The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

 Xbox 360
User Score
8.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 4435 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3,744 out of 4435
  2. Mixed: 344 out of 4435
  3. Negative: 347 out of 4435
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  1. manguything
    Nov 29, 2011
    3
    There is virtually no choice and consequence whatsoever. Quests rarely have any branching paths or variables that hold lasting effects according to your actions; indeed, as demonstrated by Skyrim and Oblivion beforehand, Bethesda fasely believes that "role-playing" amounts to little more than "having alot of stuff to do." Combat is incredibly flawed and was not improved upon over OblivionThere is virtually no choice and consequence whatsoever. Quests rarely have any branching paths or variables that hold lasting effects according to your actions; indeed, as demonstrated by Skyrim and Oblivion beforehand, Bethesda fasely believes that "role-playing" amounts to little more than "having alot of stuff to do." Combat is incredibly flawed and was not improved upon over Oblivion in the slightest; enemy A.I. is without any complexity or variation, and this, coupled with the lack of precision in attacks ("WOAH LOOK AT THAT CAMERA FLYING EVERYWHERE WHEN I SWING REALISTIC!!!111!!!11") reduces battles to little more than mindless hack n' slash fests, with the only "challenge" in these battles being how well you can last out against objects with inflated stats (This isn't Skyward Sword, or Dark Souls, where you actually have to think and adapt your strategies accordingly to different battles; the only difference among Skyrim's foes, most of the time, is what numbers are attributed to each NPC).

    The leveling system is terrible and encourages mindless grinding. While "practice makes perfect" works in theory, you aren't actually practicing when you level your one-handed skill, for example; you're just repeatedly hacking and slashing to get higher points. This stands in opposition to games such as Dark Souls, where you are rewarded for tackling tough enemies that require thought to take down. In Skyrim, you are rewarded for doing nothing.

    On that note, level scaling is terrible. Early on, abilities seem to be balanced; there are fair benefits to going with either a melee or magic build. Later on, the system becomes incredibly broken, giving unfair advantages to melee builds and rendering casters useless.

    The animations are still hideous and robotic, and differ little, in quality, from Oblivion's (In fact, many of them seem to be ripped straight FROM Oblivion).

    Quests are poorly designed and feel like standard MMO fair (Which should be inexcusable in a game that is NOT an MMO); unfortunately, there is no hint of quality story-telling to mask this problem (It's as if Bethesda's writers spent a little too much time in the young adult literature section of the local library and came back believing they could write quality fantasy with compelling characters).

    While the overworld is nice and gives the illusion of complex design, dungeons are still cramped, narrow corridors without any nuance to their design. The environment itself should be a challenge; if there is no challenge present in the dungeons, it is pointless to include them.

    The game does feature quality music, and the visuals are pretty (Except when you get a little too close to a wall or the ground and realize how low-quality the textures can be), but that isn't enough to mask the game's mechanical flaws. Skyrim may be a great nature walk simulator, but it's a bad game.    … Expand
  2. arglebargle_asd
    Nov 17, 2011
    3
    This would be a _fantastic_ game if it didn't crash every 30 minutes. Outstanding gameplay, fantastic graphics but buggy as all get out.

    error: Your review must be at least 150 characters long.
  3. Cosmo_Kane
    Jan 1, 2014
    4
    Skyrim is nothing more than a gigantic, boring, repetitive map with small pockets of vaguely interesting mythology scattered here and there.
    It doesn't feel like a game or an immersive experience; more like a tool for browsing all the tiny stories and mythology that the developers came up with, and then did absolutely nothing with.
    In short, Skyrim completely fails to accomplish any of    Skyrim is nothing more than a gigantic, boring, repetitive map with small pockets of vaguely interesting mythology scattered here and there.
    It doesn't feel like a game or an immersive experience; more like a tool for browsing all the tiny stories and mythology that the developers came up with, and then did absolutely nothing with.
    In short, Skyrim completely fails to accomplish any of the features it was hyped up for having, and the only explanation for all the positive reviews is that people are just too busy slobbering over how huge the world is to notice how desperately dull and half-baked the game is.    … Expand
  4. VendonJura
    Dec 1, 2018
    3
    Skyrim is definitely one of the best games of 2011, but my main problem with this game is the fact that if you want to use mods then your achievements will be blocked. The problem with this issue is that this game is by far one of the best rpg for the pc but it has so many game breaking bugs that it is rlly hard to play it without to have to modding it to reduce Bugs, Glitches and muchSkyrim is definitely one of the best games of 2011, but my main problem with this game is the fact that if you want to use mods then your achievements will be blocked. The problem with this issue is that this game is by far one of the best rpg for the pc but it has so many game breaking bugs that it is rlly hard to play it without to have to modding it to reduce Bugs, Glitches and much more. There are so many quests which are bugged and does not work. You can not finish them and what else can you do as a gamer? use mods to fix it BUT this will break the ability to earn achievements. Thanks to the guy with this idea. Also many modder can do the job much better than the dev itself that's a weird mystery. My biggest issue with this game is the PAID Mods system. You will not get an achievement block IF you pay for mods. Really???? I would rather pay the modder for a good mod than paying the dev who even made this horribly situation with mods and achievement issue. I love the game and I would totally give it max points but these 2 points are totally destroying the game for me. I never finished it, game breaking bugs did not allow me to do so because I am doing ALL quests in the game. 1st when finishing all sub quests then I am starting to do the main quests. I had reached lvl 60-80 on the xbox 360, bought this game for pc with the hope to mod the bugged quests but yeah..... So this here is the Xbox 360 version.… Expand
  5. DarthKato
    Nov 8, 2013
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This game is a serious disappointment. Its not the worst game ever made, far from it, but it has some serious flaws. The combat and customization is bad, the world is lifeless, and the story is boring, and before everyone gets the pitchforks and torches, please let me explain.

