Summary
The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivionis considered by many to be one of the finest open-world western RPGs of all time. This game features a lush and diverse world coupled with some groundbreaking mechanics — for its time, at least — that have helped it garner a stellar reputation ever since its widely anticipated release. That being said, there’s no denying the fact that thisBethesdagame hasn’t aged all that well, with most people using this title as a way to churn out memes and nothing else.
However, that’s not to say thatOblivionis completely unplayable. There are several ways in which this title can be rendered playable, mainlythrough the use of mods. Given how massive the modding community is for most Bethesda games, it’s easy to see why so many fans love downloading a wealth of fan-made fixes and content to makeOblivionas engaging and fun as possible for them. These mods tweak multiple aspects ofOblivion’s gameplay to make it feel more modern and exciting for those who may find the game to be a bit dated at times.
Updated on Jul 24, 2025, by Rhenn Taguiam:Despite the age of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, it remains one of the most celebrated Bethesda titles after fully bringing the acclaimed fantasy franchise to the best realism could offer at the time - complete with a graphical marvel of an open world, fully-voiced cast, and a plethora of activities that really immersed players in Cyrodiil. However, players who want to play Oblivion today might encounter bugs and inefficient mechanics that can ruin the gameplay experience, which is why specific mods can be great additions to their playthrough. These include improvements on saves, character creation, scaling, and even overall graphical presentation.
38Better Saves
Make Saves More Meaningful
Saving is animportant aspect of any RPG, especially those where decisions can’t be backtracked and can haunt players throughout their playthrough. In the case ofObliviongameplay where saves are plentiful but not a lot of things can be done with them, it can make things extremely confusing very fast. WithBetter Saves, players can reconfigure their approach toOblivionsaves with a more “cyclic” style of saves.
Thanks to this mod, players are now able to enjoy auto-created saves every five minutes and whenever they save the quick save keys. Using quick loads will now auto-load the last save, and saves are disabled during combat - especially during falls or when controls are disabled. This mod starts with three saves for consistency but could be configured to tailor the player’s needs.
37Oblivion Character Overhaul Version 2
Finally Break Away From Generic Characters
DespiteOblivionwowing players as soon as they venture into the region of Cyrodiil, the game does have an infamous character creator known for rather wonky options. WithOblivion Character Overhaul Version 2, players now have the means to create more “modern” characters - at least, with the mod taking inspiration from the more streamlinedcharacter creation options fromSkyrimandThe Elder Scrolls: Online.
Players installing the mod will now enjoy more modernized characters that will retell the story ofOblivionbut with the modern art style the series is more acquainted with today. On a technical level, all race and gender options have unique textures and head meshes as well as a new age slider and hair options to replace the original game’s. Modern character modeling conventions are now applied to the mod, making resulting characters much livelier to interact with.
36Cyrodiil Re-Loaded
Get A Fresher Take On Cyrodiil
PlayerslovedOblivionfor the unique depthit added not just to the world and visuals but also to lore and interactions, especially since this is the first game in the series to feature fully-voiced NPCs. Unfortunately, players who start a playthrough ofObliviontoday might slowly realize its technical limitations - particularly its limited range of voice actors, rather weird NPC habits, and odd interactions. WithCyrodiil Re-Loaded, players have an opportunity to relive theirOblivionexperience and experience it in a new light.
The mod overall features 50+ new NPCs, all of which - including older NPCs - receive hundreds of new voice lines. The mod also features new quests and storylines, complete with improved AI interactions to ensure more consistency with behaviors and quirks.
35Oblivion Scaling Unclusterfucked
Downloads: 20,254
Despite the fanfare overOblivion’s overall visual presentation and storytelling, the game does suffer from having one of the worst leveling mechanics throughout theentireElder Scrollsfranchise. After all, the game does auto-scale with the player’s level - ensuring players encounter much stronger enemies when they reach thresholds. Unfortunately, this leaves players with little room to adjust - and with Skills not giving them the best opportunities to get stronger, players are predisposed to be left more vulnerable than their enemies.
This all changes withOblivion Scaling Unclusterfucked, with its biggest changes involving how loot is scaled across the game. Specific armor types such as Dwarven, Ebony, and Daedric are now located in handpick places in the game world - all for players to find out. Quests also reward players more appropriately, ensuring they don’t need to throw away loot from a quest that wastes a few hours of their time. Values and rarities of gems have been substantially raised to ensure getting them was worthwhile, and armor sets were made even rarer so players can enjoy finding them. The game also tweaks how players encounter monsters based on their level, and monsters appearing in appropriate locations.
