User blog comment:Nord Ronnoc/A Tale Of Two Game Series/@comment-4950455-20121113044051/@comment-2228120-20121113112546

"The fantasy genre has been dominated so totally for so long by the Tolkienesque pseudo-European setting"

Which is why I totally adored the setting of Morrowind, it was something totally else.

However, DA:O's main source of inspiration was A Game of Thrones, not Tolkien, and that is a different kettle of fish. That dark edge comes from there, and I must say it was one of the factors I appreciated.