Bethesda is doing it's own thing in the open world design space. Their games belong to the few that actually allow you to
roleplay any kind of character you want. By that I mean that that roleplaying isn't just about extensive dialogue trees and lots of stat systems. It's about your character and who she/he is. Wanna be a psycho that enters people homes and kills them while sleeping and then steals their shit while avoiding leaving witnesses? ES and Fallout allow that. Wnna be a goody two shoes that helps people in need? They allow that too. Wanna go to a town, cast some some crazy spells on guards or other NPCs and see what chaos ensues in a totally dynamic, unscripted way? Their games allow that.
My favourite fantasy RPG series of all time is The Witcher series. But what those games do is totally different. And Bethesda doesn't and
shouldn't try to replicate that, just like CDPR shouldn't try to turn The Witcher into ES.
Are there problems with Bethesda's games. Sure. Outside of the bugs, the combat so far, especially in third person, sucks balls. It doesn't need to be more complex than it is or rely on great reflexes and finger-skills to become like the Souls games (and I'd hate that), but it needs to
feel good. The camera and controls need to feel tight. The animations and body physics need to feel really good. It's 2023 and they need to sptep up their game. If they want their games to be primarily played in first-person then
stick to that and don't introduce a third-person option. If it's there then it needs to be good, period.
Also, their local maps (when in dungeons, building, etc) are total shit. You spend half your time trying to figure out how to get to the map markers. Maybe Bethesda thinks it's a feature and that it's a good one at that. And the dungeon design is boring and shit to boot too, easily the most boring shit in Skyrim etc. The only worse think I can think of is the dungeons in Atlus games.
They also need to stop the plot-armour for Quest NPCs. If I want to kill an NPC then allow me to, don't just make them invulnerable and cowering in a corner, promptly forgetting that I just attacked them. Just throw a screen warning to the player that the NPC is essential to a Quest and give me the option to proceed or not. Don't just fucking block me from doing so.
Another thing is that the NPCs are mostly forgetable. I don't play their games for the great story and Quest design, because mostly it's shit. But actual interesting NPCs, especially Companions, is essential. Interactions between you and your Companions is important. Mods have helped, but it shouldn't be needed to begin with.
Finally, the lore of Elder Scrolls in general is shit. It's an off-the-shelves namby pamby fantasy world that only fans of crap like The Wheel of Time could consider great. In that respect I'd take Elden Rings, Demon Souls, and Dark Souls any day of the week. Even The Witcher feels a lore more tight and focused when it comes to pseudo-Renaissance European fantasy. ES is a complete mish mash of influences and the end result is a crap fruit salad. But I'm sure a lot of people would buy a fucking book series based on ES if MS decided to milk it in that direction, and they'd beg to goble up more. At least Skyrim had that Norse vibe to it that, with some mods, could give a bit of the classic Sword & Sorcery vibe of old that is sorely needed in fantasy RPGs. It's a lost branch of fantasy that needs to come back. At least the Souls games are bringing us some of that lost Clark Ashton Smith vibe.
But then again, it's the freedom of
character roleplay that makes Bethesda games sing. You can have your character live the life you want in their games, unlike The Witcher, Elden Ring, and whatnot. Basically, they're completely different games and all of them do what they do well, and in that respect Bethesda doesn't need,
nor should, copy them. The reverse is also true.
Guess that was a big rant, sorry for that
