[kqr]

I agree in principle, but disagree about specifics. In Morrowind, I would argue that there's probably not something or someone nearby. And that's part of the beauty of it. That's realistic.

When you do stumble onto something, it gets all the more interesting -- of all the nothingness, why is this here?

It's a drawn out form of gratification, compared to the every-other-step-you-run-into-a-procedurally-generated-cave type of instant gratification I felt with e.g. Skyrim.

Morrowind is more aimed at exploration than later games, and some amount of nothingness in the world is required for this.

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Of course, nothingness is relative. In absolute terms, I'm sure Morrowind has less nothingness tran later games, but the limited graphics and draw distance and smaller populations makes it feel more empty.