Skyrim, without a doubt, is probably the greatest open world game on the market today. I cannot think of ANY game that has immersed me so much in the world since maybe Dragon Age or the first Mass Effect. Bethesda Game Studios has managed to weave the perfect soundtrack (composed by Jeremy Soule of Icewind Dale and Baldur’s Gate fame), their proven Elder Scrolls fantasy open world formula, and dragons to set itself apart from virtually EVERY gaming experience on the market. Between the hilarious Arnold Schwarzeneggar-esque town guards, the inspiring ‘Dovahkin’ chant music that comes on during dragon battles, and the overwhelming size of the explorable world, this game is quite easily a Game of the Year nominee for ANY gaming publication.
In a way, the shear scope of this game is quite mind boggling since it is NOT a massively multiplayer online RPG (MMORPG). Instead, since its earliest days, it was meant to be the king of fantasy open world RPG single player gaming. That, my friends, it is and so much more.
This game is NOT for your run of the mill casual gamer. Hardcore gamers who are willing to put +100 hours into one game need only apply here. Just like the past games Morrowind and Oblivion, Skyrim has a ton of towns and cities to visit, henchmen to recruit, books to read, guilds to join, caves to clear out, roaming monsters to run from, and ingredients to pick for alchemy. It is even said that this Elder Scrolls sequel has a mechanism to develop an unlimited amount of quests.
Unlike Oblivion (Elder Scrolls IV), Skyrim almost immediately dumps you into this sandbox of dragons and exploration very early on in the game rather than putting you through a ‘starter dungeon’ to ease you into the gameplay. You quickly encounter and survive a dragon attack and are then left on your own, gazing upon the gorgeous landscape with empty pockets, very little equipment, and almost no real direction aside from a recommendation to meet a fellow survivor at a nearby town. From this point on you are free to travel wherever you want and approach storylines and quests whenever you want. With a handy journal found in the menu screen, it provides a directional marker on your map and your compass that leads you to wherever the target or location of the selected mission resides. There is even a spell called Clairvoyance that lays out a GPS styled path to your destination so that you are never lost or without a purpose unless that is your choice.
The amount of choice provided is immense. Before you even get to leap into the afore mentioned dragon encounter, you can literally spend hours designing and tweaking the appearance of your hero or heroine. With 10 different races to choose from including dark elves, high elves, orcs, and reptilian humanoids named Argonians, perfectionists can spend as long as they like changing hair styles, hair color, nose size, lip size, and the like to personalize their character.
Of course, once you are done with the creation and the dragon encounter, the relatively empty yet massive map showing the possible locations in the game will impress you. Veterans of the Elder Scrolls saga will notice that this 16 square mile region of the Elder Scrolls franchise’s realm, has a gritty and Nordic feel to it and the native peoples (who are coincidentally called Nords). The countless ruins, caves, mines, encampments, farms, forts, and towns that will dot the map as you explore makes you wonder how all of this content fit onto one disc!
The exploration of Skyrim will constantly be filled with beautiful scenery that the superb graphics of the game exhibit. Despite being decidedly less bright and colorful as the region highlighted in Oblivion, Skyrim’s Nordic feel provides a gritty and hardened feel that mirrors the lifestyle of the natives in the main storyline. Thankfully, this detail and beauty is also reflected in the character models for people as well as creatures. As you slash and cast your way through the various enemies of Skyrim, you’ll see a grand variety of high quality detail from the type of magic weapon or armor a bandit weilds to the horrific size and power of the various types of dragons that you’ll battle.
Battle is hardly the appropriate term for this first or third person view adventure (yes, you can alternate between perspectives with a simple button press). The intensity and difficulty of the various encounters throughout the game adjust as your character grows in power. Allowing for a constant challenge no matter how long you’ve been playing the game, you will always be forced to use various tactics to overcome your foes whether they are regular fodder(revealed as a generic term like ’bandit’ or ‘bear’) or bosses (uniquely named enemies).
Just as in previous Elder Scrolls games, the combat control scheme remains relatively unchanged. Pulling the trigger activates the attack with whatever spell or weapon is equipped. This is typically the hardline between liking this game and not liking it. Since the combat is pretty much unchanged from previous Elder Scrolls games. For some people, this combat if fairly empty. Slashing an enemy doesn’t have that feel of any kind of discernable impact. Damage numbers don’t leap onto the screen like a Borderlands game or a Dead Island. Instead, you will see a name and a red damage bar beneath it at the top of the screen to give you a feel for the health (or lack of) of your foe. You are fully responsible for directing and targeting your foe so slashing and moving in third person view can often prove difficult for spellcasting and swinging swords. For some people, this style of combat may not be very satisfying. At least with Dead Island, you could switch the controls to analog which allow you to control what kind of slash or punch you did as you targeted limbs. In Skyrim, there is no such thing as limb targeting as a combat strategy. Though probably a missed opportunity, this reality of the combat still manages to be satisfying enough for most.
