Skyrim — what we’re working on (Updated)

Updated 12/6: While the 1.2 update fixed the long-term play issues for most PS3 users, we are aware that is not the case for some. We’ve been reaching out to a number of those users to collect save games, so we can take a look at their specific issues. Right now we know it’s not one thing, but a combination of smaller ones that some folks are seeing, but others are not. Some seem to be the PS3 autosaving in the background (you can turn that off), some may be SPU AI updates, and some may relate to dynamic system memory allocation. These fixes are not in the current 1.3 update that is in final testing, but will be in future ones. We understand how frustrating it can be when your game is having issues, and we thank all of you for your continued feedback and patience. Rest assured we take your gameplay experience seriously and will continue working on this until it’s resolved.

Original Post: As of today, it’s been three weeks since we released Skyrim worldwide. We’re simply blown away by the response, from new and old fans, and amazed by the sheer number of people playing the game. It’s been absolutely fantastic hearing your stories, seeing early mods, and watching fan videos (more live music ones please, we love those).

We want to thank everyone reading this for playing our game and supporting all it tries to do. We wouldn’t have this success without you, and we want you to know we’re committed to making your Skyrim experience even better. And not just in the short term, but over the life of the game.

Here’s a quick peek at what we’re working on right now:

Creation Kit —

Beginning in January, PC players will be able to download for free the same development tools we used at Bethesda Game Studios to create Skyrim. In tandem with the Creation Kit’s release, we will roll out a new Wiki and videos to help you get started. It also features something we think you’re going to love…

Steam Workshop –

We’re excited to share news that we’ve been working closely with Valve to integrate Steam Workshop into the Creation Kit. Using the Workshop, you’ll have free user content with the push of a button. The Creation Kit will bundle your mod and upload it to the Workshop, where everyone can browse, rate, and flag mods for download. You’ll be able to do this from any web device, including your smartphone. Like a live Netflix queue, when you fire up Skyrim, mods you flagged will be automatically downloaded and installed. Everyone here is really excited about the opportunities and possibilities this opens up for our entire community.

Prefer to use existing modding sites? Not a problem. You’ll still be able to upload/share/access Skyrim mods on fan-created mod sites.

Continued Game Updates –

This week we released update 1.2 across all platforms, and we’ll be releasing an incremental update next week. We anticipate it will be up on PC first, and then hit PS3 and Xbox 360 later in the week. Among other things, the update will fix issues like magic resistance not calculating properly and the rare, amazing backwards flying dragon. Once the update is released, we’ll share the full release notes.


After the holidays, we’ll continue to release regular updates for the game — through full title updates, as well as incremental “gameplay updates” to fix whatever issues come up along with rebalancing portions of the game for difficulty or exploits. We plan on having a lot of these, not just a few. Overall, you should expect updates to be hitting the PC and Steam earlier and more often, as that’s a process we control. Console updates will follow, as they must be certified and processed by those manufacturers.

We all know this is a huge game, and everyone has a different experience. We’ll continue to do everything we can to make the game better and better for as many people as possible every day. We’ve also realized that with the millions upon millions of people playing Skyrim, we need to treat our updates with greater care. If we get too aggressive trying to fix a minor issue, we run a risk of breaking something larger in a game like this. To be safe, we are prioritizing code side fixes right now over data fixes. Quest and balance issues are usually data, and those will start rolling in a large way with the January updates.


Thanks again for your continued support and patience. We truly have the best fans in the world, and we couldn’t do it without you.


SO THAT IS FOLKS WHAT BETHESDA SAYS SO FAR....TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT.........

Skyrim Patch 1.04: Here’s What PS3 Gamers Are Asking For
(http://www.gamesthirst.com/2011/12/14/skyrim-patch-1-04-heres-what-ps3-gamers-are-asking-for/)

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim recently won Game Of The Year award at the VGAs, cementing the game as one of the best RPGs ever crafted.

