Skyrim Is Still a Fun Game & Here’s Why You Should Play It

Skyrim is known as one of the best games of the last decade. It was a highly anticipated game from the start and people are playing it even now 11 years after its initial release. There have been numerous re-releases over the years, but the core gameplay of Skyrim never changed. In today’s post, we’re going to revisit Skyrim and its world to answer one vital question for new gamers currently deciding whether to pick up Skyrim and give it a try. From numerous similar games being released often, older games might be passed over in favor of newer and flashy, more current games. Having said all that, it’s time to answer is Skyrim fun, and should you play it in 2024?

Is Skyrim a good game in 2024?

Skyrim is absolutely a good game and worth playing in 2024. Like its predecessors, Morrowind and Oblivion, Skyrim is a timeless game. Some elements of the mentioned games haven’t aged well (looking at you Morrowind chance-to-hit combat), but they are still played by many in this day and age.

Skyrim is an upgrade to both games (depending on who you ask of course) although there are aspects in which the game has been downgraded and is simply lacking some depth. In the rest of this post, we’re going to analyze all aspects of Skyrim to determine whether you should give it a try.

Skyrim’s story is lacking depth

The story of Skyrim, the main questline was always among the most criticized aspects of the game. It feels rather flat and leaves you without any real sense of accomplishment. You progress from zero to hero in a matter of a few quests. This is a true shame since the lore of Elder Scrolls is one of the most detailed and developed out there. There’s nothing wrong with short main stories, but when you have a world as developed as Skyrim’s, I expect a bit more length and depth to it.

Skyrim has an amazing and detailed world with plenty of chances for exploration

We’ve recently compared the maps of Skyrim and Fallout 4. Skyrim has a way bigger map and apparently more locations to explore. It’s all true, even if you don’t like the main story or side quests. There’s always something to do in Skyrim. The diversity of locations matters as well. There are several types of “ruins” you can come across from caves to ancient Nord burial sites, to dwarven ruins and abandoned Imperial forts.

Most dungeons follow a similar pattern and overall design, but there’s something special and unique you can run into in most of them. Be it a side quest or a legendary item, you will never leave empty-handed.

Leveling system frees you from typical RPG archetypes

There are no classes in Skyrim. You are what you decide to play. If you decide that you want to focus on the stealthy mage, you can do that without discrimination. You don’t have to focus on skills that you don’t intend to utilize, but you need to level them in order to progress.

There’s no pre-set anything. You can raise whatever skill you want even if it includes playing as a stealthy-tank type of character. You might not be the most efficient when it comes to combat but the game will certainly not punish you by playing as such.

Combat is a bit underwhelming

One more criticized aspect of the game, but nothing that mods can’t fix. Even though Skyrim introduced visually enhanced combat and dual wielding/casting it still felt like a downgrade compared to prior games. It has no real depth since all you need to do is swing/cast in the general direction of the enemy until you reduce its health to zero.

For casual players who don’t want to overthink combat, it’s perfect. For players looking for more depth, there are plenty of mods to overhaul both melee, ranged, and magic-oriented combat and if you’re really underwhelmed by the ease of combat, you can always play at legendary difficulty.

There are plenty of factions you can join

Skyrim features a faction for every type of player imaginable. Do you want to join a college of mages? You can do that. Do you want to join the ranks of thieves? Done. Want to play as an assassin and execute the emperor? You can do that. How about a band of honorable warriors? There are Companions for you. However, if you’ve played the previous Elder Scrolls installments you might notice that factions in Skyrim were really badly done (with the exception of Dark Brotherhood).

The storylines were too short in my opinion and due to that, it feels ridiculous that I get “elected” to lead the best mages/fighters/thieves that Skyrim has seen in a matter of few quests. There is so much more to factions than a few short nonsensical quests. The faction design was rushed and it shows. Once again, if you’re not looking for depth, you’re going to be fine with it. If you expect factions like they were done in Morrowind, oh boy you will be disappointed.

There’s plenty of stuff to craft

Skyrim can be the perfect crafting simulator if you focus enough. It’s one of the aspects of the game that was done excellently, even though potion-making in Kingdom Come simply ruined all other alchemy systems for me.

It’s not as detailed as in some other games but there are plenty of potions, armor, weapons, and other items to craft. You can enchant as well although the possibility of creating your own enchantments and spells has been removed. And I consider this a downgrade when compared to Oblivion or Morrowind.

Skyrim has mods

This is the feature that honestly kept Skyrim alive for so long. No matter how many times you finish the game, if you return in a few months and check out new mods there’s bound to be something new and interesting available that will entice you to re-install the game. From graphics mods to immersion mods to various combat overhauls, everything can be modded in Skyrim.

And that’s about it. Considering everything that was said, Skyrim is still a fun game and worth playing. Especially if you decide to use mods that greatly enhance the game and improve its replayability. Have something to add? Let us know in the comments below!