The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

 PC
User Score
8.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 12985 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10,547 out of 12985
  2. Mixed: 1,375 out of 12985
  3. Negative: 1,063 out of 12985
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  1. Suspect1001
    Jul 9, 2012
    4
    This game was great for a bit then it just becomes boring and tedious. I tried to push myself to keep playing it, but I can't. I thought it was going to be a good game and kill 40+ hours, but I was wrong. It is buggy as all hell and it seems like it is just put together and released way to fast. Compare it to Oblivion and you will be disappointed. This game is not worth your time or moneyThis game was great for a bit then it just becomes boring and tedious. I tried to push myself to keep playing it, but I can't. I thought it was going to be a good game and kill 40+ hours, but I was wrong. It is buggy as all hell and it seems like it is just put together and released way to fast. Compare it to Oblivion and you will be disappointed. This game is not worth your time or money in my opinion.… Expand
  2. Stewker
    Nov 11, 2011
    10
    Stewker
    Nov 11, 2011
    10 Skyrim is the kind of game that really stands out. The attention to detail is mind blowing. People will be playing this for game for months. On the PC load times are nearly nonexistent, I have yet to have had the chance to really read or admire the load screens, which is both a good and bad thing as they are interactive and have lore bits. The graphics on ultra    Stewker
    Nov 11, 2011
    10
    Skyrim is the kind of game that really stands out. The attention to detail is mind blowing. People will be playing this for game for months. On the PC load times are nearly nonexistent, I have yet to have had the chance to really read or admire the load screens, which is both a good and bad thing as they are interactive and have lore bits. The graphics on ultra running at 1920x1080 are flooring. This is truly a HUGE jump over Oblivion in regard to visual fidelity. Now granted I do have a NASA supercomputer for PC, well just about, but still... If you think the game looks no better than Oblivion, seriously, no joke I'm concerned for you, as you are blind but don't know it yet. Don't drive. Anyways, melee combat is also vastly improved and solid feeling, magic has a definite weight to it in Skyrim. Finally the amount of content... Like I said weeks of game play and huge re-playability. Quests, yes lot's of quests but all of the things on the side that you have in this game as well is truly mind blowing. I took a week off for this game and I know, after playing it for 12 hours now, that I won't be able to do everything I want to even if I played 18 hours a day, no way. The level up process is awesome as well. Love the perk system, when people think perks most think of Fallout 3, but the perk system in Skyrim is very much unique to itself. I was afraid they were dumbing down the level system but all they did is streamline it and give the user freedom to play exactly how they want to play, while keeping the core mechanic of leveling by what you do and adding in perks. I love that. If I had to choose one game to have the rest of my life and only one, it would be The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.    … Expand
  3. karvala
    Feb 17, 2012
    3
    Oblivion with a content update. Graphics - same. Gamplay - same. Characterisation - same. Writing - same. Three or four limited cookie-cutter dungeons redrawn a hundred times - same. I guess I should stop expecting TES series to come up with something new and not mind-numbingly repetitive, but there we go. I wanted to like this game, I really did, and I played it for a lot of hours,Oblivion with a content update. Graphics - same. Gamplay - same. Characterisation - same. Writing - same. Three or four limited cookie-cutter dungeons redrawn a hundred times - same. I guess I should stop expecting TES series to come up with something new and not mind-numbingly repetitive, but there we go. I wanted to like this game, I really did, and I played it for a lot of hours, but by the end I was sick of being sent on yet another draugr slashfest to kill the same three types of creatues I'd killed several thousand times before, in another dungeon whose look and feel was exactly the same as the previous three hundred. Unbelievably boring, and that's coming from a fantasy RPG fan. They really do need to start going for quality and not quantity.… Expand
  4. kellyi
    Jun 7, 2012
    0
    Sorry I didn't rate the game previously as I was so pissed with it. New to Metacritic and didn't notice the rating bar in so big a hurry to vent my spleen. Here's my score.
  5. Nahrga
    Jul 26, 2014
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. *Review Deleted
    ****************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************    … Expand
  6. darkcerb
    Dec 5, 2011
    10
    66 hours played and there's still a mind boggling amount to do, this game has content, graphics and sound all AAA standard. If you like rpg's this is your game. Bethesda has created a huge open world chock full of quests and dungeons to explore populated with npc's that go about there daily lives reacting to the players achievements in game. I really can't recommend skyrim enough, run66 hours played and there's still a mind boggling amount to do, this game has content, graphics and sound all AAA standard. If you like rpg's this is your game. Bethesda has created a huge open world chock full of quests and dungeons to explore populated with npc's that go about there daily lives reacting to the players achievements in game. I really can't recommend skyrim enough, run don't walk to your nearest game shop or steam and buy this game.… Expand
  7. Anti-Jarhead
    Jul 31, 2012
    0
    Just another poorly ported console turd served as delicious meal to depressingly dumbed down "current gen. gamers" by accountants and corporate puppets. I have some suggestions for next TES game;