34Kragenir’s Death Quest
Downloads: 17,170
Fans who have played enoughElder Scrollsgames know that it’sin the citieswhere all the latest buzz is at. While towns do have the occasional story and merchant, cities are filled with relevant NPCs and mysteries for players to tackle and enjoy. However, in a game likeOblivionwhere towns are spread across its cities, not having unique interactions inside these hamlets might make them feel rather unnatural and unnecessary. This is somethingKragenir’s Death Questtries to remedy.
The quest in itself is straightforward: Kragenir’s Tower has been sealed by the Knights of the Silver Nose. However, its seals have weakened as time passes, and players have to find the keys to prevent their escape. The mod itself includes more than 100 new quests and quite a lot of dialogue, with extra quests not just in cities but even towns. Unlike other quests in the game, Kragenir’s Tower is quite the comical quest line, providing a breath of fresh air inOblivion’s grim overarching story.
33Integration: The Stranded Light
Downloads: 2,011
Fans looking fora new story in theirThe Elder Scrollsexperienceoften encounter them in DLC or additional content, which is what makes mods likeIntegration: The Stranded Lightquite a surprising discovery. When installed, the mod provides the game with more than 80 quests that tackle all things regarding the lore. The mod is touted to exemplify player choices and consequences of their actions, making their decisions more meaningful and impactful to the game experience.
With The Stranded Light, franchise fans can expect a deeper appreciation ofThe Elder Scrollslore as quests tackle not just a connection between Cyrodiil and the Shivering Isles but even mysteries behind factions, races, and even Daedric Princes.
32Race Balancing Project
Downloads: 3,152
If lore across theElder Scrollsseries is to be believed,the races of Tamriel have quite a rich history and heritage- especially with interactions among themselves, their religions, and the life in their regions in general. As such, it’s become quite a bummer for some to realize thatOblivion’s take on races positioned them more as aesthetic templates with some numerical and technical advantages and disadvantages. Thanks to theRace Balancing Project, players can get more out of their chosen race throughout theirOblivionexperience.
With the Race Balancing Project, Races, and Birthsigns are now more balanced - allowing any Race to approach any gameplay style they want while having lore-accurate “effects” to certain aspects of their performances. Modifications to appearances are also expected from the mod, making appearances of every Race more unique and meaningful. Not only that, this mod also overhauls the Magicka system to involve spell cost progression, penalties when wearing armor, and more specific regeneration rules.
31Less Annoying Magicka Experience (LAME)
Downloads: 4,767
When players encounter spells inThe Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, they might not have as much “oomph” regardless of the variety cast - and this can make the endgame spellmaking feature quite a bummer if players can’t experience the full gravity of their customizations. This all changes withLess Annoying Magicka Experience (LAME), a magic system overhaul that changes a lot of the existing Magick rules in the game.
A huge chunk of the changes are tailored to make spells more impactful to gameplay, with modifications such as spellbook optimization, spell duration changes, and even spells that have completely different effects. LAME boasts more than 100+ new spells for players to try and enjoy, making magic a more enjoyable gameplay path for them to take.
30NorthernUI (Oblivion Style)
Downloads: 39,075
Oblivion’s UI isn’t the greatest, but fans can live with it since it doesn’t come in the way of the overall package. However, those who just like a cleaner interface or are playing this game for the umpteenth game can go for a UI upgrade that makes the title look more polished than ever before.
A simple UI upgrade can do wonders for a game’s presentation, and this can be seen when players download the NorthernUI mod forOblivion. The game’s menus are certainly more tolerable, making it easy on the eyes of those who are worried about the title’s dated presentation. It’s certainly not a critical mod that players must download, but it serves as an alternate option that fans can check out if they’ve played the vanilla game to death and don’t mind changing things up a bit.
29Voices For Female Dremora NPCs
Downloads: 59,031
The Dremora isan aggressive race that players will encountermany times inOblivion. This Daedric species will serve as a thorn in the protagonist’s side every step of the way, trying to hunt them down and end their lives whenever gamers wander into the world ofOblivion. While this species is pretty tough in its own right, one thing that irritates players is the fact that there are no female Dremora in the game.
Thankfully, many mods add multiple female models of the Dremora, making the title feel more fleshed-out and sensible. However, none of these Dremora have a proper voice, which can break immersion to an extent. This all-purpose mod adds a bunch of voices for female Dremora, which goes a long way in making their inclusion feel more natural in the game.
