10 Things I Hate About Skyrim
This is in response to 10 Things I Hate About Skyrim. I only agreed with maybe two of his points. The rest I thought were far too nitpicky (which is saying a lot coming from me).
I can't make this list without some spoilers though, so consider yourself warned. :P
1. Jumping
The jumping mechanic in Skyrim is awful. I wish they'd kept with MMO style jumping because coming off of games like WoW and Rift makes trying to jump in Skyrim a frustrating annoyance. You cannot jump if your character is up against something even if it's merely an ankle-high stone. You're forced to stop, step back, and then jump. Additionally, jumping up slopes is almost never successful, which brings me to my next point:
2. Exploration
Not as easy as the promotional videos made it sound. Most slopes in the game are not traversable and you cannot jump up most slopes either. My experiences thus far have been if there's a place to get to there's usually only one way to get to it, which is typically via a specialized path you have to find. There have been very few instances where I've been able to get to a location via an alternate route between the way the terrain is designed and the limitations of the jump mechanic.
3. Being forced to read books before you can take them.
This honestly became so annoying I quit looting books almost entirely.
4. You become leader of everything.
As far as actual quests and storyline are concerned, my biggest issue by far is the fact that you inevitably become the leader of literally everything you do. It's always by the same process too. Something happens whereby the previous leader turns up dead and despite the disagreement or seniority of others in the group whoever's next in line decides that you are the one most fitting to fill the vacancy.
There are seemingly no checks for your skills either. During one quest chain it was decided there was no better candidate for Arch Mage than my character, despite the fact that I'd never used magic of any sort other than the quests that required it and had never bothered to learn any spells other than the quests that required it. While some of the other leaderships I'd been bestowed previously at least made some sense at the time I found this one to be particularly ridiculous.
I haven't finished the game yet, but at this point I'm expecting to be made High King and perhaps even Emperor. :P
5. You are always the 'chosen one'.
This is in the same vein as #4, but a little different. Apparently not a whole lot has happened in the past 1-2 centuries in the Elder Scroll universe in terms of specially gifted people. I can only assume this because every time someone says, "There hasn't been a(n) _____ in the past 100/200 years or 1/2 eras." I automatically know that it's going to be me. Dragonborn? Me. Listener? Me. Etc.
I don't need to be the leader or chosen of everything. Half the things I'm leader/chosen of conflict with each other, it's silly.
6. Few recognize you as a Dragonborn past the initial quest line.
This particularly peeved me. Such a huge deal is made over the fact that you're a Dragonborn, but you'll find few if any NPCs who acknowledge that fact past the quest line that involves it.
7. Guards seem to know everything, but no one else does.
Every time I do something the guards I pass in the cities alert me to the fact that they're aware of everything I've just done. You'd think organizations such as the Thieves Guild and The Dark Brotherhood would be shrouded in secrecy, their operations so discreet that no one but your fellow brethren would know. No. Every guard in every city knows everything. Did you just find out you're the new leader or chosen? Well, the guards know as soon as you do (possibly sooner)!
The actual quest NPCs? Clueless. They frequently treat you no differently than any other random traveler they encounter. This includes trying to sucker you into their dastardly plots, assigning you all the dirty work, and then assuming you'll be easily "dealt with" once the deed is done.
8. Marriage as it was implemented.
First and foremost, I hate that there is no courting process in Skyrim. All you do is buy an Amulet of Mara, which opens up an "Interested in me, are you?" dialog option. Once it's established you're both interested the object of your affection quickly declares that life is short and you should immediately wed. There are a few exceptions where you have to finish a quest task for certain NPCs beforehand, but that's the extent of it. There's no other process of winning favor. No buying of flowers, or candy, or jewelry (something I enjoyed doing in Quest for Glory V). You don't even get the pleasure of formally asking! Your bride or groom doesn't even dress up for the occasion, showing up in their usual daily attire.
