Skyrim

The Cover of Skyrim

Publisher: Bethesda Softwares

Creator: Bethesda Game Studios

Console: Xbox 360, Playstation 3, PC

ESRB Rating: M for Mature

         Where to start? I mean, one can not simply describe Skyrim. it is a great game, and the fifth game in the Elder Scrolls series. Following games such as Obilivion and Morrowind it is a game that lived up to expectations.
         Skyrim is an open world game where you play as the Dragon Born. The Dragon Born is someone born with dragon blood. You have the option to choose your race from ten different races (picture below shows races). At the beginning of the game the player is given a choice between joining the Rebels and the Imperials. Though this choice is not evident it needs to be made for the story to progress. This choice will slightly change the storyline. Many choices are given throughout the story and side quests and will change how some things happen. Things that could change are NPC's  reactions and feelings for you making someone an ally or a foe. Some choices make bigger differences and will affect some end results although they seem minor. Other choices may seem like large choices but won't make a difference. However the main storyline is not why Skyrim's story is so awesome, it is the side quests. For example my personal favourite, the Dark Brotherhood quests. You become an assasin that carries out contracts that people who perform the Dark Sacrament will give you. The Dark Sacrament is what you do to summon the Dark Brotherhood to kill for you. In the end of these kinds of quests you only really gain cash rewards, whil other quests give you special powers like becoming a werewolf. So while playing Skyrim remember  to explore and don't be afraid to go somwhere you haven't gone before.
         There are many types of enemies in Skyrim. The most common enemy I find however are wolves. Wolves are found everywher from forests, to the tundra, to iceland's. But the enemy that most affects the storyline of course is the dragon, for they are the entire reason of the story. They are formidable enemies that can make you money quickly. Some other enemies such giants, draur, ghosts, and trolls are not as important as the dragon but will be encountered. For difficulty, it is changeable throughout the game. At any point you can change the difficultyand it doesn't change the storyline at all. I played on adept, which is about normal, and it wasn't very hard. Some enemies I battle it takes awhile to beat them, but I figure out a way. Some parts are hard in a way, but not to difficult to do. It's more like those parts are difficult to figure out what to do. Unless of course you use a magical thing called the internet, but don't tell anyone it was me that suggested you do that. For example it is not  100% clear on how to cure you of vamperisim, untill you Google it.
         I have put in about 18 hours of gameplay and I am almost finishede the main storyline.You'll have to forgive me though I have not been focused on finishing the main storyline but doing side quests. This means that it will definetly take you longer than 18 hours. I am level 16 and not the fastest at getting my level up. This game takes a considerable amount of time to play but many choices you make change the story and would make you want to play through this game again. Other things like choosing specilizations that you start with versus what you learn later on in the game would be another reason to want to play this more than once. I wouldn't consider playing this game through a second time but others would. Personally, I'd consider it poor replay value but others would disagree.
         Skyrim's dialog is very extensive and has many different paths of speech. You could be all cocky and try to get what you want through intimidation, or try and be kind and be rewarded for hard work. But then again who wants to do that? The soundtrack for Skyrim is in a way helpful. The music gets intense when enemies are around, even if you haven't seen them yet. and the music calms once you've gotten away or killed them. As for actual music it's renaissance music style and gives you a medival music feel. I find it best for indicating enemies over actual music, but still things the wandering musician at the occasional tavern are cool. The default controls for this game are not my favourite. I played the Xbox 360 version and an example for button layout is, I dislike that "Y" is jump and "A" is activate. Luckily the controls in Skyrim are 100% customizable, so of course I had to make "A" jump.
         Skyrim is a first person or third person 3D game; you have the choice of choosing which camera angle you play with. The animations are also quite amazing; whether it is power attacks, finishers, or cut scenes the animations look really cool. Animations from finishers even change if you are sprinting versus standing. The animations are very detailed even down walking and talking animation. You don't get much better when looking at animations than with this game. This game ran smooth but had its errors, like once I found a wall that is usually solid but I walked right through it. Another example is that sometimes NPC's are out of place. But the worst is the wait for the loading screen. When going from one place to another, there is always a loading screen. I avoid going through places as much as I can because it is such a wait. I hope in future updates they will quicken the time between places. Fortunately, there is a solution for the problem now. If you download Skyrim to your system's memory hard drive, it can speed up those annoying loading screens a bit more.
         This game unfortunately has no online capabilities. The next closest thing for Elder Scroll fans is the PC version Elder Scrolls Online. Bethesda Studio's released the MMO to be coming soon this year (2013). Simply make your account, and get the disk when its available and you can explore Tamriel, you lucky PC gamers. In this game, because it is such a large game, there are tons of glitches and exploits. For example it is possible to duplicate arrows by giving a city quard, which is practicing archery, any arrow and he will continually fire that type of arrow. All you need to do is walk over to the target and pluck those arrows off. A couple of Easter eggs included in the Xbox 360 version are the Star Wars one and the invisible chest. The Star Wars Easter egg is there is a dead body stuck to the cieling in an ice cave with a glowing sword on the ground. The invisible chest Easter egg is there is an invisible chest filled with tons of valuable stuff, connected to a merchant. Unfortunately, that is all I'm going to tell you guys. You'll have to find their exact locations by yourselevs.
         In Skyrim there is an unlimited amount of weapons and several classes of weapons. For example two handed, one handed and archery are some weapon classes. There are even weapons, that if you cast a spell, appear and last for 60 seconds. Weapons can be upgraded at a grindstone if you have the right perks and materials. Armor is also a big part of combat in Skyrim. These too can be upgraded at a work bench, again only if you have the right perks and materials. This game has a unique way of leveling, every time you do something; experience is given to that trait. When that trait is leveled it gives experience to your total level. Everytime you level up you can increase your base magika, stamina or health. Than you get a perk that you can use to make a certain trait more powerful. This is a great game, long but interesting and is all about  making the right choice. This game can be confusing but is a well rounded game.

- Prime Rib

7/10

Gameplay

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