiting for commands. There is a main storyline, and those who like linear gameplay can get involved in it immediately; for the rest of you, there's the rest of Vvardenfell. The game can be as linear or non-linear as the player would like it to be, with only a few things closed off to newbies (usually trainers or traders who dead with high-level stuff; the way they're closed off, though, is so non-intrusive as to not bother the average player at all.) There are hundreds, maybe thousands, of easter eggs to be had throughout Vvardenfell, encouraging exploration for the sake of exploration, rather than to follow a dull, overused storyline, as in most CFRPGs. Quests outside the main storyline are also to be found in great abundance, and players can spend months of both game- and real-time doing those while nursing the main storyline (again, assuming you opt to follow it) along at whatever pace the player likes. (I assume the ability to get kicked out of guilds for just not doing anything still exists; I've yet to run across it.)

And, as I mentioned before, the artwork is stunning. In 2001, there wasn't another computer game that included anything close to this level of detail. At the end of 2004, there are a handful of games that match it, but none of them have the same feel as Morrowind; as realistic as things often look, there's still a weird, out-of-place feel to it all that makes many situations that much more disturbing.

Many of the complaints originally voiced by players in the game have been silenced thanks to the two add-ons and a few patches; I do suggest getting both Bloodmoon and Tribunal as well, and installing them, then patching, before playing. Even with the patches, I still use a notebook to track quests and the like, but the game does do it for you now.

The last game that kept me up this late at night this often was Lords of Magic, back in the mid-nineties. Morrowind is one for the ages. **** ½

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Best Game Ever; Until Oblivion comes...
Review: This has got to be the best game ever in my opinion. As was Arena and Daggerfall when they came out. (For people not in the know, those were parts 1 and 2 in the Elder Scrolls) This game has an unlimited amount of fun playing hours. I've put in as many as 40 hours a week on this game. I've had it for almost 2 years and still play it about 8 hours a week. I've beat the main quest (Tribunal and Bloodmoon as well) yet its always fun to get side-tracked in the hudreds and hudreds of other quests. BEST GAME EVER!!! But of course I'll be saying the same thing when Oblivion hits! (Elder Scrolls Part 4 for the uninformed) This game is a definite buy as are the 2 expansion sets!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Exceptional Open RPG
Review: I got this game shortly after it came out and I love it. That said I can see why some people may hate it. If your idea of an RPG game is Diablo or Diablo II you most likely will NOT like this game. In addition, this is one of the few CRPG's I have seen that does not hold your hand very much. Expect to be pointed in the direction of the main quest and be cut loose.

Graphics:
They really don't excell I will admit, however it gets the job done. Keep in mind that if graphics were made much more detailed your computer would be brought to its knees regardless of how powerful your machine is. The graphics arn't anything to marvle at (exception: their night time skys are beautiful to the point where sometimes during the game I would sit and watch the sky for awhile) but they arn't horrible to the point where they detract from the game.

Gameplay:
Gameplay, as I have already stated, is extreamly open ended. You are pointed in the direction of the main quest right after completing character generation but that is it. There is nothing at all forcing you to pick up the main quest immediately or even at all (you can even fail in the main quest and continue playing!). You can join a multitude of factions or even one of the noble houses. With work you can even become the head of one or several of these factions (though it doesn't carry too many benifits with it sadly).

If you are new to CRPG's this may overwhelm you because the game really does not hold your hand. Also, it will not stop you from walking into situations or places where you will get killed. As a result I would suggest saving periodically since it is entirely possible to walk into your death and have to start over from hours ago.

If you get over the open ended concept of the game there is a LOT to do. As I said, I have had the game since it first came out and I still have not completed all the quests in Morrowind (let alone the expansion packs). Add to this the ability of players to modify the game by adding in quests/items/people/entire land masses and you have the possibility to never completely 'finish' the game.

This may be a problem for some people who expect a game to end once they finish off the final boss. The game keeps on going even after that. It also may be a problem who don't enjoy games that are too involved. I could see someone simply not cairing anymore by the time they get to the final boss.

Combat:
Combat honestly can be a big let down, especially if you turn on the option that makes it so that your best attack is the one that is always used. It basically ammounts to swinging your weapon at the other guy until he falls down (though honestly moving around does help a lot). If you don't have the option that always makes your best attack the one that is used combat does become a little more involved as you manuver and use different attacks.

Magic:
The magic system is much better than the combat system actually. You have the ability to buy many different spells and even create your own. There are also many different types of magic spells. Illusions that let you effect other people or turn invisable. Alterations that allow you to levitate or cause your pack to become lighter (or someone elses pack to become heavier), Destruction which lets you kill people, Restoration that lets you heal others and yourself, summoning spells which allow you to call up help from minions or even summon weapons to your aid, enchanting that allows you to use enchanted items more efficently and enchant your own weapons, and mysticism which allows you to resist other people's magic or teleport around.

