Latest news with #TheElderScrolls4:OblivionRemastered
Daily Maverick
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Maverick
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is the surprise masterpiece no one saw coming
It'll likely be scooping several Game of the Year awards toward the end of 2025, and for good reason, as Expedition 33 shows that you can make waves in the industry without needing to cater to as broad an audience as possible. Tomorrow comes, and we continue. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 shouldn't be this good. On paper, a traditional turn-based RPG with souls-like influences fused into its design, a relatively short time-to-complete playtime, and a decadently French direction sounds like a recipe for chaos. Somehow, though, developer Sandfall Interactive has managed to combine all of its ideas into a harmonious experience with its debut effort. It says a lot when the end result is so good, so exquisite in its execution that it even manages to overshadow the likes of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, a game released a mere two days before its release. To put it simply, Expedition 33 is both a revelation and a love letter to a bygone era of gaming. Full of elegant art direction inspired by France's Belle Époque period, a rock-solid cast of characters to fall in love with, and gameplay that keeps your eyes glued to the screen, Expedition 33 pays homage to the past while forging its own path forward. Once a year, the Paintress wakes and paints upon her monolith in Expedition 33. Every year sees a new cursed number appear, leading to an event known as 'the gommage' in which everyone of that age turns to petals and fades away. Year by year, that number ticks down and more people are erased, while doomed expeditions set out to her continent in a futile attempt to stop her. Players are quickly introduced to Gustav in Expedition 33, who leads a party to stop her or at least pave the way forward for the next expedition, with members grimly reciting a mantra to remind them that they're fighting for tomorrow. Expedition 33's story could have easily wallowed in the nihilistic despair of its premise, but Sandfall Interactive makes certain to inject a sense of optimism and enthusiasm into its tale, introducing players to layered characters brought to life by a cast of acting heavyweights. Charlie Cox (Daredevil), Andy Serkis (Andor), and Ben Starr (Final Fantasy 16 and noted appreciator of Final Fantasy 8) bring their A-game to Expedition 33, while the rest of the game's small but talented cast is fleshed out by the likes of Jennifer English, Kirsty Rider, and Shala Nyx. Like the best turn-based RPGs, Expedition 33's story is one of twists and turns, heartbreak and triumph in a world that you can't get enough of. There's a painterly quality to everything; a rich canvas to explore and interesting characters to meet throughout the game, but it's also an adventure that feels fantastic to play. Applying the souls-like label to any game will most likely turn off a portion of the audience, but to its credit, Sandfall has managed to cleverly make these gameplay ideas complement the core RPG experience. Whereas other studios would haphazardly bolt these ideas onto their product to quickly cash in on the gaming zeitgeist, Expedition 33 is so in touch with these mechanics that you can't imagine it not having them after you've spent a few hours with the title. The genius here is that Expedition 33 is essentially two different games whenever you initiate combat. There's a heavy JRPG influence, as basic attacks and spellcasting are combined with broader ideas and unique character movesets. The mage Lune, for example, can stack up elemental stains that can be consumed to increase damage, while Maelle combines ballet with fencing arts to weave in and out of stances that offer various advantages. These moves also have a light smattering of quick-time events woven into them, keeping you more engaged with the action as it unfolds on the screen. But when it's the enemy's turn? That's when you need to lean forward on your seat and prepare to test your reflexes. From Software's Sekiro is the best example of what to expect here, as you'll need to dodge and parry attacks from the opposition. Getting the timing right allows you to avoid damage and even follow up with a counterattack, and as you venture further into the game, more interesting wrinkles on the combat present themselves to the player. The combination leads to thrilling enemy encounters, and even if you find yourself grossly outgunned, a few well-timed parries can turn the tide of battle and net you a hard-earned victory. Another layer to this system are Pictos, items that can be equipped to buff attacks. Spread across the game, Pictos allow for some incredible experimentation and buildcrafting. Expedition 33 players have come up with some jaw-dropping builds since the game was released, and while it has been significantly nerfed, there's still a build that can be used to turn Maelle into a walking extinction event. Take that, horrible robo-mime bastard who is a headache to face at first. There's more to the game than just a rip-roaring yarn of cancelling the apocalypse and outfitting your crew with stereotypically French outfits and baguettes, of course. Expedition 33 is a masterclass in keeping players engaged, as even the art of grinding out some extra XP feels worthwhile thanks to the head-turning gameplay. I could go on about its stellar soundtrack, French New Wave cinematic influences, and the nuanced approach to character development, not to mention the sheer grandeur of the boss battles that you'll experience. But that would do the game a disservice, because the best thing about Expedition 33 is that it's constantly surprising – offering a journey that you'll want to undertake without being too informed of what awaits you. DM Released on 24 April, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is out now for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S. It's also playable with Game Pass.
