Hi

I've bought Skyrim for PS3 quite a while ago, and I used play it a lot (I was also reading in this forum a lot, but I've never created an account). I really like the game, but even though I've spent a couple hundreds of hours playing it, I've never actually managed to finish the story before I (eventually) got hooked by another game. However, now I feel like I want to spend some time with Skyrim again. But before I make a new character, I have some questions.

1. Since I've played, the addons got released for PS3. Now I wonder if I should buy them one by one, or if I should just wait a bit longer and buy the complete bundle for PC. Thing is, I got used to play it at the PS3 already, and I like how it plays there... the only downside is the limited amount of hotkeys for weapon/spell-swapping. Oh well, and maybe also the absence of Quicksave/Quickload. And the graphics (compared to those on PC) of course. Uhm, oh well. But I DO like playing it on PS3, and I don't know if I'd like it as much on the computer.

2. If I get the addons, is it still like it used to be, that the Dawnguard-quest automatically starts as soon as you reach lvl 10? And is it also still the case that if this happens, vampires begin to randomly attack cities and kill NPC's you wouldn't want to die for one or the other reason?

3. Do you still need Dawnguard to be able to craft arrows (and dragonbone weapons; though I don't care as much about those as I do care about arrows)?

4. With one of my characters, I've tried being a vampire. I didn't play that for long, though; because every time I left a building or a cave I got that annoying sound and effect played that told me that I feel weak due to being exposed to sunlight. Is it still like that? I don't really intend to become a vampire with my next character, but you never know. ^^

I think that's it for now. If some more questions come to my mind... oh well, this forum luckily isn't going to run away anytime soon (I guess). ^^

This, definitely. The sheer amount of new content available to you from mods is staggering. You can change and improve the game in so many different ways with mods, get new content - new quests, new creatures, etc. - pretty much anything you can imagine is possible with mods! Many mods are as good as (if not better than) the official addons.

Plus, the Unofficial Patches available for PC fix many hundreds of bugs with the game that haven't been (and aren't likely to be) fixed for the console versions.

Playing with keyboard & mouse gives you a lot more finesse than a controller, but if you're used to a controller. with a bit of work you can get your PS3 controller working on the PC, and if you want you can plug your computer into your television and play on Steam's "Big Picture" mode - basically, anything you can do on PS3 but better!

Yes, the same as before - but if you're playing on PC you can use the "When Vampires Attack" mod which makes NPCs run for a nearby place of safety when a vampire attacks, rather than running straight in to the slaughter. There are also other mods that delay the start of Dawnguard or protect the NPCs from vampire attacks in other ways.

Yes, but again - there's a mod which means you don't need Dawnguard to do this.

Again (you can guess what I'm going to say!) - there are dozens of vampire mods that change the experience of being a vampire - from complete overhauls to slight changes like the one you mentioned getting rid of that sound/effect.

Mods are only available on PC - so that's the way to go!

With a bit of know-how, you can pretty much avoid the vampire attacks. They only become a serious problem if you constantly fast travel.

Seems like you don't want any negatives to being a Vampire.

Thanks, jackstarr! I'll certainly think more about getting the PC version now, haha.

Just that the vampire attacks (in towns) have nothing to do with you being a vampire or not. Also, I wasn't "complaining" about being weakened, but about that nasty effect... after some loading time after leaving a building, I would spend another 5-10 seconds or so unable to do anything because I don't see anything, and also the sound is quite annoying (and can actually shock you a bit if it catches you unprepared haha). And while 5-10 seconds don't seem like much, imagine doing some shopping/crafting/questing in Whiterun, where you enter and leave buildings many times in a row. Not only do you have the loading times, but you also spend lots of time getting reminded that daylight hurts you (like you wouldn't already know that).

So uhm, I'm loosing track here, but I just felt like I need to explain this part. Anyway... if someone else also feels like telling his/her opinion in the "PC or PS3 matter", feel free to do so! ^^

Get the PC version if you can handle it. Always ascend when you can.

