Bethesda's wondrous fifth entry in the Elder Scrolls series is two feet deep and a thousand miles wide.
Skyrim is the finest Elder Scrolls title yet because of the aforementioned reasons, but the experience is marred by problems that go beyond technical flaws. Despite its grand quantity, Skyrim lacks depth. Its repetitiveness is wonderfully cloaked beneath fascinating back stories to all of the quests and a rewarding sense of exploration and discovery. The illusion of "always doing something new" is so rewarding that many are content to overlook or completely ignore Skyrim's shallowness. While it does have strong attributes that it succeeds in better than any other game, the cons are too glaring to simply put on the back-burner. The wondrous Skyrim feels two feet deep and a thousand miles wide.
As in Morrowind and Oblivion before it, Skyrim's plot is centered around a prisoner who is actually a central figure in the plot. The main character in Skyrim (created by you), whose name is not even on the execution list, is saved when a dragon swoops in on the village and interrupts the execution. Not for centuries had dragons been seen. Many citizens and leaders throughout Skyrim even considered the existence of dragons to be an absolute myth. Amidst a war between the Imperials and the Stormcloaks, the Dragons have strangely been resurrected, and the main character comes to discover that he is Dragon-born.
Being Dragon-born means that the hero can slay dragons and harness their powers and use them through "shouts". Shouts are basically an extension to magicka, and have interesting effects when used. Shouts can be discovered on walls of caves and dungeons in various areas in Skyrim, written in ancient languages. But in order to take advantage of the power of the shout, absorbing the powers of a defeated dragon is indicative. Shouts are a superb addition because it binds the main character in with the story very well, not to mention useful, interesting effects that come from them.
Aside from the primary quest in which discovering why the main character is Dragon-born, and what it means for the current war and future of Skyrim, there are dozens and dozens of side-quests to be completed. It is inevitable that being side-tracked from the main quest will happen often. Sub quests are initiated by speaking to Skyrim citizens in a myriad of towns and villages. The objective for each quest usually contains some aspect that separates it from other quests in the game, but the means in completing these tasks are essentially the same.
There is an illusion of always doing something new, when in fact, most of the time, the same thing is being done, but with different characters, back-stories, and objectives. Talk to a person, go assasinate someone for him. Talk to a town leader who tells you to go talk to someone else, then return. Meet a man who has lost an old helmet in a cave, go get it and return. To put it simply, Elder Scrolls V is a glorifed game of fetch quests.
Quests usually revolve around these simple premises : go kill something or someone or retrieve some item or artifact. Journeying to a marked destination to complete a mission is Skyrim's greatest strength. Its grand world is a marvel to look at and explore. On the way to one destination, it is not uncommon to discover and become infatuated with discovering dozens of new areas, probably initiating even more new quests in the meantime, before finally reaching the originally planned destination that had become an after-thought.
While the vast world is one of Skyrim's strong points, it is, in ways, also one of its weaknesses. The number of places that can be discovered can be overwhelming in a negative sense. You may discover a new cave, but find out that the enemies within the cave are much too powerful for your character to fight. Marking the location on the map with the blue marker is the best thing to do for when you want to return later at a higher level, but if you run into a new place before returning, and need the blue marker for that location as well, there is only one blue marker. For such an enormous game with hundreds of places, this is a strangely bad decision that causes inconvenience.
Skyrim's dungeons and caves are well designed, but are nothing special. They are bountifully filled with treasures and beligerant foes. Bethesda attempts to change things up with a puzzle here and there, but for the most part, Skyrim's puzzles are lackluster. The game's puzzles almost feel better left out. They are usually mindless, uninteresting, and in some cases annoying. Exploring the dungeons is still a blast because of good structure, discovery of items and possibly shouts, and fending off foes.
The combat in Skyrim has been criticized for being clunky and fickle. Contrarily, it is actually one of the title's best attributes. The most significant, praiseworthy improvement from Oblivion's combat is the magicka. It is now relevant (though not equally as useful) to every race of character. Magicka is more powerful and useful in combat. Using flames can be likened to a flamethrower, and the shock is like being an Earth-walking Zeus. Archery is as smooth as ever, and sword (or any contact weapon) combat is better executed when carefully timing a strike, blocking at the right moment, sometimes, knowing when to run. Cinematic kills similar to those in Fallout 3 are awesome, and are always fresh and satisfying since they rarely occur.
Doing a good deed for a citizen may result in them returning the favor by being your companion in your quests, if you so desire. While having a fellow fighter is a good idea, it is poorly implemented in Skyrim. The friendly A.I. is unreliable. Partners usually trail far behind when moving across the land, and sometimes will take strange alternate routes to catch up. In combat they are inconsistent, and at times will stop and get beat down, or will do a lousy job at landing blows on their opponents.
Most of the partners do not die, or at least take about five-hundred times more punishment before giving up the ghost. It is not believable, and allows for cowardice and laziness on the gamer's part. That said, having a companion is a nice experience. Though not always reliable, they can be a huge help.
It is no secret that Skyrim also has its share of technical flaws. The Playstation 3 version supposedly suffers worse of all the versions from these problems. The Xbox 360 version contains technical issues that cause slight annoyances, but in my experience with the game, there has been nothing to put a kink in my play and prevent me from progressing in any of my quests.
Skyrim carries a much darker tone in its aesthetics than Morrowind and Oblivion. Its soundtrack is quite solid. There are some haunting piano pieces in moments of solitude, and epic tunes that accompany enduring battles as well as soothing chants and lightly orchestrated pieces that help you soak in the scenary.
Graphical glitches will sometimes induce a chuckle because of how goofy some of them look, while others are downright awful and ruin the experience and beauty of the land. And Skyrim is a gorgeous game. Snowy landscapes, ruins, large towns and small villages, wildlife, forests, and dungeons are pleasant viewing. Close up inspection will reveal jagged, grainy textures, and places and entities from afar such as trees suddenly pop into view.
When judging the game, these flaws are no laughing matter. In an industry where the greatest games are finely polished and are not hampered by innumerable bugs, Skyrim is behind the mark. Some critics and fans have even expressed the opinion that bugs within the Elder Scrolls series are part of its charm. Since when did flawed design become something to be praised? Just as a book with bad grammar, or a movie with awful camera angles, OR any other game with such issues would be criticized, so should Bethseda's role-playing series.
The score plastered atop this review is a generous one. Despite all of Skyrim's glaring problems, it is a captivating experience. Though it is repetitive, the exploration, discovery, and customization redeem this one. Being able to create potions, make weapons and armor, buy a house and more are only a few things in helping establish your character's identity and enjoy a sense of freedom.
This reviewer was tempted to award Skyrim with a score even higher than the one above, but I could not bring my self to do so. There are just too many problems that cannot be ignored. Technically, Skyrim probably falls somewhere in the lower to mid-seven range. It is really amazing what personal adoration and experience with a game can do.