Metro
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
Oblivion Remastered bugs get worse the more you play it reveals tech breakdown
Bethesda's remaster of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion has turned out some odd performance issues, and they get worse the more you play it. The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered launched last month after a slew of leaks, to a rapturous reception and higher sales than even Bethesda expected. The remake, developed by Virtuos, is a substantial overhaul of the original 2006 game, with revised gameplay mechanics, a revamped user interface, and widespread improvements to the visuals thanks to Unreal Engine 5. While Bethesda's role-playing games are synonymous with technical bugs, it seemed at first that the remaster had ironed out a lot of them. But a new analysis shows that the game is something of a ticking time bomb. As outlined in a new Digital Foundry video, which is focused on the Xbox Series X, PlayStation 5, and PS5 Pro console versions, it seems Oblivion Remastered is more prone to crashes and other performance issues the longer you play it. The video claims a 'fresh boot' of the game, aka shutting down the software, booting it up and loading into a save for the first time, will give you an 'often significantly higher' frame rate compared to a playthrough which has been running for 15 minutes or more, with drops from 59fps to around 45fps. You'll be more prone to crashes and other issues affecting the camera position the longer you play in one continuous session, which is fixed when you reload the save following a reboot (albeit only for 15 minutes). Digital Foundry suggests it is a memory management issue (aka memory leak) which is making the performance worse over time. According to players, this was an issue in some of Bethesda's past games as well, including The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim Special Edition, but it's less forgiveable when it's affecting a substantial remake running in Unreal Engine 5. More Trending 'Returning to the Oblivion remaster for a second console testing brings a great many issues to light,' the video concludes, with all console platforms affected by hitching, frame rate drops, and bugs. Since its launch on April 22, there have been no substantial updates to Oblivion Remastered. Bethesda has called for suggestions from players on how to improve the experience on its official Discord, so hopefully some kind of patch is in the works. Bethesda is currently in development on the next mainline entry, The Elder Scrolls 6, which is expected to launch at some point after 2026. Email gamecentral@ leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter, and sign-up to our newsletter. To submit Inbox letters and Reader's Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here. For more stories like this, check our Gaming page. MORE: Video game companies are lying to us about everything – Reader's Feature MORE: Why I tried to beat Oblivion Remastered without ever using fast travel – Reader's Feature MORE: The 5 new GTA 6 Trailer 2 Easter eggs only superfans will have noticed
Metro
01-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered has a secret Todd Howard cameo
Bathesda games director and producer Todd Howard has a hidden cameo in The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered but only certain players will be able to meet him. Many would describe The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered as more of a remake than a remaster, thanks to its upgraded graphics and numerous changes to the combat and user interface. Bethesda insists, however, that it's not a remake, since the goal was to recreate 'the original game […] as you remember playing it, but seen through today's technology.' As such, many of the original Oblivion's quirkier aspects, like the weird facial animations and various bugs, have remained intact. Recently, it's been discovered this also includes the secret cameo by executive producer Todd Howard. Diehard Elder Scrolls fans are no doubt already familiar with Howard's cameo and have likely checked to see if it was kept for the remaster, as demonstrated by TerakJK on YouTube. If you're interested in experiencing the cameo first-hand, the good news is that it's not especially difficult to find. The bad news is that it's only possible on the PC version. Todd Howard's cameo in The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion is located in a hidden room that's typically only accessible to developers, since it's used for testing and debugging purposes. The only way to access the room yourself is by using console commands on the PC, which are