By Sam Coles:
When we go through tough times, we generally reside within
the realm of comfort. For my Dad he likes to watch old Disney and Loony Tunes
animations, my Mum listening to David Bowie and Tom Petty and for me playing
games from childhood and my early to late teens. Skyrim is one of those games
and given the current climate (at time of writing) it was a good time revisit,
as it is something to help me forget about my worries. I just want to reflect on
the game, which is rather fitting as the game is 9 years old this year.
Skyrim has an interesting history not because it was in
development hell, but people kept asking Bethesda when the next game was coming
out. After 5 years since the release of Oblivion Bethesda announced Skyrim,
with a release date of the same year and to say I was excited is a huge
understatement. Skyrim was shown off at E3 2011 with comments such as “You see
that mountain? You can go there”, which is mocked these days. However you have
to put yourself in the shoes of gamers at the time, this type of freedom didn’t
really exist when it came to console open world games. Even Bethesda’s own work
at time such as Oblivion and Fallout 3 had its own restrictions and draw backs,
whereas Skyrim was something special to behold.
I was 18 years old when Skyrim finally dropped on 11.11.11,
my god did they play that one up but I digress. It was a beautiful experience,
I got the same feeling I had with Oblivion 5 years prior, when the game lets
you set off and doing anything you want I got a sense of wonder and whimsy. It’s
something even to this day I have yet to find in modern open world games, with
Red Dead Redemption II got very, very close to that feeling. So why even today
do I get that feeling with Skyrim? Well let me take you on an adventure and
explore the frost laden realm of Skyrim.
After you are dragged by the nose with a patronising
tutorial, Skyrim lets you of the lead and tells you to do whatever you want. Yes
you could carry on with the story if you must, but the game doesn’t stop you
from doing a complete U-turn and head off in the other direction. This is what
the beauty is of Skyrim’s design, yes it can come across as shallow in a lot of
places but it’s this total player freedom is what many (including myself) fell
in love with all the way back in 2011. The game actively encourages the player
to be curious as a cat, where you will find new people to interact with, new
weapons and armour, magic spells, different cults and religions as well as
uncover ancient secrets and legends that have been lost to the sands of time.
At a surface the level the gameplay is rather unremarkable
and simplistic, but that doesn’t mean that is a bad thing, no far from it. The
experience that people love about Skyrim or any Elder Scrolls is exploration,
when I first heard that The Elder Scrolls V was going to be set in the Nordic
region of Skyrim I was hesitant as I thought it was going to snow all the time,
but I was wrong the landscapes were more varied than I thought. Sure you have
the classic trapping of regions similar to Skyrim like mountains and Arctic tundra,
but you also have richly vegetated forests that stretch for miles and humid
swamps with crickets chirping in the background. My expectations of the region
went from in the middle to over the moon, Skyrim has something for everyone to
enjoy.
In terms of visuals yes this game still holds up, I
revisited the game on the PlayStation 4 with the “Lively Graphics” mod
installed and it’s subtle but it gives it an extra bump with how vibrant
colours are, increasing the density of the foliage as well as improving how
lighting reacts with the environment. The sun rises and sets are still
spectacular to behold, and as clichéd this may sound its beauty makes me shed a
tear coupled with the beautiful tones of Jeremy Soule’s musical score.
Hard to believe nearly a decade later that I still find
enjoyment within Skyrim, I know the game has its detractors but can you
honestly tell me that it is not a beautiful experience? Because it is, it has something
for everyone, and honestly that is what video games are about letting as many
people as possible enjoy them.
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