    - Self-regenerating health - Only two skills (who needs complications...); one for melee/ranged combat and second, I don't know... magical farts? - Make ALL quest random generated (no    Just another poorly ported console turd served as delicious meal to depressingly dumbed down "current gen. gamers" by accountants and corporate puppets. I have some suggestions for next TES game;

    - Self-regenerating health

    - Only two skills (who needs complications...); one for melee/ranged combat and second, I don't know... magical farts?

    - Make ALL quest random generated (no one cares about story-telling qualities anyway) - Make ALL npc voiced by the same actor (They'll save up some money so Todd can get that well deserved raise)

    - Start the "story" from new, magically created isle, lets call it "Great Imbecylia Island". Beings from this newly emerged land will invade whole Continent of Tamriel and unite it under name empire of "United Imbecyls". "Imbecylians" will slaughter almost all native life forms in Tamriel and then desire to detach themselves from their island relatives. They will set laws that will guarantee them freedom and indpendence from Imbecylia Island, yet (of course) they will keep slaves. Then they'll attack morrowind, 'couse its land of dark-skinned, other-religion obsessed people and has a lot of resources...

    Action will be placed ONLY in ashlands (of course) of Vvardenfell. Your mission will be stealing gold-er... I mean ebony and oil-er... I mean that "bloat" that those strange plants in Morrowind produce. Of course You'll be forced to kill some of them brown-er... I mean dark people in the process. But it's the right thing to do. And it is a great game. It must be. So many can't be wrong.    … Expand
  8. dosse91
    Nov 24, 2011
    9
    this game is great. i mean, don't get me wrong, it's far from perfection but it's great: the story is interesting, the graphics are good (most of the time) and it doesn't have many bugs (for bethesda's standards). exploring skyrim is simply fantastic, going through woods, finding caves, towns, side quests. simply amazing how HUGE this game is, it takes hours to explore the whole gamethis game is great. i mean, don't get me wrong, it's far from perfection but it's great: the story is interesting, the graphics are good (most of the time) and it doesn't have many bugs (for bethesda's standards). exploring skyrim is simply fantastic, going through woods, finding caves, towns, side quests. simply amazing how HUGE this game is, it takes hours to explore the whole game world. the soundtrack is also kick ass. fighting dragons is fun, and most fights provide a good challenge even on normal difficulty. i also love how they didn't use the usual point-and-click controls typical to rpgs like wow, dragon age, etc., IMHO, those are the worst controls ever. speaking of control, skyrim has a huge defect: it has no quick keys. seriously? even console ports like mass effect have them! it's a waste of time that i have to go through my whole inventory or favourite list just to use a potion or change weapon/spell! another drawback typical to most rpgs is that you can accept quests and start playing them with no clue that your character is not enough skilled to complete the quest: that's a real pain in the ass, you can literally go fight dragons with a level 1 character, and get killed in 2 microseconds. most of the times, of course you have no idea what you're gonna fight, it's like "can you get my sword back?", and then the cave has bears, trolls and giants in it.
    in conclusion, i'd give this game a 8.5, rounded up to a more realistic 9 because the good aspects of this game really compensate the bad ones    … Expand
  9. Olly
    Nov 12, 2011
    9
    I've been playing this for about 14 hours, and I'm very, very addicted and immersed into the game world. Looking at the low scores, I can't be entirely sure what people were expecting. I suppose Bethesda showed screenshots that made the game look its best (this happens with every game I would add), as the graphics tend to favour rendering rocks and clouds into the distance over water andI've been playing this for about 14 hours, and I'm very, very addicted and immersed into the game world. Looking at the low scores, I can't be entirely sure what people were expecting. I suppose Bethesda showed screenshots that made the game look its best (this happens with every game I would add), as the graphics tend to favour rendering rocks and clouds into the distance over water and shadows, and as such looking at a vista gives you a jarring sense of beauty and dire ugliness at the same time. Not only that, character animations still are stiff albeit an improvement. In fact, let's get all the negative stuff out the way now; the controls for PC are awful, amazingly awful considering Bethesda's PC menu's have always been fine before now. It feels very much like they didn't think about making the interface work on PC (perhaps they ran out of time committing to 11/11/11), so expect your first few hours to be an exercise in getting used to then perfecting the controls as best you can.

