A few more things I like about this game:
First of all, the menus, HUD and overall look and feel are much better. It's more contemporary now. I understand they were going for immersion with the old script & parchment look, but it was ugly and never really did much for me.
I'm really liking the archery so far. In the past, I've used it just enough at the beginning to know I didn't want to [censored] with bows and arrows for the rest of the game. This time around though, it's actually useful. When I hit an enemy, it does damage. It looks like they also give a lot more places to take cover, duck in and out and do some sniping as well. When you approach three bandits all with ranged weapons it's nice to be able to engage them from a distance effectively rather than having to charge at them and button mash, hoping you can take them all out before they turn you into a pin cushion.
Finally, I'm also really liking lockpicking. It's by far the best I've used in a TES game, and perhaps the best lockpicking mechanic I've encountered since the original Splinter Cell. I've only had to pick a handful of locks so far, but the last one I did was Adept-level and I was able to crack it because I was careful and I had enough skill with the controller. I know that runs counter to the typical RPG way of doing things where it should normally be a check of my lockpick skill rating against the level of the lock, but I think this is more fun. Increasing my lockpick skill should simply increase my margin for error. It certainly beats the hell out of those tumbler locks from Oblivion. Especially early in that game I could burn thru tens of lockpicks in no time on a single lock, and it would [censored] me off.
