SKYRIM
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Upon entering the world of Skyrim is it quite noticeable that Fallout 3 developer, Bethesda has put much thought into the process of making their latest instalment in the Elder Scrolls franchise. Your first glimpse of the surrounding environment is nothing short of breathtaking, as you look around for the first time you will be able to take in the beauty that the world has to offer. Although the world dose look amazing and as much as visuals captivate nothing can be taken away from the extraordinary sounds and music that have been poured into this game. Whether it is the sound of wildlife scouring around, to the difference in the sound of running in different armour this game sound truly beautiful.
Character customization is as usual a very deep and important aspect as was with the previous installations. Being new to the series creating the perfect character may prove to be quite the daunting experience, taking into to consideration all the factors involved. Choosing exactly what race your hero will be is vital in these opening moments, whether you choose to be a stealthy Khajiit, or a fire wielding high elf are all things to take in to consideration. On top of all this you then have the choice of creating a perfect character including height, weight, face paints, hair and colour, scars and even smaller and less subtle thing such as eye shapes and nose and cheek heights. In a sense this is as much a game in itself as actually exploring the wilderness, and is a very rewarding experience.
In the starting moments you are a prisoner travelling by carriage with a group of other captives to a town called Helgen. You soon find out that you have been charge with assisting the Storm Cloaks, the direct rivals of the Imperial Legion. You soon find the punishment for these charges are very grave indeed, as you have been sentenced to a date with headsman for your crimes.
After the initial tutorial has ended and you leave the starting area you are thrown into a vast and enormous world of discovery. The beauty of Skyrim as with all previous Elder Scrolls games is you’re not required to do anything in a set order, although it is advised to take these initial quests you are not forced to. If you wish to simply explore and take the world in for what it is then so be it.
When it comes down to core mechanics the game plays very fluently excluding some minor bugs. Combat has been improved significantly and has had a quite a depth of personality added to it by allowing the player to not only be able to learn multiply skills, but to have to ability to allocate their skills points into various different categories. The boundaries for what you can and can’t learn have been completely removed, allowing you to be able to use many different techniques in and out of battle.
In my first play through I mainly focused on the destruction, conjuration and restoration houses. Being able to summon different allies varying from spectral wolves to giant ice atronarchs, then with the tap of a button being able to unleash devastating destruction spells whilst healing with powerful restoration spells is a thrill for any mage at heart.
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Not taking anything away from the other main combat styles. There’s a certain amount of pleasure you will gain from sneaking threw a dungeon and silently eliminating all opponents without alerting suspicion. Then comes the overwhelming dominance of charging a group of bandits with sword and shield in hand and emerging as the last standing or taking convent of mages with a sword in each hand, dodging their spells and closing the distance between you and them to unleash a flurry of attacks.
Aside from combat and the constant search for better loot there still lies the hours of game time that can be spent in mining and blacksmithing to craft weapons and armour to collecting flowers, mushrooms and other miscellaneous ingredients to concoct marvellous potions. At first thought you would consider that making your own equipment and weapons to be rather trivial considering how many weapons you can simply obtain through exploration but the real key is to how much powerful and resilient you can make those weapons and armour through blacksmithing. At high levels of blacksmithing you obtain the ability to craft some of the strongest weapons and armour, combined with enchanting and the possibilities become endless. Alchemy is very similar in the sense that there is so much you are able to and so many materials are needed but the reward is worth the effort. At later levels you are able to make potions of many different affects varying from invisibility and curing diseases all the way to fortifying any of attributes and skills.
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Throughout the land there are many different places that you can explore including giant camp, Nordic ruins or even ancient Dwemer ruins all of which bolster strong opponents and in most circumstances valuable treasure and powerful weapons Some of the most dangerous and most unhospitable places in Skyrim lie in in its deep reaches and darkest caves. Venturing into these at lower levels can be quite intimidating ordeal, whether it be giant spiders, vicious trolls or waves of undead there is sure to be something standing between you and the light at the end of the tunnel. As you start to get more deeply immersed in the atmosphere that is Skyrim, you start to gain an understanding of what the development team wanted their audience to feel when exploring the world they have created.
Although the game dose have some bugs, some minor some rather major, even so I found it to be a pleasurable and very memorable experience. For fans of the Elder Scrolls series or for people who are new to the series the world of Skryim is definitely worth investing some time and effort into.
Soman Smith