    So what's good? Well, despite shading issues and water in the distance, the weather effects and mountains will frequently make you want to just stop and stare at a view, Bethesda have truly outdone themselves on that front, and it makes the graphical flaws more acceptable when you're playing. You will NEVER have a lack of quests after the first handful of hours, and as such you will have tons of reasons to go and explore all of Skyrim. And given the properly designed dungeons, they're well worth it. That is the major reason I feel this is such an improvement over Oblivion, where dungeons used to be boring and nigh on pointless, they're more focused experiences that genuinely will give you something worthwhile for plumbing its caverns/halls/chambers (and handily when you've got out of a major dungeon and looted it all, it will be marked as cleared on the map).

    But the big thing is that despite people's complaints about combat, Skyrim is a massive improvement on Oblivion. It could be even better for sure, but the slickness of dual-wielding spells and quickswitching to a bow and arrow, before delivering a cinematic finishing blow with your sword and shield will certainly leave you more impressed than you were with Oblivion. The levelling system is also infinitely easier to keep track of and improve your skills with.

    I think I've covered most of what I've thought so far while playing. This is an altogether more beautiful and slicker (apart from the controls) Oblivion, absolutely worth your time as long as you're ready to wrestle with the controls. If you're patient, it may well be worth your while to wait until various issues are fixed or some good mods have come out to try and improve them though (8.5).    … Expand
  10. Vauhn
    Nov 12, 2011
    9
    Skyrim...An amazing open world non-linear dragon slaying NPC mudering bundle of enjoyment. This, is quite possibly the best elder scrolls game so far. Ruined only by the occasional bug or two which will most likely be patched and fixed. Great story, the dragon fights are amazing, and randomly scripted events. I had to muster allot of effort to rip myself away from it long enough to getSkyrim...An amazing open world non-linear dragon slaying NPC mudering bundle of enjoyment. This, is quite possibly the best elder scrolls game so far. Ruined only by the occasional bug or two which will most likely be patched and fixed. Great story, the dragon fights are amazing, and randomly scripted events. I had to muster allot of effort to rip myself away from it long enough to get some food. Buy it, Dovahkiin commands you!… Expand
  11. sinproducer
    Nov 11, 2011
    8
    I can't defend this game from not getting some decent updates in a couple areas , mainly UI but most of the negative complaints are simply untrue. The graphics are in fact great and the game runs really smooth on Ultra, but I'm sure if you have an older system you won't see it that way. If you played the game for an hour, you didn't see enough of it to get past the part where it's NOT justI can't defend this game from not getting some decent updates in a couple areas , mainly UI but most of the negative complaints are simply untrue. The graphics are in fact great and the game runs really smooth on Ultra, but I'm sure if you have an older system you won't see it that way. If you played the game for an hour, you didn't see enough of it to get past the part where it's NOT just Oblivion reskinned. You can in fact hotkey things directly from favorites and even choose which hand they are assigned to. I NEVER have to go into the menus unless I level up or switch gear out for something better/preferred. Game is completely stable and outside of a few wonky textures and the same logic problems I find in every single game, I'm enjoying myself. More of the same? Please let me know when you are playing a truly original game in this generation of games. Oh.. and another thing. All the people crying about this game being too console like will change their song in a few months when mods start coming out. Give it a year or more and the praise will be universal that PC is the way to go.… Expand
  12. belfastbiker
    Nov 16, 2011
    10
    Oh. My. god.

