One Hour With – The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 might also have been released this week but The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is by far the biggest game of the period for me so let's just see how one hour spent with it goes.

13:00. I fire up the game and expect to be a prisoner on his way towards execution and the developers at Bethesda Game Studios quickly humor me.

13:01. Only problem is I can see about seven or eight prisoners and about four guards and the gamer in me is screaming: “We can take them if we move quickly!”

13:09. After a nice tone setting carriage ride I end up before the executioner's block and I am ready for the grand escape sequence.

13:10. Bethesda made a mistake by taking control away from the character during the execution bit, it would have been much more effective to give me control to try and escape and even more to the block.

13:16. Damn, that dragon is powerful but I am worried that his might against my current Imperial enemies might be disconnected from how he behaves when I face it in combat.

13:20. I am rid of my shackles and ready for combat, rocking one sword in each hand, ready to make my way though any situation.

13:21. By the way, I am an Argonian and the new third person view really does my tail justice.

13:36. This is quite a long dungeon sequence but the enemies are pretty unremarkable and it's easy to take them down, especially using my two sword dual wield setup.

13:39. My first big choice in Skyrim is whether to attack a sleeping bear or sneak around him; I choose the second option and feel a flashback to Fallout: New Vegas, which I also had during the lock picking sequence earlier in the dungeon.

13:45. Finally I am out of the dungeon and the suggestion from my companion is to head to the closest town.

13:52. On the way I find a few wolves and practice my ability at swordplay while fighting from third person perspective (verdict: stick to first person).

13:58. I am now at the gates of the first small town in Skyrim, ready to get a few quests and begin to explore the plot but my strongest feeling at the moment is to just take off and explore this hills a little more...