Last week I took a week vacation to the land of Skyrim. I put in about 140 hours of game play over 9 days so if that doesn’t tell you it’s a good game, I will elaborate for you.
Quick rundown: The graphics are a bit better than Oblivion – very realistic. The framerate is great on the high setting but I do get hit with nasty lag after an hour to 3 hours of play. Not sure what triggers it but you need to restart the game to fix. I’m sure there will be a patch for this soon. The sounds are awesome, the music fits perfect, the world is HUGE, and the voice acting isn’t bad.
Skyrim is an open sandbox type world. You can go to 99% of the areas without having to unlock them or being told to go there. You can start questing anywhere or not do any quests at all. To some, this makes Skyrim hard to get use to. People who have just played MMOs like World of Warcraft but have never played an Elder Scrolls game might feel totally lost because they aren’t being pushed and led around the world in a linear fashion. Those people need to give it a chance…it is fun!
Now the details: The NPC interaction is very complex. They know what you have done in the past, they know if you look into their pockets, they know if you run right into them. Their behavior will change after you tell them something or give them something. They will make random comments as you run around with them. Then there is Lydia.
Everyone gets to know Lydia and come to love her. She is a follower you gain very early in the game who you just can’t live without…at least I don’t like going without her. The only frustrating part is her pathing ability. Pathing isn’t nearly as bad as most games and the terrain of Skyrim is not very simple but it can cause a bit of trouble for our dear AI friends. Followers help you fight and can carry stuff for you. You can outfit them and even have them hold a torch for you. They will make random comments now and then depending what you see and are near and even jump right in front of your arrows or spells…which can kill them. (So save often, you don’t want to lose her!) Many people are wondering who does the voice acting for Lydia – my guess is Colleen Delany.
The world itself is huge and immersive. As you explore your compass will inform you that there is a structure nearby that you might not have discovered yet. This tends to make you forget about your questing and put on your explorer cap…which then leads to dungeon delving, which leads to full bags of loot which makes you go home and sell and here you never made it to your initial goal. Even after 140 hours of game play, I still hadn’t finished a main quest line because I was too busy doing side quests and going into places I would find. Oooo a butterfly….
There is loads of lore to go along with the game play. 300+ books scattered around the world are not just random fiction. They all seem to tie into a quest you will pick up later or just a location you stumble upon. So read them! They may even help you get through a tricky door. If you are like me – you will want to collect every book that exists! You may even get a skill gain or quest from reading one.
Like I mentioned above with collecting books, packrats can also collect plants and fungus, animal and insect parts, hides and ore, and wooden ladles! These items let you mix potions or make your own armor. Add in the enchanting and smithing skill and your crafted armor can be better than anything you will find in the game. Of course you will need to buy a house to store all your treasures in and put them on display. Maybe even get married so there is someone there when you come home.
This is a definite BUY recommendation. People are paying $60 for games that only have 4 hours of content. Shame on you! At 150 hours, I don’t think I’m half way done. If you are an average gamer, Skyrim will last you 4 or more months before you consider selling it used. But I would recommend against buying the Xbox or PS3 versions as they don’t give you the selection of player made Mods or the construction kit that lets you make your own areas, tweak skins and hair or even redecorate your house or place a house somewhere in the world you want! The PC version is the way to go. Grab it at Amazon
Tags: Bethesda, Game, Lydia, Oblivion, Review, RPG, Skyrim, Steam
