Ex-Blizzard Boss Throws Shade at Oblivion Remastered

Former Blizzard president Mike Ybarra recently commented about The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered 4, throwing shade at the release by saying he’s “skeptical about 20-year-old remasters.” While Oblivion Remastered has been a big hit, opinions about the game vary, and it seems that Ybarra is among the ones not too keen on playing the remaster.

The original Oblivion was released in 2006, and the open-world RPG was one of the biggest hits of the decade. Rumors about a remake made with Unreal Engine 5 were already surfacing for months, and Bethesda finally announced and shadow-dropped Oblivion Remastered earlier this week.

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Now, Blizzard’s ex-boss Mike Ybarra has commented on Oblivion Remastered’s launch. While Ybarra did not directly name Oblivion Remastered, he revealed that he is “skeptical” of 20-year-old remasters, claiming that what was once “fantastic” now can’t hold up against modern masterpieces such as Elden Ring, for example. According to Ybarra, “the bar has simply moved from safe open world RPGs” to more complex experiences.

Former President of Blizzard Mike Ybarra Is Skeptical About Oblivion Remastered

Ybarra’s opinion on Oblivion Remastered is certainly controversial, and it does not exactly track with how popular the remaster has been since launch. On the same day of its release, The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered peaked at 182,298 players on Steam, which is nothing to scoff at. These are really impressive numbers, especially when considering that the title was launched in the middle of the week and that it’s also available as part of the Xbox Game Pass subscription service.

General opinions on the Oblivion remaster seem to be that the game has maintained its classic elements while modernizing some aspects. Oblivion Remastered features an overhauled leveling system, for example, as well as better graphics and more voice acting, but its quests are mostly the same, and some effort was made to preserve the original feel of the adventure. Even the tradition of making incredibly ugly characters in the popular open-world RPG has been maintained, as gamers are already making horrible monsters as their main characters in Oblivion Remastered.

At the moment, The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered is available for PC, Xbox Series X/S, and PlayStation 5. However, new rumors indicate that Oblivion Remastered could be released for the Nintendo Switch 2 after the console is available. The timing of the release is uncertain, though, and rumors such as this one should be taken with a grain of salt until they are confirmed by the developers.