    Where do I start? Never played any other Bethesda game apart from Oblivion, which I loved. I really only play WoW these days, occasionally. I took 8 days off work to play this, and I'm so glad I did. I'm on PC, so there are issues - I don't like the consolisation, and with it's frustrating keybinding bugs, that took ages to get my head around, but it's fine now. Apart    Oh. My. god.

    Where do I start? Never played any other Bethesda game apart from Oblivion, which I loved. I really only play WoW these days, occasionally.

    I took 8 days off work to play this, and I'm so glad I did.

    I'm on PC, so there are issues - I don't like the consolisation, and with it's frustrating keybinding bugs, that took ages to get my head around, but it's fine now. Apart from that, it's never bugged out on me. Also, trying to manage three different characters is practically impossible - I deal with it by having three backup save folders, and I believe there is already a mod to help this.

    Those are the only downsides, everything, EVERYTHING else, is STUNNING.

    The music is incredible, the sound effects are dramatic, peaceful, war-like, creepy, depending on the context, and absolutely PERFECT.

    Graphics, are ASTONISHING.

    As for playability, I woke at 9am to play it yesterday, didn't get breakfast until 5:35PM, I was so engrossed.

    Loving the stories, the quests, the perks, the skills, the dungeons, the baddies, the NPC's, there's literally nothing that doesn't make me smile hugely. And if you check YOUTUBE anytime, you can see any number of fantastic videos, all AI, videos that would be scripted cut-scenes on other games.

    As for the dragons, I damn near crapped myself. :)

    Skyrim is a MASTERPIECE.    … Expand
  13. NoBodysGamer
    Nov 17, 2011
    10
    I'm not gunna lie, this game is amazing, brilliant, outstanding, a masterpiece. I'm only filling the rest up because i need one hundred and fifty characters.
  14. KnucklesKiss
    Nov 13, 2011
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it. Buy it.… Expand
  15. chado1980
    Nov 13, 2011
    10
    Although a little too familiar and a little unpolished, another great game from Bethesda.

    Second best RPG in the last month, but that's another conversation.

    Gonna be a good winter for gaming.
  16. ssjscottt
    Nov 14, 2011
    10
    pure, beautiful, immersion with a solid, SMOOTH release from Bethesda. and the freaking sidequests... they feel significant enough to feel less like side-quests and more like it's just part of the main story. I've put in over 30 hours already, and i cant wait to put in more!
  17. TheBlackMachine
    Nov 12, 2011
    9
    This game is fantastic but it is not without it's flaws. But I feel they do not affect the game too much, as a great deal of them are very minor and will probably be patched or mods from the fantastic community will come along in week one.

    This game improves alot of mechanics of Oblivion, combat generally feels the same, although slightly more fluid for some reason, probably due to the    This game is fantastic but it is not without it's flaws. But I feel they do not affect the game too much, as a great deal of them are very minor and will probably be patched or mods from the fantastic community will come along in week one.

