In my opinion, the many flaws were overshadowed by the brilliance of the game. The lore, the setting and a competent execution made playing it very immersing. I didn't really care if I was playing with a broken mage class, I was doing it because I liked it and magic or weaponskill was just a means towards an end.

I have to agree with this - I'm not much of a modder, but I do use some that ease gameplay, tweak graphics, address bugs or design problems, or otherwise make it easier for me to enjoy the game.

There's a misplaced purity, I think, in people who loftily refuse to use mods. This isn't a matter of ethics or principles, and there isn't any pure state of angelic gamehood. A game is a commercial product; the way we play it will always diverge from the intent of the designers. If I'd prefer that everyone has glasses and there's a mod that does that, well, who cares? I'm unlikely, for my part, to mod a game without playing it first, but after I go back to give Oblivion another spin I will certainly look into mods that ameliorate the auto-leveling that I dislike so much. Because why shouldn't I play the game my way? It's my game.

Following through on the Thief example, I think the developers of the new reboot destroyed their chances of making a classic when they decided to keep mods out of the picture. By most reports Thief is a good enough game, not quite what many of us were hoping we'd find but not the cheap gutting of the original series that many of us feared. Had the community been given the chance to make mods - and seriously, the Thief community is wild - the game might have been tweaked into a state that addressed the many complaints about the game. It still would not have been The Dark Project, but that probably wasn't ever possible. It could have become much more exciting than it probably is, had they been more thoughtful about permitting mods.

I liked your post, but about this conclusion..isn't that obvious for any good title?
If you play great successors before great ancestors, you'll almost certainly love the first ones more, due to the reversed novelty, the opposite "nostalgia" effect and the higher tech (graphic,gameplay,ui,etc).

For example, I can't imagine many new players easily passing from their first RPG TES Skyrim to MW and loving the second more (except for few enthusiasts with a proper mindset).
As another example: due to my age, I started gaming after the basic Atari games, so I will never fully appreciate those titles, even if many of those are classics.

I think you need to remember when the game came out. We say that a 1967 Shelby Cobra is a great car and yet, no one would compare it to a modern Lamboghini Murchielago because the Lambo would destroy the Cobra. Morrowind was amazing game when it came out because it gave you unlimited freedom in a world that felt believable and was filled with lore and strange sights like the very different cities and regions. It felt like there was always more to see and do and explore. Oblivion and Skyrim are great games but they feel like games created for our pleasure and not like a real place. Morrowind's atmosphere was so amazing that it felt like an MMO even though it wasn't. Oblivion's level-scaling killed it initially for me and Skyrim is great but the spoken dialog makes it feel hollow as opposed to the many options in Morrowind when talking to an NPC.

Yes, combat is not very good and Cliffracers are annoying as fuck, but the sense of freedom you got when first setting foot in Sayda Neen was amazing for its time. Later TES games didn't have the same level of freedom and that's why I will always treasure Morrowind as one of the greatest RPGs of all time. But yes, if you played Oblivion and Skyrim first then it can be hard to go back.

Ultimately I want to say that if you are not enjoying it then you are not enjoying it - simple as that. Different strokes for different folks and all that jazz. I can't stand Far Cry even if most people tell me it's great so there you go.

Agreed. Morrowind had a lot of flaws, but what it did right, it did REALLY right, and to me it's still one of the best RPGs of all time and certainly the best one of the Elder Scrolls series.

Sure, the NPCs don't do much, the combat mechanics are pretty weak, and the story is cookie cutter 'hero must find his destiny and save the world' stuff, but the music, the atmosphere, the level and item management, the surroundings, everything just pulls you in. Very few games are good enough to pull you in the way Morrowind does. It's a shame that RPGs have become so standard and generic in the years since.

Oh, and don't forget the falling wizard at Seyda Neen. That has to be one of the funniest moments in PC gaming ever.

Fallout 1 and 2 are actually better then fallout 3...

So let me see if I understand this. You were so cheesed off about an old game being overrated that you took the time to write not one, but two lengthy posts about it. Presumably because..... the world hasn't said all it needs to about the old game...the world needs your opinion? I guess I'm not totally sure why someone could be so worked up over a 13 year old game.

I certainly took issue with a few details in Morrowind. I'm not sure I ever felt the need tell the world about them. Honestly I'm not even sure what my issues were at this point, but I do think I had fun despite those issues. I doubt I could ever play it again because it's just too dated looking - even with the texture mods.


My advice. Screw it and play Dark Souls.

Flaws?

