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[Pinko Marx]

For those complaining about the combat, JUST GO STEALTH. Slicing throats and backstabbing you skip a good 70% of fights.
And boy is it satisfying being an assassin.

 

[Atomski]

It has its issues sure.. but still a damned awesome game. Ive put like 80 hours already into one character.

 

[GenericUser]

no, skyrim is awesome

Spoiler

and i play the ps3 version

 

[EmCeeGramr]

For those complaining about the combat, JUST GO STEALTH. Slicing throats and backstabbing you skip a good 70% of fights.
And boy is it satisfying being an assassin.

It's sort of a problem if the reason you go stealth/archer is mostly because the regular combat is bad.

 

[Diprosalic]

it is without doubt one of the most overrated games in the brief history of videogames.

 

[Pinko Marx]

It's sort of a problem if the reason you go stealth/archer is mostly because the regular combat is bad.

I realize that. I just wanted to say how much fun going stealth is.

 

[Wallach]

Magic was way more entertaining for me. Stealth melee kills were cool but I don't care for the bow still.

 

[Muffdraul]

My wife loves Elder Scrolls... just watching her play one for five minutes is enough to make me want to slit my wrists.

 

[Atomski]

Magic was way more entertaining for me. Stealth melee kills were cool but I don't care for the bow still.

Bow is my favorite weapon.. makes everytghing a bit easy though.

My wife loves Elder Scrolls... just watching her play one for five minutes is enough to make me want to slit my wrists.

.... if shes enjoying it why do you care?

 

[Augemitbutter]

i gave up when the dark brotherhood glitched on me and nobody could help me.

the combat is so damn dull too.

 

[semiconscious]

I like Skyrim, but I don't really understand all the GOTY awards for it. It's quite ambitious, but I don't think it does any one thing particularly well except that the scope of the environment is impressive, and it's fun being in that world. But when it comes to the actual gameplay, I don't care for it too much. The combat is really bad. Enemies just rush you. There's almost no substance there. I can't really get past this point. I think Fallout 3 with VATS definitely had better combat. I like traversing the dungeons but dislike the loot system. I've died, gone back into a dungeon, and gotten different loot from the same treasure chests. I'm not a big fan of that. I can tell that the game is adjusting itself and its loot to how I've been playing. I guess that should be a good thing, but I feel like I can do no wrong, and it makes my experience feel kind of aimless. I also don't care about the story or dialogue at all, so that's not really keeping me going. Fallout 3 is a similar type of game and that resonated with me a lot more. Maybe I just like exploring a post-apocalyptic world more than a fantasy one.

you've answered your own question: those 2 points = popularity. big, entertaining, & not particularly challenging...

It's sort of a problem if the reason you go stealth/archer is mostly because the regular combat is bad.

agreed. but it definitely fixes things ...

 

[Nakimushi]

Credits are available from the main screen. You don't have to do anything to get them.

so how do you know that main story is complete ?

 

[Kuran]

Why did they hype that whole 'each village has its own economy' so much?

I have stopped playing Skyrim, although after a 100 hours I never noticed this system.. could anyone shed some light on if there really was such a system?

They made it seem as processing the trees was a dynamic act, whilst it just seemed like a looping animation to me..

And yes, the dragons in this game were the biggest disappointment. All they needed to do was copy Monster Hunter's dragons in weight, threat and uniqueness..

 

[bigwinnerx]

Came in hoping the OP had worked himself into a ban. That's too bad.

 

[JWong]

i gave up when the dark brotherhood glitched on me and nobody could help me.

the combat is so damn dull too.

I gave up when The Companions quest glitched on me.

I agree the combat is still dumb. Melee still needs work, but it's be alleviated by making magic better and adding shouts.

 

[Steaks]

so how do you know that main story is complete ?

Because the story resolves?

 

[Wallach]

Why did they hype that whole 'each village has its own economy' so much?