debugging tools that many use to activate cheats. Some of the cheats for the original game still work for Oblivion Remastered, including god mode and flight. By pressing the '~' button, you can open up a menu to input cheats. Type in the command 'coc toddtest', and you'll be instantly teleported to the testing room where Howard, or rather his character, is. Howard doesn't appear as himself in Oblivion, but rather as a character called Alban Corinis, who doesn't appear in the full game. If you talk to him, he'll say a line that's clearly voiced by one of the game's actual voice actors, but afterwards you'll be offered a selection of dialogue options. More Trending Click any of these and you'll hear a line voiced by Howard. Pick surprise, for example, and he'll say 'What? I didn't know that. How could this be?' in the least surprised tone imaginable. Obviously, Howard only lent his vocal chops for testing the disposition mechanic, where non-playable characters' opinions and feelings towards you are reflected by in-game choices, so expecting a genuine performance out of his cameo is perhaps too much. His character's disposition does change depending on what dialogue choices you pick though, so you can get Howard to profess his love for you or call you a b******, whichever you find most amusing. There are more characters to interact with in the room too and there's another testing room you can explore with the command 'coc testinghall,' but there's unfortunately no way to access any of them on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S versions. Email gamecentral@ leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter, and sign-up to our newsletter. To submit Inbox letters and Reader's Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here. For more stories like this, check our Gaming page. MORE: The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered price cut already available for PC MORE: Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered teased for Switch 2 as it tops sales charts MORE: Oblivion remaster mod support is only a matter of time as fans get to work
Metro
28-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered price cut already available for PC
Metro journalists select and curate the products that feature on our site. If you make a purchase via links on this page we will earn commission – learn more Bethesda's remaster of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion has been a huge hit but there's already a discounted deal for PC players. The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered may have been an open secret for months, but after its surprise launch last week, it's clear many people are nostalgic for a return to Cyrodiil. The remaster has already hit some impressive player numbers on Steam, with Bethesda revealing that the revamped role-player has surpassed four million players in total across PC, Xbox Series X/S, and PlayStation 5. If you've been hesitant to jump in due to the £49.99 price tag, The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered has already been discounted at one retailer – although only for the PC. A deal on Fanatical is offering the standard edition of the remaster for £41.49, which is 17% off its usual £49.99 price. The deluxe edition has also been discounted to £49.79, a drop from £59.99. There is no physical edition of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered, with this deal only applicable to digital copies of the PC version. This is the cheapest deal out there though (through reputable websites, at least), so it's nothing to sniff at. We are so grateful to the over 4 million of you that have already ventured into Cyrodiil with Oblivion Remastered. Thank you! — Bethesda Game Studios (@BethesdaStudios) April 25, 2025 The standard version comes with the base game and all the original downloadable content, including story expansions Shivering Isles and Knights Of The Nine. More Trending Meanwhile, the deluxe edition adds digital Akatosh and Mehrunes Dagon armours, weapons, and horse armour sets, along with a digital artbook and soundtrack app. The original Oblivion was released in 2006 on the Xbox 360 and PC, and is the predecessor to Bethesda's juggernaut hit The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim. The sixth mainline Elder Scrolls game is currently in development. Along with a visual overhaul in Unreal Engine 5, the remaster features various gameplay improvements, including additional feedback in combat, the option to sprint, an altered levelling system, and a revamped user interface. According to insiders, Bethesda is already developing a Switch 2 port, but it's unclear when it could come out. Email gamecentral@ leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter, and sign-up to our newsletter. To submit Inbox letters and Reader's Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here. For more stories like this, check our Gaming page. MORE: Games Inbox: Is Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 GOTY 2025? MORE: Where to pre-order Switch 2 Mario Kart World bundle and accessories in the UK MORE: Capcom teases Resident Evil 9 reveal as it celebrates sales milestone
