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Which game to get? Oblivion Vs The Witcher

V

ViM

macrumors regular
Original poster
Nov 7, 2006
119
0
Australia
Well i've got an imac x1600 256, 2.16, 2gb ram and i want to get a game cos holidays are about to start. I figure the graphics card is not exactly brilliant so which game should i get?

Oblivion (btw what's vanilla oblivion?)
The Witcher
or maybe Assassin's Creed?

Will my iMac be able to run it decently e.g. smooth frame rates but still be able to maintain some semblance of graphical magnificence?
 
I think Oblivion is the best of that group you listed. Of course, it is also the only one I've played. However, a friend I know that has Witcher says it is just mediocre.

I believe the game should run fine on the card you have. I saw at least one person say Fallout 3 seems to work well on it, and it uses the same engine as Oblivion.
 
Anyone saying The Witcher is mediocre is unfit to speak on the subject of RPG's. It is pretty clearly the best RPG since KotOR, and will be one of those games on folks 'top 10 RPG's of all time'. I wrote about it here and here ...

OK, enough of that ... it really depends on what the person is looking for. If it is a deep RPG with excellent writing and a true sense of choice-and-consequence unparalleled in the history of gaming, then The Witcher is the obvious choice. If it is a console-style action game with a massive open world and lite RPG elements, the Oblivion is a complete blast. Assassin's Creed is a nice PC port, but the game itself is flawed.

So I would say that if the desire is for action, choose Oblivion, but if you want a RPG, choose The Witcher.
 
ViM said:
Well i've got an imac x1600 256, 2.16, 2gb ram and i want to get a game cos holidays are about to start. I figure the graphics card is not exactly brilliant so which game should i get?

Oblivion (btw what's vanilla oblivion?)
The Witcher
or maybe Assassin's Creed?

Will my iMac be able to run it decently e.g. smooth frame rates but still be able to maintain some semblance of graphical magnificence?
Click to expand...

vanilla just means plain, no mods etc
 
Although I've only played the other 2, I'd go with the Witcher (patched to the Enhanced Edition if you don't buy that version)
 
txa1265 said:
Anyone saying The Witcher is mediocre is unfit to speak on the subject of RPG's. It is pretty clearly the best RPG since KotOR, and will be one of those games on folks 'top 10 RPG's of all time'. I wrote about it here and here ...
Click to expand...

I'm sure he's played more games than most people here. He used to work as QA at a gaming company, so he's got more gaming cred than anyone else I know. But, not every game is for everyone, either. Not everyone liked Oblivion, but it was the best RPG of the year at some review sites.
 
Keleko said:
I'm sure he's played more games than most people here. He used to work as QA at a gaming company, so he's got more gaming cred than anyone else I know. But, not every game is for everyone, either. Not everyone liked Oblivion, but it was the best RPG of the year at some review sites.
Click to expand...

It is fine that the person didn't like The Witcher - and that is why I tried to make the distinction based on game style.

However, calling it mediocre is what got me - especially since the writing is up at the very pinnacle of gaming with stuff like Betrayal at Krondor and Planescape Torment. It is like saying that Beethoven's 9th or Miles Davis Kind of Blue are mediocre because you like songs with lyrics ...

But all that aside - all three games are very good and none will be a bad choice. And I have played all three.
 
I think part of it is the time frame. The Witcher is a wonderful, polished game that is just a blast to play. Oblivion is also fun, but its open-ended and you could play it for as long as you wanted..so I don't know if that is a good or bad thing.
 
