The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

[Aphasia]

Okay, I think this deserves it's own thread, even though we've got a while before launch.  For those of you that haven't heard, the fifth installment of the series was revealed at the VGA awards, and will take place in the mountainous region of Skyrim.

Here's the teaser trailer.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRifj-2EEKs

The game is slated for release next year on 11.11.11

As a huge fan of the Elder Scroll series, I'm totally stoked to see the announcement of the new installment.  I had a total nerd moment when I watched the trailer for the first time.  It was topped off by super high fives with my friends.  Dragons are a fascinating choice of theme for the new game and should prove very interesting.  I'll try to keep the thread updated with big news.  Anybody as excited as I am?

[Oburi]

I'll try to keep the thread updated with big news.  Anybody as excited as I am?

Gee let me think ... umm FUCK YES! Along with Mass Effect 2 this is the other "big" game that has got me creaming my pj's over. Looks like this time next year will be pretty exciting (lets not forget Uncharted 3 either).

[Dar Klink]

Anybody as excited as I am?

I'm excited... but also skeptical about their choice of Skyrim, which is pretty much a frozen wasteland. This means it'll either be hard for them to make it varied or they'll go against previous lore(again) and change the landscape up to make it more interesting. If you didn't know already, lore in previous Elder Scrolls games described Cyrodil as a jungle-like area and when Oblivion came out and it was all pretty generic fantasy landscapes. I'm hoping that the island of Solstheim from TES III is part of the areas you can visit since I think at this point in the time line the volcano on Vvardenfell should have erupted forcing the Dunmer to move to that island.
Here's a pretty nice map of the areas I found last night:
http://img41.imageshack.us/img41/1741/1292145737534.jpg
It'd also be awesome if they allowed the player to visit Akavir, considering dragons are involved. http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Akavir (Maybe as a expansion if not part of the main game?)

Anyway, I'm just a Morrowind fanboy hoping that the series brings back the feel and things I liked in Morrowind instead of heading more down the Oblivion path.

[Ramen4ever]

I'm a huge fan of the Elderscroll games as well. I really wasn't expecting a teaser this soon. Thanks for the post.

I had heard the rumors a year or two ago that the next game would by in Skyrim, all I can say is that I'm glad it's confirmed. Though I hope it's not restricted purely to Skyrim in terms of explorable area. One thing is for certain, the winter climate will be incredible to behold. I can hardly wait to climb for 5 hours to get to the top of the Throat of the World. As well as to another place, mentioned in the spoiler.

At present, my concern for the game is character creation, modability, storyline, side quests, combat and interactive features.

The "Dragonborn" apparently refers to Tiber Septim/ the Talos mythology in the game. I suppose now that the Septim line has ended, the dragons are coming back? And it will probably lead to a new line of Emperors or whoever, to protect Tamriel from Oblivion, though that is now a little less important. As Dragons the dragons are coming. Akavir, anyone? It is also called "dragon land" after all. 

[Walter]

Im not a huge Elder Scrolls fan but I am very interested in what engine they use for this game. I wonder if it will be Id Tech 5. I'm pretty sick of Gamebryo after Oblivion, Fallout 3 and New Vegas.

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2010/12/12/bethesda-says-skyrim-engine-all-new/

[Scorpio]

I heard that they had built their own engine, and actually a quote in the link you posted seems to confirm this:

“It’s a new graphics/gameplay engine built internally. We’ll have more details down the road.”

I'm interested in this game, but I'm reserving my excitement until I see more. The trailer wasn't all that revealing.

[Walter]

Nah, it just says the new engine was built in-house, which means it could very well be id's new engine for Rage.

[Scorpio]

Oh, I completely forgot they were both owned by ZeniMax.


...carry on then.

Actually, if they use that engine then I am very interested to see the final product. I, like you, am pretty tired of Gamebryo and the new engine should really, really improve things.

[Walter]

Oh, I completely forgot they were both owned by ZeniMax.

Yeah they didn't acquire id and coerce them not to license their ultra-expensive, cutting edge engine outside of Zenimax for nothing. It's a perfect fit for Fallout/Elder Scrolls worlds.

Actually, if they use that engine then I am very interested to see the final product. I, like you, am pretty tired of Gamebryo and the new engine should really, really improve things.

