The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard

Set in the ninth century of the Second Era in the province of Hammerfell, The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard follows Cyrus, a Redguard mercenary and hero, on a quest to uncover the mystery behind his sister Iszara’s disappearance in the port city of Stros M’Kai. As a prequel to the Elder Scrolls series, this 3D action-adventure game blends sword combat, puzzle solving, and exploration in a non-linear open world where players navigate political intrigue through keyword-based dialogue with NPCs and freely traverse urban and wilderness environments.

The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard: Review

Introduction

In the sprawling tapestry of The Elder Scrolls series, few titles are as enigmatic as Redguard. Released in 1998 as a standalone spin-off, this action-adventure experiment diverged sharply from the series’ signature open-world RPG roots. Set centuries before Arena, it thrusts players into the shoes of Cyrus, a Redguard mercenary embarking on a swashbuckling odyssey across the war-torn island of Stros M’Kai. While its commercial fate was dismal—marred by technical issues and overshadowed by genre titans like Tomb Raider and Grim Fandango—Redguard has since emerged as a cult favorite. Its intricate narrative, rich lore, and ambitious design philosophy reveal a daring pivot for Bethesda, blending action, puzzle-solving, and immersive storytelling into a flawed yet unforgettable experience. This review deconstructs Redguard as both a product of its time and a testament to the creative risks that would later define the Elder Scrolls legacy.

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Development History & Context

Bethesda Softworks, then a mid-sized studio navigating the post-Daggerfall era, spearheaded Redguard under the direction of Todd Howard. The project emerged from a bold vision: to create a new “Elder Scrolls Adventures” series, shifting focus from sprawling RPGs to tightly crafted action-adventures inspired by Tomb Raider, Prince of Persia, and the Ultima series. Development spanned two and a half years, with the team leveraging the XnGine engine—technology already showing its age by 1998. This constraint forced a trade-off: instead of vast worlds, the team poured resources into hyper-detailed environments, crafting Stros M’Kai’s port city and wilderness with meticulous hand-painted textures and fluid animations.

Technologically, Redguard was a hybrid beast. It shipped with a Windows-based installer but remained fundamentally a DOS game, requiring manual sound card configuration for IRQ/DMA settings—a relic of an era before seamless OS integration. The 3Dfx Glide renderer offered stunning visuals for Voodoo card owners, but the software version lagged behind contemporaries like Half-Life. The gaming landscape of 1998 was dominated by the rise of 3D acceleration and the “tomb raidering” subgenre, making Redguard‘s fixed protagonist and linear quest structure feel counterintuitive. Despite these hurdles, the studio’s commitment to narrative depth—evident in the inclusion of A Pocket Guide to the Empire and a prequel comic—signaled their nascent ambition to elevate world-building beyond gameplay.

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Narrative & Thematic Deep Dive

Redguard’s narrative unfolds against the backdrop of the Tiber Wars, a pivotal moment in Elder Scrolls lore. The year is 2E 864, and the Imperial conquest of Hammerfell has left the island of Stros M’Kai under the tyrannical rule of Governor Lord Richton. Players assume the role of Cyrus, a disgraced Redguard mercenary, summoned by his mentor Tobias to investigate the disappearance of his sister, Iszara. What begins as a familial rescue mission spirals into a rebellion involving the Restless League pirates, the trapped soul of the fallen Crown Prince A’tor, and the necromantic schemes of the Sload N’Gasta.

The plot is a masterclass in political intrigue, weaving themes of imperialism, rebellion, and sacrifice into a tightly woven script. Key revelations—Iszara’s secret romance with A’tor, Richton’s assassination of the prince, and the soul gem’s centrality to restoring Hammerfell’s sovereignty—elevate the story beyond typical adventure fare. Characters like the pragmatic Tobias, the vengeful assassin Dram, and the wise Yokudan elder Saban add depth, though their interactions are occasionally undermined by uneven voice acting.

Dialogue drives progression via an extensive keyword-based system. Players select topics from NPCs’ conversational trees, with critical information auto-logged in Cyrus’s journal. While this fosters immersion, the sheer volume of exchanges can feel overwhelming. Notably, the game’s anti-imperial perspective—contrasting with the Pocket Guide‘s Imperial bias—mirrors real-world colonial tensions, grounding its fantasy in nuanced critique. Ultimately, Redguard succeeds as a standalone epic, using its prequel status to enrich Arena’s lore while standing apart from the main series.

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Gameplay Mechanics & Systems

Redguard reimagines Elder Scrolls gameplay as a third-person action-adventure, stripping away RPG staples like attributes and skill trees. Cyrus is a static protagonist; his power remains constant, emphasizing player mastery over mechanical progression. The core loop revolves around exploration, puzzle-solving, and combat, though each system bears notable flaws.