    First, The combat is not deep at all. It is literally just spamming the same attack( whether melee or spells) over and over till the foe is dead. It really feels like it was made for fans of COD style combat. The new duel-wielding system is broken and completely useless. I did like having a sword in one hand and a staff in the other like Gandalf), and having a spell in each hand was a hoot. But, having a sword in each hand is worthless. It amounts to little more than attacking from a different direction. Basically, the combat is the exact same as Oblivion, with some useless additions.

    Next, the world is a empty place, with little to see or do. A good portion of the country is snow, and is very similar to New Vegas's baron desserts. The parts that are more organic are okay, but you will lose interest soon. There are a few cities and towns that all look the same. The dungeons are the biggest letdown for me. While they look good, they really aren't that interesting to explore. I had a ball checking each of the caves in Oblivion, because each felt like they had a story and each had a new foe to face. Here, most of the "Dungeons" are crypts, where you will face the same type of enemies(mostly undead, spiders, and a new non-playable race called the "Falmer"). The one place that I really did enjoy was the "Sovngarde." It was the most unique place that I went, but it was near the end, and you don't get to stay long.

    Now onto a really important feature for me, and that is Customization. The character models do look better, but there is very little in the way of making a character your own. I made several different people, and they all ended up looking basically the same. On top of this, the level system has been dumb-down to an insulting degree. They took out the point system and made a useless skill-tree( its sort of like Fallout 3's skill tree, but nowhere near as good. This is suppose to be an RPG, not brainless shooter. It really is an insult for game developers to be dumbing down games like this. Also, the amour has been reduced to being a single piece of clothing( with a few exceptions), so no more putting together your own outfit.

    At least the graphics though. That is when you get out of the friggin snow and ice. I didn't notice any real pop-ins or screen-breaks. All the architecture and "dungeons" look fine. It also has some of the best water I have ever seen in a game. Not much else to say, its a beauty.

    Finally, the main-story and side-quest are a giant step-down for oblivion. Oblivion had a great story of trying to stop an evil Dadra Lord from conquering the world. To stop him, you had to gain allies, salvage ancient items, and go to the Hell itself. Here, you do stuff that doesn't seem important and meet people that are forgettable. The Main Dragon is as dumb as the other brain-dead dragons and doesn't come close to the greatness of the "Prince of Destruction." As for the side-quest: most are not very interesting( like just about everything else about this game). They amount mostly to either "Go here and kill this guy" or "Go here, and get this item." This would be fine if the rest of the game was okay. The guilds don't fare much better, not even coming close to the brilliance of Oblivion's guilds.

