As the days of Oblivion approached, I had plenty of time to watch the psychology of the fan and all of its subtle permutations. I watched with a brand of abject horror, as the most vocal and intense segment of the fanbase began to speak of the game almost reverently, with traits that seemed religious in nature. Thou shalt have no game above the one true Oblivion. Thou shalt not use thy lord Oblivion’s name in vain. Thou shalt type in all capital letters and vulgar acronyms to really get thy point across. The most important element to this cult of Bethesda was what it most shared with religion, and that was unwavering faith on the part of its laity. Though these priests of Tamriel had never held the game, nor played it, nor been granted concrete evidence that this game would be as good as promised, their certainty was absolute.