Spoilerific detail: yes, it does. Crafting was done simply awful so far. It could still be fixed later with some major changes, but who knows if they'll ever do it or not. In the meantime, only way to bring it into line is mods. Or don't use crafting

The real trend: You're good with a hammer- hit that nail right on. Welcome to Skyrim! Admittedly, once you accept (or just ignore) its shortcomings and play it for what it is, an action-adventure exploration sim with a very light dusting of RPG sprinkles, it can be quite entertaining. But, any RPG'ing you may do will be largely in your head, though, as there is rather little of the traditional structure or framework of classic RPG's in it.

Isn't it funny that we come full circle, and (though it's reversed) once again you have to imagine the details that aren't really in the game.

Excellent observation.

Sadly were in the situation where,by design, the most marketable elements of modern games usually turn out to be the most impressive (ie) Graphics.

Something like this is making me seriously question if I want to make my games 2D or 3D once I move from the mobile apps to console/PC titles.

You can make a beautiful, beautiful 2D world that lets you open up the rest of the game, but 3D is where it's at.

Hehe, true. I've always leaned more towards structured RPG formats, one where the character construction framework and development tools are built right in and are far more customizable than Skyrim's- and less towards ones that require you to fall back to the old tabletop D&D style where you have to make most of it up in your own mind, and play it out mostly in your own mind. People who care less about classic RPG structure and who possess florid imaginations, do well when RPG'ing in Skyrim.

i harp on this all the damn time. using one's mind is not a substitute for actual gameplay and mechanics.

it's actually amazing to me how many people make up stories in their minds to get by the faults of the game and think that it is a legitimate response to them.

This. I've decided that I'm done with roleplaying in Skyrim. If I wanted to use my mind for all my roleplaying I could just whip out my AD&D book. Instead I'll treat Skyrim for what it is; a nice exploration-focused action game with light "RPG" elements.

Absolutely.

As someone who began playing games on the BBC micro with Elite all those years ago i'm in awe of what can be achieved now on a desktop computer,especially in regard to games and graphics.The problem is,graphics alone have been used to try and replace what gave older games their atmosphere,rather than use that advance in technology to enhance what was already there.

That comment is just a general observation by the way and is not aimed at anyone in particular.

Maybe because the problem with Skyrim is, that, although being a good game, it is easily outmatched by the predeccesors.

The old "you're only content with the game because your as sharp as a marble" remark. Yeah, we already picked that implication up from the previous comments written by the chubby comic book characters who star on the Simpsons, but this was the first "explicit" form. When the conversation devolves into being called an idiot by people who wear Star Trek translater lapels on their leotards, it's pretty much over.

I remember playing Wizardry on the SNES and getting full enjoyment of that game. Nevermind that, D&D in middle school with friends. A sock full of die and some mapping paper and our imaginations did the rest, despite all limitations. It appears that games have gotten so good, both graphically and in depth, that we've become lazy and instead of allowing our imaginations to take over, like we did when we had to play RPGs in text or with die and mapping paper, we expect the gaming industry to design and develop games that suit our own personal expectations... I see a bunch of people who literally want the game to think for them. GPS and iPhones for everyone!

Use your imagination and role-play ability. You are not going to find the "perfect" video game, it appears. There just isn't the technology, the manpower, the budget, nor the time to build the ULTIMATE, SUPRA, AWESOMENESS RPG that pleases everyone and walks them through their imaginative capabilities. The current consoles are near the end of their lifecycles and no games will be made that can take full advantage of the best computer hardware right now until the consoles catch up. You're going to have to wait for such an ambitious dream game and for a development shop that doesn't yet exist that is crazy enough to risk it all by blowing out their budget and timeline to make it.

For the rest of us who realize that games cannot compete with our imaginations, because they are generated from a finite set of application code while our imaginations contain infinite content that is highly subjective and individualistic in the first place, we have games like Skyrim (much like Wizardry). It may not match up to every single personal preference, but it has what we always wanted when we played games like Wizardy and D&D. Our imaginations will fill in the gaps.

