Well, to be honest; I wish I could think like that. I am just being honest by saying that I can't.

If a game dips to 15fps for me, in pretty much any circumstance, I either lower the settings or uninstall the game. The only time it's ever acceptable is during an FPS if the screen is literally filled with explosions and it quickly shoots back up. I know that sounds a little spoiled, but I do pay good money (that I earn) to keep my PC in decent shape and as such I expect good/tolerable performance out of my games.

Oblivion is a very taxing game anyway, though, and I can't play at full settings, most people can't. Which is why I said it's fine to lower settings. (in any game, really) Just, it isn't fine if something is at the bare minimum side of the spectrum and still lags like you have the settings cranked all the way up. That's usually when you know it's time to upgrade or time to take the game back. I'll admit it matters a lot less in a game like Oblivion than it does in twitch reflex games like FPS'ers though; and I'll also admit that different frame rates are tolerable to different people.

I think it's also one of the reasons that I couldn't bring myself to buy Oblivion. Since they've decided to stop releasing demos for games nowadays, I've generally stopped bothering to buy the game since odds are it won't run well on my computer and I don't know of any stores that take back open box games (I remember Egghead Software used to long long ago, but I don't think EB Games or Gamestop do), so I've kinda been forced into pirating games to see if they'll even run in the first place (and by that point, unless there's some super compelling reason to buy the game, I never bother with it). =\

Guess I might not mind playing the game at low settings since I didn't shell out $50 for it.

Heh, I've played the game for about 20 hours with my intel accelerator with HEAVILY tweaked settings, and using a T&H emulator. It still looked great as long as I stay away from the water - but the speed sucked like hell. Averaged 15 FPS (though I get as high as 30 FPS sometimes if I'm alone - but as soon as multiple monsters/NPCs come in... >_<).

Ah well, I get what I paid for...

My PC is quite powerful but my video card sometimes holds it down. But I used the tweak settings that there are at some FAQ at gamefaqs and I have to say it improved my performance quite well.
Sure, I can't see grass (turned it off), or turn the anti-aliasing but the game still looks beautiful, and when I'm in a dungeon or a house the FPS almost doubles.
I plan on buying a new video card at the end of this year and this game is the main reason, but until then I'm playing like this and I don't regreat playing a single second.

My PC played this game for a good 2 weeks before my GeForce 6200 couldnt take it no more. Crashed my comp and everything.. Saving up money and gonna get it on the Xbox 360. -.-

Been getting back into Oblivion after a hiatus of about 2-3months. Thought I'd share what I'm upto, as well as hopefully hearing what others are doing.

I spent alot of time working on the face of a Dark Elf Mage. You know, she has to look just right ;)...
http://church.crossingatwoodland.com.../AleyiaSig.jpg

So I've been trying gameplay a bit different with this character than with my first character, and it has been an amazingly better game experience. Basically what has made all the difference is I have chosen to not fast travel or "wait" command. I read of a couple people trying this out and they said it was awesome, so I figured I'd give that a go. It DOES make alot of difference. You actually feel like you are exploring, that there is challenge. Like you have a living, real character whereas before, it was all about accomplishing quests. It also makes the game more story like in that, you find a quest in Cheydinhal that needs you to go to Anvil. Instead of hitting the map and clicking, you have to plan accordingly to take a trip to Anvil. So much more realistic. It makes you plan your characters life instead of instant quest completing. I'm currently getting all the Recommendations, and it actually feels like a challenge because I actually have to get to these places.

I've also been enjoying some new mods... specifically the Natural Environments Mod. Makes weather much better. Getting some extra music tracks also helps keep the game fresher.

I've also tried to have a bit more fun with my character like doing some downtime things that a person would enjoy doing... like swimming. I found recently though, that something fun and kind of challenging to do is cliff diving. I'm from Minnesota where everyone seems to go cliffdiving up north, so it seems like a cool thing to do. It's also fun and challenging in that if you don't jump just right, it can kill you on the spot. You know, you gotta hit the deep water. Check it out.

QuickTime - CliffDiving w/ Aleyia

You know what I probably would have ended up not fast traveling if they actually had items placed outside like they did in Morrowind. Like you would find items hidden in tree stumps and behind rocks.

Although granted, I do still explore the world like crazy. ya just never know =0

My thief got the shaft on the main quests. I did get rid of the first oblivion gate, but when I try to take back Kvatch now ( i'm level 16 ) the monsters are WAY too strong. This is obviously because it's much harder for higher levels. Also because the only thing I really gave my thief for combat is Marksmanship, and Light Armor. I have to basically rely purely on sneak attacks, or else i'm pretty much dead. Either way the thieves guild quests are VERY fun. I'm up to the Arrow of Extraviction(SP?) quest. I'm gonna make a new character to join the Brotherhood soon. I hear some really cool stuff happens in their quests.

It's true, the dark brotherhood is probably the most "fun" guild.

BTW, I had the same problem with Kvatch my first time through. I had a sneaky archer, and those daedric dudes were waaaay to tough. The biggest secret is getting yourself into alchemy so you can poison your shots as well as get your sneak attack bonus. Also, work on getting your sneak level up. Once you become a expert in sneak, your ability to stay hidden seems to increase 10x.

My sneak is 100. It's just too hectic in that mission to stay hidden.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why you always, no matter what, take a skill in either Blunt or Blades as a major one. =D

Yeah, I learned my lesson. I've been playing a lot with my fighter lately. I did the same thing I did with my thief. (started doing the main quest too late) I did do the first gate, and saved Kvatch early, but I did many other things after that, and got him to level 21. Then I did a few more main quests. In the sewer quest, I ran into a bunch of Goblin Warlords, and CHRIST ALMIGHTY are they tough! At least Barus was there to back me up while I was blocking. Plus easy sneak attacks when they concentrate on him. :D

I use a few mods to balance the gameplay a bit, like making so things level up with you at a more "realistic" pace. I even have a few mods that increase the level of detail in the graphics (bigger textures, more map rendered, etc.) because a PC game shouldn't look like a console game.


Also, I heard Oblivion is gonna be on PS3 too "With all-new content for PS3, plus some graphical enhancements."

sauce

I thought that PS3 rumor got shot down.

Nope, PS3 is confirmed for launch.

Not that it matters, since anybody worth their salt already has the damn game. I'm more interested in the new PSP game, personally.

Yeah, but am I the only one that thinks that it would make a horrible portable game? I usually see portable games as pick up and play for a bit on the go. Elder Scrolls is not really meant for that kind of gameplay.