LoathsomePete

So I've decided to hold off until Christmas when it's not competing with school for my attention. To compensate I started up a new game of Fallout 3 which is kind of a nostalgic trip to three years ago. However I hit a point today in my 25th hour of play that I really didn't want to play it again. It's funny cause I hit this same point a few years ago when I first got it, same with Fallout: New Vegas and Oblivion. I dunno there's just something about Bethesda games that tires me out after awhile, but I can't say what that is. I mean I loved every moment of the game prior to that. It's like a time limit is reached and my brain is like "something else please". I'm wondering if anyone else experiences this kind of fatigue and if Skyrim has that same effect.

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RVCA

I got tired of Oblivion because it didn't feel like I was progressing. Enemies scale up in difficulty along with you, and you can just modify the difficulty if you're having trouble... for an RPG, Elder Scrolls games seriously lack the typical "kill epic boss after long and difficult fight, achieve sweet loot and decimate everything in your path" element

Freebase Dali

I experience that after multiple playthroughs. There's a certain point where you just can't reproduce the same feeling of exploration and wondering what will happen, when you already know what will transpire.
Fortunately for me and anyone else that plays Bethesda games on PC, the mods can really add another dimension to the game that promotes replayability in a big way.
As far as Skyrim, I'm only on my first playthrough so I haven't noticed any sort of burnout, but I have noticed that I'm exploring less and trying to finish quests more, which is something I tend to do in Bethesda games, so it's just a matter of me slowing down and playing a little less often.

Another aspect I've noticed with Bethesda games is when you start to level up and get pretty powerful, it's fun at first, but becomes rote after a while if you're not being challenged. One thing I love about Skyrim is that you can change the difficulty settings on the fly, at any time. I've found the best use of that is to start on an easier difficulty and slowly raise it as you progress, as it keeps you needing to improve your armor, weaponry and skills, without being utterly discouraging from the outset.
I don't know about most other folks, but for me, leveling my character is a big part of the allure. That's to say, if I were to use a console command to become invincible, the entire game would be ruined for me.

If I had any regrets about Skyrim (it's my first Elder Scrolls game) it would be that there really isn't much of an importance on moral choices or sides you take, apart from the main concept of why Skyrim is troubled. Or, at least, there doesn't seem to be, so far. It's as though you can really do any quest, regardless of how good or evil they may seem, and not really affect anything else. If there's one thing I loved about New Vegas, it was that your choices had far-reaching consequences, which made your re-plays so much more valid as a unique experience.
I could be wrong about Skyrim, as I haven't finished my first playthrough yet, but that just doesn't seem to be the case with this game.

As a consequence of that, I feel like most of the replay value of Skyrim is in character creation and fighting style, which is very deep.
So, depending on what you place your importance in, you may or may not be disappointed with Skyrim after your first playthrough.

I've still yet to find that out myself.

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LoathsomePete

With Fallout 3, my first Bethesda RPG, I found myself restarting my game a lot at first. I think I made it half way through my first run through, something like 17 hours put in I decided I didn't like my build and wanted to start over from the beginning, which I then promptly rest as I found I didn't like that build as much either. In each additional run through I found myself less in aw at the experience around me, at least compared to my first run through which was really something. In those 17 hours I had an experience I hardly have with video games, but with each additional game I found myself less in aw and started noticing the glitches and scuff marks.

Didn't have the same experience with Oblivion though, but I felt the freedom in that game was greater and I loved riding around on horses. I think that's it, I could get around at a reasonable pace in Oblivion to make the fast travel system unnecessary, but in Fallout 3 getting around could be a real chore, especially if you were in D.C. You kept on seeing these discarded motorbikes that didn't look in bad wear and thinking "Man how awesome would it be to be riding around in the wastes on a bike, attacking Raiders with a flaming sword." After the first run through of Fallout 3 I really found myself less enthusiastic about the journeying and exploring because you had seen it all before.

