Different folks, different strokes of course, there is no right or wrong, but I will never understand the fawning for Daggerfall either. It's from when 3D could not be anything but mindbogglingly terrible DOS graphics, so, why even try, stick with 2d instead.
Sand boxing is fine, I like not being dragged along by the scruff of the neck trying to catch up with some developer's grand vision of a plot, but if there's nothing else going on the whole exercise becomes pointless.
Shivering isles was actually very good, I dare all the Oblivion haters here to hold it up against Daggerfall.