The Elder Scrolls V : Skyrim Review

InfinityFeed: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Review

by Dash

Rating: 9/10

Skyrim was only officially announced a little over a year ago but has managed to garner almost as much attention as much more mainstream games like Modern Warefare. In fact, the steam sales for this game were record shattering! I suppose with the success of Bethesda's other titles like Fallout 3 and Skyrim's predecessor Oblivion it shouldn't come as such a surprise that this game caused so much excitement. With all this hype Skyrim had a lot to live up to and it seems most people think it does.

The game captivates from the very beginning. You are introduced to the world of Skyrim in a typical Elderscrolls way: you are a prisoner for unknown reasons who manages to escape/get released and find yourself caught up in plots to destroy the world. The rather long cinematic at the beginning seems much more engaging than in previous games, it introduces you to one of the main plots of the game, that of the civil war and draws you into the vast world very well. You are pretty much left to your own devices after that and are free to explore the world on your own and what a world it is. There is so much to do you could be excused for thinking it would be overwhelming, but Bethesda have managed to keep the game flowing smoothly, always giving you something to do wherever you are.

Each of the different factions have their own story lines to complete, these are so well written and long enough to almost feel like a whole game in themselves. Each faction is very different and will each appeal to different play styles, completing them will give you time to perfect your style and get all the equipment you need to become a dragon slaying god. 

The main story could be considered to be split into two quest lines. There is of course your own personal quest and another story about the civil war breaking out within Tamriel. Both of these story lines have plenty of twists and turns to make sure you never sleep again until you find out what happens next and they have some nice cross overs if you play them simultaneously. 

This time around Bethesda to some controversy, did away with the old class system and replaced it with a more fluid natural level progression, allowing your play style to determine how you level up. Some people have complained about this saying they do not have enough customisation over their characters and it seems dumbed down. I say poppycock! I'll admit that it is definitely simplified but it allows for a much smoother gaming experience without the need to learn the secret inner workings of a pretty flawed levelling system in order to not ruin your character by levelling the wrong skills. Instead of having to concentrate on predefined conceptions of how you should make a character you are free to do what you want with it. Of course certain combinations are better than others but the extra freedom is great. Personally I have enjoyed the pure stealth character, in anything but direct light I am pretty much invisible and with backstabing, I am a god of death.

The vast world of Skyrim is the biggest Bethesda has ever made, next to the insanely sized Daggerfall of course. You can visit every nook and cranny of it too, if you can see it, you can get to it. You can look out at the world from the summit of every mountain top and delve into every cave. This could mean you may spend a lot of time just walking around and of course you could do this, there is a lot to occupy yourself with just wondering through the wilderness. The parts between towns are packed full of ruins, caves and bandit hideouts so you'll never get bored and with the radiant quest system you will be sure to be sent to all of these places as the game assigns unexplored areas for quests, meaning no two play through's will be the same. But obviously you don't want to be walking everywhere, that would add hours onto an already impossibly long game. Instead fast travel between places you have already been is back, as well as the reintroduction of paid transportation from Morrowind. Unlike the previous game Skyrim's transportation system is not particularly extravagant. A simple hoarse drawn cart driven by a mild mannered Nord can be hired to take you to the main settlements in the game. 

While doing all of this exploring it isn't just the Dragons and Trolls that will keep you occupied, there is plenty of eye candy too. Bethesda's new Creation Engine does an amazing job of bringing the game world alive. It may not be as big a graphical leap forward than Oblivion was from Morrowind, but the way the world seems to breath and actually live rather than revolve around you is amazing. Wildlife will interact with each other, you could just stumble upon a pack of wolves attacking a deer or a bear fighting a walrus. The rain, snow and water can all be effected by wind direction and falls dynamically, rather than being rendered as a texture. It all adds up to a very immersive feeling that is lacking in many games. 

Of course just like any game, Skyrim has it's faults but these are very minor. Mostly stability issues which gamers have come to expect from Bethesda titles. I have run into a few texture issues and have had one or two crashes, but nothing even close to game ruining. I am finding it much more stable than Fallout 3 ever was, even after patches. The marriage system that they introduced this time round seems unpolished, like it was something they didn't have time to finish, there just seems to be no point to it. The whole process is very very simple, not even  requiring you to make people like you before you get hitched, in fact I actually accidentally got engaged to a rather portly blacksmith because of some very ambiguous dialogue options.

Overall this game is amazing and if you are even remotely interested in RPG's then you should give this game a try. But be aware that you will loose your friends, your job, your girlfriend and not even realise that it has been a week, and your mum has been force feeding you soup while you have been passed out at your keyboard for a few hours. 

Let me know what you think about the game in the comments below and share your Skyrim stories, I know I have dozens of them.

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