Gamer Unit

Skyrim is my favorite game of this generation. Its incredible lore and exploration place it less as a game but more of an experience which makes it a must play for gamers and casuals alike. Skyrim was developed by Bethesda studios and was released on November 11, 2011 (Yep, REALLY cool date).

The world is massive by any scale you care to measure it by. With mountains stretching on all four sides the sense of freedom that Skyrim gives is unparalleled. Even after playing the game for around 114 hours I still feel I could have done more in the game (my save file was tragically lost when I had my format my PS3). The locations are incredibly diverse in themselves too. As you begin the game and complete the beginning quest you are given freedom to find your own way. As you journey through the land of Skyrim you will cross the picturesque Riverwood , seedy Riften, bustling capital Solitude to the frozen walled city of Windhelm. Between these cities you will find lush forests and frozen wastelands with imperious mountains surrounding you and often forcing you to change your path. I could give a challenge to any player of this game to walk a few minutes in this world without being distracted by something in this world. A bandit camp, a Dwemer ruin, a shack which has a story to tell perhaps? in Skyrim the possibilities are endless. Of course none of these places would be even remotely as interesting without a proper backstory but Skyrim delivers on this premise handing us some bewitching and truly fascinating stories which most of the players wont even encounter. As the wind howls in the background it is easy to forget that you are in a game. Or are you? 

One of the major additions to Skyrim was the inclusion of Dragons. While the fights are exciting at first they don't really change much as the game progresses. The harder dragons just need a few more arrows or a few more jabs with the sword. It's quite safe to say that Dragons are a bit of a dissapointment. The other enemies are quite varied though. Ranging from the lowly bandits and wolves they go all the way upto Trolls, Giants and Mammoths. In specific areas of the game you will face Dwemer invented Automanons and the nature loving Spriggans. Its safe to say that Bethesda covered the variety of enemies well. VERY well. However what isn't done so well is the combat. The combat seems floaty with the weapons having no real weight and you never really feel that youré hitting an actual creature, it seems like your hitting think air. However this seems to be a problem with only the playtype of the Melee build character. The other builds, Assassin and Mage are much better albeit a bit overpowered. With the right use of skillpoints and the perfect dagger you can get a damage percent of 3000 essentially enabling you to one-hit kill ALL enemies including Dragons. If that isn't ridiculous, I don't know what is. 

Moving on to the Skills and Levelling Systems, Skyrim has a total of 15 skills which you can level up by using them. Yes, its that simple. What isn't so simple is the skill points. Every skill can be essentially "upgraded" with bonus skill points you receive after increasing a overall level (not a particular skill). However these skill points aren't unlimited and depending on the build you plan to take, you should spend these wisely as they can't be reversed once you use them.

Skyrim's main quest is the cliche story of the hero killing the villian in the end ( with the dragon Alduin as the vlillain). However the main story does have its moments although they are few and far in between. The visit to Sovngarde remains a highlight of Skyrim as does Blackreach dungeon with its fluoroscent lighting with Falmer & Dwemer Mechanisms roaming hunting for intruders. Apart from the main quest Skyrim does have FIVE other questlines you can pursue depending on your preferences. 

 

The Companions Guild:-

This made it to the first on the list because it is likely the first guild you are likely to encounter in the city of Whiterun. This is Skyrim's native faction of fighters, mercenaries, and warriors.Based in the city of Whiterun, these men and women of might and honor operate out of the mead hall Jorrvaskr. The companions are a proud group of warriors with an incredibly long history. The name itself refers to the 500 companions of the first Nordic king Ysgramor (Ysgramor is a fabled hero who first drove out the elves from Skyrim and established the first dynasty of human rulers.).Jorrvaskr itself is a building enriched in lore. It is said that the city of Whiterun spawned around the headquarters of this ancient guild, an odd-looking fortress that sits on top a mountain and is actually an overturned Viking-style ship. Adjacent to the building is the ancient Skyforge, a mysterious forge of unknown origins built into the side of the mountain, run by the greatest blacksmith in Skyrim. Although this may seem irrelevant, this is what make Skyrim feel like a real place. It has such depth and lore behind it, that can't do anything but marvel the attention Bethesda has given to each item and place in this world. However, while Ysgramor had 500 Companions, this modern-day version of Jorrvaskr has a measly 13. This would have been excusable if the mead hall had just been a centralized meeting place of companion leadership, from which they planned and assigned tasks received. However, it turned out to be the sole location of any sort of gathering of Companions.

 

How to Join the Companions:

Joining The Companions is as simple as walking into Jorrvaskr and talking to Kodlak. From there, you'll prove yourself in a little brawl and be on your merry way to advancing through the ranks of the guild. 

 

 

Review:

Much like Jorrvaskr itself, the main plotline of this guild is just too small. It's suitably epic, but it's just far too short.The real quest line kicks in once you've been accepted into the super-secret faction of the group's leaders called The Circle.You'll also be blessed with Hircine's Gift, the ability to transform into a Werewolf. This is a trait that all Companion leaders share. This means you'll also be going up against the Silver Bloods, a notorious group of werewolf hunters who are out to get the Companions. The rest of the quests are filler, mainly asking you to bring back a piece of the Wuuthrad, a fabled battleaxe which used to belong to Ygrasamor. Playing as werewolf isn't really as fun as it sounds like. The long tranformation became more of a hassle and once you attain a high enough level, it simply nullifies any advantage of turning into a werewolf.

