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Skyrim v1.9 beta live on Steam, adds Legendary skills and difficulty
The latest version of Skyrim is up and running in beta mode on Steam, available to those who opt-in through their Steam clients now. Aside from various bug fixes, the update adds a new Legendary difficulty mode and the ability to roll skills at level 100 into Legendary status, resetting those skills to level 15 for continued development.Console versions of Skyrim should get version 1.9 later on this month, the Bethesda Blog says. Last month, the PS3 version of Skyrim was updated to 1.8 and finally started catching up on DLC, culminating in the release of Dawnguard on February 26.
Prepare for Skyrim Dragonborn DLC on PS3 with update 1.8 today
In preparation of tomorrow's descent of Dragonborn DLC onto PS3, a new Skyrim update is available for download today. Version 1.8 not only prepares the game for the DLC, but institutes a few general bug fixes, including a game crash when using the "vampiric grip" ability and instances where duplicate NPCs would show up in the game world.Tomorrow kicks off a three-week release schedule for Skyrim DLC on PS3, catching up the platform first with Dragonborn, followed by Hearthfire on February 19 and Dawnguard on February 26. Since September, Sony and Bethesda have been working together to bring the tardy DLC packs to PS3.
PSA: Skyrim Dragonborn DLC now on Steam
Just a reminder for those of you who forgot to pre-order, Skyrim's Dragonborn DLC is now available on Steam. The DLC, which adds a brand new island to explore, plenty of new quests and lots of content, will set you back 20 bucks. If you haven't heard, it's pretty good.
Skyrim PS3 DLC dated for Europe
Ye European knight of Skyrim, your wait is almost over - as long as you're not French, Italian, German, or Spanish. Yes, the PS3's three Skyrim DLC expansions arrive on Europe's PSN, as usual, a day after they do in North America. That means Dragonborn slashes on February 13, Hearthfire pierces a week after on February 20, and one week after that it's Dawnguard gutting on February 27.However, it looks like players with the French, Italian, German, or Spanish releases of the game might have to wait a bit longer, as Bethesda says it's working with Sony to finalize dates for these versions.
Skyrim PS3 DLC dated for North America
Bethesda confirmed the North American release dates for the PS3's long-overdue Skyrim DLC expansions today. Dragonborn is first up on February 12, followed by Hearthfire a week after on February 19, with Dawnguard finishing things up on February 26.As Bethesda announced last month, each expansion is going half-off during the week of its release, although the publisher has yet to announce specific prices. Meanwhile, the PC release of Dragonborn is scheduled for February 5.
Elder Scrolls, Fallout and other Bethesda soundtracks now on iTunes
Now that's what we call Dragonborn music, Vol. 1. Bethesda Softworks has released seven of its game soundtracks to the mom and pop record shop known as "iTunes."The Elder Scrolls soundtracks, all composed by Jeremy Soule, include Morrowind and Oblivion for $9.99 each, while Skyrim asks an imperial premium at $15.99.Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas, both by Inon Zur, are $11.99 apiece. Daniel Licht's soundtrack for Dishonored and Rod Abernethy's RAGE are $9.99 each.If you're trying to use the Elder Scrolls tracks in a surreal experience, try playing them on your iPod while walking around a city. Everything's so ... majestic.%Gallery-177751%
Skyrim's Dragonborn DLC pre-orders start up on Steam
Skyrim's Dragonborn DLC is now available for pre-order on Steam for $19.99. The add-on will be available February 5 for PC players, and will unlock for those that pre-order the DLC.Dragonborn made an appearance on Xbox 360 in December, and will land on PS3 in February. %Gallery-170995%
Skyrim's Dragonborn hits PC Feb. 5, PS3 in February along with Hearthfire, Dawnguard
Skyrim DLC Dragonborn comes to PC on February 5, and to PS3 sometime in the same month. The PS3 also finally gets the Hearthfire and Dawnguard expansions, with both expected to arrive in February as well. In what's seemingly a gesture to compensate for their delays, each expansion on PSN is half-price during its launch week. Dragonborn's arrival on PS3 in February will mark the first piece of Skyrim DLC for the system, some eight or so months after the first add-on, Dawnguard, came to Xbox 360. PS3 players waited with very little word about when any DLC was going to arrive, until today.
