I've been meaning to play this mod for years now, next time I'm in the mood for some Morrowind I'll finally take the plunge. Absolutely incredible dedication and work but if any game deserves it, it's this one.
Really enjoyed reading this one: I like your commitment to old-fashioned D&D-style roleplaying within video games, it's something that Bethesda has always facilitated very well with its hands-off, not-overly-directed approach. I also enjoyed this in your Kenshi review, with the description of your Skeleton character's insane quest for power, it's a great premise.
I really need to check out Tamriel: Rebuilt one of these days. I've actually never delved into Morrowind's modding community - it's one of those things where I feel slightly intimidated just by the sheer scale and ambition of it. I'm maybe in the minority in that I actually really love Morrowind's main quest and it's a big draw for me: the dialogues are so well-written, and I love the emphasis on history and the various contradictory narratives propagated by various parties. It's very true to life in a way, and mogs the much more straightforward storylines of Skyrim and Oblivion.
Also, was not aware of that John Romero poster. I've never seen a promotional campaign more 90s.
Thanks so much! Can't recommend T:R enough, although I certainly don't blame you for putting it off. The gigantic asterisk attached to all Morrowind modding is that the process is much more involved than we've gotten used to since the advent of Steam Workshop. But once it's all done, it delivers on the Bethesda magic again and again.
I'm with you on the quality of the main quest's writing, too. I always look forward to the dialogue and the intrigue, and the portrayal of Dunmer society in particular is... gosh, maybe the richest in all of video gaming? My misgiving is that the connective tissue between those scenes of intrigue is relatively thin, particularly if your character is a demigod by then as mine usually are. That all said, it's been a few years now since I've played it through to the end. I'm sure it's possible to build a character that accounts for most my issues, and I'll have to give that a try.
I never cease to be amazed by what teams of passionate volunteers can accomplish. Even forgetting the technical nous on display for a second, they are absolutely an organisational achievement.
Absolutely, and the organizational strength on display is underrated. It's not just the boots-on-the-ground development work, either — even their promotional machine has put some triple-A trailer houses to shame. It all goes to show that you can make a great game even without privileged access to industry resources as long as the passion is there.
Hell yeah. I know I've mentioned this before here and there but Tamriel Rebuilt stirrings before and after Morrowind's release were the first times I really got involved in any online community, AND the first time I ever modded a game. I even worked on a few early cells for TR [though I'm sure they've been redone by now]. I didn't really keep up with all the drama and technical limitations that hounded the endeavor for most of the time afterwards, though I did revisit Morrowind itself multiple times [still probably my favorite RPG and IMO one of the most important ever made]. Finally broke down and downloaded it all after seeing the Grasping Fortune update and realizing it was right around time for me to become Nerevar reborn one more time.
The really stunning thing to me in all the new material I've played is that it's just about the same level of quality AND density as the base game. I found a whole side venture about stumbling onto a lich's den, being ordered by the invincible lich to hunt down a paladin of sorts, who turned out to be on the lich's trail, and joining forces to find his phylactery and destroy him once and for all... and that was just a random side cave in a mountain range I happened to be walking by. Old Ebonheart had me tied up for hours, doing quests for drug-addled artists and magical con men, and Narsis's Mages Guild is a hilarious trove of farcical one-offs all revolving around some central issue. I'll be dipping in for months to come.
Since Ashlander mentioned it, I also want to chime in that I liked the idea of committing to a role to play in an RPG, and some memorable times I did the same. One was my [pre-Daggerfall Unity] Archeologist/Anthropologist Daggerfall character, who I gave most of the good [i.e. relevant] language skills to and earnestly tried to speak to every sentient creature I encountered, to learn more about the varied cultures and histories of Mundus. [and beyond!] The other, in Morrowind, was an Argonian who had achieved a sort of enlightenment in captivity, and eschewed material possession of any kind - he carried no garb, weapon, or tool [aside from alchemy kit] and would conjure and brew what he needed to survive the waters through and around Vvardenfell.
Regarding the main story and especially the Chosen One dynamic, I find it to be one of the most well-done executions AND subversion of that trope, especially if you really engage with the [very dense and confusing] INTERIOR lore laying below the surface, and the incomparable way the setting conveys a real sense of progressing history and shifting demographics and culture.
TR really is a towering achievement not just as a mod but as a work of game design in general. I'd even take it a step further and say that its best work is in a league of its own compared to the best of vanilla, which is saying a lot since the latter still represents some of the very best RPG content ever released. I'm with you on Narsis's Mages Guild in particular, which was easily the most satisfying and hilarious questline of its kind that I can recall.
And God bless you for committing to an RP-heavy playthrough of pre-Unity Daggerfall. The anthropologist class fantasy never would've occurred to me. And while we're on the subject, I agree with every word of your assessment of Morrowind's main story. A "sense of progressing history" is the perfect term for it — it makes you feel like the figure of world-historical importance that you're supposed to be, which the later TES games never quite replicated.
Now that I've been thinking about neo-Morrowind more or less continuously for three weeks, I find myself wanting to revisit the vanilla game with the benefit of all this new context. I hardly touched on how important and influential its narrative design was alone, and I'll have to redress that sooner or later.
The best kind of RPG in my view is one that allows for this kind of play. Let me play my character and shape my story in my imagination guided by the game world. This mod sounds awesome, thanks for sharing!
Fantastic article, can't wait for the next one. Morrowind is absolutely one of my favourite games and I'll check out T:R next time I want to lose my life to a game for a while!