    Well, that is my view of the game. Its a dumb down version of Oblivion, with pretty graphics. The combat is shallow, the customization is terrible, and the story is just not interesting. I really cannot recommend this game to anyone, when there are better choices. Go play Dark Souls, Dragons Dogma, or even Oblivion for that matter, just leave this one alone.    … Expand
  6. RockShard
    Feb 24, 2012
    1
    I'm probably just a minor crowd here but it seems this and oblivion aren't the games for me.. I don't want a game where I can explore walking about and looking at the scenes. Those are good but not a main selling point for me. I'm tired of this game showing up when i try to find top 10 RPGs of 2011. I'm into RPGs for captivating stories.. games that fill me with a sense of purpose whenI'm probably just a minor crowd here but it seems this and oblivion aren't the games for me.. I don't want a game where I can explore walking about and looking at the scenes. Those are good but not a main selling point for me. I'm tired of this game showing up when i try to find top 10 RPGs of 2011. I'm into RPGs for captivating stories.. games that fill me with a sense of purpose when I get around a main turning point. I want to read a story book without having to open a book :). In this game the story seems to be in the background with other features shining in the foreground. That doesn't represent the Role Playing Game genre to me.. But.. from the ratings this game is generally getting, it seems I am a rare breed.… Expand
  7. weedguru13
    Jul 16, 2012
    0
    One of the most annoying games i have ever played. I really don't understand what most people mean when they say the Graphics are good. They are pathetic!Terrible! And how can someone call this game Non-linear. The (disappointing) story is kinda straight, except for even more annoying side missions. But what tops all of this is the traveling you have to do after every mission. Literally,One of the most annoying games i have ever played. I really don't understand what most people mean when they say the Graphics are good. They are pathetic!Terrible! And how can someone call this game Non-linear. The (disappointing) story is kinda straight, except for even more annoying side missions. But what tops all of this is the traveling you have to do after every mission. Literally, and i mean literally, a new mission meant traveling to other corner of the Map. It takes a while for you to level-up your stamina, and therefore you can't event sprint the whole distance. So you'll end up walking from one end to the other, and to do what!! Deliver a jewel, kill a wolf, talk to a lady. OMG! And while everyone keeps talking about you being the Dragonborn, there is not a moment in the game when you feel you've actually achieved anything in the game. Leveling up makes no sense, as the other characters move with you, so you pretty much remain where you are. A huge letdown. I am amazed at the score the reviewers have given this game. Do yourself a favor by laying your hands off this one. I have promised myself never to get another game by Bethesda.… Expand
  8. Zxrtx_Gaming
    Dec 19, 2011
    0
    Skyrim wins for most overrated game of the year. Seriously, I find nothing good about this game that is worthy of getting all of the attention it is getting right now. This game is probably more overrated and overhyped than COD has ever been. Battlefield 3 **** on this game so bad yet all of the awards this year only talked about this **** ass game.
  9. Rice303
    Jun 28, 2012
    0
    I was a big fan of Oblivion and Morrowwind but skyrim managed to never really be anything but terrible. When I first bought it crashed and manages to allmost every hour not matter what console, glitches dont help keep the experiance fun and the RPG mechanics aren't implemented well, pretty much a let down for many fans and allthough many people can play through through this buggy mess, II was a big fan of Oblivion and Morrowwind but skyrim managed to never really be anything but terrible. When I first bought it crashed and manages to allmost every hour not matter what console, glitches dont help keep the experiance fun and the RPG mechanics aren't implemented well, pretty much a let down for many fans and allthough many people can play through through this buggy mess, I find that the game was ruined by all the technical issues and bad bugs.… Expand
  10. Trafaret
    Mar 28, 2012
    0
    What an awesome game, you know! Laggy, buggy and ugly, it's combat mechanic is broken, upgrades are useless, and the world is empty. Story is just awful (dragons are back, what a tragedy!). At the beginning, people discuss uriels, kings and others, whom I even don't know. That is the why the score is 0. Do not buy it.
  11. whosgotthecrack
    Feb 4, 2012
    4
    I wanted to like this game, really bad. With all the hype surrounding it I was expecting a lot. However in recent years Bethesda seems to just be churning out mediocre games filled with bugs and ultimately feel unsatisfying. There's no real challenge here, just an extraordinary amount of things to do. The biggest fault of this game for me was the combat. Simply put, the combat is justI wanted to like this game, really bad. With all the hype surrounding it I was expecting a lot. However in recent years Bethesda seems to just be churning out mediocre games filled with bugs and ultimately feel unsatisfying. There's no real challenge here, just an extraordinary amount of things to do. The biggest fault of this game for me was the combat. Simply put, the combat is just boring and easy; no matter what type of combat you choose to specialize in you can do well, because there is little strategy at all to approaching fights. The game world, while beautiful, utilizes the same type of randomly generated events and encounters we've been seeing in these types of games for years now. Overall, the game isn't terrible, but it nots nearly as ground-breaking or flawless as people make it out to be.… Expand
  12. delux
    Aug 30, 2013
    0
    So, I purchased this game after getting bored of Fallout: New Vegas (~50 hours played). I was expecting it to be really good because of the positive reviews, and tons of people I know telling me it was good. So, long story short, this is one of the worst RPG's I've played. I totally wasted $60 by purchasing this game. By the time I was ~8 hours in I was literally bored out of my mind. ISo, I purchased this game after getting bored of Fallout: New Vegas (~50 hours played). I was expecting it to be really good because of the positive reviews, and tons of people I know telling me it was good. So, long story short, this is one of the worst RPG's I've played. I totally wasted $60 by purchasing this game. By the time I was ~8 hours in I was literally bored out of my mind. I forced myself to play it though so I didn't feel like I wasted $60, and I was hoping it would get better; it didn't. after 12 more hours of forced play time I couldn't take it anymore. My favorite genre to play is an RPG, this didn't feel like an RPG at all. Pretty much ZERO equipment upgrades, no super cool weapons that do crazy no cool armor, exploring got tedious and questing bored me after the first few I completed. I literally have nothing good to say about this game and I'm not sure what other people see in this game to rate it so high. To each his own, but I definitely feel like I wasted my money on this.… Expand
  13. Anton9090
    Dec 11, 2011
    0
    Fire the guy who designed the interface. Just. Fire. Him. It's the worst interface I've ever seen. We have a mouse, non a gamepad. Apart from that, is the same game we already knew from Oblivion. Lots of bugs, pleasant graphics (but you can do better IF you don't do a straight from console porting) et cetera. If you liked Oblivion you will like this. If you couldnÃ
  14. sf2OOO
    Feb 11, 2012
    0
    Boring clunky combat. Dull depressing graphics and colours. Alot of the game is spent in menus. Gamebreaking bugs all over. Constant crashes. Boring/Repetitve quests. Dragons become very irritating as theres too many. NPCs have bad animations etc. The AI is absolutely terrible. No way to respec skills if mistakes are made or you change your play style. The only good thing aboiut this gameBoring clunky combat. Dull depressing graphics and colours. Alot of the game is spent in menus. Gamebreaking bugs all over. Constant crashes. Boring/Repetitve quests. Dragons become very irritating as theres too many. NPCs have bad animations etc. The AI is absolutely terrible. No way to respec skills if mistakes are made or you change your play style. The only good thing aboiut this game is the exploration but even that is ruined by the boring visuals. Avoid at least until its fixed. Much better RPGs around.… Expand