I have stopped playing Skyrim, although after a 100 hours I never noticed this system.. could anyone shed some light on if there really was such a system?

They made it seem as processing the trees was a dynamic act, whilst it just seemed like a looping animation to me..

And yes, the dragons in this game were the biggest disappointment. All they needed to do was copy Monster Hunter's dragons in weight, threat and uniqueness..

I didn't delve too deep into the math of it, but there is obviously some kind of player influence that goes on with the vendors. I don't know if it was actually town-specific, though. The weird thing about it is that the value of the items changes as the player gains the items, rather than sells them; if you sit and craft a ton of a particular item, you can literally watch the individual item value drop as the stack gets higher.

 

[maquiladora]

gaf hates everything

 

[Mindman]

Since I can't make new topics, someone want to make this into a new topic?

1.4 PATCH RELEASE NOTES (http://www.bethblog.com/2012/01/19/news-on-the-creation-kit-and-game-updates/)

It’s been a few weeks since our last update on Skyrim’s status, so we wanted to share details on what we’re working on.

The Creation Kit and Steam Workshop are nearly ready. We’re currently working with members of Valve and our modding community to do some final testing, and we’re on track for a public release near the end of the month. We think Skyrim modding is one of the game’s best features, and we have the best modders of any game. It’s been a lot of exciting work for us, and we can’t wait to unleash it.

Skyrim’s 1.4 update is currently undergoing testing on all three platforms. The update will include fixes and optimizations for the most common issues people have been reporting (see below). We’re hoping to finalize this next week, and submit it to the console manufacturers for certification, as well as release on PC.

Our current update plan for the PC is to first release our updates as “beta” versions through Steam. This is something you’ll be able to opt into through Steam and back-out of if needed. This is an extra safety check for everyone going forward and should expedite and improve our updating process for our PC users. We’ll have more info soon on how this will work.

Echoing what we said back in December, we’ll continue to look into issues that are being reported and subsequent updates will follow. You have all supported Skyrim in a huge way, and we’ll be supporting all of you, and continue to make the game better.

After the break, check out the current changelog for 1.4.

Current 1.4 Changelog (all platforms unless noted)

NEW FEATURES

Skyrim launcher support for Steam Workshop (PC)

BUG FIXES

General optimizations for memory and performance
Fixed occasional issue with armor and clothing not displaying properly when placed on mannequin’s in player’s house. (PS3)
Improved compiler optimization settings (PC)
Long term play optimizations for memory and performance (PS3)
Memory optimizations related to scripting
Fixed crashes related to pathing and AI
Fixed crash in Haemar’s Shame if player had already completed “A Daedra’s Best Friend”
Fixed rare crash with loading saved games
Fixed issue with accented characters not displaying properly at the end of a line
Master Criminal achievement/trophy unlocks properly in French, German, Spanish and Italian
Fixed issue where dragon priest masks would not render correctly
Fixed issue where quests would incorrectly progress after reloading a save
Fixed issues with placing and removing books from bookshelves in the player’s home
Fixed issue where weapon racks and plaques would not work correctly in player’s house if player immediately visits their house before purchasing any furnishing.
Fixed issue where the player house in Windhelm would not clean up properly
Fixed crash related to giant attacks and absorb spells
Fixed issue with ash piles not cleaning up properly
Fixed occasional issue where overwriting an existing save would fail
Fixed memory crash with container menu
Fixed infinite loop with bookshelves
Fixed issue where traps in Shalidor’s Maze would not work properly in French, German, Spanish and Italian versions
Fixed issue where transforming back to human from werewolf would occasionally not fail
Bows and daggers will display properly when placed on weapon racks

