One of the most fun aspects ofThe Elder Scrollsfranchise is watching a player’s character progress into their ideal vision. Leveling up is a core part of that experience, as it marks visible improvements the player makes throughout their journey. While not much is known howTheElder Scrolls 6will approach this, it may already have the perfect template to work with.
The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivionshowcased what is the arguably most immersive method of leveling up. This differed fromThe Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim’s methods in that it was more of a progressive experience than a sudden one. For that reason,The Elder Scrolls 6should take afterOblivionin that regard.
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The Future of Leveling Up in The Elder Scrolls
Part of the reasonThe Elder Scrolls 6leveling experience shouldn’t take afterSkyrim’s is because it was ultimately a less immersive experience. WhileSkyrim’s best perksadded quite a lot to a player’s journey, it took away a lot as well. For example, being able to level up anywhere and at any time made it less memorable. Also, the fact that entire perk trees would often go unused, such as speech and lock picking, made it feel like a linear experience. On the other hand,Oblivionoffered a much more broad experience that lent itself well to gameplay and the overall feeling of progression.
One of its most important aspects was that the player actually had to take a break to level up. Rather than being able to level up at any time, players had to find a safe place to take a rest to enter the level up screen. This single but intentional action encouraged the player to stop what they were doing and think about the future of their character’s build. Not only that, but becauseOblivionutilized a system where the player upgraded their attributes based on what skills they used before they leveled up, it had players thinking more about what skills they should use. For example, to useOblivion’s best spells, players had to make sure they were practicing the skills that would grant them access.
This would come with its own unique benefits, such as the unlocking of different perks through different skills. For example, if a player invested in their Speed attribute, they would do better in skills such as Acrobatics. This would allow them to level Acrobatics much faster, granting them access to the dodge and water jump abilities sooner. This changed much of the core gameplay experience, while also giving numbers to all attributes and skills to give a clearer sense of progression.The Elder Scrolls 6could include this feature, revamping it to fit a more modern context.
Considering Oblivion came out in 2006, many of its systems were limited by the hardware of the time. Were a similar system to be employed today inThe Elder Scrolls 6, it could offer a variety of possibilities. For example, more abilities that change how the players moves around the world could be added. As a magical equivalent to the dodge ability unlocked through Acrobatics, players who invest in a high Willpower could be granted access to abilities such as a short-distance teleport. The amount ofnew featuresThe Elder Scrolls 6could include are virtually limitless when usingOblivion’s leveling system as a template.
Regardless of how it turns out, hopefullyThe Elder Scrolls 6’s leveling system offers an immersive experience akin to that of the older installments. But withThe Elder Scrolls 6’s release datelikely being far into the future, it’ll take quite a while to find out how that pans out.
The Elder Scrolls 6is currently in development.
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