I've been meaning to play this mod for years now, next time I'm in the mood for some Morrowind I'll finally take the plunge. Absolutely incredible dedication and work but if any game deserves it, it's this one.
Really enjoyed reading this one: I like your commitment to old-fashioned D&D-style roleplaying within video games, it's something that Bethesda has always facilitated very well with its hands-off, not-overly-directed approach. I also enjoyed this in your Kenshi review, with the description of your Skeleton character's insane quest for power, it's a great premise.
I really need to check out Tamriel: Rebuilt one of these days. I've actually never delved into Morrowind's modding community - it's one of those things where I feel slightly intimidated just by the sheer scale and ambition of it. I'm maybe in the minority in that I actually really love Morrowind's main quest and it's a big draw for me: the dialogues are so well-written, and I love the emphasis on history and the various contradictory narratives propagated by various parties. It's very true to life in a way, and mogs the much more straightforward storylines of Skyrim and Oblivion.
Also, was not aware of that John Romero poster. I've never seen a promotional campaign more 90s.
Thanks so much! Can't recommend T:R enough, although I certainly don't blame you for putting it off. The gigantic asterisk attached to all Morrowind modding is that the process is much more involved than we've gotten used to since the advent of Steam Workshop. But once it's all done, it delivers on the Bethesda magic again and again.
I'm with you on the quality of the main quest's writing, too. I always look forward to the dialogue and the intrigue, and the portrayal of Dunmer society in particular is... gosh, maybe the richest in all of video gaming? My misgiving is that the connective tissue between those scenes of intrigue is relatively thin, particularly if your character is a demigod by then as mine usually are. That all said, it's been a few years now since I've played it through to the end. I'm sure it's possible to build a character that accounts for most my issues, and I'll have to give that a try.
I never cease to be amazed by what teams of passionate volunteers can accomplish. Even forgetting the technical nous on display for a second, they are absolutely an organisational achievement.
Absolutely, and the organizational strength on display is underrated. It's not just the boots-on-the-ground development work, either — even their promotional machine has put some triple-A trailer houses to shame. It all goes to show that you can make a great game even without privileged access to industry resources as long as the passion is there.
I can’t believe it was 2002. How time has flown … You’ve made me really want to revisit that game.
Hell yeah. I know I've mentioned this before here and there but Tamriel Rebuilt stirrings before and after Morrowind's release were the first times I really got involved in any online community, AND the first time I ever modded a game. I even worked on a few early cells for TR [though I'm sure they've been redone by now]. I didn't really keep up with all the drama and technical limitations that hounded the endeavor for most of the time afterwards, though I did revisit Morrowind itself multiple times [still probably my favorite RPG and IMO one of the most important ever made]. Finally broke down and downloaded it all after seeing the Grasping Fortune update and realizing it was right around time for me to become Nerevar reborn one more time.
The really stunning thing to me in all the new material I've played is that it's just about the same level of quality AND density as the base game. I found a whole side venture about stumbling onto a lich's den, being ordered by the invincible lich to hunt down a paladin of sorts, who turned out to be on the lich's trail, and joining forces to find his phylactery and destroy him once and for all... and that was just a random side cave in a mountain range I happened to be walking by. Old Ebonheart had me tied up for hours, doing quests for drug-addled artists and magical con men, and Narsis's Mages Guild is a hilarious trove of farcical one-offs all revolving around some central issue. I'll be dipping in for months to come.
Since Ashlander mentioned it, I also want to chime in that I liked the idea of committing to a role to play in an RPG, and some memorable times I did the same. One was my [pre-Daggerfall Unity] Archeologist/Anthropologist Daggerfall character, who I gave most of the good [i.e. relevant] language skills to and earnestly tried to speak to every sentient creature I encountered, to learn more about the varied cultures and histories of Mundus. [and beyond!] The other, in Morrowind, was an Argonian who had achieved a sort of enlightenment in captivity, and eschewed material possession of any kind - he carried no garb, weapon, or tool [aside from alchemy kit] and would conjure and brew what he needed to survive the waters through and around Vvardenfell.
Regarding the main story and especially the Chosen One dynamic, I find it to be one of the most well-done executions AND subversion of that trope, especially if you really engage with the [very dense and confusing] INTERIOR lore laying below the surface, and the incomparable way the setting conveys a real sense of progressing history and shifting demographics and culture.
TR really is a towering achievement not just as a mod but as a work of game design in general. I'd even take it a step further and say that its best work is in a league of its own compared to the best of vanilla, which is saying a lot since the latter still represents some of the very best RPG content ever released. I'm with you on Narsis's Mages Guild in particular, which was easily the most satisfying and hilarious questline of its kind that I can recall.
And God bless you for committing to an RP-heavy playthrough of pre-Unity Daggerfall. The anthropologist class fantasy never would've occurred to me. And while we're on the subject, I agree with every word of your assessment of Morrowind's main story. A "sense of progressing history" is the perfect term for it — it makes you feel like the figure of world-historical importance that you're supposed to be, which the later TES games never quite replicated.
Now that I've been thinking about neo-Morrowind more or less continuously for three weeks, I find myself wanting to revisit the vanilla game with the benefit of all this new context. I hardly touched on how important and influential its narrative design was alone, and I'll have to redress that sooner or later.
The best kind of RPG in my view is one that allows for this kind of play. Let me play my character and shape my story in my imagination guided by the game world. This mod sounds awesome, thanks for sharing!
Fantastic article, can't wait for the next one. Morrowind is absolutely one of my favourite games and I'll check out T:R next time I want to lose my life to a game for a while!