The New And Improved Skyrim

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After years of waiting, Bethesda has finally released the new and improved Skyrim: Remastered Edition. I have been playing Skyrim since the day it came out and have always considered it to be a fantastic game. When I started to play the new version, I remembered going with my friends on 11/11/11 and getting to Gamestop as soon as it opened. We were filled with anticipation to get our hands on a copy of the game we had been waiting 5 years for. I had spent those years playing the last Elder Scrolls game, Oblivion for hours on end. It still has to be one of my favorite video games, ever. So, when I went to purchase Skyrim, my hopes for it’s quality were incredibly high and I was not disappointed.

(The walk to Windhelm)

When it comes to the new edition, I was thankful that by getting a copy on the Steam summer sale years ago for a couple bucks, it was free minus the 5 bucks I spent years ago. I’m not certain it warrants a $60 purchase, which is the console version price, but getting it for next to nothing was absolutely worth it for myself. I think that Bethesda did an outstanding job improving on the aspects of the game that I felt were weak to begin with. These minor issues were the graphics quality, mechanics, NPC interaction, and a few other things. They weren’t anything that I cared about on the initial release and since it came out 5 years ago, they weren’t things I expected to be perfect at the time.

(Exiting the city into the plains of Whiterun)

Skyrim is a game that for those who have played it always find themselves coming back to it. With the new Remastered Edition out, I think that people who were getting tired of it because of the factors I explained in the last paragraph, will find a new love for it. The biggest factor for its improvement in my opinion was how much more the environment felt like Skyrim. For the last 5 years the lighting and graphics made the Province of Skyrim feel dark, dreary, depressing, and gray. I didn’t believe that Skyrim was the bland and depressing place that the atmosphere made it feel like.

(A view of the night sky in the forest)

The Remastered Edition shows Skyrim in a new light, literally. With the improved lighting, graphics, and foliage it felt like it had been given an entirely new identity, more in tune with what we as the player imagine when we think of Skyrim. They enhanced it with beautiful sunsets, an astounding night sky, thick vegetation in towns and even the light layers of snow that sweep across frozen planes. These minor alterations actually have a huge impact on the overall feel of Skyrim and give it an identity that it had lacked in the original version of the game. It seems like something that wouldn’t affect much at face value. However, when you sit down to play each of them side by side, you immediately can tell just how much of a difference there is between the two games when they are theoretically the same game.

(Solstheim sky)

A huge improvement Bethesda made from Oblivion, to Skyrim was the mechanics, specifically the combat. Now, the system wasn’t perfect in the base game, but it was a huge improvement and certainly well ahead of it’s time in terms of fluidity. They weren’t perfect of course and the combat was sort of generic in the original game. In the new version, you can tell as you end up in rigorous fights with enemies like Falmer for example, their movements feel less robotic and more natural. Something as small as how an enemy steps into a swing can completely change how you perceive how real the fight seems.

(A dungeon with a waterfall and trees in it)

Another great addition was how much more connected the cities are. In the original game the buildings are either scattered apart and are pretty much the only thing inside of them. With the improvements on the graphics of water, roads, and the addition of vegetation in cities they suddenly are brought to life. Perhaps the best example is the city of Whiterun. It’s a place that anyone who has played Skyrim has spent hours in. I always thought it never really felt like one big place, rather a few small building scattered about, a tree, and a castle. With the improvements that were made it completely changed my opinion of Whiterun. The aqueduct wasn’t terrible looking and sometimes having the water glitch and turn into nothing but darkness. Also, the vegetation in Whiterun made the whole city seem to flow and feel like it was full of life. It felt like the true tone of Skyrim had finally appeared and I couldn’t stop playing.

(The Gildergreen tree in the center of Whiterun)

I wasn't sure what to expect other than a graphics overhaul when i heard about the release of the Remastered Edition. I was pleasantly surprised though and I’m happy to say that Bethesda gave Skyrim new life. I know there are other people who are still playing and if you can get your hands on the new version of Skyrim I highly suggest it. Although it is the same game it feels so much more like you’re in Skyrim with all of the changes that have been made. I’m excited to keep playing and to stay immersed in the land of Skyrim.