Love, thy name is The Elder Scrolls...

Get excited!

Okay guys, because our dear Player 2 is off to Ireland for this next week, I'll be covering both this and next week's Fun Friday post solo. "But what about Wednesday's post!" you exclaim in horror, "I can't live without Player 2's witticisms!" Gee, thanks a lot belligerent gamer, you make me feel so good about myself. Luckily for you folks, Player 2 was nice enough to write her next post in advance for me to post for everyone's enjoyment when Wednesday rolls around. So, chill. For now, though, I want to geek out about what is definitely one of my favorite game series, The Elder Scrolls.

My love for this series had it's humble beginnings in the third installment, Morrowind. Before I picked up this game, I had never really even heard about the Elder Scrolls. I happened to be at my local GameStop when I saw the game and thought, "Hey, why not? I need a new PC game anyway." That, ladies and gentlemen, is the day my gaming world was changed for ever. Those of you who have played a game in this series know how immediately addicting these games are. The Elder Scrolls games are unique in that there is no set timeline or story you must adhere to. While they do include very gripping main quest lines, the player is free to forge their own path in these massive worlds. From the character design (I personally like Bosmers) to the gameplay (The Thieve's Guild is where it's at!), everything about the games are up to the player. While some may feel lost and annoyed with a game that has no real direction, I find the freedom greatly refreshing. Nowadays, the graphics for Morrowind are slightly dated but I still enjoy the game as much as I did the first time I played.

Oh, Oblivion. I love this game, I really do. It has all the freedom of gameplay that Morrowind has, along with a much larger world and so many quests, it's ridiculous! Not to mention, the graphics are absolutely stunning. I was a little hesitant to pick up this game, I have to admit. I'd seen the screenshots and I was sure that, with as much time as they spent on the look of the game, they had probably skimped out on the storyline and gameplay. You guys know that I'll take a good game over beautiful graphics any day. Fortunately, Oblivion proved itself to be just as good, if not better, than it's predecessor. Let me tell you, while I generally recommend beginning with Morrowind if you want to get into the series, this game isn't a bad place to start.

Finally, what I've been anticipating for ages. Now that I realize that The Elder Scrolls is great with its sequels, you can imagine how excited I am for the fifth game in the series. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim was announced not to long ago and, as you can guess, I flipped out. The trailer is enigmatic but does hint at the beauty this game will no doubt display. The release date has been set for November 11th of this year and I am stoked beyond belief. I definitely recommended some preparation for those of you unfamiliar with this series. Go our and grab Morrowind or Oblivion and get yourself familiarized with an Elder Scrolls game. Then, come November, you can bask in Skyrim's glory along with the rest of us.

What do you guys think? Are you as excited as I am about Skyrim? Or is Morrowind or Oblivion your "one true" Elder Scrolls game? Let me know!