One interesting saving grace in the combat is the slow motion melee animation reminiscient of Bethesda’s kill cams used in Fallout 3. Decapitations and killing blows (again, these only occur with melee attacks) have a variety of scripted animations that are a joy to watch and deal out.
Once you conquer the combat, the possibilities are staggering! If you like loot, then the various dungeons and quests will certainly lead you to plenty. But why search for loot when you can create your own Dagger of Toothaches! Not only is there a deep crafting system that is built around material type and your character’s ability to make quality equipment, but there is an enchantment system as well. As you progress, you’ll learn to enchant found or created weapons, armor, and jewelery for use by you or your companions.
That’s correct. You heard me. As you go along, there is no reason to go alone. You will encounter other adventurers that, once befriended, will accompany you on all of your adventures if asked. They have their own preferences for what equipment they will use and equip, but you can allow them to carry all kinds of potions and equipment that they occaisionally will use themselves.
Inventory and weapon switching is still a chore though. Despite the new supposedly streamlined system, the lack of a view of the character as you equip the character can make the experience a bit unsatisfying. It’s almost as if there isn’t enough information on the inventory screens since you know making that choice between a heavy armor set and a light armor set has more impact on your character than just the ‘armor rating’.
As I said before, there are various systems or skills that you can use and improve that will govern your character and their overall experience level. No longer shall you be asked to choose a ‘class’ that isolates you from the use of certain skills. If you want to be a hulking two handed sword using knight who just happens to know how to cast illusions and pickpocket people, then by all means go ahead! With about 18 different skills from the different magic schools (destruction, illusion, and conjuration for example) to archery, smithing, sneaking, and social, you will always find yourself planning what new skill to improve. Each skill has different perks that are unlock allowing for broader usage of the skill. No matter which way you slice it, this game is deep and content packed.
Without all of the technical jargon, this game just seems to have a life and personality of its own. Monsters roam about the country side and attack each other. There are travelers and hunters strewn all about with their own agendas who also encounter and battle the roaming beasties. Pick a flower or herb from the wilderness or a garden and return days later to find that it hasn’t grown back yet. Wait for a month and it shall. Guards will find and arrest you if you are caught stealing or attacking people within city limits. Massive giants will herd their domesticated Mastodons and protect them as well. The inhabitants of this massive world are wonderfully voice acted throughout and the sound effects are haunting and appropriate in every circumstance. The whole experience is so organic and fluid that it can most certainly play differently every time you play it.
For example, one adventure of note had my Khajit (humanoid cat person) character returning to her purchased home in Winterfell after clearing a cavern of bandits only to notice a dragon had begun attacking the city. Since she is ‘Dragonborn’ (a hero who has dragonlike powers of speech called shouts) and the only person nearby who can absorb the defeated soul of a dragon, I had her rush to the city defenders’ aid with a hail of arrows and magic spells. The sight of this massive beast swooping and breathing fire upon the ground and the city was quite amazing to witness even as my character tracked the beast with her bow. Many arrows, spells, and potions later, the beast fell. Once that ordeal was complete, she received the praise from other survivors of the battle as I had her visit the city’s castle. There, the General of the Imperial army relayed an order to assist in the defense of Winterfell from an advancing resistance army called the Stormcloaks. Within a short time, she was in the midst of an intense battle raining arrows from a castle wall down upon dozens of soldiers that constantly attacked the guards of the city. Though not of the scale of a Lord of the Rings movie, it was all still exhilarating.
Exhilarating or not, this massive game has its share of problems. Most versions of the game have a number of odd bugs or problems that will lead to some peculiar in world behaviors. Dragons will sometimes fly backwards and jump about. Collision detection will not work properly at times leaving some items hanging in the air. Gameplay may slow down and certain sounds may come from unusual sources. Many times these events won’t happen until gameplay has progress for quite some time but on occaision, the events lead to the game freezing up or certain items becoming unaccessible.
Ask any other player of Skyrim and I’m certain they will probably rattle off an account that will reveal something about the game you either didn’t know was possible or that you hadn’t seen yet. Every gaming session within Skyrim is different from the last and the anticipation of that rush of exploration and discovery fills you around every discovered ruin, bandit cove, adandoned shack, hunter camp, and dragon mound. Want to become a werewolf and tear through an entire town? Go ahead. Want to become a vampire and stalk your prey in the night? You can do that too! These things, and more, make it one of those games that could certainly find a permanent place in your gaming library for many years to come.
Final Score: 98 out of 100
Info:
ESRB Rating: M for Mature
Available for: PS3, Xbox360, PC
Website: www.elderscrolls.com/skyrim