QUEST FIXES

The Unusual Gem inside the Thalmor Embassy is now accessible after finishing “Diplomatic Immunity”
In “Breaching Security”, the quest token is no longer required to receive a fortune reading from Olava the Feeble
Fixed issue where Galmar would not complete Joining the Stormcloaks properly if “Season Unending” was an active quest
Fixed issue where starting “Season Unending” after finishing “Joining the Stormcloaks” would prevent “The Jagged Crown” from starting properly.
Fixed issue progressing through “Message to Whiterun” while “Season Unending” was still open would block progression for both quests.
In “Arniel’s Endeavor”, fixed issue where a quest journal would trigger multiple times
In “Forbidden Legend”, the amulet fragment can no longer disappear after player leaves a dungeon without taking it
Fixed rare issue in “Forbidden Legend” where killing Mikrul Gauldurson while sneaking would make his corpose unaccessible
In “The White Phial”, the phial can no longer disappear if player leaves dungeon without taking it
“The White Phial” will now start properly if player already has a briar heart in their inventory
Player can no longer get stuck in Misty Grove after completing “A Night to Remember”
Fixed issue where leaving Riften during “A Chance Arrangement” would prevent quest from progressing
In “Darkness Returns”, a door in Twilight Sepulcher will properly open if the player leaves the dungeon for an extended period of time before completing the quest
In “Under New Management”, if the player leaves the Oculory for an extended period of time after placing the focusing crystal and returns, the quest will proceed correctly
“Onmund’s Request” will now start properly if player has already found Enthir’s staff before receiving this quest
Fixed instance where Tonilia would stop buying stolen items and also would not give Guild Leader Armor
“Repairing the Phial” will start properly if player already has unmelting snow or mammoth tusk in their inventory
Finding Pantea’s Flute before speaking with Pantea no longer prevents her quest from updating
In “The Coming of the Dawn”, fixed rare instance where a quest object would spawn incorrectly on the Katariah during Hail Sithis
Fixed rare issue in “The Mind of Madness” where player is unable to equip the Wabbajack
Fixed issue in “Pieces of the Past” where Mehrunes Dagon’s Razor will not trigger properly if player leaves the cell for extended period of time before activating it
“Blood’s Honor” will start properly if you visited and completed Driftshade and an extended period of time passes before starting the quest.
Fixed rare issue where “Dampened Spirits” would not start properly
Fixed issue where player would be unable to become Thane of Riften if they purchased a home first
Fixed issue where killing guards in Cidhna Mine woud block progression for “No One Escapes Cidhna Mine”
Fixed numerous issues with “Blood on the Ice” not triggering properly
In “Blood on the Ice”, Calixto can now be killed if player owns a house in Windhelm
In “The Cure for Madness”, killing Cicero then resurrecting him no longer impedes quest progress
Fixed rare issue in “To Kill an Empire” where an NPC would fail to die properly
Clearing Knifepoint Ridge before starting “Boethiah’s Champion” no longer prevents quest from starting.

 

[Jake Tower]

I'm a huge Elder Scrolls fan . . . and I generally agree with the OP. I still love Skyrim, and have over 150 hours with the game, but I feel the potential of the game, even without changing engines, was not lived up to. I could list the issues I have with the game, but I think they've been covered in this and other threads already.

By the way, I'm pretty sure the "new" engine is just a modified Gamebryo, since all the old problems still manifest themselves. The only added feature I can see is improved streaming in the world-space (no "loading hitches" while exploring the wilderness).

As has been said many, many times, the real potential of Elder Scrolls games comes with the mods, and I'll be getting the PC version (initially played on Xbox) for that specific purpose.

 

[walking fiend]

[with regard to 1.4 patch]

it seens I was plagued with the 'rare' crash after loading saved games bug some point in the game, which I, out my luck, had some difficulty (the part where I mentioned I had to reload a lot because Lydia would die by farlems), is fixed. I think the game crashed like 20 times on me then.

However,
- Esbern voiceless issue is not mentioned to be fixed
- I don't know when it happened, but it's a long time that my character has become invisible, duh...
- The problem I had in in activating the lexicon quest and its directions on the map, seems not addressed.