I have the PS3 version and am fortunate enough to have a solid performance. It's what you get when you can avoid 95% of bugs and take care of the game like me.

I've gotten myself the Legendary Edition for PC now. Installed and everything; ready to play.

Except... well. Dawnguard and Dragonborn. I don't really want them to kick in as soon as I reach lvl 10, so I can either prevent them from loading, or I can (according to jackstar) use some mods to let them start later. The problem is, I couldn't find such a mod. Does anybody here have a link or something?

Only buy it for PC if you have one of those fancy ￡1000 ($1400?) gaming PCs. Otherwise, it'll svck apparently and freeze up.

Vampires do attack cities unless you complete the Dawnguard questline.

You need Dawnguard for all that stuff.

Volikhar vampires aren't normal Skyrim vampires. They're insanely powerful. If it's sheer badassery and overpoweredness you're looking for the vampire lord is for you.

A PC like that is overkill. Even one that costs $450 and up can serve you really well.

That's by far over kill.
You could probably get away with a 350$ tower.

@OP, on the topic of DG and vampires.
DG actually made playing as a vampire quite enjoyable for me. I tried once before DG and didn't enjoy it at all.
I'm not going to say too much as I don't have that SPOILER option on my device, but I will say DG adds some features(which some may say are cheap, I don't) which make being a vampire quite fun. A lot of the things that used to be annoying now have a way to get around and minor things that make the experience as a whole much more enjoyable.

My PC should be more than capable of running Skyrim with very high settings.

That being said; what about my other question? I don't want to be forced to do the dlc-quests as soon as I reach lvl 10. Are there any mods that let them start later?

Or maybe it would make sense to do those quests before finishing the main quest of the main game?

You don't have to do the DLC immediately. Just leave them activated, and do them later. The DLC while activated add a lot.

Really? Most of my friends who play Skyrim on PC say that you need a high tech gaming computer which is at least a grand. Will be sure to check this out further....

You need a gaming rig ($1000) ONLY if you want to play on highest settings and perhaps install mods like the 4k textures and other graphic enhancements. Skyrim can be played on a laptop, my brother did it and it still looked OK. If you are not going to get a discrete graphics card, then you'll have to buy an AMD APU which is graphics and CPU on the same chip. That's one of the ways to only spend $450 and be able to play Skyrim. Still, I enjoy my gaming PC, well worth the money.

Do yourself a favor and get the PC bundle (assuming, of course, that you have a PC that can run Skyrim). The SkyUI mod alone makes the PC version superior...and the in-game console can help you get out of some annoying bugs, because even patched Skyrim is still one of the buggiest games ever.

If you wanna play on high or ultra, sure. A friend built me a tower out of refurbished parts he got at a scrapyard and it runs Skyrim just fine.

Those are people who purchased a computer at best buy. I run skyrim on a laptop I paid $1200 for three years ago on ultra, with plenty of graphics mods installed. Probably could get the same laptop for $750 now, and a comparable desktop for $500.

You don't need to spend 1000 on the PC, just don't cheap out on your video card

1. There are mods that allow you to hotkey up to 8 items using a controller; you can even quicksave/quickload. Here is an example: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=19981

2. Yes this is still true. However, some mods mitigate the chances of npc death from vampires such as this one: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=114273579

3. Yes, as far as I know. However, there are mods that allow you to craft arrows without Dawnguard as well: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=7417

4. Yes, but I'm sure that could be modded out if you really wanted. For example, I used the creation kit to remove the annoying thunderous sound that plays on every critical hit or sneak attack.

As you can see, most of your issues can be solved using the PC version of Skyrim with mods.

Skyrim Legendary Edition is already out and includes all of the updates and DLC content: http://www.bethblog.com/2013/04/25/legendary-release/

However, an Elderscrolls game bundle is about to be released for PC, in September, that will include the entire game series, TES 1 through 5. (It also includes DLC for Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim): http://www.bethblog.com/2013/08/07/the-complete-elder-scrolls-collection-comes-to-pc-this-september/