[PC/360/Ps3] The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Impressions, tweaks and more!

[CeeKay]

Really? That preview got you excited?

I kinda liked the bit about sabotaging the lumber mill.

anyways, here's another article from Eurogamer from the same event.

[Greg Wak]

It's funny, the rps preview and the Eurogamer one I was just going to poest-CeeKay beats me again!-had specific examples of what I was asking for. That quest they detailed sounded like a blast. And I like how some monsters just ignore you, it's not like every creature in the world is not just there to get you.

[CeeKay]

a whole mess of previews.

[Greg Wak]

It will be interesting to see what they do with the dragons. To make them epic you would have to level up quite a bit to be able to take one on. They do say you will level faster in this game than Oblivion or F3. That's cool, it is fun to get new powers and abilities. But something tells me there will be "starter" dragons. Bethesda wants players to be able to get to everything right away. Sales figures say they are correct.

[CeeKay]

a little bit about scaling for different PCs.

also, mods could make it to the consoles.

[Greg Wak]

The scaling bit was interesting. I'll take better performance. Most of those DX improvements I can never notice in game anyway so if they aren't using it it doesn't bother me.
Mods will never get on consoles. I don't think Sony or MS will ever let non certified stuff on. Unless they are doing it now that I don't know of.

[CeeKay]

a bit about the size of the world.

[Caine]

13. Character creation only involves choosing what you look like and which of 10 races you are. “After that it’s all about what you play. We want to minimise the initial decision point when you start the game.”

put me in the camp that will miss the question phase and character stat creation.  yeah, it may have been a hold over from the d&d days, but i've always enjoyed coming up with good builds in the larger open world rpg's.  when the game is more linear, and therefore less about where i want to go vs where the story wants me to go, i don't mind a simplified character creation system.  this goes double for the reduction in attributes and skills.  at least they aren't biowaring it up all mass effect 2 style.  you picked fighter, so you will get 5 swords as you progress through certain checkpoint missions.  i also think that 25 is low for a max level, especially if the leveling is faster than it was in oblivion. 

none of this really dampens me looking forward to this game in any big way, mind you. 

[CeeKay]

I wonder how long it will be before the DLC that raises the level cap comes out.

[Destructor]

I wonder how long it will be before the DLC that raises the level cap comes out.

50, with a theoretical cap of around 70 (according to one article I read)? I think that's plenty high for the game at launch. Once a few hundred dungeons and such have been created, then people might like a boost.

[CeeKay]

I wonder how long it will be before the DLC that raises the level cap comes out.

50, with a theoretical cap of around 70 (according to one article I read)? I think that's plenty high for the game at launch. Once a few hundred dungeons and such have been created, then people might like a boost.

here's the article, but like Caine I could have sworn I heard the max level was 25.

13. Character creation only involves choosing what you look like and which of 10 races you are. “After that it’s all about what you play. We want to minimise the initial decision point when you start the game.”

put me in the camp that will miss the question phase and character stat creation.  yeah, it may have been a hold over from the d&d days, but i've always enjoyed coming up with good builds in the larger open world rpg's.  when the game is more linear, and therefore less about where i want to go vs where the story wants me to go, i don't mind a simplified character creation system.  this goes double for the reduction in attributes and skills.  at least they aren't biowaring it up all mass effect 2 style.  you picked fighter, so you will get 5 swords as you progress through certain checkpoint missions.  i also think that 25 is low for a max level, especially if the leveling is faster than it was in oblivion. 

none of this really dampens me looking forward to this game in any big way, mind you. 

[Caine]

that joystiq article pegged it at 25.

The size of Skyrim's gameworld is said to be comparable to Oblivion's, but each area is significantly more detailed and interactive. As far as character progression, we were told to expect a leveling system similar to Fallout 3's, and, in general, the game will scale along with the player up to the Level 25 cap. Also, the skills have been simplified to three categories: magicka, health and stamina to make the RPG elements slightly more streamlined.

i get the explanation from the EG link as long as you don't ding every time you turn a corner and kill a mob. 

