Mass Of Skyrim Details: Story, Combat, Social, Structure, More

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Bah. Why wait for the magazine when virtually all the stuff hits the 'Net weeks before the print publication hits shelves?

Well, we still ask that you support print in some fashion. Just sayin'. Anyway, it's not surprising that certain forums like NeoGAF have been poring over the available details for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, which is featured in the February issue of Game Informer, and the list of information has grown rapidly in the past 48 hours. We know we've got an abnormal percentage of role-playing fans in our community - and there ain't nothin' wrong with that - so we're bringing you the highlights.

Check Gamemunition for a full list of the current "what we know so far" elements. It's a lot bigger than you think... Firstly, we learn that Skyrim takes place about 200 years after Oblivion, and you'll be tasked with the quest of killing the dragon's God...because the dragons have returned. Secondly, a few changes- you won't select a class at the start of the game, but you can choose to boost health, magicka, or stamina after each level, so as to create your own stylized character.

The combat is also "more tactical," in that you can assign each hand a certain function. The developers want to improve the combat and weaponry and oh yes, enemy level will progress with your own, so don't think grinding will be the answer to all your problems. Here's a brief sampling of that large info list:

• Third person view has been improved.
• 5 massive cities, more variation in caves and underground stuff.
• There is an option for no HUD.
• On Conversations: Conversations aren’t done in a zoomed in static shot anymore.Start a conversation with some and they will act like someone would in real life, looking at you occasionally and walking around a bit and also continue doing a task if they were doing one while talking.
• On Weapon smithing: Go to a forge and carve a new weapon out of red hot metal.
• Dual-wielding: you have two hands now in combat and you can wield anything to both hands. You may assign a dagger on left hand and use a mace with right hand. The choice as they say is yours.
• Duel: You may duel any NPC on the streets western style.
• Inheritance: When you kill a shopkeeper, his/her family member will inherit the shop and will be angry about you, but still give you missions.
• Level-scaling: It is coming back.
• 18 skills: supposedly even less skills to play with?
• No mysticism.

And here's something especially cool:

"'Radiant storytelling' or Level Scaling 2.0: The game eventually logs a huge storehouse of knowledge about how you’ve played, and subsequently tailors content to your capabilities and experiences. Entering a city, a young woman might approach you and beg you to save her daughter from kidnappers. The game will look at the nearby dungeons you’ve explored, automatically set the mission in a place you’ve never visited, and designate opponents that are appropriately matched to your strengths and weaknesses."

Does anyone else really not like the idea of enemies adapting to your level...? One of the only reasons I'd want to play the game is so I could become a God at some point...sort of annoys me that no matter what I did, I'd never be able to really dominate. Oh well.

Related Game(s): The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Tags: elder scrolls v, skyrim, bethesda, game informer

1/8/2011 10:40:46 AM Ben Dutka

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