I think I missed the point of Skyrim

[Abedeus]

I know what you mean OP

Yesterday I completed the Companions in about 3 hours... Sure, I'm at level 57 but damn that was short. I even nerfed myself by using skills/ equipment that I have very little training in (I am trying to level higher, so they need to be used).

Then today afer work, I did the civil war questline. Those Stormcloak were sure squishy. Way too fast.

Aside from more random exploration, all I have left is the main quest. I have not yet met the Greybeards (that is my current mission since Christmas day) but I have a feeling I'll be flying through it. I can already massacre Ancient Dragons in mere seconds and I don't even have Fus Roh Dah or Dragonrend (though Slow Time is AWESOME).

Even today, two Ancient Dragons attacked Dawnstar at the same time! I beat one down as soon as it landed (which was immediately). The other was an asshole and flew around killing NPCs (including the Blacksmith and his assistant - so no more selling stuff in Dawnstar). As soon as he landed though he was smacked down with my Daedric Sword with 135 attack power (and no enchantments as of yet - it would make it WAY too easy as my enchant is at 100 with the dual perk).

The game is good fun (though easy as piss). It fun to mess around in. But the story and quests are not very engaging.

Game stops scaling around 36-46. After 46 no enemy or quest item levels up.

So at 57 you are 11 levels above any enemy in game.

 

[ImProvGamr]

There is just no involvement or attachment at all. Ever since I got Skyrim, I went back and played through Deus Ex: HR again, VtM - Bloodlines, and I reinstalled DA:O the other day and have been sinking many hours into it all over again

I think this approaches the closes to how I feel about it. If you have an actual goal in Skyrim with what you want to do, then it's great. For me, I was roleplaying as a pure mage character, with my main objective being to study at the college, then eventually going to kill some dragons, save the world, yada yada. I even made it more interesting/amusing by thinking that I was the same archmage character that I was in my Oblivion game who had accidently cryofrosen himself into the future, loosing all his strength and abilities in the process (dorky, but at least it gave me some context). But where as Oblivion's mage questline was long and involving, having you do lots of traveling, meet lots of people, and in general being more immersive, Skyrim's was short and I ended up getting the title of Archmage at level 14 or so without feeling like I really earned it.

The best way I can describe it is that I like RPGs (and games in general) where it feels like you're actually playing a character, not just a bundled up assortment of skills and potential. In Bioware games, you play a character. In Deus Ex, you play a character. Hell, even in games like Bioshock and Final Fantasy XIII, I felt more like I was playing with actual characters than I did in Skyrim.

 

[CD-R]

Well I'm currently running through the main storyline and the civil war storyline side by side, and it seems to be going together pretty well. I've just discovered Skyhaven Temple, and re-taken the Pale, but I've done plenty of side-quests as well, and have about 20 half started that I don't want to do or couldn't be bothered.

The biggest issue for me at the moment is that I don't want to play any of the stealthy quests (I'm playing a Nord knight, and am saving them all for my thief character) but I started the Markarth conspiracy quest, and through a series of unfortunate events am now a hunted criminal in the Markarth Hold, and I can't pay off the bounty. So I have to avoid all guards in the entire Markarth Hold. It's not difficult, I got accosted by a guard on my way to Skyhaven, but we were interrupted by a Frost and Blood dragon, and they made short work of him. So that's an interesting quirk that has developed in my runthrough.

Let the guards arrest you. There's a quest in Signa mine that will clear your name.

 

[ImProvGamr]

Bethesda went a bit too far in the exploration philosophy this time around imo. I think of the TES games I have played, Morrowind had the best balance of focus/direction/narrative and exploration.

It really is a game where it feels that all you ever do is follow quest markers that come up on the screen. You're heading towards your next destination, then all of a sudden your compass starts filling up with so many quest markers that you feel bad if you just ignore them all. It's as if it's core audience is people with ADD, who follow bright marker on the map.

 

[EHKOS]

I think they should just drop the whole main quest angle. I don't think they need a "save the world" main storyline in these games. Just focus on making the rest of the game awesome and I am content with a massive sandbox world to have fun in.

Yep. Pretty much it. Just let us choose from a selection of backstories and let us be on our way. Heck, they proved they could plunk us down in a wasteland devoid of anything green besides toxic waste and we still ate it up...the...the game not the...toxic...waste.

 

[Patrick Buck]

So much of what is said in this post is so unfortunatly true. The game does feel a little soulless. The side quests really arn't very forfilling. The long storylines for the other guilds in oblivion felt better. It just doesn't feel right. Still a good game though.

 

[Fappy]

I think they should just drop the whole main quest angle. I don't think they need a "save the world" main storyline in these games. Just focus on making the rest of the game awesome and I am content with a massive sandbox world to have fun in.

Yep. Pretty much it. Just let us choose from a selection of backstories and let us be on our way. Heck, they proved they could plunk us down in a wasteland devoid of anything green besides toxic waste and we still ate it up...the...the game not the...toxic...waste.

I wouldn't have a problem with a mainquest if they made it as good as Morrowind's. Yeah I know I preach Morrowind's awesomeness all the time and the main quest had a lot of boring quests in it, but the story was just too fucking awesome to pass up on any playthrough.

 

[ImProvGamr]

There is no point to TES games. You make your own point. At least, thats how it has been with Oblivion and Skyrim. The actual content is spread so thin, theres no real point anymore. That void is to be filled by your imagination or mods.

Bethesda went a bit too far in the exploration philosophy this time around imo. I think of the TES games I have played, Morrowind had the best balance of focus/direction/narrative and exploration.

It really is a game where it feels that all you ever do is follow quest markers that come up on the screen. You're heading towards your next destination, then all of a sudden your compass starts filling up with so many quest markers that you feel bad if you just ignore them all. It's as if it's core audience is people with ADD, who follow bright marker on the map.

