GI Hub Update, UI #2 : V - Skyrim

» Sat May 28, 2011 6:07 pm

But what if I'm not playing as a strict warrior/mage/thief and I'm leveling up all skills and mixing perks?

Then that makes you a battlemage or battle-stealth-mage or battle-stealth. If you want to mix perks then it's completely fine.

» Sat May 28, 2011 12:38 pm

im not seeing the UI update. is it on the same wall as the other updates?

» Sat May 28, 2011 1:39 pm

I just had a thought. When you push the button to pull up the menu compass, is it just a compass or is there something there actually worth looking at? Like, I don't know, attributes, your level or other such info?

» Sat May 28, 2011 11:27 am

I think most of you need to chill out and quit thinking your assumptions are fact.

Anyway, if this is GI's last article I'll be disappointed. The way they've been handling these HUB updates is laughable. Over the course of the month we have what, 2 hi-res screenshots? And one of them you can't even get to directly from their site? Please. And just like the previous HUB updates, we've read most of this information already in the magazine.

» Sat May 28, 2011 5:50 pm

the one thing that bothered me most was

Pressing down in the compass menu pulls the camera perspective backward to reveal a huge topographical map of Skyrim. Here players can zoom around to explore the mountain peaks, valley streams, and snowy tundras that populate the northern lands. Pulling the camera as far away as possible gives you a great respect for the size of the game world. From the map view players can manage quest icons, plan their travel route, or access fast travel.

So this means you can explore the entire world of skyrim in detail with actually exploring it? Instead of thinking "hm, I wonder what's over those mountains. I should hike over there and check it out!" we get to think "I wonder what's over those mountains. Let me take a second to look at my extraordinarily detailed map and see the exact topography!" And before the inevitable "it's option, you don't have to look at the places"; I can ignore fast travel, I can ignore broken aspects of the game, but I cannot ignore the map. I'm sorry if I sound grumpy right now, but half of the reason I still play TES games is for exploration, and this seems to be saying they're essentially removing that from the game (not entirely removing, but you get what I mean).

» Sat May 28, 2011 5:42 pm

im not seeing the UI update. is it on the same wall as the other updates?

Doesn't appear to be on the hub yet, but here's a http://www.gameinformer.com/games/the_elder_scrolls_v_skyrim/b/xbox360/archive/2011/01/28/skyrim-menu-system-overhaul.aspx.

» Sat May 28, 2011 11:28 am

That literally isn't the night sky <_< You won't go out at night and look at the sky and there is the mage nebula and a few constellations based on your perks. It's a symbolic night sky, not a literal night sky.

Every time players rank up their overall level, they can choose a supplemental perk ability for one of the 18 skills. For instance, if you fight most of your battles with a mace, you may want to choose the perk that allows you to ignore armor while using the weapon. As in Fallout 3, several of the perks have their own leveling system as well, allowing you to choose them multiple times. Once you choose a perk, it lights up the corresponding star in the constellation, making it visible when looking up to the heavens while interacting in the world.

This implies it is the actual night sky. At the very least the perk stars will show up 'while interacting in the world'.

» Sat May 28, 2011 9:50 pm

I highly doubt that. This is promotion, not even pseudo-objective journalism.

....

I didn't even see anything in there that was like "OH WOW YOU LOOK AT THE STARS SO COOL BUY SKYRIM"

It was simply that your character looks into the sky (they do), the nebulae are the skill umbrelas, and the constellations are the skills, and each star is a perk. That's exactly what it is (you can tell from the screenshot), and that's exactly what they said.

What's SO hard to believe about that? What's being blown out of proportion here?

» Sat May 28, 2011 12:19 pm

I highly doubt that. This is promotion, not even pseudo-objective journalism.

:lmao: Every sentence I read, I imagined Bethesda PR suits glaring over the journalist shoulder. "What do you mean, 'sounds cool' ? You mean 'it's a synergic breakthrough in a genre Bethesda has already taken beyond its limits'"

» Sun May 29, 2011 12:10 am

Can you please edit into the OP that they are not getting rid of all birthsigns but 3. It clearly states in the article there are 3 nebulae and each nebulae has multiple constellations in it...

» Sat May 28, 2011 12:38 pm

It would basically mean they're tearing out the RPG elements and making it purely action adventure. Not saying they are. Just explaining.

Oh I wasn't attacking you, I was just saying even if it WAS that, it still wouldn't fit. Sorry if it seemed I was attacking you. I'm just trying to explain to people that because the game is getting a more brutal, engaging combat system doesn't mean it loses it's RPG aspects. I still haven't seen any aspects that are universal to RPGs being removed. RPGs are about being able to create your own character the way you want, something that Skyrim expands on further (from what we've seen) than any other game, perhaps even Daggerfall.

» Sat May 28, 2011 10:25 pm

That's a pretty weak reason to not buy a game because you have to press ONE more button. It's just selfish to ask the devs to take time to rewrite the menu system instead of working on a different aspect of the game so you only have to press one button to get to the part of the menu you want instead of two. I never had any issue with the menu on the 360 version or the PC version but now I'm starting to get an idea of why so many people had a problem with the menu, because they are lazy. If two buttons is too much for you to press to get to your map, that's.... I'm just going to stop now before I get into flaming.