  15. LordSeferoth
    Dec 29, 2011
    0
    Horrible and disapointing game. Skyrim is everything Elder Scrolls fans did not want. Its smaller,stripped,mainstreamed,buggy and ugly game. If this is the new direction of Elder Scrolls then this serie is dead for me. It certainly won my FOTY(Fail of the year) award this year.
  16. charlius2
    May 24, 2012
    4
    Tedious comes to mind as do exhausting, laborious, unsatisfying, drawn out, bloated, broken unfinished, excruciating.. and more. This game at times is beautiful.. well for a computer game.. and i mean at times.. some other times it looks awful.. The world you become immersed in soon dissipates when you come across clunking animatronics and badgers flying in the sky. The extremely clunkyTedious comes to mind as do exhausting, laborious, unsatisfying, drawn out, bloated, broken unfinished, excruciating.. and more. This game at times is beautiful.. well for a computer game.. and i mean at times.. some other times it looks awful.. The world you become immersed in soon dissipates when you come across clunking animatronics and badgers flying in the sky. The extremely clunky combat system is an absolute game killer for me. Totally unsatisfying.. When will a developer realize this is a very important part of a game like this? I have so many legitimate complaints about this game from papier mache npcs to excruciatingly dull crafting systems! i could write a book and i have only played 20 to 30 hours. Ultimately this game after a 10 hour stint made me feel hollow and depressed... yet another title i will be returning.. i give it a 9 for world and graphics but whats the point if the gameplay is wholly unsatisfying?… Expand
  17. broenheim
    Apr 5, 2012
    4
    When I first saw this game, I was excited. I mean, YES!!!!! A sequel to oblivion, a game I enjoyed the hell out of, is having a sequel. It's going to be amazing. And it was. For maybe 2 hours. However, after that honeymoon, the game falls off. The quests feel bland. The guild quests try to create a storyline instead of it actually me being a thief. I mean, one of the thief quests actuallyWhen I first saw this game, I was excited. I mean, YES!!!!! A sequel to oblivion, a game I enjoyed the hell out of, is having a sequel. It's going to be amazing. And it was. For maybe 2 hours. However, after that honeymoon, the game falls off. The quests feel bland. The guild quests try to create a storyline instead of it actually me being a thief. I mean, one of the thief quests actually let me kill the one person guarding the house! We're not the dark brotherhood, but I could, and I did, because it was tedious as hell to get that one person away. The story of Skyrim... who cares. I mean, nobody cared. It's all about the open world. However, the combat was very simplistic and Oblivion had the same system. The combat was not refreshing, magic was more like 2 good spells and gimicky spells that you would only use cause they looked good. Dual wielding was nice, and I have no problems with it. But I could not start a new character. Sure, I could start out a mage, or a warrior, or a thief, but there's no classes. There's no bonuses, no anything. Becoming that master warrior is something you could do on your first character except that he probably has better gear, better gold, and better health. But I'm ok with that, if combat wasn't boring. Dragon fights are completely foolish, and a pain in the ass if you don't have the shout to bring them down. All it is is hacking and slashing when it falls down, and running around hoping it drops again. Also, the world is stale as hell. I killed the emperor, THE EMPEROR for christ's sake, and no one even bated an eye. Skyrim is part of the empire, loyal to the emperor, but there was no big mourning, no one crying in the streets, people saying it was the stromcloaks who killed him, NO! It was just the same old thing when I came back to town. I went for the stromcloaks, and guess what... nothing changed. No big changes. Nothing. This gives very little sense of reward or progression. It only matter in story quests, but those are alright, but make up 3 hours or so. With bland quests with very little reward besides gold or awesome daedra weapons, questing just isn't fun. Also, 90% of the quests are all just conventient. They just happen right when you get there. Maybe it'd be alright if it was a traditional rpg where you actually go town to town in a set order, but it isn't like this. It happens SOOOOOO much. How come I didn't feel this way in Oblivion, or Fallout 3 or New Vegas. Because they intergrated their quests nicely. Skyrim did it poorly. I'd rather just go to an inn, and literally just live my life like a lumberjack then go questing. But there are TONS of dungenons. Oh wait, all them are the same. Maybe not exactly the same, but once you go in one crypt, you've been in them all. Loads of zombies you hack and slash through, and reach the end, get a new shout, and you leave. While shouts are nice, they just seem gimmicky and a bit clunky, and some of them are useless. Well this game is good for the honeymoon phase, after that OMG THIS IS SKYRIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! part, this game just falls off and feels uneventful and a lifeless, stale world where your actions mean nothing. Even though your doing so much stuff. It's pretty. Combat is boring, quests are boring, everything is boring.… Expand
  18. Darkstone751
    Dec 7, 2011
    3
    A definite 'buy' If you want to amuse your friends with Dragons that fly spastically backwards, Weapon racks that fail to activate (oh hold on... that is Whiterun only... my Windhelm one activates and places the weapons 'through' the wall), Mannequins that have their assorted body parts that vanish when adding your armor for display, Book shelves that no longer activate to hold books andA definite 'buy' If you want to amuse your friends with Dragons that fly spastically backwards, Weapon racks that fail to activate (oh hold on... that is Whiterun only... my Windhelm one activates and places the weapons 'through' the wall), Mannequins that have their assorted body parts that vanish when adding your armor for display, Book shelves that no longer activate to hold books and of course my favorite... LAGGGGGGGGGGGG.… Expand
  19. DenebKaitos
    Nov 28, 2011
    1
    The reason this gets 1 point is that at least it looks decent. The muddy color palette does have its moments, even though it looks awful the majority of the time. The character creation is also very awful looking, it takes playing around with it for an hour or more to get something that looks good. One you get into the world, it is a impressive game. The cities are fun to walk around inThe reason this gets 1 point is that at least it looks decent. The muddy color palette does have its moments, even though it looks awful the majority of the time. The character creation is also very awful looking, it takes playing around with it for an hour or more to get something that looks good. One you get into the world, it is a impressive game. The cities are fun to walk around in the environment is fun to explore. However, the dreadful winter landscapes soon lose their appeal. The dungeons, which at first seem to offer chances and opportunities for exploration soon lose their luster as you realize you have one path to make, and that is it. The game loses all of its points however when it comes to three things. The controls on the PC are archaic. The controls were obviously made for a console, not updating to take advantage of the mouse is just lazy. So many frustrating things stem from this basic UI mistake. Like the fact that you cannot pick up items and place them where you want. You can only blunder into them like some oaf. The second major mistake is the companion system. They suck. The AI controlling them is retarded. The followers and companions are best left out of the game. This is frustrating because as a magic using class I wanted and needed a meat shield.

