Hello little blog, it’s been a while.
<Insert lies about not writing here, because there is usually time to be made should I want to. >
Well, Given previous form I probably ought to say something illuminating about Dr Who, but seeing as I have yet to watch the last episode I’ll be keeping my mouth shut <insert actual explanation about iPlayer hating me>.
Skyrim has really managed to suck me in, far more than it’s predecessor, Oblivion (although I did enjoy the Shivering Isles expansion), and indeed more than Fallout 3. I have never really finished or properly explored in either. I need to put some time into playing New Vegas at some point, as it’s got the quirkiness I remember from the original games, unlike it’s older, more po-faced brother.
Oblivion was a mixed bag for me. I mainly fell out of love with it because I kept getting killed. I seemed to be outmatched far too often. I then modded it, played a bit, killed a computer, modded it, played a bit and then played Fallout 3 instead. I never quiet settled to the whole thing of playing with only one role in mind and spread myself quite thin. Also it was, at time, hideous to look at. I may return one day (or someone will mod the quests into Skyrim – just need a bit of time travel).
It’s probably worth pointing out I never played Morrowind.
Fallout 3 was fun, and I enjoyed the main quest, but adventuring was fairly boring in that it was the same terrain quiet a bit of the time, ammo management annoyed me (as did the pip boy interface), and I kept running into creatures I had no hope of killing. Levelling up quite often left me no better off.
Vegas seems far more ridiculous and full of spectacle. At some point I will return to the wastelands, loaded with mods (and probably be confused by my lack of heavy armour and shield).
And now to the latest offering. Skyrim is lovely. It needs some graphics work, as the textures repeat horribly, and the vegetation is a little spikey. People look better, and not zooming in on their faces to talk to them is nice. The combat system works very well, and the levelling system is very nice, although there are quiet a few duff perks in there. I’m taking a break while the mods come out (which has already begun, to be fair, see the top ten so far, here. Hopefully it’ll match the GTA IV mods shown here).
Below I’ve cannibalised an email I sent of my first impressions.
I’m playing Skyrim on a fairly high end PC. Sadly there is a bit of stutter on ultra high, but high runs very nicely. The textures could have done with some variation, or there is a secret OCD stone mason and gardener’s guild at work. The internet suggests that the game may not be taking advantage of all my RAM, but mods should clear that up soon.
The character models are leaps and bounds better than previous versions, and go a long way to improving the experience. Oddest of all is wolves look a little rubbish, but someone seems to have spend days modelling the various types of fox. The world feels very empty though. Road you bump into patrols and random travellers, but cities feel small and deserted. Or worse, huge and deserted. The Witcher 2 feels better looking out the box, but given the community that will soon change.
I've encountered a few Dragons so far and need better ranged attacks.
I climbed to the top of the highest mountain, mainly due to my horse having no regard to gravity, and being able to climb near vertical surfaces. At the top of the mountain there’s no massive treasure (possible I missed it) just some ore to mine. Fuck's sake. The view is also obscured by clouds and snow, so it wasn't the best screenshot of the world either. Skyrim does needs skis for getting down mountains.
Most ignominious death so far has been killed by about three irate women with daggers when I idly killed the village chicken.
All ingredients can be eaten to find out their first effect (because as well as being a mighty hero I'm also the spawn of hundreds of other gameplay character and have an overwhelming compunction to eat anything I pick up). This means I've been role playing Ray Mears and eating bees, butterfly wings, bears claws, antlers (seriously?) and good knows what. If there was a piss drinking option I could have played Bear Grylls. (There you are mod comunity. Add in some flasks of piss, or at least a motivational poster - "Fighting Dragons in Skyrim - time to drink piss). Who am I kidding, I'd never play Bear Grylls. Prick.
I've killed myself many time leaping off waterfalls, and mountains, and also survived massively long falls by landing in a puddle. Horse didn't.
I've yet to undertake any quest besides a little bit of smiting, and the obligatory opening section. At some point someone will challenge me about this. My reaction may be violent, or suggest I've been to busy spelunking because the bees in my stomach told me to. "I met this hero, and he told me to fuck off and find my own golden claw", the villagers will say.
