Today, we not only celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, we celebrate the masterfully expansive world of the best-selling single-player RPG ever released. It’s honestly crazy to think Skrim was released 10 years ago, I can remember playing it for the first time at Pax Prime 2011 like it was yesterday.
We had the amazing opportunity to schedule a one-hour play session at the Bethesda booth during the show, I remember walking onto the show floor and seeing the massive booth Bethesda had built that year. On one side of the booth, you had RAGE and the since canceled SY-FY/Bounty Hunter style PREY title. On the other side of the booth, you had a massive Elder Scrolls section that had Alduin’s Wall and a gigantic real-life Alduin hanging above the booth.
I can remember the excitement of waking up and seeing this. I didn’t think “how much did they spend on that”, I thought “HOLY FUCK ITS THE SKYRIM DRAGON!” and that is exactly what Bethesda wanted from this booth. Once we were sat down by the pr rep in this small black box, she then told us we got to play Skyrim for a full hour and do whatever we wanted in the game.
The sheer scope of the game was shocking to me, I couldn’t believe how large the map was and all the choices you could make in the world. The fact that we had been playing the same game for the last hour and were playing out completely different scenarios in the world was just baffling.
I know that a lot of gamers had played other RPGs before Skyrim was released, but I mainly played more linear story-based games. So when I really dove into Skyrim I was hooked for years to come. I was so hooked that my wife even started to get obsessed with the game.
We would have competitions to see who would go the longest not dying on the hardest difficulty, stay up together to complete compelling story arcs, or just take turns finding secrets in the world. Hell, we loved the game so much we decided to get our wedding bands themed around the game!
We love all that Skyrim has offered us over these last 10 years of our lives and I can’t wait to dive back into this wonderful game once again. I have played back through the game roughly 14 times since it launched on five different consoles. That might be a bit of an overkill, but I’m just totally obsessed with this game, and its fascinating world.
The fact that I can now play the game at higher frame rates, better graphical fidelity, and with more content than ever before is hands down the best reason for me to play this game from the beginning for the 15th time!
With all that said, The Anniversary Edition of Skyrim has now launched on all major platforms and comes bundled with the complete Skyrim Special Edition, all previously released Creation Club creations, four extra free creations, new quests like ‘Ghosts of the Tribunal’, ‘The Cause,’ armor sets, weapons, and more!
To upgrade to the Anniversary Edition of the game, owners of the Special Edition will have to pay $19.99, or if you don’t own the game $49.99. This is a great deal for any Elder Scrolls fan that has been waiting to dive back into the world of Skyrim.
Lastly, Bethesda also graced its fans with a fantastic 10th Anniversary Concert performed by the London Symphony Orchestra and London Voices. This is an hour-long concert playing some of the best music from Elder Scrolls Skyrim and is a must-watch.
At the end of the video, Todd Howard surprises fans with the first-ever live concert for their upcoming title Starfield! This is the first music we have heard from the game and it has been confirmed that Inon Zur (Composer for The Fallout Series & Elder Scrolls: Blades) will be composing the music for Starfield. We also were able to see a ton of amazing concept art for the upcoming game! So let’s take a look and bask in the glory that is Bethesda!
Free Creations for All Skyrim SE Owners
Current and future owners of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim Special Edition on any platform including Xbox Game Pass Subscribers will receive access to four free pieces of Creation Club content: Fishing, Rare Curious, Survival Mode, and even new quests with Saints and Seducers.Saints & Seducers
Originally released in 2019, this Creation introduces an additional storyline across two quests (complete with side quests) for players to delve into. With additional armor sets, weapons, enemies and much more to discover, Saints & Seducers features some of the largest amounts of content we’ve ever packed into a single creation.Rare Curios
Included as part of Saints & Seducers, the Rare Curios Creation brings additional goods imported from all over Tamriel to Skyrim’s Khajiit Caravans. So long as you have coin, these merchants can supply you with all sorts of useful wares, including ingredients to concoct special potions, arrows, and poisons.Survival Mode
Previously released in 2017, the Survival Mode Creation has your Dragonborn contend with the very elements of Skyrim itself to survive! Players must wear warm gear and seek shelter in cold climates to keep from freezing to death, as well as mind their hunger and exhaustion on top of the usual threats like pesky bandits and ambushing dragons. Survival Mode offers a fresh challenge and a new way to experience Skyrim for returning and new players alike.Fishing
Skyrim’s all-new Fishing mode Creation lets you angle over 20 unique aquatic species across the area’s many bodies of water. Cook your catch for a meal, display it as trophy in your den or even keep it inside your own home aquarium. With many of Skyrim’s fishing spots located in the region’s most breathtaking and tranquil spots.
