The Elder Scrolls: Arena

78%
Game Brain Score Based on 1,037 reviews
  • story
  • gameplay
  • graphics
The Elder Scrolls: Arena Game Cover
A stunning technological achievement; give this game a better storyline, and you might have the best FRP ever designed.
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"The Elder Scrolls: Arena" is an open-world RPG set in the fantasy world of Tamriel. As a prisoner, you must escape and restore your kingdom's stolen throne by defeating the evil Imperial battlemage, Jagar Tharn. Explore dungeons, battle enemies, and complete quests in this expansive and immersive game.

  • PC
  • Windows
  • Ms Dos
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

78%
Audience ScoreBased on 1,037 reviews
story33 positive mentions
grinding22 negative mentions
  • The game offers a vast open world to explore, allowing players to traverse all of Tamriel.
  • Arena features a unique spell-making system that allows for creative and powerful spell combinations.
  • Despite its age, the game provides a nostalgic experience for fans of the Elder Scrolls series.
  • The controls are clunky and unintuitive, making combat and navigation frustrating.
  • The game suffers from numerous bugs and crashes, which can disrupt gameplay.
  • The main quest and side quests can feel repetitive and lack variety, leading to a tedious experience.
  • story228 mentions

    The story in "The Elder Scrolls: Arena" is generally considered basic and linear, revolving around a classic fantasy quest to gather pieces of a magical staff and defeat an evil wizard. While some players appreciate the nostalgic charm and the foundational lore it provides for the series, many criticize the repetitive nature of the quests and the lack of depth in the narrative, often suggesting that the gameplay overshadows the story itself. Overall, the plot serves primarily as a framework for dungeon crawling rather than a compelling narrative experience.

    • “The story is where you end up in a cellar for being an enemy of this evil wizard who is now attempting to take full control of the realm; however, there is one way to take him out and that's to assemble a long-forgotten scepter.”
    • “The story itself is great, but the gameplay loop is mostly about doing dungeons with enemies that spawn endlessly, chugging potions, and robbing to get the best gear.”
    • “The story may be a bit straightforward, but it's still a fun and interesting story nonetheless.”
    • “The storytelling is as basic as it gets, not really much to go off of besides some random side-quests that aren't really necessary to proceed and a very basic plot where you find some pieces of the staff of chaos and then a final fight with Jagar Tharn - it's not very compelling.”
    • “The main story is very linear, pure dungeon crawling, and the side quests are repetitive; however, given the circumstances, that's to be expected.”
    • “The story is very basic, following a classical fantasy plotline of defeating the evil mage to bring back the true king, in this case, the emperor.”
  • gameplay106 mentions

    The gameplay of "Elder Scrolls: Arena" is characterized by its dated mechanics and clunky controls, which can be frustrating for modern players. While it offers a nostalgic dungeon-crawling experience with deep systems for magic and combat, many find the gameplay repetitive and overwhelming, especially for newcomers. Despite its rough edges, some players appreciate the addictive nature of its simplicity and the charm of its retro design, making it a significant piece of gaming history for those willing to overlook its flaws.

    • “This ambitious RPG laid the groundwork for the expansive open-world gameplay that would become a hallmark of the franchise.”
    • “There’s beauty in its simplicity; the gameplay loop is addictive, and it all makes me feel something about video games that I haven’t felt in a long time.”
    • “If you can get past the archaic graphics and audio, the gameplay is somewhat addictive.”
    • “Shitty repetitive gameplay, physically painful to play.”
    • “The gameplay overall is quite repetitive and unvaried once you pass a certain point where every chapter is a repetition of the previous one.”
    • “Incredibly irritating to play, I'm all for games that don't hold your hand but this game tells you next to nothing about where to start, how to use its janky controls, or even its most basic mechanics.”
  • graphics68 mentions

    The graphics of the game are widely regarded as dated and primitive by modern standards, with many players noting their pixelated textures and clunky interface. While some appreciate the nostalgic charm and historical significance of the visuals, others find them challenging to overlook, especially when compared to contemporary titles. Overall, the graphics may not impress today's gamers, but they reflect the game's origins and can still evoke a sense of enjoyment for those who appreciate retro RPG aesthetics.

