GameInformer.com - Decrypting The Elder Scrolls : V - Skyrim

» Thu Jan 14, 2010 2:37 pm

So we have like 10-15 days to go until the GI cover is released.

I think I'm going to stay away from here until it hits. Time seems to go faster when I'm not on these forums every day.

Ditto. I try to forget about Skyrim, but when I come here I just get more and more anxious.

Thanks for the article link. It was a good read because I needed to refresh my memory a bit on the lore.

» Thu Jan 14, 2010 7:04 am

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2010/12/26/decrypting-the-elder-scrolls.aspx If this has been posted already, my apologies. It just went up a few hours ago, and I did look for a thread about it with no success. As mentioned, it is slightly edited to acknowledge that TESV: Skyrim exists - other than that, I'm not sure if there are any significant differences between it and the article in GameInformer issue #213. In any case, it's a good read for those who haven't gotten the opportunity.

EDIT: Never mind...

» Thu Jan 14, 2010 1:42 am

It's funny. After the completely-expected lack of Skyrim information for Christmas, I jumped onto the Bethesda Blog the other day saying to my friend "inb4 commemorative Boxing day Skyrim screenshots". Apparently I'm on the save wavelength as gstaff.

An interesting read!

» Thu Jan 14, 2010 8:24 am

interesting to know that the LOTR movies inspired Todd Howard..

It was pretty obvious, but it was nice that he admitted as much.

When I saw the intro cutscene to Oblivion for the first time, I immediately thought of Minas Tirith and the Black Gate.

» Thu Jan 14, 2010 12:05 pm

This is probably the most interesting quote that pertains to Skyrim :

"I’ve always found it interesting that the art style for each game is a direct reaction to the previous game. After finishing Morrowind I wanted to take the Elder Scrolls in a more realistic direction, with some high fantasy elements. I brought this to Todd’s attention and surprisingly I found out we were on the same page. Similarly, at the end of Oblivion I felt the art style could go in a completely different direction, which drove the look for Shivering Isles. Once again, Todd was excited about a stylistic change and we ended up with our most unusual aesthetic since the Elder Scrolls series began. I think changing the visual style between games helps keep the series interesting for us as developers and for the people who play it"

So people bickering about the art style might be interested to know this.

» Thu Jan 14, 2010 5:59 am

Might have been offensive so I removed it

» Thu Jan 14, 2010 8:17 am

Very interesting article. Confirms several things for me.

1) It confirms why Oblivion's Cyrodiil was such a super generic medieval boring fantasy-land.
2) It confirms why Oblivion seemed to be so...lacking. I always suspected it was their drive to be a release title for the X360 that held the game back to a large degree and this confirms it..

Thankfully FO3 corrected a lot of the problems I had with Oblivion so :foodndrink:

It kind of pains me to know releasing Oblivion on the 360 at the same time as the pc held the game back in so many ways... And that's coming from someone who has Oblivion solely on his 360.

» Thu Jan 14, 2010 12:15 pm

I never realized they didn't have final hardware until 6 months prior to release with Oblivion. That would explain some of the quirks with the engine and many of the design decisions. The good thing with Skyrim is that they've had final hardware since day 1. I don't know exactly how that impacts development but it's got to be good. At the very least I feel assured that this game isn't being rushed.

I was just thinking about that, I said it before and I'll say it again - Skyrim will look and feel great.

BTW thanks for posting this.

» Thu Jan 14, 2010 2:47 am

Is it just me, or does this article make it out as if nothing good came from completing the Morrowind Main Quest?

» Thu Jan 14, 2010 6:26 am

Thanks for the post :foodndrink:

» Thu Jan 14, 2010 8:04 am

I never realized they didn't have final hardware until 6 months prior to release with Oblivion. That would explain some of the quirks with the engine and many of the design decisions. The good thing with Skyrim is that they've had final hardware since day 1. I don't know exactly how that impacts development but it's got to be good. At the very least I feel assured that this game isn't being rushed.

The huge advantage established consoles have - and something I think PC gamers often forget - is that designing for a specific hardware configuration allows a lot more freedom than designing on top of support tools like DirectX. DirectX is awesome, don't get me wrong - it allows developers to think more about their game and less about the hardware underneath - but when developers are literally given Processor X and GPU Y and told "This is all your game is ever going to run on, now go!", they're afforded much more elbow room when it comes to actually developing the game itself. So, you're right: the fact that they've been working with these specific hardware setups ever since the final stages of Oblivion bodes very well for the outcome of Skyrim, on all platforms.