There are 8 playable races in Arena: Argonian, Khajit, Redguard, Breton, Wood Elf, High Elf, Dark Elf and Nord. Ken Rolston, lead designer of Morrowind, says he started the game at least 20 times, and only got out of the beginning dungeon once. This effect gradually disappears as the player becomes more powerful and more aware of the threats that loom everywhere. It is easy to die in the starting dungeon, as powerful enemies can be encountered if the player lingers too long. These quests are usually very simple, such as delivering a parcel or defeating a randomly chosen dungeon.ДЄrena has been noted for its tendency to be unforgiving towards new players. These are often found by asking around town for rumours. In addition to the main quest which is completed by beating all seventeen dungeons and finding pieces of the staff, small side quests also appear. This soon became a staple feature of most open-world games. There are several hundred dungeons and 17 specially designed dungeons for the main quest.ДЄrena is notable for being one of the first games to feature a realistic day/night cycle, where at sunset shops close and people clear the streets before the monsters arrive and roam around until morning. The towns contain developer-designed buildings and shops, but the order in which these appear and their names are procedurally generated. This is achieved by combining procedurally-generated content and specifically designed world spaces to create a realistic and massive wilderness, where one may find inns, farms, small towns, dungeons, and other places of interest. Magic is used by cycling through a menu found by clicking the appropriate button on the main game screen, then clicking the spell to be used, and its target.

Melee combat is performed by right-clicking the mouse and dragging the cursor across the screen to attack as if swinging a weapon.

The game is played from a first-person perspective.

Elder scrolls arena remake