The engine's going to make or break this game for me. I absolutely despised Gamebryo.

[Aphasia]

Gee let me think ... umm FUCK YES! Along with Mass Effect 2 this is the other "big" game that has got me creaming my pj's over. Looks like this time next year will be pretty exciting (lets not forget Uncharted 3 either).

Heh-heh, yeah, I'm impressed that I'm able to form coherent sentences at all, really.  Just a few hours ago I was typing in capit-TITS YEAH TES I'M SO DAMN EXCITED F BOMB F BOMB CURSE WORDS.  No really.  When the announcer says "Dragon Born!" I about melted into a squealing pile of geek ooze.  It sent shivers right up my timber.  

Yeah, 2011 is looking to be an incredible year for gaming.  With so many great releases, and new hardware with the 3DS the industry is in stellar form.  Fortunately for us we don't have to wait very long.  Previous elder scrolls titles were always a few years away from finished whenever they were announced.  We have less than a year to go.  

Concerning the engine, I'm not sure if they've had ownership of the ID engine long enough to make use of it for the game.  This has been in development for quite some time, so maybe the "new engine" they're referring to is just a super buffed gamebryo.  Though I would love if they took advantage of their new engine.  It would greatly benefit, but I don't know how likely it is.  One of the developers mentioned "You almost feel like you have a new console when you see the game" So I'm remaining hopeful.

There were two things that killed oblivion for me technically.  Voice acting and animation.  Improving upon these two things would add tenfold to the immersion.  People everywhere had the same voice, and everyone was petrified.  They just need some real animators.  People have complained about this, and other prominent issues consistently (level scaling) on their forums.  I'm going to bet they listened to their fans and fixed these issues for a title this big.  Fallouts voice acting was much more varied, so I don't see why they wouldn't include more actors here too.

I'm actually excited that this is taking place in Skyrim.  I think the rugged countryside will be beautiful, and hopefully they'll find a way to diversify the climate. (Dry wooded areas, dense pine forests...high mountains, big rivers)  Furthermore, I'm a big fan of the Nordic mythology and lore.  Thu'um is one thing I want to see in the game.  It's just too cool not to include.  Also known as the Way of the Voice, it's the act of yelling really loud and breaking down castle walls with your voice.  Put simply.  http://www.uesp.net/wiki/Lore:Thu'um

Who do you guys think Dovahkiin is? (What the narrator describes as dragonborn) Will he be the player or someone crucial to the storyline?  The first thing I thought of when it panned in was the Nerevar, or a re-incarnation theme, with you assuming the role of Dovahkiin.

@Ramen

Maybe we'll see some Akavir play a role in the main story...would be cool to see Ka Po' Tun or fight Tosh Raka the Tiger Dragon.

Also, I really doubt they'll do anything to harm the mod community.  The community for TES is insane, and keeps it alive and kicking for years.  Heck, morrowind still has new mods coming out.

[Dar Klink]

There were two things that killed oblivion for me technically.  Voice acting and animation.  Improving upon these two things would add tenfold to the immersion.  People everywhere had the same voice, and everyone was petrified.  

Oh god the voice acting! That's what they get when they blow the entire voice acting budget on Patrick Stewart to be in the game for like 15 minutes. I think I'd be completely 100% fine with NO celebrity voice actors this time, I'd rather have 10 more regular voice actors than one famous actor who has nothing to do with the fantasy genre. Although Fallout 3 and New Vegas just seemed to add more celebs... oh and bring back the male dark elf voice actor from Morrowind! I think the reason the Dunmer in TES3 could tell you were an outlander even when you were of their race was because you had the wimpy Oblivion voice. I miss "We're watching you, scum!" and "You n'wah!"

Speaking of the Nords, if I play as a Bosmer and walk into a crowded Nord town and don't immediately have 10 Nords turn towards me in unison saying "Seen any elves? HEHEUEHUEHUEHEUEH" I'll be disappointed

[Aphasia]

Oh god the voice acting! That's what they get when they blow the entire voice acting budget on Patrick Stewart to be in the game for like 15 minutes. I think I'd be completely 100% fine with NO celebrity voice actors this time, I'd rather have 10 more regular voice actors than one famous actor who has nothing to do with the fantasy genre. Although Fallout 3 and New Vegas just seemed to add more celebs... oh and bring back the male dark elf voice actor from Morrowind! I think the reason the Dunmer in TES3 could tell you were an outlander even when you were of their race was because you had the wimpy Oblivion voice. I miss "We're watching you, scum!" and "You n'wah!"

