As much as I'd like Skyrim to look absolutely jaw dropping beautiful (not that it couldn't, mind you) and take advantage of the superior hardware of a PC and that of next gen consoles I don't really mind TBH.

I don't see how the current gen consoles is restricting gameplay... you can make a game that is amazingly awesome to play even on a Mega Drive. I think the game will look good at least and as long as it's fun to play I'm happy

So don't play the game if the graphics are going to be so horrible?

If thats your biggest grudge against it, then that's sad.
People seem to put far to much emphasis of visuals when some of the best games I've ever played were on the SNES.

We found out Microsoft started work on next gen somewhere near March of 2011. And we got confirmation just this month that Sony has started PS4. They are literally still at the drawing board; there is no point waiting when Bethesda has nothing to gain from it.

Currently Bethesda seem to have put Fallout and TES on rotation. I think that is more than enough in terms of leaving gaps in both franchises. This isn't just about making money, but to keep the game makers at the top of their game. Whatever tech improvements and game design lessons Bethesda learn from Skyrim, would be incorporated into TES VI. By not waiting, Bethesda ensures that the next gen TES game would be even better.

As a PC user, I think the idea of delaying it another 2+ years would have been insane. And that there's nothing wrong with the graphics. And that having games cross-compatible with this generation of consoles has been a good thing, since it's allowed the average PC users, who don't upgrade their hardware whenever some big name developer gets a hardon for "pushing the limits", to actually play alot of the games released in the last couple years.

Something else I just thought of....Do I want a new Elder Scrolls game that is made for a new system they aren't yet familiar with and will likely have TONS of bugs to be worked out???? Blank no!

I'm on PC and, honestly, I like what I see when I see images from Skyrim...I have no problem at all with the graphics.

:tes:

No way, Todd has said himself in numerous interviews that although they toyed with the idea of maybe waiting for the next gen consoles, there was a huge list of things that they could still achieve on the current gen of consoles. So how would Skyrim be different on the next gen consoles anyhow apart from improved graphics? They could still achieve pretty much all they wanted on the current generation and many still think the PS3's Hardware especially hasn't even been utilized to its maximum yet. (crysis 2 probably go's the closest) Bethesda have had much more time to fiddle and optimize on the Xbox 360 and PS3 this time round, with Oblivion Todd has stated that they had little to no time to test Oblivion on the Xbox 360 since they only just received the hardware, so in effect they were programming blind guessing how the game would run on the Xbox given its hardware.

I for one wouldn't like waiting around another 5 or so years for the next gen consoles to arrive then everything would need to be recoded for the new hardware at any rate, 10 years+ inbetween TES titles would be a massive mistake I think.

I wish that they could have waited. If the predictions of there being another couple of years before Sony and Microsoft release new consoles, I don't know if waiting that long would be a good idea. Release Skyrim now and then a year or two after the new consoles come (time to understand them better) release VI.

The biggest problem is the 512 MB of memory total on both systems, unified on the Xbox 360 and split on the PS3. This along with the DVD drive of the Xbox 360 leads to most of the problems. The hardware isn't up to date either. The PS3 may have a good CPU, the GPU is another story, probably because it was overpriced before they got around to choosing it. Then again it doesn't really matter when compared to what PCs of today can do.

Good point, but engines can be made "next-gen ready". Cryengine 3 is nex-gen ready for instance. Engines can be built in mind of it and can switch into next-gen very fast compared to otherwise.

Agree, I've waited long enough. :tes:

Are the graphics going to be spectacular? No, but I can live with what I've seen so far. Besides, the console limitation is only partially what is holding back the PC's graphics. More so Beth's inability/desire to make the PC version as good as it could be is to blame. There are a lot of things they could be doing to make the PC version better today regardless of what other platforms the game is on that they aren't going to be doing. That isn't the fault of whatever generation of consoles the game is on.

Other things like no open cities doesn't bother me in the slightest. The only real concerns I have are limitations they have to work around considering disk space/memory such as amount of VO'ed dialogue, amount/variety of content, etc..

