So I've had this game since the day after release and spent around 30 hours playing so I figure this is as good of time as any to do an impressions piece on this. Currently I'm sitting at level 24 with my nord that specializes in Archery and One handed weapons and I prefer stealth above all else. However I can easily hold my own in a fight since I've put some time into blocking and getting fairly decent with my swordplay. Magic hasn't been much of a focus for me though since I only have a few basic skills and only just recently started using heal.
Now then, with abit about my character out of the way let's get into the meat of this piece. I wasn't too impressed with Oblivion, I felt like the area was far too small and not that diverse, I didn't like the level scaling system, and overall it just lacked that vast feeling I got from Morrowind. I ended up playing through all the guild quest lines and getting part of the way through the main story before I ultimately called it quits after about 40 hours or so. I never got that sense of power I did in Morrowind nor did it feel like I was really progressing as a character. It was a solid game but not what I was expecting for the follow up to my beloved Morrowind.
Skyrim however is what I was expecting. The huge area is back and though not quite the size of Morrowind still feels big enough that I can roam the lands for quite some time without feeling like I'm being restricted for no reason. The flow of the land feels natural, I love the diverse locations from the frozen northern section to the plains to the forest like eastern regions and everything in-between. The cities too feel far different from one another and I don't get the feeling of "this looks like a slightly reworked version of ________" that I always got from Oblivion. Alot of detail went into this region and I'm absolutely in love with the region of Skyrim.
The graphics have obviously received a very welcome overhaul that adds quite abit of detail to the world around you. Things tend to be a little ugly when closely examined but for a world this size and to be this good looking it is hard to complain. I love the way the clouds and fog move through the mountains or how as storms roll in it becomes harder to see with the snow pelting you in the face. The new effects for spells and other such things are quite impressive as well and they feel like they pack more of a punch in terms of visuals. You'll know when a power spell has been sent your way in Skyrim unlike Oblivion where the spells felt pretty lackluster in my opinion.
Game-play wise a rather dirty word was used quite frequently by Todd Howard before release; streamlined (you can thank Bioware for ruining that word). Well I'm happy to report that this is still a solid RPG that doesn't feel dumb downed or anything like that. In fact I would go as far as to say this system better fits the idea of The Elder Scrolls series far better than any of the past games because this time around there are no stats points here, but rather the more you use a skill or weapon or anything like that, the better you get at it. So if you sneak successfully, your sneak skill increases, use the bow and your archery skills increase. No longer do you pick main areas that will increase your character's level but rather everything you do works towards leveling your character up. This allows for a better character customization in my opinion since you're not locking yourself into one way to level up and now you can play your character however you want and change it on the fly if you so choose.
Another rather welcome addition to the leveling system was the perks which are tied to each skill and offer another way to customize your character. From things like the ability to zoom in with the bow or added damage on a sneak attack or a higher critical rate or the ability to block arrows with your shield, there are quite a few and each skill has its own perk tree.
This time around your stats are narrowed down to Health, Stamina, and Magicka. You can increase one of these with each level then you're allowed to select your perk. At first I was bummed to see the overall stat system gone however I quickly fell in love with the new system as everything is now tied to the skill level and not your stat level. Want to do more damage with magic? Then start using magic! Want to carry more weight? Select Stamina the next time you level up. The new system is simple yet quite effective.
The character creation tool has also been overhauled and now allows you to tweak everything about your character's appearance so you can now create that exact face you had in your mind instead of browsing through only a hand full of prebuilt faces. I didn't spend too much time with it since I play in the first version view and pretty much never see my character.
Yes there be dragons in Skyrim and plenty of them. As you all are well aware by now Skyrim has an unlimited amount of dragons and they play a major role here. The addition of dragons adds a whole new level to the game as they are definitely a threat and vary in level. They are completely unscripted as well so you never know when you'll stumble upon one or worse one will stumble upon you. Just recently I had one attack the town of Dawnstar out of no where and the battle that followed was nothing short of epic. The occupants of the town ran for cover, abandoning their day to day routine as the city guard took up arms and I followed them into battle. The dragon would circle the city blasting it with its ice breath, landing on roofs to keep out of our reach as he continued to lay waste to anything that moved. Eventually he mvoed to just outside the city and finally landed, killing most of the town's guards with ease until only one soldier and myself remained.
We fought with everything we had, launching arrows as it flew overhead and charging in when he landed. Sadly my companion would not make it to the end as I was surprised to see the dragon snatch up the last guard in his mouth, shaking her violently from side to side before chucking her lifeless body over the cliff leaving just him and I. Moments later I would claim victory as I struck him down with a thrust of my sword throuh the top of his skull, claiming his soul as my own.
What made this all the more epic was this wasn't a scripted battle, this happened purely at random. Now the dragon's skeleton sits on the side of that hill, as a reminder to the battle that was fought and those who were lost. Every time I see it that's all I can think about.
Skyrim is truly an amazing game and has been nothing short of pure joy for me as I make my way through its many locations and 120+ plus dungeons, which thus far have yet to even remotely look like they are repeating themselves. Bethesda has really outdone themselves this time and this just gets me all the more excited to see what the future holds (both in terms of DLC and other games coming from Bethesda). I'm already planning on doing a review once I get plenty more play time in and it will follow my Super Mario 3D Land review. As it stands right now though this is my Game of the Year and has far exceeded my expectations in every way.