I know the game gets a lot of hate for the combat system but I personally love it, and after playing The Witcher 3 it's a breath of fresh air to come back to Skyrim. I love how your character doesn't auto lock into enemies forcing you to at least aim your swings, and your character doesn't do back flips and spins when swinging a sword, it's just simple brutality.


Could it be better? Sure. I just enjoy what's there though. So here's some love for Skyrim and it's combat system!

Hear Hear, I like it too.

Make that a plus one from me (and The Contessa) too. I've seen many combat systems that just make me blurt out "Rubbish" even in so called popular titles. Any game in which the protagonist(s) wield super sized blades than no one could lift let alone swing....and do blink fast forward rolls, spins, flips etc etc I HATE with a passion. The apparent reasons for such "abilities" is usually given as either mutancy or magical gift or hybridisation with some other fairy tale race. Quite frankly....all utterly ridiculous.


Skyrim is far more gritty and real....not perfect, but feels right. A good solid and not too fast 'thunk' from weapon contact, that make you feel like you have really hit someone hard with a weight bearing weapon of substance. Very very satisfying


I am completely, totally, 100% MYSTIFIED as to why anyone over the age of eight years old would want a hero that bounded around like a jack rabbit on heat, whooshing a sword of seven feet long by a foot wide with coloured, jet plane vapour trails, circus tumbling like a fool at super speed.

NO THANK YOU


The style of the combat system (and largly its feel) is something Bethedsa can be rightly proud of.

I actually would love to see them incorporate a few things from ESO combat in the next release.


Notably, blocking while dual wielding and dodge roll.


Other than those, it's my favorite combat of the series(Skyrim).

I don't love it. I really dislike it intensely. The only combat system I've ever played that felt right from the get-go was WoW's. Now, I've played TES since Arena, and the combat system has NEVER been something I thought was workable. If I could have WoW's system in TES I would be a very happy camper.

I too enjoy Skyrim's combat for the very reasons you stated. Granted, I enjoy it a lot more with Requiem installed. But Requiem just makes it feel more gritty and real without turning it into the type of cartoonish combat that I have seen in some other games. I find Skyrim combat to be very engaging.

I never played WoW Serathil.....


Whats the differences can you describe how WoW feels and responds....speed....weight.....strike recovery time.....appearance and moves. That kinda thing?


Turija...yes exactly.. Cartoon moves are best left to cartoon characters imo. If I wanted to play daffy duck I'd buy the appropriate 3d cartoon sim game. I like my fantasy to feel like it could really work just like it shows on screen....well....physical combat wise at least.


While.......I'm about it......destruction magic is also something that feels good in Skyrim....that solid contact feel from spell impacts like fireball and ice spike......there a lot of games out there that don't come even close to Skyrim. The sound effects go a long way to reinforce that solid hit feel.

I have only one major gripe with Skyrim's combat and that is forced killcams. I think we should be able to toggle killcams on and off. They are not appropriate for every character and should not be forced on every character. In my view, a good roleplaying game mechanic should enhance character diversity, not impose character uniformity.

Not without resubbing etc. All I can say is for me (and I'm only talking about me....) it was the perfect synthesis of keybinds and moves. The main thing I remember (I haven't played WoW for several years now) is that movement of the character can be set to be handled by holding down both left and right mouse buttons (for running) - and then moving the mouse to move the toon left and right etc. MUCH more natural for me than the arrow keys (which are themselves much more natural for me than WASD - good LORD what a gimped movement setup! Always was always will be....)

Combat in WoW I had keybound to ASDFGEQTV - on every toon. Now, every one of my over 100 alts did NOT use the same skills and spells. But as long as I bound the relelvant skills/spells to those keys, I was set. Didn't matter whether it was my "main" Jaelythe, or an alt I only played once in a VERY long time - I could kill anything without having to think about it, because all I had to remember was the keystrokes on a touch-typing keyboard I've used since 1963....

Yeah, TES is gimped for me. I manage, but it's not intuitive, never has been, and unless they go the WoW/RIFT route in TESVI, it never will be.

