Bethesda says that they will be moving away from the generic look and feel of Oblivion to produce a game with a unique setting like the one in Morrowind.
The difference between the two settings is like night and day. Where Oblivion offered a landscape filled with knights, forests, and castles, Morrowind had a city that floated over a lake, and vast organic structures.
Skyrim is set to be a return to the abnormality of Morrowind–a world with its own identity. In an interview with OXM U.K., Bethesda's Todd Howard explained their plans for the upcoming RPG:
"With Oblivion, we're dealing with the capital province, and we wanted to get back to the more classic Arena and Daggerfall feel of a fantasy world that felt more refined and welcoming. A place that you instantly understood. But in that, we sacrificed some of what made Morrowind special; the wonder of discovery.
"With Skyrim, we're trying to bring some of that back and walk the line between Morrowind and Oblivion. Where it's at first familiar looking, but has its own unique culture and spin on it."
It goes without saying that any spin on the familiar into the unfamiliar would be a step beyond what Oblivion had to offer.
via RPS
