Last week, I had the opportunity to play more than two hours of Bethesda's upcoming The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim. Anyone who's touched the series knows that's like 10 minutes in most other games, but in that time, I felt I picked up on the essence of what differentiates Skyrim from its predecessors. Most open-minded players will find something to love here. But three categories of gamers will be particularly intrigued by this latest chapter….
The smart action gamer
You like killing things, but mindless hacking and slashing isn't enough for you. You like games that require some semblance of skill — a little strategy and a lot of quick reflexes. Here's how Skyrim would appeal to you.
Combat is in your face. In my first enemy encounter in the demo, three bandits emerged from hiding places in the terrain and surrounded me, like an ambush in a Western. I dropped into my Oblivion mindset: shield at all times, attack the closest enemy in between his strikes. This strategy soon broke down, as the enemies circled me and their attacks bypassed my defenses. I found that dodging and waiting for the right moment to counter proved particularly effective. To reward me for my efforts, the game would change to a third-person perspective and show my finishing move in slow motion as I took down the final enemy in the group, very similarly to Batman: Arkham Asylum.
Reacting properly is key. In Skyrim, you can "favorite" specific weapons, shields, or spells. Then, you can assign them to your left or right hand at any time from a quick menu on the D-pad. On one of the first quests in the game, undead soldiers surrounded me. With my health draining quickly, I quickly switched my axe out for a healing spell, used my shield to fend off the enemies with shoves, and replenished my health whenever I found a second to breathe. Successfully pulling off such a tactic was satisfying both in terms of making me feel like a powerful warrior and in terms of the game's leveling mechanics, which give experience for doing things like attacking with a specific weapon type or using a healing spell.
The role player
For the players who really like to immerse themselves in the world and lore of a game, nothing tops the Elder Scrolls series. Skyrim takes this and expands upon it in appreciable ways.
Quests develop in more natural ways. In many RPGs (including previous Elder Scrolls titles), you find sidequests by talking to complete strangers and finding out their problems. In Skyrim, however, you might hear some gossip that would lead to an introduction, which in turn could lead to an opportunity to volunteer to help with a task. Perhaps you overhear a husband and wife arguing over an old family sword that was stolen (you can offer to help steal it back from the bandits). Or you just happen to eavesdrop on a decent fellow complaining to his friends about his love rival (you can help him win the babe…or you can help the other guy). The way the game attracts your attention without being too obvious about it (like having exclamation marks over characters' heads) is refreshing.
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More paths to walk down. While it may sound cliche in a world where Fallout 3 and Mass Effect are major hits, the game really does give you the opportunity to create a character unique to your play style and role-playing preferences. Even compared to Oblivion, Skyrim has more options for who your character can become. For instance, in the next section I mention running into a group of warriors fighting a giant. After the battle, they give the option to meet their leaders in order to join their organization. Joining in this way is far more interesting and fits in the game's world far more fluidly than the old system of simply going to a major city and walking into the building of the Fighters' Guild. Even more exciting is the fact that Skyrim is in the middle of a civil war, and it seems players will get the option to choose which side they wish to represent. Here's hoping that this will make fundamental changes to the way the plot plays out.
The explorer
I know you. You're the type of gamer who picks a point in the distance in Minecraft and figures out the best way to get there. You get a nice car in Grand Theft Auto 4 and drive around, taking in the sights. Skyrim offers more content than even the most hardcore players can hope to find in fewer than a handful of playthroughs.
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A new sense of scale. Few titles let you pick a point in the far distance and actually let you reach it. In Skyrim, I can climb snow-capped summits that are usually reserved for background decoration in most other games.
Doing this brought back memories of the first Lord of the Rings film, when the Fellowship journeys over the Misty Mountains. I started at the base, traversing through the dense woods as the environment slowly transitioned to snowy peaks. Light flurries would whip through openings in the rock formations as the wind whistles, chilling me even as I play from the comfort of my chair. As in the movie, I felt like I was there because of the superb production values. Everything seemed so real, with the developers sparing no details.
When you do reach the top, you can see seemingly forever in all directions thanks to Bethesda's new Creation Engine. The draw distances are quite impressive compared to the previous games.
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Some truly cool things happen when you least expect them. As I wandered toward what seemed to be the closest big city from the starting area, I came across a group of warriors fighting a giant. Not wanting to feel left out, I joined the fight. Even with our large group, it still took some effort to get the monster to go down. After the fight was over, we properly introduced ourselves then went our separate ways. Having epic moments like this happen so early in the game was great, as it gave me a chance to feel like a real badass even before I'd really leveled up my character. I suspect these events are scripted, which should keep them from becoming repetitive, although that would make repeat playthroughs slightly less unpredictable.