But as we all know, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is suffering with many game-breaking bugs and if anything thing, gamers will remember the title more so for its glitches than its triumphs. It’s a sad truth indeed.
Thing is, Bethesda has some time to save the game’s legacy before things get out of control, however when they act is critical. Skyrim patch 1.04 will be make or break, especially the PS3 version.

When patch 1.03 went live, PS3 gamers thought the detracting issues of the game would be fixed, but that didn’t happen. In fact, not even the game-killing bug causing the RPG to freeze,
rendering it unplayable when save files get too big was handled, however Bethesda’s promising a fix, calling it “long-term play on PS3″.

PS3 gamers want a permanent fix from Skyrim Patch 1.04.

Save File Issue – check

Lag – check

Walking through mountains – check

Getting stuck in mountains – check

Magic Resistance – check

All the bugs listed should be fixed, and the patch should abstain for adding new ones. If Bethesda can accomplish this, then I’m sure gamers will neglect the past. We are a forgiving bunch.
If the firm fail to annul these issues, however, it’ll be a totally different story.

UK charts: Skyrim topples MW3 after a month
(http://www.vg247.com/2011/12/12/uk-charts-skyrim-topples-mw3-after-a-month/)

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has taken the top spot in the UK charts from Modern Warfare 3, ensuring there won’t be a repeat of the 10+ straight weeks at the summit of the list that Modern Warfare 2 ruled over between end of 2009 and end of 2010.

The Bethesda RPG got heavily discounted last week, which maybe a result for the chart win this morning, seeing a rise in sales as much as 145% from last week

MW3 drops to second, while Just Dance 3 is third, seeing a 47% jump on sales.

Uncharted 3 renters the top ten in nineth, having been 16th last week.

Find the top ten for the week ending December 10 below:

1. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
2. Modern Warfare 3
3. Just Dance 3

4. FIFA 12
5. Assassin’s Creed: Revelations
6. Battlefield 3
7. Professor Layton and the Spectre’s Call
8. Saints Row: The Third
9. Uncharted 3
10. Martio Kart 7

Skyrim to see meaty DLC packs that “make the game better”
(http://www.vg247.com/2011/12/12/skyrim-to-see-meaty-dlc-packs-that-make-the-game-better/)

Besthesda has reiterated it intends DLC for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim to be chock full of content, and tailored around player feedback.

Speaking to Joystiq, game director Todd Howard said that when it comes to DLC the developer is looking at “ways to make the game better, not just have more, because the game is so big.”

“We’re going through ideas right now, and processing everything people are doing in the game, and trying to think of ways that we can improve it,” he said.
“[We] don’t have a timetable. They won’t be quick, and they’ll have a lot of meat on them.”

One player request is almost certain to go unanswered, though: multiplayer.
“You can never say never to anything like that, but it’s not what our focus is,” Howard said.
“This type of game is where our hearts are, what we get excited about, and that’s what we want to focus on. We don’t want to lose that focus and we never want to sacrifice anything in the singleplayer game just to have it be multiplayer.”

On the RPG’s stellar success, Howard seemed surprised and gratified.
“We thought it would do well, but it has gone above and beyond,” he said.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim won Game of the Year at the VGAs this weekend, and despite launching in November, has proved 2011′s most played game among Raptr users.


OH...F*****_ME...I LOVE THIS GAME.....BETTER DAYS WILL COME......

Skyrim Patch 1.4
(http://pinoytutorial.com/techtorial/skyrim-patch-1-4-release-may-fix-ps3-lag-problems-new-hope-awaits/)

And hey, just when we thought we wouldn’t be receiving that PS3 lag fix for Skyrim, Bethesda did mention yesterday that a new patch next from 1.3 will be revealed soon that will tackle the bug, which will be Patch 1.4 (as cited by VG247) although its specific release date weren’t yet mentioned. Take note, patch 1.3 is now available for PC players via Steam.

