I've only played about an hour of the game, and being a newcomer to the series, I can already tell that this is going to be a very, very, lengthy game. Just the way that the game started and just looking around for that brief amount of time, I'm stunned. I just made it to Riverwood and already I'm bloated with misc quests just from talking to a few people.

I think that it's going to take some time getting used to the crafting systems, they look intimidating because it seems like there's so much you need to do in order to make something. And then if you want it improved, you have to sharpen it to improve its quality. It really goes in-depth quite alot. I think I just need to fool around with it for awhile and get used to it.

I can literally walk a couple of feet out of Riverwood and there's a mine waiting for me to be explored. It's pretty sweet.

I'm not quite sure how to equip dual-spells - (Help? PS3). I plan on being a mage and already bought two spell books but I'm still running around with a spell in my left hand and an axe in my right hand. Maybe I have to unlock the ability to do so, I'm not sure.

It's looking pretty good so far though, looking forward to getting deeper into everything.

press R1 on what ever spell you want in your right hand

Just take your time with the game, and let it wash over you. Don't worry about learning everything right away, let it all come naturally. It took me awhile to figure things out too, but I'm also a vet to the series. But I can definitely see the game being overwhelming for some. Just try and take it slow and don't think you have to become a God overnight. You have plenty of time to learn the ropes. Good luck.

They dropped the ball

Playstation power YEA! Sorry had to say that even though Skyrim plays the worst on PS3. But, don't pay attention to that. Just have fun with the game! It is so big you will probably have to spend a whole 2 months on one character. HAVE FUN

You're right, it's definitely a long game, especially if you don't intentionally rush things. I'm 130 hours in and I haven't finished a single quest line yet!

Prepare to be thrown into arguably the greatest RPG of all time. Enjoy your stay in Skyrim

Have fun with the game, I would give you a Fishy stick but you're not exactly new here.

The first time I played I was already overwhelmed with the game, it's pretty epic really.

Abit of advice, if you want to duel wield spells or weapons use R1 to equip something your right hand and L1 to equip to your left.

My advice is to make a character rather than "play to win" (aka powergame with the goal of beating everything). You'll have a lot more fun that way. By that I mean, if you want to focus on a lot of magic, play a bad-ass evil mage bent on aquiring all the Daedric Artifacts, or a holy knight who especially loves taking down undead/vampires/etc

I'd also advise to avoid fast travel at all costs, except for carriages. Just because the game seems to have a better balance and progression if you explore naturally or travel on "foot" (or via horse/werewolf), versus if you just fast travel all the time. I think dragon spawns in particular are a little bugged, in that if you FT for everything you'll run into unusually high dragon spawns. Not to mention there are about 100 or so random events and full side quests (not misc quests) you can only get by exploring

My advice is to stay away from the forum until you have a 100 hours in. Seriously.

The most beautiful part of the game is discovering everything by yourself. Random accidental spoilters will eventually reduce the wow factor when you encounter it.

The random complain threads (valid or otherwise) will eventually have you focus on gameplay or balance issues that you actually would not have cared about otherwise.

Does it really matter if skill X is better than skill Y or skill A in combination with B and C is so overpowered that monsters can be killed in one blow bah bah bah? You are far better off discovering the skill combination which makes your game fun.

So, take my advice and come back 100 hours later to share the tales of your adventures in skyrim. Don't let the forum spoilt it for you.

PS: Turn off auto save and manually save often. Keep multiple saves.

Well I figured out how to dual-spell and just picked up the Golden Claw and venturing deeper. The place is huge! Seems my fire magic doesn't do too much damage against the skeletons, even while using dual-spell (fire). Stupid spider took some hits that's for sure.

Thanks for the tips and advice everyone, much appreciated. Now back to burning skeletons... xD

I dunno if this is funny or sad, but I'm on my cell phone which cuts off the left side of the forum so I don't see who posted something, but when I read this I knew it was you before I even had to look... Which I think is a sad thing...

Tell me about it, anyways have fun dude and don't listen too the, "I don't like Skyrim cause its not exactly the way i want it" whiners, just enjoy it in your own time.

Your destruction will build up as you play.

Honeslty be safe while playing on the ps3. I have 200 hours invested and now at this point the game won't even load. I've had several crashed which resulted in full restores and now I can't even play at all. The thieves guild questline is totally broken. I can't ever become part of a guild. I've been exploring a little too much which broke some other quests. Pretty much a big bummer on ps3. I don't care what anyone says go look at the ps3 tech part of the forum, it's busted. Even with all that stuff I still love the game and I'm currently once again trying to figure out a workaround so I can play again. You'll fall in love. Take it slow, make sure your save file doesn't get too big or the game becomes a freezer. Enjoy. You should be patched by the time you reach that point. Hopefully.

Are you trying to scare the guy away from the game?

Every TES game released has been an awesome experience.. Top of my shelf is boxes from Arena to Skyrim Been playing through them all besides Morrowind.. (Not sure why)