Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

I'm seeing quite a few full flame reviews lately (Not just for Skyrim) and this troubles me somewhat.

Why? Well maybe I'm just hard to please, but i think that there's always room for improvement, no matter what the product is. Nothing can ever be a 100% perfect rating product as there will, inevitably, always be better - and what kind of review would this be if i didn't point out the faults?

Skyrim is no exception.

Now i do actually love this game, but quite a few things really glare out at me and bother me alot. So i'm going to start with the cons:

Cons:
1. Spells.
Totally lacking in this game, no variety, no mage class, nothing really. Total disappointment. Fortunately I've never been partial to the magic classes but even this troubled me.

2. Quests
Ok, not all of them were bad, some of them were great. But alot of them felt like rushed -- and consequently shallow -- experiences. The guilds for example, my god wasn't that over fast? Without going into great detail (i want to avoid spoilers) It's over before it feels like it's even begun.

It's also the inconsistency of the game and how things overlap that just...shouldn't. Being a thoroughbred evil bugger who goes around butchering innocents to then be suddenly let into one of these guilds, then ultimately call the shots shortly after joining? Just maddness. This bothered me in Oblivion and Morrowind and if anything, seems WORSE in Skyrim. No background checks? Boy you NPC's are trusting, and that leads me onto number 3:


3. NPC's
This video accurately summarizes my view on their behavior:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEMD28MMtNg

Walking down a street and having a random NPC share with me his life story is just awkward, and in it's own way quite comical - but the joke wears off quickly.

I get swamped with quests this way and it just makes me realize that there's better ways to introduce the player to quests without making NPC's come across as trusting, semi-retarded children.

In fact, the children in this game appear MORE intelligent then many of the adults!

This overall disposition NPC's had towards me (Too trusting and friendly) actually made those times when I was the victim quite refreshing and a much needed change. (The Argonian in Solitude, anyone?)

Bethesda, sort it out for the love of Pete.

4. Other
Things such as how every horse is essentially a clone of one another, no first person view on horseback, No talking on horseback, no environmental effects (such as cold damage during snowstorms/Diving into freezing water, etc) Poor bastardized interface and Dungeons/ruins frequently consisting of the same enemies over, and over, and over....The later levels (25+) make it almost intolerable.



PROS:
Well really everything we've grown to expect from a TES game will fit in here, the free roaming gameplay, the large game worlds, the vast content.

I'd also like to really praise the music in this game, which is a huge improvement over the past titles, as well as implemented brilliantly.

But for me, what really stands out is the modability and the potential that brings.

This is where this game will really pay off. And although we're still waiting on those mod tools, it's the mods that will make this game what it should've been, heck the Nexus is already filled with some much needed game changes. Just like for Oblivion/Fallout 3/ New Vegas.

You bought this on console? You're a fool.


Modding aside, Vanilla Skyrim has many hours of content to keep you amused (Far more then what most games would ever offer you), for this reason alone, it's a title worth getting without any doubt. Just don't expect not to get tired of the formula after hitting the later levels.

Skyrim is certainly my pick for Game of the Year 2011, followed closely by The Witcher 2 and Dragon Age 2. The game is NOT a great RPG: there's little emphasis on actual role-playing. Look at how everyone makes these disgusting "do-it-all" characters, and you can join the Stormcloaks as a Khajit or Dunmer or Argonian. The game is also a bit dumbed down; any sense of challenge on the hardest difficulty is gone by level 25 or so, and weapons/armor no longer have to be repaired. Survival emphasis is a bit of a letdown; you don't have to eat, drink, and sleep.

All of this, as well as occasional bugs (physics bugs, AI bugs) are my only real complaints about the game. However there are mods that improve or fix every single aspect listed above. You're reading this on overclock.net, so you probably play this game on PC. Therefore, don't hesitate to get mods for this game. I use about 70 mods, all of which can be found here and most of those are absolute necessities.

So what makes Skyrim so great? I'll tell you, LOTS of people misunderstand this and totally miss the point. I assume the typical gamer does this, especially on console. Most people load up a single player title, and just play through the main quest. What they don't realize is, the main quest is not the emphasis or main attraction to Skyrim. It's not an impressive main quest at all, it's definitely fun but nothing remarkable like Dragon Age or The Witcher 2.

The main attraction is just wandering off into the open world and exploring, doing whatever you want, whenever you want. Combined with the fact that there are so many ways to define your character, and so many side quests, makes Skyrim by far the longest lasting game ever made. Don't be shy when it comes to mods, and remember that your hand is not forced when playing this game. There's nothing you're "supposed to do", no place you're "supposed to go", when free roaming. That's why it's called free roam. Free roam is the main attraction to Skyrim.

There aren't many open world RPGs that compare to this, only Fallout 3 and New Vegas come to mind, and Skyrim is even longer-lasting as it has about double the locations.

Skyrim, as a whole is a pretty awesome game. There's a lot of side-quests, and the variety in everything is huge, but it often feels a little empty, and it's sometimes a bit dry too.

But I find every pro is met by an equal, and related con.

an expanded pros and cons:

Whilst there are certainly enough quests to keep you playing Skyrim until the 'cows come home', it seems that Bethesda have slacked on the content, a lot of quests given go under a 'Miscellanious' tab, and therefore have no marker on the map, and no description. This annoys me a little, as I sometimes wonder just where I can join the Stormcloaks, or the Imperials, and I have frankly, now, given up on that hope.

Whilst the subjects of the quests are pretty varied (College of Winterhold, Theives Guilds, Stormcloaks, Imperials, Miscellanious.. etc) the quest layout is pretty standard. It is usually 'Go here, Get this, Do that, Kill him, Come back'. It's a little tedious to be doing 3-4 'fetch' quests for the College, to then go "Sweet! I am going to go and join the theives guild now!" and be greeted by practically the same quests.

The beautiful expanse of Skyrim sure is fun to roam, if not a little very lonely. Besides wolves, hunters and the occasional Khajit, I find myself wandering from Solitude to Riften and the only real things I find to fight are Wolves and Necromancers. It is such a shame that they have fluffed up such a beautiful game by leaving the enemy count too low. Sure, I don't want to be swamped 24/7, but it's not like I'm even close to being really challenged now..

The levelling system sure is well implemented! - No. Whilst the levelling system is pretty 'Boss' not a lot is encouraged, I have completely forgotten to do any Enchanting, and Smithing and any Speech, and up to now, I've been fine - but the time came when I had to sell some junk, and I was being offered like 40g for Flawless Garnets, when the value in my 'view' is well over 100 - It's not like this is justified, as they don't make you even think about levelling anything else up. With combat - you have to, you're told to work at a Forge in riverwood, and nothing else is mentioned again.

There's freakin' loads of dungeons to go into! - But they're all the same, as someone else has said, room with 2-3 enemies, area to regain magicka, safe corridor, then room with further enemies. It's a little disappointing, as the idea of vastly different dungeons appeals to me, as it's not always part of the main quest.. But again it's a little flawed.

This frustrates me, as Bethesda seem to have gotten a sweet game together, then been all like 'Jheeze guys, lets take a break, I really need a waffle or something... What? Oh that? Nah we'll just publish it now.. it's close enough, yeah.. Yeah Hype it up a little too.' - They really need to just finish it off.


Oh, and Frostbite spiders.. They suck.

Overall, it's a fun game, and I don't think its flaws hold it back too much. I do moan a lot, but it's still worth playing, I just wish it was perfect.
4/5