Skyrim Review - Atomic Gaming Magazine

It seems the first Skyrim review has leaked:

http://gamingeverything.com/11519/fi…s-in/?pid=7039

The verdict:

Gameplay 97/100
Graphics 92/100
Sound 95/100
Overall 95/100

I scrolled down instantly to comments and got poked in my eye with "payed review" and "preorder cancelled".

I think I'll wait for good old gamespot charade and apply -3 to their score which is always overpumped for AAA titles.

Considering the number of people already playing the pirated xbox360 version, it's easy to check if the game is good or not (if you don't mind reading spoilers along the way).

I watched some of the streams and IMHO this game is a 10/10.

Why cancel the preorder just because the game got 95% in a review? Makes no sense at all unless he's trolling…

Would 80% make him not cancel? I don't get it.

Originally Posted by Thiraury
Why cancel the preorder just because the game got 95% in a review? Makes no sense at all unless he's trolling…

Would 80% make him not cancel? I don't get it.

I think joxer is merely referring to some lame troll comments on the bottom of that web page.

Originally Posted by CountChocula
I watched some of the streams and IMHO this game is a 10/10.

I don't think anyone here would have expected less than a 10/10 from The Count.

It's obvious you're extremely excited about this game. Nothing wrong with that though.. I hope it doesn't let you down.

Originally Posted by CountChocula
I think joxer is merely referring to some lame troll comments on the bottom of that web page.

Yeah I am too

"Possibly the most majestic RPG ever made"…

I enjoy Elder Scrolls games, but I've never thought of that being so majestic without modding community: it makes me a bit skeptical…

Not gonna read a "first exclusive" review, these are always worthless.

Originally Posted by CountChocula
I watched some of the streams and IMHO this game is a 10/10.

Indeed, you´re so excited you could burst!

Anyway, I don´t think one can adequately rate this type of game just by watching few streams and having access to preview infos.
For one, an important question is how sustainable the game´s entertainment value is.
First few dungeons will no doubt be exciting, but are the dungeons distinct/elaborate/varied enough so that it takes respectable time till the feeling of déjà vu/repetition creeps in?
How varied the side quests are design-wise?
What about challenge and balancing at higher levels?
And so on.

Though, for what it´s worth, few streams I´ve watched had mostly positive effects on me as well.

Just comparing the streams to Oblivion, my impression is there´s a lot of stuff better handled in Skyrim, like world design, art direction, level scaling, crafting, liveliness, factions (lack of emphasis on political aspects was a big mistake in Oblivion imo), choices, faces, writing, lore, voice acting, music (apparently including some tracks directly from general attention to detail, character development (I really like how the shouts feature is tied to exploration) and there are only few things that didn´t jump at me as immediate improvements, like AI, UI, melee combat or some of the Gamebryo© stuff (terrain stuckage or giants bashing players to stratosphere).
In the 3 hours long stream, there was a moment when the guy was running around tundra at night, high mountains in the distance, aurora borealis in the sky and fireflies flying around, which together resulted in a great "piece of atmosphere".

From where I´m sitting, by now there are good chances that Skyrim will be quite substantially better than its predecessor.

It's funny how the mood is intensifying on Bethesda's forums as the official release date gets ever closer. Sort of like how a yellow jackats' nest becomes noticably more aggresive on hot days or how my two boys antagonize each other more than normal when they're very tired.

The iminent release of Skyrim is wreacking anxiety all over the official skyrim boards with a noticable uptick in snarkiness. Just an observation I am compelled to point out.

Shortly after release, people will laregly stop attacking each other in favor of a full frontal assault on the game itself. Happens every time.

I tend to avoid "official" game forums for exactly that reason.

"Developer: ID Software" misprint?

I never noticed this video on Bethesda's official site, at around the 1'04" mark, a very brief glimpse at 'item placement.' I always thought Morrowind handled this much better than Oblivion. But it looks like Skyrm object placement will be a bit clunky. Not a huge deal, was just hoping it would be a little easier or at least on par with Morrowind.

Originally Posted by TheMadGamer
I never noticed this video on Bethesda's official site, at around the 1'04" mark, a very brief glimpse at 'item placement.' I always thought Morrowind handled this much better than Oblivion. But it looks like Skyrm object placement will be a bit clunky. Not a huge deal, was just hoping it would be a little easier or at least on par with Morrowind.

Apparently for books there is a bookshelf upgrade for your house that alphabetizes and stacks all your books neatly.

LOL! That sounds like the "armory" mod for Oblivion. I wonder how many user mods for Oblivion were incorporated in Skyrim? I hope the modders were compensated in some fashion. Maybe as beta-testers?

Originally Posted by CountChocula
Apparently for books there is a bookshelf upgrade for your house that alphabetizes and stacks all your books neatly.

Speaking of books, this little in-game story alone is a 10/10

http://i.imgur.com/XG1dI.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/IllIF.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/VY1WD.jpg

Originally Posted by vurt
Speaking of books, this little in-game story alone is a 10/10

http://i.imgur.com/XG1dI.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/IllIF.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/VY1WD.jpg

All that I can say is: LOL!

Originally Posted by vurt
Speaking of books, this little in-game story alone is a 10/10

Ok that made me laugh!

Im affraid it feels like its a console port and game is alot symplified on master difficulty its still rather easy and UI is horrible for PC. So i say its a narrow 8/10 my guts say when i play week it will lower the rating even. World again looks great and alot to explore dungeon are looking alot better then in Oblivion. But to many things made to simple or left out