    • “The graphics are good for the time and size of the game, with puddles that reflect the towns when it rains, and the snow makes you feel cold in these medieval towns and cities.”
    • “Honestly, a very cool experience; love the music and the visuals are charming.”
    • “Bethesda has created a true virtual world in jaw-dropping 3D graphics, using light-sourcing and shadows to magnificent effect.”
    • “Dated graphics and interface: by modern standards, the graphics and user interface are quite primitive and can be challenging for new players.”
    • “For players accustomed to the visuals of more recent Elder Scrolls games, it can be a challenge to look past the pixelated textures and simple animations.”
    • “Unfortunately, as of today, there is no mod that can enhance the graphics and experience (like Daggerfall Unity) for this title.”
  • music47 mentions

    The music in the game is widely praised for its nostalgic charm, effectively enhancing the overall atmosphere and immersion, particularly in various environments like dungeons and towns. Composed by Eric Heberling, the soundtrack captures the essence of the medieval fantasy setting, although some players note that it can become repetitive. Overall, the music is considered a standout feature, contributing significantly to the game's appeal despite some technical issues with playback on different systems.

    • “The music, composed by Eric Heberling, is a true gem that captures the essence of the game's medieval fantasy setting.”
    • “The music perfectly sets the tone for each location and enhances the immersion factor.”
    • “Overall great entry into the universe of this pretty interesting franchise, it has a good story, almost tolerable gameplay, and an awesome soundtrack.”
    • “The first time the screen went black and it showed no cutscene at all, but I could hear music and talking.”
    • “The third time the cutscene was working but the music was really loud for some reason and you could not hear the talking.”
    • “The music is basic 8-bit nostalgia but very limited.”
  • grinding23 mentions

    The reviews highlight that grinding in the game can be excessively tedious, particularly during the early stages filled with fetch quests and labyrinthine dungeons. While some players appreciate the challenge and immersive aspects of the game, many find the repetitive nature of grinding and the clunky controls to be a significant drawback, making the experience feel more exhausting than enjoyable. Overall, the game offers a mix of fun and frustration, with grinding being a prominent and often tiresome element.

    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “The game is just too tiring to do so and a 40+ hour experience that is mostly made up of tedious dungeons is not something that many people are up for.”
    • “The pattern of fetch quests gets tedious.”
  • stability20 mentions

    The stability of the game is widely criticized, with users noting it is surprisingly less buggy than typical Bethesda titles, yet still plagued by numerous glitches, crashes, and softlocks due to poor dungeon design. Many players report frustrating gameplay experiences, including unresponsive menus and broken mechanics, while some find enjoyment in the nostalgia despite the game's clunky and outdated nature. Overall, while it may run adequately on platforms like Steam, the game remains a "buggy mess" that requires patience and frequent saving to navigate effectively.

    • “Surprisingly not that buggy for a Bethesda product.”
    • “Runs great on Steam so far. It has been a few years since I last played, and I have been enjoying running around as my Khajiit healer. Dungeon at level 1 with no gear is about as hard as I remember, but eventually, I will get better gear and will save Tamriel.”
    • “It is somewhat difficult, janky, old, buggy, and there are multiple sections where you can get softlocked because of poor dungeon design (not from glitches).”
    • “After a few hours, menus stop working, graphical glitches will appear, and some NPCs won't give you your quest rewards until you restart the game.”
    • “The game is buggy, sometimes freezes/crashes and is weird to play.”
  • replayability8 mentions

    The game offers considerable replayability primarily through its diverse character creation system, allowing players to experience different heroes with each playthrough. However, the linear main quest and lack of engaging sidequests limit overall replay value, making it reliant on starting anew with different characters. While not exceptional, the replayability is appreciated, especially for those nostalgic for its original release.

    • “Thanks to such a system and all of the above features, starting the game anew each time gives you a hero completely different from the previous character, which naturally increases the already considerable replay value.”
    • “This is somewhat important to the game as it is the only true replay value, as the main quest is extremely linear and, as mentioned, the side quests are all but a distraction.”
    • “All around, a good game that is a lot of fun with some great replay value.”
    • “For starters, there aren't any alternate applications or modifications to make the game more replayable.”
    • “This is somewhat important to the game as it is the only true replay value, as the main quest is extremely linear and the side quests are all but a distraction.”
    • “Maybe it'll get a Unity remake someday like Daggerfall to make it more replayable.”
  • optimization7 mentions

    Overall, the optimization of the game is mixed; while some users report smooth performance and enjoyment reminiscent of 90s fantasy RPGs after initial fixes, others experience significant issues, including extremely low frame rates and outdated controls. Despite being free, many feel that the game lacks sufficient optimization, leading to frustrating gameplay in certain scenarios.