The nebula/constellation that appears is the one of the skill your currently looking at if you notice on the menu screenshot. So if your on two handed weapon it will probably show the warrior. Also if your leveling up all skills with the new system you probably won't have many perks and your not going to be well off while playing the game, I foresee lots of dying lol. The point of the new system is that you can level any skills you want but trying to level all the skills is going to gimp you.

This. I will judge when I play it and when I do I plan on pressing a [censored] load of buttons.

» Sat May 28, 2011 4:39 pm

The menu system sound cool, exiting and even fun!
The inventory menu where you are able to look your items and rotate them
sounds like a interesting time sink, just like Howard said.

But the menu also sounds very console based.
Maybe I should buy a new TV instead of new PC.
But then theres mods... :confused:

» Sat May 28, 2011 3:53 pm

Everytime I want to use a potion I have to go into the menu now. No hotkeys? What's going on? What happened?

» Sat May 28, 2011 11:25 am

I hope not all perks in Skyrim are directly tied to skills...

» Sat May 28, 2011 9:34 am

the one thing that bothered me most was

So this means you can explore the entire world of skyrim in detail with actually exploring it? Instead of thinking "hm, I wonder what's over those mountains. I should hike over there and check it out!" we get to think "I wonder what's over those mountains. Let me take a second to look at my extraordinarily detailed map and see the exact topography!" And before the inevitable "it's option, you don't have to look at the places"; I can ignore fast travel, I can ignore broken aspects of the game, but I cannot ignore the map. I'm sorry if I sound grumpy right now, but half of the reason I still play TES games is for exploration, and this seems to be saying they're essentially removing that from the game (not entirely removing, but you get what I mean).

That sounds very annoying, I hope they only give a base view in 3D, like you go into said mountains and discover a dwemer ruin, the dwemer ruin appears on this 3D map (I think personally the whole map nonsense is just a waste of time)

» Sat May 28, 2011 8:58 pm

the one thing that bothered me most was

So this means you can explore the entire world of skyrim in detail with actually exploring it? Instead of thinking "hm, I wonder what's over those mountains. I should hike over there and check it out!" we get to think "I wonder what's over those mountains. Let me take a second to look at my extraordinarily detailed map and see the exact topography!" And before the inevitable "it's option, you don't have to look at the places"; I can ignore fast travel, I can ignore broken aspects of the game, but I cannot ignore the map. I'm sorry if I sound grumpy right now, but half of the reason I still play TES games is for exploration, and this seems to be saying they're essentially removing that from the game (not entirely removing, but you get what I mean).

I don't see why they wouldn't do what every game does with an exploration map: gray out (or make it appear generic) the areas that you haven't explored.

Its not like you're going to go to your map and scout a mile ahead to see if there's any dragons flying around or something. Crap guys, think about these things.

» Sat May 28, 2011 6:22 pm

Everytime I want to use a potion I have to go into the menu now. No hotkeys? What's going on? What happened?

They made it that way just so you would complain.

» Sat May 28, 2011 10:26 am

So would it be wrong for me to assume that the way you look at the map of skyrim will be similar in respect to viewing Albion in fable 3? Except much better and you can view forests as well as cities? I could do without that stupid magnifying glass btw..

» Sat May 28, 2011 9:17 pm

So is the menu housed under a single button though? Like circle (ps3)? Then from there its up, right, down, left?

» Sat May 28, 2011 11:40 pm

This implies it is the actual night sky. At the very least the perk stars will show up 'while interacting in the world'.

No, constellations might show up in the sky, but Nebulae are not. It will be no different than the sky in our world. I was meaning more there won't be nebulae floating in the sky that you will see.

Its not like you're going to go to your map and scout a mile ahead to see if there's any dragons flying around or something. Crap guys, think about these things.

Exactly. It seems like almost every update is misinterpreted in some way by someone and then they go on a rant about it and then everyone else thinks it is the same way and we go into a downward spiral of despair.

» Sat May 28, 2011 3:30 pm

What's SO hard to believe about that? What's being blown out of proportion here?

For one thing, it can't always be night, it will probably not be always cloudless and I surely will be able to access this menu in the deepest of ruins.

No, it's just a snazzy skill menu with a representation of the night sky. The most likely thing. I'm not saying this is bad, it's just the most basic and easiest thing that you can describe this way.

» Sat May 28, 2011 8:37 pm

http://img443.imageshack.us/img443/7563/smhf.gif

» Sat May 28, 2011 8:36 pm

Everytime I want to use a potion I have to go into the menu now. No hotkeys? What's going on? What happened?

They have a favourites menu which is alphabetical when you press up on the D-pad or any key on the keyboard. (To replace hotkeys that limited players to only 8 items)

» Sat May 28, 2011 2:54 pm

the one thing that bothered me most was

So this means you can explore the entire world of skyrim in detail with actually exploring it? Instead of thinking "hm, I wonder what's over those mountains. I should hike over there and check it out!" we get to think "I wonder what's over those mountains. Let me take a second to look at my extraordinarily detailed map and see the exact topography!" And before the inevitable "it's option, you don't have to look at the places"; I can ignore fast travel, I can ignore broken aspects of the game, but I cannot ignore the map. I'm sorry if I sound grumpy right now, but half of the reason I still play TES games is for exploration, and this seems to be saying they're essentially removing that from the game (not entirely removing, but you get what I mean).

You will not be able to see that close... that's obvious.