[PART 01] Todd Howard interiew. : V - Skyrim

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 10:52 am

I think the "finishing moves are for show" comment simply means that the deathblow will automatically execute without any button presses from us, and simply an official "ending" to the combat.

It's supposed to trigger when an enemies health is at the point where one more hit will deplete their health. I wonder if there's magic finishers?

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 3:12 am

Yeah I think it does mean when the final pull of the attack button will be the last hit to finish off the enemy, but instead. of our regular swipe of the sword/axe/mace/hammer/dagger, the game will automatically execute the finsher animation. Magic finishers would be nice, but I don't think we'll get that lucky.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 5:24 am

If this is true, that the finishing moves comes with every kill, I sure hope that there are A LOT of animations for finishes.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 12:16 am

I'm sure the finishing moves won't happen with every kill, as I really do not think they would make more than 1 or 2 finishers per weapon. I have a feeling there are going to be a few parameters that have to be met, or (dare I bring this up) perhaps even an old fashioned "dice roll" that determines your final blow to be a finishing move or normal attack.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 12:19 pm

If this is true, that the finishing moves comes with every kill, I sure hope that there are A LOT of animations for finishes.

...otherwise they just become a nuissance after the first half a dozen times.
I see a potential problem here.
Maybe they're deployed automatically but only under certain conditions, not on every kill.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 7:39 am

It's supposed to trigger when an enemies health is at the point where one more hit will deplete their health. I wonder if there's magic finishers?

Something just to make you feel good when you kill the guy. "Wrapping paper" gameplay

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 10:46 am

Some terrain will not be crossable?? That doesn't sound too good.

From what I undestood, are they actually increasing the speed of leveling? Oblivion leveled way to fast in the first place.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 4:28 am

Did anyone hear the word "add"? All I heard Todd say was "remove". As if to say removing features, or removing content from features, makes a better game?
Perhaps he is right and my gaming philisophy is wrong, but this emphasis on removing rather than adding really hurts my standing with TES, which was always about what you could do, not what they limited you to.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 1:14 pm

Some terrain will not be crossable?? That doesn't sound too good.

From what I undestood, are they actually increasing the speed of leveling? Oblivion leveled way to fast in the first place.

All terrain can be traversed. The leveling will be faster early on, but will slow down a lot as we progress.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 3:14 am

Did anyone hear the word "add"? All I heard Todd say was "remove". As if to say removing features, or removing content from features, makes a better game?
Perhaps he is right and my gaming philisophy is wrong, but this emphasis on removing rather than adding really hurts my standing with TES, which was always about what you could do, not what they limited you to.

Haven't they added dragons, dragon shouts, a more robust/flexible magic system, dual wielding, perks, in depth crafting, woodcutting, farming, cooking, mining, leather work, more diverse regions, radiant story, new dialogue system, new crime system with different jails, dynamic snow, Havok behavior, shadows, ability to affect the economy, more unique dungeons, more puzzles/traps, 3d rendering of every item in the inventory, 3d map, not to mention all the other stuff we don't know anything about like factions which are separate from guilds?

» Mon Oct 11, 2010 10:55 pm

All terrain can be traversed. The leveling will be faster early on, but will slow down a lot as we progress.

How big is the world compared to Oblivion, and how diverse is the environment?

- If you put the maps on top of each other it is about as big as its predecessor. But Skyrim is different because of all the mountains that form our routes.
The terrain makes it smaller in practice, but you spend more time trying to move through it because they often can not be crossed. So it probably seems bigger.

It sounds like there might be terrain that simply cannot be traversed...

» Mon Oct 11, 2010 11:47 pm

Some terrain will not be crossable?? That doesn't sound too good.

From what I undestood, are they actually increasing the speed of leveling? Oblivion leveled way to fast in the first place.

I would assume that you can get everywhere, but there will be some sections where you need to stay close to a path to get through the rugged mountain terrain. You won't be able to climb areas that are too steep, just like in Oblivion and Fallout

As for the levelling, remember that Oblivion was designed to cap at around 30, where Skyrim is capping around 50. So more levels will be gained in the same amount of time, not you will reach the maximum quicker.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 1:46 pm

It sounds like there might be terrain that simply cannot be traversed...

You can't just cross a mountain. You have to go through them or above them via dungeons, steps and passage ways.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 6:53 am

thanks for the translation....one thing i thought of interest: titanium-covered health to my character....is this an option we have too or for Demo purposes only ?

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 3:37 am

thanks for the translation....one thing i thought of interest: titanium-covered health to my character....is this an option we have too or for Demo purposes only ?

Yea, not really sure what Todd meant by that.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 3:26 am

Yea, not really sure what Todd meant by that.

It's god mode basically and no that won't be available unless your on PC.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 2:09 pm

It looks bad if I die on this particular piece.

i can only imagine what would-

Todd- "as you can see, my character is pretty strong"

(dragon kills todds character)

Todd- "uh heh um... well you see.... I purposely made that dragon the toughest in the game... heh" :hehe:

Interviewers- "Wow todd's character was a whimp. I thought he was supposed to be the top guy around here. Lets go interview someone with a better character"

Todd- :sadvaultboy:

also- COMPASES ARE CONFIRMED!!!!! lets not make any more topics wondering if the compass is in or out now. (thank goodness he told us that, now we can move on)

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 1:56 am

im worried about the finishing moves. not because of whether they are gunna be in and stuff cos i think we all know they willl be, but just that once you've seen a finishing move a few times, it starts to get less and less badass every time you do it. look at games like assassins creed, they had some of the same finishing moves from AC1 through to brotherhood and i just found them irritating. so less is more imo on this subject, but i also dont want them to be so rare that you see one every 10 battles or so. As with most things in this game, its all gunna be about balance.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 7:54 am

also- COMPASES ARE CONFIRMED!!!!! lets not make any more topics wondering if the compass is in or out now. (thank goodness he told us that, now we can move on)

Nope. Still have to know if we can turn it off, and if the journal details are good enough to direct us along this time w/o using it.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 2:54 pm

also- COMPASES ARE CONFIRMED!!!!! lets not make any more topics wondering if the compass is in or out now. (thank goodness he told us that, now we can move on)

Isn't the game supposed to be HUD-less with the HUD only appearing when you need it (losing health, in battle, ect.)? How would compasses work with that?

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 2:02 pm

im worried about the finishing moves. not because of whether they are gunna be in and stuff cos i think we all know they willl be, but just that once you've seen a finishing move a few times, it starts to get less and less badass every time you do it. look at games like assassins creed, they had some of the same finishing moves from AC1 through to brotherhood and i just found them irritating. so less is more imo on this subject, but i also dont want them to be so rare that you see one every 10 battles or so. As with most things in this game, its all gunna be about balance.

I hope they are rarer than once every ten times.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 4:49 am

OMG... What gift will our dragonborn receive from the GODS... I hope a staff, a robe, or an amulet

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 11:42 am

OMG... What gift will our dragonborn receive from the GODS... I hope a staff, a robe, or an amulet

I think the "gift" is the Shouts.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 12:50 am

Isn't the game supposed to be HUD-less with the HUD only appearing when you need it (losing health, in battle, ect.)? How would compasses work with that?

The compass is always visible I believe. This can be seen in the leaked gameplay footage. The compass is showing, but there's no health/magicka/stamina bar which means Todd was at full health.

» Tue Oct 12, 2010 1:23 pm

The compass is always visible I believe. This can be seen in the leaked gameplay footage. The compass is showing, but there's no health/magicka/stamina bar which means Todd was at full health.

I very much welcome the compass.
I just don't want no freakin' blipin' flashin' markers conspurcating it!