Surprise! Skyrim Anniversary Edition Is Out Now On The Switch eShop

YESSSSS I was waiting for this update for SO LONG!
Since I already own it physically I'll be grabbing the anniversary uprade!

Good. Now i can still don't play it

Man the frame rate sure takes a turn for the worse with the content installed, in handheld mode at least.

Great news! Now fingers crossed we get some Fallout ports!

I think I'll stick to the original Switch release as there's still loads more I can squeeze out of that version.

Looking through the Creation Club stuff, little compels me to put the update on the visible future's checkout counter, but maybe someday [or on a tempting sale], after I'm done with [most of] the native content I still have truckloads of in front of me (150+ hours in, I'm only navigating the sidequests and details of my SECOND big city in the game)? Reported compatibility with existing save files is a plus as well. Granted, I have yet to check if I can purchase the update in the first place - region discrepancy, thankfully rare but annoying when at play (Isaac and RF5 have joined the chat), is a possibility to keep an eye out for.

@locky-mavo

Oh, than i'll skip it.
Thank you for that Information

So if you have the regular switch version is there any point in owning this?

As long as I can keep my save data from the base game, which I do have. My Argonian character is almost at Level 80 (the point where you fight the Ebony Warrior), and I haven't even started the main quest yet. I'd hate to have to start all over again.

Of course, though, if I can pull myself away from Genshin Impact long enough to play Skyrim again, I certainly would. But since they just released a new part of Sumeru, I want to finish the questline involving that, as well as any related game events, first.

And speaking of which, I would love to know when they plan on getting Genshin Impact on Switch. It's been a while since the last news update. If my iPhone 8, which is undoubtedly technologically inferior to the Switch, can run the game (albeit with a huge graphical downgrade, stuttering issues, and frequent crashes), why not a dedicated console like the Switch? Maybe they're waiting for the rumored Switch Pro?

I’ll wait for a physical release with the DLC on the cart, otherwise it’s an easy skip.

One day.. I first have to finish the boss of all bosses: my backlog

Vanilla Skyrim already ran very poorly. It’s the only game on my switch that has caused a crash. I shan’t be purchasing this.

@AstroTheGamosian : It's an optional expansion for the existing game, not a new piece of software in itself, so it will use any pre-existing save data.

WHAT? I've been waiting for them to announce it and they just... released it. THEY JUST RELEASED IT.

Shadow-dropping a special version of one of the most critically-acclaimed games ever, ESPECIALLY one that helped bring the Switch to popularity with the initial teaser? To top that off, not even a simultaneous release date for a game barely even hardware intensive?

Ayyyy happy 27th Skyrim release day everyone.

2 more Anniversary Collections and they can do an Anniversary Trilogy Box!

@contractcooker In my experience, once for every 30 hours is typical even for games that get good testing like Nintendo's. Skyrim was a buggy mess in general though. On top of general crash happiness, it also crashed so hard I thought it bricked my Switch. I got a weird full screen error message I had never seen before and haven't since, and the physical power button didn't even work at first. Plus, there were all the well known and documented scripting errors that still weren't fixed in official patches even after a decade.

Cash grab alert

@justaguest Ahh, I’ve tried to best that boss for years now. Came close a few times too…

Cool now they just need to put a 11 year old game on enough of a sale that would be worth buying a 11 year old game.

No, half off is not a sale ON AN ELEVEN YEAR OLD GAME.

@RubyCarbuncle hey man, you definitely should... one of my favorite of all time! I'm thinking about grabbing again.. I played on my pS3...

@locky-mavo
Thanks for pointing that out!

@Slowdive exactly! I was just about to say the same thing.
The game is £49.99.
The bundle is £59.99 (so an extra tenner for the new stuff).
But if you already own it then it's an extra £17.99 ... how an earth is that right 😂 not fair for earlier adobters as you said

This is worth it. Easy sell to me

Soooo, just Skyrim with mods touted as DLC, but no real enhancements like better framerate, etc, gotcha.

@Slowdive I came here to say the same thing. "Thanks for supporting us all those years ago, we'll be taking an extra $10 from you now."

I've somehow managed to never play this game (or Oblivion or Morrowind). I've considered buying it (many times) but it just looks so boring to me. The combat looks about as deep as Minecraft, and I don't care about story in games. So I'm not sure what the appeal would be.

If it ever dropped to $10 maybe I'd consider it, but... probably not.

I mean...cool and all but a pass from me being a vanilla owner. $20 is waaaay to much for an upgrade to an old release of a very old game I've played multiple times. Can't justify it at all... especially since the whole package goes on sale on Playstation for like $10 bucks all the time.

So…$20 for Thomas the Tank Engine in Skyrim (and fishing and a ton of other stuff). I’ll say “maybe” as a placeholder until Zelda arrives.

My wife is a huge fan of this game, her favorite game and today is a little bit like Xmas morning.

