Once again, I am confounded by some of the ridiculously negative reviews by some of the gaming community. While I don't care whether or not everyone likes the same games I do , poor reviews without any real substance (other than nit picking and claiming the devs have sold out to consoles) only serve to dissuade those who are unsure and 'on the fence' about a product that is otherwise absolutely brilliant. While The Elder Scrolls series is not for everybody, for those of us who love huge, expansive WORLDS in which we can immerse ourselves for weeks, months even years, gems such as Skyrim are as close to gaming Valhalla as we poor mortals are likely to get on this plane of existence. On my 3 year old rig I can run this on high setting with a nice stable frame rate and 8X AA /8X Anisotropic filtering...even on Ultra it still runs reasonably well, and considering the size and scope of this mighty huge adventure, that's pretty amazing. The graphics are quite impressive, and I'm not just referring to the technical aspect; the art direction and design is stunning. It's frankly heart wrenchingly beautiful, and I have a plethora of screen shots to prove it. Yes, some of the textures could use work, but the modding community is going to bust a nut over this one, and I can't wait for a high res texture pack mod. There are some significant improvements over the previous titles, namely more variety from voice actors (one particular female voice makes me cringe) and no more 'time stop' effect when talking to NPCs. Your character actually looks and moves quite convincingly in third person (at least less 'floaty' than before), the upgraded spell effects will make you WANT to play as a mage, and I just LOVE the new 3D inventory; no more crappy pixellated icons. Combat is still not all it could be, but Bethesda has taken a cue from the Fallout games, and critical kills spmetimes net you a slow-mo up close and personal messy kill animation. Of course, it wouldn't be an Elder Scrolls game without bugs but other than the odd lockup and map hole (LOL, right before a boss fight that deposited my toon back at the dungeon entrance) it really is surprisingly stable. I haven't seen anything like the Youtube videos with flying Mammoths and other strange anomalies, but time will tell. Anyway, if you've actually read this far, here is the upshot...why aren't you playing it RIGHT NOW. EDIT: -.5 for buggy patches
Other Helpful Reviews for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
INTRODUCTION: Ah, The Elder Scrolls… a series of games so fine, that they have reached worldwide fame. It all began in 1994, with the release of the very first 'TES' game - entitled "Arena". It was a huge game and a rev... Read Full Review
The game is good. You'll like it. Here are some common problems people continuously complain about. If they put the work they spent complaining about it into fixing it, they would be enjoying it right now. 1. "The... Read Full Review