Combat & Movement

Combat relies on a sword-based system with slashing, stabbing, and combo attacks mapped to key combinations. Active blocking adds tactical depth, but clunky keyboard controls—particularly for sidestepping and jumping—transform duels into frantic key-mashing. Movement is equally problematic; while Cyrus can swim, climb, and auto-grab ledges, precision platforming (e.g., mushroom-hopping in goblin caves) feels punishingly unforgiving. The absence of mouse support exacerbates these issues, though gamepad integration mitigates some frustrations.

Quest Design & Puzzles

Quests follow a non-linear structure, allowing players to tackle objectives in varied orders—whether aiding the Restless League before exploring Dwarven ruins or vice versa. This flexibility enriches replayability but is undermined by obtuse puzzles. Environmental challenges (e.g., navigating rotating catacombs, aligning a Dwarven orrery) blend logic and trial-and-error, while inventory puzzles (combining ingredients, repairing machinery) feel derivative of Monkey Island-era adventures. The 500 gold limit further constrains exploration, trivializing resource management.

UI & Camera

The interface is functional yet dated, with a journal tracking progress and a conversation tree highlighting new topics. The camera system, however, is a persistent frustration. Floating angles and clipping issues obscure action during critical battles, and adjusting view angles induces claustrophobia. Though customizable, these tweaks rarely resolve fundamental design flaws.

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World-Building, Art & Sound

Redguard’s greatest triumph is its world-building. Stros M’Kai—a volcanic island port—brims with life, from bustling markets to windswept cliffs. The XnGine, despite its age, renders detailed environments: seagulls circle overhead, waves crash against docks, and Dwarven observatories gleam under starlight. Hand-painted textures evoke a painterly aesthetic, while lighting and architecture (e.g., the imperial palace) anchor the setting in tangible reality.

Sound design is similarly ambitious. Voice acting, though uneven, breathes life into NPCs: Tobias’s gruff urgency contrasts with Mariah’s grating accent, and N’Gasta’s cackling necromancy radiates menace. However, PCI sound card compatibility caused stuttering and distortion, an issue Bethesda never patched. The soundtrack, composed by Chip Ellinghaus and Grant Slawson, complements the atmosphere with swashbuckling melodies and somber motifs, underscoring the narrative’s emotional beats.

Artistically, Redguard marries fantasy realism with whimsy. Floating structures (due to polygon-sorting bugs) and exaggerated character models clash with otherwise polished vistas. Yet, these quirks enhance the game’s charm, evoking the handcrafted imperfection of classic adventure games. The inclusion of A Pocket Guide to the Empire—a faux-tome detailing Tamriel’s provinces—remains one of Redguard’s most enduring legacies, expanding the series’ lore beyond the game itself.

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Reception & Legacy

Upon release, Redguard received a mixed-to-positive critical reception (81% on MobyGames). Praise centered on its “immersive world” and “epic story” (Game Over Online), with PC Gamer hailing it as a “fresh and entertaining” adventure that blended genres effectively. However, technical issues—especially the lack of Direct3D support and sound glitches—docked scores, with IGN criticizing its “outdated” engine. Commercially, it was a catastrophe, failing to recoup its development costs and contributing to Bethesda’s financial downturn between 1996–2000.

Over time, Redguard’s reputation evolved. Players rediscovered its strengths: the Pocket Guide became an Elder Scrolls staple, and its lore—introducing races like the Sload and deepening Hammerfell’s history—resonated with series fans. The game’s influence is subtle; its non-linear quest structure and environmental puzzles prefigured elements of Morrowind, while its focus on character-driven storytelling hinted at the cinematic ambitions of Oblivion. Yet, its legacy remains bittersweet. Planned sequels like Eye of Argonia were canceled, and the “Elder Scrolls Adventures” label was retired, cementing Redguard as a fascinating anomaly rather than a blueprint.

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Conclusion

The Elder Scrolls Adventures: Redguard is a flawed masterpiece—ambitious, uneven, and ultimately ahead of its time. As a historical artifact, it illuminates Bethesda’s creative evolution, showcasing their willingness to experiment with genre and narrative even at financial peril. Its technical limitations—clunky controls, dated engine, and unforgiving puzzles—prevent it from achieving greatness, yet its world-building, voice acting, and political intrigue remain compelling. For Elder Scrolls aficionados, Redguard is indispensable: a swashbuckling prelude that enriches Tamriel’s history while standing as a testament to the series’ narrative depth. As a game, it is a relic; as a story, it is timeless. Verdict: A bold, flawed, and essential chapter in Elder Scrolls lore—best experienced with patience and a 3DFx emulator.