I am also not sure if the problematic path finding, and also the failed animations (such as characters getting in your way when having dialogues with others, or the one you are trying to speak to not being able to stand in front of you) will ever get fixed.

 

[Nakimushi]

Because the story resolves?

after 40hrs of reading i start skipping most of the dialougs ;(

 

[Muffdraul]

.... if shes enjoying it why do you care?

I don't. If she wants to live in misery, that's her business.

 

[walking fiend]

By the way, I'm pretty sure the "new" engine is just a modified Gamebryo, since all the old problems still manifest themselves. The only added feature I can see is improved streaming in the world-space (no "loading hitches" while exploring the wilderness).
.

One of the skills that I really miss from Oblivion is athletics (and also acrobatics); so since I couldn't run as much as I liked, I enabled a cheat last week which increased movement speed (to get to explore the map to my heart content for the last time), and I can say there is still that load hiccup, however it's just that they have improved it quite considerable not to make a problem in the normal course of the game. (just to say that I also believe it is still the same engine)

 

[Kud Dukan]

For those complaining about the combat, JUST GO STEALTH. Slicing throats and backstabbing you skip a good 70% of fights.
And boy is it satisfying being an assassin.

I second this. Clearing out dungeons with stealth, without being seen, is really satisfying.

 

[Nakimushi]

agree about stealth combat .... most of the time I was walking in stealth with my bow and perks giving extra damage if u are invisible _
one arrow = one kill for normal enemies

 

[kitzkozan]

It bothers me a lot that they did so much better with unique loot in Fallout 3 than they did Skyrim. I mean if you are going to learn any lesson from Fallout 3 going into Skyrim, why not that one? Argh.

They should be well past the point of learning lessons, after 5 Elder scroll games. The thing is: they just aren't talented, but that's been true for years. Thus why you will always have plenty of complaints directed toward them, but it also make sense for them to make these massive game.

I'm sure they would churn out an awful product otherwise, as they lack the skills to pull off a more focused game like Dark souls/demon's. If you break it down, they are mediocre or average in nearly every aspect of game design...

 

[Jake Tower]

One of the skills that I really miss from Oblivion is athletics (and also acrobatics); so since I couldn't run as much as I liked, I enabled a cheat last week which increased movement speed (to get to explore the map to my heart content for the last time), and I can say there is still that load hiccup, however it's just that they have improved it quite considerable not to make a problem in the normal course of the game. (just to say that I also believe it is still the same engine)

Ah, they "masked" it by not allowing the player to normally increase his movement speed. Interesting.

Although, I'm pretty sure the "hitch" isn't there when riding a horse, which is faster than normal speed...

 

[bigdaddygamebot]

I realize that. I just wanted to say how much fun going stealth is.

You're also kindof pointing out that avoiding "70% of the fights" equates to fun...

: /

 

[strem]

Some Val points here. Yet tonight when I get home I'll start on my 80th hour of play

 

[EmCeeGramr]

Fixed issue where player would be unable to become Thane of Riften if
they purchased a home first

Fixed numerous issues with “Blood on the Ice” not triggering properly
In “Blood on the Ice”, Calixto can now be killed if player owns a house in Windhelm

Finally.

 

[Christine]

after 40hrs of reading i start skipping most of the dialougs ;(

Have you completed the MQ? I know that some people felt that the way the game just keeps going didn't provide them with closure, but it's hard to imagine missing it entirely.

agree about stealth combat .... most of the time I was walking in stealth with my bow and perks giving extra damage if u are invisible _
one arrow = one kill for normal enemies

Don't level up too high, though, or enemies who have no idea that you're even there will start matrix-dodging your arrows.

 

[cilonen]

So, how do most people play this? I try to immerse my character in the world and actually invest some effort in roleplaying. If you just use the quest journal to zip from one place to another and tick off the next item on the list then yes I can see how it could be disappointing.

