The Elder Scrolls series is one of my favorite video game worlds — I love it even more than its post-apocalyptic cousin, Fallout. With over 60 hours already spent in Skyrim Special Edition, it’s fair to say I really enjoy exploring the expansive world of Skyrim, again and again. But it’s also clear there are plenty of things Bethesda needs to change, and the five years between the initial release and special edition have done little to quash these problems.
The next installment of the Elder Scrolls series is still quite a ways off, but it’s never too early to start talking about what needs to change for The Elder Scrolls VI.
I'm an ebony clad warrior with a giant sword, what part of that doesn't look honest?
I’ve noticed a growing trend. When people pick up Skyrim (and even Fallout 4) for the first time and ask if there’s anything they should know, I always see the same response: skip the main questline. For most games, that would be a pretty alarming statement. Skyrim manages to skirt this potential disaster by offering the player many alternatives: exploration, role-playing, dungeon-diving, and much more. Even so, this shouldn’t have to be the case. Major quests should serve to draw the player into the world, not bore them. I believe a big part of this stems from a lack of consequence and closure — sure, some guards recognize you as the Dragonborn, but nobody really changes their opinion of you — even if you save the entire land of Skyrim!
This unfortunately also extends to many of the main factions and guild quests. I spent the majority of Skyrim’s Thieves’ Guild questline in a permanent facepalm. Compelling stories and objectives should never be shoved aside in favor of “radiant quests” that are shallow excuses to get you to go to X to retrieve Y, where X equals a random place you probably haven’t explored yet. There’s no story or purpose to be found here, and although I admire the crafting of the dungeons of Skyrim, they rarely lend themselves to any larger narrative. Sadly it gets even worse if you skip out on the radiant quests, as most of the factions are so quick to invite you into their inner circles and make you the leader — you have to wonder if everyone else just really sucks at their job.
Just put down the weapon and nobody has to charge forward while swinging wildly.
Every time I make a new character in Skyrim, I tell myself, “This one will be different. He’ll specialize in dual-wielding axes, or maybe a big two-handed mace.” And every time I put a few hours into my new character, he turns into a sneaky archer. I wish I could say this is exclusively due to my preference for stealthy characters, but the fact is hand to hand combat largely stinks, and I end up doing everything in my power to end fights before they turn into a predictable whack-a-mole hack-and-slash. Outside of ranged combat, there’s very little strategy to be found other than hoping the other guy drops before you have to pause the game to drink a dozen potions or eat a handful of cheese.
I’m not saying Skyrim needs to copy nuanced Dark Souls combat, but it would be nice if strategy, spacing, and positioning made more of a difference in a tough fight. Bethesda should consider implementing lock-on melee targeting, or directional attacks and blocking found in games like Mount and Blade or the upcoming For Honor.
Going back to the cheese eating, health management during combat is equally infuriating. Beyond the role-play-killing thought of stopping a fight to wolf down a bunch of food, it actively takes you out of the fight and ruins the pacing of what could have been an adrenaline-pumping battle. Aside from favoriting a heal spell or healing potion, there’s really no way to easily stay in the fight if things get dicey.
Decisions, decisions
At first glance, Skyrim’s user interface and menu looks pretty slick — unfortunately it only seems to last for that first glance. Whether you’re trying to select the option to trade with Lydia only to hear her explain what a housecarl does, or spending way too long trying to navigate Skyrim’s pretty but painful skill selection, the UI is just plain awful.
This also extends to the inventory setup, letting you browse endless lists of items with very few ways to sort. Trying to heal up during a fight? Hope you didn’t pack too many poisons or stamina potions or you might be scrolling for awhile. Overencumbered? Have fun trying to figure out what makes the most sense to discard. Having a way to sort by weight, value, or specific types can go a long way towards making inventory menus much easier to browse.
But I don't need to "Open Skyrim", it's right there!
Some loading screens feel unavoidable — like when you die. But other times, you have to wonder why there needs to be a loading screen separating the world of Skyrim from a single room shack, when there are also open-air cabins that let you waltz right inside (I’m looking at you, Anise’s Cabin). I’m all for keeping dungeons behind loading screens — it still manages to give me a sense of foreboding venturing into the unknown as the smoke swirls around the black screen — but there are plenty of places where they aren’t needed.
I would contend that the major cities shouldn’t lock their gates behind loading screens (modders have already seen to that) and even if cities are forced to stay behind a loading screen for technical reasons, the houses within shouldn't, once you’re loaded into the city itself. It feels more alive when you can see people actually coming and going from a city, and having guards run forth from the walls to defend against a dragon attack. It would also help reduce that eerie Elder Scrolls feeling of entering a place and seeing everyone suddenly start moving away, almost as if they were all on break, and waiting for you to come in before looking busy.
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