Skyrim, Oblivion wield deal-blades in Elder Scrolls sale on Xbox Live [update]
Looking for a last-minute getaway destination before 2013 grinds into gear? Why not try the lush, wildlife-infused terrains of Tamriel, on sale today on Xbox Live Airlines? Just don't forget to bring your dragon repellent. Yes, the last Countdown to 2013 deal of the year brings discounts for Oblivion and Skyrim on Games on Demand, as well as their DLC.Today's deal slashes Skyrim's price in half to $29.99, as well as taking 50 percent out of the Hearthfire and Dawnguard add-ons. However, at the time of writing Hearthfire is still at the regular 400 MSP, although Xbox spokestype Major Nelson indicates the price should lower later today, Dawnguard is rightfully half-off of 800 MSP.Meanwhile Oblivion gets a 33-percent-sized chunk ripped out of it, that taking the previous Elder Scrolls game down to $9.99. There are discounts for its DLC too, with the Shivering Isles and Knights of the Nine add-ons half-price at 600 and 200 MSP respectively.Update: The Hearthfire DLC is now at the indicated on-sale price of 200 MSP.
Skyrim - Dragonborn review: Miraak-ulous
The first thing I did in Solstheim was kill a cop.I didn't want to. I was trying to steal a key to a jail cell. I didn't know what was in the cell--I just knew I wouldn't be able to open it otherwise. I guess I'm a bad thief, as the Dunmer guard immediately pulled his sword. My housecarl and I made quick work of him.I took the key, searched the cell and found a hidden passage. There was also a bed. I hadn't slept in over a year, literally, since whenever I last played Skyrim, so I took a nap before searching that hidden passage. Bad idea: I woke up in a daze, far away from the cell, on the outskirts of the town I was visiting, dutifully hammering on a giant monolith called the Earth Stone. Something, or someone, had transported me in my sleep. The Earth Stone had been taken over by the cult of Miraak, the ancient Dragonborn turned false God who wanted me dead. I probably shouldn't have killed that cop.%Gallery-170995%
PSA: Skyrim, XCOM, Max Payne 3 DLC available today
It's a big day for big games to get comparatively smaller add-ons.The Skyrim "Dragonborn" DLC launches today on Xbox 360; you'll have to wait until next year to play it on PS3 and PC. XCOM: Enemy Unknown players on all platforms can recruit Zhang today in the "Slingshot" DLC. And Max Payne 3 players can unearth the title character's "Painful Memories" with a set of new multiplayer maps and weapons, though he'd probably prefer leaving them repressed.He's kind of a downer as it is.
Skyrim's 'Dragonborn' DLC flies to PC, PS3 in 2013; on tap tomorrow for Xbox 360
Bethesda Softworks confirmed that Skyrim's "Dragonborn" downloadable content add-on is expected to launch "early next year" on PS3 and PC. The add-on is scheduled to launch tomorrow for Xbox 360, as part of Skyrim's exclusivity window for the platform.The PC launch falls in line with previously released Skyrim packs "Dawnguard" and "Hearthfire," while the PS3 announcement is a bit of a surprise. Although the publisher had previously stated DLC was "close" for PS3, this latest announcement only recognizes "Dragonborn." We've followed up with Bethesda for clarification and will update when we hear back.Update: Bethesda responded to our specific request for clarification about "Dawnguard" and "Hearthfire" for PS3 by stating: "We think Dragonborn is our best add-on for Skyrim yet and we didn't want fans to wait long, so that's our current focus. Each platform takes a lot of time and attention."%Gallery-170995%
Struggling with The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim one year later
This is a weekly column from freelancer Rowan Kaiser, which focuses on "Western" role-playing games: their stories, their histories, their mechanics, their insanity, and their inanity. This week Rowan explores the one-year anniversary of Skyrim, a game that – despite critical and commercial success, including a 5-star review from Joystiq – he still can't get a good handle on. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim hit the first anniversary of its 2011 release this month. Despite a year's worth of play, criticism, mods, and add-ons, I still don't have a good handle on Skyrim in its entirety. It's a game that I'm happy to have played, and recommend highly to anyone who might enjoy it and can afford it. But it's also a game that I give up on fairly quickly, every time I start a new character.The reason I want Skyrim to hold my interest is because I have a strong, positive gut reaction to much of what Skyrim does. Some of my favorite occasions in games occur when you come to an overlook and catch a moment of sheer beauty. When you wander into a snow-covered town and the music gently plays in the background. When game systems combine and something new emerges from what had been previously predictable. In these moments the experience feels just right. Moments like this help to enhance the experience, unfolding into something grand.And Skyrim is full of these occasions. Bethesda's latest title in the longstanding franchise has the relative beauty of Ultima VII, the magic of Daggerfall, and the emergent narrative of Far Cry 2. I get sequences in Skyrim where I'm faced with an impending dragon attack, introducing a beast much too powerful for my character. Worried about my survival, I duck into a tomb for safety only to be greeted by the most powerful undead adversary I've yet to meet. Stuck between both, and at the edge of a cliff, I fall and hope to catch tiny ledges on my way down. If I survive, the music calms and I can limp into town to lick my wounds and consider my next step.
