The first Elder Scrolls, a game forgotten to time by many. With Daggerfall having a second wind in the last couple of years and finding new fans amongst those who joined the series at a later point - Is it time for the first game to have its chance at redemption?
This is the Complete Retrospective and Analysis of The Elder Scrolls One: Arena.

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Watch more retrospective analyses and reviews:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLM_F6ru-Us2yGX1EwpvQZTkrrhTf-2OoU

Read the full The Elder Scrolls: Arena - A Complete Retrospective essay here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1b_TEA0-OhL97b_4U9EACmxJYRLuE80JZMkB_ZM8bLDk/edit?usp=sharing

Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pFgay4G1stkbmXVyVgBJHiCKNe3DtrIXRYNCFQr7WQc/edit?usp=sharing

OpenTESArena: https://github.com/afritz1/OpenTESArena

Arena mods: https://www.nexusmods.com/tesarena

The Wayward Realms: https://www.waywardrealms.com/

Most footage has been edited to fit a 16:9 ratio for a better viewing experience. The game is best played in its original 4:3 ratio.

Sections
Part 1 - The Making of Arena
Analysis Intro 0:00
Early Bethesda 1:10
The Original Idea 4:23
A Team-Based RPG 14:46
Cancelled Features 19:20
Art & Marketing 22:25
When was Arena released 29:36
Bethesda never changes 37:09
Critical Reviews 43:04

Part 2 - The Gameplay of Arena
Character Creation 50:17
Dungeon Crawling 1:10:00
Difficulty & Combat 1:23:50
Thievery 1:38:13
Magic & Spell Maker 1:44:01

Part 3 - The World of Arena
Living in the World of Arena 1:51:52
The Wilderness 1:53:09
The Cities 2:01:15
NPCS 2:16:38
The Bestiary 2:18:54
World Conclusion 2:27:06
Side Quests Intro 2:29:00
Types of Quests 2:32:02
Artefact Quests 2:38:50
Critique of the Quest System 2:48:12
Ambience 2:50:21

Part 4 - The Story and Lore of Arena
Part 4 Introduction 2:56:11
The Last Minute Story 2:57:31
Lore Differences 2:59:50
Our Role and Goal 3:05:41
The Main Characters 3:09:26
Setting the Stage 3:14:18
Why Split the Staff 3:19:55
Assembling the Staff 3:21:30
Facing Tharn 3:56:25
The Ending 4:00:52
Story Critique 4:04:21

Part 5 - The Age of Arena
Part 5 intro 4:07:44
Mods 4:09:10
Graphics & Sounds 4:14:21
Arena's Legacy 4:17:25
Analysis Conclusion 4:20:40

Outro 4:22:28

TES I: Arena - A Complete Retrospective

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