I think I will give Skyrim the benefit of the doubt here and pick it up regardless of whether or not I think I'll give up on it tomorrow.

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Freebase Dali

Well, you'll definitely enjoy the scenery while traveling horseback in Skyrim.

The worst thing about horses in Skyrim, though, is that they have a tendency to just wander off when you dismount. And you have to dismount to harvest, loot, or protect yourself. And they don't really run much faster than you can on foot.
For me, horses are just an added complication. I guess that would be OK if there was a way to actually address some of the issues, particularly being able to tie your horse up somewhere, like to a tree or something, so he doesn't run off on you and you end up spending the rest of the day trying to find him.

I just abandoned my horse after all the retardedness with him.

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anticipation

Is it just me, or is Skyrim built towards hack-and-slash, heavily one-handed weapon + shield gameplay for the first 20 or so levels? Starting out as anything but a "Warrior" type is incredible difficult, almost impossible I'd venture to say because the spells you start out with/have access to early on in the game are absolute shit, your mana is super low, and enemies are somewhat resistant to magic in the beginning. However, I'm easily able to dispatch basically any enemy I come across with a mace and an iron shield, making me wonder if there is a viable way of starting the game as anything but primarily a melee character and then developing yourself into something else.

Dr_Rez

You should really play Morrowind then. While the graphics are obviously behind from the 2001 years the game is much larger with much more to do and decisions that fall on you as a player not a preset character progression.

Mods are simply what makes their games the best. If you have beaten it or bored you can get literally anything to add to the game. If you get the construction set (not sure if its for skyrim but def oblivion and morrowind) its not hard to change any aspect of the gameplay or game laws.


I do respectfully disagree here. With the exception of the main quest the entire game can be played how you would like. Without ruining anything story-wise I can tell you that the Imperials and Stormcloaks are in a civil war. Each elder scroll game has always had similar circumstances where you pick a side and change the outcome of everything. Not to mention the many houses and factions that intertwine story-wise making playing each one impossible.


While Iv only played Skyrim for like 9 or so hours I have played tons of Oblivion and Morrowind. And while every aspect of the gameplay has gotten wayyyy better each game its still been dumbed down significantly to fit a bigger audience. If you wish their was more to chose that made your game play an individual one play Morrowind. Its honestly my favorite game of all time. One thing about Bethesda, what other game has hundreds if not thousands of in game books that you can actually read? Now that is called attention to detail. Sorry for the long response but this game/franchise deserves it!


ps @Pete They ganked the amazing killscenes right out of fallout. So gruesome and bloody, its great.

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Guybrush

I liked that the game was a bit hard at first (playing on normal). I developed a method for killing bears and sabre tooth tigres; try and keep a tree behind you and them, then fire off arrows in their asses when you get the chance and have patience. There were situations I had to play through many times before I finally managed to beat the baddies, but that's kinda fun too.

I don't do that anymore; at level 30-something, there's little that can really stand in my way. But that gives me a feeling of progression. I do not miss the horrible world scaling of Oblivion where monsters would go up a level along with you. That was one of the worst ideas ever!

edit :

To those who have started a Bethesda game several times over because they didn't like their builds, I've done that too with Morrowind and Oblivion. The latter, I had many hours into when I noticed there was a problem. I believe the world scaling there makes it so that monsters, when they level up, tend to increase their fighting related skills. So, if you raise levels on tradeskills, that makes the game progressively harder. That made me restart the game the last time and I picked a more fighter kind of character and had a very fun playthrough.

And are you guys siding with the Stormcloaks or the Empire? With my character, and also considering he's a redguard, the best way to ensure peace in Skyrim seems to be to side with the Empire.

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Dr_Rez

Stormcloak all day everyday.

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*Always Checks Credentials Crew*
*nba > nfl crew*
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Guybrush

I haven't taken a side yet, really, but I plan on doing that very soon. I'm currently at level 38! I got some quick levels lately when focusing more on smithing, enchanting and alchemy.

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