Personally Im happy its going to be on this generation.
When the price of the 360 went down I finally bought one just for Oblivion.
If it was on a new generation of console then I would have to wait at least two years before being able to play Skyrim.
I cannot afford a high end pc and I cannot afford to buy a console at the price it has when it hits the market.
As it is Skyrim will be the one and only game Ill ever buy at full price. Normally I wait until a game is at least half of what it cost when just out.

Meanwhile the technology of discs has improved so that they can now fit more data on one disc than they could when Oblivion was released. Furthermore the capabilities and limits) of the xbox are now a lot better known than at the time of Oblivion so I think its a no-brainer that Skyrim will be a more complex game.

Absolutely not because I don't want another Oblivion.

If next gen consoles come out at the end of 2013 (which IMO is an optimistic guess) I still want that Beth has at least couple of years to get familiar with the new console tech. So we would have to wait at least another 4 years. Why not get Skyrim now and TES VI for next gen consoles?
2 x TES > 1 x TES

Also, I'd expect the next FO will be on the next gen console. That'll give Beth a wealth of experience on the new platforms before attempting the next TES, making VI even better. :hubbahubba:

I was just about to mention that, the way I see it there will be no announcement of specs till E3 2012 at the earliest (They like the big stage it provides) which would put the consoles releasing between fall 2013 and spring 2014.

What should the devs have done for those 2.5 years?

No. If they waited until the next gen, you could just keep saying the same thing over and over. When the next gen hits, why not wait until the gen after that one? Bethesda is making money from NV, correct, but waiting another 4 years for Skyrim, and then Fallout 4 in what? 2020? No. I bet if I asked Pete who's head of PR he would say that would be ridiculous.

I guess it all depends on your standards of judging graphics - personally, I thought the trailer they released was spectacular.

Me too. Best looking game I've ever seen.

The gap between games is large enough. tes 6 certainly should wait for the next console, but this console generation has lasted for quite longer than it's predecessors.

The game should not have waited for the next gen. But it also should have been developed for PC and ported to console, not the other way around.

It's already been 5 years, next gen isnt for like 2-3 more. NO. They should not wait.

Remember what happened to Oblivion when they tried to port it to the 360 before it was even released...

Yeah, no thanks.
I wouldn't mind an enhanced version though for them...

TES VI will most definitely be next gen. I don't expect to see it until at least 2018, with Fallout 4 next gen as well around 2015.

I suppose that's true, depends how you are judging it. For a console game I suppose it does look rather spectacular? I dunno, I don't really play on consoles. I have one, but aside from console only games like RDR I don't play games on it.

Judging it by PC standards though I judge it to be rather just "pretty good". For me to say a PC game today looks "spectacular" I'd expect things like tessellation and other DX11 features being used, physics for cloth/hair, increased texture sizes, better lighting, etc.

Not saying it looks bad, I just wouldn't use the word "spectacular". :thumbsup:

Another advantage of doing it now is that TES VI is less likely to have the problems Oblivion had, not being prepared for the new platform, having lots of trouble optimising the game and avoiding bugs etc.. If they are given more time and release TES VI in about 2015/16, a year or two after the next generation began, they'd be able to make it much better, focusing less on the console issues and more on the game itself.

so youre saying you would have tolerated 2 more years in the dark OP?

My opinion:
For consoles it looks pretty good. RDR has better lighting imo, so RDR looks better in that sense. Crysis 2 also definitely look much much better than Skyrim on consoles, but we all know what that game focuses on
For PCs it looks OK (and this is relevant to compare because Todd has said all platforms will look equal). Witcher 2, Rage, Crysis 1/2, BF3 win by far in terms of graphics... especially lighting and shaders, but also texture depth.

I definitely don't expect tessellation to be used, since not many games do yet. I mean, Crysis 2 and Witcher 2 doesn't. Pretty sure BF3 and Rage doesn't either. Tessellation is such a big feature and requires a lot of work.