    Everything to this point can be forgiven. However, they make one mistake that once uncovered, caused the game to fly off my hard drive. They give this illusion to being able to choose the path you want, to be able to explore. However, tying the main plot to the thievesâ    … Expand
  20. neilsmif1980
    Dec 14, 2011
    0
    Something is seriously wrong with this game! I can't seem to reach any destination I'm suppose to get to! ZZZZZZ!! Major snooze fest too, boring, full of bugs and glitches!! No wonder they reduced the price of it after 4 weeks!!! Terrible game
  21. RealCritic93
    Dec 5, 2018
    0
    Overrated boring lifeless world after you beat it. Bethesds tries to be among the best at open world games and fails with broken bugged games.
  22. Michos
    Mar 31, 2012
    2
    To clarify, I do not actually thing Skyrim is a 0/10 game. I enjoyed it a lot, but i believe it in no way deserves high score it got, especially compared to other games on the top list, and that is why i'm giving it such a low score.
    The game is actually pretty enjoyable.Everything good that can be said about the game was already said, so i'm going to concentrate on the bad things.
    First,    To clarify, I do not actually thing Skyrim is a 0/10 game. I enjoyed it a lot, but i believe it in no way deserves high score it got, especially compared to other games on the top list, and that is why i'm giving it such a low score.
    The game is actually pretty enjoyable.Everything good that can be said about the game was already said, so i'm going to concentrate on the bad things.
    First, the game is repetitive. It was accused of being a 'single player MMO' and i agree with this judgement. There is a bajilion identical dungeons (90% of them consisting of one main tunnel, 1 or 2 dead ends and a 'secret passage' leading back to the entrance, that can be opened only after completing he dundeon. The last one is in every single cave in the game. Every. Single. solitary. One.) and most of the quests consist of "go there, kill everything, get back, so i can tap you on the shoulder". You will also see the same tower/altar/building with a broken roof/campfire reused and copy-pasted over and over again.
    Also, there are barely any memorable characters. Again, just like dungeons and buildings, most of the npc lines are reused for every blacksmith/mage/whatever. Even when you meet one interesting, kind-of-dickish merchant, and you thing "hey, i like this guy", you'll later travel to the other city, and find out dark ef living there has the same voice, and is telling the same lines. Cheap.
    Story...is very basic. And very boring. And doesn't affect the world around you in any way, other than comments from the guards. You can save the entire world, and then go to some lord or somebody, that you -just personally saved or helped- and he'll never recognize you, and then send you to give a letter to his assistant. Who then rewards you with a "Good upgrade to your equipment", obviously not seeing your full dragonbone plate, that every city guard talks about.
    If you are not slaughtering people for fun, there's no way to affect the world around you in any way. You are being told you did something, but you never see what it changed. Unlike, for example, bioware RPG's, where you can actually experience how yor actions affect other people's lives, here...Well, you just kill the most powerful man in Skyrim, yet all his people are still running around, war camps are still set, and every quest given to you by his followers is still active. There's of course a lot of good stuff to the game, but -there's over 1000 good reviews here. They already praised every single dragonscale pixel of this game.    … Expand
  23. beebeembopp
    Nov 20, 2011
    0
    Skyrim brings 'all flash no substance' to an entirely new level. Somehow people are impressed by having giant sub-par looking landscapes and tons of NPC's even if it substitutes an actually decent combat system, or basically any gameplay mechanic that's even remotely challenging or polished. If a game based around conflict doesn't have a good combat system, it has nothing. Plain andSkyrim brings 'all flash no substance' to an entirely new level. Somehow people are impressed by having giant sub-par looking landscapes and tons of NPC's even if it substitutes an actually decent combat system, or basically any gameplay mechanic that's even remotely challenging or polished. If a game based around conflict doesn't have a good combat system, it has nothing. Plain and simple. Bethesda opted for a big world instead of a well designed one, and that's what they got. I'd rather play several better smaller games then waste my time playing one bad big one.… Expand
  24. unknown09111
    Nov 25, 2011
    0
    I hate it when they give perfect score without even finishing i mean it has many bugs, boring battle scene, boring gameplay attack, boring story, it only has huge world but always the same they took 5 years to make it but still it has many bugs.
  25. deadwooddanimal
    Dec 14, 2011
    1
    I have never played such a broken unplayable game in my life! I was only able to play the game for 4 hours (on xbox 360), but within that time all I saw were glitches, confusing ineterfaces, and zero direction. They don't even tell you how to play, so I wasted 20 minutes getting frustrated trying to get out of the area where you create your character! Once I finally found my way, every.I have never played such a broken unplayable game in my life! I was only able to play the game for 4 hours (on xbox 360), but within that time all I saw were glitches, confusing ineterfaces, and zero direction. They don't even tell you how to play, so I wasted 20 minutes getting frustrated trying to get out of the area where you create your character! Once I finally found my way, every. single. enemy was frozen! Everyone stood still, even as I hacked at them with my sword. Elk were rigid and still in the forest, travelers weren't traveling, just standing around, and nobody in the first town could move. I restarted the game, which got them moving, but the glitches didn't end there. The game is a bore when working, but not even fun to laugh at the rest of the time. If it works I could see why people enjoy it, but Bethesda has really messed up this time. How could they release such a mess?… Expand
  26. lancepaa
    Feb 10, 2012
    1
    Skyrim was fine. It was great. It was the best game I've played in years. And then I foolishly accepted this 1.4 update to my xbox360... and then the game went haywire. Now things are disappearing all over the place at random times including me. For example, I can hear my wife talking to me but I can't see her. And then she reappears. Sometimes the front door of my house is blackSkyrim was fine. It was great. It was the best game I've played in years. And then I foolishly accepted this 1.4 update to my xbox360... and then the game went haywire. Now things are disappearing all over the place at random times including me. For example, I can hear my wife talking to me but I can't see her. And then she reappears. Sometimes the front door of my house is black and I can't exit. Things will disappear as I'm looking at them. These are just the tip of the iceberg... Oh yeah, I'd say about 40% of the time when I go through a door and it normally auto-saves... it will just freeze and I have to hard boot the xbox. This kind of thing was happening a bit when I first got the game a couple of months ago but after a few updates things got better so I figured this update would continue in that direction. Boy, was I wrong !