Speaking of the Nords, if I play as a Bosmer and walk into a crowded Nord town and don't immediately have 10 Nords turn towards me in unison saying "Seen any elves? HEHEUEHUEHUEHEUEH" I'll be disappointed

Hah, Yeah, maybe the conversations won't go like this anymore: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIIfGZnbF0Q

I miss the rough Dunmer voices, too.  But at least there's a reason for their voices in Cyrodil.  According the lore the harsh voices of the Vvardenfell dunmer is a result of all the ash billowing out of Red mountain.  Still, an occasional smoker voice would be nice.  I would love if they just hired 100 regular joes for the VA.  Use the big talent for the trailers and main characters, if at all.  Imagine how much diversity it would add to the game.

I mean, if you're going to do voiceovers for all the text in the game, at least do it right.  I kind of miss the text from Morrowind.  You had to use your imagination. 

[Saephon]

Morrowind has always been my favorite TES game, for reasons I can define and some I can't. I think a big part of it is the size of the game world and how the lore and pacing of the game was left up to you. Without the constraints of voice acting, it seemed like there was room for far more interesting things to learn from people, and you didn't have to hear it in the same three voices. Also there was a lot less time spent loading, and I loved that you had to take striders or boats to get to places. Something about Vvardenfell felt enjoyable to just journey through on foot, over the course of a couple sunrises and sunsets.

Still, my number one hope? Improved combat/AI. For all the music, lore, and atmosphere I love about these games, I've never been a fan of swinging my sword 50 times at a goblin while he strafes around me, maybe trying for a swing every 10 seconds. There's gotta be a better way.

[Grail]

I'm really excited about this game, perhaps against my better judgment. I'm just hoping and praying that the creators have paid attention to the fans' complaints enough not to pop out another Oblivion. It's a shame, since I always enjoy the beginning of my campaigns in that game, but there were so many problems (like you guys have already mentioned) that I eventually found it impossible to immerse myself. I think that Morrowind was way more successful on that front.

In any case, there's just one thing I'm really hoping for in Skyrim... No more butterfaces!

[Walter]

In any case, there's just one thing I'm really hoping for in Skyrim... No more butterfaces!

In Oblivion, everyone is ugly. It's the law.

[Aphasia]

Morrowind has always been my favorite TES game, for reasons I can define and some I can't. I think a big part of it is the size of the game world and how the lore and pacing of the game was left up to you. Without the constraints of voice acting, it seemed like there was room for far more interesting things to learn from people, and you didn't have to hear it in the same three voices. Also there was a lot less time spent loading, and I loved that you had to take striders or boats to get to places. Something about Vvardenfell felt enjoyable to just journey through on foot, over the course of a couple sunrises and sunsets.

Still, my number one hope? Improved combat/AI. For all the music, lore, and atmosphere I love about these games, I've never been a fan of swinging my sword 50 times at a goblin while he strafes around me, maybe trying for a swing every 10 seconds. There's gotta be a better way.

Morrowind is my favorite, too.  But I still had a blast with Oblivion.  I never finished Oblivions main quest.  I found that everything else, the guild quests especially were simply more interesting.  So I did those and never "finished" the game.  The opposite is true with Morrowind.  The main quest is a blast.  I certainly agree with you.  The addition of VA made everyone feel the same.  In Morrowind everyone had little quirks.  I remember I would only use certain silt strider's because I liked the rider more than others, or I had a better rep with him so he was cheaper.  I felt like I discovered new places in that game for years.  I would just stumble across something new all the time.  "What is this?? I've never seen a ruin that looked like this.  Holy Shit! Adventure!" and so on.

I do think they improved the combat in oblivion over Morrowind.  It was more exciting to me.  Though being a sorcerer has zero incentive besides it being different.  Magic is way too hard and expensive in oblivion.  Want to enchant something with a shitty spell? Do you have ten million gold?

