There are a myriad of interesting and enigmatic characters within The Elder Scrolls universe, but few have had the same kind of impact and popularity as M'aiq the Liar. First appearing in The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, this quirky Khajiit has made subsequent appearances in every Elder Scrolls game released since.
M'aiq the Liar began as a static character residing on his own island in Morrowind but would appear as a rare random encounter starting in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. It is implied that these appearances are all different characters, as in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, M'aiq claims that his father and his father's father were named M'aiq as well.
M'aiq became popular due to his array of quirky dialogue, some of which can completely break the fourth wall. In fact, one of Bethesda's motivations for including the character within the series was to provide a meta-commentary on the franchise and its development. M'aiq is used as a mouthpiece by the developers to respond to player criticism, queries or opinions. For example, Oblivion added waypoints to help players navigate its massive world, a feature that was lacking in Morrowind. Some players preferred having to explore extensively and follow signposts to discover their destinations themselves. Oblivion's M'aiq responds to those players by saying, "M'aiq is glad he has a compass. Makes it easy to find things. Much better than wandering around like a fool."
M'aiq has also been used to tease the future direction of the franchise on several occasions. In Oblivion, M'aiq can sometimes make a comment about how he "has seen dragons" and that perhaps the player will see them too, before adding that he will not tell the player where he had seen them. This is a clear tease for what would eventually become Skyrim, the next installment of the series that would rather famously return dragons to Tamriel and focus extensively on them throughout the main storyline.
Sometimes, however, this odd Khajiit will just make some rather amusing comments on the limitations of the series and poke fun at the franchise as a whole. In The Elder Scrolls Online, M'aiq can sometimes comment on how everybody he meets in his travels will, strangely, always wind up repeating themselves - a clear reference to the sometimes limited dialogue of NPCs. In Skyrim, M'aiq may mention that he "saw a Mudcrab the other day." before calling it a horrible creature. This is a callback to one of Oblivion's most amusing lines of dialogue, one that seemingly every character would be able to spout at one point or another.
Outside of Morrowind, M'aiq's status as a random encounter makes it possible for players to entirely miss out on meeting the fan-favorite character. Having a conversation with M'aiq the Liar should be on the bucket list of every Elder Scrolls fan - there is a reason why this strange Khajiit has become so immensely popular among players.