    Until Bethesda fixes this (assuming they will) the game is basically ruined for me. :x Anybody else?    … Expand
  27. Speed4Runs
    Jan 2, 2013
    3
    The game features nice graphics, good sound, bad gameplay and very good longevity. When you play this game, you will get bored very soon: the gameplay doesn't have a point, a competition. You just play it for relaxing. You go and get some special object, but the game isn't competitive. It doesn't have a point. Very extended world, good graphics, but poor performance, and the game is fullThe game features nice graphics, good sound, bad gameplay and very good longevity. When you play this game, you will get bored very soon: the gameplay doesn't have a point, a competition. You just play it for relaxing. You go and get some special object, but the game isn't competitive. It doesn't have a point. Very extended world, good graphics, but poor performance, and the game is full of bugs. Good plot. Gameplay 2/10 Graphics/Performance 2/10 Plot 5/10 Longevity 6.25/10 Average: 3.81 OVERALL SCORE: 3/10 (not an average)… Expand
  28. Danielsonic87
    Apr 5, 2016
    0
    Worst videogame EVER made.Boring,graphic is horrible,on 360 Gamma rate is so low that in the "game day" is darker than the "non-in game night"without any tube of lighter on the road...
    framerate too low compared to other REAL action game in first or third person...
    TOO MUCH BUGGED!! Story boring,secondary quest EVEN MORE boring... And,TOO MUCH EASY,absolutely any other challenge is    Worst videogame EVER made.Boring,graphic is horrible,on 360 Gamma rate is so low that in the "game day" is darker than the "non-in game night"without any tube of lighter on the road...
    framerate too low compared to other REAL action game in first or third person...
    TOO MUCH BUGGED!!
    Story boring,secondary quest EVEN MORE boring...
    And,TOO MUCH EASY,absolutely any other challenge is worther than this,for a gamer tha has played before even one title of the genre...
    Much more a commercial excuse to pull on a franchise enough good already with Oblivion...
    guys wake up!This game is ONE OF THE MAIN REASON for the death of the videogame world of before:game from the Japan.And a game only for REAL FANATIC fans of the Western RPG genre...
    there are much more better Western RPG than this:on this site is impossible to not find something better than this "game"...
    I wonder how is possibile that exist even a person in the world that can find this game playable for more than 5 hours...    … Expand
  29. Kuzu
    Feb 5, 2012
    4
    SKYRIM is an amazingly open, free, and epic game. The graphics are of a good style and direction is consistent, but with enough variation to keep things interesting. As an RPG, many of it's systems work great - the level up and scaling system in this game is vastly improved over OBLIVION. The world begs to be explored and although the combat is no more impressive than many other RPGsSKYRIM is an amazingly open, free, and epic game. The graphics are of a good style and direction is consistent, but with enough variation to keep things interesting. As an RPG, many of it's systems work great - the level up and scaling system in this game is vastly improved over OBLIVION. The world begs to be explored and although the combat is no more impressive than many other RPGs (many RPGs have lackluster combat, including this one), the loot system and dungeons are fun and more varied than OBLIVION. Some things I found unpleasant about SKYRIM included the lack of ability to create custom spells, as in OBLIVION. I feel as though this is restrictive to mages. Additionally, there are less spells available in this game than there are in OBLIVION, which also put me off when it comes to mages. Further, although the crafting systems of blacksmithing and enchanting are wonderful ideas, these systems are poorly executed. It is not that the systems don't work well or aren;t satisfying in their own right, but rather that these skills are simply GAMEBREAKING in the worst way. Maxing the skills of blacksmithing and/or enchanting allow the player to create weapons and armor better than any that can be found through loot and in many cases even quests throughout the game. Mastering these skills will in fact make your character so strong that the game will be ruined regardless of difficulty setting. The brokenness of this game in its various forms is why i must rate this game low overall. Up to level 20-30 I played a stealth archer. I did NOT invest in blacksmithing or crafting at all, and yet by level 30-35 i was able to one-hit nearly any enemy with the exception of boss creatures and dragons, all while remaining completely undetected. I stopped playing at this point and did not even finish the main quest. The game was ruined for me. Although i felt powerful and the path towards levels 30-35 was fun and engaging, I quickly became so powerful that the game did not require me to think or strategize at all any more, killing the fun factor completely. In short, the skills of stealth(when combined with archery in particular), blacksmithing, and enchanting so grossly overpowered overpowered within the gameworld that the already lackluster combat becomes entirely boring, leaving no reason to play. Additionally, since weapons and armor can be crafted that exceed the most powerful that can be found naturally in the game, there is no reason to explore dungeons or even attempt to seek better equipment. This game had lots of promise, but is too easily broken by basic game mechanics intended to improve the gameplay.… Expand
  30. alceste007
    Jan 19, 2012
    4
    I traded in my PS3 copy for the xbox copy. I The game is extremely easy. You can easily kill everything in the game. The AI is horrible. The bugs are very annoying, but not quite broken like the PS3 version. I am sorry that I went through all of the trouble and expense to play this game.
  31. GoatScroats99
    Jan 18, 2013
    1
    This game is impossible to beat. I have tried multiple times to get past the opening sequence and keep getting killed by some firebreathing mofo that appears our of the sky. There is no good way to pick up weapons in this hurried up version of "get the hell out of here". And my character keeps getting charbroiled like a hamburger on a George Forman Grill, sealing in the flavor and not theThis game is impossible to beat. I have tried multiple times to get past the opening sequence and keep getting killed by some firebreathing mofo that appears our of the sky. There is no good way to pick up weapons in this hurried up version of "get the hell out of here". And my character keeps getting charbroiled like a hamburger on a George Forman Grill, sealing in the flavor and not the fat. As far as this game goes I would have to say that it sucks "Goat Scroats" in the same fashion that Ruxin from the Leauge believes that Dre Town sucks "Goat Scroats". In conclusion, I'm glad this game came free with my system purchase because if I had laid down the $59.99 for it, I would probably hang myself from the nearest non-dragon charred tree.… Expand
  32. Iluvatar21
    Nov 1, 2014
    4
    First let me start with saying that Skyrim's combat is sh*t. It takes away the feeling that you are developing a character, that you help contribute to your character, that this is Your character. I am talking about investing points into Agility and seeing your character hit more often, those sort of things that create attachment to the game. Skyrim lacks the attachment part because asFirst let me start with saying that Skyrim's combat is sh*t. It takes away the feeling that you are developing a character, that you help contribute to your character, that this is Your character. I am talking about investing points into Agility and seeing your character hit more often, those sort of things that create attachment to the game. Skyrim lacks the attachment part because as long as You have the skills, You can do anything (from picking master locks, to hitting every time with the bow) which leaves you without a reason to care for this world, no attachment...

