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The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

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The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
File:Oblivion Title.JPG
Developer(s)Bethesda Softworks LLC
Publisher(s) USA:Bethesda Softworks LLC Europe:Take Two Interactive
Designer(s)Todd Howard, Executive Producer
EngineCustom versions of the Gamebryo Engine using SpeedTree Technology, Radiant A.I. and Havok Physics
Platform(s)PC, Xbox 360
ReleaseHolidays (Nov/Dec) 2005
Genre(s)RPG
Mode(s)Single player First-Person & Third-Person view

Overview

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is a game currently in the late stages of development by Bethesda Softworks LLC, continuing the long tradition of The Elder Scrolls game series. It is currently confirmed for the PC, Xbox 360, and unconfirmed for the Playstation 3.

The game has been in development since 2002 and is claimed as "another leap forward in role-playing with its combination of freeform gameplay and cutting-edge graphics."

It has been confirmed by producer Todd Howard (see links below) that the world will be larger than the previous installment in the series: The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind.

Oblivion will sport a custom version of the Gamebryo engine, a more involving and exciting combat interface utilizing the Havok physics engine, outstanding graphics with some of the lushest forests ever created with SpeedTree rendering, a more robust magical system, and a more interactive stealth system (similar to Thief: Deadly Shadows), along with many additional features not seen previously in the series.

The game will take place in the Imperial province of Cyrodiil but travel to the realm of Oblivion will be possible. Oblivion has been described as the Tamriel version of Hell. A more accurate description is that it is the home of the Daedra.

The PC edition of the game will also include a new version of "TES:CS". The Elder Scrolls: Construction Set allows for virtually unlimited expansion of the game and includes all of the basic world building tools used by the designers. This feature alone when included with TESIII gave Morrowind many years of additional replay value.

The only official release date is currently listed as: Holidays 2005. OXM (Official Xbox Magazine) has announced Oblivion as an Xbox 360 launch title; though this has yet to be confirmed by Bethesda.

Radiant A.I.

Oblivion boasts a new Artificial Intelligence System codenamed 'Radiant AI'. It is a major source of excitement for many of the fans of the series as it seems to counter what is believed to be one of the worst flaws of the preivous installment ( The Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind): the lack of 'life' of the NPC's in the game. Radiant AI gives every non-player character a set of 'needs' (such as hunger) that they will need to fulfill, thus creating a more lifelike world.

The Radiant AI System is described in an article by the online gaming site Gamespot as such:

A new artificial intelligence system, called Radiant AI, will see non-player characters make choices based on the world around them. NPCs will do different things during the day: eat, sleep, go to church, steal things; all depending on their personalities and environment. Everyone in the game's world will sport full facial animations, lip synching, and full speech for all dialogue.

An example of the system in action was given by another online gaming site, Gamespy at their annual E3 2005 roundup. It is shown below:

The AI demonstration continued with a trip into a local bookstore. The proprietress told us that she was getting ready to close up shop for the night. The demonstrator, however, used a slider to select conversation gambits that she would respond to based on her personality. Sure enough, after the character told her a joke, she responded positively and invited us upstairs for a little... err... nightcap.

Once upstairs, the bookshop owner demonstrated an amazing collection of behaviors. All the characters in the game work on the same statistical model your character does, which means that they improve their fighting or other skills via practice. In this case, the proprietress saw her bow and decided that not might be a good time to get in a little target practice. Unfortunately the woman wasn't a terribly good shot, so she consumed a marksmanship potion that was on one of her tables -- again, an independent object that your character could just as easily have used. This time, her aim was a lot better.

Unfortunately, it seemed that her bit of target practice had tuckered her out. She was now hungry, so she sought out the nearest food -- in this case, a steak on the table. NPCs will work to fulfill their needs in whatever manner they see fit. If they don't have enough money for food, they'll steal it. The bookstore owner also showed off how characters will affect each other independently of your actions. After her dinner, the woman announced that she was tired, so any chance of digital nookie was pretty much gone with the wind. She did, however, have one last surprise. While she was trying to sleep, her annoying dog was barking really loud. Well, I wasn't the only one the dog was annoying because she proceeded to get up, scream at it to shut up, and then use a magic spell to set the poor thing on fire! I, being the upstanding and moral person that I am, did the only thing I could -- laugh until I nearly fell out of my seat.

Gamebryo Engine

The Gamebryo Run-Time Engine as described by creator NDL:

Gamebryo is a cross-platform 3D graphics engine that is optimized and customized for PC, XBox, PlayStation 2, and GameCube. The programmer has access to the hardware capabilities of each individual platform. This proven engine has outstanding performance and all of the rendering, animation, and special effects features necessary to create any type of game.

The Gamebryo run-time engine is a well-architected C++ API that features a hierarchical scene graph structure. Multiple culling and sorting techniques are available to reduce CPU usage by drawing only the visible objects. The flexibility of the engine allows simultaneous use of different sorting techniques in different parts of the scene graph.

File:BethesdaGameStudios.JPG File:BethesdaSoftworks.JPG

Middleware used in Oblivion

File:Gamebryo Logo.JPG File:SpeedTreeLogo.JPG File:Havoklogo.gif File:FaceGenLogo.JPG

  • Gamebryo run-time engine from Numerical Design Limited (NDL)
  • SpeedTree tree rendering from Interactive Data Visualization, Inc (IDV)
  • Havok physics from Havok Inc
  • FaceGen face generation from Singular Inversions Inc

Game News Sites

  • Gamespot - Gamespot article on Oblivion.
  • Gamespy - Gamespy article on Oblivion.
  • Console Gold - Interview with Gavin Carter, Producer
  • Games Planet - Interview with Vice President of PR and Marketing, Pete Hines

Fan Sites

  • Waiting4Oblivion - Fan site with fan interview, links and other resources.
  • Oblivion Source - Fan site with FAQs, articles, interviews, lore, screenshots, and a community forum. Mods may also be hosted at Oblivion Source for free, with your own customizable project page.
  • Oblivion Portal - Fan site with links to every Oblivion article or interview, forums, and an extensive repository of oblivon information.
  • Oblivion Legacy - Fan site with all pre-release info, relevant guides, files, screenshots, community and latest news.
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