As we’ve said before, while it appears the bug looks like a big deal for PS3 players, the truth is, it doesn’t really affect all gamers.

In fact, we receive several reports citing users who haven’t really experienced the lagging / frame-skipping issue we’re discussing today. Then again, if there’s smoke then there’s fire and Beth certainly knows how to extinguish it with its upcoming patch. We’ll see!

Download The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Update 1.3 Now on Xbox 360
(http://news.softpedia.com/news/Download-The-Elder-Scrolls-V-Skyrim-Update-1-3-Now-on-Xbox-360-240893.shtml)

Bethesda has confirmed that The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim on the Xbox 360 has just received a brand new update, taking it to version 1.3 and hopefully fixing lots of issues that appeared since the release of patch 1.2.

Skyrim, although it amazed millions of gamers from all around the world last month when it appeared on the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360, is affected by quite a lot of bugs, glitches and issues across all three platforms.

What’s more, while plenty of these problems were pretty harmless, the recent patches only made things worse, on the PC, or neglected to fix more serious issues, on the PlayStation 3.

Now, the Xbox 360 edition of Skyrim has received the newest update, 1.3, which was already released for the PC version of the game last week.

No word yet on just what issues are resolved by this update, however, but we’ll update you once Bethesda releases more information.

Skyrim: Official PS3 lag/frame rate fixes
(http://www.inentertainment.co.uk/20111208/skyrim-official-ps3-lagframe-rate-fixes/)

We have some good news for you, it seems as though there are official Skyrim PS3 lag/frame rate fixes from Bethesda.

For those of you who have been suffering from this issue there are a few workarounds, which are said to ease up on PlayStation 3 users suffering.

These will not completely get rid of the problems, but they should be enough until patch 1.4 is released.

One suggestion that is said to help is to switch off auto-save; due to the nature of saving in the background there is a chance that this could cause Skyrim to stutter during gameplay

Make certain you have more than enough free space on your hard drive – this seems a little too obvious to us.

One fix for the lag or frame rate issues, which we found interesting, is to rest your character for 30 days. What this will do is to reset any actions you have done or items you have come into contact with. Once you have done this, then you need to save your game, CVG reports that this will have the biggest effect of all.

There is also a chance that you could have a corrupt file on your hard drive. The way to solve this is to enter ‘Safe Mode’ and then ‘Restore file system’; this will repair any errors, if any. As we said above these are not permanent fixes, but they should be enough to get you by for now.

Skyrim 1.3 patch now live on Xbox 360
(http://www.gmrfm.com/3710?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=skyrim-1-3-patch-now-live-on-xbox-360)

20 minutes ago.....

Skyrim’s patch to fix it’s last patch is now available to download on the Xbox 360.

Version 1.3 fixes the issues some users had reported involving broken resistances, backwards flying dragons and general loss of performance.

Aside from the major fixes the patch fixes bookshelves and tweaks certain elements of the games radiant story system in case certain characters in the world run afoul or you or the dragon/bear/giant spider/criminal gang you managed to kite into a village.

No word on the Playstation 3 version of this patch if you are one of the people hanging on in their to get some functional Skyrim action on that platform.

I will say that it’s totally worth it because the game is absolutely incredible.

"Anticipation for Skyrim has surpassed any game in our company's history, and we are pleased that sales and reviews have reflected the quality and hours of amazing gameplay it provides.”

I didn't quite catch that, say again? lol.

""Anticipation for Skyrim has surpassed any game in our company's history..." This much they got right.

Really annoyed 1.3 hasn't hit ps3 yet. I want my damn magic resistance back!

I'm more concerned about the broken main quest, guild quests and of course the lag that will eventually make magic resistance pointless.

