» Thu May 10, 2012 9:52 am First of, I'm outstandingly pleased with Skyrim. I'm a fan since TES3, a gamer since Super Nintendo and generally very critical about games, especially this decade has seen a lot of mediocre titles which were haled (Halo'ed) by the mainstream gamer. I think generally gaming has become dull and boring in this decade. The last time I got excited or couldn't sleep cause of a game was when I was 11 I believe.
Well that has changed now with Skyrim, got up in the middle of the night to play cause I couldn't stop thinking or dreaming about it. Bethesda made a true game with this one. It takes me back. They did not over hype this title nor did they lie when they said its bigger than anything they've done so far. As I said, I'm impressed and pleased. TES is back with a vengeance!
It starts with the smooth installation (PC), boy I haven't seen a PC release, let alone a console port without any issues in a LONG time. I remember being upset at midnight of 11/11/11 because I forgot to updated my GPU drivers. Yet the game ran without a problem what so ever. Great job on this! (And yes John Carmack, I'm thinking about you right now.)
That said, the port is really well done.
The graphics are beautiful, I was skeptic about them, being made for the 360, a 5 year old system. And true, the textures are very low in quality, but I have to say those textures have such an artistic look to it and the ambient lighting sets them in scene so well, that even a graphics enthusiast like me is pleased. I could go on like this but lets sum it up. Skyrim did everything it was supposed to do.
Now this makes me look into the future, what can TES 6 do? Skyrim has left me with little to wish for. It is kind of a problem if you think about it. Here's my 2 cents anyway:
Controls
If there isone thing I dislike about any and all Bethesda games, its the way they "feel" in terms of control and movement. Skyrim is no exception, although better than Oblivion. Don't you guys think there is something clunky about the controls? It feels so stiff, its generally hard to aim in combat. I find it awfully difficult to aim, be it a sword, magic or a bow, its all the same to me.
That;s a problem within itself. Why should casting magic or wielding a sword have anything to do with aiming? That should be strictly for archery. Some say it adds realism. To me its a constant reminder that I'm only playing a game. You can be the mightiest mage in all of Tamriel, yet it all comes down to whether or not you can point that crossair on your opponent as you cast your lightning bolt.
On top of that there is something about this Bethesda engine that just makes it hard to move in general. I don't know what it is but I find it much easier, more satisfying and realistic, when I dodge fireballs from Imps in Doom 3, while I blast them wit ha shotgun. I want that kind of flexibility and speed in TES games.
I think Zelda or Devil May Cry are good examples of how some of this should go. Give us some target lock feature or an auto aim that we can turn on or off as we please. It really needs to stop behaving like an FPS in that respect. I already mentioned the magic system.
Another thing are combos, I realize Skyrim has some but its not enough. Again, Devil May Cry comes to mind, simple movement combos to do different attacks or even spells would be more fun than aiming all the time or constantly pausing the game to openthe menu, just so you can select a slightly different spell. It constantly pauses and stalls the game.
How about Fireball: Left, Right, X. "Boom"
Restore Health: Up, Down, X
Much more fun this way. Yea sure it turns it into a bit of a button masher but I prefer that to opening the quick menu all the time.
Another thing about that quick menu:
New technologies should be explored for that, like voice commands through Kinnect. How awesome would it be if I just say "health" and it'll use up a health potion without interruption.
Engine:
Thats where I see a lot of potential for growth. Its unlikely they will ever change to a new engine for obvious reasons, but it truly is an issue. You can tell this is the same engine that was used in Morrowind, just way polished. I'm thinking about Cry Engine 3 and all the amazing scenery one could create with it, with life like foliage, trees that can be chopped down, extremely dense forests, filled with fireflies at night. Not to mention the physics, which are ages better than Havok ever will be. Like I said, its unlikely they will put in so much time and money to switch the engine, especially since the current games all do so well in sales and ratings, but its something to keep in mind.
Graphics on PC:
I understand that consoles is where the money is at, I have nothing against developers who cater to those systems and make it their first priority. Games like Skyrim, Rage or Deus Ex prove that you can make amazing ports for the PC. However I do feel a bit disappointed that the progress of these games is slowed down or even halted by the hardware of consoles. Skyrim for instance, there is no way Bethesda made 512x512 texture for this game. All they did was compress them to Oblivion so it would fit on a DVD and run on an Xbox. So how hard could it possibly be to either include less compressed textures on the PC version? Or at least offer them as a DLC, I wouldn't mind paying up to 9 bucks for something like that. But you have to at least offer it. That's something an intern / apprentice could do as a weekend project and make the studio some extra cash.
So there you have it. Everything Skyrim did + the improvements I mentioned. That'd be TES6 to me and possibly the perfect game. Skyrim got very close to that.
Alright, thank you Bethesda for one of the best games ever made, I'm off to destroy my social life some more. Let me know what you think though, I'll try to turn the game off every now and then and see what you guys have to say.
