Topic: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

@LuckyLand tell me the flaws then? (Besides traditional dungeons because that I automatically agree with)

@SVTornado The freedom that BOTW gives you is not significant nor fulfilling enough to compensate the lack of a properly scripted adventure that the previous games had. Older Zelda games are much better than BOTW from the perspective of an adventure game, TES games are much better than BOTW from the perspective of freedom, choices and customization (Skyrim is not even the best one in the series but it is still much better than Breath of the wild).
Breath of the wild is just a very polished empty package. They forgot to put a game inside it. They wanted to leave behind the mechanics of older Zelda games but did not understand what make games like Skyrim so good. Skyrim is much better than BOTW because even if it is not the best in what it does, at least who made it had very clear in their mind what this kind of games is all about. They did a better job in the past (imho) but you can clearly notice they were aware of what they were doing. Nintendo has not yet realized what are the best features that open world free roaming games should be focused on.

Mind you, I admit I could enjoy BOTW immensely if only it had a graphic style that I prefer: I love Twilight Princess graphic style, I'm sure I could play BOTW for years if it was done with a similar style, but my opinion about the real contents of that game would not change anyway. It is empty. It would be something like a guilty pleasure. If one likes the graphic style of BOTW or something like this I can understand he is able to enjoy that game a lot and keep playing it, I would probably do the same, but that does not mean that I think it is a fulfilling game. I just understand that it can be extremely pleasant if you find something you like in it.

Also, Zelda games really need post endgame contents. This is unacceptable in 2018 that a game like this still don't have post endgame stuff. It was a problem even years ago when they made Twilight Princess. They really need to understand that players want to see how Hyrule look after they beat Ganon and want to experience exploring it as it is supposed to be after they have beaten the game.

@LuckyLand first off the world from twilight princess is even emptier than BOTW's. Second the art style of twilight princess has definitely not aged well. Thirdly BOTW has a gorgeous art style and an open world full of things to do. The post game part I totally agree with though.

@SVTornado Yes TP is rather empty if you try to randomly explore the world and roam around freely, but it at least offer a satisfying and entertaining adventure until you beat it. BOTW is as empty as TP but you notice it even more because it is much bigger, and it does not offer an adventure as fun and intriguing as TP and other Zelda games did. The sense of progression and the fun of discovering and unlocking all the tools throughout the entire game was much more satisfying than getting a few things near the start of the game and know you won't find anything else new for the rest of the game. The best thing Nintendo can do for future Zelda games is to keep the main adventure like it was in older games and offer more optional quests and things to do and let the player experience more freedom with this additional stuff

I also don't understand how TP art style can aven't aged well. It is an art style, it is only a matter of persobal taste, there's no such things as not aging well when it comes to personal taste and personal preferences.

@LuckyLand Aonuma has already confirmed that the BOTW style is the future for 3D Zelda, so I guess you will be stuck with 2D zelda then. And BOTW's world is defenitely not empty.

@SVTornado I think they can improve upon it a lot and maybe bring back some features (like the tools) and find a way to integrate them in the new gameplay so I hope future games will be better anyway.
But honestly, the thing I like the most about Zelda, the ONLY thing I really LOVE about Zelda is the art style they used in Twilight Princess so honestly the only thing I really desire for myself is another Zelda game that look like TP, if so I really don't care if it is better than BOTW or not in its gameplay, for me it would be better enough anyway And that sound like older games, with REAL music, I really dislike the lack of music in BOTW.

But I feel like we have gone off topic enough.

Clearly there's some disagreement on that, because the consensuses breath of the wild is one of the greatest games ever made.

Course not everyone's going to agree with that but it's important to acknowledge the consensus.

This is a good essay video on why the lack of story succeeded in BotW, and why the freedom did, in fact, make up for it... among other things.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?t=624s&v=kQcGILE2SeA

Anyways, I need to get back to Skyrim. I've tried to get into it three times now but I keep dropping it 20 hrs in. Maybe I'll turn it on here shortly...

So I finally got some more time into Skyrim and wanted to explore more of the depth this game has to offer. I apologize if these questions come off noonish but I haven't really played Skyrim thus far.

Anyway I am starting to get into the weapon and armor smithing aspects of the game and I have a few questions.