    In Skyrim earlier perks completely say 'FU' to the difficulty and the need of finding better gear by giving you more damage, less mana requirements for spell usage (some perks are good).

    Why Morrowind is better: from finding your own way via reading the journal, to more interesting architecture, more diverse and interesting locations, better made dungeons, better weapons, armor and loot, loot with value (for example glass or daedric loot was nearly impossible to sell due to its high value (1 daedric bolt is 4000 gold!)), more diverse and interesting magics, better and deeper stories, harder and more interesting puzzles (lockpicking was level based and if your Security skill was low forget about lvl100 Master locks unless with a magic scroll), harsher consequences for your actions and therefore more choices (you can kill anyone for example plot characters rendering the main plot impossible to complete unless you reloaded a save or found some other way; also NPCs were interesting because you could do more with them - if you were to increase the disposition of an NPC and your Personality was high enough you might find newer quests for example and new dialog. NPCs would offend you if they didnt like you and shopkeepers wont barter with you if you had items they disapproved like Skooma; if you had no stamina and were under attack you would fall to the ground unable to act until some stamina comes back).    … Expand
  33. Rockinsquat
    Nov 22, 2011
    0
    Pour kickinit525 : J'ai pas aimé la jouabilité de Skyrim alors 0/10 ^^ et oui ! Désolé mais bon ce type m'a tellement soulé ... enfin bref avec tous les pro-machin ou truc sa deviens horrible ce genre de site.
  34. Maximo
    Jan 21, 2012
    4
    The hours of gameplay left me dissapointed really. I cant see how can someone be entertained by doing the same routine over and over and over again. Everything is repetetive in this game, and it gets repetetive so quickly. The most fun I had was in the first 3-5 hours when I created my character, explored the map a little and made few quests.
  35. Iamthecell
    Feb 16, 2012
    4
    Game looks good and plays awsome. The real killer is the amount of bugs in the game. They are everywhere and you will experience them no matter what. They have released a few patches but it has not helped at all. Go into this game very carefully. Dark Souls beat this game by a mile for GOTY.
  36. tc29188
    Nov 20, 2011
    2
    Most people I know are talking about this game as if it is Heaven on a Disc,
    So I tried Skyrim just to see what all the hype is about,
    And I found it to be a complete mess, it was boring, overated, and had extremely annoying controls,
    I do not see any reason why someone should pay money for something like this.
  37. ScottKnightx
    Nov 14, 2011
    0
    Not that well designed. Graphics are a minor upgrade from Oblivion. Textures are bad, see glitches everywhere. People I've killed have hovered above me in mid-air, and continued to blink. Seems like minor stuff they missed, but it makes the world of difference. Wish they had QA'd it first, before they released it to the mass public, looking to make a quick dollar.
  38. SwanLee
    Feb 2, 2012
    3
    Skyrim looks marvellous, the attention to detail is nothing short of jaw-dropping, the landscape and sheer scale is a phenomenal achievement. It's a real shame then that this game fails in every other aspect. I won't bother going into the plethora of bugs and glitches that infect this game, because they've already been documented many many times by other more notable reviewers. Let's startSkyrim looks marvellous, the attention to detail is nothing short of jaw-dropping, the landscape and sheer scale is a phenomenal achievement. It's a real shame then that this game fails in every other aspect. I won't bother going into the plethora of bugs and glitches that infect this game, because they've already been documented many many times by other more notable reviewers. Let's start with the basic difficulty.... there is none. This game is an interactive story, nothing more than that, there is NO challenge here at all. I began my personal Skyrim adventure by increasing my smithing and enchanting skills, my that was boring... I have no idea how many iron daggers I had to make to get smithing up to max. When I did I went off and made the best weapon and best armour in the game and then strolled through the game swatting away enemies like annoying flies. Beating the final boss boiled down to hitting it about 8 times and that was it. The ending is befitting of the game, non-eventful and dull, dull, dull. Some of the dungeons are littered with elaborate traps which at first you feel like you should avoid, but after levelling up a few times you realise that they don't mean anything because you can just run right through them, take the tiny health hit and then simply heal or wait until your health regenerates (not that you'd need to). If you want your hand held whist playing through an interactive story, Skyrim is definitely for you. If you want a challenge and immersion, it most definitely is not. How can you immerse yourself in a game that allows you to simply fast-travel anywhere you've already been, and where you have to wait an age for the loading to finish every time you enter a building?