    This game improves alot of mechanics of Oblivion, combat generally feels the same, although slightly more fluid for some reason, probably due to the fact that you now have killing blows, dual wielding and the ability to use your shield as a weapon.

    The favourites thing is a fantastic idea, but it feels awkward and poorly executed, but it generally works out once you get used to it.

    The voice acting is on a whole pretty damn good, but it is weak in some spots, but a far cry better than Oblivion, I got sick of hearing the same dozen voices all the time, now you have more than 4 dozen voices which is great. Soundtrack is fantastic, it just oozes epicness and has great rolling instrumentals and fantastic ambient music. Sound effects are also good, but nothing special.

    Textures are okay, hair isn't greatly detailed, amour details and reflections look great for the most part. But plants look like crap so I cannot wait for mods to clean them right up and make the environment ever more prettier than it already is. Animations are improved greatly over previous games, even NPC's have good idles, and they even perform duties which on a whole just bring the whole "live the world within the game" feel together.

    This game is also very stable, it's the first PC game I've bought in months that hasn't crashed every five minuets and just caused me hell, this game has only crashed on me once, but that was my Anti-Virus software that interfered with the game. But other than that no problems whatsoever, no slowdown or choppiness at all.

    My biggest gripe about this game is the menus, obviously designed for sticks, it is stupidly awkward and annoying. Trying to navigate the skill trees is tedious and just plain annoying. Also trying to pick dialogue options is annoying, Often I end up picking the wrong one and getting myself into trouble because of it, I often find myself using the arrow and enter keys. Also the default mapping of the menus is a little odd, and it takes a little time to get use to, but nothing too bad.

    Overall it a fantastic game with very small issues, but as I said these will be patched or the amazing modding scene will come to the rescue within weeks end and fix them right up. Probably one of the best RPG's I have played in a few good years. Recommended.    … Expand
  18. funkydoodycool
    Nov 13, 2011
    10
    Before I start I should note that I bought this game on the strength of Fallout 3 (which I loved) rather than Oblivion (which I didn't care for).

    That said, this game shares so much in common with both the aforementioned, taking everything Bethesda has learned and creating a near-perfect RPG experience. The game engine is fantastic, with even my 3-year-old Core 2 Quad/Nvidia 9800GTX+    Before I start I should note that I bought this game on the strength of Fallout 3 (which I loved) rather than Oblivion (which I didn't care for).

    That said, this game shares so much in common with both the aforementioned, taking everything Bethesda has learned and creating a near-perfect RPG experience.

    The game engine is fantastic, with even my 3-year-old Core 2 Quad/Nvidia 9800GTX+ computer pushing out Ultra graphics settings without too much difficulty. It's not as good as Rage, but it's certainly a contender for best graphics.

    There are complaints about the controls, but as I'm using an Xbox 360 pad I'm not really having any difficulty. Naturally, aiming your bow would be easier with a mouse, but this is a concession I'm willing to make for a generally more comfortable control method. The controls are mapped well to the Xbox pad, with the sticks doing their usual movement/camera thing, the triggers controlling the weapon/magic/shield in the respective hand, and the other face buttons mapped to various options.

    Combat is very visceral. You can now shield bash by holding up your shield and tapping the attack button, which knocks enemies back, affording you a little breathing space.

    The map is HUGE, with plenty of incidental details. I initially thought the world was quite sparsely populated, but having spent some hours wandering about, I've stumbled upon so many different villages and camps, some friendly others not so much.

    Quests are so far of the "go to this dungeon, kill everything and collect this item and bring it back to me" sort, which is fine by me. The dungeons are all interesting, and boss fights are variations on the standard enemies.