Can I break down weapons, armor junk In don't need into crafting materials. I ask this cause I remember in Fallout 4 you could but I don't seem to see anyway to do it in Skyrim and if I can I rather get the mats for the items then just selling it.

Also is there a point to upgrading your armor and such. I just literally upgrade my armor (to fine armor) when an NPC gave me better armor as a quest reward. Mind you it's not a big deal but I feel like I wasted the materials.

Another thing I keep getting asked by various NPCs to join this group and join that group and what side do I take? What is all this? If I pick one side does that mean the other people on the opposite side will be hostile towards me or something? I don't want to have to walk into a town and worry about being attacked cause I picked the wrong side.

Thanks all for any help and info if I think of anything else I will post here.

I think choosing a side between the stormcloaks and the empire is needed to progress in the story at some point. Though I'm not sure, to be honest.

@Meowpheel It isn't. If you don't choose, the story will simply progress a different way than it would if you had picked either of the sides in the civil war. It really doesn't matter either way.

You can choose between Layers of fear, Outlast, Resident evil...

or you can just wait for one of the good old Skyrim creepy glitches

@DarthNocturnal It was nothing really the armor I had it was the first suit of armor you get in the game, imperial armor or something like that, and then I got steel armor from a quest reward after upgrading it which the steel was better. No biggie I was just wondering if that was going to be a trend through out the game and upgrading armor wasn't worth it.

Do Nords have some kind of hidden weakness to Elven weapons? I started playing a Nord warrior recently (one-handed sword, no shield, heavy armor) and by LV. 20, I was running into Bandit Chiefs armed with Elven Daggers who were hitting harder than anybody with a dagger reasonably should.

@SilverEdge92 I don't think so elven weapons are just more powerful than most of the others and probably enemies equipped with elven weapons are stronger than other enemies too. I noticed several times both on Switch and on Pc that sometimes you encounter bandits that seem exactly the same as others but are noticeably harder to beat.

@LuckyLand
I've just never encountered anything like this before with my other characters which is what makes it weird. I was wearing Steel Plate Armor upgraded to Superior, my armor rating was about 220, and these guys were still dropping the kind of beefy hits that two-hand weapons normally deliver. And it wasn't only the Bandit Chiefs--every time I got a bounty, I ran into Bounty Collectors who had Elven Daggers too. I was killed by a Bandit Chief who had a Steel Mace with fire damage to start with, but pulled an Elven Dagger part-way through the fight; unfortunately, I've taken to playing perma-death style so that was the end of that character.

I’ve pretty much given up on looting anything that adds weight. The time spent messing around with my inventory isn’t worth it.

Fighting wise I’ve settled into a pattern where (after gaining inspiration from an in game book) I’ve levelled up Illusion and cast calm on everything that moves before bludgeoning them in the back of the head. Then calm again & repeat (if necessary).Works well.

When I get quiet casting I’ll probably switch to casting fury from a distance and let the enemies take care of themselves. Completely unscripted last night I had a frost troll get into a fight with a dragon (thank you mr frost troll).

Fought my first (non story) dragon tonight and what a rush it was. My heart was literally pounding as I fought it I managed to squeak out a victory just barely even used up my healing potions, but I won......

Then a giant got me from behind and killed me, I was very annoyed.

Those dragons sure like to appear at random times.

It's almost like with the guardians in Zelda. "Wait battle music? Where?".

Usually by the time I manage to get a good look at them, random guards already have it half dead.

There was that one time when the dragon never attacked at all, too.

@Meowpheel Yeah I think that's what agroed the giant. I remember going to a quest destination when I saw a giant camp, I snuck by it without alerting the giant. I made it a bit down the road and all of a sudden this epic sounding music started and I was like WTF is going on. Then I heard the dragon a huge shadow came across me and I saw the dragon breathing fire on something so I ran back to the dragon and yeah....

I managed to get a dragon soul from it which I was trying to figure out what it does next thing I know a giant comes up behind me and knocks me up into the air.

Haha I've never seen Giants do that. I kinda want to. Sounds fun.

The dragon souls let you unlock the words of power you find around the world. Like, you find the word, but you can't equip it until you use a dragon soul on it. (In the magic menu).