I think that both Skyrim and FO3/New Vegas have rather abruptly found out that in a game with a lot of freedom of movement, where you can frequently see the enemies coming, shooting them when they're not looking is an extremely effective tactic... just like it is in real life. In both cases, the previous instalments didn't really have this option. Stealth in Morrowind was a huge pain and I don't think ranged weapons had any bonuses from it.