McDonald’s is a massive fast-food empire with 38,695 locations spanning 122 countries. It’s become so ubiquitous in the real world that I’m sure the corporation would investigate franchising opportunities in fictional worlds if it could, even the famously chaotic realm of Tamriel.
A recent The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind mod imagines such a scenario, placing a new establishment known as McDagoth’s in Balmora. It’s not quite McDonald’s—even if the logo and uniforms look very much like they were pulled from real-world restaurants—with menu items like the Big Guar and Skooma shakes rather than McRibs and McNuggets.
I have to say, some of the food seems, well, questionable. Like, are the Quarter-Khajiit with Cheese and ‘Gonian Nuggets actually made from those playable species, or just cute names to entice Morrowind’s children? In any case, the mod also lets players buy their very own McDagoth’s hat, and a future update may allow the opening of new franchises in other cities.
Since its release in 2002, Morrowind has enjoyed a prolific modding community that keeps the game fresh and vital. Adding a McDonald’s parody to one of its major settlements might not be on the same level as improving the graphics or controls, but it did make me laugh.