Construction Set:
The construction set is a wonderful addition. As far as I can tell, if you can dream it up you can add it to the game if you use the construction set. Already there are many mods out there for the game, and quite a few very good ones. While it is possible to mess up your game in horrible ways with the construction set, to fix this you simply stop using that particular mod. One word of warning I will give people is that mods that are extreamly ambitious tend to slow the game down a lot. Likewise using too many mods will have the same effect. Most mods, however, are well done and well thought out.

Bad Things:
The game does have some flaws. First of all you will want to get it patched. Even when patched, however, it does sometimes kick me back to the desk top. This usually happens when some other process starts running (like norton updating) or when the game has been running for a very long time. Also, there are some graphic glitches that happen sometimes like falling through the floor (returns you to where you entered) or getting stuck in spots that are impossible to escape from (having a poll go right through your body somehow so that you cannot move away from it). Even so these things happen very rarely in my experience, and in fact can be fixed in game by using teleport type spells.

To sum things up, if you drool at the ideas of open ended play and near unlimited unplayability then you should give this game a shot. It may take some time to get used to how things are done, but it is extreamly fun once you get the hang of it. If on the other hand you get frustrated easily or are looking for a game which can be 'beaten' Morrowind will probably leave you feeling lost or leave you wondering why you care about the final boss any more.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A Breathtaking game. But so much more...
Review: I first heard of Morrowind when the game was reviewed on Cartoon Networks Toonamie. They said it was the largest RPG game ever. I'm not a RPG player, but Morrowind certainly is a fastsinating and entertaining game to get involved in. Instead of following the goal that the character is given, I go off to do what I want. Loads of fun. "Try smacking one of the guards" Woot. Experimenting by going off on whatever route you want is the absolutely best feature this game has to offer! I haven't tried yet, but one can build their own worlds I've been told. Thats another feature of Morrowind I have yet to get into. But I will.
Give this game a chance, and allow oodles of playing time. You'll need it.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Liked Daggerfall better
Review: Now that was a good game. It had decent music, decent graphics for its time, and the characters you chose looked beautiful. This is so so in my opinion, as it is not enough better from what I've seen to warrant an overhaul of your machine (you need a Pentium 3 or more, a dvd-rom, and everything else to work well; Daggerfall ran on WIndows 95/98). I managed to get it to run even without the dvd-rom, but I wasn't really impressed. That all considered, the controls are harder to maneuver (since I didn't have a manual, I had a tough time figuring out how to talk to people), and they scrapped the default design from Daggerfall, so you have to move forward using alphanumerics instead of cursor keys. If you have a manual, and you have the specifications, it might be worth your while. Given the choice, though, I'd rather purchase Daggerfall again. I just found out that even though XP generally forbids Daggerfall, if you are unlucky enough to have XP and not have capacity to run Morrowind, go type in Daggerfall XP patch into the search engine to reconfigure the system. I think the deal is that it's illegal to have both on your computer, so if you have Morrowind capacity (I hate you), you shouldn't install this patch.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: The worst Game of the Year
Review: Not sure why this game got "The best game of the year". This game sucks big time. I bought it and my friend and I tried for a couple of weeks. We agreed that this game is horrible. I sold the game to one of the local shops. If you want to play a great game, try "Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance I and II".

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Morrowind Elder Scrolls III Review
Review: I'm not a dedicated gamer, and I've been known to buy games (at full price, no less) that wind up just sitting around on my hard drive after being played for an hour or two. But I do like games, and I tend to finish the good ones.

Morrowind is one of the best.

I'm sure all the positives and negatives have already been mentioned in other reviews, but here are things that struck me. First, negatives: on higher levels, most monsters are amazingly easy to kill. NPCs do not have enough unique dialogue, and this can become really annoying when every NPC in town says the same thing to you in voiceover as you pass them ("You're *probably* looking for a *tavern*. I'm sure *I* can't help you..." in a town controlled by a rival faction, for example - yes, the line is insulting). This can be occasionally jarring when you talk to the NPC and their greeting to you, onscreen, is completely different in tone from their voice greeting.

Another big problem is the speed of character movement: walking around is terribly, terribly slow and detracts from gameplay. Several times I have used some of the built-in "rescue spells" (that teleport you to a safe location in the nearest city) just to get out of having to make a return trip to that area.

Among the positives: oh, the graphics! They're beautiful. All towns are designed in unique styles and interiors are also unique. It's like the graphics department got to design a world of virtual dollhouses, and they did an amazing job, considering that you have probably a dozen times more interiors here than you would in the average high-quality animated film. The movement system is easy and intuitive, though I did choose to customize the command keys. Another thing I really liked was that the game rewards players for choosing to play a female character (several challenges are difficult for male characters, but female characters will sail through them).

Finally, there's a great moment in the game where you can gain a full (in-game, not real-time) day of high-level levitation skill. This allows you to soar around for a while, immersively exploring the main city of Vivec from an aerial perspective with a full range of motion and greater speed than characters are normally allowed. Playing this portion of the game was the closest I've ever come in my life to duplicating the feeling of those occasional dreams in which I can fly; it was the point at which I was sure that I was playing something really special.

So should you... play this special game, I mean.


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