Wasn't inferring anyone was an idiot, Pleb. Just that some people get their RPG licks in a different way, that was all. Sorry you overreacted to your misreading of my post.

I wasn't expecting an apology, so it makes it all the more authentic. I apologize for misreading your post if that is not what you meant to convey... and for any harsh words I used.

It's funny because of it's true!

...And quite sad, if you think about it some more

Thanks, no need. The internet is an easy place to be misunderstood, and get worked up over things, real or percieved. He who hasn't fallen victim to this at one time or another, cast the first stone...

To clarify, the gist of my words were that I'm disappointed that games like Skyrim are moving more away from the 'detailed and technical' RPG frameworks of the past, where you could do alot more through the built-in game mechanics to craft and style the RPG details and direction of your character- and more towards the "you just gotta use your own imagination for a lot of that now" methodology. I don't want to insult anyone who prefers the latter, I just don't prefer it myself. I prefer to put my imagination into creating a special character type through the former method, as opposed to just winging it as I go, in my head. Despite the comments of some others, that does not show a lack of imagination or a desire to have the game designers 'do it all for me'. It shows a different style and method of applying your imagination to character creation and development, one that is unfortunately and rapidly disappearing from the TES series due to streamlining and simplification.

I think people view it more as constructive criticism. It's not that they don't like the game, just that they want certain aspects changed. Perhaps in updates or maybe for the next elder scrolls.

Someone give this man a medal.

This, Skyrim is an excellent game but it's far from perfect and isn't exactly the best RPG.

I enjoy smithing. Good addition to the game. Don't like it, don't use it, problem solved.

Too many people here seem to have crowned themselves the final arbiters of what's good and what isn't.

From very first post:

Your insulting behavior (starting from the very first post) aside...not sure how many people are saying (or implying) that one has to be an idiot to enjoy Skyrim. While it's no secret that the game was devolved to make it "accessable" to the lcd, that doesn't mean intelligent people cannot get enjoyment out of it. It is actiion-oriented, pseudo-rpg. A novel game world even though it is a poor design of the actual defined world it is supposed to represent. A large issue is the game lacks any sort of depth to take it any real distance past that point. It's still a good game even with this and the various poor design choices that have been poured over in the past months.

I will go so far to say that SR is nowhere near a great game, but that is just imo. Too many bad design choices....bugs...lack of depth... but who cares about my opinion, beyond those of you that are so clearly insulted that we chubby trekkies have an opinion on this...

Indeed. It follows the law of Elder Scrolls. A law which I hope they break for TES VI. That law being predeccesors better than the last game. Skyrim being worse than Oblivion being worse than Morrowind. I use the term worse abstractly. The games are each very good as standalone games. But start comparing... well you'll see that they are different. But it is personal opinion of course. My favorite is Oblivion. Still got about 300 hours in Skyrim and its a lovely game. I just need a break and Oblivion is something I can get my claws into

Edit: Should add I love RPG games, Skyrim felt a lot more hack and slash to me, thankfully fixed a lot of that feel with mods.

I don't know...I've played D&D and I enjoy the making everything up in your head aspect, but Skyrim still doesn't work for me RPing wise. The terrible dialogue and quests just ruin any sense of immersion for me. It's like the little bit of RPG type stuff that they did put into the game is done poorly enough to where it ruins RPing even further.

So yeah, I appreciate Skyrim as an action-adventure hiking simulator, and it is fun for a little while, but I just can't enjoy it like I do other RPGs (the fallout games minus 3 and Tactics).

Except I like Smithing. I like to use it. But using it breaks the game.

There shouldn't be that trade-off, ever, in a properly balanced game.

That made my day. My sister calls fallout NV a rock simulator and fallout 3 a burnt tree simulator...

Are you saying that you cannot see the link Skyrim has with Oblivion and Morrowind with regard to lore and are therefore offended by my comment (the one you quoted)?