Oblivion Remastered Just Did The "Impossible"

Oblivion Remastered is Absolutely Blowing the Doors Off Steam Charts Right Now—And It’s a Game Pass Game Too!

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered launch is not just the secret everyone expected, but beyond a basic success—it’s a full-blown phenomenon. Within 5 hours of release, the game (via SteamDB) has already rocketed past 163,000 concurrent players on Steam alone, proving that a well-made product will always sell well, even with it having the Day One access on Xbox Game Pass. All this flies directly in the face of that tired narrative that defenders of slop say that Game Pass kills PC game sales.

If anything, this situation right here proves to everyone that when you give gamers a reason to support your game, they show up, and in full force! A lovingly rebuilt classic like this one? Yeah, WOW... that sure is a buying proposition that a lot of people can get behind... BUT...

That said, not everything about Oblivion Remastered has been met with open arms by the community at large. Bethesda's decision to use the "Type A" and "Type B" in the character creator instead of traditional "Male" and "Female" labels has sparked some serious backlash—and honestly, rightfully so. I'm so tired of this stupid ideology pushing from woke developers. This is a clear case of ideology bleeding into game design where it doesn’t belong. Nobody - and I mean NOBODY that actually plays these games - was asking for this change. It’s not inclusive; it’s condescending. It directly undermines immersion and alienates players who simply want clarity and normalcy in their experience. This hill—this hill—is one I will die on, because this nonsense needs to stop. As stupid as it may sound, these stupid 'little' changes are what roll downhill and create that avalanche of ideology.

But regardless, moving past that if I'm able to... what Oblivion Remastered gets right is almost everything else. While the name may suggest a simple upscale, this here is instead a full-blown remake in Unreal Engine 5 by developer Virtuous. Yes, that same developer that I spoke of previously where the leaks of this announcement stemmed from. Every single asset in the game has been rebuilt - from scratch! The lighting and shadows appear far more realistic now, and facial animations—especially lip-sync—have seen a massive upgrade, adding to the immersion like never before. Honestly my first impression of the leaks was to feel concern but after seeing the official unveiling and reception, that has all been put to ease.

On top of that - the gameplay systems have also been reworked. The UI, audio, and leveling system have been modernized with what Bethesda is calling “the best of both worlds” from Skyrim and Oblivion. Then we have the changes to encumbrance, non-combat perks, and several other quality-of-life mechanics. Oh - and sprinting is finally here, along with a much-improved third-person camera, reworked HUD and menus, revamped persuasion mechanics, and a better map system.

According to Bethesda’s Tom Mustaine during the reveal stream:

“We’ve modernized a lot, but it’s still the same incredible adventure and the same carefully crafted world.”

And he’s right—underneath all the new tech is still that same game fans fell in love with dating all the way back to 2006. 19 years ago!

Also launching alongside the standard edition is the Oblivion Remastered Deluxe Edition, which includes exclusive quests, armor, weapons, horse armor (because of course they added that as DLC again...), a digital artbook, and the full soundtrack. For fans of the franchise, this edition sounds like it is a no-brainer.

For those who remember the leaked 2023 FTC document (above) that hinted at this project, it's a long time coming. But wow—from what I've seen so far - did it ever deliver. With this release now setting the standard, the rumored Fallout 3 Remaster and new Dishonored entry have some massive shoes to fill... On top of many other leaks from that document.

But in due time, because geez...

I can't even keep up with what is already out right now, and that doesn't count Expedition 33 arriving later this week as well. Too many games, too little time!

First world problems, I suppose...

~Smash