As I made my way through the valley towards Whiterun, black markers on my HUD kept me off the beaten track. The journey had begun, and the new improvements to the engine were finally clear in front of me. All this reminded me of the hours I spent mindlessly searching the lands for dragons to slay, and a husband to marry. Sun rays through the trees, the calming trickle of the river ahead, and the stunning soundtrack.

As you take the first few steps down the mountain path towards Whiterun, the beauty of the world come to life.

It does get better however, as the game’s beauty begins to shine as soon as the intro is done. Again, it is typical Bethesda, as even Fallout 4 suffered from shoddy character animations, but Skyrim just shows how little the engine has improved since then when it comes to movement and NPC interactions. After the dragons we witnessed in Dragon Age: Inquisition, it was hard to look at Skyrim’s animation keys. Now, mathe animation track that Alduin flies across, and his landing techniques, look like a child is controlling him as he plays with his toys. Alduin soaring above my head, to crash down on a building in front of me, spewing flames out of his fire glands, and the helpless NPCs slowly burning alive. Animations were blocky, textures were bland, and the overall presentation was just horrific. The opening hour in specific felt terribly dated. It is the new lighting effects and a few tweaks with extra foliage, and water reflections, that sets it apart from the original. This however does not move mountains as the game still suffers from a dull colour pallet, and low-res textures.

The special edition of the game does have some graphical improvements over the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions. Skyrim: Special Edition is here, and although I thought my investment in the original title would hold me back, the Elder Scrolls Charm that we all love so much, quickly took over. Clocking around 250 hours in to the game overall, I have fond memories of exploring the icy hills, raiding the stores at night, and satisfying my need for blood with the Dark Brotherhood. Battling to cope with the pressures of the world around me, I found sanctuary in Skyrim, even if it was for an hour a day. Then fast forward a few years and The Elder Scrolls VI: Skyrim came along just as I turned 21. Oblivion was one of my saving graces back when it released as I was suffering from depression and used it to escape from the world I hated so. The Elder Scrolls series has always had a special place in my heart, as the games have always come along when I needed them the most.

Skyrim special edition sands of time