I've played all three and I'd have to vote for Oblivion if you are willing to mod the crap out of it. I play it on a Windows partition and am continually impressed as I discover more and more mods that expand the game.
That said, if we're just talking about base-Oblivion, (no mods installed) then The Witcher takes the prize. It's one of the more polished RPGs I've played in years. Granted, I've not finished the main story yet, so I can't claim to be an expert.
I liked Assassin's Creed, but couldn't get into it nearly as much as the other two games mentioned here. I've only played it on the 360, so it's possible the Mac/PC version plays a bit smoother, but I was somewhat unimpressed. Don't get me wrong, it's a great game, but not in the same class as Witcher or TES4.
So here's my list:
1) Oblivion - with mods (Oscuro, high-rez texture pack, Natural Env/Atmo, Lost Spires, Illumination Within, etc..)
2) The Witcher
3) Plain ol' Oblivion - no mods
4) Assassin's Creed
 
I think i'll get the witcher but maybe in the future ill get oblivion. Just for confirmation has anyone got the witcher running on my imac's specs?
 
I've played both games on my hardware (listed in signature). Both games are good but provide different experiences. However as a personal preference, I'd pick Oblivion over The Witcher as Oblivion is the best solo RPG game I've ever played.

Oblivion levels are open except when you enter towns. This means if you are looking at a distant mountain, you can run to that mountain with no screen loads what so ever. It's very immersive but it's not perfect. It's the first solo RPG I played where it was a joy just to go explore the country side. There are only a couple of themes in dungeons so pretty soon most dungeons look the same, although they do have completely different layouts. The main quest to save Cyrodiil annoys some people. I say the main quest is ok, not great, and there are no consequences to speak of if you decide to ignore the main quest. This game kept me entertained for 18 months so it has something going for it. Take a look at the Mac Rumors Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Game Guide for more info specifically on Combat, Leveling the Right Way, and Mods. Mods do a lot for this game.
 
Regardless of which game you pick, I'd recommend only buying one at a time. That way you don't have the conundrum that I face each day.. which one do I play? :p
I have built up quite a pile of great games over the years.. makes it really difficult to choose which one to play on the rare nights I can devote to gaming.

Learn from my mistakes! Simplify your life! Only buy one game at a time and trade it in when you're done! lol :D
 
txa1265 said:
... you really need to play some real RPG's ... ;)
Click to expand...

I've played plenty. Most of the FF series, Chronotrigger, pretty much all MMORPGs worth playing, Oblivion just suits my playstyle the most. Not much of a fan of the turn based stuff, I prefer live action.
 
odinsride said:
I've played plenty. Most of the FF series, Chronotrigger, pretty much all MMORPGs worth playing, Oblivion just suits my playstyle the most. Not much of a fan of the turn based stuff, I prefer live action.
Click to expand...

Ah - so you are a jRPG fan, not much of a western-RPG fan. jRPG's are famous for having no choices and no consequences, so I guess Oblivion makes sense in that context. If you can I recommend Fallout 3 - open world, but with choice and consequence.
 
txa1265 said:
Ah - so you are a jRPG fan, not much of a western-RPG fan. jRPG's are famous for having no choices and no consequences, so I guess Oblivion makes sense in that context. If you can I recommend Fallout 3 - open world, but with choice and consequence.
Click to expand...

*shrug* I actually have Fallout 3 sitting here ready to be played but haven't gotten around to it due to work and the new WoW expansion :)
 
txa1265 said:
Ah - so you are a jRPG fan, not much of a western-RPG fan. jRPG's are famous for having no choices and no consequences, so I guess Oblivion makes sense in that context. If you can I recommend Fallout 3 - open world, but with choice and consequence.
Click to expand...

I wish there had been consequences, but for the most part in Oblivion there was not. I remember one quest where you help these brothers reclaim their farm, possibly SE of Chorrol. After you help them, if you come back later, they have actually fixed the place up. But this was more the exception than the rule. I was really aggravated that after you kicked the bad guys out of Kvatch, it remained a smoking ruin.

It was misleading in that when you spoke to anyone regarding the main quest there was a real sense of urgency, but the fact that you can just ignore it and not have Cyrodiil over run with bad critters was disapoointing for me. But overall, I still managed to love Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion.

Map of Cyrodiil (click on image for larger pic)
 
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