The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Review (XBOX360 version played)
----Spoilers contained in this review----
Stats;
· 100 hours of gameplay
· 100% achievements
· 216 locations discovered
· 90 dungeons cleared
· 320 days passed
· Total gold found; 500,000
· 82 quests completed
· 84 misc quests completed
· 19 main quests completed
· 11 side quests completed
· 1004 people killed
· 425 animals killed
· Favourite weapon; Blades sword
· 25 magic spells learned
· Favourite spell; Fast healing (saved my back more than a few times)
· Favourite shout; Unrelenting force (unsurprisingly)
Review;
I’m not big on writing reviews, not since I took an arrow to the knee, I always find that I tend to ramble on about subjects which do not concern the game (like now…) but since The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has metaphorically blown me away I think a few words need to be said about it.
Having poured one hundred hours into this game since November 11 2011 I can quite honestly say I’ve never grown bored of Skyrim. I’ve been agitated, annoyed and downright furious at the game at times, but never once bored. For the majority of my time in Skyrim, I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience and wish to continue to play the game for at least a hundred more, should my spouse allow me to play another minute (it’s not a spectators game, to say the very least).
Keeping this relatively short and sweet I’ll break it down into sections;
Graphics; Comparing it to modern game giants such as Gears of War 3, Modern Warfare 3, Battlefield 3, Uncharted 3 etc, Skyrim obviously falls short of the pack but considering the sheer depth and exploration traits of the game, this can be easily dismissed. The graphics are fantastic, and if you’re coming from TES IV: Oblivion or either of the new generation Fallout’s you will not be disappointed in the slightest. Some framerate and texturing issues occur, and the rare animation looks terrible (watch The Companions quest where blood is poured into the stone fountain like structure), but overall no complaints.
Gameplay; Not one element is a benchmark setter, e.g. archery, sword fighting, magic and so on and so forth but all offer a decent amount of interaction and controllability which make you feel as if you’re not only in the world of Skyrim, but playing an active part of it. On occasion, sword fighting can become tiresome and ever so slightly repetitive but with a vast amount of combat choice (and weaponry choice within those categories), it never becomes mundane or boring. Kills are often satisfying and the action is fun.
Story; The main quest is engaging and managed to keep my attention span for the entire quest. The same also goes for the side quests “The Dark Brotherhood” & “The Companions”. However, I do not recommend the “Thieves Guild” quest unless you have a great deal of patience and or wish to complete all of the games side quests. Overall this is not movie script storytelling, nor can it match the likes of Final Fantasy, Uncharted or any other great story driven game, but it is interesting at the very least and gripping at it’s best, especially towards the end of the game. Some, also, may find it slightly deep and with the ridiculous town and character names it can become slightly condescending.
Value for money; I’ve never put 100 hours into any one game, nor have I put anywhere near this amount of time into a game. This is simply fantastic value for money.
Favourite moment; There are many, the beginning where you first meet a dragon, your first fight with a dragon, learning your first shout, but my personal favourite moment is buying my first house in Skyrim so I could store all my loot. Some may find this boring, but this was the point where I really felt apart of the Skyrim world.
Least favourite moment; Unfortunately there are a few of these too, the glitching, mainly, but the entire Thieves Guild quest is by far the worst of the game for me.
Issues; Bethesda is well known for buggy and glitchy games and as far as I’m aware they are still are evident within Skyrim. It’s understandable though, once you’ve played it and realised what the game has to offer.
I do not wish to rate this game out of 5 or with a percentage but I will say with ease that this game has slipped into my top three games of all time. As of writing I am unsure whether it will ever be first. It simply has not stood the test of time to be awarded that honour yet, but as it stands this is a truly ground breaking game. Some may never enjoy it, and that’s okay because it really isn’t for everyone’s tastes. But if you ever enjoyed an RPG, an exploration game, or any adventure game for that matter, Skyim isn’t to be missed.
----Spoilers contained in this review----
Stats;
· 100 hours of gameplay
· 100% achievements
· 216 locations discovered
· 90 dungeons cleared
· 320 days passed
· Total gold found; 500,000
· 82 quests completed
· 84 misc quests completed
· 19 main quests completed
· 11 side quests completed
· 1004 people killed
· 425 animals killed
· Favourite weapon; Blades sword
· 25 magic spells learned
· Favourite spell; Fast healing (saved my back more than a few times)
· Favourite shout; Unrelenting force (unsurprisingly)
Review;
I’m not big on writing reviews, not since I took an arrow to the knee, I always find that I tend to ramble on about subjects which do not concern the game (like now…) but since The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has metaphorically blown me away I think a few words need to be said about it.
Having poured one hundred hours into this game since November 11 2011 I can quite honestly say I’ve never grown bored of Skyrim. I’ve been agitated, annoyed and downright furious at the game at times, but never once bored. For the majority of my time in Skyrim, I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience and wish to continue to play the game for at least a hundred more, should my spouse allow me to play another minute (it’s not a spectators game, to say the very least).
Keeping this relatively short and sweet I’ll break it down into sections;
Graphics; Comparing it to modern game giants such as Gears of War 3, Modern Warfare 3, Battlefield 3, Uncharted 3 etc, Skyrim obviously falls short of the pack but considering the sheer depth and exploration traits of the game, this can be easily dismissed. The graphics are fantastic, and if you’re coming from TES IV: Oblivion or either of the new generation Fallout’s you will not be disappointed in the slightest. Some framerate and texturing issues occur, and the rare animation looks terrible (watch The Companions quest where blood is poured into the stone fountain like structure), but overall no complaints.
Gameplay; Not one element is a benchmark setter, e.g. archery, sword fighting, magic and so on and so forth but all offer a decent amount of interaction and controllability which make you feel as if you’re not only in the world of Skyrim, but playing an active part of it. On occasion, sword fighting can become tiresome and ever so slightly repetitive but with a vast amount of combat choice (and weaponry choice within those categories), it never becomes mundane or boring. Kills are often satisfying and the action is fun.
Story; The main quest is engaging and managed to keep my attention span for the entire quest. The same also goes for the side quests “The Dark Brotherhood” & “The Companions”. However, I do not recommend the “Thieves Guild” quest unless you have a great deal of patience and or wish to complete all of the games side quests. Overall this is not movie script storytelling, nor can it match the likes of Final Fantasy, Uncharted or any other great story driven game, but it is interesting at the very least and gripping at it’s best, especially towards the end of the game. Some, also, may find it slightly deep and with the ridiculous town and character names it can become slightly condescending.
Value for money; I’ve never put 100 hours into any one game, nor have I put anywhere near this amount of time into a game. This is simply fantastic value for money.
Favourite moment; There are many, the beginning where you first meet a dragon, your first fight with a dragon, learning your first shout, but my personal favourite moment is buying my first house in Skyrim so I could store all my loot. Some may find this boring, but this was the point where I really felt apart of the Skyrim world.
Least favourite moment; Unfortunately there are a few of these too, the glitching, mainly, but the entire Thieves Guild quest is by far the worst of the game for me.
Issues; Bethesda is well known for buggy and glitchy games and as far as I’m aware they are still are evident within Skyrim. It’s understandable though, once you’ve played it and realised what the game has to offer.
I do not wish to rate this game out of 5 or with a percentage but I will say with ease that this game has slipped into my top three games of all time. As of writing I am unsure whether it will ever be first. It simply has not stood the test of time to be awarded that honour yet, but as it stands this is a truly ground breaking game. Some may never enjoy it, and that’s okay because it really isn’t for everyone’s tastes. But if you ever enjoyed an RPG, an exploration game, or any adventure game for that matter, Skyim isn’t to be missed.