    This game is big enough, that at level 9 I've experienced things that friends who have more time to play (level 24+) have yet to see. And we've all had a lot of fun in Skyrim - strong contender for game of the year.    … Expand
  19. Darkstar01
    Nov 13, 2011
    10
    Cons: Initially the game had driver issues, but then Nvidia released new drivers and problems were solved.
    Cons: The only other problem which I see will be solved by mods at a later date is the fact that you cannot hot button anything.. While this may seem to make the game play slow, and at times it does, the fact that you can pause the game to switch to other spells does make it    Cons: Initially the game had driver issues, but then Nvidia released new drivers and problems were solved.
    Cons: The only other problem which I see will be solved by mods at a later date is the fact that you cannot hot button anything.. While this may seem to make the game play slow, and at times it does, the fact that you can pause the game to switch to other spells does make it easier.

    PROS: The most amazing graphics ever seen on a console or PC system. If you have a GTX 580 or higher you will be enjoying impressive micro details as well as impressive macro details of the game. Example Micro detail would be the veins on a leaf. Impressive Macro details would be snow generated according to the wind and piled up realistically. It actually makes you FEEL cold.. I turned on the heater..=D
    PROS: The physics in this game is so dead-on accurate that its scary... you drop a body into the water and watch it swirl down a river and eventually sink under the waves... You jump in the water yourself and you are pulled down stream by the rapids, I actually spent time just floating with the river and catching fish with my bare Argonian hands... :) Thank Talos for water breathing.
    PROS: So much good stuff I cannot write about it all    … Expand
  20. mjas
    Nov 14, 2011
    9
    I'm 25 hours into Skyrim so far and I still enjoy it, now this game has a bit of everything in it and almost everything in Skyrim is nothing less than amazing. Now don't think that it's perfect because it's not there are some bugs but nobody / nothing is perfect! I do feel that the quests are a little short and you could feel a bit more important in this world a lot of things you do inI'm 25 hours into Skyrim so far and I still enjoy it, now this game has a bit of everything in it and almost everything in Skyrim is nothing less than amazing. Now don't think that it's perfect because it's not there are some bugs but nobody / nothing is perfect! I do feel that the quests are a little short and you could feel a bit more important in this world a lot of things you do in the end don't give a lot of "Yeahhh I'm a badass!!" kind of feeling. All in all I give it a 9/10 good job Bethesda! (Also I see a few people saying you can not key bind on the pc version! WRONG you can! 1-8 which can also be remapped with your mouse, simply put a spell or a item that you want key bound on your favorites list then open up the list (Q button) and highlight it with your cursor and press 1-8 tada keybinds! yes I know it's not the best ever but it works. =) )… Expand
  21. Shekky
    Nov 15, 2011
    9
    Excellent game only problem I have is the interface I absolutely do not like have to open up interface just to cast my restoration spell or some other spell then to have to bring out my swords again.
  22. thomish
    Nov 14, 2011
    9
    Ok....I've never written a review for a game but I was trolling around over Skyrim and felt compelled to throw in my 2 lousy cents after playing it about 20 hours. First off, a review of 0 is simply inaccurate. When I was in high school I turned in a paper on a book I read and the teacher didn't appreciate my position (I said Lenny from "Of Mice and Men" was an alien and tried to validateOk....I've never written a review for a game but I was trolling around over Skyrim and felt compelled to throw in my 2 lousy cents after playing it about 20 hours. First off, a review of 0 is simply inaccurate. When I was in high school I turned in a paper on a book I read and the teacher didn't appreciate my position (I said Lenny from "Of Mice and Men" was an alien and tried to validate it) I got a 0. I wrote a 3 page paper. I should of at least gotten a 1. A 0 implies NOTHING. It's like rating a game that never existed, like you opened the box and it was empty. I mean even a disc and a manual should warrant a 1. 0 means nothing mathematically so any game with any content deserves at least a 1. On to the game. The game is actually pretty damn fun, it has bugs but it's fricking huge so I imagine that things like that happen. It does have a few frustrating bugs at that. Every issue I've found so far though was easily mitigated with a few tweaks so I don't really care too much, but it's where I took a point away. Bethseda should do better on QC.