    Sorry Skyrim, you suck. I looked forward to playing you for so long but you've let me down. I'm off to play Dark Souls again instead.    … Expand
  39. potatoes351
    Apr 1, 2012
    1
    As a rule i dont give games 0 ratings but if i did this would be one of them. Skyrim was the most overhyped game of all time hands down. Yeah the game looks good and is big which was an almost cert. However the game is broken. The combat doesnt work, it isnt fun to play, its repetitive, i could go on. Ill finish with the game is a buggy piece of crap that needs to be redesigned near enoughAs a rule i dont give games 0 ratings but if i did this would be one of them. Skyrim was the most overhyped game of all time hands down. Yeah the game looks good and is big which was an almost cert. However the game is broken. The combat doesnt work, it isnt fun to play, its repetitive, i could go on. Ill finish with the game is a buggy piece of crap that needs to be redesigned near enough immediatley in order to be as good as it was meant to be… Expand
  40. lucaskegler
    Nov 22, 2011
    1
    Desapontado! Poderia ser bem melhor, gostaria que tivesse chegado ao nível de The Witcher 2, não gostei dos gráficos nem do som, as lutas são enfadonhas!!!
  41. wrascle
    Nov 13, 2011
    2
    The UI alone makes this game not fun to play. Using gaming console interface cheapened up is bad, but add in the bugs and lack of consistent hot-key saving results in a recurring nightmare.
  42. FtWorthRibeye
    Jun 26, 2012
    0
    How can anyone not like this game?
    Skyrim incorporates all of the fun elements in RPGs, while leaving behind all the tediousness. It improves on Oblivion in all ways except for the faction mission lines.
  43. treywar25
    Jun 28, 2014
    3
    I honestly feel like this is the most overrated game of the last 5 or so years. I played it for a week(about 15 hours of gameplay) and it just wasn't enjoyable and it didn't draw me in at all. I remember playing Fallout 3 for the first time back in 2010 and it drew me in the first couple hours. For me Fallout 3 and New Vegas is just so much more fun to play. It has insane weapons, coolI honestly feel like this is the most overrated game of the last 5 or so years. I played it for a week(about 15 hours of gameplay) and it just wasn't enjoyable and it didn't draw me in at all. I remember playing Fallout 3 for the first time back in 2010 and it drew me in the first couple hours. For me Fallout 3 and New Vegas is just so much more fun to play. It has insane weapons, cool atmosphere, huge world, and an overall a more interesting and appealing ambiance to the Fallout franchise. The only thing Skyrim has going for it is the dragons and graphics in my opinion. Other than that the quests, characters, setting, enemies, and ESPECIALLY combat is boring to me. I do not understand how so many people can play this game for 100+ hours and not get bored out of their mind. Oh and the reason why I compared this Elder Scrolls game to Fallout is because they share some similar qualities and they are made and or published by Bethesda.… Expand
  44. EvilYoshi
    Jul 5, 2014
    4
    This game is good, but Oblivion was better. Guilds: in Skyrim - 1-hour crappy dull quests, in Oblivion - those quests are large and interesting(i love the final quest of the Thieves Guild). Main Quest - dull in both games. Gameplay - well, in Skyrim your weapon and armor are unbreakable, but auto-leveling are better, BUT. Dragons are too weak, and why the hell you can't block with dualThis game is good, but Oblivion was better. Guilds: in Skyrim - 1-hour crappy dull quests, in Oblivion - those quests are large and interesting(i love the final quest of the Thieves Guild). Main Quest - dull in both games. Gameplay - well, in Skyrim your weapon and armor are unbreakable, but auto-leveling are better, BUT. Dragons are too weak, and why the hell you can't block with dual weapons? World: in Skyrim there are big pretty world... without any quests. Just ugly caves.
    Skyrim is a good game, but a **** sequel.    … Expand
  45. NIntendoman652
    Nov 30, 2015
    4
    I can't believe how much people LOVE this game. It was a broken mess one of the first things I saw was a mammoth falling from the sky. Then my friend came over to help me with the game and showed me how to glitch up a mountain and how to open a chest out of thin air.
  46. GameMan2005
    Aug 22, 2023
    0
    If there's any title this game deserves above all else, it's this- most overrated game of all time.

Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best Xbox 360 Game of 2011
2
#2 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2011
1
#1 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2011

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
96

Universal acclaim - based on 89 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 89 out of 89
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 89
  3. Negative: 0 out of 89
  1. Gamer.no
    Feb 6, 2012
    100
    This epic role-playing game might be Bethesda's best game yet, and offers an unique and spectacular world filled with fun. The freedom ensures a great experience for both the casual and hardcore gamer, as you're free to play the game how you like.
    Read full review
  2. GameFocus
    Dec 16, 2011
    97
    Skyrim is the largest, and most compelling work that I've had the opportunity to play this year. It's engaging, engrossing, and will take over your gaming life for many months to come. Not only is Skyrim among the best that 2011 has to offer, but for me, this is, without hesitation, the Game of the Year.
    Read full review
  3. Cynamite
    Dec 16, 2011
    90
    Quotation forthcoming.
    Read full review
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