A Different look at Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Review)

When Deus Ex: Human Revolution came out I thought, “This is the Game of the Year.”  Then a copy of Batman Arkham City came across my desk and it trumped Deus Ex for the title.  Arkham City was so fantastic that I was certain that when Skyrim released it would not be able to snag GOTY away from the Dark Knight.  After dozens upon dozens upon dozens and a few more dozen hours of gameplay, I had to call Bruce Wayne and tell him he couldn’t have the title.

Now Gamers Daily News is publishing our review of Skyrim a little late in the game, but I’ll take full responsibility for that one.  The reason we waited so long to publish is that I didn’t want to talk about the game without experiencing it in its fullness.  Skyrim is a sandbox style RPG and perhaps I am the worst person imaginable to review a sandbox game; not because I wouldn’t give it the credit it is due, but because I am nothing more than a kid in an adult’s body who will cry and whine when play time is over.  Allow me to explain in more detail as I take you through a different look at Elder Scrolls V.

Lost in Fantasy

The first thing that you do in Skyrim is to design your character.  With the many choices of races, gender, and facial tweeks it seemed like the choices were infinite.  After 3 hours, I created my Night Elf Mohawk (a tribute to Mr. T and World of Warcraft).  This is why sandbox games are not good for me.  I read somewhere online, “spend 2 hours making your face, to wear a helmet the whole time,” and nothing could be closer to the truth.

After making my character and escaping a death sentence.  I shut the game off to eat dinner.  That night I turned it back on to play for an hour or two before I went to sleep.  I wandered the landscape picking berries, hunting small animals, getting my feet wet in the creek, and just taking in the gloriously designed environment.  After what seemed like fifteen minutes, from the bedroom I heard my alarm clock going off!  I looked up at the clock only to realize I had just spend 9 hours playing Skyrim and had successfully accomplished nothing!

Perhaps it was the open environment or exquisite mountain in the distance that beckoned for me to explore it.  Perhaps it was the map that continually had more and more dungeons, caves, and towns appearing.  Perhaps it was the added epicness of Nvidia’s stereoscopic 3D that made the world come alive.  Whatever the reason, I soon found that Skyrim is not a game for a person with ADD or married man who wants to have a happy marriage.