http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhBiNx749Zw

Is unarmed considered duel wielding?

I did Rage fist only on nightmare. I remember when nightmare used to be hard, like in older versions of resident evil. Now its just aimed toward bad console players.

I expect what with Orcs being able to go Berserk, they do quite well dual-wielding.

I've tried it on my current character, but I've decided to go for more archery than melee. the primary flaw in my character that prevents me from going dual wielding is that I'm a light armour guy, and the inability to block really shows. Yes i can slice and dice, and easy mobs take a beating either way, but if it's a tough fight, I would really struggle to put out enough damage fast enough that I don't get killed in my light armour.

Another thing to note, I do enjoy the dual wielding in the game. I think it's implemented quite well. Just doesnt suit my current build.

I'd definitely recommend using Dual-Wielding!
Not only do you deal out a large amount of damage in a short amount of time, it looks cool like what the other posters have said.
In terms of defense however, sure, you might not be able to block attacks, but with the heavy armor perks and a decent set of gear. You won't notice the damage being dealt to you too much.
I'd advise keeping a shield handy at all time though. You never know when you might be getting swamped by enemies and will need the odd block or two.
Good luck with the character!

Duel ≠ dual. And dual wielding is not a skill. It is 3 perks in the One-Handed skill tree. There is no reason why it must be exclusive to weapon/shield usage. In fact, it is a very viable method of dealing more damage when the shield isn't needed, such as when trying to get a dragon's attention. It is best used with a weapon/shield character, so you have access to a reliable means of staggering an opponent, if necessary - relying only on dual wield because it "looks cool" doesn't accomplish this. The http://www.skyrimnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=3865 mod is a viable option for equipping weapons to the left hand as well.

Dual-wielding's great fun, IMO. Personally I love running with a sword/dagger combo, especially when toying with weaker enemies.

And yeah, the finishers are awesome. Never felt quite as bad-ass as when I killed the Butcher with the dual-wield decapitation execution.

Dual wield rocks. Go light armor to boot. Your defence is your offence. Shields are for wimps.

Make your char a Redguard. You get the stamina regen power to help with the more difficult fights, and start with +10 to One-Handed.

Take Fighting Stance before you go for the dual wield specific perks.

My Dunmer Nightblade dual wields Daggers when assassinating, and if the sneak attack with Daggers fails to kill the opponent or i'm spotted early (Rarely happens), i switch to dual Swords on her.

It's ok. It's very strong if you have a lot of stamina you can just spam power attacks. But I thought it was too easy.

I dual wield once in awhile. Takes a bit of getting use to at first but its well worth the results and the cool kill animations.

Something I remember from my days on another gaming forum "Shileds are for wussies. And Peterond." Peterond being one of the frequent posters on the site.

On Topic: I love dual wielding. (sorry to get pedantic, but a duel is a battle between two people).

low defense? I'm doing a one handed, light armor and sneak assassin and I'm doing pretty good on master level, you will be perfectly fine with heavy armor

I never really tried dual wielding until late (i`m a two hander), but it took me ages to get the hang of it. I was constantly confused because I could never equip my right hand, just my left. then finally I figured out the button to press that put it in my right hand and let me put the other in the left (badm PC UI, fix Bethesda)...

I wasn`t all that impressed, went back to the 2 hander.

Do it. Dual wielding is awesome. Keep your stamina and health high and you'll be fine. Probably my favourite fighting style.

I mix it up between dual wielding and archery.

Like someone else pointed out, if you have the http://www.skyrimnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=3865 mod on PC, it's incredible for duel wield. You can bind weapons to offhand and bind sheath offhand so you can actually block if you need to. I don't think I would enjoy duel wield without that mod, so if you're on console, just go sword and board or 2h.

Playing an assassin I dual wield daggers every time I do melee. It allows you to deal more damage in less time.

You should always have a dagger in your left hand when dual wielding, increases the speed of the triple power attack speed. The best combination you can have is a dagger in the left and sword in the right, sword's dps surpasses axes and maces early on, daggers even more. I would say have 2 daggers, but the dual dagger power attack svcks compared to the triple swing.

Another little thing, all the sword/axe/mace perks are useless.