Skyrim has aroused a rather tumultuous reaction among fans, and is rapidly becoming conspicuously, the literal equivalent of Yin and Yang. On the one hand Skyrim presented dream like inspirations of such exquisite magnitudes, and a world that defies all whimsical aspirations, teething with more deadly foes than Arkham City reunion party. On the other it populated the snow-capped beauty of Skyrim, with depicted facial features of such abhorrent vulgarities, that Orc woman were considerable more viable prospect for my Nord’s hand in marriage. As well as repetitive missions largely consisting of voyaging through caves to retrieve certain particulars, or murdering inhabitants for, well no established reason. But most notably Skyrim will be remembered for glitches, stutters and jerking more profound and tiresome than my Aunt attempting eat peas from a fork. But The Elder Scrolls V defining distinction is exploration.
Many of us, myself included accentuated exploitation of the map marker, rather than deviate from the linear quests. It’s an accommodating convenience that totally nullifies the open world you should be exploring. You become so obsessed with the finality of quests rather than the emotional correlation you should discern on your vagrancy. With a breadth of enchanting landscapes so ripe with potential, and with the right exploitative mentality; why own a game with a fluctuation of variables, and just consummate various trivial repetitive, quests rather than engulfing yourself in these mesmerizing lands? It isn’t Call of Duty! (Thankfully).
You may think that exploration is a fairly obvious requisite, but so many of us have become slaves to the map marker, yielding to every whim and destination it ordains to guide us. Let your own curiosity dictate your voyage, dispel the allegorical shackles that bind and manipulate our destiny. The dangerous land of Skyrim is fraught with many imposing visages which can be overwhelming at first, but feelings of apprehension which manifest when entering a completely unknown location is a natural progression to the unfasten accolade, and exude analytical conciseness in the face of unbeknownst adversity, in a world where persistence is both persuasive and rewarding.
Are your adventures dictated by map markers? Or do you embrace the world around you? Let me know how you play Skyrim.
Very funny, and very well written. Amazing use of very big words – I spent a great deal of the post with my head stuck in the Oxford dictionary. I have to ask – was that a negative Call of Duty reference I read?
I myself don’t play Skyrim. I came to the conclusion that after getting lost in Morrowind, and somewhat stuck or bored or both in Oblivion, I would be unable to play an adventurous RPG when I would be unable to blast my way out of any situation with either a rocket launcher or a BFG, and so the game was relegated to a ‘must not buy’ status in my mind. My father however – completely different story.
With a strategy guide in one hand, a mouse in the other, a keyboard in his lap and my mother screaming away in the background crying ‘he’s going to kill you yer bastard!’ he attempted to save the little country/continent/island/thing from the wrath of the antagonistic dragons. To no avail it would seem. Since early this year the game has been used for everything but entertainment – currently it is a paper weight for all of the cheats and walkthroughs he needs to complete Dark Souls for the second time.
But during the days when the campaign was in use, my father always used a map marker. He would continuously flip out the map every few seconds as he walked to ensure he was going in the right direction. Too often he was able to become lost in the world of Skyrim that he could not afford not to be shown the way every step of his perilous journey. In most games my father has a loathing for markers, and in previous Elder Scrolls games he has had to use such navigational assistance methods more infrequently than he ever did in this one. Might have had something to do with the so often awful weather, uninterestingly drab landscape and frequent creature battles that he was forced to run away from like a nerd being chased by the schoolyard bully – in which he would often find himself in a neck of the woods he had never once seen before – literally. But even the map marker could not help him in his most dire times of need. I mean, it certainly didn’t cause him to go running back into the embrace of Skyrim’s loving arms. Of course, you made a great point about the women of the game, and if there’s one thing Mass Effect has taught us, it’s that sexy female characters are the only reason people really play games today, and all you really need to be sexy is a helmet and a tight suit – so I’m surprised Skyrim couldn’t pull that off…
Yeah, apologies for my overindulgent use of language, it may of gone a little overboard. I’m afraid that I’m really not a fan of Call of Duty, never really had any respect for the series. But it sells, and in this industry that’s what matters.
Your Dad yet again has cemented his legendary status, in gaming law, with some obvious encouragement from your mother it appears.
Skyrim isn’t for everyone, and it certainly has it’s fair shares of problems, like many Bethesda games. But I can’t help but be enchanted by it’s lands, the tall beautiful mountains it conveys.
As always I appreciate your views and insights. And wish your father luck with his continuing, RPG exploits.
This is a great post on Skyrim, i look forward to reading more of your articles on Games as I play them a lot and they are my main interest.
Thank you. I appreciate it! Hope I can keep you entertained with my meandering views!
The thing is, I always reach a point when playing Skyrim that I realize I’ve been playing for four hours and done absolutely nothing. No quests, just some dungeon raids, and a bit of bartering in Whiterun. It’s at this point that I think to myself “I’ll just do a quest before bed.”
The smart part of me takes over and fast travels to the nearest location, as the half of me that refuses to sleep until I’ve leveled up in my smithing skill seethes in quiet discontent.
The most satisfying aspect of Skyrim, is the freedom your gifted with as soon as you emerge from the cave, at the start of your quest. Just roaming around towns and cities, scavenging for coin and weaponry is enough for me. The quests feel like distractions in comparison.
Appreciate your comment.