Time of India
24-04-2025
- General
- Time of India
How to make the best Crusader Build in The Elder Scrolls Oblivion Remastered
Image via Bethesda. After Bethesda shadowsropped The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered out of nowhere, everyone started wondering how to with the different classes in the game. That is why we have come up with this guide to help you with the best Crusader build in the game. Among all the 21 available classes scattered among three different categories, Crusader falls in the Combat class. With effective attributes like Strength and Willpower, this class is pure brute force. However, it might be tricky to master this class as it needs sheer resilience and proper choice of attributes and skills. That's where this guide comes in. The Elder Scrolls Oblivion Remastered: Best Crusader Build Oblivion Remastered - Part 1 Gamepaly Walkthrough! by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Villas For Sale in Dubai Might Surprise You Villas In Dubai | Search Ads View Deals Undo Heavy Armor, Blades, and Restoration combine to provide a potent set of Major Skills that are perfect for fighting, fending off the majority of enemy strikes, and reviving health in the event that an attack turns out to be more powerful than anticipated. We have already learnt how the Mage class is all about magical spells . But the Crusader is a balance between combat powerhouse and spells. Those who want to take the battles in Oblivion in their bare hands, must choose the Crusader as their preferred class. Now let's take a look at the best builds for a Crusader: Best Race for a Crusader As previously mentioned, striking a balance between proper attacking aspects and magical aspects is necessary in building a perfect Crusader. Hence, races like Nord , Breto n or Imperial will be your perfect choice. Best Birthsign for a Crusader As a Crusader is a combat-focused class, opting for The Lord birthsign would be a wise choice for you. Not only it boosts the Strength attribute, but also heals yourself fully once a day. Along with it, it increases the Restoration spell as well. Best Attributes for a Crusader Strength: This has to be your go-to attribute if you want to master Crusader as this increases the damage dealt by melee attacks with swords, maces or even bare hands. Not only that, this attribute makes you strong enough to wear heavy armor without being slowed down. Willpower: Along with Strength, you will need Willpower to harness the power of magic. That means, with this attribute, you will be able to cast powerful spells. This attribute will also help you in defense as it will block opponent spells as well. Best Skills for a Crusader Blade: This skill allows you effective and faster melee attacks with a sword. Blunt: If you want some heavy blow, instead of Blade, you can look into this. With this skill, you will be able to deal crushing attacks with maces and hammers. It also blocks opposing attacks as this skill is all about raw force. Heavy Armor: A Crusader is the Tank of the team, so he ought to have Heavy Armors in the battlefield. And you already have the Strength attribute, you are not going to slow down that much wearing those. Restoration: As a Tank, you are certain to face the heavier share of incoming damages from your opponents. So, make sure to add this skill into your inventory, as it will not only heal yourself but your teammates as well. Even higher Restoration skills unlock higher level healing spells. Best Spells for a Crusader Restore Fatigue: Crusaders are made for long-standing duels, and for that you need to keep your stamina up to the mark. This spell will do that for you. Fireball: This spell is a great way for you to start the battle. As it's very cost-effective and huge damage dealing, this is a reliable option. Shield: As previously mentioned, you are going to get the maximum amount of attacks from the enemies. That is why you need this spell to add a temporary armor rating, to save your actual armor. Weakness to Fire: This spell boosts damages dealt by weapon enchantment and elemental strikes. Read More: How to make and play the Best Battlemage Build in Elder Scrolls Oblivion Remastered