You can deselect all the quests, you know. Do that, pull up your map, travel to a random destination and walk in a random direction. See what you find.

I actually didn't know you could do that. I'll try that, thanks for the tip.

 

[WaysideMaze]

I wouldn't have a problem with a mainquest if they made it as good as Morrowind's. Yeah I know I preach Morrowind's awesomeness all the time and the main quest had a lot of boring quests in it, but the story was just too fucking awesome to pass up on any playthrough.

I see no problem with preaching Morrowinds awesomeness. I remember that story with greater clarity than I do both Oblivions, and given that I haven't played it for years (since before Oblivion was out) that counts for something. Truth be told, I've already started forgetting Skyrims main quest, it was so bland.
I'm usually so good at hype aversion, yet for some reason I hyped myself up too much for Skyrim, and it just wasn't as great as I'd hoped. Still a good game, but not as much as I'd hoped for.

 

[floobie]

Bethisda's logic-
"Let's make a main quest that pressures the player into doing a world-saving thing, but let's make it so the player can't possible complete this world saving task unless they do what seems to be simple side story lines, though each of these side story lines end up to be equally world threatening, or uber raging for the player."

I don't know what game you've been playing, but you can finish the main quest without playing a single side quest without playing any of the other side quests or even traveling the world at all.

Agreed. It's basically like Oblivion, as far as I can tell. When I first played Oblivion, I played the main quest exclusively and beat it in about 2 days of casual playing. I didn't even level up once!

Skyrim is good (bugs aside), but designed for a certain kind of player: Someone who really likes to explore and screw around. I'll admit, I'm not really like that. Exploration is nice, but I need something to tie everything together. The quests in Skyrim (or Oblivion, for that matter) don't really do that for me.

 

[WaysideMaze]

Was Morrowinds main quest that great though? I didnt think so. From a gameplay perspective, it was worse than Oblivion or Skyrim. The only thing it had going for it was the outstanding lore.

I guess that was what you were saying anyway, but meh.

I'm a bit confused by this point. If we're talking about story then surely the gameplay shouldn't matter, just the, in your words, 'outstanding lore.'

Not trying to be rude, I'm just a little puzzled as to what you think makes Morrowinds main quest worse.

 

[Fappy]

I wouldn't have a problem with a mainquest if they made it as good as Morrowind's. Yeah I know I preach Morrowind's awesomeness all the time and the main quest had a lot of boring quests in it, but the story was just too fucking awesome to pass up on any playthrough.

I see no problem with preaching Morrowinds awesomeness. I remember that story with greater clarity than I do both Oblivions, and given that I haven't played it for years (since before Oblivion was out) that counts for something. Truth be told, I've already started forgetting Skyrims main quest, it was so bland.
I'm usually so good at hype aversion, yet for some reason I hyped myself up too much for Skyrim, and it just wasn't as great as I'd hoped. Still a good game, but not as much as I'd hoped for.

That's pretty much my thoughts on the matter. Honestly it is a good game, but there is so little variety in what you do when you think about it. I might come up with a cool idea for a character then run the questline that makes sense for him and then... what... kill bandits the rest of the time?

 

[WaysideMaze]

That's pretty much my thoughts on the matter. Honestly it is a good game, but there is so little variety in what you do when you think about it. I might come up with a cool idea for a character then run the questline that makes sense for him and then... what... kill bandits the rest of the time?

Yeah, I make a character, run through whichever factions quests I feel like doing, then don't know what to do. There always seemed to be more to do in Morrowind, but in Skyrim it just feels like 'BAM quests are done, go fight more Draugr in another cave.'

I'd just like a bit more depth.

You are misunderstanding me. I prefer Morrowinds main quest to any daedra or dragon killing nonsense tenfold. But thats ONLY because of the lore. From a gameplay perspective Morrowinds main quest is absolutely terrible. Repetitive quests, for the most part boring enemies... The only thing holding it together was the juicy lore.

Ah right, I see what you mean now.

 

[Hero in a half shell]

-snip-

Let the guards arrest you. There's a quest in Signa mine that will clear your name.

Oh, I know, but I don't want to complete the quest because I don't think getting captured and skulking around a prison mine to clear my name suits the character I'm playing. He's supposed to be Skyrim's answer to William Wallace, not Andy Dufresne.

I actually think it makes the game just a bit more real and exciting, being a wanted man in part of the map, as any foray into Markarth Hold suddenly becomes a tense cat and mouse game with the guards, staying off roads, and away from settlements. Escaping Markarth when I got the bounty put on me was like one of those Benny Hill chase sketches, especially because I got lost and had to circle the town two or three times before finding the exit door.

For me that is where I get the most enjoyment playing Skyrim; by roleplaying within the games' limits, like the guy who wasted over half an hour messing about with a dead Lydia to try and bury her, then see if he could revive her. It's stupid, but brilliant fun.

 

[Fappy]

That's pretty much my thoughts on the matter. Honestly it is a good game, but there is so little variety in what you do when you think about it. I might come up with a cool idea for a character then run the questline that makes sense for him and then... what... kill bandits the rest of the time?

Yeah, I make a character, run through whichever factions quests I feel like doing, then don't know what to do. There always seemed to be more to do in Morrowind, but in Skyrim it just feels like 'BAM quests are done, go fight more Draugr in another cave.'

I'd just like a bit more depth.

Morrowind just had more focus. There were multiple questlines and factions that a character could logically partake in. Playing a suave thief? You can do the Thieves Guild, House Hlaalu and the Imperial Cult on one character and it makes perfect sense. Plus, most of the questlines were much longer than in Oblivion and Skyrim. You actually felt like your progression in organizations actually meant something.