    I like the game, I like how there is sort of a quasi-historical feel to the Elder Scrolls games and I like how much of the world can be taken and made into something to use. The graphics weren't cutting edge but I don't think it's fair to say it looked anything like Oblivion, heavily modded or not. I'm glad I spent my money on Skyrim, it is fun and has a great playability for your buck.    … Expand
  23. Rems
    Nov 16, 2011
    8
    Waited so long for this game, im happy to finaly have it. It looks too much like they made it out of fallout 3 but stil im glad to have it. Havent play much but im hoping for many hours of joy :)
  24. Narishma29
    Mar 1, 2012
    10
    Awesome, fun, beautiful game. Modding community will keep it interesting and fun for a long time as well. Also has a lot of re-playability due to the shear size of the game and very different playstyles of melee vs magic characters, good vs evil characters, and all the different factions to join or kill. Love it.
  25. anholt
    Mar 19, 2012
    4
    The good parts: The sandbox world works remarkably well, and the "leveling problem" of the previous elder scrolls is no more. Now you can happily play without worrying that picking too many locks will leave you with a weak character getting slaughtered by the upleveled monsters. The quests have had a number of cases where it's not clear-cut who to side with, a rarity in RPGs. And theThe good parts: The sandbox world works remarkably well, and the "leveling problem" of the previous elder scrolls is no more. Now you can happily play without worrying that picking too many locks will leave you with a weak character getting slaughtered by the upleveled monsters. The quests have had a number of cases where it's not clear-cut who to side with, a rarity in RPGs. And the level design in the dungeons is excellent, with some interesting variations, few glitches, and always a short way out from the end of the dungeon back to the main world.

    The bad part: The UI is an absolute embarrassment. On your 1920 screen, your inventory is a single column of giant text and a big useless image of the object you're hovering over, so you spend half your game time scrolling through lists to find your Potions of Minor Healing that are screens away from your Potions of Major Healing. And the keybinds are awful and unchangeable. "e" in inventory uses, and "r" puts an item in a container, but in a container it's "e" to take a single item out and "r" to take everything. So you slip and hit "r" in your home base chest and now you're overloaded with 1000 pounds of what you had carefully stocked up over days of play. But the worst: The UI sometimes doesn't catch mouse enter/leave events, so you click to do one thing, but the click is registered somewhere else and now you've sold your sword or called an NPC's mother a pig.

    Then there are the strange bugs, like when a dragon shows up and doesn't land while you're on a quest stage that caused you to be completely unarmed. There was a frustrating half an hour. But occasional gameplay bugs are to be expected in something this size, while inventory and dialogue functionality is something every player or tester has to spend an inordinate amount of time in. That's what is unforgivable in this game.