Melee combat does indeed suck, destruction magic too to a certain extent. Bow sniping is fairly fun, especially with eagle eye and bullet time perks, stealth backstabbing assassinations are pure gold.

The world feels way more 'hand-crafted' this time round, Oblivion was really really dull (and the Oblivion gates eventually drove me to quit, they sucked badly). The cities actually feel like communities, something thats handled way better than New Vegas whose communities absolutely blew - none of them had more than three or four people worth talking to, hell, in none of my playthroughs did anyone ever leave the Vicki and Vance in Primm no matter what I did and Nipton may as well have had a welcome sign that read 'we couldn't be assed to write any NPC dialogue here, enjoy the pointless ghost town, love Obsidian xx'.

I agree with a lot of the niggles mentioned, level scaling especially but I guess whether they ruin the experience for you is a very subjective thing. I think it bodes really well for Fallout 4 as long as Obsidian aren't allowed anywhere near it.

 

[SRTtoZ]

The only issue that I have with the game is the loot! Its so boring and repetitive and after you buy the big house in Solitude and craft all your weps/armor there is NOTHING to use your money on! At least in Dragon Age they had these super rare weps that cost an arm and a leg, I would have appreciated something like that in Skyrim.

 

[Omotesando]

Skyrim is like an MMO without the endgame content or pvp, nor the mutiplayer aspect. It is grinding alone, it definitely attracts a certain crowd. I thought it was fun for the first 15 hours or so.

 

[LowEndTorque]

Everything in the OP is true.

The best thing about Skyrim really is the scenery. It's an amazing, beautifully crafted open world. Probably the nicest open world I've ever seen in an open world game.

The rest of the game (especially the "game" parts like combat, gameplay etc.) are kinda awful. For me, once I started to see past the beauty and scenery of the world, what I found underneath was a really mediocre and boring game.

 

[Yopis]

Game is better with difficulty turned up. Default is way to easy that's my only real gripe and a few glitches here and there.

 

[Wallach]

The best thing about Skyrim really is the scenery. It's an amazing, beautifully crafted open world. Probably the nicest open world I've ever seen in an open world game.

It's pretty amazing. They're just better at it than anyone, though I suppose they should be by now; it's the one thing I wish Obsidian would have looked at harder when making F:NV. I hate the physical construction of F:NV overworld.

 

[sp3000]

Will someone tell me which quests are actually good in this game. At the minimum of the Oblivion Brotherhood quests is what I'm talking about.

I did some of the mages guild and they were quite boring. I haven't even bothered with the main quest because it's seems to involve following some random person around.

I have played about 20 hours and so far it's a lot less fun than Oblivion with mods. I feel like I wasted 60 on this and should have waited until the Creation Kit was out.

I had all those complaints about Skyrim.

Then I went up to Bard's Leap Summit, took in the view, and just forgot about all that stuff.

80 hours in.

If I wanted to take in graphics, then I would play Crysis. Which has vistas that look 10 times better than anything Bethesda has ever made. I play TES games for their gameplay, which is pretty crappy in Skyrim to be honest.


I can't get how anyone who played Oblivion with mods actually thinks Skyrim is better.

 

[Piercedveil]

I'm glad it's "overrated." I'd much rather hear people talking about Skyrim instead of Call of Duty for a change. They definitely did a lot right with this TES game, but of course there is a lot of room for improvements as well, so I understand what you're saying.

 

[walking fiend]

Ah, they "masked" it by not allowing the player to normally increase his movement speed. Interesting.

Although, I'm pretty sure the "hitch" isn't there when riding a horse, which is faster than normal speed...

Yes, I believe I increased the speed by 400% for it to happen; I didn't mean to imply athletics is missing because of this. Just wanted to implicitly complain about its being missing too

---
and oh, you must be lucky having your membership approved very fast I presume!

