Living in Oblivion

[sigma7]

The great thing about playing The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is that the cursor helpfully changes color to let you know if the item you're trying to pick up is owned by someone, or if accessing a container or area is otherwise verboten. Of course the color selection is red (bad) and green (good). If you're running through the game at breakneck speed to finish it at some point before, oh, the heat death of the universe, you need to be able to tell at a glance. You can't sit down and stare at the cursor for a few minutes and figure out if it's a few degrees darker than the cursor usually is. You need that instantaneous recognition and ability to distinguish.

And the hysterical bit is that if you do screw up and go rummaging through someone's private sack of rice or accidentally pick up a carrot that doesn't belong to you, this doesn't necessarily trip any switches instantly, at least, none discernible to you, the mere player. No, you get a bounty applied to your name, telepathically applied to the guards in the city, and they come to take your sorry ass away. No habeas corpus here; they don't tell you what was the offending produce or merchandise you're alleged to have stolen (or, in my case, did out of sheer obliviousness). You get carted away sans appeal. And I spend five virtual days in jail, my skills atrophying away as I serve my penance. At this point I've spent more time in jail than I have playing the actual game, and I'm trying to be nice. This says something about the game mechanics, my eyes, or perhaps just my character in general.

And even if I saved the game religiously and at regular intervals in separate slots, how do I know which one to go back to? Unless I check in with the city guard between every encounter, I'm not sure if I'm on the side of the angels until I get someone ten levels higher than mine asking "What's all this, then?"

Other than that, it's just like Grand Theft Auto 400 A.D., with fewer hookers.

Edit: I'm in ur game, bluin your crosshairz.

Comments

[motteditor.livejournal.com]

Well, now we know where you've been the last week, at least.

A friend just sent me this site, made me think of you (and Alasdair): http://www.sugarbushsquirrel.com/

[daethkow.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry, but I'm laughing on the inside ... and the outside.

Perhaps if you asked tech support nicely they'd work you a patch. Actually if you sent them this post, minus the GTA line at the end, you'd probably win someone tech support question of the year AND get your problem fixed.

[sigma7.livejournal.com]

Oblivion has been out long enough that I'm sure the tech support for it is minimal if not nonexistent now -- I think BethSoft or its corporate overlords, TakeTwo, have more pressing things on its plate than a game that's been out for over a year now.

And considering I can find mods for nudity, companion NPCs with jobs, pet stores and everything this side of a Warthog, I'm somewhat surprised that a game like Alpha Centauri can have a colorblind patch but not only is there no official path, the sizable creative fanbase of the game seems to have forsaken me as well.

I guess I should be relieved that chromatic ineptitude is no defense against rampant kleptomania. It'd just give me...ideas.

EDIT: Oh, holy crap. I found one. Let's see how badly this breaks the game.

[nute.livejournal.com]

Point: Colorblind thieves? Unheard of!

Counterpoint: You think Gambit wears pink armor INTENTIONALLY?

Hmm

[http://users.livejournal.com/_zomg/]

I kind of wanted to try ES IV but wasn't sure if it was worth it. I'm still considering it, jail sounds FUN! (;

Re: Hmm

[sigma7.livejournal.com]

If sandbox play is your thing, you'll probably drown happily in it. And it's got a ton of replay value. Though I confess most of my time is spent trouncing around the wilderness gathering ingredients for potion-making.