So it's finally here after a huge five year wait. If you care about this series you probably already bought this game with the intention of making the character you've been thinking of for years. But wait... You only choose your race and what you look like. No more major and minor skills, no more star sign, no more setup. You pick who you are and you begin. What you are isn't decided by your 'class' but by how you play. Cool right?
This decision from the developers is very interesting and highly discussed, but the question is does it work, is it an improvement? Long story short: yes. You stumble out of the first town armeed with a bow, a sword, a shield, some spells and two hands. You can put a sword in one hand and a shield in the other. You can use a bow and arrows, taking up both hands. I put a sword in one hand and alternated between a healing spell and a fire spell in the other using the 'favourites' menu. So really, by removing a bunch of choices from the game and throwing you in the deep end, Bethesda have actually given us the chance to choose every time we play. I could be a greatsword-wielding tank on Tuesday and an armourless spellslinger on Wednesday with only a Mr.Ben-esque change in between.
Skills level up by simply using them which has been the case in the previous installments, Morrowind and Oblivion. You can raise skills using trainers and books, but the big change here is that all skills give experience towards your character's level advancement. Major skills, although technically being done away with are still cleverly incorporated because the higher a skill gets, the more experience you gain for raising it. I know I'm banging I a bit about the boring side of things, but that's what's brilliant about it; the boring task of planning your path by scrolling through menus has now become a sort of try before you buy. Are two-handed swords any good? In Oblivion I could have created a character, gone through the lengthy tutorial opening, made it a major skill had a little play. I could always make a new character if I didn't like it. Takes half an hour, an hour maximum. In Skyrim it's a simple case of relieving my latest victim of their huge sword and swinging it at their friend's head and neck. If I don't like it then I pick up the friend's staff and have a go with that. That's two little experiments in the space of a few minutes and becuase I'm not tied down to any particular skill set I could easily take a shine to a weapon or spell set and run with it for the rest of the game.
Ok, so I like the skill shakeup. That's clear, but that's just the beginning. The graphics in this game are very good. I do have to admit that the jump hasn't been the same as the mind-blowing change from Morrowind to Oblivion, but that's a cross platform jump, so tough competition. The little details are what count here. The fact that you can literally see for miles without fear of a broken or blurred image. The only thing that will affect the scenery off in the distance is the mist and cloud that rolls across the landscape, another nice touch. I think I read somewhere that if you can see a point, you can get there. I tried this out a little bit and ended up winding my way up a huge mountain, thus proving that the comment was quite right. Another nice touch is that you can still see the lanscape from within the walls of cities if you get high up, very immersive. There is one slight niggle in the 'see it, touch it' idea... the edge of the map. You can walk to the edge of the map to be greeted by a text prompt telling you 'You cannot go that way.' Slight hiccup in the immersion there, but to be fair to get to the edge of the map I did have to shuffle awkwardly up the side of a near vertical mountain side where no person has any business going... but still.
The combination of great graphics, great sound and improved voice acting means that the interactions that your character has with the physical world have seen a massive improvment from the previous installments. You will see doors actually open now, NPCs turn their heads to speak to you and actually mention their discomfort when you crouch down behind them in the hope of lightening their pockets. These little touches mean that you no longer get a mercant sucking your soul into his eyes or a beggar with a dual-personality disorder asking you for a coin one minute in a wobbly, wheezing voice and recommending his favourite vintage like a Cambridge elocution tutor the next. What you get is a huge, beautiful, complex world that damn near draws you in everytime you play it.
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| Act natural... They kind of do this time. |
The absolute highlight for me about this game is one that will make many people question my ability to write these posts and have any stable opinion on games. But here it is anway: When I conjure my Dremora Lords and they kill an enemy on a ledge or rock face, if the next enemy is a small height below them, they just hop off the edge rather than walking along the designated path or simply skipping a few frames to get there. This means that when I've got one bandit backed against a wall, slashing at him with my bound sword and one Dremora Lord has another, I don't have to worry about the second Dremora taking a detour halfway round Skyrim. He hops off his ledge and advances on the next enemy, showing the urgency and pace of a real battle. Really? That's the best thing about this game? To quote Sawyer (From Lost, not Mark Twain's) 'It's all in the details, Freckles.' (Disregard the last bit... unless you have freckles.)
The gameplay is much the same as always, except that you can switch between weapons and spells more easily. You can swing a sword and cast some spells at the same time and you can cast more than one spell at once. Enchanting is back and there is a new Smithing skill which allows you to make and improve your own armour and weapons. You can sprint, sneak and jump your way around Skyrim, but Acrobatics is out so leaping tall buildings in a single bound is no longer possible, so put down the cape. Quests are completed, rewards are given, caves and ruins are explored. Life in The Elder Scrolls games goes on as normal and that's what I love so much about this series. The lore is still the same, the concept hasn't changed because it doesn't need to. Bethesda have taken a brilliant idea and painstakingly improved it over a massive period of time, paying attention to all the things that reviewers and fans have had to say. I know that this post is disgustingly positive, but there aren't many bad things for me to say about Skyrim.
Well, there are four:
1. The grind of raising Alchemy.
2. Overpowered bosses spanking me without warning.
3. Vampirism.
4. Deer stuck in a rock.
Discuss.
By DannyDarko x
Apparently the reason for the edge's of the map being a bit dodgy is due to the expansion packs that they are bringing out for the game. Apparently they are going to add sections to the map itself (e.g. on the computer version people have been knocked out of the map, into another blank, not built map that looks like Cyrodil with a big tower in the middle, maybe one of the future add ons?) and apparently theres some gates that you cant pass yet on the south west edge of the map too.
ReplyDeleteI'm still loving the game, already finished the main story line (seemed shorter than Oblivion, but it might have been because its not as repetitive) and I've found myself using the bow more than anything too which was a shock, its so much better! Plus the slow-motion zoom is really useful.
Not found myself using that many spells though. Unlike Oblivion it seems like being a mage is more of a choice, which in a way is better because it defines the player more rather than just being a useful button thats always there.
Not going to lie Dan, I've been waiting for this post!
Great post Dan, figured your MW3 one would be first. I'm surprised you didn't mention the new Radiant system in Skyrim, it's definately the big game changer there in my opinion. The cosmetics and new player-friendly menu screen aside the new radiant system is definately what sets Skyrim apart from the other games I think. It really makes for interesting gaming, especially if you use more than one character like myself. I've found some quests have have been available straight away with some characters whilst with others it wasn't until a few in-game weeks had passed that the quest was available to me. It also makes the minor, more "mundane" tasks in Skyrim much more interesting.
ReplyDeleteNeil Noel Joeyson, glad to see you still check in on the blog. Going to try and get a post up at least once a week (hopefully on a Monday) Hope you are well and the drumming trade is treating you well.
ReplyDeleteInteresting bit of intel there about the the edge of the map business. I never thought of that, but now you have me thinking about expansions and I'm very excited. I get what you're saying about mages, it was harder to be a mage before I think, but I'm a conjuration/illusion/alteration mage this time and I'm finding it really fun and manageable.
Mr J. Lag, I must admit that I have been getting behind a bit in the reading of previews, so the radiant menu is something which I had heard snippets about but wasn't comfortable making statements about because I didn't think I quite understood it. I do agree about the mundane task business though. I like clearing up my quest log of all the little errands and the fact that they then open up more means you end up with more than you started with. I like the little prompts like a courier letter or a person asking you for help in the street too, all makes it feel a bit more random and real. MW3 is next. I was waiting til I finished the campaign before I wrote about it, but now I have (twice) so that'll be up on Monday.