Chapter 795: Rich Content

Naturally, Song Ren wasn't particularly bothered by the fact that the game's protagonist was an errand-running tool-man.

After all, in most RPG-element games, the protagonist tends to be just that.

Whether it's The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Red Dead Redemption, or titles from other Game developers.

Running errands is simply commonplace.

Especially in some formulaic 'canned' open-world games, you'd be running errands to the ends of the earth, as if they're afraid you won't realize how big and open their game map is. An old granny in the next village might ask you to deliver a letter to Old Man Li, and you'd have to run from the east of the map to the west.

And in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, even though Song Ren complained about the errands in the game, the actual gameplay experience wasn't bad at all.

After learning about the Greybeards and the Throat of the World in Whiterun, he embarked on the main quest.

It was from this point that Song Ren truly felt the rich content of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.

After a long journey, he arrived at Ivarstead at the foot of the mountain, and there, Song Ren saw the mountain path with 7,000 stone steps that the Jarl had mentioned earlier.

Whether there were actually 7,000 steps, Song Ren didn't know, but the only thing he knew was that this mountain far surpassed any peak he had ever seen.

Midway up the mountain, it was still lush green, but as the steps climbed higher, the path was quickly covered by wind and snow. There were even countless snow trolls inhabiting the area, which took a considerable effort for Song Ren to defeat.

Upon reaching the Throat of the World and meeting the Greybeards, Song Ren learned about the deeper meaning of Dragon Language Power.

All Dragon Shouts are composed of three Words of Power, and mastering each rune enhances the power of the Dragon Shout.

Then, under the guidance of the Greybeard masters, Song Ren learned the second word of Unrelenting Force: Ro, as well as a new Dragon Shout: Whirlwind Sprint.

“This makes traveling so much easier!”

Watching the in-game character dash forward as if rockets were attached to their backside after using the Dragon Shout, Song Ren's eyes lit up.

After learning this new Dragon Shout, the Greybeards gave the Dragonborn a new trial, sending them to Ustengrav to retrieve a horn.

This tomb was located in the northwest of Skyrim, a long journey away.

Players could take a carriage from Whiterun Stables to Morthal, then travel there on foot.

This also marked the first time players would reach a second city through the main quest.

The quests throughout The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim are different from Red Dead Redemption.

Players aren't forced to only complete the main quest during missions.

Instead, they can wander around freely, much like in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

This design effectively diluted the sense of urgency in the game's storyline.

The greatest benefit of this approach was allowing players to better explore the entire game world.

It's important to remember that The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is a strong background game, not a strong plot game.

The main quest is just one part of the entire experience.

This is another distinguishing feature from Red Dead Redemption, where the world is built around the game's story.

In contrast, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

The world came first, and then the story.

This established a fundamental tone: the plot is merely a component of the game.

Exploring Skyrim, exploring this world, is the core of the game.

So, when countless players embarked on free exploration, they felt as if they were back to playing The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and even Souls series games.

They explored a completely unfamiliar world step by step, learning about its customs and local conditions.

The only difference was that in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, they didn't have to explore cautiously, worried that a single misstep would lead to death by Mr. Chen's schemes, unlike in Souls series games.

In The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, if you're not seeking a challenge, players can set the game's difficulty to the lowest and freely explore the countless rich contents of Skyrim at their leisure.

There's even an official cheat console: the console commands.

Beyond its rich exploration, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim couldn't conjure up as many bizarre gameplay mechanics as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

Yet, it possessed a vast worldview and storyline akin to Red Dead Redemption and The Witcher: Wild Hunt.

Richness — that was the collective understanding all players had of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.

In The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, there were endless quests.

Just like Song Ren now, he would be walking, merely intending to observe the local customs of Skyrim, but as he walked, more quests would pile up on him.

As for freedom, the gameplay of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim wasn't truly free.

Kill a chicken at the start, and angry villagers would beat you half to death.

Later, after killing dragons and earning the title of Thane, if you stole something in the street, the guards would still catch you and give you a stern lecture.

The first time, they might overlook it out of respect for your Thane status, but the second time, you'd either pay a fine or go to jail; there would be no more leniency.

It couldn't be as reckless as Red Dead Redemption, where you could be a big bad outlaw of the West, nor could it possess the myriad fantastical gameplay of Breath of the Wild.

Yet, it gave players the feeling of a real world, making them feel that every NPC was incredibly vibrant.

Occasionally, you'd discover an ordinary NPC who died at the hands of beasts or bandits, and you could uncover a unique story just by interacting with their remains.

If you carelessly killed an ordinary civilian NPC, were thrown into jail, and then released, you would find their grave and their grieving family.

It wasn't a formulaic open-world that merely presented countless question marks on the map to players.

But as long as players desired to explore and converse with other NPCs, they would inadvertently trigger all sorts of quests.

If in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, players forgot about Princess Zelda waiting to be rescued in the castle because there were too many interesting things like shrines, Koroks, and teasing various monsters.

Then in The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, it was because the world was so rich, with countless places awaiting exploration.

Participating in the Civil War between the Empire and the Stormcloaks, understanding the honor of the Companions, diligently practicing magic in Winterhold—then, turning around, an eighty-year-old Dragonborn would return to Whiterun, hearing the guards with an arrow in the knee at the entrance call him Dragonborn. Only then would players remember that there were still a few old men waiting for him at the Throat of the World!

(End of Chapter) <>