    • “It runs smoothly, and if you like 90s fantasy RPGs, you'll really like this.”
    • “After a couple of performance and keybind fixes, it is such a gem.”
    • “Good performance”
    • “I don't really mind that all too much if it wasn't for the incredibly poor performance.”
    • “This is okay for most things, but performance can get as low as 5 fps in some dungeons, and that's not an exaggeration in the slightest.”
    • “A good gesture (and don't get me wrong, you can't get any better than free) but no optimizations or anything other than the bare minimum to ensure the game is functional.”
  • atmosphere7 mentions

    The game's atmosphere is a blend of classic fantasy and RPG elements, evoking a charming 90's dungeon crawler vibe with well-designed environments and fitting music. While it excels in creating a unique dungeon atmosphere and offers a vast scope of Tamriel, some reviewers noted a lack of atmospheric variety and sound channel issues that detract from the overall experience. Despite these shortcomings, the atmosphere remains a highlight for fans of the genre.

    • “I really liked how this game combines the atmosphere of classic fantasy and classic RPG.”
    • “On one hand, it has a very cool atmosphere as a 90's dungeon crawler, and it really is charming.”
    • “They're interesting both visually and from a level design perspective; the enemies in them make sense, the music and atmosphere is great, and the little story they tell through their environment and NPCs is well done.”
    • “None of the others offers the sheer scope of the entirety of Tamriel, nor the atmosphere of the dungeons in this game; the magic system is the most free here.”
    • “If the game wasn't fighting over the sound channels so hard, it would actually be really good at conveying an unnerving dungeon-delving atmosphere.”
  • humor6 mentions

    The humor in the game is characterized by a mix of unintentional comedic moments, such as awkward dialogue and amusing voice acting in cutscenes, which some players found enjoyable. While the humor adds a pleasant touch to the experience, it is often overshadowed by mechanical issues and outdated design. Overall, the game's roleplaying elements and the portrayal of characters, particularly the villain's humorous emotional journey, contribute to its comedic appeal.

    • “The CD version is definitely the way to go; the humorous voice acting in the few cutscenes present in the game may be sparse, but it's a shame to miss out on.”
    • “Also, the roleplaying factor is hilarious.”
    • “Which allowed me to gauge who this bloke was, and the humor of the villain basically going through the five stages of grief.”
  • emotional5 mentions

    The emotional responses to "The Elder Scrolls: Arena" are mixed, with some players experiencing nostalgia and heartfelt moments, while others express frustration and disappointment. One player found a poignant scene to be deeply affecting, leading to tears, while another felt overwhelmed by the game's shortcomings, describing a sense of emotional and spiritual defeat. Overall, the game elicits strong feelings, both positive and negative, reflecting its complex impact on players.

    • “As a seasoned gamer who has witnessed the evolution of video games over the past few decades, diving back into The Elder Scrolls: Arena was nothing short of a heartwarming and nostalgic experience.”
    • “I got to the part where you wake up in a prison cell after a woman wearing a bathrobe talks to you, and I cried and turned it off because that is someone's mom, and I don't want to see that.”
    • “Skeleton beat me physically, emotionally, spiritually, metaphorically, actually, symbolically, realistically, completely, eternally, deeply, utterly.”
  • monetization1 mentions

    Reviewers express frustration with Bethesda's monetization strategy, suggesting that rather than repeatedly re-releasing Skyrim, the company should focus on capitalizing on its earlier titles like Arena, Daggerfall, Morrowind, and Oblivion. This sentiment highlights a desire for more meaningful content rather than perceived cash grabs.

    • “Instead of re-re-re-releasing Skyrim for the thousandth time for PlayStation 15, Bethesda should just announce a cash grab from its first three or even four games (meaning Arena, Daggerfall, Morrowind, and Oblivion, not any of the other games that are basically spin-offs like Redguard).”
    • “The monetization strategy feels more like a cash grab than a genuine effort to enhance the game experience.”
    • “It's frustrating to see so many features locked behind paywalls, making it feel like the game is designed to extract money rather than provide enjoyment.”
Positive mentions (%)Positive
Neutral mentions (%)Neutral
Negative mentions (%)Negative

Critic Reviews

88% average critic score

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Play time

40hMedian play time
34hAverage play time
25-50hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 5 analyzed playthroughs

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