 

Verdict: 7.8/10

 

THIEVES GUILD:

 in the world of Skyrim it pays to be a thief. The Thieves Guild is based in the sewers of the crime -infested city of Riften. The city's Jarl is in the pocket of the guild's matron, a large-scale meadery owner.  Members are no longer held to a code of honor or sense of duty to the poor. The player is dealing  with trained mercenaries and professional thieves who care only for the dough. 

 

How to Join:

Joining the guild is as simple as walking into the bustling Riften market square, where a charismatic individual will approach you with a simple task that will prove your worth as well as initiate you into the guild. Joining is a good idea, because membership comes with a bunch of perks. For one, guild fences are the only people who will buy stolen goods. So, if you plan to be light fingered in your time in Skyrim, the Thieves Guild is a must. Another perk of joining this guild is the option given to bribe guards in case they catch you doing a bit of "mischief"

 

Review:

The primary and best way to earn gold is through the main quest line of the guild, which can be a little gamble The concept here  is that the guild has fallen on some tough times since the murder of the previous guild master by a member within the guild. The player character is, of course, tasked with bringing glory and power back to the guild while hunting down and revealing the traitor that doomed the entire enterprise. There's a lot of cool cult stuff, interesting quests, and useful rewards but the biggest flaw in the main quest has to be that there is definitely not enough thieving. I can scarcely remember one quest where I was actually required to steal somthing. This was a let-down by Bethesda. If however, you are hell-bent on doing some thievery, the random jobs at the Guild are a decent time killer, although none is particularly hard. You earn some quick coins and the Guild grows in power. Win-Win situation.

 

Verdict: 7.2/10

 

DARK BROTHERHOOD:-

If it pays to be a thief, it plays more to be an assassin. Becoming an assassin is the most lucrative job in the game. The premise of the Dark Brotherhood is that since the downfall of the guild in the events leading up to this installment, the members in Skyrim have abandoned the old ways of the guild. The Night Mother, the mysterious spiritual leader of the assassins, has all but vanished. A Listener, the blessed leader that heads her commands, has not been chosen, and the five tenets that held the brotherhood of killers in line have been abandoned. The Dark Brotherhood is ungergoing a rough period and it is on your shoulders to save it from extinction.

 

How to Join:

From the start of the game, rumors start circulating about an orphan boy whose been attempting to get in contact with the organization. Carrying out the boy's task will alert the organization of your willingness to kill for hire, an amiable quality to prospective employers . From there, you'll be the subject of a very interesting initiation which I won't spoil, for I think that this must be experienced on your own. There is however another path you could take instead of joining the Brotherhood. That path involves you extinguishing the Brothergood once and for all. Although it was nice of Bethesda to give the option, the Dark Brotherhood simply gives us too many benefits to consider turning them down. 

 

Review:

The main quest of the Brotherhood offers us the largest possible assassination in the Universe and it is a thrill ride through and through. There are some VERY interesting quests such as locating and assassinating a chef and the final assassination of the main story line is just unbelievably fun. The Dark Brotherhood is the best guild in Skyrim for offering a variety of quests which are both interesting and fun to do. 

 

Verdict: 9/10

 

COLLEGE OF WINTERHOLD:-

 

In Skyrim, the few who want to study the various schools of magic can do so at the College of Winterhold. The equivalent of the Mages Guild of Cyrodiil from Oblivion, the College of Winterhold is an autonomous organization that did not fall despite the collapse of the Mages Guild. Also unlike the Mages Guild, the college doesn't condemn the use of the dark arts. Necromancy isn't only accepted, but encouraged - the pursuit of knowledge in all studies are recommended.

 

This is mainly because the College of Winterhold isn't as integrated with the general population as the Mages Guild was. The College serves as  palace of knowledge and scholarship isolated from the rest of the savage world. It wasn't always this way, however, not before the Great Collapse at least. The College was once the jewel in the crown of the City of Winterhold, attracting merchants and traders from around the world. But seventy years prior to the events of the game, an unrelenting succession of storms tore most of the city from its roots and dropped it into the adjacent Sea of Ghosts. With the College being relatively unharmed, they were soon made the scapegoats for the disaster. Also, the fact remains that in the gritty land of the Nords, magic is considered a weapon for the weak and the cowardly. The stone castle  like building is made up of four main parts. The mages reside in the Halls of Countenance and attainment, where the player receives his own special room upon gaining admission to the college. The Hall of Elements plays home to the Arch Mage, the lead administrator. There's also a massive library called The Arcanaeum, which is home to over 100 different books although most of them are not accessible and are locked in their cases. Lastly, the Midden is an underground labyrinth of failed experiments. 

 

How to Join: Joining the College of Winterhold is ridiculously straight-forward. Upon arrival you will be subjected to a basic magic "test". After passing it, congragulations you are officially a student of the College of Winterhold.

 

Review:

The College of WInterhold faction is actually a contender for the best faction as it contains some suitably epic side-quests and also has a lengthy yet interesting main quest. From interacting with fellow students, to uncovering  forgotten secrets, unlocking master spells, and even chasing down rogue wizards, and there's much much more in the College. Most of the main quest however, takes place underground, in ruins and less in the university. It involves us uncovering a powerful magic artefact and has an incredible boss battle to cap it off.

 

VERDICT: 8.8/10