Skyrim - A Closer Look @ IGN

This isn't as informative as the title sounds. IGN compares the handful of released Skyrim screens to Oblivion but it's entirely speculative:

Hitting someone with a fireball in Oblivion was a satisfying act. It dealt damage, made you feel like a badass, and sometimes caused the targets to fly across the landscape like victims of fatal trampoline accidents. In Skyrim, judging by this screenshot and the small flecks of flame around the impact point, it looks as though the spell effects will be much more detailed. Bethesda decided to reduce the total schools of magic from Oblivion, dropping Mysticism, but that doesn't mean there'll be less to choose from in terms of combat options. Leveling will be faster and Skyrim will include Fallout-like perks.

More information.

Nothing there to see. Did you guys link to the PCGamer article? I even think they were linking from an Xbox magazine but the information was new to me:

http://www.pcgamer.com/2011/02/08/sk…o-areas-alike/

Wow, now that looks like a forest.

That is a good shot… Oblivion did forests really well already though, I am more worried about view distance and character/beast models.

Originally Posted by DoctorNarrative
That is a good shot… Oblivion did forests really well already though, I am more worried about view distance and character/beast models.

but that forest is in another league! I promised myself that I wouldnt give in to the hype of another blockbuster game, but I think Skyrim is going to be THE game to watch out for. Just from what little I've seen and read so far, I'm going to put Skyrim above Diablo III for game of the year… or decade even!

Those skellies look pretty mean!

I don't really recall anything in Oblivion making me feel like a "badass". Using magic generally made me feel like I was playing a first-person shooter. The different spells were basically just differently colored generic energy balls, making Oblivion's one of the least interesting magic systems I have used.

Looks like Bethesda have got their hype machine going again, but I won't be sucked in this time.

Kay

Originally Posted by Ergonpandilus
Wow, now that looks like a forest.

Gothic 3 still holds the top spot for having the best foliage in a crpg imo, but it looks like it might have some real competition now.

I don't have high hopes for this game so I will not give into the hype. Tired of being disappointed by the the elder scroll games. To this date I never finished one and stopped playing halfway through. I'll take a story driven campaign game over this any day. I will agree that the forest looks realistic so maybe there is some hope for this game.

Yeah oblivion looked really bad

Oblivion was fun, and held up to why higher standard then any of the European RPG's. I have played those as well, but they do not face any criticism to the effect Oblivion does. Two worlds is actually lauded by a few of you as being way better then oblivion…and well that just is not the case. I liked gothic 3, but once again huge glaring problems. But yet, get a pass by many of you.

Anyways, the shots look great…as do the Oblivion ones.

Originally Posted by rune_74
Two worlds is actually lauded by a few of you as being way better then oblivion…and well that just is not the case.

Opinions can't be wrong you know… for some people Two Worlds 2 is going to be better than Oblivion and you just need to accept that.

I'm not sure which I would say is better at the moment… I will say though that Risen was a whole lot better than Oblivion.

Hmm, perhaps Skyrim: Obsidian Sequel is a possibility, similar to FO3 -> FO:NV? That would have a lot more potential than TESV to be honest, as we pretty much got the best of both worlds in FO:NV.

In my opinion, Risen is the best looking open world game as of this moment. It doesn't hurt that it's extremely smooth in terms of streaming content.

I think Gothic 3 was beautiful as well - but I preferred Oblivion's environments - because the detail was stronger.

Wow, now that looks like a forest.

But what the heck is wrong with the hunter? it looks really wrong….

also I am not impressed with the ground… that ground is so 2008.

Trees look superb though.

Originally Posted by spiraling69
but that forest is in another league! I promised myself that I wouldnt give in to the hype of another blockbuster game, but I think Skyrim is going to be THE game to watch out for. Just from what little I've seen and read so far, I'm going to put Skyrim above Diablo III for game of the year… or decade even!

Not very bright are you !? This looks okish, nothing more. Being hyped about a Beth game is moronic at best.

The branch on the tree to the left is way too big, it's even bigger than the stem it's connected to, not very natural looking. But the color composition is awesome in that shot and the broken tree is great.

Originally Posted by The Watchman
Not very bright are you !? This looks okish, nothing more. Being hyped about a Beth game is moronic at best.

Maybe you should be a bit more respectful, eh?

Besides, saying that "being hyped about a Beth game is moronic at best" is also - well, moronic at best. If you don't like Bethesda games, that's perfectly fine; just don't follow the so-called "hype" if it doesn't appeal to you. But it's just your opinion that Bethesda's games are bad, and it's one that I certainly don't share, but I won't insult you for having a different opinion than mine. Basically, you have no right to insult someone for being excited about ESV just because you personally hate Bethesda's games.

Originally Posted by The Watchman
Not very bright are you !? This looks okish, nothing more. Being hyped about a Beth game is moronic at best.

I think you're making it pretty clear who is suffering from moronic tendencies, with that post.

Originally Posted by GothicGothicness
But what the heck is wrong with the hunter? it looks really wrong….

also I am not impressed with the ground… that ground is so 2008.

Trees look superb though.

Yeah, ground is usually overlooked in games (i.e. textures + some 'debrris') …I have a grad student working on real-time sim of sandy terrains - I'm hoping he can finally provide some neat terrain that's defromable and doesn't suck up the entire GPU rendering budget. Early days tho!

You can`t really compare Risen to Oblivion in terms of "open world" - because Risen isn`t in the club. Make simple experiment and travel in one direction in both games wilderness` - see how far you`ll get.

In Risen you can stick your nose everywhere, or at least try - strong monsters will stop you - but it`s not true "open world", the way I define one. You`re still confined to corridors and areas, albeit it`s done way much better than in most games.

As for Risen being a better looker than Oblivion - well it`s got few years seniority. Also it`s totally different to code gfx for true open world - hence your dreaded repetition in Oblivion. But for me the ability to see a landmark from miles away and the fact that a trek there will take me 20 minutes is unbeatable.

That said, of course Risen is a looker. If they tweaked the DOF a bit it would be even better. Also love the torch dynamics - shadows are second to none.