Morrowind = Total immersion, rich lore, complete player freedom. NPC's that don't move, lots of generalized dialogue.
Oblivion = Broken Immersion with pop-up journal quests, hand-holding, significant dumbing down, NPC that talked....about mudcrabs. NPC's staring at a wall. Little to no Lore, in some cases outright butchering (Tsaesci are humanoid skeletons? Really?)
Skyrim = More buggy than Daggerfall, significantly watered down...everything, no attributes, no classes, no Guild ranks. Yet...more immersive than OB (IMO) return of the lore, and NPC's talk...realistically.
The way you're all feeling about Skyrim right about now...is exactly how I feel about Oblivion. Yet in spite of all it's faults...I love Morrowind. And in spite of its...significantly dumbed down aspects, and undeniable bugs and faults. I like Skyrim.
The quests in Morrowind were predetermined too. The Quests in Oblivion were predetermined with a green arrow saying "Here, Dummy!" Skyrim is like the...offspring of the two.
Maybe because I had no expectations with Skyrim, it worked out for me. In large part because the last release was a...trying to choose words carefully here...letdown....a very....well you get the idea, I didn't expect it to knock my socks off.
I am biased of course, hell, Im not even really defending Skyrim, but its second on my list of TES games I would like to play, and I've loved Werewolves since I was a kid.
Yet at the same time, it makes sense from a 'lore' perspective to say that they won't trust you to join the circle until you're one of them, on the other hand, Beth didn't even offer a choice, which is one of the things that does irk me as well.
You figure the majority of people playing this game are going to join the Fighters Guild or companions in this case, so to make lycanthropy an option is not a bad thing, but for it to be forced...why couldn't they just make it a random attack once a month on the road? God knows my fellow thieves and those wannabe assassins pester us enough!!
[/endrant]
*The preceding was merely an opinion, in many cases meant to be taken with a sense of humor, the writer reminds you that text does not convey tones or inflections, and also reminds you that above all else...it's just a game.
EDITED TO ADD: I admit that the Dramatic Brotherhood was VERY well done in Oblivion, and am in fact a total Fanboy for Lucien LaChance. That being said: They ruined everything in Skyrim in terms of the DB! The Spectral Assassin is annoying! NOT even close to fanboying that!!
As proof and tempering of tempers, may I present the greatest fanvid...ever made!....By Humans....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8ldEB5DOaUSeriously,...watch it...its like my skooma...