While you don't have access to the full creation club/modding, there has been a graphical overhaul, new alchemy, cooking, foraging ingredients, fishing, and a bunch of new homes you can purchase and end-game quest-lines.

There's a lot of content and while it sucks to pay Todd for the 8th time for the same game, there is a lot to this 'Anniversary Edition'.

Just throwing that out there for those who are on the fence. You are getting a better Skyrim experience on hand-held with the update.

$70?? No way. Not gonna support that base cost. Especially because you just know Nintendo will be watching the initial sales numbers closely; they would love to launch Tears of the Kingdom / 2023 titles at $70 as well.

$20 for all the added content is actually a deal, for those who don't have it.

$70 for the full package is absolutely ludicrous though. Should be $50 max, compared to other console pricing and sales.

@Slowdive Thanks for the feedback. My question is... if I skip all dialogue and text reading... would you still say it is immersive and has interesting things to do?
For instance, I can fully enjoy Dark Souls without knowing anything about the characters, story, lore, etc. Would you say Skyrim is like that?

@sketchturner nonsense question, these are different type of games! Skyrim is heavy story based, ds has almost no story😂

@sonicbooming I recently started fresh and it’s now my all-time fave too. I’m enjoying the absolute hell out of it and waking up to this news really WAS like Christmas lol. These people complain too damn much, it’s hilarious how upset people get about things they don’t want or care about. Whatever, I’ll be enjoying this for a long time to come and continuing to not care what anyone thinks about it. Hope your wife has a blast!

@sketchturner I recently started fresh in Skyrim after lapsing for like a year. I used to be a reviewer/games writer and I’ve got a Switch backlog 900 + games deep and I love ‘em all. That said, Skyrim is my absolute all-time fave and I’m currently at about 150 hours in my replay. It’s immersive, it’s dense but not overwhelming, it’s epic, it’s gorgeous on Switch, and the freedom and atmosphere are second to none. Yeah, it’s 11 years old- but who cares? Greatness stays great, so ignore the internet complainers and trust me on this- if anything I said makes sense, just get it. I can’t imagine you’d been anything other than stoked.

VERY happy and satisfying to see continued support but I honestly don’t understand what I’m getting that’s new….
If I’m being completely serious, it sounds like it’s just fishing, extra spells (?), and I think mods?
I’m not sure that’s worth $20 especially if you’re not going to spend time fishing and you’re not a magic caster.

It’s sort of like a iPhone Pro Max Ultra thing.. like how am I supposed to see the value and differences if I don’t understand exactly what I’m paying (extra) for.

For folks that don’t own the game already, it’s an easy buy, but for someone who does already, it’s hard to understand what extras I’m getting exactly.

@sketchturner I'm i the same boat. Every time I see the combat in this game, with it's lack of feedback when attacking enemies and all-around clunkiness, I get entirely turned off. And the story and lore is absolutely grand, but it feels like if you weren't there for previous installments, then you will be completely lost or a lot of things will fly over your head.

I really don’t need another copy of Skyrim.

…

…

Cool glad it is separate DLC. I will get it on sale later.

Looking at the eshop (Canada) I'm not seeing the upgrade for sale... Just the nearly 100$ priced "Anniversary edition"

I'm glad we finally got the definitive Skyrim experience for Switch.

I'm surprised that they released this. The switch version already has so many stability issues I never expected to see Anniversary Edition.

£60 for Skyrim with a few mods attached? What an absolute joke, get it on PC for much less and download vastly superior mods for free

And of course, no VR option.

And still no Fallout games.

@carlos82 I agree. I'm glad we are finally getting some mods on switch, but the price feels just off.

I am sitting there last night (10:00pm) going “why the hell is Skyrim updating?”

For the extra $20 several years later and the extra content it is worth it.

Still waiting physical anniversary release.

I saw it this morning and before I knew it, it was purchased and downloaded

I didn't even have a chance to think, it just happened so fast.

@ChromaticDracula There's actually a ton of new content, including some pretty major quest lines, from what I understand. I found a really good (spoiler free) overview of the new content on YT if you're interested in the specifics. It's on a channel called "Heavy Burns," and can be found pretty easily by searching "heavy burns skyrim anniversary." I'm not associated with the channel or anything - just happened to find the video super informative and thought others might as well.

Without mod support it's a shallow experience.

@GreyFenyx hey thank you! This is exactly what I need to decide if I’ll upgrade. The base game is monstrous but I’ll never say no to more content for a game I like.
Thanks again ✌️

Finally, love the game on Switch and never had any issues with it. Looking forward to playing it again, the main question is whether to start again or carry on with my character that's finished the main quest lines 🤔 I have already purchased it (straight away after seeing this) but how much additional content and and quests are there?

