Entertainment
- It’s not a far stretch to say that The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, is
one of the best games to come out of 2011. But that does not mean it is a
game for everyone. Today I will attempt to explain to you why Skyrim
and The Elder Scrolls franchise in particular is a series that you
either get it or you don’t.
First things first, why is it that people love Elder Scrolls so very
much? There are a great number of reasons, such as the immersive
open-world of the game or the unprecendented level of exploration
available to players. It without a doubt features a formula that fans
love. People love to explore the collossal open-world of the game and
watch as their actions effect things around them. However it is that
open-world freedom that is the factor that can deter people from the
series.
With such immense freedom, The Elder Scrolls fits perfectly in on the
opposite side of the open-world spectrum. For arguements sake let’s
compare the difference between Skyrim and two other types of open-world
games; Grand Theft Auto and Assassin’s Creed. Now I am not saying that
one is better than the other, I am simply stating that each signify a
specific type of the open-world game.
Assassin’s Creed sits on the direct opposite side of Skyrim and features
an open-world that is backed by an incredibly strong and deep storyline
that encourages the player to follow the plot instead of focusing
solely upon open-world mayhem. In the middle of the spectrum sits Grand
Theft Auto, a franchise that features open-world carnage along side a
storyline. The story however is heavily overshadowed by the open-world
mayhem, to the point that most people who play Grand Theft Auto only
play it to just go on killing sprees and create absolute anarchy.
So how does Skyrim fit into this equation? Well it’s quite simple,
Skyrim and The Elder Scrolls series in general does not focus on a
straight forward traditional plotline that signifies the games beginning
and end such as that seen in Assassin’s Creed. This lack of storyline
emphasis or conclusive ending can deter players from Skyrim. However it
can also engage them more than any storyline could.
The thing with Skyrim is that you do not play as a character and follow
the events unfolding around them. Instead you play as yourself and
explore the world as events unfold around you. This is the exact make or
break point for The Elder Scrolls series when it comes down to whether a
person purchases this or something else. Some people get this concept
and they love it, where as others turn away from it like the plague.
What is the reason for this though?
This open-world freedom which is unbound from an emphasis on a storyline
is both a detriment and an advantage. It is an advantage as it
constructs itself as a game without boundaries, challenging the player
to explore and see how far they can bend the game’s world as well as
giving near infinite replayability. This however is the exact same thing
that is a detriment to the title, that is the very fact that it does
not conventionally end.
While some may find this to be a shallow reason to not be able to get
into a game, it is most certainly not. Some simply do not have the time
to invest in a game that they know will not come to a conclusive end
(MMORPG’s and the entire RPG genre fit this bill perfectly). In this day
and age, gamers attention spans have grown much shorter than they ever
were, to the point that a game can be completed in 5 hours and still
recieve popular acclaim. It marks a change in the gaming industry and
well as a change in what gamers want from the video-game experience.
This is not a slight against Skyrim as it is clearly extremely popular,
but this is exactly why it is not for everyone nor should it have to be.
So whether you are exploring the world of Skyrim or following a well
told story such as that of Assassin’s Creed Revelations, as long as you
are enjoying video-games for all the entertainment they can provide,
there is nothing wrong with your choice of game. There is simply no game
that is for everyone, to claim that there is would be foolish. If
someone likes a game that you don’t, it’s not because your wrong, it’s
because the game has managed to connect with someone on a level in which
it could not with you. With different people wanting different things
out of the video-game experience there is never going to be a game that
everyone ’gets’, and that my fellow gamers is the truth and nothing but
the truth.
Entertainment
