I’ve been eagerly anticipating Skyrim for years. I’d probably even say that it’s the only release I’ve been excited about in a very long time. There’s a reason for this sense of excitment and anticipation though.
Usually, when I’m interested in a game, I’m all up on the interwebs trying to gather every news snipet ever released about that particular title. In some cases, I go the extra mile and sift through gaming related forums, mercilessly hunting down the latest rumours and information.
When Skyrim was first announced, I didn’t search for any information about the game at all. In fact, I’ve actively avoided reading anything about Bethesda’s latest epic. When I finally play Skyrim for the first time, I want the game to retain the sense of wonder and excitement that I used to experienced through video games as a child.
Basically, this is what I know about the game: there’s dragons, improved character animations, dynamic environments and most importantly, I know that Destrucoid’s Max Scoville is totally obsessed with the game (coincidently the Destructoid show is pretty much the only place I’ve gotten any Skyrim related news).
Other than these little tidbits of information, the rest of Skyrim’s features remain a complete mystery to me. I’ve heard some rumours that excite me; apparently the game may allow you to have a family. I can only hope the game let’s me abandon them like I’d frequently do in Fable 2 (for the record I hate theFable series) and provide them with no financial support, resulting in my virtual wife and child running off into the sunset (something I’d never do in real life but is amazingly entertaining in a virtual world). In the boring realm of real life reality, I can probably see my girlfriend leaving me if I play Skyrim too much; she’s already tired of hearing about the game.
I will provide you with no financial support wench.
I’ve also heard rumours about the game’s radiant story system that excite me, but I don’t completely understand how it will work. I’m interested in seeing how it will affect the classic Elder Scrolls formula. Of course, I do know quite a bit about how the game will actually play. I’ve played a lot of Morrowind and a bit of Oblivion after all, but I’m most interested in discovering what Skyrim’s introduces into the stories Elder Scrolls franchise.
Sometimes, I feel like the internet has ruined the sense of discovery that a lot of video games used to have. With a simple Google search, anyone can find out anything they want about an upcoming game. When you finally sit down and play that shiny new title, you already know everything there is to know about it – there are no suprises, often just unachievable lofty expectations.
I’ve always been a big fan of the Elder Scrolls franchise. In high school, I played the crap out ofMorrowind, lusting after that perfect set of beautiful green glass armour. My friends never understood the game, “there’s no guns dawg, why would you play that shit,” but it didn’t matter to me. Morrowind offered a unique experience, I was in control, I could do whatever I wanted with my character – this thrilled me. The entire game focused on the idea of freedom and allowed me to do pretty much whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. Of course, as with many Bethesda titles, Morrowind had a few potentially game ruining faults. But that didn’t matter to me, I was already lost in the land of Vvardenfell killing some random guy in Caldera, comandeering his house and putting my stolen wares on proud display.
Then came Oblivion, a game that I really couldn’t get into for some reason. I understand that the game expanded the Elder Scrolls universe and added a ton of new features to the series, but I just couldn’t get into it. I think this was because Oblivion felt so similar to Morrowind. To me, it seemed like a high definition remake of the original Xbox classic.
So Friday night – after I finally get our of school and pick up Skyrim – I’ll be going into the game knowing very little about it, and that’s exactly the way I want it.