There's also nothing new once you marry other than your spouse may maintain a shop that provides you with some income on the side. There are no other new dialog options. Near as I can tell unless the spouse is also a follower there's no way to change their clothes (without mods). Despite the fact that the guards know everything about you your spouse never comments on your current status or anything you're in the process of doing. The character I married keeps repeating the last line of dialog given after I completed her quest, before I married her.
As an aside, it also bothers me that there is not a NPC of every race available to marry. Apparently it would be lore breaking somehow if there were. All I know is I play a male Khajiit and despite running into female Khajiits in caravans I cannot ask any of them to marry me.
The marriage pool is further limited by only being able to ask very specific NPCs, the vast majority of whom are unattractive. Ironically, none of the flirty female NPCs have been ones available to marry. Very frustrating. :P
9. Lack of voice actor variety and/or limited range of the voice actors.
I'm not saying the voice acting is bad, but too many characters sound exactly alike. They didn't even seem to bother to double check to see how character dialog was being staggered because I've done several quest chains now where multiple NPCs in the chain were voiced by the same person with the same voice and dialect given to all of them. It would have just been nice if the majority of NPCs didn't sound like carbon copies of each other.
10. Decorating your home.
Trying to do anything beyond purchasing home decorations from the local steward is an exercise in frustration. Everything from items disappearing to moving around (and thus disturbing other items) occurs. Not to mention that there's no easy way to place anything. The best you can do is 'hold' something and keep moving it around until you can (hopefully) get it in the right angle in the right spot. (Then, of course, hoping that the item doesn't disappear or move from where you put it after you leave.)
Purchasing home decorations almost seems to be a requirement, at least if you want things like cobwebs and random piles of hay laying around to be removed. The decorations come in predetermined sets according to room and you have no choice in exactly what's added or where.
There's also a disappointing lack of display cases for non-weaponry even though they do exist in other parts of the game (usually containing jewelry or soul gems). I've been looking for a way to display my dragon keys with no luck so far.
Overall, I enjoy the game. Maybe my complaints could be considered nitpicky too, I don't know. Sometimes I feel like I'm playing a more detailed, grittier version of Wrath of the Lich King (which is probably partly why I like it so much).
I can't make this list without some spoilers though, so consider yourself warned. :P
1. Jumping
The jumping mechanic in Skyrim is awful. I wish they'd kept with MMO style jumping because coming off of games like WoW and Rift makes trying to jump in Skyrim a frustrating annoyance. You cannot jump if your character is up against something even if it's merely an ankle-high stone. You're forced to stop, step back, and then jump. Additionally, jumping up slopes is almost never successful, which brings me to my next point:
2. Exploration
Not as easy as the promotional videos made it sound. Most slopes in the game are not traversable and you cannot jump up most slopes either. My experiences thus far have been if there's a place to get to there's usually only one way to get to it, which is typically via a specialized path you have to find. There have been very few instances where I've been able to get to a location via an alternate route between the way the terrain is designed and the limitations of the jump mechanic.
3. Being forced to read books before you can take them.
This honestly became so annoying I quit looting books almost entirely.
4. You become leader of everything.
As far as actual quests and storyline are concerned, my biggest issue by far is the fact that you inevitably become the leader of literally everything you do. It's always by the same process too. Something happens whereby the previous leader turns up dead and despite the disagreement or seniority of others in the group whoever's next in line decides that you are the one most fitting to fill the vacancy.
There are seemingly no checks for your skills either. During one quest chain it was decided there was no better candidate for Arch Mage than my character, despite the fact that I'd never used magic of any sort other than the quests that required it and had never bothered to learn any spells other than the quests that required it. While some of the other leaderships I'd been bestowed previously at least made some sense at the time I found this one to be particularly ridiculous.
I haven't finished the game yet, but at this point I'm expecting to be made High King and perhaps even Emperor. :P
5. You are always the 'chosen one'.
This is in the same vein as #4, but a little different. Apparently not a whole lot has happened in the past 1-2 centuries in the Elder Scroll universe in terms of specially gifted people. I can only assume this because every time someone says, "There hasn't been a(n) _____ in the past 100/200 years or 1/2 eras." I automatically know that it's going to be me. Dragonborn? Me. Listener? Me. Etc.
