Lead producer Craig Lafferty of Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim has revealed that the main quest line in the RPG is "30 hours or so," and the world explorable from the start. He estimates the additional content, like side questing and dungeon exploring, is worth about "two to three hundred hours" more. Skyrim has 70 voice over actors.
Analyst Michael Pachter of Wedbush Morgan says that this November may only see release slips from Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Saints Row: The Third. They're the "only ones that have any risk" attached to them. Bethesda may slip to launch "when it's ready", but it's a "very low probability" at this stage.
Bethesda's Todd Howard says one of the reasons they choose Xbox 360 to demo games at tradeshows, like at E3 2011, is because of the 'easier logistics'. Also console demos provide a "good baseline for people", so showing PC later means it's "going to go up" which is better than the other way around.
Todd Howard, game director for Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, has said they while there's no definitive plan for DLC right now they do agree its direction. They want future downloadable adventures to have an "expansion pack feel." Previous Bethesda DLC has been "really successful" - 'less is more'.
Todd Howard, game director at Bethesda, has revealed there are plans for mod tools for console Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim but they haven't worked it out yet. There's a danger a downloaded mod "destroys your game", so how do they safeguard the system? They've "not solved - even on paper yet" - game security.
Pete Hines, Bethesda's VP of marketing and PR, says they've been acquiring studios to beef up their internal capacity for videogame projects - that's the goal. They've also been offering publishing deals with developers too. They "look to find and work with" studios that "share common" philosophy with Bethesda.
Todd Howard of Bethesda says they kept certain past Elder Scrolls features from previous games out of Skyrim "for the same reasons" as they did Oblivion. Some weapons didn't make the cut either because of "priority and development time". Levitation was booted for "better gameplay spaces and scenarios".
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim may have more quests, but the focus of the game will be sharper than previous Elder Scrolls titles. In the words of lead designer Bruce Nesmith, the game will be "telling one story well."
In an interview with Gamasutra, Bethesda wants to reassure fans that The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim won't be "dumbed down", and not to mistake making the game "less confusing" with making it "more accessible" (which has become a code-word for "dumbed down for the masses".)
Sorry there RPG chums but Bethesda has ruled out a demo for Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim as it would be "gigantic", as otherwise you couldn't sample the 'true game'. The sheer "size and complexity" of Skyrim means it's "really hard to do a demo", and so the team will skip it. QuakeCon is the next destination for Skyrim tasters.
It seems North American gamers won't be the only ones to get a chance to purchase the upcoming Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion 5th Anniversary Edition, which was released in the US earlier this month.
Bethesda Softworks vice president of marketing Pete Hines is critzing publishers and developers who shoehorn multiplayer into their games that doing such a thing is "a waste of time" and advises, "Just drop it, don't bother…it'll make for a worse game."
Bethesda has announced that it will be demoing three games at their public booth at Gamescom, which takes place from August 17 to 21. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Rage and Prey 2 will be making an appearance at the games convention.
If you were wondering what journalists were shown behind closed doors at E3 2011 of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Hooked Gamers has posted some of the raw gameplay footage that was recorded there, with no developer commentary or soundtrack.
The Collector's Edition for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is now available for preorder.
Todd Hollenshead of id Software, now owned by Bethesda, says it wasn't an "either or" thing when their studio was acquired - id sticks with FPS, Bethesda RPG. There's plenty of "cross-over interest" between studio fans with Skyrim performing extremely well at QuakeCon. They have "better games as a result" of buyout.
Slowly but surely, more details are trickling out from Bethesda about The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, as the release approaches roughly three months from now.
There's nothing like a videogames convention to thump the corporate chest. Microsoft is keen to remind us all that their "ambition is to be the number one console". Also they've got some games coming for Xbox 360 and Kinect over the next year. There's first and third-party goodness like Halo and Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
Bethesda has announced via Twitter that The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim will be using Steamworks on PC. The announcement reads simply, "We can confirm today that we're using Steamworks for Skyrim".
CD Projekt RED hope that The Witcher 2 for Xbox 360 will "gain interest of mature" gamers on Xbox 360, and help dispel the idea that heavy-RPGs are PC only. It's maybe "tradition a little bit" that story-heavy RPGs only survive on PC, as that's where they began. The studio is unsure - it could be a "different group" issue.