@BloodNinja

When you look at the game from the perspective of re-purposing and re-releasing the same game for over 10 years, it's easy to see this as disappointing and even "too little, too late" that this content finally comes to Switch long after it released everywhere else.

However, I have yet to find a game that does what Skyrim does, especially on Switch. The Witcher 3 is fantastic, but nowhere as flexible and you always play the same person. Divinity: Original Sin II is quite similar in that you can have a unique character and race and make choices in the story, but lacks the immersive elements and freedom of Skyrim.

At the end of the day, one of the best open world sandbox games on Switch just got a butt load of content for just $20 more.

I get Bethesda is greedy for milking this poor old cow, but I'm selfish and I'll take good content with a smile when it comes on Switch.

@locky-mavo the frame rates always been terrible even on PS4 & Xbox one lol

Finally mods? I hope so. The could have announced it months ago so the certainty would be there.

I recently started playing the original base version for Switch. I can’t understand people saying it’s a buggy mess, with hard crashes, etc. I must be 60-70 hours in and haven’t encountered a single bug, crash or whatever. The only thing of note was the frame rate dipped dramatically for about 2 seconds whilst I was running towards a dragon last night. That’s it. Other than that, it’s been perfect. Seriously. Are we playing the same game?

I saw one person comment that the frame rate takes a significant hit after installing the Anniversary edition. Is this true? That would stop me buying it.

@locky-mavo To add more to this:

I roamed around the open map and couldn't find any new lag spots, so I tried the major cities instead.

Riften and Solitude were already the most laggy cities in the vanilla game across all platforms, but it's a little more noticeable now with the Anniversary Edition content. I didn't notice any lag in any other cities or any other areas I traveled so far, but the lag was worse when using an old save with 200+ hours versus a fresh character, which is expected in any Bethesda game.

It's not so bad you'll hit the attack button and completely miss your target because of lag, but it will probably be noticed by most compared to the locked 30 FPS everywhere else you go in the game. I don't have an FPS counter, but I'd guess it drops to about 20-ish in those two cities when I tested to give a better idea.

As @Would_you_kindly mentioned, Bethesda games aren't known for solid framerates, and it makes sense this would be most noticeable on the technically weakest version of the game.

I need the full version in physical copy, Bethesda!

Only just seen the price, wow.

70 dollars and people had the audacity to call out the TLOU remaster. This is the worse cash grab I've ever seen.

@BloodNinja Don't pity me, I have enough video games to play.

@BloodNinja Do you know what they say about making assumptions?

Also, it's "pitiable" to only own a Switch and no other console? Holy elitism Batman, just let people enjoy what brings them happiness without shaming them.

As it happens, I have Skyrim SE on Series X, PC, Switch, and Steam Deck. I mention this because I have spent hundreds, if not thousands of hours fiddling with mods on PC and XB, so I know that mods can make the game lots of fun, but I also know it can ruin the experience in the long run. You often end up spending more hours tinkering with load orders and hunting buggy mods than you do actually enjoying the game. This is never a problem with Vanilla Skyrim.

I had a lot of fun exploring and tinkering with mods, don't get me wrong, but at the end of the day, I often have the most rewarding experiences playing good old vanilla Skyrim on Switch.

Yeah, sorry, but I'm going to play the copy I already on on Steam on the Steam Deck. Screw paying 70 for the Switch or any other console port.

@UltimateOtaku91 To be fair, at least TES V isn't 9 hours long.

@bonjong23 Don't we all

@Silly_G that's not what the Creation Club stuff is. If you want a physical + DLC, any edition IS that. I know they sold the base release physical, I don't know if this upgrade has a corresponding physical rerelease. But the "DLC" is Hearthfire, Dawnguard, and Dragonborn. Those have been included for most editions since they all released. The CC, if you play any non-Steam (or PSVR) modern version of the game, the main menu has options to check out a mod menu (linked to a Bethesda account, containing free community mods) and the CC. The CC is just a second mod menu, however these are the Bethesda endorsed paid mods. The anniversary edition just takes a bunch of the better-regarded CC mods and gives them away - probably not worth the full price tag but it can be justified as an upgrade. Ghosts of the Tribunal and Saints & Seducers at some decent questline content, for example.

@RunninBlue I'm right with you. I played around 200hrs when it first released on Switch and don't remember any hard crashes. Just some of the standard Elder Scrolls jankiness. So I am confused by everyone claiming it's a broken mess that constantly crashes.

@BloodNinja

Elitism isn't buying things you enjoy because you can afford them or can budget to afford them.

Elitism is insisting others are "pitiable" because they enjoy what you consider to be beneath you.

@Astral-Grain I don't consider you beneath me. I consider the Switch subpar. Again, it's an opinion against Nintendo, not your person. You don't owe them anything and don't need to defend them. I didn't say anything about your person.

