Skyrim

I haven't written much about it, but I've been playing The Elder Scrolls games for a while.Today is the 15th anniversary of the biggest game in the series: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. On the small chance you haven't played it or seen anything about it, don't worry. I won't be spoiling the story here.

11/11/11 was the release date, and it was a big deal even at the time, but I have a confession: I didn't buy Skyrim at the midnight release. I bought the Game of the Year edition in 2012. Steam (the game platform, not the beta blockchain) updated it to the Anniversary Edition in 2021 at no extra charge, so that was neat.

All told, it was fun, but the polish left behind too little substance. I've gone back to Oblivion (2006) and Morrowind(2002), which absolutely look worse, but arguably have far more depth in mechanics and character options. I have to admit I've played little of Daggerfall (1996) or the original Arena (1994) since I wasn't buying many games in the 90s for my dad's sole family PC.

I think a lot of folks my age will agree with me in saying Morrowind was the pinnacle, but I do admit it was quite buggy by default, and there are many useful mods developed by the community to update it. In fact, it was shipped with The Elder Scrolls Construction Set on its own CD for modders to use, so this also jump-started the modding scene. Oblivion and Skyrim each added their own modding tools as well when they launched later. For all their faults, and no corporation is free of them, Bethesda has done well for a quarter century in maintaining a community instead of just trying to sell us stuff.

Skyrim isn't bad, of course, but it dropped many elements that were in earlier games. Armor is just one gameplay element, but it says a lot about the simplifications they made.

• Skyrim: helm, armor, boots, gauntlets (armored gloves), shield

• Oblivion: helm, cuirass (torso armor), greaves (leg armor), boots, gauntlets, shield

• Morrowind: helm, cuirass, greaves, boots, separate left and right pauldrons (shoulder armor), separate left and right gauntlets, and the optional shield. Oh, and you could also wear a robe.

Skyrim also dramatically changed spellcasting, left out levitation like Oblivion had before it, and so on. It has a lot of depth, but as someone who has played for a few games, it all felt lackluster. That said, the game looked great for its time. and has received some updates since then. It plays well overall. The towering landscapes finally managed what Oblivion had almost done, but Morrowind entirely failed: water seems to flow downhill!

In fact, I'd say it's a very good starting game for those not familiar with the lore and setting. It also plays far better on console than its predecessors, so that's well worth noting. I fact, even as I write these complaints, I'm thinking about starting up a new character. It's quite playable, and not a bad way to spend the time with the dragon shouts and spellcasting.

This post is primarily an acknowledgement of a notable history, and also a sad comment on how long it has been since the last Elder Scrolls launched. Sure, Bethesda Softworks has also released Fallout 4 and Fallout 76 as main entries in that series, maintained their development of The Elder Scrolls Online, released several mobile games, launched Starfield, and so on, but why are we waiting on The Elder Scrolls VI: Sentinel?

Yeah, they finally officially announced what folks had been speculating for months.

We know the name of the next game at least. It was first teased eight years ago. Hurry it up so I can buy another Game of the Year edition well after launch!