Sega fighters this week on Xbox Live, Dragonborn, Tony Hawk DLC next week
Xbox Live's Major Nelson has released the list of content coming to Xbox Live over the next few weeks. It all kicks off today with a trip of Sega fighters launching on Xbox Live Arcade: Virtua Fighter 2, Sonic the Fighters and Fighting Vipers. You can take your pick at 400 MS Points ($5) each, half the initial asking price. Guardians of Middle Earth will make its trek to Xbox Live Arcade on December 5. The Revert DLC for Tony Hawk's Pro Skater HD also drops in on December 5 for 400 MS Points ($5). Finally, that week will also see the debut of Skyrim's second DLC pack on Xbox Live, the 1600 MS Point ($20) Dragonborn expansion on December 4. On the savings front, this week's Deal of the Week revolves around GTA IV – the vanilla game starring cousin Niko is available through Games on Demand (price varies by region) with the Lost and Damned and Ballad of Gay Tony expansions being offered until December 3 for 400 MS Points and 800 MS Points each, respectively. Next week, from December 4 to the 10th, Deadliest Warrior and all of its DLC will be discounted. Additional Kinect-focused deals are available through Xbox Live's Sales & Specials app – this week Burnout Crash is on sale for 400 MS Points ($5) with next week's deals focusing on Ubisoft's stable of Kinect games.
What Skyrim looks like ... plus 100 or so mods
You might like the look of Skyrim already, but with 100 mods running – like custom character models and over 25 landscape augmentations – you might spend more time taking in the beauty than slaying the dragons. Wait, now the dragons are beautiful too?
Skyrim Dragonborn screens hatched
Skyrim's "Dragonborn" downloadable content flies in December 4 on Xbox 360 and we've conjured up a gallery of shots for the expansion. Taking place off the coast of Morrowind, on the island of Solstheim, adventurers with all limbs functioning will find all-new locales and baddies.The new DLC, priced at 1600 Microsoft Points ($20), also includes new shouts and the ability to tame dragons. Oh yeah, you'll also have to face off against the first Dragonborn, but we're sure you've got the knees for it.%Gallery-170995%
Skyrim DLC 'close' for PS3, says Bethesda
The Bethesda Game Studios Twitter account stated yesterday the company was close to releasing new Skyrim content on PlayStation 3 and PC. The tweet is in reference to the latest bit of DLC with an Xbox 360 exclusivity window, but it's the first real glimmer of hope PS3 owners have had for Skyrim DLC, which has yet to make its way to the console.The latest update we had on Skyrim DLC for PS3 was in early October, when Bethesda VP of marketing and PR Pete Hines wrote on Twitter he had no new information on PS3 DLC and would share an update when he had one.We reached out to the company this morning to clarify that it was referring to the Dawnguard and Hearthfire DLC specifically for PS3. We'll update when we hear back.Update: Bethesda informs us it's not clarifying further. A rep tells us, "It simply is meant to inform fans new content is coming to PC and PS3."
Skyrim 'Dragonborn' DLC out on Xbox 360 Dec. 4
Bethesda has unveiled the latest downloadable "add-on" for Skyrim. "Dragonborn" will be released first on Xbox 360, with a December 4 release date and a 1,600 Microsoft Point price. The PS3 version will ... probably be a while.The trailer for the DLC shows off some of the new environments and enemies you'll be finding buckets in and putting buckets on, respectively.
Oblivion, Skyrim and expansions on sale through Xbox marketplace this week
Oblivion and Skyrim, along with their downloadable expansions, are on sale this week through the Xbox Live Marketplace for gold members. Oblivion is priced at $9.99, with DLC packs Shivering Isles and Knights of the Nine half-off for 600 ($7.50) and 200 ($2.50) Microsoft Points, respectively. Skyrim is currently priced at $44.99. The vampiric Dawnguard expansion is 25 percent off for 1200 MSP ($15), while the dovamestic Hearthfire content is $4 (320 MSP). The content is on fus-ro-discount until November 5.%Gallery-164235%
Skyrim Premium Edition planned for certain European territories
Skyrim Premium Edition was revealed earlier today on Amazon Germany, with Bethesda telling Joystiq the special bundle is not coming to the States. First noticed by Examiner, the bundle includes a world map, T-shirt, postcards, physical novel and a bonus disk with special features.Bethesda tells us the premium edition is "only available in certain territories in Europe," going on to specifically list Germany, UK and Benelux.The pack does not appear to contain any of Skyrim's previously released downloadable content. Skyrim's previous DLC included Dawnguard and Hearthfire, it's currently speculated the next piece of DLC will be called Dragonborn.