I don't need to be the leader or chosen of everything. Half the things I'm leader/chosen of conflict with each other, it's silly.
6. Few recognize you as a Dragonborn past the initial quest line.
This particularly peeved me. Such a huge deal is made over the fact that you're a Dragonborn, but you'll find few if any NPCs who acknowledge that fact past the quest line that involves it.
7. Guards seem to know everything, but no one else does.
Every time I do something the guards I pass in the cities alert me to the fact that they're aware of everything I've just done. You'd think organizations such as the Thieves Guild and The Dark Brotherhood would be shrouded in secrecy, their operations so discreet that no one but your fellow brethren would know. No. Every guard in every city knows everything. Did you just find out you're the new leader or chosen? Well, the guards know as soon as you do (possibly sooner)!
The actual quest NPCs? Clueless. They frequently treat you no differently than any other random traveler they encounter. This includes trying to sucker you into their dastardly plots, assigning you all the dirty work, and then assuming you'll be easily "dealt with" once the deed is done.
8. Marriage as it was implemented.
First and foremost, I hate that there is no courting process in Skyrim. All you do is buy an Amulet of Mara, which opens up an "Interested in me, are you?" dialog option. Once it's established you're both interested the object of your affection quickly declares that life is short and you should immediately wed. There are a few exceptions where you have to finish a quest task for certain NPCs beforehand, but that's the extent of it. There's no other process of winning favor. No buying of flowers, or candy, or jewelry (something I enjoyed doing in Quest for Glory V). You don't even get the pleasure of formally asking! Your bride or groom doesn't even dress up for the occasion, showing up in their usual daily attire.
There's also nothing new once you marry other than your spouse may maintain a shop that provides you with some income on the side. There are no other new dialog options. Near as I can tell unless the spouse is also a follower there's no way to change their clothes (without mods). Despite the fact that the guards know everything about you your spouse never comments on your current status or anything you're in the process of doing. The character I married keeps repeating the last line of dialog given after I completed her quest, before I married her.
As an aside, it also bothers me that there is not a NPC of every race available to marry. Apparently it would be lore breaking somehow if there were. All I know is I play a male Khajiit and despite running into female Khajiits in caravans I cannot ask any of them to marry me.
The marriage pool is further limited by only being able to ask very specific NPCs, the vast majority of whom are unattractive. Ironically, none of the flirty female NPCs have been ones available to marry. Very frustrating. :P
9. Lack of voice actor variety and/or limited range of the voice actors.
I'm not saying the voice acting is bad, but too many characters sound exactly alike. They didn't even seem to bother to double check to see how character dialog was being staggered because I've done several quest chains now where multiple NPCs in the chain were voiced by the same person with the same voice and dialect given to all of them. It would have just been nice if the majority of NPCs didn't sound like carbon copies of each other.
10. Decorating your home.
Trying to do anything beyond purchasing home decorations from the local steward is an exercise in frustration. Everything from items disappearing to moving around (and thus disturbing other items) occurs. Not to mention that there's no easy way to place anything. The best you can do is 'hold' something and keep moving it around until you can (hopefully) get it in the right angle in the right spot. (Then, of course, hoping that the item doesn't disappear or move from where you put it after you leave.)
Purchasing home decorations almost seems to be a requirement, at least if you want things like cobwebs and random piles of hay laying around to be removed. The decorations come in predetermined sets according to room and you have no choice in exactly what's added or where.
There's also a disappointing lack of display cases for non-weaponry even though they do exist in other parts of the game (usually containing jewelry or soul gems). I've been looking for a way to display my dragon keys with no luck so far.
Overall, I enjoy the game. Maybe my complaints could be considered nitpicky too, I don't know. Sometimes I feel like I'm playing a more detailed, grittier version of Wrath of the Lich King (which is probably partly why I like it so much).