I agree, and what's even more appalling about Skyrim's killcams is how bugged they are, with the game deciding that you could not possibly have dodged or blocked a blow that you may very well have been able to dodge or block and with ranged bugs that block arrow kill cams with an invisible wall when shooting near ledges because the kill cam camera is located lower than the regular camera. Thank goodness for Violens.

Oh, forgot to mention that - I use a mod to get rid of the killcams etc. I can't play without it. Killcams are a STUPID thing....

Agreed on that.....but again as I've said before.... The game belongs to Bethesda at ALL times and we pay only for the RIGHT to play with THEIR game. Conceived, set up and enacted exactly as THEY want to see it enjoyed. Bethedsa doubtless know the many views and opinons held already....and always have.....but give not a fig. The game works exactly as they wanted it to....simple as that!


That holds true for all aspects of the game content. Some people like Kill Cams and the player enacted version...Death Cam. Some hate them....and others want them on sometimes or for certain kills. But no matter what users say.....the KCs work according to what Beths dev team wanted in exactly the way they wanted...its their toy not ours.


They WILL listen to an absolutely HUGE groundswell of user opinion......but not a handful of vocal enthusiasts like us......and the elephant in the room.....its done and dusted......no point complaining about anything wrong with Skyrim at this stage.


We can only hope and pray that some of our wishes get considered for TESVI......but don't bank on it.

Um.... Rick.... as long as Beth enables the entire range of mod programming (as they always have), then I suggest they are QUITE aware it's not really "their game" any more. They're happy to get paid for the framework - as who wouldn't be? - but y'know, once I pay for a game, I'm going to play it MY way and to hellandgone with whatever the devs think about that.

Yes, but that is entirely the problem right there.....not everyone can do mods. As long as they cater for console users in reasonable numbers ( about 30% currently I believe) they acknowledge automatically that it is Beths game......in the sense I have conveyed, because there is no other choice for console users, but to use it as supplied complete with any and all hated content!


The day that a TES game is issued PC only.....is when Beth passes the practical aspect of content ownership to the users ( though they will always retain the IPR).



Edit....and yes....I Play it my way too, even if was not intended to be a vehicle for character/player interactive development and non role playing user immersion.....

I'm sorry for you who have no option other than consoles. Considering.... pcs are just far more useful overall - since of course they do things that require you have not only a console but a tablet or phone or something....

Pcs are just the best option all around, no matter what apple thinks. The day I try to play this game on a phone.... well, someone will be putting me on my pyre - because at that point I will be effectively brain dead.

I never ever in my entire life thought that buying a game console was a good use of money. That isn't ever going to change.

That day will arrive in a few weeks. Fallout 4 mods are coming to consoles very soon. All of us, PC user and console user alike, will be able to mod Bethesda's games in the future. "The practical aspect of content ownership" will be passed to everyone.

Absolutely despise the implementation of killcams. Can't count how many times in my early Skyrim days I was fighting something and suddenly I'm rooted in place and unable to move because the NPC/Undead/Monster/Dragon is doing an attack that "could" kill me if I get hit with it. Didn't matter that I was still at 90%+ health from successfully dodging all of his attacks, meanwhile I'd whittled my target down to 15 - 25% health. One of the few times a game has made me rage. I was so glad when a mod to remove killcams came out. And yeah, that really should have been optional.

I suppose (other than the above) my only gripe is about actor movement speed at times. Actors (both NPC and PC) go from zero to full speed in one step and worse yet move side to side much faster than what looks realistic (the NPCs anyway). I've fired arrows at actors and watched them dodge to the side so fast it almost looks like they have teleported there. If I miss, fine, but don't use a cheap gimmick.

Anyone else seem to think that NPCs can swing weapons much faster than the PC? Every once in awhile it seems as though an NPC is swinging a one handed weapon and getting almost as many attacks off in the same time as an NPC who is using two weapons and doing a flurry attack.

Overall I do like Skyrim's combat system though. As others said it does feel more gritty than other games and more realistic. Then again I like simple more realistic combat otherwise I wouldn't still play Mount&Blade: Warband.

