The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remaster claimed another victim when streamer Quin attempted a hardcore run on Expert difficulty. After carefully navigating the tutorial dungeon, Quin’s character lasted just 36 seconds in the open world before meeting a swift and permanent end.
Hardcore mode in Oblivion means permadeath—one mistake and it’s game over forever. Combined with Expert difficulty, which triples damage taken while reducing player damage to 60%, the challenge becomes brutal, especially for fresh characters with basic gear.
Quin, known for his masochistic gaming challenges and entertaining reactions, made a critical error by attempting to use a touch spell at range, leaving him vulnerable to attack. The New Zealand-based streamer has built his reputation on these high-risk gaming attempts, often with spectacular results – though rarely this quick.
The Oblivion Remastered has been under the microscope for its difficulty balancing. Unlike the original game’s slider system, the remaster offers preset difficulty options with dramatic jumps between levels. The leap from Adept (normal) to Expert creates a particularly harsh experience in the early game.
“Combat’s never been the selling point of Bethesda games,” noted one viewer, pointing out a common criticism of the Elder Scrolls series. Others said even the tutorial rats were two-shotting Quin when he first started playing on higher difficulties.
The remaster keeps Oblivion‘s infamous level scaling system, where enemies get stronger as the player levels up. This can actually make things tougher down the road, unless players really tweak their builds.
