Long before the likes ofOblivion, I recall the OG PlayStation console. Its 3D capabilities and catalog of releases turned Sony into a powerhouse in the video games industry. Nostalgic though that time was, we have truly moved on since those low-poly, low-pixel days. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t return to them every so often.
That’s exactly what Nexus Mods usergonghas done. Making sure we never forget the PS1 era of gaming, they’ve managed to “demake”The Elder Scrolls 4, turning it into a blocky facsimile of its formerly smooth (though now dated) self.
“Oblivion Umastered,” as it’s called, has taken the classic Bethesda RPG and “decimally crunched” the textures, turning it into something that would sit more at home in 1995. The modder has also – if you’ll pardon the language – “rampantly polyfucked” the meshes, and has also “bit crushed” the audio. I speak for myself, but I kind of like the way gong describes things…
Obliviating the visuals
Visually and audibly, it may have been altered to an eye-bleeding quality that many of us still recall fondly, but it’s the same ol’Oblivion. The modder describes it as being like a PS1-era game, but it’s functionally stillTES4, so nothing else has been tinkered with outside the graphics and sound.
They also recommend running their unmastered mod with the included shader preset, saying that it’s “actually a pretty cool experience.” All I can say is it really makes me miss my youth.
Of course, we can’t talk aboutThe Elder Scrollswithout mentioning the elusive sixth entry.Skyrimcame out over 13 years ago and while Bethesda is working on the next game, many of us are starting to grow impatient. On top of that, there are stillrumors thatOblivionwill be getting a remakeat some point. Counter that with this PS1 demake mod and we could potentially have it all from the nearly 18-year-old RPG.