 

[Pirabear]

I'm also part of the "Loved the first 20-hours, but burned out really quickly" crew. Completed thieves guild, the magic college, and some other miscellaneous quest but don't really feel like doing much else. Are Elder Scrolls modders really as godly as people say? I might jump in again shortly after the development tools release.

 

[walking fiend]

Game is better with difficulty turned up. Default is way to easy that's my only real gripe and a few glitches here and there.

I just checked the game and the difficulty was set to master (I couldn't really remember how high a difficulty I had set it when started the game, but it is the hardest); so what ever the problem with combat, it is still at highest difficulty as well, maybe only worse at lower difficulties.

 

[sp3000]

Also Bethesda sucks at character development more than any other developer. I honestly care more about Captain Price and his band of dudebros more than any random NPC in most of Bethesda game's, which is saying something.

 

[walking fiend]

Will someone tell me which quests are actually good in this game. At the minimum of the Oblivion Brotherhood quests is what I'm talking about

I would say for starting the game, the main quest is surprisingly not bad: it lets you see most of the map and some areas that you travel during your quest are among the best (ascending and descending the grey beards mountain was truly an amazing experience; and black reach is really glamorous and makes you really adore the architecture)

 

[Jake Tower]

Yes, I believe I increased the speed by 400% for it to happen; I didn't mean to imply athletics is missing because of this. Just wanted to implicitly complain about its being missing too

Oh so you were running around Boots of Blinding Speed style and hitting the 'walls' of the cells.

---
and oh, you must be lucky having your membership approved very fast I presume!

Yeah, faster than I thought possible, since I had applied under a different username and email three years ago without hearing anything.

 

[BioHazard]

Oh jeez, is Skyrim going to be given the Mass Effect 2 GAF treatment?

Launch: OH GOD THIS IS THE GAME WE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR FOREVER *wins all the GOTY awards*

Months later: ehh such an unoriginal, boring, watered-down, non-innovative game, really overrated

 

[JWong]

I realize that. I just wanted to say how much fun going stealth is.

Yeah, that's how I played my game. Stealth + Bow + Invisibility. Literally breaks game balance just like it did in Oblivion.

 

[EmCeeGramr]

Oh jeez, is Skyrim going to be given the Mass Effect 2 GAF treatment?

Launch: OH GOD THIS IS THE GAME WE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR FOREVER *wins all the GOTY awards*

Months later: ehh such an unoriginal, boring, watered-down, non-innovative game, really overrated

You're right, those aren't two completely different groups of people, and therefore anybody who criticizes a popular game must be a hypocrite.

 

[walking fiend]

Oh so you were running around Boots of Blinding Speed style and hitting the 'walls' of the cells.

Yeah, faster than I thought possible, since I had applied under a different username and email three years ago without hearing anything.

Yes, the idea came to me after the

Spoiler

Odahviing

told me that I would envy the dov so much more after flying with him and seeing the Skyrim through the eyes of a dragon. I was so thrilled, I mean like a child thrilled, because I though I would be able to see the Skyrim while flying over it with him... well, I had set my hopes too high and that didn't happen. This was so big a disappointment that I stopped playing after this. At least you didn't have to tell me this, to set my hopes high!!!

However, it gave me the idea to see if there was a flying cheat available:
player.setav speedmulti 400%
tcl

(However, I wasn't really successful, as the mentioned hiccup somehow deteriorated the experience. Also, it was too mechanical as the speed was too constant; while I expect riding a dragon to have a dynamic speed and feeling to it, experiencing barrel roles and air holes)

Just imagine how epic it would be if they allowed you to actually experience skyrim landscapes while riding upon a dragon, being a dragoon! Stuff like these are also why I call it a wasted potential.

---
and oh, lucky to be you

Yeah, that's how I played my game. Stealth + Bow + Invisibility. Literally breaks game balance just like it did in Oblivion.

Maybe my archery and sneak skills are too underdeveloped, but even with stealth and at lvl 15, I have to use several arrows to kill a farlem; it could of course be because of the difficulty level as well.