Been trying to play Skyrim for 10 years and get about an hour in..stop playing for a few years and restart and repeat... I just re-bought the damn game a month ago on switch so what the hell is that copy worth now.. Will the upgrade make me finally play it? Is it worth it to a newbie?

@BloodNinja No offense taken whatsoever.

I'm not defending anything other than allowing people to enjoy what they enjoy without being shamed by others. It doesn't matter if it's Switch, PSP, Dreamcast, or whatever - if people enjoy it, let them enjoy it.

If you don't wish to be viewed as an Elitist, then don't shame people for enjoying what you consider "sub-par".

@BloodNinja

Let me put this into perspective:

1. You strongly believe the Switch is a shameful console.
2. You frequent and comment a website made up of almost exclusively Switch owners, commenting the console is shameful.

Thank you for making it clear you're just here to troll. I wasn't sure for a minute there.

I didn't see anything about performance updates.

I have Skyrim for the Switch but I can't say it's my favorite way to play it. Portability was nice but it came with definite downsides.

And they can go away for trying to sell me fishing for 20 dollars no matter the console.

"If you haven't played Skyrim yet — and seriously, how have you managed that?"

Just never been even slightly interested. Kind of everything about it screams, "Not my thing."

@Astral-Grain
Ha! Are you kidding me? Then I just had everything lined up perfectly then. I used a previous save (although a new run) and just happened to be in Riften. It also changed my character’s skin colour on hands, tail (argonian) and briefly their back.

But I’ll happily start this run again if it means it’ll run better with a survival mode. Thanks for the heads up.

You’re finally awake! Oh wait, not you’re not, because you’re buying Skyrim again :/

(I totally bought the GOG version again so I’m making fun of myself here, but now it’s DRM free!)

I hope NL reviews this version, as I've heard of performance problems in handheld mode, which is how I usually play.

Never played Skyrim before, so this might be a good time to give it a go if it performs decently.

And what about those who bought the first edition on Switch, which theoretically came with everything? What are the specific differences in terms of content?

Oh cool. I might get the upgrade.

@locky-mavo yea i know right!? im someone who rarely will ever be able to tell the difference between 30 and 120fps but even i noticed the dip. image quality and draw distance too.

I still haven't played this but every time I'm at Walmart I almost purchase it for Switch, lol. Always been more of a Fallout fan and bought all those Day one (3 / 4 and New Vegas). Still wishing those would get ported to Switch finally. They've been whoring out Skyrim for years but if I want to play Fallout 3 or New Vegas I gotta fire up my PS3, lol. I guess Bethesda doesn't care about Fallout fans, lol.

@Silly_G Well, that's good to hear. I may consider getting it, then.

Asking here cos can't find an answer anywhere. Anyone have a problem where certain spells only cast in FP? I play in third person view mainly but can't cast transmute unless in first person.

@Slowdive the upgrade is 20€ on PS/Xbox as well. Games get cheaper over time that's a fact. Just wait until its 15€ on discount. It won't go lower or don't buy the upgrade its optional content/premium mods anyway. Don't make huge difference

@locky-mavo Well this is going to be awkward ...

I played a bit more last night with my 200+ hour character and I experienced 2 crashes in a period of maybe 3 hours, both times seemed to be triggered by survival mode.

I don't know much about the technical aspects of survival mode itself, but I can see it constantly checks the area you're in for the temperature and is constantly keeping track of diminishing and replenishing hunger, fatigue, and temp stats.

The other mods included don't have nearly as much scripting, and survival mode is the only mode that touches the entirety of the game due to it needing to keep track of temperatures in every single location. I think the scripting is just too much for Switch. I'm happy we can "disable" survival mode in the settings, but that doesn't actually disable the mod being loaded in the game, and it will still impact performance. We can't disable individual components, which is a shame.

TL;DR: With Anniversary Edition installed, I crashed 2 times in only about 3 hours, which is not normal. I wouldn't buy this on Switch as it is right now unless you are very patient.

@Astral-Grain Do you think it might be crashing b/c its messing with existing saves versus a fresh character/save?

@sonicbooming It's certainly possible, especially since I was using a character that explored the entire map and did most main quests. Still, the only reason I bought Anniversary Edition on Switch was to re-connect with old characters I had made and play through all the content with them and if I can't do that, this was a waste of money.

This brings me back to Fallout 3 on the PS3. The game was solid at launch without crashes. Then, they released the DLCs and the game became worse and worse. By the time they released all the DLC, it would crash just about every hour no matter where you were in the game. These things can be patched on PC, but consoles just get stuck in being broken.

It's almost like a Bethesda ritual that the final DLC of their games needs to introduce crashing/stuttering that ruins the whole game.

I know I'm being a bit of a downer, I'm sorry. I'm just disappointed.

Bethesda could have bundled fallout 3 with oblivion and morrowind but no.. instead they resell skyrim with crappy dlc for 70 bucks.