That's interesting. And good for Beth really. I don't play the FOs..... I spent too much of my childhood living in a world in which the "game reality" of the FOs was a serious possibility. So the FOs don't equate "fun" to me. But the impact on the console player.... that's a HUGE thing.

Agreed 100% Serathil.....and if you'd like to donate to my PC fund I can PM you my Paypal details


Seriously....a console for this is about....er...in USD ( gets fingers out, maybe toes too) 300 bucks. For a computer, that I would give real consideration to, I'm looking at 1800 bucks plus monitor ( yes I've researched some seriously hot machines). I wouldn't dream of going PC to just have a console equivalent......and there is a lot to be said for the simplicity of 'switch on and go' without worrying about a load order issue or mysterious CTD.


One day..I WILL be with you.....and have all the great mods.....and make the great videos (budge up Sah ).....and spend all day in the CK and have all the heartache no doubt. By then you will be modding TES VI......one day Serathil, one day......


Edit....I could be wrong.....but I think you will find Console mods will be specific 'approved' mods only....really like choosable dlc. Dont go thinking we can just fall into nexus heaven. We will be told which mods we are allowed to download, orobably from an approved list on the console website....I bet they will be through M$ and therefore not free! Mark my words!

Eh, for twice that console cost you can (in the US) get a machine that will run Skyrim (not on ultra mind you!), and let you add a fair number of mods - not the huge 4k texture reworks, but some of the things that just make a game a LOT more fun. I know living outside the US makes things not so good though.... sorry

Ah yes....but there's the rub you see. If I was going to the trouble of installing a PC and learning all the necessary to go with it.....I couldn't be happy with an adequate machine....I'd WANT the Ultra graphics etc.


Imagine your invited out to dinner......on the way your wonderful host says are you good with McDonalds? Well, you can't complain cos it is afterall a meal out as promised. But somehow you're left feeling let down cos you had in mind the full five star resteraunt.


Oh and....this from above is relevant to the pc vs consol modding bit.....

...I could be wrong.....but I think you will find Console mods will be specific 'approved' mods only....really like choosable dlc. Don't go thinking we can just fall into nexus heaven. We will be told which mods we are allowed to download, probably from an approved list on the console website....I bet they will be through M$ and therefore not free! Mark my words!

I'd settle for McDonalds anyday.

You may be on the mark as far as the "new modding" thing goes - I don't know, and fortunately, I don't have to find out. As far as I'm concerned, I'd save for however long it took to get a DECENT game machine - which I do not consider a console to be (since of course you can't use mods....) If that meant that I couldn't play Skyrim on ultra with 200 mods.... well, I'd personally be happy with something that LET ME USE MODS. And btw, I was playing this game on a 7 year old machine last week, on ultra with 100 mods (though none of the 4k hd makeovers of course) - it wasn't bad .... in fact, it was lovely, and I didn't have any issues playing. This new machine this week, yeah it's nice - but truthfully I'd have been perfectly happy NOT to have had to spend the money right now.

Me too mate.

Ooooh chicken McNuggets!!!!

I know the feeling Rick... saved for the better part of 3+ yrs for my PC. Yes I could have gotten one that would "run Skyrim", but why "just run" when I was already playing on 360? Yes Mod's I know... but truthfully the armor, new places, textures and then the graphics are why I wanted a better PC than " just Run".

Edit: cause I felt like it.

I like the combat system, using a 360 controller on PC... makes it even better for me. I can feel that solid thunk when my sword hit's a shield.

Wow combat isn't new to wow. Everquest had it first.


Hard target, locked until you click another target or hit ESC to clear selection, press TAB to switch targets. Hotbar with abilities on it you can keybind or click. Most gameplay outside of PvP has you standing in one spot because Dodge/block/parry is automatic unless you're trying to not get hit(not hard, especially with a tank taking your hits) or move out of fire.


Wow combat only shines in the coordination to get 20 cats to sing one tune and down a boss.