The above is no longer true, and I’ve been questing quiet a bit. Favourite so far has been recovering from a drunken night out. Joined the Companions and the mage’s guild., and undertaken quite a few side quests. Still so much yet to see and do. The game feels huge. Can see a second play through of going back to the same places being wearing, unless play styles turn out to be significantly different. IF I play carefully though, I ought to be able to leave large parts of the game unfinished for a second third and fourth play through (thief, mage, and two handed weapon wielding archer). Currently playing as an axe and sword wielding Nord with lots of smithing. I’ve also become a werewolf, and avoided becoming a vampire. Another option to explore on another play. I’ll be joining neither the legion or the Stormcloaks this play through.
Levelling up seems nicely balanced as the enemy types rise with you. Only has one major string of deaths, at the hands of a special character at the end of a quest.
Horses that you don't own (that are just around, not ones you steal) try to return home when you dismount. This is very annoying. Not quite as annoying as giants killing a horse I do own.
I've yet to pick a lock other than on a dungeon door or chest, pickpocket or steal. Nor have i used magic beyond the starting spells (EDIT – expanding into alteration to make crafting a little easier. May also need some lockpicking spells if they are about to make picking easier (playing with xbox controller makes it damned hard and locks out most PC controls, bar quick save). Magick does seem to regenerate much faster than in Oblivion, which is nice.
I've yet to kill a child (or indeed even tried, suspect the game world will say no EDIT- The game world says no, you can hit them, piss everyone off, but it doesn’t damage their health bar), or any civilians apart from an Imperial patrol and a rich couple who said "get away peasant". I chased for ten minutes, and robbed their corpses, because my Skyrim is equal opportunities. I have yet to see all the cities, but shall be dealing with the racism in Whitehold, somehow.
When I eventually turn up for the main quest I will be some tough hero, who will appear to have been living rough for months, and been eating copious amounts of psychedelic "ingredients". The jarl is going to be sitting on his throne when I tell him "that about six months ago, man, this dragon burned the shit out of a town." (If I had a rug the dragon ruined I could be the Dude). Apparently intelligence services and gossip in Skyrim are shit.
EDIT – Having turned up for the main quest, and then fairly promptly dropped it again in favour or wandering around once more, there is going to be a very crisp corpse that was going to meet me to kill the second quest based Dragon somewhere in the landscape.
The opening section feels a lot better as well, no sudden give us back that nice sword, decided who you want to be, bollocks, it seems far more organic and free wheeling.
Most pertinent missing features is a value to weight ratio for items and the ability to sort them via such. The opening section will leave you overburdened. Horribly. Also need some sort of indicator as to what your going to get paid at the shop when you sell it. There is also no buy back feature, which is expensive when you sell the wrong bit of armour. Smithing could also benefit from a construction cost in gold.
Most annoying mistake so far has been deleting my lvl 10 character, not realising he only existed as a quick save and auto save that disappeared when I wanted to have a muck around at the start of the game again. Back to a lvl 2 save.
EDIT Now built back up to lvl 21 or so, and still so much to do.
Anyone want to suggest why, when sharpening weapons on a grindstone (which shaves away metal) I need to spend a bar of iron, or other metal for the privilege? Also why the game calls this tempering (it really isn't).
Diseases fuck you up. I got bitten by a wolf, and it flashed up that I has rockjoint. I ignored this. 6lvls later I founded I'd been playing with 25% decreased melee damage, and that everyone I met told me I looked pasty. Cure disease potions are hugely expensive, find a shrine (also follow the path as you come out of the opening section to find a stone circle that character boost in very useful ways).
I really want someone to mod in Severance's combat mechanics. I do seem to be flailing around a bit.
Game seems to have funny issues about ownership as some shops let you rob parts of the contents without tagging it as a theft.
Finally, where are my fucking legs! Why, in a game that lets you zoom out to 3rd person (and renders itself almost unplayable in doing so) are my bespokly fitted limbs not visible.