Ugly environment.
Ugly characters.
Ugly NPCs.
Too hard, sometimes.
Runs like garbage on modern machines.

But the game is still one of the best games out there and some of those flaws can be fixed by mods. :)

I like to play the "raw" game. It's how I swing. I bought the uncut version of Cannibal Holocaust complete with animal murder just because I wanted to be sure I'd seen the "real" thing.
Also downloading Mods is a stressful experience for me. It took me a week to download Brutal Doom and I was nearly brought to tears several times doing it (I'm on PC but I suspect I'm a console gamer at heart).

And I don't think the comparison with Thief works. When you buy Thief you are buying a great game. The way you're selling it sounds like when you buy Morrowind you're buying a mediocre game and if you don't like you download a better one. The to which the logical response is you could just play a better game and save yourself the effort.

And Finally mods taken seriously make discussing game quality moot: "Why is Morrowind better than Skyrim?" "Because Morrowind had such interesting world. You should totally play it" "No thanks I'll just download the make everything like Morrowind mod and save my 12 quid"
Why is Morrowind worth anyone's time when Oblivion and Skyrim have Morrowind Total conversions and better graphics?
When People say Doom 3 was a massive disappointment telling them there's a mod that make just like Doom 2 only in 3D it doesn't take the sting away. (For the record ,I like Doom 3).
Buddy, It's called staring a dialog. I want to have that dialog with sensible people who do like it. You on the other hand seem to think the world has to "need" my opinion before I can dare talk to people on online. So let me ask you this why do I "need" your opinion considering all you want to do is be condescending?
The answer is I don't but you obviously like proclaiming your greatness even when It's not "needed".
My sister and I saw Noah last night. I liked it, she didn't. We didn't need to talk about it but it was fun and interesting. Just as talking to strangers online about old video games can be fun and interesting.
When They are polite instead of looking for an ego boost.

Edit: "I'm not sure why someone could be so worked up over a 13 year old game."

As in only new games are worth getting worked up over? A game's a game. Don't matter much to me how old it is.

I was referring mostly to the beginning of the game by halfway through the game I had more Restore Magicka potions than I could carry (I also had a strengths alchemy) But even with that I doubt I'd have ever mastered altercation without a little save-scumming. I could use all my potions to try and get one successful flying spell, but why should I? Scout's honour? (but altercation was a breeze compared to Speechcraft. Shudders).
To me a game is failing when it makes me want to save-scum, whether I do it or not. But yes I'll admit the magic system isn't as broken as I make it sound. I actually really enjoyed alchemy (I'm not sure why though). But I still stand buy my point that regenerating magic just makes the latter games far less fiddly and awkward and, for me at least, a lot more fun.

Cannibal Holocaust, now there's a movie for the kiddies.

Thanks for the commentary on Morrowind. I have played most all of the Elder Scrolls games (Daggerfall will test you with some of the shittiest dungeon maps ever) and have good and bad to say. The comments thus far reflect my thoughts quite accurately to the extent it is a flawed game but still a game not to be missed.

To understand the world it resides in was many shades of brown would mean there wouldn't be the flashy oranges of World of Warcraft or some other colorful game. The immersion and the role play are what these games specialize in and I believe they excel.

As we all well know the latest iteration of FPS seems to be what sells, and so the turn-based and role play games in their pure forms are hard to come by. So I'll keep playing and discussing Good Old Games....

Ugly Environment (Ashlands are bleak, desolate, and treacherous. I have no idea why Bethesda made most of the land like that)
Ugly characters and NPCs (Well its kinda hard to make good looking character models in an open world game even GTA 5 withs awesome looking character models look inferior compared to games like The Last of Us, Beyond Two Souls, and Ryse of course)
Too Hard, sometimes (I had full armor with a dwemer 2 handed swords and this guy took awhile to die because he had full armor. Potions in this game are definately your friend)
Runs like garbage on modern machines (unmodded the game crashes once in awhile and sends to the desktop, with the overhaul there are cases where the whole thing freezes forcing me to force shut down the computer)

This thread makes me cry.

I'll confess I don't know what you're trying to say but I like your positive attitude.

Brown has always sold FPS games. It Worked for Quake. Now it works for COD. I Liked how Doom and Heretic so colourful but I fear they are only that way thanks to engine limitations.

But yes this is truly a good place to buy of you like colourful games.
I'm sorry :(
I can disagree with any of this. But like to think that I could enjoy older games without making allowances for them. While it's a very different kind of game, for me Blood has aged like Sean Connery. It only got sexier as it got older.