    Some mods have been released that improve on some of these UI problems. But this rating is for the game as released, not for the game third parties have managed create from the wreckage.    … Expand
  26. Zoso
    Jun 15, 2012
    6
    Skyrim is not a bad game, to be sure. Some elements (Lockpicking, Archery) feel very natural - although archery is not perfect as you sometimes can't shoot through narrow openings you could shoot through in real life and arrows suddenly drop at long range. The scenery is impressive, but the character models are seriously lacking, human and non-human alike. And there numerous nice stories,Skyrim is not a bad game, to be sure. Some elements (Lockpicking, Archery) feel very natural - although archery is not perfect as you sometimes can't shoot through narrow openings you could shoot through in real life and arrows suddenly drop at long range. The scenery is impressive, but the character models are seriously lacking, human and non-human alike. And there numerous nice stories, but there not *TOLD*. I know, this an open world RPG, so telling stories can get quite complicated. But with Skyrim, there's so much to discover, but everything stays somehow flat, sterile, and unresponsive, though vast. It feels like every commoner now has a name, but it doesn't matter, they're still commoner 1 - 1000.… Expand
  27. Zero99i
    Aug 5, 2012
    0
    I don't like TES, i dont like Morrowind, I dont like Oblivion and I dont like Skyrim. I dont like the engine, the animations are awful, the german version has awful voice acting.
  28. GREW50ME
    Jul 15, 2012
    10
    What can I say about Skyrim that has not already been said? If you have played the Elder Scrolls before, and thought, "Gee, I wish I could fight dragons and absorb their powers in a Viking-esque portion of the world of Tamriel", then this is your game.
    The grapics are stellar, but if you don't like them, you can mod them for higher textures, and that is where the greatness starts. This    What can I say about Skyrim that has not already been said? If you have played the Elder Scrolls before, and thought, "Gee, I wish I could fight dragons and absorb their powers in a Viking-esque portion of the world of Tamriel", then this is your game.
    The grapics are stellar, but if you don't like them, you can mod them for higher textures, and that is where the greatness starts. This game is fully moddable and changeable. If you had the controls, plug in a controller or download one of the control mods. Or, get up off your can and write one yourself.
    Want lightsabers? My little pony? Warcraft? Naked girls? You can put any or all of this in the game, and way, way more.
    Even the game mechanics themselves have mods that you can make or download.

    Underneath the layers and layers of customization, the game is the classic Elder Scrolls series, but with added streamlining learned from the creation of the Fallout games. Added are kill shot animations, and a much smoother looking interface. As in all Elder scrolls games, you can really craft the type of hero you want, and adventure in your own way. Want to be a simple wood cutter? A massive orc warrior? A sly rogue? A flower picker? A mass murderer? A powerful wizard? Decide as you go? You can do it all and more. It's this level of choice and freedom that makes Skyrim one of my favorite games of all time. Sure, there are some parts where the action is drab and the quests are predictable, and the game does have some bugs... but the sheer amount of AAA content and options in the game is so impressive that it more than compensates for the shortcomings. You can literally play this game for years and find new content every time and have a unique experience! STOP READING AND BUY IT NOW!!! I give Skyrim my highest recommendations!    … Expand
  29. MrOtter
    Jul 22, 2012
    3
    Why pay £35 for a program that crashes you to the desktop. Just use alt tab and save your cash :D

    Unfinished trite, could have been a good game if it wasn't released, un polished and buggy and getting worse by more bugs introduced in every patch. 8 months to patch a game to a working standard and as for Steam Workshop .... don't get me started there.
  30. FrannyFantastic
    Nov 19, 2014
    6
    Offers a big open world and creates a genuine sense of adventure, but after a while everything feels very samey. Looting tombs and dungeons become a routine chore and the core, hack and slash gameplay soon turn into a dull affair.
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Awards & Rankings

2
#2 Best PC Game of 2011
1
#1 Most Discussed PC Game of 2011
2
#2 Most Shared PC Game of 2011

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
94

Universal acclaim - based on 32 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 32 out of 32
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 32
  3. Negative: 0 out of 32
  1. PC Master (Greece)
    Feb 29, 2012
    90
    Unfortunately, Skyrim trips and falls on its own (most probably, to make the cool-sounding deadline of 11-11-11) and just before it reaches perfection as the ultimate specimen of its genre, it self-destructs in a crucial aspect of game design: the interface and the peripheral components (inventory, journal, map, etc)... but that is not to say that Skyrim is anything but a truly majestic, epic RPG that will suck you right in its cosmos.
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  2. Armchair Empire
    Feb 14, 2012
    100
    Skyrim is definitely one of the best games of 2011, but if the DLC holds out, it might just be one of the best games of 2012 as well.
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  3. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Jan 19, 2012
    90
    Skyrim is the best open world RPG you can get. A true evolution of genre is not flawless but still it is the game you love to live in. [Christmas 2011]
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