Hey ! thanks so much for those informations . Don't care about those weird goons . They just want the game to not be fix and that Bethesda ripped off our money . Luckily for me i just exchanged Skyrim for 2 other games . I'm scared that it will corupt my newly bought ps3 ( which is tgt with Skyrim ) . Though i'll still be trying to get new info if the new patch fixed fhe game and that i'm ready to make sure i buy a completed game

In my game (on PS3 which is not patched yet) last night a had a dragon galloping in mid air and then fly backwards, then upside down, then while it looked like it was lying on it's side (in mid air) it began having some sort of seizures. I have stopped playing for now until Bethesda comes out with the lag issues/file size patch.

Sorry for shouting but maybe Bethesda are a bit deaf.
STOP LOOKING INTO WAYS OF IMPROVING THE GAME WITH DLC'S ETC AND FIX THE GAME WE HAVE BOUGHT!
Thank you.

Skyrim is the Fastest-Selling Game in Steam History
(http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/121/1214990p1.html)

Outsold other PC games 3 to 1 in November.

Skyrim is the fastest-selling game in Steam's history. According to Bethesda, the game outsold all other PC games in November by a factor of three to one.

"Skyrim is the fastest selling title in Steam's history," said Jason Holtman, Director of Business Development at Valve. "Bethesda's commitment to and understanding of the PC as a gaming platform shows in the great review scores, spectacular launch, and continued high player numbers that Skyrim has received. We are delighted that Bethesda chose to use Steamworks to support Skyrim both at retail and digitally."

Previously, the game was played by 287,411 players concurrently on Steam. Skyrim sold 3.5 million copies in its first 48 hours, and Bethesda says that ten million copies have been shipped to stores across all platforms.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim - Patch 2.02
(http://www.ps3-talk.de/elder-scrolls/78014-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim-patch-2-02-a.html)

The recently released updated patch for the Playstation 3 The Elder Scrolls: The Old Republic to version 2.02 and is 92 MB.

The well-known savegame bug on the PS3 was so obviously not done away with, as this would be possible according to the Publisher only with great expenditure of time (fundamental change in the engine).

The patch fixes some bugs that deal with the last update have been felt, eg, flying kites backwards.

Following issues:

- General stability improvements
- Fixed wrong calculation in magical defense
- Corrected a wrong cast of roles
- Fixes an incorrect placement of books in bookcases (bought from stores)
- Fixed a Dragon animation error when loading and saving
- Corrects the Y-input look-

Does Skyrim Patch 1.3 Add More Bugs?
(http://www.justpushstart.com/2011/12/08/does-skyrim-patch-1-3-add-more-bugs/)

About two weeks ago, Bethesda released patch 1.2 for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and was supposed to fix many of the issues that players were reporting on the Skyrim forums, most notably the “texture” issue on the 360.

While this patch did resolve the fifteen or so bugs that most gamers experienced, it also created a number of new and interesting bugs.

That was one of the more bizarre bugs, but another issue that arose was a game breaking bug for certain players.
Anyone that created a mage class character, became practically unprotected as Magic Resistance no longer existed.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim had literally become unplayable for many gamers as crashes, corrupt save files and unbearable levels of lag seemed to have gotten worse after Patch 1.2 instead of better.

Since Patch 1.3 has gone live there have of course been reports of new bugs,
such as the inability to run when dual-wielding spells,
but on the whole it seems that 1.3 is very stable and only a small percentage of gamers are still experiencing major issues.

This of course by no means that the game is in perfect working condition, rather the game is merely playable for everyone once again.


Now while there are a lot of problems to complain about in this game, we as gamers need to understand that a game of this magnitude will have its problems.
There is so much going on in this game, it is difficult to comprehend and the guys over at Bethesda are working their tails off to give us the best gaming experience they know how.
In less than 30 days, we have received not one, not two, but three different patches; that’s a patch every ten days!

No other game on the market can claim such thing and as long as Bethesda continues to support Skyrim they way they have been thus far,
I can easily see The Elder Scrolls V being played for years to come.

( I AGREE COMPLETELY ...)