[CeeKay]

Gameplay Changes video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztopdt6fY-U&feature=player_embedded

[CeeKay]

gameplay: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTURc3Fv8Xs&feature=player_detailpage#t=83s

it's on the 360, so just imagine better graphics 

[EngineNo9]

Good to see that 3rd person is finally a viable option in this one.  Too bad all that combat footage was all first person, hopefully that isn't to hide bad things.

[EddieA]

G4 has an extended demo video that shows off the interface, including the perk trees and the awesome-looking map.

[Greg Wak]

All these previews showing cool stuff yet I still don't know about the things that sucked the fun out of Oblivion for me. They said at a low level you won't be able to defeat a dragon. Good, yet there are many dragons running around. So can you waste them at level 5? Makes the dragons too wimpy imho. I prefer my dragons like Gothic where it was bloody well impossible to beat most of them. They have said less cookie cutter dungeons but they haven't said no identical dungeons. I got so bored with those elvin ruins about a third of the way into OB. More importantly, will there be a reason to go in to a dungeon? I really need /would like some kind of better loot/reward, even though I know it's a bitch to balance. Oh well, they sold untold millions of OB, so they don't really have to change anything. I want to like this game, but I still think it might have a lot in it that I won't like.

[rshetts2]

the G4 vid was pretty impressive.  One of the things I didnt like about Oblivion was that I felt the world looked bland.  It appears that the addressed that in Skyrim.  The world looks fantastic.  I also really liked the inventory set up.  Im very interested in the skill vs class system, though with a level cap Im curious if youre going to have to be fairly focused in your skill choices.  All in all, Skyrim is looking pretty good to me.

[EddieA]

All these previews showing cool stuff yet I still don't know about the things that sucked the fun out of Oblivion for me. They said at a low level you won't be able to defeat a dragon. Good, yet there are many dragons running around. So can you waste them at level 5? Makes the dragons too wimpy imho. I prefer my dragons like Gothic where it was bloody well impossible to beat most of them. They have said less cookie cutter dungeons but they haven't said no identical dungeons. I got so bored with those elvin ruins about a third of the way into OB. More importantly, will there be a reason to go in to a dungeon? I really need /would like some kind of better loot/reward, even though I know it's a bitch to balance. Oh well, they sold untold millions of OB, so they don't really have to change anything. I want to like this game, but I still think it might have a lot in it that I won't like.

Since you have to defeat dragons to learn dragon shouts, I'd assume they're introduced fairly early, starting with weak dragons and moving on to progressively bigger ones.  All of the dungeons are hand-crafted, so they should all be unique, and the radiant system is supposed to give you reasons to explore them.  For instance, when you get a quest, the game will choose a dungeon you haven't yet explored and put the quest in that dungeon.

[Greg Wak]

There is over 100 dungeons. Doubt there is a quest for each one. I just would really like an occasional mighty weapon or armor or bauble or something. And wimpy dragons would be a bummer-as well as bandits in top of the line armor for the last 4th of the game. Not trying to be negative. The quest described in PC Gamer sounded pretty cool.

[TiLT]

I'm going to hate finding dungeons in the wild and thinking "I'd better not go in there, or I'll block off this dungeon as a quest location". That's going to really improve immersion.

[EddieA]

I'm going to hate finding dungeons in the wild and thinking "I'd better not go in there, or I'll block off this dungeon as a quest location". That's going to really improve immersion.

Unless you plan to visit all 150 dungeons before going to any of the towns, I don't think that's going to be a problem   I'm not even sure if how I described it is correct.  If you've explored the nearby dungeons already, it may pick one of them anyway since it's nearby, and I'd assume their are built-in quests that take place in certain dungeons whether you've explored them or not.

[ydejin]

gameplay: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTURc3Fv8Xs&feature=player_detailpage#t=83s

it's on the 360, so just imagine better graphics  

I'm glad to see that they're trying hard to make it playable in 3rd person.

[Edit] Or so they claimed at the start of the video.  The walking around animation looks much better than it did in Fallout III.  I'm not seeing any 3rd person combat in the video though.

[CeeKay]

pssssttt Greg, you know you want this game:

http://forums.bethsoft.com/index.php?/topic/1207390-skyrim-fan-interview/

[CeeKay]

I think Greg went into hiding    anyways, skipping the CE but as of the Steam Quakecon deal this last weekend I now officially own the next Scrolls game 

[Greg Wak]

No, I'm here. And the game continues to look very cool, I have to admit. I also am digging the lore of this game. I still have a feeling that you're going to be killing your first dragon at level 2 or 3, and I might not be a day 1 guy, but I will probably be playing Skyrim this winter.

