FUS RO DA!!!
Time for another review from my list!!
(My list of reviews -http://teksyndicate.com/forum/pc-gaming/im-writing-reviews-so-pick-what-you-want-out-what-i-currently-own/122876#comment-1266105-, do post what you want reviewing, these reviews will go in both blog and fourm just for easy of access)
Story....
As is the layout with Elder Scrolls, your a prisoner for unknown crimes although border skipping maybe why in this game. Your on a waggon with 3 other stormcloak prisoners on the way to the chopping block hosted by the imperials..
As your about to get your head chopped a dragon comes and in a way saves the day and you make your escape in the panic as a village gets burned to the ground.
After escaping you must find out why the dragons have returned and what is a dragonborn?...
Sticking again with Elder Scrolls tradition you can do as you wish (More detailed in gameplay section)
Gameplay...
If you have played Oblivion you know what to expect, a game that is massive and near endless in its scale, with tons of quests and creatures to kill.
The game is an RPG game so you level up as you kill monsters and level up your skills such as One Handed or Sneak or my personal fav Archery, When you level up you gain a perk point unlike Oblivions leveling system which kind of does it all for you, Skyrim gives you full control, Which would you like to improve Magicka, Health or Stamina in your order, then you move to the perk trees, these are a bit more liniar in there layout as you must be a specific level to get the perk and have points in the correct places, but yet it never feels like you are not in control of your character progression.
Some new areas have also been added. Enchanting, Smithing, Pickpocket
Enchanting allows you to make gear more powerful via enchants so you can add stamina regen, More HP or Magicka points also spell reductions and skill increases also damage increase from weapons such as One Handed, Two handed or Bows.
Smithing allows you to forge powerful armor in both light and heavy categories and then improve them also allows you to make your own weapons such as daedric or glass. and again improve them, this linked with enchanting is very powerful
Finally Pickpocket this tree is about been a badass and stealing peoples money and other shiny things they have in there pocket, skill level determines sucess in the steal, also it gives you a % of chance to steal, higher pickpocket better chance to steal etc.
Side quests are plenty in skyrim, there are hundreds if not more, then there is 4 guilds, Companions, Dark Brotherhood, Thieves Guild and finally College of Winterhold each with there own quest lines and gear. also they have special vendors, College of Winterhold gives you magic vendors with more powerful spells than the norm, Thieves guild allow you to sell the gear you have stole at a better rate.
A new feature is dual weild, this counts for both spells and 1 handed weapons, and you can also wield spell/sword etc making for whole new class setups over oblivion, the combat system is also improved from Oblivion, bows work better, magic is now more powerful and swords are better with dual wield but still feels like your swinging at air.
Also the crappy loading times while roaming the lands is gone so going through your adventure wont be stopped by loading screens in the middle of no where.
Graphics!!!
Skyrim has some very nice visuals at ultra topping any game they have released to date, but there are a few low res textures here n there, faces are still not correct, still blocky and seem un-emotional which kinda draws away from the experience, these can be fixed with mods, tho ENB mods for textures and face mods for the blocky/un-emotional but they can take some power to run. but apart from that they are good for what they are and if your system can handle it at the true max settings, youl have a very plesent time going through the world of skyrim.
Overall...
Well am still playing it to this day, and a good friend of mine has 600 Hours clocked on it already, am at around 210 hours.
i give this a 9.5/10 still a little buggy but nothing as bad as fallout new vegas, and it wont break your game, also a disclamer, if you try any mods i wont be held responisble for damages you did it not me, make sure your PC can run it at ultra smoothly before trying an ENB Mod and any other mods.
Anyways go to the link posted and check the list and see what you would like!