Assuming that it works years to come

SO NOW THE BAD NEWS.......READ THIS...I HAVE FOUND.......

PSA: ‘Skyrim’ 1.3 patch breaking auto-saves, causing various problems
(http://videogamewriters.com/psa-skyrim-1-3-patch-breaks-auto-saves-causing-various-problems-32542)

Written by Jason Evangelho on Thursday, December 15, 2011



Only hours after the much-needed 1.3 patch for Skyrim has been released for Xbox 360 (and PS3 in Europe), users are beginning to report a variety of new bugs and unfixed issues.

Some of the complaints include infinitely hanging loading screens,

dragons that don’t give souls when defeated,

Lydia falling through floors,

and broken auto-saves.

And, based on feedback in both comments and forums, players with a penchant for archery may be losing a considerable amount of skill points.

We decided to test the 1.3 patch on our own Xbox 360 copy, and found that when loading auto-saves (pressing continue or manually loading the auto-saves from the load screen), the load screen would freeze indefinitely. This occurred with all 3 of our auto-save files. Regular, manual saves could still be loaded properly.

Different issues seem to be affecting different people, so we wanted to run down a quick bullet point list of what we’ve seen reported so far.
Note that we can only personally vouch for the auto-save issue, but that’s no small problem.
You may want to, yet again, avoid updating Skyrim to patch 1.3 until some of these problems get shaken out.

Invisible dragons
Broken or non-loading auto-saves
Textures are improved on HDD installs for some, but not for others
Some cases of dragons still flying backwards
Dragons not giving souls when defeated (existing issue not fixed)
Lydia falling through various floors
Markath bug still not fixed
Archery skill level dropped dramatically

UPDATE:
Upon more investigation here at VGW HQ, it appears that auto-saves created prior to installing the game to HDD are broken, while auto-saves created after installation work fine.
To be safe, you may want to disable autosaves by booting up any Skyrim save, then press Start, and tab over to System Settings -> Gameplay, then disable Save on Rest, Save on Wait, Save on Travel, and Save on Character Menu.

Early reports from European gamers seem to indicate that the deadly PS3 lag is fixed for some, and not for others.

This is bound to be disheartening to even the most devout of Bethesda fans, and we can only imagine that testing these patches internally is nothing short of a nightmare
for Skyrim’s developers, given the nearly infinite amount of variables with any given game save, character, or quest line.


COMMENTS TO YOU PEOPLE...........(MAKING THE WORLD BETTER.......)

That autosave stuff is fairly ominous. I turned off all autosaves except save on Travel. I guess I cant even do that anymore. Thanks for this most recent 1.3 patch info. Since we dont have it yet in the US>

And Lydia my dear.... I knew her well... until she fell through the floor at Forelhost and was seen no more....

Seriously though. I use Lydia as my companion. I hope she doesnt get screwed up when/if I patch to 1.3

Well that is depressing.

I'm afraid there will be more patches to come for the PS3. Looks like I'll be waiting longer than expected. Truly sad...

LMAO, only because the game was so badly bugged on release, a developer having to break it's back throwing patches out the door, not forgetting a patch to fix what the last one broke, is not an indication of good support.

It is an indication of a need to act, there is a difference.

Dude, Mark41...Please stop posting links to articles and then the article itself bold and colored and underlined.

Firstly, I've got google under control and can find articles on my own and have read it all ad nauseum, as I'm sure most of the people on this sub-forum have. All you have to do is google "Skyrim PS3," So you're not really adding to the thread by posting again and again articles in their entirety. The link is fine enough, even though a lot of these articles are people reiterating the same things over and over again, and more importantly do not work for Bethesda, and have no effing idea what Bethesda can/will/might/wont do.

I've seen your posts a lot on this forum recently and you are always posting some article you have read. It's bad enough the number of people taking shots in the dark on this sub-forum, but to have someone citing someone else about their shot in the dark is just too much.

Please stop. Thank you.