[Greg Wak]

A very cool preview by Tom Chick.http://pc.gamespy.com/pc/elder-scrolls-v/1186740p1.html
Getting harder and harder to resist......

[CeeKay]

some Twitter revelations:

Q: I heard about the multiple quest [markers] but is there an option to turn these off? It would please alot of morrowind fans.
A: you can turn off any markers you want. There isn’t a setting to do so though

Q: 1. Do you still have to sleep in a bed to level up? 2. Are kids killable in the game?
A: no. No

Q: Are there subtitles in Skyrim for deaf gamers ?
A: Yes, fully subtitled.

Q: Can you move objects in game because it seems my controllers buttons are taken?
A: Yes, you can still move items in the world. Instead of clicking button to pickup item, hold it down to move

Q: Is there any form of regenerating health without any perks etc?
A: Health, magicka, and stamina all regen slowly over time.

Q: Is the EB Games CE for Skyrim going to be available in the U.S. too? Or just Australia?
A: it’s not a CE. It’s their pre-order incentive. Not coming to US

Q: Still wondering about dual wield blocking. It seems VERY silly to not allow the player to block or parry while using two weapons.
A: Can only do one thing when you pull trigger: block or attack. That’s the tradeoff. You don’t get the best of all worlds

Q: Can NPCs dual wield the same way the player can? Like using a spell and sword at the same time.
A: Yes. They and and do wield sword and spell, two spells, etc.

Q: Is there any gameplay mechanic related to sleeping? I don’t need it to level up, I can use wait to pass time. So?
A: You get a bonus for being Rested, a la FO3

Q: Do you mean they regen noticeably even without sleeping or using the wait function? Are HP potions just a boost?
A: Health potions keep me from dying in battle

also, character models of Skyrim vs Oblivion vs Morrowind:


(click to embiggen)

[Harkonis]

the comment that it seems silly to allow blocking or parrying with two weapons cracks me up.  Does he not understand what parrying is?  Sure you can't block with two weapons, but parrying?  That's what you DO with two weapons. 

[EddieA]

Those Oblivion faces look really goofy by comparison, especially the Khajiit and Orc.

[Harkonis]

something about the perspective is all wrong.  The Morrowind ones look better for some of them. O_o

[CeeKay]

I could never get a face in Oblivion to look quite right.  I usually just went with a random one and slapped a helmet on it as soon as possible.

[baelthazar]

I could never get a face in Oblivion to look quite right.  I usually just went with a random one and slapped a helmet on it as soon as possible.

At least the women actually look like women now. That's a start.

I just pre-ordered Deus Ex, but this is not far behind. I wish I knew if it was going to require Steam or not, so I could better make my choice on where to order. I'll probably go retail this time though, because I have with all the past Elder Scrolls.

November seems pretty far off though...

[Greg Wak]

Steamworks confirmed for Skyrim. https://twitter.com/#!/ElderScrolls/status/103844894413557760

[CeeKay]

Steamworks confirmed for Skyrim. https://twitter.com/#!/ElderScrolls/status/103844894413557760

stupid ! breaking up links!

[baelthazar]

So getting retail will be irrelevant then. I wonder if it will even include a manual.

[Greg Wak]

Steamworks confirmed for Skyrim. https://twitter.com/#!/ElderScrolls/status/103844894413557760

stupid ! breaking up links!

Thanks for fixing that Ceekay. As I've said before, I have no mad link skillz. I just copy and paste. I have no idea why it came out like that.
Still, the link was only for doubters. I don't post things I don't know for sure.

[CeeKay]

romance will be in the air this fall.

[baelthazar]

romance will be in the air this fall.

Gay orcs! Excellent!

Odd to think that a backwards Nordic medieval fantasy province is more tolerant than much of the United States...

[Razgon]

romance will be in the air this fall.

Gay orcs! Excellent!

Odd to think that a backwards Nordic medieval fantasy province is more tolerant than much of the United States...

psst - its fiction, not real ;-)