I'm really excited about this game, perhaps against my better judgment. I'm just hoping and praying that the creators have paid attention to the fans' complaints enough not to pop out another Oblivion. It's a shame, since I always enjoy the beginning of my campaigns in that game, but there were so many problems (like you guys have already mentioned) that I eventually found it impossible to immerse myself. I think that Morrowind was way more successful on that front.

In any case, there's just one thing I'm really hoping for in Skyrim... No more butterfaces!

I'm remaining hopeful that they learned from mistakes.  If they frequent their forum at all, they've heard more than enough bitching from fans.  People write books of critique on that shit.  For some reason I still found myself very immersed in Oblivion.  Not Morrowind immersed, but still fun.  So yeah, you're right there.  If I had to narrow it down to one thing it would likely be the alien environment, and the politics.  It was fun to learn about a totally new world and culture.  Morrowind is one of the more interesting provinces of Tamriel.

In Oblivion, everyone is ugly. It's the law.

One more reason to buy for PC.

Update on the "New Engine" That they're supposedly using.  The original tweet didn't elaborate on the situation, just stating that it's using a new engine.  Ripped from Rock Paper Shotgun -

There was some debate over what engine the new Elder Scrolls game would be using, and all signs seemed to point to GameBryo. However, writing on Twitter earlier today, Bethesda Softworks community manager Nick Breckon said: “We can now confirm that the TES V: Skyrim engine is all-new. And it looks fantastic.” I asked him what “new” means in this case, and whether it was simply a new version of the Gamebryo engine that powered Oblivion and the recent Fallout games. He responded: “It’s a new graphics/gameplay engine built internally. We’ll have more details down the road.”

Neato! 

[Griffith]

The engine's going to make or break this game for me. I absolutely despised Gamebryo.

I second that, it ruined Fallout 3 for me in the end. Unlike the previous games, there was no nuance to the conversation and nothing you said really mattered. You could make a guy with 0 intelligence and still have the same default conversation choices. Dumb.

Speaking of which, Daggerfall is still the best in the series IMO, it's just been dumbed down since.

[Aphasia]

I second that, it ruined Fallout 3 for me in the end. Unlike the previous games, there was no nuance to the conversation and nothing you said really mattered. You could make a guy with 0 intelligence and still have the same default conversation choices. Dumb.

Speaking of which, Daggerfall is still the best in the series IMO, it's just been dumbed down since.

I tried Daggerfall and couldn't really get into it.  Maybe modern video games have gotten to me, or I didn't like the enormous world.  I usually don't care about graphics either, so I don't think it was that. 

Ah, dumbing down...the inevitable result of trying to appeal to everyone.

[Oburi]

I second that, it ruined Fallout 3 for me in the end. Unlike the previous games, there was no nuance to the conversation and nothing you said really mattered. You could make a guy with 0 intelligence and still have the same default conversation choices. Dumb.

Hmm, I don't know about that.  Most of the conversation was default information yea, but you may not realize how much it can change if you don't have the specific requirements. I don't know the exact numbers, but there are many factors that can give you more dialog options that change not only how that conversation may end but also if you're in quest, it can change how that quest is completed. I haven't played it in a while but intelligence was very important for some things, and whether you were good or evil could also change the course of conversation. It wasn't the greatest system for conversation (it's no Mass Effect) but I wouldn't call it dumb, it was still pretty decent.  If you only played it for a few hours it may seem bland, but once you level up more you can really see how some extra dialog options can save you from a major battle or hours of traveling for a quest.

[Dar Klink]

Hmm, I don't know about that.  Most of the conversation was default information yea, but you may not realize how much it can change if you don't have the specific requirements. I don't know the exact numbers, but there are many factors that can give you more dialog options that do indeed change not only how that conversation may end but also if you're in quest, it can change how that quest is completed. I haven't played it in a while but intelligence was very important for some things, and whether you were good or evil could also change the course of conversation. It wasn't the greatest system for conversation (like say, Mass Effect) but I wouldn't call it dumb, it was still pretty decent.  If you only played it for a few hours it may seem bland, but once you level up more you can really see how some extra dialog options can save you from a major battle or hours of traveling for a quest.

I think he's complaining about it in comparison to the original Fallout games where if your intelligence was at 0... you were literally a retard and your dialogue reflected that. Plus the Good/Evil system in Fallout 3 was pretty much either I KILL BABIES or I'M A SUPER SAINT.... and you could go from the most evil son of a bitch murdering psycho to a saint just by giving some dude clean water over and over. It was pretty dumbed down. This is mostly hearsay, since I didn't play the original Fallout games, but even without them in mind the system seemed that way to me.

