Re: ES: V Skyrim announced
 

The engine is a clunky monstrosity imo. It buckles under the stress of scripts etc. and always seems to have performance issues no matter what incarnation of it is used.

As for people's heads following you, the NPC's have some script in them (both in Fallout and Oblivion) that makes them watch you when you are close by. Their heads will move but their body's stay taut as they do this. If you are in a shop, they will be facing the entrance but their heads are turned around at almost unnatural angles just keep their eyes on you. Why can't they just actually turn and face you? Talk about neck strain.

The guards in Oblivion will march ahead, all stalwart and militiary-like, but when you walk by them their heads swivel on their axis to stare at you like some posessed doll. This is happening as they are still marching forward determinely. How do they not trip?

The walking itself looks so clumsy, like they are puppets being pulled by strings. You can actually SEE the scripts kicking in, forcing them to walk yet they seem reluctant to do so.

It's a shame, because the content is so rich in Oblivion for example, and the art is so amazing but I think many are deterred by rickety old gambryo.

You can see what I am talking about in this video. While I think it is some weird bug and/or modding being showcased here (the guard gets shot in the end, lol), it still demonstrates how badly the guards animate and deal with scripting. The music in this video is almost as annoying as the engine.

Re: ES: V Skyrim announced
 

Engine this, uncanny valley that. As long as people are complaining about petty graphics issues, ES will never be the game it could be. :(

I will buy it, play it, enjoy it and complain loudly about it, but i'll only complain about the graphics when there's too much developer attention paid to them.