Anyway, I'm a bit worried about the graphics engine in this game considering it's going to be for consoles and Oblivion was released on the same consoles this one will be. I wonder if there will be a huge improvement. I guess when it comes down to it though, what needed to be fixed the most were the animations and character modeling...

[Aphasia]

I think he's complaining about it in comparison to the original Fallout games where if your intelligence was at 0... you were literally a retard and your dialogue reflected that. Plus the Good/Evil system in Fallout 3 was pretty much either I KILL BABIES or I'M A SUPER SAINT.... and you could go from the most evil son of a bitch murdering psycho to a saint just by giving some dude clean water over and over. It was pretty dumbed down. This is mostly hearsay, since I didn't play the original Fallout games, but even without them in mind the system seemed that way to me.

Anyway, I'm a bit worried about the graphics engine in this game considering it's going to be for consoles and Oblivion was released on the same consoles this one will be. I wonder if there will be a huge improvement. I guess when it comes down to it though, what needed to be fixed the most were the animations and character modeling...

I never played the original fallout games, but that sounds pretty cool that your stats actually influence how your character reacts.  I think a lot of games could benefit from more gray.  A lot of the time we're just given a "good and evil bar" It would be cool to see it go deeper than that.  

We should know what the graphics look like pretty soon.  There's going to be a special on it in the next GI.  We'll probably have to wait longer to see the game in motion.  I dunno, games typically look better longer into the consoles life.  In the Bethsoft podcast one of the devs said they "really had their groove down" for this game.  They also talked about their strengths and weakness's, and things they're trying to improve on.  One of those things was animation.  So at the very least they're aware that it needs work.  

Bethesda always seems to make a pretty big jump from game to game graphics wise.  Hopefully the animation will see the same jump.  It's too bad awesome graphics make bad animation look even worse.

EDIT: Prepare yourself.  Game Informer scans incoming.  Voosh! Is that a hot girl I see? The girl without a washboard face? And more voice actors? Son, I am proud.











That's one gnarly ass spider.



(These two images below are fairly big)
http://img836.imageshack.us/img836/7982/elderscollsv6.jpg
http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/1245/elderscollsv5.jpg

See full gallery here.

http://img638.imageshack.us/g/93396011.jpg/

[Grail]

Okay, now I officially give myself permission to be really, really REALLY excited!

I'm kinda glad that they're paring down the number of skills and giving attention to stuff like cooking and woodcutting. I'mma be a dual axe-wielding lumberjack!

[Aphasia]

Okay, now I officially give myself permission to be really, really REALLY excited!

I'm kinda glad that they're paring down the number of skills and giving attention to stuff like cooking and woodcutting. I'mma be a dual axe-wielding lumberjack!

Haha I know right.  I'm going to try to forget it exists to make the wait easier.  I don't mind that they're killing a few skills either.  I'm really curious how they're going to handle all the little tasks you do in town since that's something new to the series.  Forging weapons could be really fun.

It's cool that you can change spells/weapons/shields to whatever hand you want.  Combining a spell is supposed to make strengthen the effects, or different spells in each hand will combine to create a new effect.  ALGEBRAIC! : )

Thankfully your dual axe-wielding lumberjack will be complete with facial hair.

I'm planning on re-creating Thor exactly. Bahaha.

[Death May Die]

Yeah, I'm ready for another Elder Scrolls. I'm pretty excited myself. Another endless rabbit hole to get lost in! 

[Ramen4ever]

I don't wanna run into that Spider in a dark cave just as my torch runs out. 

So far it looks good. Story is interesting. Faces definitely are better. Mechanics are simpler. I'm glad they're not continuing off right after Oblivion. From what I've read and seen so far, the game kind of reminds me of Vindictus. Giant enemies that are likely to tear you to pieces. ES 3 and 4 didn't really have giant enemies apart from Ogrim (meh), Minotaurs, Ogres, and Land Dreughs. By the looks of things, the enemies in ES 5 are gonna be too big to shield bash. I'm also really curious to see if levitation is coming back, seeing as how flying creatures are gonna be at the center of this thing.